The New Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
8. See Jim Brunner, “Labor Group Disinvites Inslee over Boeing Tensions,” Seattle Times, July 20, 2015, www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/labor-group-disinvites-inslee-over-boeing-tensions; and Mike Baker, “Boeing to Throw Party to Thank Washington Lawmakers for $8.7B,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 4, 2014, www.stltoday.com/business/local/boeing-to-throw-party-to-thank-washington-lawmakers-for-b/article_6d191691-9f07-5063-8e67-c2808ad4b302.html.
9. Greg LeRoy, “Site Location 101: How Companies Decide Where to Expand or Relocate,” chap. 2 in The Great American Jobs Scam: Corporate Tax Dodging and the Myth of Job Creation (San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler, 2005); and Leroy, “Fantus and the Rise of the Economic War among the States,” chap. 3 in The Great American Jobs Scam.
10. Philip Mattera and Kasia Tarczynska, with Greg LeRoy, “Megadeals: The Largest Economic Development Subsidy Packages Ever Awarded by State and Local Governments in the United States,” Good Jobs First, June 2013, www.goodjobsfirst.org/sites/default/files/docs/pdf/megadeals_report.pdf.
11. Damian Carrington and Harry Davies, “US Taxpayers Subsidising World’s Biggest Fossil Fuel Companies,” Guardian, May 12, 2015, www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/may/12/us-taxpayers-subsidising-worlds-biggest-fossil-fuel-companies.
12. Andrea Germanos, “‘Corporate Influence Has Won’: House Passes Anti-GMO Labeling Bill,” Common Dreams, July 23, 2015, www.commondreams.org/news/2015/07/23/corporate-influence-has-won-house-passes-anti-gmo-labeling-bill.
13. Deirdre Fulton, “Exposed: How Walmart Spun an ‘Extensive and Secretive Web’ of Overseas Tax Havens,” Common Dreams, June 17, 2015, www.commondreams.org/news/2015/06/17/exposed-how-walmart-spun-extensive-and-secretive-web-overseas-tax-havens.
14. Clare O’Connor, “Report: Walmart Workers Cost Taxpayers $6.2 Billion in Public Assistance,” Forbes, April 15, 2014, www.forbes.com/sites/clareoconnor/2014/04/15/report-walmart-workers-cost-taxpayers-6-2-billion-in-public-assistance.
15. Greg Palast, Maggie O’Kane, and Chavala Madlena, “Vulture Funds Await Jersey Decision on Poor Countries’ Debts,” Guardian, November 15, 2011, www.theguardian.com/global-development/2011/nov/15/vulture-funds-jersey-decision.
16. “Vulture Funds Case Study,” Jubilee USA Network, 2007, www.jubileeusa.org/vulturefunds/vulture-fund-country-studies.html.
17. Palast, O’Kane, and Madlena, “Vulture Funds Await Jersey Decision.”
18. Joseph Stiglitz, “Sovereign Debt Needs International Supervision,” Guardian, June 16, 2015, www.theguardian.com/business/2015/jun/16/sovereign-debt-needs-international-supervision.
19. Laura Shin, “The 85 Richest People in the World Have as Much Wealth as the 3.5 Billion Poorest,” Forbes, January 23, 2014, www.forbes.com/sites/laurashin/2014/01/23/the-85-richest-people-in-the-world-have-as-much-wealth-as-the-3-5-billion-poorest.
Chapter 44. Who Are Today’s Jackals?
1. Sarah Lazare, “‘You Have a Choice’: Veterans Call On Drone Operators to Refuse Orders,” Common Dreams, June 19, 2015, www.commondreams.org/news/2015/06/19/you-have-choice-veterans-call-drone-operators-refuse-orders.
2. “Top US General: Drones Are ‘Failed Strategy’ That ‘Cause More Damage,’” Democracy Now!, July 17, 2015, www.democracynow.org/2015/7/17/headlines/top_us_general_drones_are_failed_strategy_that_cause_more_damage.
3. Mark Mazzetti et al., “SEAL Team 6: A Secret History of Quiet Killings and Blurred Lines,” New York Times, June 6, 2015, www.nytimes.com/2015/06/07/world/asia/the-secret-history-of-seal-team-6.html.
4. “Is There a Drone in Your Neighbourhood? Rise of Spy Planes Exposed after FAA Is Forced to Reveal 63 Launch Sites across US,” Mail Online, April 2012, www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2134376/Is-drone-neighbourhood-Rise-killer-spy-planes-exposed-FAA-forced-reveal-63-launch-sites-U-S.html.
5. “AP: FBI Using Low-Flying Spy Planes over US,” CBS News, June 2, 2015, www.cbsnews.com/news/ap-fbi-using-low-flying-spy-planes-over-us.
6. “NSA Spying on Americans,” Electronic Frontier Foundation, accessed July 24, 2015, www.eff.org/nsa-spying.
7. “Obama Bans Spying on Leaders of US Allies, Scales Back NSA Program,” Reuters, January 17, 2014, www.reuters.com/article/2014/01/18/us-usa-security-obama-idUSBREA0G0JI20140118.
8. James Ball, “NSA Monitored Calls of 35 World Leaders after US Official Handed over Contacts,” Guardian, October 25, 2013, www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/24/nsa-surveillance-world-leaders-calls.
9. “Statistics on the Private Security Industry,” Private Security Monitor, University of Denver, accessed August 12, 2015, psm.du.edu/articles_reports_statistics/data_and_statistics.html.
10. “30 Most Powerful Private Security Companies in the World,” Security Degree Hub, January 11, 2013, www.securitydegreehub.com/30-most-powerful-private-security-companies-in-the-world.
Chapter 45. Lessons for China
1. Daniel Cancel and Lester Pimentel, “Ecuador’s Audit Commission Finds ‘Illegality’ in Debt (Update 5),” Bloomberg.com, November 20, 2008, www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a8suBA8I.3ik.; and Mick Riordan et al., “Daily Brief: Economics and Financial Market Commentary,” Global Economic Monitor, December 16, 2008, www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2011/05/31/000356161_20110531005514/Rendered/PDF/612410NEWS0DEC0BOX0358349B00PUBLIC0.pdf.
2. Mercedes Alvaro, “China, Ecuador Sign $2 Billion Loan Deal,” Wall Street Journal, June 28, 2011, www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304314404576412373916029508.
3. There is disagreement over Ecuadorian debt and the way Chinese financing is interpreted. Some of this is due to divergent definitions of “loans” as opposed to “investments.” One interpretation is offered by Adam Zuckerman, who states, “Ecuador’s President Correa was well-rewarded for his trip last week to China, but this could have grave impacts for the Amazon and the people who live there. On Wednesday, Beijing agreed to lend Ecuador $7.53 billion to help the heavily oil-dependent economy cope with the recent drop in global crude prices. This latest sum — the largest China has ever lent Ecuador — brings Chinese financing to Ecuador to nearly $25 billion, over a quarter of the nation’s GDP. In 2013 Beijing provided 61 percent of Ecuador’s external financing and purchased 83 percent of Ecuador’s oil; this latest loan will undoubtedly bring both numbers much higher” (Zuckerman, “Eye on Ecuador: Racking Up the China Debt and Paying It Forward with Oil,” Amazon Watch, January 13, 2015, http://amazonwatch.org/news/2015/0113-racking-up-the-china-debt-and-paying-it-forward-with-oil). The Wall Street Journal analysis states, “Currently, China’s loans to Ecuador exceed $6 billion, including $1.7 billion to finance 85 percent of Coca Codo Sinclair, a hydropower plant to be built by China’s Sino-hydro Corp. in Ecuador, which will supply about 75 percent of the country’s energy needs” (Alvaro, “China, Ecuador Sign $2 Billion Loan Deal”). I’ve chosen to use the official government figures for debt, as reported in Ecuador’s El Commercio, July 29, 2015, “La prensa de EE.UU. alerta la dependencia de Ecuador a China.”
4. “Ecuador: Over 50% of Oil Exports Went to China in September,” Latin American Herald Tribune, May 23, 2015, http://laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=434747&CategoryId=14089.
5. Andrew Ross, “Why Is Ecuador Selling Its Economic and Environmental Future to China?,” The Nation, December 18, 2014, www.thenation.com/article/193249/why-ecuador-selling-its-economic-and-environmental-future-china.
6. Clifford Krauss and Keith Bradsher, “China’s Global Ambitions, with Loans and Strings Attached,” New York Times, July 24, 2015, www.nytimes.com/2015/07/26/business/international/chinas-global-ambitions-with-loans-and-strings-attached.html.
7. “Total Value of US Trade in Goods (Export and Import) with China from 2004 to 2014,” Statista, accessed July 24, 2015, www.statista.com/statistics/277679/total-value-of-us-trade-in-goods-with-china-since-2004.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Without the many people whose lives I shared and who are described in the previous pages, this book would not have been wr
itten. I am grateful for the experiences and the lessons.
Beyond them, I thank the people who encouraged me to go out on a limb and tell my original story: Stephan Rechtschaffen, Bill and Lynne Twist, Ann Kemp, and Art Roffey; so many of the people who participated in Dream Change trips and workshops, especially my co-facilitators Eve Bruce, Lyn Roberts, and Mary Tendall; and my incredible ex-wife and partner of thirty years, Winifred, and our daughter, Jessica.
I am grateful to the many men and women who provided personal insights and information about the multinational banks, international corporations, and political innuendos of various countries, with special thanks to Michael Ben-Eli, Sabrina Bologni, Juan Gabriel Carrasco, Jamie Grant, Paul Shaw, and several others, who wish to remain anonymous but who know who they are.
Once the manuscript for the first edition was written, Berrett-Koehler founder Steve Piersanti not only had the courage to take me in but also devoted endless hours as a brilliant editor, helping me to frame and reframe the book. My deepest thanks go to Steve; to Richard Perl, who introduced me to him; to Nova Brown, Randi Fiat, Allen Jones, Chris Lee, Jennifer Liss, Laurie Pellouchoud, and Jenny Williams, who read and critiqued the manuscript; to David Korten, who not only read and critiqued it but also made me jump through hoops to satisfy his high and excellent standards; to Paul Fedorko, my agent; to Valerie Brewster for crafting the book design; and to Todd Manza, a wordsmith and philosopher extraordinaire.
For this New Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, I want to thank Kiman Lucas, who encouraged me to keep going, organized and accompanied me on trips to countries she knows so well that played instrumental roles in the writing of this book, and whose fearless willingness to challenge my opinions, helped me immeasurably; my ex-wife, Winifred, who continues to support me in so many ways, whose generosity of heart seems limitless, and who is the wisest advisor any person could ever hope for; our daughter, Jessica, and grandson, Grant, who continue to empower me to do my best; Ali Yurtsever and Umut Tasa Yurtsever, Alper and Filiz Utku, and Berna Baykal, who facilitated my trips to Istanbul and are doing so much to change business and government leaders; Daniel Koupermann, who first connected me with the Achuar, made the Pachamama Alliance possible, and has been my friend and traveling partner on so many adventures; the people and leaders of the Achuar nation; once again, my literary agent Paul Fedorko, without whose ideas, editing skills, patience, and perseverance this book would not have been written; my publicists Peg Booth and Jessica Muto, who arranged so many of my speaking tours and media events; Becky Robinson and the team at Weaving Influence for working their magic on my website and social networking platforms, and Cathy Lewis and the team at C.S. Lewis & Co. Publicists, for their public relations expertise; my dear friend and the brilliant businessman Dan Wieden; my confidant and the genius entrepreneur Scott James; Dream Change’s inspirational guiding light and executive director, Samantha Thomas, and Llyn Roberts, who stepped back into my life at a time when her help was needed.
At Berrett-Koehler, I once again owe so very much to Steve Piersanti for his amazing and brilliant talent as an editorial coach and cheerleader and for sculpting and shaping this book; Jenny Williams, for researching and preparing the extensive “Documentation” section; Alana Price, for contributing many entries to the “Documentation” section as well as much other research; Anita Simha and Claire Pershan, BK editorial interns and manuscript reviewers; Charlotte Ashlock, Anna Leinberger, Jeevan Sivasubramaniam, David Marshall, Neal Maillet, and Steve Piersanti (members of BK’s Editorial Department); Kristen Frantz, Katie Sheehan, Michael Crowley, Shabnam Banerjee-McFarland, Matt Fagaly, Zoe Mackey, and Marina Cook (members of BK’s Sales and Marketing Department); María Jesús Aguiló, Catherine Lengronne, Johanna Vondeling, and Leslie Crandell (members of BK’s International Sales and Subsidiary Rights Department); Lasell Whipple, Courtney Schonfeld, and Edward Wade (members of BK’s Design and Production Department).
A special thanks to David Korten, Anita Simha, Lorna Garano, Mal Warwick, Maria Lewytzky-Milligan, Nic Albert, and Claire Pershan for reading the drafts of the manuscript and offering so many insightful suggestions and edits, and to radio broadcaster and author, Zohara Hieronimus, for suggesting to me the words “death economy” and “life economy.”
I must thank all those men and women who worked with me at MAIN and were unaware of the roles they played in helping EHMs shape the global empire. I especially thank the ones who worked for me and with whom I traveled to distant lands and shared so many precious moments. Also Ehud Sperling and his staff at Inner Traditions International, publisher of my earlier books on indigenous cultures and shamanism, and good friends who set me on this path as an author.
I am eternally grateful to the men and women who took me into their homes in the jungles, deserts, and mountains, in the cardboard shacks along the canals of Jakarta, and in the slums of countless cities around the world, who shared their food and their lives with me, and who have been my greatest source of inspiration.
INDEX
50 Years is Enough, 309
9/11. See World Trade Center bombing
Abbott, Tony, 328
Abenaki, 20
Abu Ghraib, 246
Academi, 282
Achuar, 197, 228, 230, 256, 283
Adam Smith International, 330
Afghanistan, 104, 193, 208, 281, 316, 332
agribusiness, 110, 271, 327
al-Qaeda, 219, 277
ALBA, 215, 231, 236
ALEC, 254, 332
Allen, Ethan, 19
Allende, Salvador, 12, 68, 81, 85, 152, 166, 234
Amazon: indigenous peoples in, 20–21, 150–151, 196–199, 226–228
oil in, 20, 150–151, 165, 169, 198–199, 230, 240, 254–256
Ameen, Michael, 174
American League of Lobbyists, 267
American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), 254, 332
Americans for Tax Fairness, 272
Amin, Idi, 104, 146
Amoco, 174
Anglo American, 325
Antwerp (fund), 337
Apple, Tracy, 297
Arab-Israeli wars, 89
Arabian-American Oil Company, 141
Arbenz, Jacobo, 12, 78–79, 81, 85, 152, 166, 234
Arbusto, 174
Arcadia Foundation, 236
Argentina, 67, 130, 233, 263, 273–274, 281
Arias, Arnulfo, 66, 188
arms industry, 104–105, 210, 217, 252, 268, 330
Arthur D. Little, 24
Ashcroft, John, 267
Ashland Oil, 171, 195
Asian Development Bank, 49, 55, 60, 141
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), 286
Assange, Julian, 332
assassinations: 33, 222–225, 234–236, 252
Roldós and Torrijos, xi, 165–169, 184–186, 217, 229, 233, 258, 284, 340–341
tool of EHM and jackals, 277–279, 293, 336
Associated Press, 279
Association of Government Relations Professionals, 267
austerity, 207, 274, 331, 337. See also debt; poverty
Australia, 278, 328
Awakening the Dreamer, 297
Baer, Robert, 102
Bahrain, 174
Bandits Club, 260, 328
Bangladesh, 266, 323
Bank Information Center, 324
Bank of America, 338
Bankers Trust, 171
Barclays, 241, 260, 315, 322, 323, 328
Bechtel, 24, 27, 79–80, 86, 95, 98, 168, 170, 172, 183, 341
Belgolaise Bank, 310
BHP Billiton, 324–325
bin Laden, Osama, xi, 104–106, 146, 193
Blackwater, 282, 336
Bloomberg, 335
Boeing, 268–270, 330
Bolívar, Simón, 70, 130
Bolivia, 10
Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA), 215, 231, 235
Bolivarian Alternative, 236
Bolshe
viks, 218–219
Brazil, 130, 169, 234, 252, 273, 281, 286, 288
British Petroleum, 30, 240
Brown & Root, 24, 27, 95
Bruce, Eve, 196–197
Buen Vivir, 258
Bunau-Varilla, Philippe, 66
Bush, George H. W., 128, 163, 174–177, 185, 194;
Middle East and, 174–175, 192
multiple roles of, 79–80, 86–87, 105–106
Panama and, 167, 186
Bush, George W., 86, 106, 174, 208, 210–212
CAFTA, 217
Cambodia, 333
Cameroon, 337
capitalism, defined, 2, as empire, 179
Carlyle Group, 106
Carmona, Robert, 236
Cartel (of banks), 260, 328
Carter, Jimmy, 110, 112–113, 128, 153, 162–163, 167–168, 176, 252
Carvajal, José, 153
Casey, William J., 184
Castillo, Carlos, Armas, 79
Castro, Fidel, 67–68, 164
Center for Economic and Policy Research, 314
Center for Food Safety, 271
Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations, 331
Chadbourne and Parke, 171
Chas. T. Main, Inc. See MAIN
Chase Bank, 204, 238–239, 260, 270, 324, 328, 338
Chávez, Hugo, 205–212
Chemonics, 335
Cheney, Richard, 86, 163, 187
Chevron, 86, 152, 258
Chevron-Texaco, 230–231
Chicago school of economics, 177
China, 11, 33, 67, 212, 283–288
Chiquita Brands, 233, 236
Christensen, Bryce, 311
Chuchu, Sergeant. See Martinez, Jose de Jesus
Chumpi, Shakaim, 199
CIA. See US Central Intelligence Agency
Citibank, 329–330
Citigroup, 260, 324, 328, 335, 338
Citizens Climate Lobby, 301, 303
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 254, 316
“Claudine.” See “Martin, Claudine”
Clinton, Bill, 86, 235–236, 281
Clinton, Hillary, 235–236