Pretensions to Empire: Notes on the Criminal Folly of the Bush Administration

Award-winning essay writer and editor emeritus of "Harper's Magazine" Lewis Lapham presents Pretensions to Empire: Notes on the Criminal Folly of the Bush Administration, a stinging indictment of the Bush-Cheney administration from its first days in Washington up to the present. Chronicling the presidency's abuses of power, and drawing upon the lessons of history to provide an ominous background to current events, Pretensions to Empire dissects the government's shameful incompetence in the wake of Hurricane Katrina; the copious, unwarranted domestic spying authorized by the president; and above all, the jingoism and pretensions to empire that prompted the administration's war in Iraq on shoddy intelligence. The resounding, passionate message is that the nation can no longer afford to tolerate George W. Bush or his cronies. Whether one agrees or disagrees with the author, his reasoning is compelling, measured, and completely accessible to readers of all backgrounds.

At the time of the US "mid-term" elections in the Autumn of 2006, the credibility of the Bush regime in that nation had reached nadir. The favouritism of its domestic policies and the false premise of its foreign wars prompted a belief in the need for "regime change". The exposure of the deceptions and illegal activities of the regime was largely due to such journalists as Lewis Lapham. Lapham lays bare the inconsistencies, evasions and falsehoods that Bush and his team have put forth during their time of governance. This collection of those columns makes dismal reading, but the information they present is invaluable. They are a requiem chorus of a once-admirable nation. Lapham, who wrote the "Notebook" column for Harper's Magazine for many years, was an early detector of the direction the Bush coalition was taking. That direction not only disturbed him for its potential results, Lapham was also alarmed at the lack of attention US media gave the trend. The fundamental issue, Lapham argues, is the attempt to transform a democratic republic into a global empire. Underlying this change is a document published in 1993 by Pentagon "officials" - officials who later played major roles in the Bush administration. The paper defined the US as the sole superpower - a power with the means and will to strike anywhere on the planet. Inhibiting or challenging that will was tantamount to treason if domestic, or tending to "terrorism" if external. The US would undergo a fundamental change resulting from the provisions of the document. "Terrorism" was already long in the US lexicon by the time the World Trade Center towers were struck. Yet, Lapham recognises that declaring a "war on terrorism" necessitates defining non-existent ideology, then countering its adherents. Because the WTC attacks were carried out from within the US, one tactic must be the close surveillance of the domestic population. Lapham asserts that the implementation of that policy is turning the US into a "quiescent police state". This new condition is exacerbated by the economic policies of the government which enlarges the chasm between corporate wealth and real income for the less well-off. He is clear that, irrespective of which individual is in the White House or which party that individual represents, it is the shift from the traditional ideals of his country that alarms him. He wants others to share his concern, since once those ideals are demolished, their reconstruction will be a long, monumental task shared by all citizens. Lapham's keening is a lament for lost principles. His conclusion, that Bush must be brought to account for ignoring or violating his Oath of Office, may be an act of political redemption, but it will not shift attitudes in the US very much. Lapham seems convinced that by placing Bush on a sacrificial political alter will restore the past. He ignores the fact that the legislation enacted by the regime will remain on the books unless repeale

Lewis Lapham's notes reveal the perspective of a deeply informed man on the current republican mess, written with elegance and brillance. "How does one reconcile the demand for small government with the desire for an imperial army,[...] match the warmhearted currencies of "conservatism compassion" with the cold cruelty of "the unfettered free market", know that human life must be saved from abortionists in Boston but not from cruise missiles in Baghdad?" The essays cover the whole affair, from the rise of conservative propaganda to the last proofs of incompetence(or crimes) of the Bush administration. An instructive, captivating, refreshing critic worth to be read.

Lapham's monthly essays for Harper's were always some of the best writing of the magazine. This collection from the last four years touches on "Empire" only as a basic theme for the unending expansion of American militarism and loss of demestic freedoms. Lapham is an acute observer, bringing his usual brilliant insights into the American political, social and international scenes. The book will make you think, will remind you of missed opportunities caused by the Bush Administration's actions and give you a perspective on what the American nation may be like in just a few years. Highly recommend.