Confessions of an Economic Hit Man

9. “Venezuela Leader Urges 20 Years for Strike Chiefs,” Associated Press, February 22, 2003.

10. Paul Richter, “U.S. Had Talks on Chávez Ouster,” Los Angeles Times, April 17, 2002.

Chapter 34. Ecuador Revisited

1. Chris Jochnick, “Perilous Prosperity,” New Internationalist, June 2001, http://www.newint.org/issue335/perilous.htm.

2. United Nations. Human Development Report (New York: United Nations, 1999).

3. For additional information on the hostage situation, see Alan Zibel, “Natives Seek Redress for Pollution,” Oakland Tribune, December 10, 2002; Hoy (Quito, Ecuador daily newspaper) articles of December 10–28, 2003; “Achuar Free Eight Oil Hostages,” El Commercio (Quito daily newspaper), December 16, 2002 (also carried by Reuters); “Ecuador: Oil Firm Stops Work because Staff Seized, Demands Government Action,” and “Sarayacu—Indigenous Groups to Discuss Release of Kidnapped Oil Men,” El Universo (Guayaquil, Ecuador, daily newspaper), http://www.eluniverso.com, December 24, 2002; and Juan Forero, “Seeking Balance: Growth vs. Culture in the Amazon,” New York Times, December 10, 2003. Current, updated information about Ecuador’s Amazonian people is available at the Pachamama Alliance Web site: http://www.pachamama.org.

Chapter 35. Piercing the Veneer

1. National debt statistics from the Bureau of the Public Debt, reported at www.publicdebt.treas.gov/opd/opdpenny.htm; national income statistics from the World Bank at www.worldbank.org/data/databytopic/GNIPC.pdf.

2. Elizabeth Becker and Richard A. Oppel, “A Nation at War: Reconstruction. U.S. Gives Bechtel a Major Contract in Rebuilding Iraq,” New York Times, April 18, 2003, http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/18/international/worldspecial/18REBU.html.

3. Richard A. Oppel with Diana B. Henriques, “A Nation at War: The Contractor. Company Has Ties in Washington, and to Iraq,” New York Times, April 18, 2003, http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/18/international/worldspecial/18CONT.html.

4. http://money.cnn.com/2003/04/17/news/companies/war-bechtel/index.htm.

Epilogue

1. Energy Information Administration, reported in USA Today, March 1, 2004, p 1.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

John Perkins has lived four lives: as an economic hit man (EHM); as the CEO of a successful alternative energy company, who was rewarded for not disclosing his EHM past; as an expert on indigenous cultures and shamanism, a teacher and writer who used this expertise to promote ecology and sustainability while continuing to honor his vow of silence about his life as an EHM; and now as a writer who, in telling the real-life story about his extraordinary dealings as an EHM, has exposed the world of international intrigue and corruption that is turning the American republic into a global empire despised by increasing numbers of people around the planet.

As an EHM, John’s job was to convince third world countries to accept enormous loans for infrastructure development—loans that were much larger than needed—and to guarantee that the development projects were contracted to U.S. corporations like Halliburton and Bechtel. Once these countries were saddled with huge debts, the U.S. government and the international aid agencies allied with it were able to control these economies and to ensure that oil and other resources were channeled to serve the interests of building a global empire.

In his EHM capacity, John traveled all over the world and was either a direct participant in or a witness to some of the most dramatic events in modern history, including the Saudi Arabian Money-laundering Affair, the fall of the shah of Iran, the death of Panama’s President Omar Torrijos, the subsequent invasion of Panama, and events leading up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

In 1980, Perkins founded Independent Power Systems, Inc. (IPS), an alternative energy company. Under his leadership as CEO, IPS became an extremely successful firm in a high-risk business where most of his competitors failed. Many “coincidences” and favors from people in powerful positions helped make IPS an industry leader. John also served as a highly paid consultant to some of the corporations whose pockets he had previously helped to line—taking on this role partly in response to a series of not-so-veiled threats and lucrative payoffs.

After selling IPS in 1990, John became a champion for indigenous rights and environmental movements, working especially closely with Amazon tribes to help them preserve their rain forests. He wrote five books, published in many languages, about indigenous cultures, shamanism, ecology, and sustainability; taught at universities and learning centers on four continents; and founded and served on the board of directors of several leading nonprofit organizations.