Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine advances a truly unnerving argument: historically, while people were reeling from natural disasters, wars and economic upheavals, savvy politicians and industry leaders nefariously implemented policies that would never have passed during less muddled times. As Klein demonstrates, this reprehensible game of bait-and-switch isn't just some relic from the bad old days. It's alive and well in contemporary society, and coming soon to a disaster area near you.

"At the most chaotic juncture in Iraq'' civil war, a new law is unveiled that will allow Shell and BP to claim the country's vast oil reserves… Immediately following September 11, the Bush Administration quietly outsources the running of the 'War on Terror' to Halliburton and Blackwater… After a tsunami wipes out the coasts of Southeast Asia, the pristine beaches are auctioned off to tourist resorts… New Orleans residents, scattered from Hurricane Katrina, discover that their public housing, hospitals and schools will never be re-opened." Klein not only kicks butt, she names names, notably economist Milton Friedman and his radical Chicago School of the 1950s and 60s which she notes "produced many of the leading neo-conservative and neo-liberal thinkers whose influence is still profound in Washington today." Stand up and take a bow, Donald Rumsfeld.

There's little doubt Klein's book--which arrived to enormous attention and fanfare thanks to her previous missive, the best-selling No Logo, will stir the ire of the right and corporate America. It's also true that Klein's assertions are coherent, comprehensively researched and footnoted, and she makes a very credible case. Even if the world isn't going to hell in a hand-basket just yet, it's nice to know a sharp customer like Klein is bearing witness to the backroom machinations of government and industry in times of turmoil. --

娜奥米·克莱恩，（Naomi Klehin），1970年生于加拿大蒙特利尔，记者、畅销书作家、社会活动家、反全球化分子、电影制片人，以其对全球化的批判闻名于世。处女作《NO LOGO》（中译本：广西师范大学出版社，2009年）一书，引起全球广泛回响。她被《泰晤士报》誉为“可能是三十五岁以下对世界最具影响力的人士”，《纽约时报》亦称她“隐然是北美左派运动的代表”。在大卫·赫尔曼的《全球公共知识分子排行榜》中，克莱恩排行第11位，在世界公共知识分子中占有相当重要的地位。作者2007年所著《休克主义：灾难资本主义的兴起》一书，对新自由主义和芝加哥学派发起最有力的挑战，2009年赢得了首届华威奖，再次赢得巨大的声誉。