First Published in 1987. Presented as two sections, the first includes three surveys which aim to describe and comment on some of radial changes in the questions historians have been asking about the past and some of the new data, tools and methodology they have developed to answer them. The second is a collection of essays that were originally reflective book reviews and are concerned with the theme of how and why did Western Europe change itself during the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries so as to lay the social, economic, scientific, political, ideological and ethical foundations for the rationalist, democratic, individualistic, technological industrialized society in which we now live.
The Malay Dilemma Revisited is a critical and balanced analysis of Malaysia's preferential race policy and its impact on the nation's delicate race dynamics and economy. Unlike America's affirmative action, Malaysia's version is far more aggressive and pervasive and has been remarkably successful in creating a sizable and stable Bumiputra (indigenous group) middle class. The price tag is significant: distortion of freemarket dynamics and consequent inefficiency. Perversely, the policy impairs rather than strengthens Bumiputras' ability to compete. In contrast to quotas and other set-aside programs that are the hallmark of the current policy, the writer presents an alternative strategy aimed primarily at enhancing Bumiputra competitiveness. The proposed approach would not negatively impact the economy nor interfere with the freemarket. Equally important, it would not arouse resentment from other Malaysians. The first objective would be to modernize the nation's archaic educational system to emphasize English, mathematics, the sciences, and technical training. Secondly, the influences of religious and royal institutions must be curtailed, and the rates of urbanization and population growth reduced. The primary objective is in enhancing competitiveness, not on meeting arbitrarily picked numerical goals and targets.
Andrew Holleran's Ground Zero, first published in 1988 and consisting of 23 Christopher Street essays from the earliest years of the AIDS crisis, was hailed by the Washington Post as “one of the best dispatches from the epidemic's height.” Twenty years later, with HIV/AIDS long recognized as a global health challenge, Holleran both reiterates and freshly illuminates the devastation wreaked by AIDS, which has claimed the lives of 450,000 gay men as well as 22 million others. Chronicle of a Plague, Revisited features ten pieces never previously republished outside Christopher Street, as well as a new introduction keenly describing and evaluating a historical moment that still informs and defines today's world-particularly its community of homosexuals, which, arguably, is still recovering from the devastation of AIDS.
Initially published in 2002, The Rise of the Creative Class quickly achieved classic status for its identification of forces then only beginning to reshape our economy, geography, and workplace. Weaving story-telling with original research, Richard Florida identified a fundamental shift linking a host of seemingly unrelated changes in American society: the growing importance of creativity in people’s work lives and the emergence of a class of people unified by their engagement in creative work. Millions of us were beginning to work and live much as creative types like artists and scientists always had, Florida observed, and this Creative Class was determining how the workplace was organized, what companies would prosper or go bankrupt, and even which cities would thrive. In The Rise of the Creative Class Revisited, Florida further refines his occupational, demographic, psychological, and economic profile of the Creative Class, incorporates a decade of research, and adds five new chapters covering the global effects of the Creative Class and exploring the factors that shape “quality of place” in our changing cities and suburbs.
James Rinnovatore and Allan Eaglesham provide proof that President Kennedy's body was in the Bethesda morgue well before the motorcade from Andrews Air Force Base arrived at the entrance to Bethesda Naval Hospital carrying the bronze casket in which the body had been placed at Parkland Hospital, Dallas. The casket was empty at this time, as it had been when it was placed in a gray navy ambulance for transportation from Andrews to Bethesda. The body had been removed from the bronze casket while Lyndon Johnson was being sworn in as president before Air Force One left Love Field. The purpose of the early arrival of the body at the Bethesda morgue was to alter the wounds, which had been found to be frontal by the doctors at Parkland. The wounds had to be reversed in order to implicate a lone assassin - Lee Harvey Oswald - shooting from the Texas School Book Depository. New information is provided regarding pre-autopsy photographs and exclusion of FBI agents from the autopsy room to prevent their discovery of the body there. Also provided are analyses of the reports of the Warren Commission, the HSCA, and the ARRB, of who planned the assassination, and the case for two Oswalds. *www.manuscriptservice.com/DarkCorners/
The Art of the Political Putdown is a book of over 300 witty verbal jabs and ripostes from politicians around the world, all of whom share a common sharp tongue. Liberal or conservative, humor can be a powerful weapon in any politician's arsenal, and political journalists Chris Lamb and Will Moredock have seen their fair share of quips, witty remarks, and sarcastic pleasantries. In mining the past few thousand years of political history, they've unearthed a treasure trove of humorous exchanges, from ancient Rome to modern day, to compile this collection of hilarious comebacks and putdowns.• Features 11 brief essays analyzing the use of humor and wit in various political contexts • Even-handed, intelligent, and lighthearted political humor that gives readers from the Left and the Right something to laugh about • Contains 20 political cartoon-style illustrations The Art of the Political Putdown is filled with famous and lesser-known politicians at their sassiest, along with short essays and illustrations. This is a comprehensive, nonpartisan collection of witticisms, scathing burns, and mic-drop-worthy insults throughout history. • A rare political humor book with something for everyone, and a welcome reminder that politics can also be a source of laughter • Perfect for politics and history buffs and for anyone who appreciates smart humor and top-notch wit • Great for those who loved Whose Boat Is This Boat?: Comments That Don't Help in the Aftermath of a Hurricane by the Staff of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Shade: A Tale of Two Presidents by Pete Souza, and The Wit & Wisdom of Winston Churchill by James C. Humes
From the nation’s leading expert, an indispensable analysis of key threats to the integrity of the 2020 American presidential election As the 2020 presidential campaign begins to take shape, there is widespread distrust of the fairness and accuracy of American elections. In this timely and accessible book, Richard L. Hasen uses riveting stories illustrating four factors increasing the mistrust. Voter suppression has escalated as a Republican tool aimed to depress turnout of likely Democratic voters, fueling suspicion. Pockets of incompetence in election administration, often in large cities controlled by Democrats, have created an opening to claims of unfairness. Old-fashioned and new-fangled dirty tricks, including foreign and domestic misinformation campaigns via social media, threaten electoral integrity. Inflammatory rhetoric about “stolen” elections supercharges distrust among hardcore partisans. Taking into account how each of these threats has manifested in recent years—most notably in the 2016 and 2018 elections—Hasen offers concrete steps that need to be taken to restore trust in American elections before the democratic process is completely undermined.
