Democracy May Not Exist, But We'll Miss It When It's Gone

Democracy May Not Exist, But We'll Miss It When It's Gone PDF Author: Astra Taylor
Publisher: Metropolitan Books
ISBN: 1250179858
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 219

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Book Description
“A New Civil Rights Leader” explores what we mean when we speak of democracy and if democracy can truly ever exist (LA Times). There is no shortage of democracy, at least in name, and yet it is in crisis everywhere we look. From a cabal of plutocrats in the White House to gerrymandering and dark-money campaign contributions, it is clear that the principle of government by and for the people is not living up to its promise. The problems lie deeper than any one election cycle. As Astra Taylor demonstrates, real democracy—fully inclusive and completely egalitarian—has in fact never existed. In a tone that is both philosophical and anecdotal, weaving together history, theory, the stories of individuals, and interviews with such leading thinkers as Cornel West and Wendy Brown, Taylor invites us to reexamine the term. Is democracy a means or an end, a process or a set of desired outcomes? What if those outcomes, whatever they may be—peace, prosperity, equality, liberty, an engaged citizenry—can be achieved by non-democratic means? In what areas of life should democratic principles apply? If democracy means rule by the people, what does it mean to rule and who counts as the people? Democracy’s inherent paradoxes often go unnamed and unrecognized. Exploring such questions, Democracy May Not Exist offers a better understanding of what is possible, what we want, why democracy is so hard to realize, and why it is worth striving for. “Astra Taylor will change how you think about democracy. . . . She unpacks it, wrestles with it, with the question of who gets included and how, and excavates the invisible assumptions that have been bred into our idea of democracy.” —Ezra Klein, The Ezra Klein Show “An impressive contribution. . . . Taylor sets out to impart some coherence and substance to the term in order to rescue it from ignorance and obfuscation and displays considerable intellectual nimbleness.” —Randall Kennedy, The New York Times Book Review “Magnificent, paradigm-shifting . . . Taylor’s deep and wide examination of democratic movements, conversations, and grassroots institutions makes the reader feel . . . democracy as pleasure of thinking and acting.” —The Los Angeles Review of Books

Democracy May Not Exist, But We'll Miss It When It's Gone

Democracy May Not Exist, But We'll Miss It When It's Gone PDF Author: Astra Taylor
Publisher: Metropolitan Books
ISBN: 1250179858
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 219

Get Book Here

Book Description
“A New Civil Rights Leader” explores what we mean when we speak of democracy and if democracy can truly ever exist (LA Times). There is no shortage of democracy, at least in name, and yet it is in crisis everywhere we look. From a cabal of plutocrats in the White House to gerrymandering and dark-money campaign contributions, it is clear that the principle of government by and for the people is not living up to its promise. The problems lie deeper than any one election cycle. As Astra Taylor demonstrates, real democracy—fully inclusive and completely egalitarian—has in fact never existed. In a tone that is both philosophical and anecdotal, weaving together history, theory, the stories of individuals, and interviews with such leading thinkers as Cornel West and Wendy Brown, Taylor invites us to reexamine the term. Is democracy a means or an end, a process or a set of desired outcomes? What if those outcomes, whatever they may be—peace, prosperity, equality, liberty, an engaged citizenry—can be achieved by non-democratic means? In what areas of life should democratic principles apply? If democracy means rule by the people, what does it mean to rule and who counts as the people? Democracy’s inherent paradoxes often go unnamed and unrecognized. Exploring such questions, Democracy May Not Exist offers a better understanding of what is possible, what we want, why democracy is so hard to realize, and why it is worth striving for. “Astra Taylor will change how you think about democracy. . . . She unpacks it, wrestles with it, with the question of who gets included and how, and excavates the invisible assumptions that have been bred into our idea of democracy.” —Ezra Klein, The Ezra Klein Show “An impressive contribution. . . . Taylor sets out to impart some coherence and substance to the term in order to rescue it from ignorance and obfuscation and displays considerable intellectual nimbleness.” —Randall Kennedy, The New York Times Book Review “Magnificent, paradigm-shifting . . . Taylor’s deep and wide examination of democratic movements, conversations, and grassroots institutions makes the reader feel . . . democracy as pleasure of thinking and acting.” —The Los Angeles Review of Books

The Despot's Accomplice

The Despot's Accomplice PDF Author: Brian Paul Klaas
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190668016
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 284

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Book Description
Brian Klaas of the London School of Economics believes in the transformative power of democracy. In this comprehensive book, he offers prescriptions for Western powers seeking to spread political freedom and critiques many of the halfhearted pro-democracy efforts of recent decades. The United States' recent misadventures in Iraq and Afghanistan chastened many who once espoused nation-building. But Klaas argues ceasing to promote democracy is a mistake. In addition to offering insights and examples gleaned from his global travels to investigate pseudo-democracies, Klaas also explores America itself, taking the US tradition of gerrymandering to task. At times, Klaas's crusade seems a bit too idealistic, but, ultimately, he makes a passionate and persuasive case for trying to expand democracy's shrinking reach.

The Aesthetics of Democracy

The Aesthetics of Democracy PDF Author: Craig Carson
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 331933963X
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 169

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Book Description
This book offers an original and interdisciplinary interpretation of the relation between aesthetics and modern liberal democracy, uniting the fields of art theory with the democratic political philosophy and modern liberal economic theory. The central argument of the books offers an explanation of the theoretical limitations of the contemporary discourse concerning “political art,” while at the same time illustrating historically how the European and American discourse of modern democracy and political economy developed an explicit stance against the conflation of art and politics. Exposing the unstated presuppositions about our modern liberal democracy, Craig Carson opens a new field of inquiry concerning the role of art, media, and televisual “theater” central to modern politics.

Sheer Opulence

Sheer Opulence PDF Author: Nicholas Haslam
Publisher: CICO Books
ISBN: 9781907030178
Category : Interior decoration
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Nicholas Haslam is one of the world's finest interior designers, sought by rock stars, royalty, and the aristocracy alike. His interiors have chutzpah and a touch of opulence that seduce you the momentyou catch a glimpse. Rooms look glamorous and sexy, yet liveable in, practical, and, above all, flattering to their owner and their surroundings. He makes great use of the completely unexpected and is known for effects such as linen carpets, silver-papered ceilings, slashed leather curtains, and Picasso-inspired fabric footstools. Sheer Opulence, with specially commissioned photography by David Montgomery, reveals Haslam's decorating secrets and instinctive approach to both classic and contemporary interiors in a visual diary with Haslam's own watercolor plans accompanying the stunning photographs of rooms around the world. * The first book from the rock stars' and royalty's favorite interior designer. * Previously published in hardcover by Watson-Guptill (ISBN:082347970). * His autobiography, Redeeming Features, is published by Random House.

Democracy and Power

Democracy and Power PDF Author: Noam Chomsky
Publisher: Open Book Publishers
ISBN: 1783740922
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 194

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Book Description
Noam Chomsky visited India in 1996 and 2001 and spoke on a wide range of subjects, from democracy and corporate propaganda to the nature of the world order and the role of intellectuals in society. He captivated audiences with his lucid challenge of dominant political analyses, the engaging style of his talks, and his commitment to social equality as well as individual freedom. Chomsky’s early insights into the workings of power in the modern world remain timely and compelling. Published for the first time, this series of lectures also provides the reader with an invaluable introduction to the essential ideas of one of the leading thinkers of our time.

The Common Good

The Common Good PDF Author: Noam Chomsky
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781878825087
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 196

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Book Description
"How adroitly he cuts through the crap and really says something", describes "The Village Voice" of world-famous political writer and lecturer Noam Chomsky. In his latest report on the state of the world, Chomsky discusses a breathtaking variety of topics, ranging from Japan's trade policies to the "war" on drugs, corporate welfare, and much more.

Happiness, Democracy, and the Cooperative Movement

Happiness, Democracy, and the Cooperative Movement PDF Author: Mark J. Kaswan
Publisher: SUNY Press
ISBN: 1438452039
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
Examines the political significance of ideas about happiness through the work of utilitarian philosophers William Thompson and Jeremy Bentham. Happiness is political. The way we think about happiness affects what we do, how we relate to other people and the world around us, our moral principles, and even our ideas about how society should be organized. Utilitarianism, a political theory based on hedonistic and individualistic ideas of happiness, has been dominated for more than two-hundred years by its founder, Jeremy Bentham. In Happiness, Democracy, and the Cooperative Movement, Mark J. Kaswan examines the work of William Thompson, a friend of Bentham’s who nonetheless offers a very different utilitarian philosophy and political theory based on a different conception of happiness, but whose work has been largely overlooked. Kaswan reveals the importance of our ideas about happiness for our understanding of the basic principles and nature of democracy, its role in society and its character as a social institution. In what is the closest examination of Thompson’s political theory to date, Kaswan moves from philosophy to theory to practice, starting with conceptions of happiness before moving to theories of utility, then to democratic theory, and finally to practice in the first detailed account of how Thompson’s ideas laid the foundations for the cooperative movement, which is now the world’s largest democratic social movement. “This is an original and impressive piece of scholarship that calls attention to an important but neglected figure (Thompson) and provides an innovative and timely reading of his work. In the author’s hands, applied theory is given new life and new purpose.” — Stephen Engelmann, editor of Selected Writings: Jeremy Bentham “In this remarkable book, Mark Kaswan rescues and rehabilitates the reputation of a long-forgotten and unjustly neglected thinker—the radical Irishman, feminist, non-Benthamite Utilitarian, and a writer of remarkable range and power—William Thompson. In Kaswan, Thompson has finally found the expositor he so richly deserves. And we might in turn find in Thompson a vision of democratic possibilities that we so sorely need.” — Terence Ball, author of Reappraising Political Theory: Revisionist Studies in the History of Political Thought

The National System of Political Economy

The National System of Political Economy PDF Author: Friedrich List
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 434

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Book Description


Democracy in America

Democracy in America PDF Author: Alexis de Tocqueville
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Democracy
Languages : en
Pages : 434

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Book Description


Tocqueville

Tocqueville PDF Author: Harvey Mansfield
Publisher: OUP USA
ISBN: 0195175395
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 144

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Book Description
A study of the thought and works of Alexis de Tocqueville written by one of the premier political scientists of our time. Exploring his observations of contemporary democratic politics and his predictions for the triumph and pitfalls of democracy in the future, the volume features the new liberalism of Tocqueville's masterpiece, Democracy in America.