Douglas Rushkoff was mugged outside his apartment on Christmas Eve, but when he posted a friendly warning on his community website, the responses castigated him for potentially harming the local real-estate market. When did these corporate values overtake civic responsibilites? Rushkoff examines how corporatism has become an intrinsic part of our everyday lives, choices and opinions. He demonstrates how this system created a world where everything can be commodified, where communities have dissolved into consumer groups, where fiction and reality have become fundamentally blurred. And, with this system on the verge of collapse, Rushkoff shows how the simple pleasures that make us human can also point the way to freedom.
While a company's code of values may look good on paper, oftentimes they mean nothing to the day-to-day functions of its business and the people it employs. And that's a tragedy that needs to stop. The Dwyer Group decided to operationalize its company code of values, and discovered a real and tangible impact on their business--shaping it from the corner office to front lines of their service brands around world, while also making the company a really fun place to work that attracted people to the home office and across its franchise service brands like never before. Here, Dwyer-Owens invites a movement to live right and do right in business and in life for a world in need of direction--one that isn't just framed and hung on a wall. --
In 1940 and 1941 a group of ruthless gangsters from Brooklyn’s Brownsville neighborhood became the focus of media frenzy when they—dubbed “Murder Inc.,” by New York World-Telegram reporter Harry Feeney—were tried for murder. It is estimated that collectively they killed hundreds of people during a reign of terror that lasted from 1931 to 1940. As the trial played out to a packed courtroom, shocked spectators gasped at the outrageous revelations made by gang leader Abe “Kid Twist” Reles and his pack of criminal accomplices. News of the trial proliferated throughout the country; at times it received more newspaper coverage than the unabated war being waged overseas. The heinous crimes attributed to Murder, Inc., included not only murder and torture but also auto theft, burglary, assaults, robberies, fencing stolen goods, distribution of illegal drugs, and just about any “illegal activity from which a revenue could be derived.” When the trial finally came to a stunning unresolved conclusion in November 1941, newspapers generated record headlines. Once the trial was over, tales of the Murder, Inc., gang became legendary, spawning countless books and memoirs and providing inspiration for the Hollywood gangster-movie genre. These men were fearsome brutes with an astonishing ability to wield power. People were fascinated by the “gangster” figure, which had become a symbol for moral evil and contempt and whose popularity showed no signs of abating. As both a study in criminal behavior and a cultural fascination that continues to permeate modern society, the reverberations of “Murder, Inc.” are profound, including references in contemporary mass media. The Murder, Inc., story is as much a tale of morality as it is a gangster history, and Murder, Inc., and the Moral Life by Robert Whalen meshes both topics clearly and meticulously, relating the gangster phenomenon to modern moral theory. Each chapter covers an aspect of the Murder, Inc., case and reflects on its ethical elements and consequences. Whalen delves into the background of the criminals involved, their motives, and the violent death that surrounded them; New York City’s immigrant gang culture and its role as “Gangster City”; fiery politicians Fiorello La Guardia and Thomas E. Dewey and the choices they made to clean up the city; and the role of the gangster in popular culture and how it relates to “real life.” Whalen puts a fresh spin on the two topics, providing a vivid narrative with both historical and moral perspective.
Me, Inc. features a black simulated-leather cover with gold foil stamping and a black ribbon bookmark. The fact that KISS is one of the most successful rock bands in the world is no accident. From the beginning Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley had a clear-cut vision of what they wanted to do and how they wanted to operate KISS as a business well before they ever first took the stage. Since deciding with Paul to manage the band themselves, Simmons has proved himself to be a formidable businessman, having sold over 100 million CDs and DVDs worldwide, overseen over 3,000 licensed merchandise items, and starred in the longest running celebrity reality show to date. More impressive is that he handles all of his business ventures on his own—no personal assistant, few handlers, and as little red tape as possible. In Me, Inc., Simmons shares a lifetime of field-tested and hard-won business advice that will provide readers with the tools needed to build a solid business strategy, harness the countless tools available in the digital age, network like hell, and be the architect for the business entity that is you. Inspired by The Art of War, the book dispenses Simmons’ in-depth insights via thirteen specific principles for success based on his own experience, triumphs, and instructional failures in business—from finding the confidence within yourself that’s necessary to get started, to surrounding yourself with the right people to partner with and learn from, to knowing when to pull the plug and when to double-down. These thirteen principles are a skeleton key into a world of success, freedom, peace of mind and, most importantly, financial success.
Be inspired to transform your business to change the world. Do you ever wonder how successful businesses can be used as a force for good? Do you sometimes feel conflicted by the principles of capitalism? Do you wish to change the world around you whilst doing what you love? In this book, Gaurav Sinha, world-class businessman and entrepreneur, founder of Insignia in 2003, outlines the economics of empathy for life and for business. He offers actionable solutions to maintaining a successful trade in a changing global landscape where conscience, ethics, and authenticity are high on the agenda. The world is changing, perceptions are shifting, consumers are evolving, and this book will ensure your business keeps up.
This is a first-hand account of life behind bars in a controversial new type of prison facility: the private prison. Privatisation is seen as a necessary and cost-saving measure, but not much is known about how these facilities are run, so this text provides a look inside a private prison by an inmate.
