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Whose Right Is It? The Fourteenth Amendment and the Fight for Equality (Whose Right Is It?)
by Hana BajramovicDiscover the truth about the Fourteenth Amendment, civil rights, and the United States’ continued fight for equality in this singular nonfiction book for young readers.The Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, known as the “equality amendment,” was passed in the years after the Civil War to help protect the rights and freedoms of Black Americans. In the centuries that followed, the amendment grew to protect the rights of women, immigrants, and LGBTQ+ people as well.But in recent years, the scope of the Fourteenth Amendment has shifted dramatically. A series oflandmark Supreme Court cases—ranging from abortion to affirmative action—have rolled back the amendment’s guarantees and called into question its usefulness as a tool in the fight for equality. What doesthe future hold for the Fourteenth? Hana Bajramovic’s Whose Right Is It? The Fourteenth Amendment and the Fight for Equality explores how one amendment to the Constitution shaped civil rights and liberties in America and became the focus for many of today’s most important political debates. Featuring historical photos and informative graphics, this book shows a new generation of activists what the fight for equality across race, sexuality, gender, and citizenship might look like in the years to come.
Whose Right Is It? The Second Amendment and the Fight Over Guns
by Hana BajramovicDiscover the truth about the Second Amendment, the NRA, and the United States’ centuries-long fight over guns in this first-of-its-kind book for middle grade readers."A compelling, clear analysis of one of our country’s oldest dilemmas: how to balance gun rights with public safety. It tells the full and true story of the Second Amendment, and points to a way to bring sanity to our gun laws. A remarkable primer for all ages." —Michael Waldman, author of The Second Amendment: A Biography For the majority of the United States’ history, the right to own a gun belonged to a “well regulated militia.” That changed in 2008 with the historic District of Columbia v. Heller case, which ruled that the Second Amendment protected an individual’s right. In the years since, the debate over gun legislation has reached a crescendo. And the issue grows ever relevant to children across America, with an estimated three million exposed to shootings every year. From metal detectors to see-through backpacks to shooting drills, kids face daily reminders of the threat of guns. Hana Bajramovic's Whose Right Is It? The Second Amendment and the Fight Over Guns reveals how a once obscure amendment became the focus of daily heated debate. Filled with historical photos and informative graphics, the book will show young readers how gun legislation has always been a part of American history and how money, power, and systemic racism have long dictated our ability to own guns.A Junior Library Guild Selection"Hana Bajramovic provides readers with a compelling overview on the history of guns in the United States and the changing, conflicting interpretations of the Second Amendment certain to stimulate conversation and thinking on the part of future generations." —Award-winning author Doreen Rappaport
Why American Elections Are Flawed (Brown Democracy Medal)
by Pippa NorrisThe flaws in the American electoral process have become more apparent over many years. The contemporary tipping point in public awareness occurred during the 2000 election count, but several major structural weaknesses exacerbated doubts in the 2016 campaign, worsening party divisions and further corroding public trust in the electoral process. It is impossible to fix a problem without understanding its nature. To gather independent evidence about the quality of elections around the world, the Electoral Integrity Project (EIP), an independent project with a research team based at Harvard and Sydney universities, was established in 2012. According to expert estimates developed by EIP, the 2012 and 2014 elections in the United States were the worst among all Western democracies. Without reform, these problems risk damaging the legitimacy of American elections—further weakening public confidence in the major political parties, Congress, and the US government, depressing voter turnout, and exacerbating the risks of contentious outcomes fought through court appeals and public protests.Why American Elections Are Flawed (and How to Fix Them) describes several major challenges observed during the 2016 US elections, including deepening party polarization over basic electoral procedures, the serious risks of hacking and altering official records, the consequences of deregulating campaign spending, and the lack of federal standards and professional practices in electoral management. Pippa Norris outlines the core concept and measure of electoral integrity, the key yardstick used by the EIP to evaluate free and fair elections. She compares cross-national and state-level evidence from expert and mass surveys to diagnose problems in American elections. She shows how these challenges could be addressed through several practical steps designed to improve American electoral procedures and practices. If implemented, the reforms recommended by the EIP will advance free and fair elections at home and abroad.
Why Are We at War?
by Norman MailerBeginning with his debut masterpiece, The Naked and the Dead, Norman Mailer has repeatedly told the truth about war. Why Are We at War? returns Mailer to the gravity of the battlefield and the grand hubris of the politicians who send soldiers there to die. First published in the early days of the Iraq War, Why Are We at War? is an explosive argument about the American quest for empire that still carries weight today. Scrutinizing the Bush administration's words and actions, Mailer unleashes his trademark moral rigor: "Because democracy is noble, it is always endangered. . . . To assume blithely that we can export democracy into any country we choose can serve paradoxically to encourage more fascism at home and abroad."
Why Be Moral?: Learning from the Neo-Confucian Cheng Brothers (SUNY series in Chinese Philosophy and Culture)
by Yong HuangYong Huang presents a new way of doing comparative philosophy as he demonstrates the resources for contemporary ethics offered by the Cheng brothers, Cheng Hao (1032–1085) and Cheng Yi (1033–1107), canonical neo-Confucian philosophers. Huang departs from the standard method of Chinese/Western comparison, which tends to interest those already interested in Chinese philosophy. While Western-oriented scholars may be excited to learn about Chinese philosophers who have said things similar to what they or their favored philosophers have to say, they hardly find anything philosophically new from such comparative work. Instead of comparing and contrasting philosophers, each chapter of this book discusses a significant topic in Western moral philosophy, examines the representative views on this topic in the Western tradition, identifies their respective difficulties, and discusses how the Cheng brothers have better things to say on the subject. Topics discussed include why one should be moral, how weakness of will is not possible, whether virtue ethics is self-centered, in what sense the political is also personal, how a moral theory can be of an antitheoretical nature, and whether moral metaphysics is still possible in this postmodern and postmetaphysical age.
Why Biodiversity Matters (Changing Planet)
by Nigel DudleyAll life on Earth has the right to exist, but as we teeter on the verge of a sixth extinction this book discusses why biodiversity matters and why we should care if species go extinct. We are witnessing the largest and fastest rate of extinction in the history of the planet. While the concept of rights is a human one, all plants and animals strive to survive, and this book argues for their rights to continue doing so without being driven into premature extinction by human actions. Acknowledging and describing the practical reasons for conserving biodiversity, this book argues that these should not overshadow the compelling ethical reasons to care about the future of species other than our own. However, the issues are complex. What do we do when faced with an immediate ethical choice where biodiversity rights, animal rights, human rights, economic development and ecosystem survival all get mixed up together? There are seldom hard and fast answers, but thinking about and understanding a variety of points of view will help us make informed trade-offs. Drawing on his vast practical experience, the author presents insightful perspectives and real-world examples with the hope that this book will instigate a much-needed rethink about why and how we practise conservation. This book is essential reading for all those concerned with sustaining our planet, and all who inhabit it, in the face of climate breakdown, biodiversity loss and ecological collapse.
Why Bother?: Why and How to Assess Your Continuous-Improvement Culture
by Chris Butterworth Morgan L. Jones Peter HinesThis book focusses on the importance of creating an internal assessment program to periodically assess the maturity of the organizations transformation journey. It discusses the best approach to designing and implementing an assessment program by answering key questions posed when people resist. The book begins with selecting the positioning of the program not as an audit but as an opportunity to review strengths and opportunities, through to selecting senior leader support to design of the program and developing the assessors. More than 10 case studies are documented to show how organizations have approached their assessment programs, lessons learned, and successes and challenges faced. The book leads the reader through the process of selling the concept and importance of transformation and Lean assessments to embed the desired behaviors within workplace culture. With many case studies, the reader is guided to design their own programs and develop their own assessors. This increases the probability of sustainability of the transformation program by focusing on and maturing the behaviors the transformation programs are trying to drive. For example, one of the most well-known assessments is the Shingo prize -- This book explains the thinking behind the Shingo model and shares examples of assessments that support it. Other examples of assessments are covered, such as process maturity, quality and business assessments including The Baldridge quality award.
Why Business Matters to God: (And What Still Needs to Be Fixed)
by Jeff Van DuzerJeff Van Duzer grew up thinking business was the source of much damage and evil in the world, the work of greedy capitalists polluting the environment. Thirty years later he was dean of a business school. In the course of that remarkable transformation, Van Duzer found cause for both hope and concern. He discovered many business people achieving a great deal of good for society as well as a lot of illegal and unethical behavior. Along the way he found some who thought that merely being honest and kind was what made business Christian. Others said they'd never ask pastors for business advice because they had no interest or experience in their work. After all, wasn't "full-time Christian service" what the church was all about? This book explores the nature and meaning of doing business and finds it calls for much more than most think. Van Duzer presents a profoundly Christian approach that integrates biblical studies with the disciplines of business and economics. Looking beyond the place of ethical principles and the character of the individual, Van Duzer displays a vision of business that contributes to the very purposes of God.
Why Criminalize?: New Perspectives on Normative Principles of Criminalization (Law and Philosophy Library #134)
by Thomas Søbirk PetersenThe book defines and critically discusses the following five principles: the harm principle, legal paternalism, the offense principle, legal moralism and the dignity principle of criminalization. The book argues that all five principles raise important problems that point to rejections (or at least a rethink) of standard principles of criminalization. The book shows that one of the reasons why we should reject or revise standard principles of criminalization is that even the most plausible versions of the harm principle and legal paternalism that have been offered so far are rendered redundant by general moral theories. Furthermore, it demonstrates that the other three principles (or versions thereof), the offense principle, legal moralism and the dignity principle of criminalization, can either be covered by the harm principle, thus making these principles also redundant, or be seen to have what look like other unacceptable implications (e.g. that versions of legal moralism are based on speculative and incorrect empirical assumptions or violate what is called the criminological levelling-down challenge). As such, there is reason to move beyond traditional principles of criminalization, and instead to investigate alternative principles the state should be guided by when attempting to justify which kinds of conduct should be criminalized. Moreover, this book presents and defends such a principle – the utilitarian principle of criminalization.
Why Did Jesus, Moses, the Buddha, and Mohammed Cross the Road?: Christian Identity in a Multi-Faith World
by Brian D. MclarenWhen four religious leaders walk across the road, it's not the beginning of a joke. It's the start of one of the most important conversations in today's world. Can you be a committed Christian without having to condemn or convert people of other faiths? Is it possible to affirm other religious traditions without watering down your own? In his most important book yet, widely acclaimed author and speaker Brian McLaren proposes a new faith alternative, one built on "benevolence and solidarity rather than rivalry and hostility." This way of being Christian is strong but doesn't strong-arm anyone, going beyond mere tolerance to vigorous hospitality toward, interest in, and collaboration with the other. Blending history, narrative, and brilliant insight, McLaren shows readers step-by-step how to reclaim this strong-benevolent faith, challenging us to stop creating barriers in the name of God and learn how affirming other religions can strengthen our commitment to our own. And in doing so, he invites Christians to become more Christ-like than ever before.
Why Did They Kill? Cambodia in the Shadow of Genocide
by Alexander Laban HintonAlexander Hinton focuses on the devastation that took place in Cambodia from April 1975 to January 1979 under the Khmer Rouge in order to explore why mass murder happens and what motivates perpetrators to kill.
Why Do Banks Fail and What to Do About It: The Role of Risk Management, Governance, Accounting, and More (Contributions to Finance and Accounting)
by Nordine Abidi Bruno Buchetti Samuele Crosetti Ixart Miquel-FloresBanks play a crucial role in the global economy, yet they are vulnerable to failures that can have catastrophic effects. Key questions arise: What causes bank failures? What drives these failures? Can we avoid a banking crisis? What happens when a bank fails?This book explores the causes, consequences, and potential prevention of banking crises. It begins by examining the fundamental roles of banks in the economic system, focusing on their intermediary functions like liquidity provision, payment management, asset transformation, and borrower oversight. The book then delves into the challenges facing the banking sector, including cyber threats, climate change, and geopolitical instabilities.The second chapter addresses the primary risks banks face, such as liquidity, credit, market, interest rate, IT, and environmental risks, and how these contribute to banking failures. Chapter three shifts focus to financial statements, contrasting those of commercial and investment banks with non-financial companies, and discusses the impact of creative accounting in recent banking collapses.Governance issues and their role in banking failures are the focus of chapter four, highlighting the crucial need for effective risk monitoring by bank directors. The final chapter illustrates the process of bank resolution and the evolving strategies of resolution authorities in ensuring bank stability. Targeted at researchers, regulators, and practitioners, this book comprehensively covers the drivers of banking failures, regulatory improvement suggestions, and real-world case studies. It emphasizes the importance of banks in today’s economy, their unique risks, and the aftermath of their failure, aiming to provide a threefold contribution to understanding and managing banking crises.
Why Do They Vote That Way?: from The Righteous Mind (A Vintage Short)
by Jonathan HaidtTo understand what drives the rift that divides our populace between liberal and conservative, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt has spent twenty-five year examining the moral foundations that undergird and inform two differing world views: the political left and right place different values of importance on order, care, fairness, loyalty, authority, and liberty. From one of our keenest dissectors of moral systems, Why Do They Vote That Way? explains how deeply ingrained moral systems have estranged conservatives and liberals from one another while crossing the political divide in a search for understanding the miracle of human cooperation. A Vintage Shorts Selection. An ebook short.
Why Don't We Defend Better?: Data Breaches, Risk Management, and Public Policy
by Robert H. Sloan Richard WarnerThe wave of data breaches raises two pressing questions: Why don’t we defend our networks better? And, what practical incentives can we create to improve our defenses? Why Don't We Defend Better?: Data Breaches, Risk Management, and Public Policy answers those questions. It distinguishes three technical sources of data breaches corresponding to three types of vulnerabilities: software, human, and network. It discusses two risk management goals: business and consumer. The authors propose mandatory anonymous reporting of information as an essential step toward better defense, as well as a general reporting requirement. They also provide a systematic overview of data breach defense, combining technological and public policy considerations. Features Explains why data breach defense is currently often ineffective Shows how to respond to the increasing frequency of data breaches Combines the issues of technology, business and risk management, and legal liability Discusses the different issues faced by large versus small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) Provides a practical framework in which public policy issues about data breaches can be effectively addressed
Why Elections Fail
by Pippa NorrisToo often, elections around the globe are, unfortunately, deeply flawed or even fail. What triggers these problems? In this second volume of her trilogy on electoral integrity, Pippa Norris compares structural, international, and institutional accounts as alternative perspectives to explain why elections fail to meet international standards. The book argues that rules preventing political actors from manipulating electoral governance are needed to secure integrity, although at the same time officials also need sufficient resources and capacities to manage elections effectively. Drawing on new evidence, the study determines the most effective types of strategies for strengthening the quality of electoral governance around the world. With a global perspective, this book provides fresh insights into these major issues at the heart of the study of elections and voting behavior, comparative politics, democracy and democratization, political culture, democratic governance, public policymaking, development, international relations and conflict studies, and processes of regime change.
Why Good is Good: The Sources of Morality
by Robert HindeWhere do our moral beliefs come from? Theologians and scientists provide often conflicting answers. Robert Hinde resolves these conflicts to offer a groundbreaking, multidisciplinary response, drawing on psychology, philosophy, evolutionary biology and social anthropology.Hinde argues that understanding the origins of our morality can clarify the debates surrounding contemporary ethical dilemmas such as genetic modification, increasing consumerism and globalisation. Well-chosen examples and helpful summaries make this an accessible volume for students, professionals and others interested in contemporary and historical ethics.
Why Government Fails So Often: And How It Can Do Better
by Peter H. SchuckHow government can implement more successful policies, more oftenFrom healthcare to workplace and campus conduct, the federal government is taking on ever more responsibility for managing our lives. At the same time, Americans have never been more disaffected with Washington, seeing it as an intrusive, incompetent, wasteful giant. Ineffective policies are caused by deep structural factors regardless of which party is in charge, bringing our government into ever-worsening disrepute. Understanding why government fails so often—and how it might become more effective—is a vital responsibility of citizenship.In this book, lawyer and political scientist Peter Schuck provides a wide range of examples and an enormous body of evidence to explain why so many domestic policies go awry—and how to right the foundering ship of state. An urgent call for reform, Why Government Fails So Often is essential reading for anyone curious about why government is in such a disgraceful state and how it can do better.
Why Governments and Parties Manipulate Elections
by Alberto SimpserWhy do parties and governments cheat in elections they cannot lose? This book documents the widespread use of blatant and excessive manipulation of elections and explains what drives this practice. Alberto Simpser shows that, in many instances, elections are about more than winning. Electoral manipulation is not only a tool used to gain votes, but also a means of transmitting or distorting information. This manipulation conveys an image of strength, shaping the behavior of citizens, bureaucrats, politicians, parties, unions, and businesspeople to the benefit of the manipulators, increasing the scope for the manipulators to pursue their goals while in government and mitigating future challenges to their hold on power. Why Governments and Parties Manipulate Elections provides a general theory about what drives electoral manipulation and empirically documents global patterns of manipulation.
Why Hackers Win: Power and Disruption in the Network Society
by Patrick Burkart Tom McCourtWhen people think of hackers, they usually think of a lone wolf acting with the intent to garner personal data for identity theft and fraud. But what about the corporations and government entities that use hacking as a strategy for managing risk? Why Hackers Win asks the pivotal question of how and why the instrumental uses of invasive software by corporations and government agencies contribute to social change. Through a critical communication and media studies lens, the book focuses on the struggles of breaking and defending the “trusted systems” underlying our everyday use of technology. It compares the United States and the European Union, exploring how cybersecurity and hacking accelerate each other in digital capitalism, and how the competitive advantage that hackers can provide corporations and governments may actually afford new venues for commodity development and exchange. Presenting prominent case studies of communication law and policy, corporate hacks, and key players in the global cybersecurity market, the book proposes a political economic model of new markets for software vulnerabilities and exploits, and clearly illustrates the social functions of hacking.
Why Has America Stopped Inventing
by Darin GibbyAmerica loves innovation and the can-do spirit that made this country what it is—a world leader in self-government, industry and technology, and pop culture. Everything about America has at one point or another been an experiment and a leap of faith. And one such experiment—upon which all others depend for success—is the U.S. Patent System. Why Has America Stopped Inventing? takes a close look at why this experiment appears to be failing, and why America has all but stopped inventing. Our belief that we are the most innovative people on earth is mistaken. Statistics show that today we invent less than half of what our counterparts did a century and a half ago. Look around: Where are the groundbreaking inventions comparable to those from the Industrial Revolution? It’s unforgivable that we’ve been using the same mode of transportation for over a century. Why are we giving a trillion dollars every year to hostile foreign nations for imported oil when we have the inventive talent in America to solve the nation’s energy crisis? We don’t have these desperately needed technologies because regular Americans have given up on inventing. Why Has America Stopped Inventing? explains why by comparing the experiences of America’s most successful 19th century inventors with those of today, showing Jefferson refusing to waste any more weekends examining patent applications, Whitney being robbed of his fortune while the South’s wealth exploded, the patent models that kept British soldiers from burning Washington’s last-standing federal building, the formation of Lincoln’s cabinet, and Selden crippling the entire U.S. Auto Industry. It also tells the story of the Wright brother’s airplane monopoly, the Colt revolver’s role in the Mexican American War, the Sewing Machine wars, the last six months of Daniel Webster’s life, and the fraudulently created Bell Empire.
Why Have Children?: The Ethical Debate (Basic Bioethics)
by Christine OverallA wide-ranging exploration of whether or not choosing to procreate can be morally justified—and if so, how.In contemporary Western society, people are more often called upon to justify the choice not to have children than they are to supply reasons for having them. In this book, Christine Overall maintains that the burden of proof should be reversed: that the choice to have children calls for more careful justification and reasoning than the choice not to. Arguing that the choice to have children is not just a prudential or pragmatic decision but one with ethical repercussions, Overall offers a wide-ranging exploration of how we might think systematically and deeply about this fundamental aspect of human life. Writing from a feminist perspective, she also acknowledges the inevitably gendered nature of the decision; the choice has different meanings, implications, and risks for women than it has for men.After considering a series of ethical approaches to procreation, and finding them inadequate or incomplete, Overall offers instead a novel argument. Exploring the nature of the biological parent-child relationship—which is not only genetic but also psychological, physical, intellectual, and moral—she argues that the formation of that relationship is the best possible reason for choosing to have a child.
Why Have Children?
by Christine OverallIn contemporary Western society, people are more often called upon to justify the choice not to have children than they are to supply reasons for having them. In this book, Christine Overall maintains that the burden of proof should be reversed: that the choice to have children calls for more careful justification and reasoning than the choice not to. Arguing that the choice to have children is not just a prudential or pragmatic decision but one with ethical repercussions, Overall offers a wide-ranging exploration of how we might think systematically and deeply about this fundamental aspect of human life. Writing from a feminist perspective, she also acknowledges the inevitably gendered nature of the decision; although both men and women must ponder the issue, the choice has different meanings, implications, and risks for women than it has for men. Overall considers a series of ethical perspectives on procreation, examining approaches that rely on reproductive rights; on fundamental religious, family, or political values; and on the anticipated consequences of the decision for both individuals and society. She examines some of the broader issues relevant to the decision, including population growth, resource depletion, and social policies governing reproduction. Finding the usual approaches to the question inadequate or incomplete, she offers instead a novel argument. Exploring the nature of the biological parent-child relationship--which is not only genetic but also psychological, physical, intellectual, and moral--she argues that the formation of that relationship is the best possible reason for choosing to have a child.
Why Honor Matters
by Tamler SommersA controversial call to put honor at the center of moralityTo the modern mind, the idea of honor is outdated, sexist, and barbaric. It evokes Hamilton and Burr and pistols at dawn, not visions of a well-organized society. But for philosopher Tamler Sommers, a sense of honor is essential to living moral lives. In Why Honor Matters, Sommers argues that our collective rejection of honor has come at great cost. Reliant only on Enlightenment liberalism, the United States has become the home of the cowardly, the shameless, the selfish, and the alienated. Properly channeled, honor encourages virtues like courage, integrity, and solidarity, and gives a sense of living for something larger than oneself. Sommers shows how honor can help us address some of society's most challenging problems, including education, policing, and mass incarceration. Counterintuitive and provocative, Why Honor Matters makes a convincing case for honor as a cornerstone of our modern society.
Why Is Everyone Else Wrong?
by Tibor R. MachanEspecially when there is a lot of political rhetoric in the air, those of us with strong political convictions are inclined to reflect on just why we hold certain views even as others who are basically like us hold very different ones. Social scientists and other thinkers struggle to explain it, but the puzzle remains--in part because they, too, disagree so much with one another. Whether the arena is politics, religion, business, scientific research, or education, individuals who operate in the same environment and experience the same conditions may have radically different interpretations of the facts and diametrically opposed convictions about how to react to them. When faced with a fundamental disagreement, we ask ourselves: Why are these folks so wrong? And how can they be so convinced that we are wrong? In this provocative monograph, Tibor Machan explores the principles of truth, reason, and ideology, with particular respect to the profound political, economic, and social crises gripping the world today. In so doing, he not only sheds light on the nature of "truth" but also suggests a framework for embracing differences to come up with creative solutions.
Why It's Hard To Be Good
by Al GiniIn a series of brief chapters, Al Gini lays out ideas for 'stepping out of the shadow of the self' - an argument for stopping thinking of yourself as the centre of the universe. It's hard to be good, he explains, until we realize that being good only has meaning in relation to other people. Ideas of justice, fairness, and ethical behavior are just that - abstract ideas - until they are put into action with regard to people outside ourselves.We may worry too much about good versus evil - big concepts that give us plenty of room to sit on the right side of the equation, he argues. Instead, we need to be thinking about how being good involves an active relationship toward others. Being good all by yourself may not be good enough. This warm and generous book is for anyone who wants to know how to use ethical thinking as way to live, work, and be with others.