Waging Peace

Abstract

Abstract Chapter 10 briefly examines the global political and economic system in which the war and security systems of Wreckonomics have been unfolding and interacting. The chapter discusses inequality and insecurity as two fundamental problems that are exacerbated rather than ameliorated by war and security interventions. Relatedly, it analyzes the “politics of distraction” that has fed the various wars and fights covered in the book, while doing little to address ordinary people’s sense of insecurity. Cautioning against the “wreckonomic” dangers of ready-made solutions, the chapter emphasizes that productive change will be elusive unless accompanied by an understanding of the mechanisms that make endless wars and endless wrecking so persistent and profitable.