Max Blumenthal is an American author and journalist known for his incisive examinations of political and social crises, particularly in the Middle East. His work often centers on a critical analysis of U.S. foreign policy and its impact on the region. Blumenthal is recognized for his bold style, unafraid to confront powerful interests and expose complex power dynamics. His reporting seeks to provide a deeper understanding of conflicts and their underlying causes. Readers will appreciate his uncompromising approach to journalism and his commitment to shedding light on difficult truths.
The book chronicles the devastating impact of Israel's military operations in Gaza from July 8, 2014, detailing the tragic loss of over 2,000 lives, primarily civilians. It highlights the destruction of at least 10,000 homes and the displacement of nearly 300,000 Palestinians, as reported by the United Nations. Through these events, the narrative explores the broader implications of the conflict and its humanitarian consequences.
How America’s failed wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria have resulted in increased threats at home—from jihadist terrorism to the rise of Western ultra-nationalism. In the Management of Savagery, Max Blumenthal excavates the real story behind America’s dealings with the world and shows how the extremist forces that now threaten peace across the globe are the inevitable flowering of America’s imperial designs. Washington’s secret funding of the mujahedin provoked the Russian invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. With guns and money, the United States has ever since sustained the extremists, including Osama Bin Laden, who have become its enemies. The Pentagon has trained and armed jihadist elements in Afghanistan, Syria, and Libya; it has launched military interventions to change regimes in the Middle East. In doing so, it created fertile ground for the Islamic State and brought foreign conflicts home to American soil. These failed wars abroad have made the United States more vulnerable to both terrorism as well as native ultra-nationalism. The Trump presidency is the inevitable consequence of neoconservative imperialism in the post–Cold War age. Trump’s dealings in the Middle East are likely only to exacerbate the situation.
Journalist and bestselling author Max Blumenthal reports on Israel's 2014 Operation Protective Edge-a devastating offensive that left thousands of civilians dead in Gaza-and provides an on-the-ground view of those 51 days.
Goliath is a particular kind of expose-minded, documentary-broadside journalism whose place we generally recognize and respect... Blumenthal has made a sobering prima facie case that there are extreme forces [within Israel's current political-social dynamics] to be aware of, and reckoned with more fully that American discourse usually does. James Fallows, The Atlantic