President Trump and his alternative media supporters call the mainstream fake news. The mainstream calls the alternative media fake. But who is telling the truth? What is fake news? And are there parameters to define it? Fake news is everywhere and always has been. From the earliest records of the complex societies of ancient Babylon, Egypt, Greece and Rome right up to the modern age of internet algorithms, people with power on all sides of the political and religious divide have told untruths, partial truths and outright lies in an effort to maintain and expand their power. Whether it's simple money-making schemes online today (clickbait) or powerful political apparatus, including multimillion dollar parties, fake news is business as usual. In Real Fake News, T.J. Coles (Britain's Secret Wars) takes the reader on a journey, from the self- interested mysticism of ancient China and the atrocity propaganda of the British Empire, to the travelling medicine show quackery of 19th century America and the current abuse of authority by big pharma, the classic war photos which are actually staged and the online manipulation techniques of the secret services. Al-Qaeda released fraudulent Bin Laden tapes. Islamic State does green-screen. The US accuses Syria of using chemical weapons with no evidence. Coles demonstrates that fake news isn't confined to news media or to a simple 'we're right, you're wrong' dialectic. There's plenty of 'fake news' in the alternative media as well as in the mainstream. This book gives the reader a broader historical and cultural context and encourages ultra-skepticism and critical thinking.

Real Fake News: Techniques of Propaganda and Deception-based Mind Control, from Ancient Babylon to Internet Algorithms

Politics & Social Sciences

Coles, T.J.

Politics & Government

Red Pill Press

Quoting leaked documents, corporate lobby memos and a host of other primary sources, Privatized Planet seeks to prove that corporate globalisation is changing shape, not coming to an end. And this time, it's even worse for working people... Author T.J. Coles takes us on a tour of US-led corporate free trade deals, arguing that activists helped beat back the big multilateral trade deals, TTIP and TPP, and that they must now pay attention to the 'noodle bowl' of bilateral deals being signed in secret, like the ongoing US-UK free trade deal.

Privatized Planet: Free Trade as a Weapon Against Democracy, Healthcare and the Environment

Business & Money

Economics

New Internationalist

In his urgent new book, T. J. Coles uncovers the forces seeking to uncouple Britain from the European Union. Allied to an expanding core of free-market fanatics in the Conservative party is a powerful group of globalists and financial traders. Their political ideology is neoliberalism―a worldwide agenda that seeks to deregulate markets and maximize profits for global elites at the expense of working people. The effect is a growing gap internationally between rich and poor. Digging deep into the funding campaign, The Great Brexit Swindle documents the potent, self-serving interests behind Brexit. In the wake of the financial crisis of 2008, mega-rich hedge-fund managers and billionaire CEOs are keen to be rid of Brussels and its “red tape” regulation. Their anti-European political allies, meanwhile, are preparing to corner markets in Asia and South America, while expanding Britain’s military capacity as a backup to economic penetration. Brexit was sold to the public as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to regain sovereignty, control immigration, and increase the nation’s wealth. But, despite the manifold promises of Brexiteers, Coles demonstrates that economic globalization will lead to growing job insecurity and greater immigration once British workers are put into direct competition with the huge, poor populations of countries such as Brazil, China, Mexico, and India. Increasing “free market” trade worldwide leaves Britain open to low-quality products, such as hormone-treated American beef and genetically modified foods, while the planned new trade agreements would only accelerate the privatization of public services. Although Coles is not an advocate for the EU, he argues that the Brexit agenda is designed to serve only the interests of the wealthy and increasingly powerful 0.1 percent of the population.

The Great Brexit Swindle: Why the Mega-rich and Free Market Fanatics Conspired to Force Britain from the European Union

International

Clairview Books

With Trump in the White House, big business has direct power in government. Trump has stacked his cabinet with former employees of investment banks, Big Oil, and international corporations. Now that big business has its representatives in the cabinet, it no longer needs to bear the cost of expensive lobbying. Under Trump, corporations control U.S. policy. How and why did this happen, and what does it mean for the bulk of the population? T. J. Coles presents the background to Trump’s rise, tracing the history of economic neoliberalism. He shows what a “liberal economy” means in practice―privatization of public resources, cutting “red tape” for corporations, and internationalizing volatile money markets. For ordinary working people, neoliberalism translates to ongoing falls in living standards, fewer protections for workers, spiraling housing costs, and social cutbacks. As a consequence, many voters are turning their backs on mainstream politics, with many now supporting far-right populist parties, including the Trump faction of the Republican Party and UKIP in Britain, despite the fact that those parties support the very policies that make most people poorer. President Trump, Inc.exposes the Trump hoax. He sold himself as a maverick, but in reality Big Business has been lobbying Congress for years to do what he campaigned for―tearing up the international TPP trade agreement, keeping out low-skilled immigrants while fast-tracking specific foreign workers, and helping repatriate corporations to the U.S. Trump’s seemingly personal agenda―“Make America Great Again”―is actually Big Business’s wish list. Coles concludes on a positive note, offering tangible hope. Real change, he notes, doesn’t come from the top down. Millions of people all over the world are working at local levels to win power back from centralized elites for their communities. The first step in this process of true democratization is to understand what’s really happening, and Coles’ essential analysis provides a clear picture of the present reality.

President Trump, Inc.: How Big Business and Neoliberalism Empower Populism and the Far-right

President Trump threatens North Korea with “fire and fury like the world has never seen,” whilst fellow Republican John McCain warns that the country risks “extinction.” But what does the regime in North Korea actually want? Is Kim Jong-un truly the mad cartoon villain that the media love to portray? Without being an apologist for the oppressive North Korean government, T. J. Coles exposes the propaganda war waged against it, revealing the truth behind the simplistic news headlines. North Korea has made multiple offers to the international community to end its nuclear program in exchange for assurances that it won’t be attacked by the US. It has even committed to a no-first-use policy for nuclear weapons―something the US itself will not do. Far from being a state in self-imposed hermitage, North Korea has diplomatic relations with over one hundred countries. Coles argues that the US is deliberately seeking to isolate the regime as part of its wider geostrategic goals in the Asia Pacific. The real target of the US, and ultimately its biggest challenge, is China. Coles debunks myths regarding North Korea’s military and demonstrates that in actual fact it has limited capabilities. In building up its own armed forces in the region (the so-called Asia Pivot), the US is playing a dangerous game of nuclear brinkmanship. Fire and Fury provides a sharp, succinct briefing for anyone seeking a broader, less distorted, and more balanced understanding of current events, while offering solutions for ordinary citizens who wish to further the cause of peace.

Fire and Fury: How the US Isolates North Korea, Encircles China and Risks Nuclear War in Asia

Britain's Secret Wars: How and Why the United Kingdom Sponsors Conflict around the World

History

Europe

Review\n“Manufacturing Terrorism is as terrifying as it is compelling. T. J. Coles argues that most terrorist attacks would never happen in the first place if not for overzealous, misguided, and just plain malevolent intelligence and law enforcement agencies in the West. He’s right. And he has the research and documentation to back it up. This book should be required reading, not just in colleges and universities, but also in every organization in the international intelligence and law enforcement communities.” -- John Kiriakou, former CIA counterterrorism officer and former senior investigator, U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations\nWhat if your own government deliberately creates terrorists? What if their short-term aims―deposing regimes that no longer serve Western interests, justifying invasions of sovereign nations and expanding the security state at home―have long-term consequences for us all? What if most of the horrific bombings, stabbings, and vehicle attacks of recent years are connected―indirectly and sometimes directly―to British, French, and American intelligence? T. J. Coles poses these and other hard-hitting questions in this disturbing survey of secret political maneuvering and covert manipulation. Welcome to the world of manufactured terrorism... 
Backed by a wealth of documentation, including court records, parliamentary inquiries, and little-known but official publications, the author exposes the role of the “deep state” in brutal acts of terror. Exploring Operation Gladio, Northern Irish terror, and (predominantly) Islamist jihad, he argues that the intelligence agencies, military, and governments employ six key methods to manufacture terrorism: Blowback―attacking other countries and provoking violent responses. Proxies―creating terrorists (including members of al-Qaeda) and using them against enemies. Provocateurs―provoking individuals from minorities into committing terrorist acts. Green-lighting―allowing terrorists to commit attacks to justify certain policies. False flags―committing terrorism and blaming it on designated enemies. Simulations―holding drills and exercises as covers for apparent terrorist acts. 
Contrary to claims that terrorism is caused by those who simply “hate our way of life”―in contrast to the simplistic narrative of conspiracy websites and talk shows―Coles asserts that each case of terrorism needs to be evaluated individually. Manufacturing Terrorism presents a complex picture that distinguishes among cases of blowback, proxies, false-flags, simulations, and so on. It offers an indispensable briefing to help readers make sense of our chaotic and dangerous world.

Manufacturing Terrorism: When Governments Use Fear to Justify Foreign Wars and Control Society

We'll Tell You What to Think: Wikipedia, Propaganda and the Making of Liberal Consensus

Independently published

Capitalism and Coronavirus: How Institutionalized Greed Turned a Crisis into a Catastrophe

Business Culture

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