new imperialism – ZERO ANTHROPOLOGY

Encircling Empire: Report #25 — Remembering Panama

This and previous issues have been archived on a dedicated site—please see: ENCIRCLING EMPIRE. For frequent updates, please “like” our Facebook page and/or follow on Twitter. “Operation Just Cause” “25 Years after US Invasion of Panama, Death Toll Still Unknown,” TeleSur, December 19, 2014: On December 20, 1989, over 27,000 U.S. soldiers invaded the small […]

by Maximilian C. Forte

Voluntourism as Neoliberal Humanitarianism

The following is an extract from Tristan Biehn’s chapter, “Who Needs Me Most? New Imperialist Ideologies in Youth-Centred Volunteer Abroad Programs,” published in Good Intentions: Norms and Practices of Imperial Humanitarianism (Montreal: Alert Press, 2014), pp. 77-87: Overview: Tristan Biehn examines the new imperial ideologies present in narratives manufactured by the websites of youth-centred volunteer […]

by Maximilian C. Forte

New Book: Emergency as Security–Liberal Empire at Home and Abroad

Kyle McLoughlin and Maximilian Forte “Just as our vision of homeland security has evolved as we have made progress in the War on Terror, we also have learned from the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina….We have applied the lessons of Katrina to this Strategy to make sure that America is safer, stronger, and better prepared. To […]

by Maximilian C. Forte

Thirty Years After the U.S. Invasion of Grenada, the First Neoliberal War

This past Friday, October 25, marked the 30th anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Grenada. There were many meanings and consequences of that invasion, not just for Grenada itself, or for the wider Caribbean region (including the increased militarization of the region in the aftermath, the importation of U.S. national security doctrine, and the scandalous […]

by Maximilian C. Forte

Just Released: The New Imperialism, Vol. 1: Militarism, Humanism, and Occupation

The New Imperialism is the title of an annual seminar which I offer at Concordia University to advanced undergraduates. It is an unusual course, and given the content of past student evaluations, one that is extremely popular with participants who unanimously rated it as excellent on all levels. Part of the reason might be that there […]

by Maximilian C. Forte

Torture for Democracy (1): Michael Ignatieff’s New Imperialism

It began as a “prank,” in the words of the Canadian Press this past 17 August 2009. An anonymous critic of Canadian Liberal leader sent a mass mailing, using a BBC address, to the parliamentary press gallery. In each envelope a was a colour copy of a damning piece about Michael Ignatieff, published four years […]

by Maximilian C. Forte

Torture for Democracy (2): Video Post

To not clutter up the main post, Torture for Democracy (1), the relevant supporting videos are placed here.

by Maximilian C. Forte

R2P: Responsibility to Protect

Recently, while discussing and debating the meanings of liberalism and foreign intervention with Max Ajl and Jeremy Hammond, Max raised the R2P doctrine: the responsibility to protect. This reminded me of a new web resource, authored by Anthony Fenton, an independent journalist in British Columbia, called the Web of Democracy. Fenton’s site, created only last […]

by Maximilian C. Forte

The New Imperialism: Max Boot, Niall Ferguson, Michael Ignatieff

(A listing of some popular quotes, from proponents of the new imperialism, that one increasingly finds quoted across a variety of publications.) A Debate over US ‘Empire’ Builds in Unexpected Circles By Dan Morgan Washington Post, August 10, 2003 William Kristol, a neoconservative editor of the Weekly Standard magazine: “If people want to say we’re […]

by Maximilian C. Forte

The Retreat of Globalization? The Possible Impacts on the Future of Anthropology

Before beginning, more than the usual word of caution to readers: added to the usual grain of salt, one should keep in mind that what follows is speculation based on current trends and news, a scratching of the analytical surface that is not intended to pose as a summary derived from an extensive research project. […]