America's Addiction to Terrorism

by Henry A. Giroux

In the United States today, the term "terrorism" conjures up images of dangerous, outside threats: religious extremists and suicide bombers in particular. Harder to see but all the more pervasive is the terrorism perpetuated by the United States itself, whether through military force overseas or woven into the very fabric of society at home. Henry Giroux, in this passionate and incisive book, turns the conventional wisdom on terrorism upside down, demonstrating how fear and lawlessness have become organizing principles of life in the United States, and violence an acceptable form of social mediation. He addresses the most pressing issues of the moment, from officially sanctioned torture to militarized police forces to austerity politics. Giroux also examines the ongoing degradation of the education system and how young people in particular suffer its more nefarious outcomes. Against this grim picture, Giroux posits a politics of hope and a commitment to accurate-and radical-historical memory. He draws on a long, distinguished career developing the tenets of critical pedagogy to propose a cure for our addiction to terrorism: a kind of "public pedagogy" that challenges the poisoned narratives of "America's dis-imagination machine."

Genres: Politics

192 pages, Paperback

First published December 22, 2015

About the author

American cultural critic. One of the founding theorists of critical pedagogy in the United States, he is best known for his pioneering work in public pedagogy, cultural studies, youth studies, higher education, media studies, and critical theory.

A high-school social studies teacher in Barrington, Rhode Island for six years, Giroux has held positions at Boston University, Miami University, and Penn State University. In 2005, Giroux began serving as the Global TV Network Chair in English and Cultural Studies at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.

Giroux has published more than 35 books and 300 academic articles, and is published widely throughout education and cultural studies literature. Since arriving at McMaster, Giroux has been a featured faculty lecturer, and has published nine books, including his most recent work, The University in Chains: Confronting the Military-Industrial-Academic Complex.

Routledge named Giroux as one of the top fifty educational thinkers of the modern period in 2002.

Reviews

[Algernon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Giroux enfolds economics, foreign policy and militarism, the transformation of public education and higher education, and popular culture into a hammering critique of neoliberalism and the terrorism required to maintain it as a social order, analysing the policies and discourse that isolate citizens from confidence in a public sector of life or collective action, and punish those who don't consent to be isolated and depoliticized. At its worst, some of its later chapters cover overlapping territory and feel repetitive, but it provides much needed critical analysis and makes a forceful case for the educative nature of political involvement. He briefly examines the Occupy movement for successes and lessons learned, and a later edition might do well to address subsequent struggles, such as the Chicago Teachers Union strike, more on Black Lives Matter, and the current struggle in North Dakota over the Dakota Access Pipeline.

[Ietrio · Rating 1 out of 5]

America is not a person. So there is no addiction.

The people of America are not ”addicted” to terrorism. This is how the elites are selling their power grab to the masses. And it's not the only story.
- humanitarian crisis
- global warming
- pandemics

the list goes on and on and on.

I doubt Giroux is that stupid. He is just a tool, a useful tool of the system that employs him well.