George Michael - Böcker

This book examines the response to right-wing extremism in the US from both the government and non-governmental organisations. It provides a detailed portrait of the contemporary extreme right in the US including interviews with several of the movement's leading figures from groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, Militias, American Renaissance and the White Aryan Resistance. The author also explains how the activities of these racist groups have been curbed due to the campaigning efforts of anti-racist and anti-fascist watchdogs who have helped to shape and influence government policy.

This book examines the response to right-wing extremism in the US from both the government and non-governmental organisations. It provides a detailed portrait of the contemporary extreme right in the US including interviews with several of the movement's leading figures from groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, Militias, American Renaissance and the White Aryan Resistance. The author also explains how the activities of these racist groups have been curbed due to the campaigning efforts of anti-racist and anti-fascist watchdogs who have helped to shape and influence government policy.

In the violent world of radical extremists, ""the enemy of my enemy is my friend."" In this provocative study, George Michael reveals how that precept plays out in the unexpected bonding between militant Islam and the extreme right in America and Europe. At first glance, these two groups would seem to share little if any common ground. Why would various neo-Nazis, Holocaust deniers, white separatists, and antigovernment radicals find themselves attracted to movements, such as Al Qaeda, Hezbollah, Hamas, and Egyptian Islamic Jihad? After all, the extreme right's racist and radical Christian segments tend to deride and exclude all nonwhites and non-Christians, while Islamic fundamentalists angrily denounce all non-Muslims, especially Americans, as infidels. Nevertheless, as Michael shows, they have developed strikingly similar critiques on such issues as American foreign policy, the media, modernity, and the New World Order. The first book to focus on the growing linkage between these two movements, ""The Enemy of My Enemy"" analyzes the histories and ideologies guiding these disparate groups, clarifies the nature of their mutual appeal, and shows how the Internet and globalization have made increased interaction possible. Michael notes that one particularly dominant thread running throughout both camps is a fervent anti-Semitism, accompanied by strong pro-Palestinian views, anger over Israel's influence on American policymakers, and opposition to the Iraq War and the U.S. presence in the Middle East. Michael also speculates on how the so-called War on Terror might unfold if this unexpected and alarming convergence grows stronger. While the thought of Americans assisting or fighting alongside Islamic militants - in America - sounds utterly far-fetched, Michael points out that some members of the extreme right have publicly expressed admiration for Al Qaeda's audacious attacks on 9/11. Daring to consider the unthinkable, Michael provides an insightful and sane look at the possibilities for collaboration between these groups and raises a quiet but clear alarm for anyone concerned about America's future.

This is a sweeping overview and assessment of the various brands of bigotry, prejudice, zealotry, dogmatism, and partisanship found in the United States, including the extreme right, the antiglobalization movement, Black Nationalism, Chicano separatism, militant Islam, Jewish extremism, eco-extremism, the radical antiabortion movement, and extremist terrorism.

The American Republic was born in revolt against the British crown, and ever since, political extremism has had a long tradition in the United States. To some observers, the continued presence of extremist groups--and the escalation of their activities--portends the fragmentation of the country, while others believe such is the way American pluralism works. The word extremism often carries negative connotations, yet in 1964 Barry Goldwater famously said, ""Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice.""Extremism in America is a sweeping overview and assessment of the various brands of bigotry, prejudice, zealotry, dogmatism, and partisanship found in the United States, including the extreme right, the antiglobalization movement, Black Nationalism, Chicano separatism, militant Islam, Jewish extremism, eco-extremism, the radical antiabortion movement, and extremist terrorism.Many of these forms of single-minded intolerance are repressed by both the state and society at large, but others receive significant support from their constituencies and enjoy a level of respectability in some quarters of the mainstream. The essays in this volume examine the relationship between these movements and the larger society, dissect the arguments of contemporary American anarchist activists, look at recent trends in political extremism, and suggest how and why such arguments resonate with a considerable number of people.

A biography of an influential radical conservative who sought to unite the far rightWillis Carto (1926-2015) was arguably the most important radical conservative in postwar America. Best known as the founder of the infamous Liberty Lobby, he has shaped the far right's position on such issues as immigration, globalization, multiculturalism, Holocaust denial, and conflict in the Middle East.Granted remarkable personal access to the notoriously reclusive Carto, George Michael has written a fascinating biography. Throughout his long political career, Carto sought to unite the various movements that make up the far right. Toward that end, he reached out to individuals from both the fringe and the mainstream.Michael provides an account of the various publishing and organizational ventures in which Carto was involved, including the Institute for Historical Review, The Spotlight, Youth for Wallace, the Populist Party, American Free Press, and the political career of David Duke. The result is a captivating portrait of this dedicated, frightening, and controversial man.

Inside one of the most radical organizations in the history of the American far rightDuring the weekend of July 4, 1999, Benjamin "August" Smith went on a three-day rampage in Illinois and Indiana, attacking Asian Americans, Orthodox Jews, and African Americans. He left two people dead and nine wounded, and then committed suicide. As a former member—resigning the day before the shootings—of the World Church of the Creator (now known as the Creativity Movement), Smith was praised by the leader of the church as "Creator of the Year" for bringing attention to their existence and radical beliefs.Smith's rampage was the first many Americans had heard of this small, previously obscure organization. In this fascinating and comprehensive history of the Creativity Movement, one of the most radical organizations in the history of the American far right, George Michael reminds us that some of the most dangerous radical elements in the United States are home grown.

On July 22, 2011, Anders Behring Breivik detonated a car bomb in downtown Oslo, Norway. He didn't stop there, traveling several hours from the city to ambush a youth camp while the rest of Norway was distracted by his earlier attack. That's where the facts end. But what motivated him? Did he have help staging the attacks? The evidence suggests a startling truth: that this was the work of one man, pursuing a mission he was convinced was just.If Breivik did indeed act alone, he wouldn't be the first. Timothy McVeigh bombed a federal building in Oklahoma City based essentially on his own motivations. Eric Robert Rudolph embarked on a campaign of terror over several years, including the Centennial Park bombing at the 1996 Olympics. Ted Kaczynski was revealed to be the Unabomber that same year. And these are only the most notable examples. As George Michael demonstrates in Lone Wolf Terror and the Rise of Leaderless Resistance, they are not isolated cases. Rather, they represent the new way warfare will be conducted in the twenty-first century.Lone Wolf Terror investigates the motivations of numerous political and ideological elements, such as right-wing individuals, ecoextremists, foreign jihadists, and even quasi-governmental entities. In all these cases, those carrying out destructive acts operate as ""lone wolves"" and small cells, with little or no connection to formal organisations. Ultimately, Michael suggests that leaderless resistance has become the most common tactical approach of political terrorists in the West and elsewhere.