A critical look at the presidency of George W. Bush reveals how the current administration has used misstatements, half-truths, distortions, and other deceptions to mislead Americans and how this manipulation has led to failed policies, hindered homeland security, damaged foreign relations, and undermined efforts to improve the economy.
Like it or not, most Americans take it for granted that deception is entrenched in the highest levels of government. Up until now most of the arguments about lying have been moral. But in this groundbreak- ing and closely reasoned book, bestselling political commentator Eric Alterman lays bare the disastrous practical consequences of presidential duplicity since World War II.
The foreign policy expert offers an assessment of recent American foreign policy, arguing for a more sophisticated posture in the world that positions America as a supporter of reform and justice in the world.
History does not come neatly packaged into distinct periods, but by imposing such a structure upon it, we can sometimes gain clarity without doing too much violence to the facts. One such period was initiated with the Second World War, a new phase in world affairs in which "the United States was the hegemonic power in a system of world order" (Harvard government professor and foreign policy adv…
Statecraft is as old as politics: Plato wrote about it, Machiavelli practiced it. After the demise of Communism, some predicted that statecraft would wither away. But Ross explains that in the globalized world--with its fluid borders, terrorist networks, and violent unrest--statecraft is necessary simply to keep the peace. He outlines how statecraft helped shape a new world order after 1989. He…
After the Empire is a provocative and sobering look at America's changing role on the global stage. Emmanuel Todd uses demographic and economic factors to diagnose America's waning hegemony. Burdened by enormous domestic and foreign trade deficits, the declining value of the US dollar, the bankruptcy of several prominent companies, and the fact that it can no longer subsist on its own productio…
For most of the twentieth century, Europe dominated global attention. Two world wars were won and lost on its battlefields, and the great ideological struggles of the Cold War were played out in its cities. The Atlantic Ocean was the locus of international power.
Colombia is the worst humanitarian catastrophe in the hemisphere. The sources are deeply rooted in Colombia's own history, and in policies of the hegemonic power that are no less deeply rooted in its own history and institutions. This study provides a uniquely perceptive analysis of the tragic interaction, and its far-reaching implications for understanding the past and the evolving global or…
Reflecting the press of events, we have made numerous changes in this, the fifth edition of Points of View. One or more of the selections that fall under the topics of "Federalism." "Interest Groups." "Congress." "Bureaucracy." "The Supreme Court," "Civil Liberties" (Free Speech. Pornography), and "Civil Rights" (Abortion) have been changed. The basic goals of the book remain the same-namely, t…
This is a collection of opinion pieces written by Ooi Kee Beng and published in the mass media after Abdullah Badawi became Malaysia's Prime Minister in October 2004. The articles analyse the many difficult aspects of leadership that have been facing Abdullah Badawi over the last two years. The book discusses the country's underlying problems, the dilemma involved in succeeding Mahathir Mohamad…