Imperialism is the making of empires. It has the same character whether you talk about the Greek, Roman, French, Spanish, Dutch, British, Soviet or currently the American Empire. The American Empire is of course not acknowledged as such. This is entirely normal – Britain called their empire the “Commonwealth” – if you compare the wealth and living standards of Britain with its colonies, does it look like the “Wealth” was held in “Common”?
Imperialism, the subjugation of a Nation of people under a foreign State, has not been around since the beginning of time. We have knowledge of nomadic lifestyles not orientated around the acquisition of property – for example the nomadic lifestyles of Nordic and Mongol tribes such as the Aryans and the Huns.
The first evidence of city culture in the world is the Maya cities of Central America from Mexico down to Peru, predating even Sumeria by 4000 years. Sumeria, between the rivers Euphrates and Tigris in Mesopotamia (now Iraq) is already well-developed into City States before the start of the Egyptian history of the Pharaohs.
Even city culture, before it evolves into hierarchal states, only goes back to the Mayans in the Americas and the Sumerians in Asia. Before 10,000 BC there is no evidence of city culture, far less is there evidence for the centralised power of States. States are not a pre-condition of human existence. Over the huge span of intelligent human history, the Nation State is but a recent tradition. The making of empires is not a natural innate condition, a theme which points to investigating the alternatives that existed before it. This is the purpose of the second book of this work.
Imperialism was first perfected by the Greeks in their own country, forming the first Nation State. The Romans went further, centralising power and exporting the model to form its empire not only at home but, for the first time, abroad. Imperialism is a 2,600 year old tradition with the current winners always proclaiming that previous empires were corrupt but that this one has the best intentions.
The Romans did it to spread the fine words of Christianity. Hitler did it – he invaded Czechoslovakia to save the Czechs from themselves. The U.S.A does the same – it declares the highest intentions while the historical record reveals nothing but the murder and repression of the local people and the stealing of their resources onto the U.S.-dominated International export markets.
History is important in explaining such claims, while Propaganda (the opposite of history) disguises them. So with Vietnam, the American State Propaganda said “We go to protect the world against communism” while History said “They invaded Vietnam without any international agreement or peaceful negotiations in order to strengthen the position of their own brutal dictator, and to terrorise the people and claim the resources for the elites of the American Empire. But they lost.” History is a great inconvenience for propaganda..
Imperialism is a vast concept but may be a little easier to understand when viewed at a more domestic scale. It can be compared to aggravated robbery. First, break in then murder the strongest, terrorise, brutalise, subjugate and enslave the remaining residents. Exploit, torture, rape, imprison, dispossess, plunder and leave.
Except with imperialism there are two differences. First the victims are portrayed as savages to make it OK – you’re doing them a favour by replacing their form of self-government with your “superior” imposed version while you make better use of their possessions than these poor savages could ever manage. Secondly, you don’t leave – you stay as long as possible stealing and subjugating the people to your will. If you do ever leave the house, you appoint the weakest and most easily manipulated resident as the Manager and give him a gun to ensure that any remaining possessions continue to be handed over.
Imagine the individual criminal up in court on the charge of aggravated robbery saying in his own defence.. “I did it to protect freedom and democracy, to make them understand the values of the West. I did it to fight communism and terrorism in the name of God. I saved them from themselves. I did it to bring them into the twentieth century. I took only what they had no use for. I left them a Bible. After I shot the father and the mother (because they were communist savages), I sent Aid workers to give the children a Bible and a can of fizzy pop to heal their savage minds and quench their thirst.”
All these excuses and more have been given for the sponsorship of genocide and mass exploitation of the resident population.
Imperialism is the biggest cause of death and injustice. The modern inheritors of this tradition, judged on sheer scale of abuse against humanity are the United States of America, at the head of the Western Alliance, who the record amply shows, sponsor a network of foreign client Dictators around the Globe.
There are of course other empires being constructed on a lesser scale in our era by Russia, China, India and so on. We need no convincing that their empires are “axes of evil”, and that we ourselves as part of the Western Alliance are at all times well intentioned. And the good citizens of China will hold the exact opposite opinion based on the contents of their newspapers and on what they choose to believe of themselves as a Nation.
We need no convincing of the error of the good Chinese citizen. The evidence would suggest that we ourselves are also making an error. As the record will show this is not the battle of good versus evil. It is more appropriately entitled the Battle of Evil versus Evil.
And so to the evidence. The Western Imperialist and his allies at work.
In each of the following short histories, we are looking to observe whether the resident power is a U.S. client dictator or whether the country is sovereign, i.e. being run by its own people. And then to see how well the people are doing as a result.
The crucial indicators of a successful Government are national indicators of mortality and literacy. Economic growth reflects gains by tiny minorities and does not necessarily reflect national progress. Globalisation and neoliberalism have amply shown that the largest profits are to be made by outsourcing the costs of labour to the cheapest available workforce. Heavy foreign investment, especially under the draconian conditions insisted upon by the IMF and the World Bank, means cuts in public spending and is therefore the opposite of progress, assistance, aid or whatever else the International Agencies like to call it.
There are a few bright moments in recent South American history. Guatemala in the 1940s and 50s had a democratically elected Government before the U.S.-backed coup to install their dictator. And Nicaragua from 1979 when the Sandinistas ousted U.S. client dictator Somoza. Similarly in Chile, before the elected Government of Salvador Allende was ousted in 1964 by U.S. favourite General Pinochet. And in the Caribbean, the Republic of Haiti, in between Spanish and American imperialism during the last century, staged the first successful national Slave Revolt in History in order to run their own affairs in their own interest. And most famously since 1st January, 1959 right through to today, Cuba ousted US client Dictator Batista. Grenada also had a few ideas about Caribbean nations protecting themselves and their resources (via a Trade Agreement called CARICOM) from Uncle Sam before they were invaded by the US “to rescue some students”.
These examples are referred to as bright moments under the criterion that these countries arrived for the first time in a position to determine their own futures free from American interference.
There are more recent and current examples where in Venezuela and Bolivia, American efforts continue to prevent the very worst outcome from the U.S. point of view – countries with national governments looking to utilise their own wealth for the benefit of their own people. What would happen to U.S. interests abroad should such a nightmare spread to more and more countries?
It is also useful to read about the nineteenth century to see how marauding neo-American hordes set about clearing the north American continent of the native people who they found in their way. And to complete the picture of Imperialism in the Americas, to read about the three centuries prior to that when the bayonet job on the locals was carried out by the British and the Spanish ably accompanied by other willing imperialists, mercenaries, aggravated burglars, and assorted other opportunists. Call them what you will – they are not over there protecting the interests of the Natives.
Useful comparative material on U.S. (fascist) foreign policy to establish its Global pattern of domination can be found by reading about Europe, the Middle East and Africa since the First World War, which for the most part are not included here. There are plenty of other examples that expose the character of the U.S. Empire without even having to visit these vast regions.
Before the United States attained Global Superpower status, a comprehensive history of Imperialism will complete the wondrous picture of “civilisation” since private land and property came to be thought of as a workable concept at the origins of the State twenty six hundred short years ago.
A history of the 50,000 odd years of truly intelligent human history before mass murder, robbery and the State, will complete the picture of where the human race went tragically wrong. The second book of this work is about that hidden history and its modern purpose. Book 1 provides the evidence for why we need to reject militarised Nation States and roll back our “nature” of the last three millennia.. Book 2 outlines what the previous System, our previous “nature” was and how we can (and do) re-create it.