First published in 1935, "War is a Racket" was written by the eccentric Medal of Honor winner (twice) and war hero, Marine General Smedley D. Butler. We became aware of the book through numerous recommendations from readers, read it, and decided, despite Butler's mid-30s isolationist bent, it was well worth recommending.
Why? Because Butler is the rare career professional who had an epiphany and realized that he was being used as a cog in a machine, and that the people running the machine (in this case the war machine) could care less about him or any other soldier. Butler doesn't mince words: "I spent 33 years in the Marines, most of my time being a high-class muscle man for big business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer for Capitalism." Whoa, hold onto your hats!
Smedley was one of those colorful, dashing characters that you don't run into anymore in the age of homogenized branding. He even allegedly exposed and prevented a right wing Wall Street coup against Franklin D. Roosevelt, early on in his administration.
But his chief claim to fame is this book, which pulls no punches. Butler's basic thesis is that war is an industry, something that Dwight D. Eisenhower would eventually echo in his famous parting plea to beware of the "military-industrial" complex. Let's just say, this is a book Rumsfeld and Cheney would have burned in a bonfire. Butler knew too much about how men like them operate.
War is a Racket: The Anti-War Classic by America's Most Decorated General (Paperback)
by Smedley D. Butler
BuzzFlash accepts:
Choose your donation level, add any applicable options, then click the "Add To Cart" button next to the amount you want to Donate. Thank you for supporting BuzzFlash.
