Democracy Inc

Download or read book Democracy Incorporated written by Sheldon S. Wolin and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2017-08-29 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Democracy is struggling in America--by now this statement is almost cliché. But what if the country is no longer a democracy at all? In Democracy Incorporated, Sheldon Wolin considers the unthinkable: has America unwittingly morphed into a new and strange kind of political hybrid, one where economic and state powers are conjoined and virtually unbridled? Can the nation check its descent into what the author terms "inverted totalitarianism"? Wolin portrays a country where citizens are politically uninterested and submissive--and where elites are eager to keep them that way. At best the nation has become a "managed democracy" where the public is shepherded, not sovereign. At worst it is a place where corporate power no longer answers to state controls. Wolin makes clear that today's America is in no way morally or politically comparable to totalitarian states like Nazi Germany, yet he warns that unchecked economic power risks verging on total power and has its own unnerving pathologies. Wolin examines the myths and mythmaking that justify today's politics, the quest for an ever-expanding economy, and the perverse attractions of an endless war on terror. He argues passionately that democracy's best hope lies in citizens themselves learning anew to exercise power at the local level. Democracy Incorporated is one of the most worrying diagnoses of America's political ills to emerge in decades. It is sure to be a lightning rod for political debate for years to come. Now with a new introduction by Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Chris Hedges, Democracy Incorporated remains an essential work for understanding the state of democracy in America.

Download or read book Democracy Incorporated written by Sheldon S. Wolin and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2017-08-29 with total page 395 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Democracy is struggling in America--by now this statement is almost cliché. But what if the country is no longer a democracy at all? In Democracy Incorporated, Sheldon Wolin considers the unthinkable: has America unwittingly morphed into a new and strange kind of political hybrid, one where economic and state powers are conjoined and virtually unbridled? Can the nation check its descent into what the author terms "inverted totalitarianism"? Wolin portrays a country where citizens are politically uninterested and submissive--and where elites are eager to keep them that way. At best the nation has become a "managed democracy" where the public is shepherded, not sovereign. At worst it is a place where corporate power no longer answers to state controls. Wolin makes clear that today's America is in no way morally or politically comparable to totalitarian states like Nazi Germany, yet he warns that unchecked economic power risks verging on total power and has its own unnerving pathologies. Wolin examines the myths and mythmaking that justify today's politics, the quest for an ever-expanding economy, and the perverse attractions of an endless war on terror. He argues passionately that democracy's best hope lies in citizens themselves learning anew to exercise power at the local level. Democracy Incorporated is one of the most worrying diagnoses of America's political ills to emerge in decades. It is sure to be a lightning rod for political debate for years to come. Now with a new introduction by Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Chris Hedges, Democracy Incorporated remains an essential work for understanding the state of democracy in America.

Download or read book Politics Inc. written by John Raidt and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2022-03-02 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book examines the dynamics driving the country’s deeply troubled political culture and highlights reforms needed in the post-Trump era to strengthen US democracy. The author paints a clear and sobering portrait of a mercenary election industry and its support structure tailored to perpetuate and exploit America's social and political division. He shows how corrosive partisan animosity, dysfunctional political institutions, and even Trumpism are symptoms of a broken system dominated by a self-serving party duopoly. Having hacked the democratic process for its own ends, the cartel’s intrigues continue to undermine functional compromise and the virtues essential for self-governance. Without timely structural reform outlined in the narrative, Politics Inc., abetted by technological, social, and cultural factors, will continue to undermine the country from the far right and far left. The stakes could not be higher. At risk is the nation’s security and the future of democracy at home and around the globe.

Download or read book Democracy, Inc. written by David S. Allen and published by University of Illinois Press. This book was released on 2010-10-01 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Democracy, Inc., David S. Allen exposes the vested interests behind the U.S. slide toward conflating corporate values with public and democratic values. He argues that rather than being institutional protectors of democratic principles, the press and law perversely contribute to the destruction of public discourse in the United States today. Allen utilizes historical, philosophical, sociological, and legal sources to trace America's gradual embrace of corporate values. He argues that such values, including winning, efficiency, and profitability actually limit democratic involvement by devaluing discursive principles, creating an informed yet inactive public. Through an examination of professionalization in both the press and the law, corporate free speech rights, and free speech as property, Democracy, Inc. demonstrates that today's democracy is more about trying to control and manage citizens than giving them the freedom to participate. Allen not only calls on institutions to reform the way they understand and promote citizenship but also asks citizens to adopt a new ethic of public discourse that values understanding rather than winning.

Download or read book The Shortest History of Democracy: 4,000 Years of Self-Government - A Retelling for Our Times (Shortest History) written by John Keane and published by The Experiment, LLC. This book was released on 2022-09-06 with total page 231 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The full chronological sweep of democracy, from the assemblies of ancient Mesopotamia and Athens to present perils around the globe. The Shortest History books deliver thousands of years of history in one riveting, fast-paced read. This compact history unspools the tumultuous global story that began with democracy’s radical core idea: We can collaborate, as equals, to determine our own futures. Acclaimed political thinker John Keane traces how this concept emerged and evolved, from the earliest “assembly democracies” in Syria-Mesopotamia to European-style “electoral democracy” and to our uncertain present. Today, thanks to our always-on communication channels, governments answer not only to voters on Election Day but to intense scrutiny every day. This is “monitory democracy”—in Keane’s view, the most complex and vibrant model yet—but it’s not invulnerable. Monitory democracy comes with its own pathologies, and the new despotism wields powerful warning systems, from social media to election monitoring, against democracy itself. At this urgent moment, when despots in countries such as China, Russia, Iran, and Saudi Arabia reject the promises of democratic power-sharing, Keane mounts a bold defense of a precious global ideal.

Download or read book Democracy Ltd written by Bobby Friedman and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2013-09-05 with total page 311 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The agenda-setting book the politicians don’t want you to read WELCOME TO THE MURKY WORLD OF POLITICAL DONATIONS. Big business, eccentric loners, lobbyists, fraudsters, senior trade unionists, and dodgy wheeler-dealers have all been rubbing shoulders with the most senior politicians in the country – and they often expect something in return for their money. Now, in this blistering exposé, investigative journalist Bobby Friedman reveals how upstanding party treasurers and cabinet ministers have been turned into desperate courters of the rich. Discover the truth behind the toxic system where money buys you access and trade union power is king. Understand why you’re more likely to become a peer if you’ve donated to a political party and how foreign multi-millionaires can use shell companies and subterfuge to gain entry to the locked doors of Westminster. Informed by interviews with wealthy donors and key political figures, and packed with shocking revelations, this enthralling book exposes who is really pulling the strings in British government.

Download or read book Company Of Citizens What The World'S First Democracy Teaches Leaders About Creating Great Organizations written by Manville and published by . This book was released on 2003-02 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The "knowledge revolution" is widely accepted, but strategic leaders now talk of the logical next step: the human capital revolution and the need to manage knowledgeable people in an entirely different way. The organization of the future must be not only nimble and flexible but also self-governing and values-driven. But what will this future organization look like? And how will it be led? In this thoughtful book, organizational expert Brook Manville and Princeton classics professor Josiah Ober suggest that the model for building the future organization may lie deep in the past. The authors argue that ancient Athenian democracy was an ingenious solution to organizing human capital through the practice of citizenship. That ancient solution holds profound lessons for today's forward-thinking managers: They must reconceive today's "employees" as "citizens." Through this provocative case study of innovation and excellence lasting two hundred years, Manville and Ober describe a surprising democratic organization that empowered tens of thousands of individuals to work together for both noble purpose and hard-edged performance. Their book offers timeless guiding principles for organizing and leading a self-governing enterprise. A unique and compelling think piece, A Company of Citizens will change the way managers envision the leadership, values, and structure of tomorrow's people-centered organizations.