Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic

A New York Times bestseller, Nemesis is Chalmers Johnson's "fiercest book and his best" (Andrew J. Bacevich)

In his prophetic book Blowback, Chalmers Johnson linked the CIA's clandestine activities abroad to disaster at home. In The Sorrows of Empire, he explored the ways in which the growth of American militarism and the garrisoning of the planet have jeopardized our stability. In Nemesis, the bestselling and final volume in what has become known as the Blowback Trilogy, he shows how imperial overstretch is undermining the republic itself, both economically and politically.

Delving into new areas from plans to militarize outer space to Constitution-breaking presidential activities at home and the devastating corruption of a toothless Congress Nemesis offers a striking description of the trap into which the reckless ambitions of America's leaders have taken us. Johnson confronts questions of pressing urgency: What are the unintended consequences of our dependence on a permanent war economy? What does it mean when a nation's main intelligence organization becomes the president's secret army? Or when the globe's sole "hyperpower" becomes the greatest hyper-debtor of all times?

Writing "as if the very existence of the nation is at stake" (San Francisco Chronicle), Johnson offers his most "bracing" and "important" (Los Angeles Times) exploration of the crisis facing America.