Who rules the world?

In an incisive and conscientious analysis of the current international situation, Chomsky argues that the United States, through its predominantly militaristic policies and its unlimited devotion to maintaining a global empire, is risking a catastrophe that would shatter the planet's common goods. Drawing on a wide variety of examples, from the expanding drone assassination program to the threat of nuclear war, as well as the critical points represented by the conflicts in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Israel-Palestine, Chomsky offers unexpected and nuanced reflections on the functioning of imperial power on an increasingly chaotic planet. Along the way, the author provides a brilliant study of how the elites in the United States have increasingly isolated themselves from any restrictions that democracy seeks to impose on their power.