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Blood Oil
- Tyrants, Violence, and the Rules That Run the World
- Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell
- Length: 20 hrs and 27 mins
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Publisher's summary
Natural resources empower the world's most coercive men. Autocrats like Putin and the Saudis spend oil money on weapons and repression. ISIS and Congo's militias spend resource money on atrocities and ammunition. For decades resource-fueled authoritarians and extremists have forced endless crises on the West - and the ultimate source of their resource money is us, paying at the gas station and the mall.
In this sweeping new book, one of today's leading political philosophers, Leif Wenar, goes behind the headlines in search of the hidden global rule that thwarts democracy and development - and that puts shoppers into business with some of today's most dangerous men. Listeners discover a rule that once licensed the slave trade and apartheid and genocide, a rule whose abolition has marked some of humanity's greatest triumphs - yet a rule that still enflames tyranny and war and terrorism through today's multitrillion-dollar resource trade. Blood Oil shows how the West can now lead a peaceful revolution by ending its dependence on authoritarian oil and by getting shoppers out of business with the men of blood. The book describes practical strategies for upgrading world trade: for choosing new rules that will make us more secure at home, more trusted abroad, and better able to solve pressing global problems like climate change. This book shows citizens, consumers, and leaders how we can act together today to create a more united human future.
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The Origins of Political Order: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution
- By: Francis Fukuyama
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 22 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Virtually all human societies were once organized tribally, yet over time most developed new political institutions which included a central state that could keep the peace and uniform laws that applied to all citizens. Some went on to create governments that were accountable to their constituents. We take these institutions for granted, but they are absent or are unable to perform in many of today’s developing countries—with often disastrous consequences for the rest of the world.
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Few forests, but lots of trees
- By Steve Pagano on 10-05-15
By: Francis Fukuyama
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The Post-American World 2.0
- By: Fareed Zakaria
- Narrated by: Fareed Zakaria
- Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Here is the New York Times and international best seller, revised and expanded with a new afterword. This is the essential update of Fareed Zakaria's analysis about America and its shifting position in world affairs. In this new edition, Zakaria makes sense of the rapidly changing global landscape. With his customary lucidity, insight, and imagination, he draws on lessons from the two great power shifts of the past 500 years - the rise of the Western world and the rise of the United States - to tell us what we can expect from the third shift, the rise of the rest.
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S/B req reading for every man, woman and child...
- By Kopernicus on 10-20-11
By: Fareed Zakaria
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The New Road to Serfdom
- A Letter of Warning to America
- By: Daniel Hannan
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
- Length: 4 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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In The New Road to Serfdom, British conservative Daniel Hannan argues forcefully and passionately that Americans must not allow Barack Obama to take us down the road to EU-style social democracy. Instead, he pleads with Americans not to abandon the founding principles that made their country a beacon of liberty for the rest of the world.
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An excellent read from a brilliant man...
- By Martin on 10-30-11
By: Daniel Hannan
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Hopes and Prospects
- By: Noam Chomsky
- Narrated by: Brian Jones
- Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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In this urgent new book, Noam Chomsky examines the dangers and prospects of our early 21st century. Exploring challenges such as the growing gap between North and South, American exceptionalism (including under President Obama), the fiascos of Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S.-Israeli assault on Gaza, and the recent recent financial bailouts, he also sees hope for the future. Chomsky surveys the democratic wave in Latin America and the growing global solidarity movements.
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An Intellectual Wind Tunnel
- By Cellar_Door_Books on 04-23-11
By: Noam Chomsky
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The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution
- Why Economic Inequality Threatens Our Republic
- By: Ganesh Sitaraman
- Narrated by: MacLeod Andrews
- Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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For most of Western history, Sitaraman argues, constitutional thinkers assumed economic inequality was inevitable and inescapable - and they designed governments to prevent class divisions from spilling over into class warfare. The American Constitution is different. Compared to Europe and the ancient world, America was a society of almost unprecedented economic equality, and the founding generation saw this equality as essential for the preservation of America's republic.
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Very well done
- By JLyman on 08-27-17
By: Ganesh Sitaraman
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Forgotten Continent
- The Battle for Latin America’s Soul
- By: Michael Reid
- Narrated by: Gary Dikeos
- Length: 18 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Latin America has often been condemned to failure. Neither poor enough to evoke Africa’s moral crusade nor as explosively booming as India and China, it has largely been overlooked by the West. Yet this vast continent, home to half a billion people, the world’s largest reserves of arable land, and 8.5 percent of global oil, is busily transforming its political and economic landscape.
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Good Reporting / Disorganized Content
- By Steven Schuster on 02-11-12
By: Michael Reid
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Decline and Fall
- The End of Empire and the Future of Democracy in 21st Century America
- By: John Michael Greer
- Narrated by: Kristoffer Tabori
- Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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The decline and fall of America's global empire is the central feature of today's geopolitical landscape, and the nature of our response to it will determine much of our future trajectory, with implications that reach far beyond the limits of one nation's borders. Decline and Fall: The End of Empire and the Future of Democracy in 21st Century America challenges the conventional wisdom of empire, using a wealth of historical examples combined with groundbreaking original analysis.
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Will insist friends & family read this book
- By Paul on 05-14-16
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Inglorious Empire
- What the British Did to India
- By: Shashi Tharoor
- Narrated by: Shashi Tharoor
- Length: 10 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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In the 18th century, India's share of the world economy was as large as Europe's. By 1947, after two centuries of British rule, it had decreased six-fold. Beyond conquest and deception, the Empire blew rebels from cannons, massacred unarmed protesters, entrenched institutionalized racism, and caused millions to die from starvation. British imperialism justified itself as enlightened despotism for the benefit of the governed, but Shashi Tharoor takes on and demolishes this position, demonstrating how every supposed imperial "gift" was designed in Britain's interests alone.
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An entertaining and provocative history
- By James Moseley on 01-07-20
By: Shashi Tharoor
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Libertarianism
- What Everyone Needs to Know
- By: Jason Brennan
- Narrated by: Nicholas Ramsey
- Length: 6 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Historically, Americans have seen libertarians as far outside the mainstream, but with the rise of the Tea Party movement, libertarian principles have risen to the forefront of Republican politics. But libertarianism is more than the philosophy of individual freedom and unfettered markets that Republicans have embraced. Indeed, as Jason Brennan points out, libertarianism is a quite different - and far richer - system of thought than most of us suspect. In this timely new entry in Oxford's acclaimed series What Everyone Needs to Know, Brennan offers a nuanced portrait of libertarianism.
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very informative
- By S. Schmidt on 09-21-19
By: Jason Brennan
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Theodore and Woodrow
- How Two American Presidents Destroyed Constitutional Freedom
- By: Andrew Napolitano
- Narrated by: Scott Moore
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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A harsh and revealing political exposé of two beloved presidents. Judge Andrew P. Napolitano reveals how Teddy Roosevelt, a bully, and Woodrow Wilson, a constitutional scholar, each pushed aside the Constitution’s restrictions on the federal government and used it as an instrument to redistribute wealth, regulate personal behavior, and enrich the government. Theodore and Woodrow exposes two of our nation’s most beloved presidents and how they helped speed the Progressive cause on its merry way.
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The Case Against Theodore and Woodrow...
- By Joseph D. Klotz on 03-12-13
What listeners say about Blood Oil
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Rachel
- 04-27-16
HEAVY but practcal! How western nations are cursed
when buying stolen resources from authoritarian rulers; how & why we must stop. A must Read!
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4 people found this helpful
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- Tim
- 05-31-16
Thought Provoking
I would recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in global justice. I think I'll be buying it for some people...
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5 people found this helpful
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- Scott C Atkins
- 03-29-19
Eye opening concepts
This collection of ideas and historical evidence will change how you see world events from now on. What political parties don't want us to know.
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- Magnus
- 03-21-17
A solution to intransigence in human rights
This is a thorough philosophical road map for native ownership of resources, which is argued to be the cause of much remaining global strife. Support the roadmap, let's see just democracy materialise!
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- Andrew
- 05-20-17
Excellent
This is a great philosophical exploration of one of the greatest problems of our time, resource exploitation.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Gunnar Nelson
- 02-17-17
blood oil: (a virtue of unification)
Great book overall, opened my eyes up to a whole new world. performance was great overall. the author constructed a definitive argument about the corruption within the global supply chain. the book oothes with prothos to convince thr reader about the epidemic in the global supply chain; however, I felt there wasn't so much devotion to the political and economic ties to how to recomprimise corruption in the supply chain. I believe to make his argument more definitive would be to tie in more the corruption. of slavery and common goods people traded such as sugar cane, spices, coffee, and cotton in the 1600-1800s. he does make a more definitive argument for unification of man globally, but doesn't dive into the political and economic stricture. Still good though!
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- Tully Smith
- 02-14-17
Very good book, can be depressing at times though
This is a very insightful book that sheds light on how backwards the whole oil industry is. I had to listen to the book in chucks, as it was a little to "real" to listen to for long durations. Great book over all.
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Caveat: Human beings -- Totally untrustworthy
This book is a thorough primer on world affairs. It clarified a lot of things for me with brilliant examples and tidbits, particularly about our relationship with the Saudi Kingdom and other such states.
However, in my jaded view, conflict and war is part of our DNA like water and salt. We humans will never change and will always find something to quarrel about. The book demonstrates this human pitfall in its discussions regarding alternative solutions. ...
Better technology and upheaval because of new technology is most often the driver of social progress and setbacks. For example the abolition of slavery and the American Civil War was an industrial vs agrarian conflict. (And it can be argued that the freeing of the slaves was Lincoln's version of Truman dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.) In the case that the author cited, the abolition of the slave trade by England, it is noted that the TRADE of slaves was abolished but NOT SLAVERY itself. For tactical reasons, the abolitionist in England believed that slavery itself would wither away on its own, which was true enough. Industrialization and the replacement of brute manpower with machine power, however, was the ultimate driver (i.e., better profits).
Likewise, alternative fuels or even lifestyles might ultimately cure our dependency on oil; provided, the powers that be allows us to go forward with these alternative lifestyles. Yes, allow --the forces of commercialism and the constant brainwashing are difficult to overcome even by the fiercest of romantics. ...
Enters shale oil --and its taxing horrors on the eco-systems of the states involved, Pennsylvania, upstate New York and other bucolic scenes throughout the United States and Canada and the Americas-- to carry the day until science, our hero, sneaks one in and breaks the spell. ...
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6 people found this helpful
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- Mehr
- 06-30-17
Informative, repetitive
The book had the longest intro ever. Once through the 4 hours of introduction, the book moved along repeating itself regularly and quickly lost my intetest. I powered through anyway, fast forwarding to the best of my ability when recovering the same topic. Again and again.
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- S. Yates
- 04-30-17
Thought-provoking, but should include endnotes
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
I would recommend the book, but I truly believe it should have included endnotes. Books like these, where many sources are used, loose something without this additional information. I realize it can slow the speed of the reader, but I think they should just say "endnote 1", "endnote 2", etc., and then include a pdf with the endnotes.
Any additional comments?
3.5 stars. This is a difficult book to review or sum up. It looks at the various research-rich countries in the world where the resource wealth has abetted sub-par, violent, and/or non-existent government. It is part history, part economics lesson, part psychology, part political science primer, and part philosophy. On the pro side, the author's view is clearly rooted in an ethical hope for and vision of the world; sometimes it seems a bit Pollyanna-ish, but the sentiment is welcome where many find only cynicism. The author is sympathetic to the plight of those who are resource cursed (the term of art used to describe the majority of resource-rich countries for whom the bounty ended up being a bane), and lays all the necessary groundwork to explain how resource-rich countries can end up with impoverished people and illiberal policies. The author also discusses the oil trade at length (with additional attention given to other extractive resources, from metals to gems), which can be eye-opening to those who never really think about the intricacies of this economy. The author also provides an impressive (if somewhat fulsome) account of political power, laying groundwork for the reader to understand how the relationship between leaders and the populace have morphed over time, the pitfalls in these relationships, and what aspects allowed for governments structured on leaders serving the people rather than people serving the leaders. This all leads up to some grand policy suggestions (on par with the kind of broad policies necessary to oppose the international slave trade). These suggestions, though daunting and unlikely to come about soon, are not entirely unworkable. They are creative and interesting. Even if the reader thinks they have a long shot at being enacted in the near future, the still offer much to ponder and many tools that could be deployed against unjust states who live off of their resources at the expense of their people.
The book also has some shortcomings. The tone sometimes feels a bit too philosophical and it occasionally plays a little loosely with facts. (Glaringly, in the introduction, the author states that the Great Wall of China and an oil platform off of Norway can be seen from the moon -- but this is just plain wrong. The Great Wall can only occasionally be seen from low earth orbit, and certainly not from the moon. Whether inadvertent or not, errors like these, which should be easily caught with the most rudimentary fact checking, makes one wonder what else might be exaggerated, obscured, or just plain false.) That said, the book is sufficiently end-noted to allow a reader to check sources. The extensive space used discussing political history and economics might turn off a reader who expected a more concise book focused on oil alone (and modern oil at that). In the end, these aspects of the book did not diminish the scope and ethical heart of the whole. I felt it was worth my time and enlightening in a number of ways.
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1 person found this helpful