political-islam – Weaponized Information

Max Blumenthal’s The Management of Savagery traces how the Afghan jihad, covert warfare, and the post-9/11 national-security state produced enemies Washington repeatedly claimed it could control. The full architecture of September 11 may never be known, but the official story cannot explain the accumulated record of intelligence failures, Saudi-linked facilitation, prior war planning, institutional obstruction, and immediate imperial exploitation. From Afghanistan and Iraq to Libya, Syria, domestic surveillance, and the rise of Trump, the same contradiction returns: empire weaponized instability, then lost control of the forces it empowered. Permanent war expanded American coercion while accelerating the collapse of the unipolar order.

Robin Wright's "The Last Great Revolution" illustrates the paradox of the Iranian Revolution—a genuine transformation that sought to establish a sovereign state but left popular sovereignty incomplete. Wright captures Iran's tumultuous journey, showcasing revolutionary shifts in women’s rights, education, and national identity, yet she falls into the trap of imposing a Western liberal trajectory. The revolution is portrayed as a struggle—between religious and revolutionary authority—that still battles for legitimacy. Ultimately, rather than documenting a forgotten pathway to liberalism, Wright unveils a resilient revolutionary spirit combating imperial influences. This is not the story of a revolution retreating into the shadows, but one that persistently asserts its existence against predetermined narratives.

Tag: political-islam

When the Savages Manage Savagery: 9/11, Permanent War, and the Collapse of the American Century