Incoherent Empire - Hardcover

"Amongst contemporary analysts of the new imperialism, Mann is remarkable for his unyielding realism. As he explains in this brilliant but disturbing book, the Stars and Stripes on the Euphrates heralds less a new international order than the dangerously unpredictable reign of the gods of chaos."--Mike Davis"Michael Mann applies the framework he developed in his classic work "The Sources of Social Power" to the American empire. He finds that its economic and ideological foundations are flimsy and that its only real strength is an ability to bully weak Third World countries. The United States wields 'power but not authority' and has succumbed to 'ruthless arrogance leading to overconfidence and hubris.' This is an important, provocative diagnosis by an experienced social analyst."--Chalmers Johnson, author of "Blowback: The Costs and Consequences of American Empire"

This rigorous critique of the new American imperialism analyses the action in Afghanistan, the war against terrorism and the warnings to "rogue states". It argues that current American foreign policy exaggerates American power and fails to understand that the US possesses much less power than the major empires of history. It suggests that this new imperialism will simply produce wars without end. This dissection of the military, economic, political and cultural resources of the US insists that they can only generate an incoherent empire.