Confessions of an Economic Hit Man

CONFESSIONS OF AN ECONOMIC HIT MAN (book)
250 words min.
TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION
Do you feel the actions of economic hit men are warranted to protect American interests around the world? If the majority of Americans were aware of the power and influence of economic hit men, do you think their practices would be halted by outrage, or tacitly allowed to continue under the auspices of furthering economic interests abroad, which ultimately benefit the nation?
What was it about Perkins' personal background and upbringing that made him an ideal economic hit man? If he was "in for life" after being "made" by his mentor and accepted by MAIN as a full-fledged economic hit man, then why should we trust that his ground-breaking memoir is not serving some cause that perhaps is even higher up the totem pole than the management of Chas T. MAIN? Obviously Perkins is not making any friends at MAIN, the CIA, or the NSA, but what about those "few wealthy families who control the planet's natural resources" that he mentions on the first page of the preface? How could he serve their interests while villainizing the United States, the IMF, and the World Bank?
Do you think that is even possible, or do you suspect these families are inextricably bound to these higher banking institutions, and hence privately outraged at Perkins' tell-all account? The multinational corporation that published his book is one of the biggest in the world. It wasn't just some tiny press that got lucky by printing a runaway best seller, after all. Would Penguin and Plume have published this book if it didn't serve the interests of their owners? This final question is worth raising, but none of us has the answer to it.
I only raise the idea because I want you to know that I am not naive to the intricate network of power that stretches across the planet. One of the frustrating things about tracing the origins of this power is the fact that it has been elaborately camouflaged by massive financial resources, a nearly endless supply of manpower, and the finest minds that money can buy. I suppose that I like to think if we have "right" on our side, we might stumble across the truth, at least to some degree. As renegade investigative journalists, we can only hope this sentiment is not felt in vain.
Example
Economic Hit men have been around for many years and have become apart of US economics. Our way of living stems from a strong economy that we have produced over the years here in the USA. That being said, is it right to exploit other countries to cater to our economic needs? Well, no it isn't morally right and never will be. But, will the exploitation of periphery and semi-periphery countries by the core countries continue? Yes they will. Because the strong depend on the weak to keep their way of life, and the weak depend on the strong to stay alive.
I do not believe they are warranted to protect American interest. For one to believe they would be protecting American interest would be foolish. I say this because they are protecting big corporation interest and the wealthy top 5 %. They are the greedy souls who strive to make more money and are the people who have heavy influence. For instance, these big oil companies such as Shell, Chevron, and Exxon will undeniable go the length to exploit countries to receive the cheapest prices on oil to make a bigger profit.
What if americans were informed? If the majority of people knew what truly went on in these countries by US influence alone, I guarantee it wouldn't stop EHM from doing their jobs, but it probably would change a lot of things in America. People would shop less at certain companies, there would definitely be protest and outraged citizens, and things would definitely change in certain aspects. Although, I just do not see a way that big corporations would just roll over and stop trying to "convince" foreign leaders to borrow money or sell valuables at a lower price. Informing the people of the United States would be a great start. My only concern is would people really care? I vision many people being concerned and receptive to the situation, but I also imagine the majority of people not caring as much because it doesn't change their way of life. Although, I am hopeful I would be proven wrong.
Growing up as a only child living in a lower-middle class family, I believed that helped Perkins to become an ideal hit man. As being in the lower middle class he attended school with the "peasant class" during his elementary and middle school years, Perkins eventually received free tuition and attend his schooling at Tilton with the wealthy kids. From this upbringing he was able to view both sides of the economic class and develop perspective from both sides. And as being an only child I believe it would be very lonely at times, and he would not have any opposing influential guidance from siblings.
How corrupt are we as a country? There are so many government secrets that we are not aware of that would drastically change the way of Americans forever. The questions are we better off not knowing? What would become of us if we were informed. There are so many questions and possible outcomes from such answers.
I am a proud American. I would like to think the government does in fact look out for our best interest. But, that being said there are a lot of unknowns. Sometimes I wonder if we are even the good guys.