In Praise of Empires

DEEPAK LAL is James S. Coleman Professor of International Development Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, USA and Professor Emeritus of Political Economy, University College of London, UK. He has advised numerous governments and international agencies and was the Research Administrator at the World Bank from 1984 to 1987. He writes a monthly column for 'The Business Standard' and his most recent work, 'Unintended Consequences' was named on the of the 12 'Year's Best Books About Asia' by Asia Pacific Media News Magazine.

• Introduction PART I: PEACE Empires From a British to an American Imperium Challenges to the American Imperium PART TWO: PROSPERITY Liberal International Economic Orders The Challenges of Globalization: There Is No Third Way NGOs and Global Salvationism PART THREE: MORALITY Habits of the Heart Nationalism and Democracy Toward an International Moral Order?

'A brilliant and provocative scourge of pious thinking on international politics'- Paul Collier, University of Oxford 'In only 216 pages of tautly written, sharply worded and frankly exhilarating text, Lal sets out the case for imperialism in the modern world, and why the United states could bring untold benefits to the planet if only it could shrug off the notion, held ever since the Revolutionary War-era, that empires are bad things per se.' - Andrew Roberts, The Sunday Telegraph 'Controversial, but tight and historically well-informed.' - BBC History