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The Plot Against Social Security
by Michael A. HiltzikRelentless and ominous, the drumbeat echoes across the land: Social Security is on the verge of bankruptcy. These repeated warnings have become a dismal article of faith for the millions of Americans who pay Social Security taxes and expect to collect benefits someday. But they are flatly untrue. Social Security today is on a stronger financial footing than it has been for decades. The Plot Against Social Security will explain who is really behind the efforts to "reform" this system and will show that the most frequently proposed fix-increased privatization-will damage it beyond repair by undermining retirement security for generations to come. Award-winning journalist Michael Hiltzik also offers a clear set of remedies for those few elements of Social Security that do need repair-proposals that will shore up the most efficient social insurance program in America's history, rather than destroying it in the name of reform.
Endangered Species
by Stephen M. YoungerA former nuclear weapons designer, Stephen M. Younger understands, as few others can, humankind's potential for violence. He knows that the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction means that any nation, group, or even individual could cause unimaginable carnage--and the accelerating pace of communications and transportation means that things can happen faster than we can think about them. In Endangered Species, Younger peers into the heart of modern civilization to present a practical plan for ending mass violence, the scourge of our times and a threat to our survival as a species. Looking across our knowledge of psychology, history, politics, and technology, Younger presents a convincing argument that we can escape our spiral into global destruction. But we haven't a moment to lose.
Burn This Book: Notes on Literature and Engagement
by Toni MorrisonPublished in conjunction with the PEN American Center, Burn This Book is a powerful collection of essays that explore the meaning of censorship and the power of literature to inform the way we see the world, and ourselves.As Americans we often take our freedom of speech for granted. When we talk about censorship we talk about China, the former Soviet Union, or the Middle East. But recent political developments—including the passage of the Patriot Act—have shined a spotlight on profound acts of censorship in our own backyard. Burn This Book features a sterling roster of award-winning writers offering their incisive, uncensored views on this most essential topic, including such revered literary heavyweights as Toni Morrison, Salman Rushdie, Orhan Pamuk, David Grossman, and Nadine Gordimer, among others.Both provocative and timely, Burn This Book is certain to inspire strong opinions and ignite spirited, serious dialogue.
How Free People Move Mountains: A Male Christian Conservative and a Female Jewish Liberal on a Quest for Common Purpose and Meaning
by Frank Schaeffer Kathy Roth-Douquet"How Do We Ever Speak with One Voice Again in Our Divided and Angry Country?"It is amazing how one America is isolated from the "other" America. The red/blue state divisions run so deep that it is possible to live without any interaction—ideological or otherwise—with those who hold different opinions than oneself. We are a people alienated, from ourselves and from our government. The authors, an odd mix across the Blue/Red divide—one a founder of the modern evangelical movement, the other a liberal Jewish former Clinton aide—hold an extended conversation across many months, several states, and two countries—sometimes contentious, sometimes funny, exploring the idea of how unlikely pairings—and thus, the entire country—can come together. They argue that we're entering a new era in history, and now is the time to rise up to it; to make ourselves able to tackle the enormous problems in our laps; to, in effect, move mountains.
Friends of the Family: The Inside Story of the Mafia Cops Case
by Tommy Dades Michael Vecchione David Fisher“One of the most spectacular cases of police corruption in the city.”—New York TimesFriends of the Family is a look deep inside the most notorious case to rock the NYPD: The story of Louis Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa, the two police detectives who moonlighted as mob hit men. As told by Tommy Dades and Michael Vecchione—the cop and District Attorney investigator who solved New York’s coldest case—along with co-writer David Fisher, Friends of the Family is shocking true crime in the tradition of Nicolas Pileggi’s Wiseguys and Underboss by Peter Mass—a chilling, in-depth examination of what the New York Daily News calls “the worst betrayal of the badge in the NYPD’s history.”
AWOL: The Unexcused Absence of America's Upper Classes from Military Service—and How It Hurts Our Country
by Kathy Roth-Douquet Frank Schaeffer“As America looks for balance in a dangerous and complex world, AWOL is a great place to start.” — General Tommy Franks (retired)“AWOL drives home...the need to address the evaporating sense of duty and service to our nation.” — General Les Palm (retired), President and CEO Marine Corps Association“AWOL is unique in its scope, intent and implications. [It] is clearly written and meticulously researched.” — Leatherneck Magazine
Money, Greed, and God
by Jay W. RichardsDoes capitalism promote greed? Can a person follow Jesus's call to love others and also support capitalism? Was our recent economic crisis caused by flaws inherent to our free market system? Jay Richards presents a new approach to capitalism, revealing how it's fully consistent with Jesus's teachings and the Christian tradition, while also showing why this system is our best bet for renewed economic vigor. The church is bombarded with two competing messages about money and capitalism: wealth is bad and causes much of the world's suffering wealth is good and God wants you to prosper and be rich Richards exposes these myths, and other common misconceptions about capitalism, and reveals the surprising ways that capitalism is, in fact, the best system to respond to the biblical mandates of alleviating poverty and protecting the environment. Money, Greed, and God equips readers to take practical steps in their own lives to conduct business, worship God, and serve others without falling into the "prosperity gospel" trap.
Golda
by Elinor BurkettGolda Meir was the first female head of state in the Western world and one of the most influential women in modern history. A blend of Emma Goldman and Martin Luther King Jr. in the guise of a cookie-serving grandmother, her uncompromising devotion to shaping and defending a Jewish homeland against dogged enemies and skittish allies stunned political contemporaries and transformed Middle Eastern politics for decades to follow. She outmaneuvered Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger at their own game of Realpolitik, and led Israel through a bloody war even as she eloquently pleaded for peace, carrying her nation through its most perilous hours while she herself battled cancer. In this masterful biography, critically acclaimed author Elinor Burkett paints a vivid portrait of a legendary woman defined by contradictions: an iron resolve coupled with magnetic charm, a kindly demeanor that disguised a stunning hard-heartedness, and a complete dedication to her country that often overwhelmed her personal relationships.
Tyrants
by David WallechinskyToday more than ever, international headlines are dominated by dispatches from the many dictatorships that still dot the globe. Although Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein has been deposed, North Korea's Kim Jong-il continues to attract attention on the world stage; at the same time, other dictatorships, led by royal families, military juntas, and single political parties, persist in repressing and brutalizing their citizens without ever attracting anything like Saddam's or Kim Jong-il's level of international attention. In this fascinating, eye-opening read, New York Times bestselling author David Wallechinsky offers in-depth portraits of each of the twenty worst dictators -- and the governments they head -- currently in power: exposing their crimes, and revealing their strange personalities and mysterious backgrounds. Tyrants also reveals the extent that foreign corporations and governments support these tyrants despite their policies. Timely and provocative, crafted with the popular touch that has made Wallechinsky a bestselling author, Tyrants will awaken you to the criminal regimes of the present -- and pose challenging questions about America's role in curbing (or promoting) their power in the future. The Tyrant Hall of Shame includes: Kim Jong-il/North Korea Hu Jintao/China Seyed Ali Khamenei/Iran King Abdullah/Saudi Arabia Muammar al-Qaddafi/Libya Omar al-Bashir/Sudan Islam Karimov/Uzbekistan Saparmurat Niyazov/Turkmenistan Fidel Castro/Cuba
Catherine the Great (Profiles In Power Ser.)
by Simon Dixon“[A] superb biography….Scholarly, refreshing, commonsensical, and compelling, vividly portraying the charismatic Empress and her times.”—Simon Sebag Montefiore, author of SashenkaSimon Dixon’s Catherine the Great is a complete and revealing portrait of an extraordinary leader, chronicling her rise to power and her remarkable reign as empress of Russia. Catherine Merridale, author of Ivan’s War, calls this definitive history, “attractive, engaging, and very intelligent….Established fans of the Russian empress will find plenty of new material and those who are meeting her for the first time will be dazzled.”
Abigail & John: Portrait of a Marriage
by Edith Belle Gelles“Fascinating...Gelles has provided a balanced portrait, and her mastery of the period’s issues and history is evident on every page. Her treatment of the family... [is] written with understanding and sensitivity... But it is her strength as a feminist historian that makes her treatment of Abigail the most gripping... masterful and captivating.” — Washington Times“A landmark... Well-organized and expertly composed, the book is an impressive addition to the nation’s written history.” — Oklahoma City OklahomanReaders who enjoyed Doris Kearns Goodwin’s No Ordinary Time, Cokie Roberts’s Founding Mothers, and David McCullough’s John Adams will love “this eminently readable… charming and sensitive, yet candid and unflinching joint biography” (Daniel Walker Howe, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848) of America’s original “power couple”: Abigail and John Adams.
The Weight of a Mustard Seed: The Intimate Story of an Iraqi General and His Family During Thirty Years of Tyranny
by Wendell Steavenson“A masterly and elegantly told story that weaves together the Iraqi past and present.” —New York Times Book Review“A first-class investigation…that tells the reader more about the tensions of living close to power in Saddam’s dictatorship.”—Washington PostThe Weight of a Mustard Seed is an unprecedented and intimate account of Iraqi life under Saddam Hussein’s brutal regime, revealed through the tragic story of one of the dictator’s loyal generals. Journalist Wendell Steavenson writes thrilling nonfiction with a novelist’s flair, offering a new perspective on life inside a totalitarian regime that is as moving, compelling, and dramatic as The Kite Runner and The Bookseller of Kabul.
Daughter of Destiny: An Autobiography
by Benazir BhuttoDaughter of Destiny, the autobiography of Benazir Bhutto, is a historical document of uncommon passion and courage, the dramatic story of a brilliant, beautiful woman whose life was, up to her tragic assassination in 2007, inexorably tied to her nation's tumultuous history. Bhutto writes of growing up in a family of legendary wealth and near-mythic status, a family whose rich heritage survives in tales still passed from generation to generation. She describes her journey from this protected world onto the volatile stage of international politics through her education at Radcliffe and Oxford, the sudden coup that plunged her family into a prolonged nightmare of threats and torture, her father's assassination by General Zia ul-Haq in 1979, and her grueling experience as a political prisoner in solitary confinement. With candor and courage, Benazir Bhutto recounts her triumphant political rise from her return to Pakistan from exile in 1986 through the extraordinary events of 1988: the mysterious death of Zia; her party's long struggle to ensure free elections; and finally, the stunning mandate that propelled her overnight into the ranks of the world's most powerful, influential leaders.
The Debt Threat: The Story of Third World Debt
by Noreena HertzNoreena Hertz, one of the world's leading experts on economic globalization, looks at the history of third-world debt and its crippling effects on people in developing countries.Drawing from her impressive debt-relief campaign, fact-finding travels, and meetings with top-ranking officials, Hertz offers a probing analysis of the origins of this rampant burden and its evolution through the decades. With clear principles of justice, she uncovers the imbalance of power and misuse of corrupt dictators and reckless lenders.
A Life Less Ordinary: A Memoir
by Baby HalderWhen she was very young, Baby Halder was abandoned by her mother and left with a cruel, abusive father. She was married off at twelve to a man twice her age who beat her. At fourteen, she was a mother herself. Her early life was marked by overwhelming challenges and heartbreak until, exhausted and desperate, she fled with her three children to Delhi, to work as a maid in some of the city's wealthiest homes. Expected to serve her employers' every demand, she faced a staggering workload that often left her no time to care for her own children. But she never complained, for such is the lot of the poor in modern-day India.Written without a trace of self-pity, A Life Less Ordinary is a shocking look deep inside a world of poverty and subjugation that few outsiders know about—and an inspiring true story of one remarkable woman's strength, courage, and determination to soar above her circumstances.
Machiavelli: Philosopher of Power (Eminent Lives)
by Ross KingThe author of The Prince—his controversial handbook on power, which is one of the most influential books ever written—Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527) was no prince himself. Born to an established middle-class family, Machiavelli worked as a courtier and diplomat for the Republic of Florence and enjoyed some small fame in his time as the author of bawdy plays and poems. In this discerning new biography, Ross King rescues Machiavelli's legacy from caricature, detailing the vibrant political and social context that influenced his thought and underscoring the humanity of one of history's finest political thinkers.
Out of Captivity
by Gary Brozek Keith Stansell Marc Gonsalves Tom HowesOn February 13, 2003, a plane carrying three American civilian contractors--Marc Gonsalves, Keith Stansell, and Tom Howes--crash-landed in the mountainous jungle of Colombia. Dazed and shaken, they emerged from the plane bloodied and injured as gunfire rained down around them. As of that moment they were prisoners of the FARC, a Colombian terrorist and Marxist rebel organization. In an instant they had become American captives in Colombia's volatile and ongoing conflict, which has lasted for almost fifty years.In Out of Captivity, Gonsalves, Stansell, and Howes recount for the first time their amazing tale of survival, friendship, and, ultimately, rescue, tracing their five and a half years as hostages of the FARC. Their story takes you inside one of the world's most notorious terrorist organizations, going behind enemy lines with vivid and haunting imagery. Their words conjure a reality that few people have ever encountered--from sleeping on beds literally carved out of the jungle to escaping Colombian military air strikes under the cover of darkness to being bound with steel chains by their captors. Describing backbreaking starvation marches and forced isolation, the authors chronicle their confrontations and interactions with the FARC guerrilla soldiers--a motley crew of brainwashed, idealistic teenagers and seasoned vet-erans who've been around long enough to realize that the only way out of the FARC is in a body bag.Though the physical punishments their bodies endured were unrelenting, the psychological battles they waged were the ultimate test of their resolve. With candid detail, Gonsalves, Stansell, and Howes relate the perilous mental struggles they each experienced, as they grappled with feelings of guilt, fear, and anxiety for the families and lives they'd left behind. Exposing the transformative power of captivity, they show how they turned these fears into strengths, using their memories and their families, their pasts and their futures, to motivate them in their quest for survival. Despite the odds and the conditions, despite the chains and the silence, and despite the often tense relationships they experienced with their fellow Colombian hostages, they had one another, forging a bond that allowed them to cope with the horrific conditions of their confinement. This brotherhood enabled them to persevere through the worst that the FARC threw at them while always reminding them of their ultimate goal: freedom.A harrowing account of one of the longest civilian hostage crises in United States history, Out of Captivity is a remarkable and compelling exploration of how far three Americans were willing to go as they fought to stay alive for themselves, their families, and one another.
Out of Captivity: Surviving 1,967 Days in the Colombian Jungle
by Gary Brozek Keith Stansell Marc Gonsalves Tom HowesOn February 13, 2003, a plane carrying three American civilian contractors--Marc Gonsalves, Keith Stansell, and Tom Howes--crash-landed in the mountainous jungle of Colombia. Dazed and shaken, they emerged from the plane bloodied and injured as gunfire rained down around them. As of that moment they were prisoners of the FARC, a Colombian terrorist and Marxist rebel organization. In an instant they had become American captives in Colombia's volatile and ongoing conflict, which has lasted for almost fifty years. In Out of Captivity, Gonsalves, Stansell, and Howes recount for the first time their amazing tale of survival, friendship, and, ultimately, rescue, tracing their five and a half years as hostages of the FARC. Their story takes you inside one of the world's most notorious terrorist organizations, going behind enemy lines with vivid and haunting imagery. Their words conjure a reality that few people have ever encountered--from sleeping on beds literally carved out of the jungle to escaping Colombian military air strikes under the cover of darkness to being bound with steel chains by their captors. Describing backbreaking starvation marches and forced isolation, the authors chronicle their confrontations and interactions with the FARC guerrilla soldiers--a motley crew of brainwashed, idealistic teenagers and seasoned vet-erans who've been around long enough to realize that the only way out of the FARC is in a body bag. Though the physical punishments their bodies endured were unrelenting, the psychological battles they waged were the ultimate test of their resolve. With candid detail, Gonsalves, Stansell, and Howes relate the perilous mental struggles they each experienced, as they grappled with feelings of guilt, fear, and anxiety for the families and lives they'd left behind. Exposing the transformative power of captivity, they show how they turned these fears into strengths, using their memories and their families, their pasts and their futures, to motivate them in their quest for survival. Despite the odds and the conditions, despite the chains and the silence, and despite the often tense relationships they experienced with their fellow Colombian hostages, they had one another, forging a bond that allowed them to cope with the horrific conditions of their confinement. This brotherhood enabled them to persevere through the worst that the FARC threw at them while always reminding them of their ultimate goal: freedom. A harrowing account of one of the longest civilian hostage crises in United States history, Out of Captivity is a remarkable and compelling exploration of how far three Americans were willing to go as they fought to stay alive for themselves, their families, and one another.
Hell and High Water: How Global Warming Will Forever Change
by Joe Romm“Urgent, reasoned, and informative ... America had better listen up--this may be our last chance to stop global warming.” — James Hansen, Director, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies
Digital Barbarism
by Mark HelprinWorld-renowned novelist Mark Helprin offers a ringing Jeffersonian defense of private property in the age of digital culture, with its degradation of thought and language, and collectivist bias against the rights of individual creators. Mark Helprin anticipated that his 2007 New York Times op-ed piece about the extension of the term of copyright would be received quietly, if not altogether overlooked. Within a week, the article had accumulated 750,000 angry comments. He was shocked by the breathtaking sense of entitlement demonstrated by the commenters, and appalled by the breadth, speed, and illogic of their responses. Helprin realized how drastically different this generation is from those before it. The Creative Commons movement and the copyright abolitionists, like the rest of their generation, were educated with a modern bias toward collaboration, which has led them to denigrate individual efforts and in turn fueled their sense of entitlement to the fruits of other people's labors. More important, their selfish desire to "stick it" to the greedy corporate interests who control the production and distribution of intellectual property undermines not just the possibility of an independent literary culture but threatens the future of civilization itself.
The Cleft
by Doris LessingFrom Doris Lessing, "one of the most important writers of the past hundred years" (Times of London), comes a brilliant, darkly provocative alternative history of humankind's beginnings.In the last years of his life, a Roman senator embarks on one final epic endeavor, a retelling of the history of human creation. The story he relates is the little-known saga of the Clefts, an ancient community of women with no knowledge of nor need for men. Childbirth was controlled through the cycles of the moon, and only female offspring were born--until the unanticipated event that jeopardized the harmony of their close-knit society: the strange, unheralded birth of a boy.
This Child Will Be Great: Memoir of a Remarkable Life by Africa's First Woman President
by Ellen Johnson Sirleaf?“Exceptionally well written, a true story that seems as much a thriller as the remembrances of an ambitious and brave woman. . . . This timely book. . . is a lesson in courage and perseverance.” — Washington PostAn inspirational memoir from Africa’s first elected female president about her improbable rise to international prominence, her fight for political freedom, and her unwavering determination to rebuild her nation—Liberia—in the wake of civil warIn January 2006, after the Republic of Liberia had been racked by fourteen years of brutal civil conflict, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf—Africa's "Iron Lady"—was sworn in as president, an event that marked a tremendous turning point in the history of the West African nation.In this stirring memoir, Sirleaf shares the story of her rise to power, including her early childhood; her experiences with abuse, imprisonment, and exile; and her fight for democracy and social justice. She reveals her determination to succeed in multiple worlds, from her studies in the United States to her work as an international bank executive, to campaigning in some of Liberia's most desperate and war-torn villages and neighborhoods. It is the tale of an outspoken political and social reformer who fought the oppression of dictators and championed change. By telling her story, Sirleaf encourages women everywhere to pursue leadership roles at the highest levels of power, and gives us all hope that we can change the world.
In His Sights: A True Story of Love and Obsession
by Kate BrennanWhat if the man you'd loved for years transformed into a ruthless and relentless tormentor, stealing your freedom, threatening your sanity and your safety? This is not a fictional scenario. It is Kate Brennan's life. A well-respected writer and scholar, Kate was wary of getting involved when she met Paul, a wealthy, charismatic businessman with a great deal of free time, but his charm and determination eventually won her over. Once they moved in together, however, Kate discovered the sordid secrets lurking beneath the Mr. Right facade: the serial infidelities, the unbalanced psyche. When she ended their relationship, Paul dedicated himself to stalking her—using his limitless resources to track her movements, interfering with her work, arranging for people to break into her home—in a campaign of cruel harassment that has been Kate's unending nightmare for more than a decade . . . and which continues to this day.A shocking and visceral memoir that lays bare the twisted mind of a stalker, In His Sights is a gripping tale of one woman's descent into the dark side of love and her ongoing struggle to free herself.
Common Ground: How to Stop the Partisan War That Is Destroying America
by Cal Thomas Bob BeckelInspired by their popular USA Today column, conservative Cal Thomas and liberal Bob Beckel unmask the hypocrisy of the issues, organizations, and individuals that have created and deepened the partisan divide at the center of American politics, and make a strategic case for why this bickering must stop. Thomas and Beckel explain how bipartisanship and consensus politics are not only good for the day-to-day democratic process but also essential for our nation's future well-being. Entertaining and informative, funny and healing, Common Ground is a must-read for all concerned citizens.
The Girl I Left Behind: A Personal History of the 1960s
by Judith NiesAt the height of the Vietnam War protests, twenty-eight-year-old Judith Nies and her husband lived a seemingly idyllic life. Both were building their respective careers in Washington—Nies as the speechwriter and chief staffer to a core group of antiwar congressmen, her husband as a Treasury department economist. But when her husband brought home a list of questions from an FBI file with Judith's name on the front, Nies soon realized that her life was about to take a radical turn. Shocked to find herself the focus of an FBI investigation into her political activities, Nies began to reevaluate her role as grateful employee and dutiful wife. A heartfelt memoir and a piercing social commentary, The Girl I Left Behind offers a fresh, candid look at the 1960s. Recounting Nies's courageous journey toward independence and equality, it evaluates the consequences of the feminist movement on the same women who made it happen—and on the daughters born in their wake.