Kennard in this excerpt from his book The Racket: A Rogue Reporter vs. the Masters of the Universe essentially tells his political coming-of-age experience while working at his first professional job for the Financial Times. His "political coming-of-age experience" differs from most people who are trained to maintain the childish notion of following the dictates of authorities instead of seeing the world as it is. He learned what I have often argued: domination, or power over others, is probably the most addictive of all drugs.
Whereas he simply identifies the authorities as "racketeers", I see them as functioning directly or indirectly as capitalist authorities to support their interests of wealth and power. By succumbing to power exercised by capitalist authorities, one will receive numerous rewards: a well remunerated career, many friends, and beautiful women (or handsome men) drawn to you.
I started working as a reporter at the Financial Times soon after the financial crisis began and at the height of the so-called “War on Terror”. I was a young, ambitious reporter assigned to one of the world’s most respected broadsheets, ready to speak the truth. I learnt soon enough that this was not the place to do it.Fortunately, he did not succumb to this powerful drug and has insisted on living his life with his eyes wide open. He tells the story of his political coming-of-age in this excerpt.