Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic

by Chalmers Johnson

The long-awaited final volume of Chalmers Johnson's bestselling
Blowback trilogy confronts the overreaching of the American empire and the threat it poses to the republic
In his prophetic book Blowback , Chalmers Johnson linked the CIA's clandestine activities abroad to disaster at home. In The Sorrows of Empire, he explored the ways in which the growth of American militarism and the garrisoning of the planet have jeopardized our stability. Now, in Nemesis , he shows how imperial overstretch is undermining the republic itself, both economically and politically.
Delving into new areas--from plans to militarize outer space to Constitution-breaking presidential activities at home and the devastating corruption of a toothless Congress-- Nemesis offers a striking description of the trap into which the dreams of America's leaders have taken us. Drawing comparisons to empires past, Johnson explores in vivid detail just what the unintended consequences of our dependence on a permanent war economy are likely to be. What does it mean when a nation's main intelligence organization becomes the president's secret army? Or when the globe's sole "hyperpower," no longer capable of paying for the vaulting ambitions of its leaders, becomes the greatest hyper-debtor of all times?
In his stunning conclusion, Johnson suggests that financial bankruptcy could herald the breakdown of constitutional government in America--a crisis that may ultimately prove to be the only path to a renewed nation.

Genres: Politics, History, Nonfiction, War, Political Science, Economics, United States

368 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2007

About the author

Chalmers Ashby Johnson was an American author and professor emeritus of the University of California, San Diego. He fought in the Korean war, from 1967-1973 was a consultant for the CIA, and ran the Center for Chinese Studies at the University of California, Berkeley for years. He was also president and co-founder of the Japan Policy Research Institute, an organization promoting public education about Japan and Asia.

Reviews

[Trevor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning! This is an even better book than Blowback, which I thought was mind blowing. I am going to have to track down part two of this trilogy. This was almost painful to read. The detailed retellings of US involvement in torture at the start left me once again reeling in disbelief – no matter how often I hear this story I still find it hard to believe. The lies, deceptions and shameful punishments handed out to those who went against the President and told the truth reads like the most improbable of Le Carré novels, except we all know that this is pure fact. The future will struggle to believe our times, and we, as the citizens and electors of governments that have allowed this to happen have much to answer for.

His thesis in this book is a simple one. The US has two choices, it can retain its empire or it can remain a democracy – he cannot see how it can have both. If it is to retain its empire then there will need to be a move towards some form of military dictatorship. He believes the transfer of power to the executive under Bush came all too close to ending the democratic project in the US. The slow but inexorable diminishing of freedoms under the Bush regime truly takes the breath away once they are catalogued.

There are so many things I don’t know about the US political system and when people explain them to me I realise the true depth of my ignorance. It took me years to work out what GOP stood for – I knew it had something to do with the Republican Party, but just what it was in relation to the Republican Party I had no idea. Like I said, the depths of my ignorance can be quite astounding. Who’d have thought it could just mean, Grand Old Party? But when this book explained the CIA I really had to wonder how it could be I could get to be this old and never have known how the organisation worked. I had no idea that the CIA isn’t answerable to Congress or anyone else other than the President. Here is an organisation that seeks to kill the heads of state of other nations (as it did successfully in South Korea and attempted at on numerous occasions in Cuba and Libya) or that sells drugs to buy weapons to give to murderers in Nicaragua or that ‘successfully’ organises the overthrow of a democratically elected government and replaces it an evil monster, as in Chile and Iran – and not even the American Government gets to have over-sight of what it is up to. I’m stunned and shocked, ladies and gentlemen. Emperor Bush seems to have made exceptionally good use of this arm of his Royal Guard.

This book’s dismantling of the excuse for much of the US military budget (I’ve heard of pork barrels, but this is incomprehensible) should be required reading for anyone with the right to vote in the US – witnessing the sheer waste of so many billions upon billons of taxpayer dollars (well, those that will need to be paid back by future generations that have been borrowed from Communist China and Japan) would, surely, have to send a patriotic American nearly insane. His description of military Keynesianism is as fascinating as it is disturbing.

The section on Star Wars is nothing less than a case in point. This project is not about building a missile defence system, the idea is virtually laughable, this is about handing trillions of dollars over to a few obscenely wealthy corporations knowing that they can only fail to ever build what it is they are claiming to be seeking to build. His explanation of why any sort of war in space has to be a bad idea does beg the question why the US is contemplating such lunacy. As is his explanation of why the EU is building its own GPS system (Galileo) rather than rely on the current system that is run by the US Military (yes, it might have something to do with the fact that the US Military has threatened to turn this increasingly essential piece of infrastructure off at will if it decides this would be a good idea in its ‘war on terror’).

This book is named after a Greek God – the god of righteous punishment for those engaged in hubris – and it is written by someone who reminds me of another character from Greek myth – Cassandra. For surely, here is a man blessed with the gift of prophesy and yet, no one ever seems to believe him. His predictions for what will happen next to the US may have been forestalled by the election of Obama – but given the depth of the problems outlined here and the arrogance and bloody-mindedness of the US ruling elites his concerns still require careful consideration.

There is much at stake if he is ever proven right.

[Matthew · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've read a few books like this--leftist critiques of American foreign policy--in the last few years, and I often find them problematic. Many of them have good information, and good research, and good writing. But in the end don't really amount to anything.

I feel like Nemesis is one of these. I already know that American foreign policy is arrogant, aggressive, and short-sighted. I already know that the CIA tortures people. I already know that the Bush administration has drastically increased executive powers. None of this is new for me, and I assume that it will not be new for anyone else who would pick up a book like Nemesis in the first place.

Johnson's main contribution is to liken 21st century America to Imperial Britain and Rome. It is only possible to make this rather grandiose argument by highlighting certain details and ignoring others. For example, Johnson claims that America very much resembles Rome on the eve of the civil wars that led to the downfall of the Republic, ignoring the fact that by the time the Republic fell it had already seen a burst of imperial expansion that left it in control of the entire Mediterranean. He also compares America under Bush to the British Empire, leaving aside the fact that Britain's most dramatic expansion occurred after the Glorious Revolution and the ascendancy of Parliamentary (rather than executive) power.

The point is: America is neither Rome nor Britain, and historical analogy is the last refuge of those who can't grasp the current situation. For those who are trying to understand what is going on, false analogies are dangerous. This is especially true in a time of crisis, because the analogy allows you to feel like you know how to solve the problem, but suggests the wrong solutions. For a much more interesting and, I think, accurate analysis of 21st American foreign policy, I would suggest Klein's Shock Doctrine.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was both hard and easy to read. I thought it was going to be very difficult to get through but in fact, by reading just one chapter a night, I was able to get through it quickly and easily, time-wise that is. There are only 7 chapters and each one is only 30 pages or so in length.
On the other hand, this book was very difficult to read because, as an American, I read it with such a heavy heart. I have read many books now about how horrible our government has been and the terrible deeds it has done both domestically and internationally. But the first chapter of this book ends by discussing how our government allowed, yes ALLOWED, the National Museum in Bagdad to be looted and did nothing, even though it had been told of the high probability of the looting, even though it had assured many people that it would protect the museum (and other nationally important institutions like the National Library), even though it did manage to protect the oil fields and the Oil Ministry building (with nary a window broken). The waste of our global human history is too sad to contemplate for long. And to know that my own government was so callus and disrespectful about such a global human treasure, that "... Secretary Rumsfeld compared the looting to the aftermath of a soccer game..." (p 47) causes me to feel real shame in my government.
And it just gets worse from there.
This author published a book called Blowback in 2000 in which he predicted that America would experience some kind of retaliation for all the overt and covert misdeeds over the years and around the globe. No one paid much attention to the book until after 9/11. He then wrote another book called The Sorrow of Empires and now he wrote this book, the third in his unintended trilogy. He ends this book, published in 2006, by stating, "The likelihood is that the United States will maintain a facade of constitutional government and drift along until financial bankruptcy overtakes it. Of course, bankruptcy will not mean the literal end of the United States any more than it did for Germany in 1923, China in 1948, or Argentina in 2001-2. It might, in fact, open the way for an unexpected restoration of the American system, or for military rule, or simply for some new development we cannot yet imagine." (p 269/270)
So there is hope yet that we can come back to the Constitution and allow it to become once again the strength of this country, its founding principles recovered.
But in order for that to happen I think people must become informed about how far off the mark we have strayed. And this book is one step on that road to knowledge.

[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chalmers Johnson's third book about the pernicious influence of militarism on our country is excellent. I was a participant in or observer of many of the incidents Dr. Johnson discussed in his first book, "Blowback", and worked with him when I was the US Information Agency's Japan desk officer from mid-1985 through mid-1987. Dr. Johnson, a patriotic, Republican economist with extensive international experience, raises interesting questions about the extent to which "the military-industrial complex" has jeopardized our domestic political system and Constitution while damaging our long-term interests and standing abroad. He makes his points with readable prose and ample evidence. Reading this book while the news that our vice president considers himself exempt from all laws when it suits his ends made an interesting real world, real time illustration of Johnson's argument.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book, Johnson explores the premise that the substantial militarization of the US and the violent meddling we are so fond of in other country's affairs-- which is often illegal and kept secret from the American public-- poses a direct threat to the nation. In the first chapter there is quite a bit of exploration of that violent meddling, focusing largely on the George W. Bush administration, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the torture of prisoners (including U.S. citizens) in Abu Ghraib (this book was published in 2007). I do wish there was more focus on the whole history of the U.S. (e.g. the foundation of the nation as a violent settler colonial power, global imperialism throughout the late 1800s and the totality of the 1900s). In the second chapter Johnson draws parallels between U.S. foreign and domestic policy and the Roman and British empires, arguing that militarism and imperialism abroad are a direct threat to democracy at home by demanding the expansion of power held the head of the empire (i.e. the president). I must admit that (in today's internet slang), the Roman empire is not my Roman empire and I struggle to find the particulars interesting. The third chapter is about the CIA as the "president's private army"- a tool to undermine Congress and support militarization, forced regime change abroad, the illegal sale of weapons to armed insurgent groups, and more. In the fourth and fifth chapters, Johnson then goes on to talk about US military bases abroad, of which there are a staggering number, and how they are a tool of imperialism that often makes other countries hate the US when we irreparably destroy the environment and rape/assault/murder locals with impunity. In the sixth chapter, he turns his attention to the US militarization of space. The seventh chapter of the book concludes with the claim that the power of the president was expanded in 2000, and that while the checks and balances of the congressional and judicial branches still sort of exist, the executive's increasingly unilateral power poses a threat to our democratic government.

The arguments in the latter half of the book (with the exception of chapter 7) got increasingly more tenuous- they were supported by evidence and examples, yes, but they were more of a stretch and didn't cohere as nicely as I would have hoped. Of course, I have the advantage of being able to see almost 20 years into the future from when this book was published, and can evaluate which of Johnson's predictions may or may not come to pass.

Chalmers Johnson, born in 1913, was one of the earliest American academics writing about and criticizing American imperialism. I was born 80 years after Johnson and, to me, the existence and folly of American imperialism is obvious and everywhere rather than original or innovative. I think my repeated exposure to thought about the rise and consequences of American imperialism lead me to understand this book as a bit underdeveloped and outdated (genuinely, just a little bit). I suspect that's because Johnson's work was foundational to the field, and I've been exposed to work laid on the bedrock of his contributions.

This book made me remember that I really do not care for political science. Unfortunately for me, I really do care about our planet and all of her creatures (including my fellow humans), and global geopolitics wreaks havoc on these things so I am forced to care. RIP Chalmers Johnson, you would be absolutely floored by the events of the past 15 years.

[Kit · Rating 4 out of 5]

The choice for Americans couldn't be more stark - either Americans pick up, dust off, and restore democracy or chain themselves to authoritarian empire that is already precariously overstretched and deeply in debt. This volume was the last of Johnson's trilogy contributing to the American Empire Project. It is replete with scores of pages of annotation. Johnson's style is professorial and easily followed, his arguments laid out in layered, carefully measured steps that paint a harrowing and grim picture of what America has allowed itself to subsume, a global-spanning military empire bent on subjugation and control of resources and people who live above them. Johnson throughout adds quotes from other authors, sometimes to reinforce his point and other times to rebuke their opinions in defense of the empire (I was delighted to find a scholarly dismantling of N. Ferguson's Empire herein!). My only complaints being the absence of a recommended reading list and the general outdatedness of the outrage (there's already been another dubious president since W.Bush to embrace the anti-Constitutional theory of the unitary executive).

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Insightful and sharply reasoned as always, the final volume of the Blowback trilogy once again provides excellent, well-researched arguments against US imperialism and overreach - essential reading for, quite frankly, anyone with a lick of sense. If Johnson were still alive today, I'm sure he'd have a thing or two to say about about the trajectory the US has continued on since the publication of this book 2007.

[Kym Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

While his book 'Blowback' had some real impact and covered a lot of issues relating to the American Empire in the later stages of the 20th Century, 'Nemesis' is a poor follow up. It is however an expected sequel given the events occurring at the time of its publication.

Much of what was raised in 'Blowback' is covered in sorts but with less gravitas. Instead Johnson attempts to liken the American Empire to that of both the British and Roman Empires and their periods in history. This is at points obvious and clunky. It is an easy thing to do, to simply liken one empire to the other and to adjust the historical templates to fit accordingly. Granted similarities do exist, just as differences do. The American Empire, like the British and Roman, are unique and distinctly there own. These early meanderings are a waste of pages and really divert as oppose to avert attention to contemporary matters and incidences. They serve as detailed analogies and yet the reader should not need any.

Chalmers Johnson eluded to it in his earlier book about the nature of economics and his political philosophy. He goes some what further accusing 'free market capitalism' and inviting the reader to also condemned this nonliving ideal for much of what drives the American imperialist interests. As though the IMF and Global Banks are inventions of the 'free market' and are not in actual fact in opposition to an unregulated and decentralised form of market economies. Again this is also another distraction and blathering attempt to explain a wider theory. It is at times an attempt to seek a identifiable 'blame' point by which to hang much of the vile conduct of the US military and foreign policy upon.

When Johnson does get to the heart of matters, US occupation, invasion, influences in regional politics right into the attempts to control space he is on point. He covers non partisan and ideological matters with a purity. Examples and historical conducts are left to condemn the contemporary and future masters who through the majesty of language, fear and governance continue to invite conflict and calamity to the World.

Johnson manages to delve past the illusions of US and Western self perception that demands the world see the US military as being a force for peace and security. Instead he depicts it as what it is, a forceful, violent self serving entity that does as it pleases. Married to the CIA and other US intelligence agencies the US military has near omnipotent power and influence in many parts of the Earth with little regard for a constitution that it apparently serves. It is with confused belief that many support and praise the US military out of the rhetoric and advertising. In reality to its many victims it is a careless brutal force with little empathy and concern. And to its victims what pluses or benefits that it may bring are an unacceptable price.

This book is in some ways a bit of a mess. It is certainly worth reading and much that is covered is important for the reader, the book however goes into a few different directions that really do neither the subject matter or its victims justice. Johnson is a talented and well informed man and this book for my personal reading was a bit lacking.

60%

[The Esoteric Jungle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the very author who has shown, to my mind convincingly, how the books work on the hill and that the U.S. actually spends 80% of their budget on War and Secret Agencies not the lower figures so often quoted.

Mind you they are wars too, he shows, that are not heroic or rescuing of the downtrodden but calculatively pre-emptive, for maintaining presence perpetually after the fact. He shows they are wars never really won, yet a lot of torturing, detaining and renditioning en perpetua to make sure money making resource interests in that region keep getting maximized for the few inner cabal seculare apparatchiks determining what bases will be where in innumerable countries now, they with their multi-nationalist friends, none of whom are representative, except ostensibly for show, of America.

He is a great researcher in laying all this out bit by bit. As a historian not wishing to be censored but uncompromisingly and mercilessly investigative in nature, I simply have to make myself avoid these past 130 years altogether and leave it to people like him who somehow don’t get done in, it really is beyond me how they survive.

Of course, one should be fair, there are some high up, including even presently, who go a ways toward something moral and heroic in American eschelons and they are portrayed in movies like Charlie Wilson’s War, Argo and Syriana or as Galbraith was in initially helping the Kurds. But you will notice at a certain point they are disillusioned enough to see how their episodes are being used by longer planning monied interests for monied reasons seldom moral, more often opportunistically morally nefarious. There are people one may accidentally encounter in life who were in such agencies who can testify to this.

Given such over-riding agencies of power then, how is it there are people like Chalmers Johnson, Webster Tarpley, Tabibi, Palast and about 10 others that somehow just keep knocking it out and aren’t muffled, honey potted, bad jacketed or a hundred other standard things that could be done to them in the land of the free (at least free for the empire controllers)? I don’t understand it other than to say 99% of the population believes these folk to be sensationalists and only looking at things from one perspective. So there is no need to handle them. People self censor themselves. Should general opinion swing as outraged as they are then more or less certainly something would be done to shut them up.

So respect for his bravery in the meanwhile, this is a really informative book and I recommend anything by him.

[Chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been a big fan of Johnson's past two books, Blowback and The Sorrows of Empire and have been looking forward to reading this most recent work since I first heard of it. However, where the previous two books clearly positioned US' foreign policy as an off-shoot of the militarism which infects every level of our economy and warned that the US' overseas adventures (everything from overthrowing unfriendly governments to funneling arms to other governments) would eventually lead to a blowback against the US- a theory that was proven true when the US' strategy of arming and training the Afghani mujahideen in the 1980s came back to bite it on September 11- this new book seems like a collection of scraps that were left on the editing room floor when Johnson's previous books were published.

There's nothing especially new or ground-breaking here, though Johnson does a fantastic job of analyzing the Roman and British empires and juxtaposing their downfalls with the current state of US foreign affairs. Charting the vast network of American bases, prisons, and secret torture facilities is a vast task, but definitely one that Johnson is up to and the portrait he paints of a web of American influence is a very disturbing picture.

Unfortunately, by trying to tie his three most recent books together under a unifying theme, Johnson stretches his premise to absurd lengths and never really focuses, until the last 10 pages, on how all of the examples that he recites tie together into the sad picture of a flailing American empire that poses a threat not only to treasured systems of American governance but also the future existence of Western Civilization.

If this is the first Johnson book you're looking at, I'd recommend looking to his earlier work first.

[Ron · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want a book that deeply explores why America seems to be (I'm being hopeful) headed down the wrong river, this is it -- with discussions on the rise of militarism; a comparison of Rome, Britain & America; the sordid history of the CIA; the basing of soldiers anywhere on the globe America pleases; the drive to militarize outer space; and more. To really get the full impact of what Chalmers Johnson is saying (and warning us all about), you should read the whole trilogy: "The Sorrows of Empire", "Blowback", and then "Nemesis".

And Nemesis is definitely the most appropriate metaphor to use for the continuing fall from grace that America is blindly and arrogantly treading: the Greek goddess of divine justice and retribution, it's in our (American citizens') best interest to use her as a mirror of ourselves. As Johnson says, "We are on the cusp of losing our democracy for the sake of keeping our empire [versus the opposite path as Britain took, for instance:]. Once a nation is started down that path, the dynamics that apply to all empires come into play -- isolation, overstretch, the uniting of forces opposed to imperialism, and bankruptcy. Nemesis stalks our life as a free nation."

I especially like a quote by Harry Browne starting the last chapter... "When America is no longer a threat to the world, the world will no longer threaten us." No truer words could be said about the dire necessity for America to learn once again how to become a respected member of the world community rather than its bully and self-appointed master.

America's path can be corrected, but we, her people, must become more aware, and then take action. Chalmers' "Nemesis" is a clarion call for us all to act, before it's too late.

Originally written on May 12, 2008 at 04:49PM

[Eric G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the the third installment from Chalmers Johnson that was preceeded by Blowback and The Sorrows Of Empire. It is the continuation of his thesis that spans the three books contending that militarism and a permanent war economy are incompatible with our republican form of government. In Nemesis (with a subtitle of "The Last Days of the American Republic," Johnson's primary objective is to demonstrate his fear of what the future will hold in terms of current patterns of preventive war and the role the US military, the CIA, and especially the power of the Executive will have in shaping that future. This is by far Johnson's most dire and chilling warning as the book never fails to reach with validity, evidence, and solid allusions to the past. It is a vital read for any who still believes there is something to be salvaged of the United States' constitutional democracy.

[AC · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is not as rich or as original as "Sorrows of Empire" -- it is more journalistic, and less sustained. The material is also largely familiar to anyone who has read the newspapers or any books over the period concerned (Iraq). Finally, written before the Financial Crisis -- the GFC, aka, "The Great Fuck-up" -- the perspective has been somewhat overtaken by events.

Johnson, for example -- with the image of the collapse of the Soviet Union in mind - thought that the extension of empire would precede bankruptcy. He must have been quite surprised to discover that he had it backwards.

At any rate, it is sad to note his passing tonight:




http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bi...

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was great. A brilliant argument of the absurdity of the war on terror and really interesting history of the CIA. An interesting side note: I listened to part of this book on audiobook (sorry, i downloaded it for free) at work in the hospital cafeteria, not on headphones (because they are prohibited) but on loud computer speakers. other people would listen for a few seconds and then remark on how sad it made them feel. I'm pretty sure the rest of the staff thought I was insane.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and concise. Johnson does well in staying focused on his premise that past actions of the U.S. have/will catch up to us. His analysis is supported with appropriate research and acknowledges where the U.S. has fallen short in our recent past to live up to the ideals of Constitutional Democracy. Not overtly partisan as many books of this nature can be, Johnson's Nemesis shows disdain across the board for covert and often overt selfishness in both the private and public sector as the primary reasons for this failure.

[Kohl Gill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal. I already plan on reading this again in a while. What surprised me most were the parallels with thinkers like Thomas Barnett, as well as the notion of completely disbanding the CIA.

[Kurt Huizenga · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author appears to be attempting to close the barn door about 150 years after the horse has already bolted. The key fact he misses however, is that we are the ones who have INTENTIONALLY left the barn door open this entire time.

Thus his cries in confusion "where did the horse go?! and how ever could it have escaped?!" - "the constitution was supposed to restrain the government, how did it get this far?!" remain exercises in naive futility given that he fails to correctly identify how it is that our government has gotten to where it is today.

To this end, Brion McClanahan's "9 Presidents Who Screwed Up America" provides a far more complete historical picture of presidential disregard for constitutional restraint. It delivers in spades where "Nemesis" falls short.

The author describes in great detail the numerous and egregious constitutional violations of the Bush administration during the war on terror. While the substance of his arguments are quite correct, they remain however very short sighted. President Bush is certainly not the first executive the United States has had that disregarded constitutional restraints on federal power. Many previous administrations have laid groundwork for further arrogation of power in the executive branch. While Bush's administration certainly participated more than most, trying to lay all the unconstitutional woes at the feet of the current administration is simply not the entire story. Because of this lack of complete context the author fails to note that Bush's authoritarian use of executive power is very much in the Hamiltonian tradition as cultivated by previous beloved presidents such as Lincoln, FDR, and Truman. In a very real way, the American people have cultivated the type of president that Bush was.

History has shown that when free stuff, power, or popular support are on offer, hardly anyone speaks of principled constitutional restraint. If Americans are not willing to decry Lincoln's flagrant constitutional violations and abuse of executive power in waging the Civil War, for example, then they have no business complaining when later presidents similarly violate constitutional limits on their authority as well. The wild horse is either locked safely in the barn, or it is let out to run wild. It can't be both.

While the author's other works are wonderful, this book seems to be but a mashup of small parts of each, with rebuke of the Bush administration and poor historical context added on top.

[Jerry Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part of the Blowback trilogy and as usual with Johnson's screeds, I find myself in almost total agreement with his analysis, although I expect this position to be unpopular among the population at large. I have read a number of his books and although they all come at this subject from a slightly different angle, the message is always the same, namely that the US is an imperialist nation and is struggling to maintain that (and is guilty of crimes that all empires perpetuate) whilst pretending that it is a "shining city of the hill" and in somewhat special.

There is much that is strongly stated here but the case for an imperial presidency and increasingly so, holds a lot of water for me. This book was written well before the current vile administration and trains most of its fire on the efforts of George W Bush to keep everything from the population in general, and congress too which is a case well made.

Dark predictions as to what is likely to happen and that this hubristic empire is coming to the end that comes to all empires and the question is, how will it all end: Rome or Britain? I would love to hear what the late Chalmers J had to say about the current regime but I think he would see it as evidence of the coming denouement for the republic. I enjoyed this book as I did all his books, but Blowback was my first read of his and therefore made the most impact on me, Nemesis seems to be more of the same and whilst interesting, didn't enlighten me as much as I am familiar with the line of argument.

[noblethumos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chalmers Johnson’s Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic (2006) completes his acclaimed “Blowback Trilogy,” following Blowback: The Costs and Consequences of American Empire (2000) and The Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic (2004). Together, these works constitute one of the most sustained and incisive critiques of American imperial power in the post–Cold War era. In Nemesis, Johnson advances his argument to its grim conclusion: that the United States, having succumbed to militarism and imperial overreach, faces the inevitable decline of its republican institutions. The title invokes the Greek goddess of retribution, symbolizing Johnson’s conviction that empire carries within it the seeds of self-destruction.


The book’s central thesis is stark and uncompromising. Johnson argues that the United States has reached a point of no return in its transformation from a constitutional republic into a militarized empire. While The Sorrows of Empire documented the global infrastructure of American bases and the institutionalization of militarism, Nemesis turns inward, focusing on the domestic consequences of this imperial trajectory. Johnson contends that the very foundations of American democracy—the separation of powers, the rule of law, and civic accountability—have been eroded by the rise of the “national security state.” Through a combination of secrecy, executive aggrandizement, and the normalization of war as a permanent condition, he claims, the United States has replicated the path of earlier empires that destroyed themselves through hubris and overextension.


Drawing upon a wide range of historical, political, and sociological sources, Johnson situates contemporary American policy within a longue durée analysis of empire and decline. He argues that the U.S. global base network—at the time encompassing over seven hundred foreign installations—constitutes the material infrastructure of empire, while the ever-expanding defense budget and the intelligence complex provide its institutional and ideological support. The result, he suggests, is a condition of “military Keynesianism,” in which economic prosperity is artificially sustained by defense spending rather than productive investment. This dependence on militarism, Johnson warns, not only distorts the economy but also undermines democratic deliberation and civic responsibility.


Johnson’s argument is organized around three interrelated themes: militarism, secrecy, and the corrosion of constitutional government. He traces how post–September 11 policies—especially the Iraq War, the proliferation of surveillance programs, and the use of torture—have accelerated tendencies already evident during the Cold War. For Johnson, the Bush administration’s assertion of unilateral executive power exemplifies the culmination of a long-term structural transformation, rather than a temporary aberration. The analogy to the late Roman Republic, invoked throughout the text, serves as both a historical parallel and a moral warning: a society that substitutes imperial ambition for republican virtue invites its own nemesis.


Methodologically, Nemesis combines empirical investigation with moral and historical reflection. Johnson’s analysis bridges the fields of international relations, political economy, and constitutional studies, making the book both interdisciplinary and polemical. His earlier background as a political scientist specializing in East Asia and as a former government consultant lends the work a tone of insider disillusionment. Indeed, the trilogy as a whole can be read as a narrative of intellectual conversion—from Cold War strategist to critic of American empire. In Nemesis, this conversion reaches its terminal point: Johnson no longer merely warns of imperial decline; he declares it underway.


Critics of Nemesis have noted the book’s apocalyptic tone and deterministic conclusion. Johnson’s assertion that “the American republic is finished” has been read by some as hyperbolic, given the persistence of electoral institutions and civil society. Others, however, have interpreted his pessimism as a necessary provocation, forcing readers to confront uncomfortable continuities between democracy and empire. The book’s moral and analytical power lies precisely in its refusal to separate the two. Johnson does not claim that empire and democracy are incompatible in principle; rather, he shows how, in practice, the demands of global dominance hollow out the institutions that make democracy meaningful.


Stylistically, Johnson writes with clarity and passion, blending scholarly argument with moral indictment. His prose is accessible yet rigorous, eschewing jargon while maintaining analytical depth. The tone is elegiac, reflecting both outrage and sorrow—a lament for the republic he believes has been lost. His invocation of Nemesis as a classical symbol underscores the tragic dimension of his argument: that the empire’s undoing will come not from external enemies but from the internal contradictions of its own power.


As a work of political diagnosis, Nemesis occupies an important place in the literature on American decline. It stands alongside works such as Andrew Bacevich’s The New American Militarism and Sheldon Wolin’s Democracy Incorporated as a meditation on the structural entrenchment of the national security state. Yet Johnson’s contribution is distinctive in its synthesis of historical analogy, empirical evidence, and moral critique. His insistence that the United States confront the costs of empire—both material and ethical—remains profoundly relevant in the twenty-first century, as the legacies of endless war and surveillance continue to shape the contours of American politics.


Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic is a work of moral and intellectual courage. It fuses empirical scholarship with civic engagement, offering a dark but lucid vision of the consequences of unrestrained power. Johnson’s analysis transcends the immediate context of the early 2000s, providing a timeless warning about the fragility of republican institutions under the pressures of empire. Whether or not one accepts his conclusion that the republic is already lost, his central insight—that militarism and democracy are ultimately incompatible—demands sustained reflection. Nemesis thus endures not merely as a critique of American policy but as a meditation on the perennial tension between power and liberty at the heart of political modernity.

GPT

[James]

A New York Times bestseller, Nemesis is Chalmers Johnson's "fiercest book--and his best" (Andrew J. Bacevich) In his prophetic book Blowback, Chalmers Johnson linked the CIA's clandestine activities abroad to disaster at home. In The Sorrows of Empire, he explored the ways in which the growth of American militarism and the garrisoning of the planet have jeopardized our stability. In Nemesis, the bestselling and final volume in what has become known as the Blowback Trilogy, he shows how imperial overstretch is undermining the republic itself, both economically and politically. Delving into new areas--from plans to militarize outer space to Constitution-breaking presidential activities at home and the devastating corruption of a toothless Congress--Nemesis offers a striking description of the trap into which the reckless ambitions of America's leaders have taken us. Johnson confronts questions of pressing urgency: What are the unintended consequences of our dependence on a permanent war economy? What does it mean when a nation's main intelligence organization becomes the president's secret army? Or when the globe's sole "hyperpower" becomes the greatest hyper-debtor of all times? Writing "as if the very existence of the nation is at stake" (San Francisco Chronicle), Johnson offers his most "bracing" and "important" (Los Angeles Times) exploration of the crisis facing America.

[Nick Despart · Rating 4 out of 5]

An insightful, if somewhat redundant, review of the threats posed by American imperialism to our own democracy. Worthwhile reading, but not quite as engaging as Blowback or Sorrows of Empire. Holds up relatively well some 16 years after publication.

[Julian Pritchard · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really did nothing for me. It’s pretty short, kind of repeats the other arguments of Iraq War critics popular at the time. Compares the U.S. to the Roman Empire. Not sure if there’s anything in this book that I haven’t already heard somewhere else.

[Karl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I need to do some research and then reread this one.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

As always, wonderful in this contemporary with no fantastic or sf elements but a surprise in the ending!

[Tommy Tang · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was somewhat long-winded and unnecessarily detailed at times. It would be a good introductory read for someone clueless about how the world sees America's influence and hegemony.

[Nate Campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not great diatribe about the decline of the American empire. Correctly highlights our corruption, hubris, and military industrial complex.

[Noel Scheaffer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written 20 years ago lamenting the overreach of the executive branch and yet very applicable today.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely, a must-read for those following the exploits of our politicians and government. A primer on 21st century Manifest Destiny.

[Bruce Sanders · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about the end of the U.S. as a republic. Early on the book looks at the death of the Roman Republic as it turned to empire to keep the lands it conquered, and conversely the decision of the British to disengage from empire to keep their democracy. It compares the current situation in the US and argues that we are at that tipping point where we must choose empire or democracy. The book then begins to detail the horrors of our post-1945 imperialism. I was not ignorant of most of this, but even so one is taken aback by the depth of US corruption and immorality. The book does an especially good job of illustrating how utterly venal our Congress has become. In the end I think the choice of backing off from empire is a false choice. We unwittingly chose empire long ago and the book convinces me there is little chance of the republic surviving (it is already effectively dead). The only question is what will be the salient event that historians will use to draw the line that marked its end.

[Eduardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this in 2014, after reading Blowback: The Costs and Consequences of American Empire and The Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic, both of which were published before the full effects of America's most current interventions in the Middle East, gives the reader a chance to process how our country has arrived at this point in history.

This is not a pleasant tale and it does not have a happy ending (although, Johnson gives us a way out: Dismantling the Empire: America's Last Best Hope) but it is an important perspective and cautionary tale. May we learn the lessons before it is too late.