War Is a Racket

US Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler collected an award cabinet full of medals for his battlefield bravery. But perhaps his bravest act of all was to declare, after his retirement in the early 1930s, who was really winning (and losing) during the bloody clashes.

It was business interests, he revealed, who commercially benefited from warfare. War Is a Racket is the title of the influential speech Butler delivered on a tour across the United States, as well the expanded version of the talk that was later published in 1935—and is now reprinted here. This seminal piece of writing rings as true today as it did during Butler’s lifetime.

In his introduction, Jesse Ventura reviews Butler’s original writings and relates them to our current political climate—explaining how right he was, and how wrong our current system is. With an insightful new foreword by Salon.com founder David Talbot, this portable reference will appeal to anyone interested in the state of our country and the entire world.

Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Smedley Darlington Butler was a major general in the US Marine Corps and at the time of his death was the most decorated marine in US history. He was the only person ever to be awarded the Brevet Medal and two Medals of Honor.

Jesse Ventura is a former Independent governor of Minnesota, US Navy SEAL, professional wrestler, movie actor, New York Times bestselling author, and visiting fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

David Talbot is the founder of Salon.com and author of history books Devil Dog (on Smedley Butler), Brothers, Season of the Witch, and The Devil’s Chessboard. He lives in San Francisco, California.

Cindy Sheehan is an author and activist, and the mother of Spc. Casey A. Sheehan, KIA in Iraq, April 4, 2004.Visit her at www.cindysheehanssoapbox.com.