The Shadow World Inside the Global Arms Trade by Andrew Feinstein

By Brandon Lawrence

“This was one of those books that make your blood boil, but you just go back for more.”

This book was recommended to me at the time, right at the outset, when I had very high hopes about what the Zondo Commission could mean for South Africa.

In summary, it infuriated me.

It made me realise that while I may be a critic of governments and politicians the world over, I am, in reality, more ignorant and na?ve than I would like to believe.??

We have almost become complacent to government greed and corruption, but this book made a direct connection to the deaths, devastation and suffering of countries and Africa.

It infuriated me to see how the rich and powerful would agitate wars for financial gain (sometimes offering weapons to both opponents); how even the mightiest of presidents (who had good intentions) could not overcome a revolving door between war, money, and death; how the abuse of power thwarts accountability; and how the Western nations continue to get away with a slap on the wrist, a pat on the back, and with devastation in its wake.

It makes me think (call me a conspiracy theorist) who’s really making the money, who’s really benefitting, who’s really suffering the brunt of the Ukrainian war? The manufacturers! The United States of America, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Australia, Russia, and the list goes on.

Shrouded in the veil of arming Ukraine, someone has to pay for the weapons, someone has to get the money, “the commissions”, and who else is benefitting more from the destruction? The same people to whom we can attribute the collapse of economies (South Africa a case in point), the rise of Somalian piracy, the deaths of millions in Rwanda, Sudan, Afghanistan, Palestine, Congo, and many more.

TRILLIONS of dollars have passed hand, and the people - the world over-?remain blinded to the real truth.

I would recommend this book to anyone who needs a real eye-opener of just how deep the rabbit hole goes.