Making the World Safe for Capitalism: How Iraq Threatened the US Economic Empire and had to be Destroyed

The Iraq war defined the first decade of the twenty-first century – leading to mass protests and raising profound questions about domestic politics and the use of military force. Yet most explanations of the war have a narrow focus either on political personalities or oil. Christopher Doran provides a unique perspective, arguing that the drive to war came from the threat Iraq might pose to American economic hegemony if the UN sanctions regime was ended. Doran argues that this hegemony is rooted in third world debt and corporate market access. It was protection of these arrangements that motivated US action, not Iraq’s alleged weapons of mass destruction or a simplistic desire to seize its oil. This book will provide new insights on the war which still casts a shadow over global politics, and will have wide appeal to all those concerned about the Middle East, world peace and global development.

Table of Contents:
PART I: MAKING SENSE OF THE INVASION OF IRAQ 1. Introduction: Making Sense of Iraq 2. Iraq: A Devastated Country 3. Chile and the Blueprint for Iraq PART II: IRAQ’S POTENTIAL THREAT TO SAUDI ARABIA 4. Nixon, Saudi Arabia, and the Geopolitics of the Iraq Invasion 5. Petrodollar Recycling and Third World Debt 6. Containing Iraq: the Gulf War and Sanctions PART III: DOLLAR DOMINANCE 7. Threat to the Dollar: Iraq, the Euro, and Dollar Dominance 8. Dollar Challenge Redux: the Global Financial Crisis and Iraqi Oil 9. Containing Iraq: Oil, Imperialism, and the Rise of Corporate Rule PART IV: US LOSING OUT POST SANCTIONS 10. Neoliberalism Wounded, US Hegemony Challenged 11. Losing Out: The Geopolitical Significance of Iraq’s Oil 12. Invading Iraq: Bush Agenda from Day One PART V REGIME CHANGE: CREATING A FREE MARKET STATE 13. Regime Change: the Bremer Economic Orders 14. The Halliburton and Bechtel Contracts 15. Iraq: A New and Improved Saudi Arabia for the 21st Century PART VI EXPANDING THE EMPIRE 16. The US Middle East Free Trade Area 17. Case Studies: Jordan, Morocco, Oman and Bahrain 18. Egypt and How to Make a Fortune from Hunger and Misery PART VII A CASE STUDY OF IRAQI AGRICULTURE 19. Order 81 and the Genetically Modified Seeds of Democracy 20. Hunger and Misery: A Profitable Occupation 21. Conclusion: The Corporate Capture of the Democratic State Notes Index

About the Author :
Christopher Doran teaches in the department of labor studies at Indiana University, Bloomington, and the department of Political Sociology at Indiana University, Columbus. He is a long-time activist, teacher and writer. His research focuses on the relationship between corporations and democracy, in particular the legal right of corporations to influence political decision-making.

Review :
'A significant contribution to the scholarly literatures on neoliberalism and the US intervention in lraq. Insightful and compelling' 'Doran pulls no punches in revealing the abuses of corporate and state power. This is a powerful account of how the expansion of the 'market economy' into unwelcoming territory is driven by an iron fist' 'Doran's book provides a fresh and unconventional perspective on the origins of the war in Iraq and with it thought-provoking insights into the motivations of the US government when it invaded Iraq'