Imperialism Without Colonies, p. 1-19.

Outline of Book:

Chapter 1:
-How imperialism was built?
-Prominent Socialists’ analysis

Chapter 2:
-Nature of Imperialism
-The Economic Mechanisms of Imperialism

Chapter 3:
-The role that imperialism plays in sustaining U.S. capitalism
-The U.S. has played a leading role in U.S. imperialism

Chapter 4:
Where is modern imperialism within the history of imperialism

Ch. 5:
-the capitalist system brings war

Ch. 6
Imperialist countries dominate and exploit the Third World

Introduction:

Imperialist countries dominate and exploit the Third World

-Transformation of the US from a nation-state to an imperial power
-America is an empire
-Haas wants to acknowledge-Washington has imperialist leanings
-US has imperial power like Britain in the 1800s(19th century)
-The U.S. ruling class is imperialistic
-the US helped supply troops for European military conflicts

“War on Terrorism”
-imperial US military policy was easily observable

US as a new kind of empire

Tenants of US empire
racism
economic exloitation
colonialism

These tenants are ignored- instead the US is said to be promoting “freedom” and “human rights”

A great military power “protects”
free markets
human rights/ democracy


Marxist perspective:
wars are a byproduct of imperialism

Classic imperialism
-The “Imperialism of Free Trade” by John Gallagher & Ronald Robinson
-imperialism: a continuous reality of economic expansion in modern times

British model
extend control informally if possible
extend control formally if necessary
“trade, not rule”
trade with informal control if possible
trade with rule when necessary

Primary focus: “imperialism of free trade”

South America
-British used commercial treaties & financial relationships backed by British sea power
-Britain took raw materials and food from the colony

Imperialist development
-usually informal
-formal rule is not the usual type (argued by Lenin)
-semi colonies may exist
-monopoly capitalism is imperialism

Contemporary Imperialism
development of the world market
division between the core & the periphery
the competitive hunt for colonies or semi-colonies
the extraction of surplus
the securing of raw materials to bring back to the mother country
analysis: imperialism was present in capitalism from the beginning

Problems
capitalists stole resources from poor countries without meeting the needs of the inhabitants
coercive methods were utilized

“New Imperialism”
the breakdown of British hegemony and increased competition for control over global territories between the various advanced capitalist states
the rise of monopolistic corporations as the dominant economic actors in advanced capitalist states- “the urge to dominate is integral to business”
contained: race to extract surplus
the race for control of raw materials
the creation of economic dependencies in the global periphery
the unending contest among rival capitalist powers

Mainstream versus Marxist perspectives

Mainstream
imperialism is mere policy, which is associated with the political and military actions on the part of states
imperialism is only present in overt instances of political & territorial control ushered in by actual military conquest

Marxist interpretation
imperialism occurs through the policies of state but also through the actions of corporations and mechanisms of trade, finance, and investment
monopoly capitalism-must be included & explained
struggles over hegemony & rivalries among primary (leading) capitalist states were continuous & depended on economic/political/military resources at their disposal

Imperial America in the Post-Cold War World

The development of Modern Imperialism
giant corporations rose to dominance (*)
British hegemony declined
advanced capitalist states fought for hegemony
The Soviet Union fell in 1991
Kissinger said: “the US has achieved a pre-eminence not enjoyed by the greatest empires of the past”

What will the US do with its enormous surplus of power?
control Iraq’s oil and gas deposits
restructure the economy with puppet leaders to submit to the capitalist world economy
nation building: includes disarming local opposition

Criticism:
US imperialism is particularly blatant because of the endless series of wars it is engaged in
capitalism promotes economic, political, and military domination

Moving Forward:
1. humanity must struggle to free itself from global exploitation and from seemingly endless wars of terror & destruction through which such exploitation is made possible