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One Man Against the World: The Tragedy of Richard Nixon
by Tim WeinerTHE RIVETING STORY OF A DRAMATIC AND DISASTROUS PRESIDENCY Here is the first history of President Richard Nixon with all of his secret tapes and documents, many declassified in the past two years. Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner Tim Weiner presents a devastating portrait of a tortured and tormented man. In gripping prose, the author shows how, in Nixon's mind, the conflict in Vietnam and the crimes of Watergate were one war, fought on two fronts. A brilliant politician, Nixon rose by force of will from a crowded shack in rural California to the White House. But, as president, Nixon trusted no one--not his Cabinet, not his closest advisers, not the American people. Elected to unite a nation as discordant as it was at the close of the Civil War, Nixon disdained domestic policies and programs. He wanted above all to create what he called "a generation of peace"--by asking the world's leading Communist dictators to help him end the Vietnam War. Nixon saw antiwar American citizens as opponents no less dangerous than the enemy in Vietnam. He fought his foes without mercy. Abroad, his best weapons were B-52 bombers. One Man Against the World lets the reader listen in as Nixon, gripped by rage and insomnia, calls down death and destruction. At home, Nixon used undercover agents, warrantless wiretaps, break-ins, and burglaries as tools of intelligence gathering against Democratic Party leaders and the antiwar legions. His henchmen--including his attorney general and his closest White House advisers--went to prison for their crimes. Almost all his presidency is recorded on tape or preserved on paper. Together these materials create a remarkable record of the most intimate and damning conversations between the president and his confidants. Only recently, after forty years of struggle, has much of this jaw-dropping information been made public. One Man Against the World is a work of new insight into Richard Nixon--a man who saw enemies everywhere and, standing alone, took up arms against them. Nixon saw himself not only as the leader of the free world but "the world leader." Yet he was addicted to the gutter politics that ruined him. His political suicide has no equal in American history. That was his tragedy to bear."
One Man Against the World: The Tragedy of Richard Nixon
by Tim WeinerThe New York Times BestsellerA shocking and riveting look at one of the most dramatic and disastrous presidencies in US history, from Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner Tim WeinerBased largely on documents declassified only in the last few years, One Man Against the World paints a devastating portrait of a tortured yet brilliant man who led the country largely according to a deep-seated insecurity and distrust of not only his cabinet and congress, but the American population at large. In riveting, tick-tock prose, Weiner illuminates how the Vietnam War and the Watergate controversy that brought about Nixon's demise were inextricably linked. From the hail of garbage and curses that awaited Nixon upon his arrival at the White House, when he became the president of a nation as deeply divided as it had been since the end of the Civil War, to the unprecedented action Nixon took against American citizens, who he considered as traitorous as the army of North Vietnam, to the infamous break-in and the tapes that bear remarkable record of the most intimate and damning conversations between the president and his confidantes, Weiner narrates the history of Nixon's anguished presidency in fascinating and fresh detail. A crucial new look at the greatest political suicide in history, One Man Against the World leaves us not only with new insight into this tumultuous period, but also into the motivations and demons of an American president who saw enemies everywhere, and, thinking the world was against him, undermined the foundations of the country he had hoped to lead.
One Man Great Enough: Abraham Lincoln's Road to Civil War
by John C. WaughThe award-winning historian John C.Waugh takes us on Lincoln's road to the CivilWar. From Lincoln's first public rejection of slavery to his secret arrival in the capital, from his stunning debates with Stephen Douglas to his more contemplative moments,Waugh shows us America as Lincoln saw it and as Lincoln described it.Much of this wonderful story is told by Lincoln himself, detailing through his own writing his emergence onto the political scene and the evolution of his beliefs about the Union, the Constitution, democracy, slavery, and the buildup to the CivilWar. In this acclaimed biography,Waugh brings us ever closer to understanding this mysterious, complicated, and truly great man.
One Man's America
by George F. WillIn his provocative and compelling new book, America’s most widely read and most influential commentator casts his gimlet eye on our singular nation. Moving far beyond the strict confines of politics, George F. Will offers a fascinating look at the people, stories, and events–often unheralded–that make the American drama so endlessly entertaining and instructive. With Will’s signature erudition and wry wit always on display,One Man’s Americachronicles a spectacular, eclectic procession of figures who have shaped our cultural landscape–from Playboy founder Hugh Hefner to National Review founder William F. Buckley Jr. , from Victorian poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to Beat poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, from cotton picker— turned—country singer Buck Owens to actor-turned-president Ronald Reagan. Will crisscrosses the country to illuminate what it is that makes America distinctive. He visits the USS Arizona memorial in Pearl Harbor and ponders its enduring links to the present. He travels to Milwaukee to celebrate the hundredth anniversary of an iconic brand, Harley-Davidson. In Los Angeles he finds the inspiring future of education, while in New York he confronts the dispiriting didacticism of the avant-garde. He ventures to the Civil War battlefields of Virginia to explore what we risk when we efface our own history. And on the outskirts of Chicago he investigates one of the darkest chapters in American history, only to discover a shining example of resilience and grace–the best the country has to offer. Will’s wide lens takes in much more as well–everything from the “most emblematic novel of the 1930s” (and no, it is not about the Joads) to the cult of ESPN to Brooks Brothers and Ben & Jerry’s. And of course,One Man’s Americawould not be complete without the author’s insights on the national pastime, baseball–the icons and the cheats, the hapless and the greats. Finally, in a personal and reflective turn, Will writes movingly of his thirty-five-year-old son Jon, born with Down syndrome, and pays loving and poignant tribute to his mother, who died at the age of ninety-eight after a long struggle with dementia. The essays inOne Man’s America, even when critiquing American culture, reflect Will’s deep affection and regard for our nation. After all, he notes, when America falls short, it does so only as compared to “the uniquely high standards it has set for itself. ” In the end, this brilliantly informative and entertaining book reminds us of the enduring value of “the simple virtues and decencies that can make communities flourish and that have made America great and exemplary. ”
One Man's Terrorist: A Political History of the IRA
by Daniel FinnA history of &“the Troubles&”: the radical politics of RepublicanismThe conflict in Northern Ireland was one of the most devastating in post-war Europe, claiming the lives of 3,500 people and injuring many more. This book is a riveting new history of the radical politics that drove a unique insurgency that emerged from the crucible of 1968. Based on extensive archival research, One Man&’s Terrorist explores the relationship between the IRA, a clandestine army described as &‘one of the most ruthless and capable insurgent forces in modern history&’, and the political movement that developed alongside it to challenge British rule. From Wilson and Heath to Thatcher and Blair, a generation of British politicians had to face an unprecedented subversive threat whose reach extended from West Belfast to Westminster.Finn shows how Republicans fought a war on several fronts, making use of every weapon available to achieve their goal of a united Ireland, from car bombs to election campaigns, street marches to hunger strikes. Though driven by an uncompromising revolutionary politics that blended militant nationalism with left-wing ideology, their movement was never monolithic, its history punctuated by splits and internal conflicts. The IRA&’s war ultimately ended in stalemate, with the peace process of the 1990s and the Good Friday Agreement that has maintained an uneasy balance ever since.
One Market Under God: Extreme Capitalism, Market Populism, and the End of Economic Democracy
by Thomas FrankAt no other moment in history have the values of business and the corporation been more nakedly and arrogantly in the ascendant. Combining popular intellectual history with a survey of recent business culture, Thomas Frank traces an idea he calls 'market populism' - the notion that markets are, in some transcendent way, identifiable with democracy and the will of the people. The idea that any criticism of things as they are is elitist can be seen in management literature, where downsizing and ceaseless, chaotic change are celebrated as victories for democracy; in advertising, where an endless array of brands seek to position themselves as symbols of authenticity and rebellion; on Wall street, where the stock market is identified as the domain of the small investor and common man; and in the right-wing politics of the 1990s and the popular theories of Tom Peters, Charles Handy and Thomas Friedman. One Market Under God is Frank's counterattack against the onslaught of market propaganda. Mounted with the weapons of common sense it is lucid and tinged with anger, betrayal and a certain hope for the future.
One Matchless Time: A Life of William Faulkner
by Jay PariniWilliam Faulkner was a literary genius, and one of America's most important and influential writers. Drawing on previously unavailable sources -- including letters, memoirs, and interviews with Faulkner's daughter and lovers -- Jay Parini has crafted a biography that delves into the mystery of this gifted and troubled writer. His Faulkner is an extremely talented, obsessive artist plagued by alcoholism and a bad marriage who somehow transcends his limitations. Parini weaves the tragedies and triumphs of Faulkner's life in with his novels, serving up a biography that's as engaging as it is insightful.
One Mighty and Irresistible Tide: The Epic Struggle Over American Immigration, 1924-1965
by Jia Lynn YangNamed a Most Anticipated Book of May 2020 by The New York Times, the Washington Post, and Kirkus Reviews. A sweeping history of the twentieth-century battle to reform American immigration laws that set the stage for today’s roiling debates. The idea of the United States as a nation of immigrants is at the core of the American narrative. But in 1924, Congress instituted a system of ethnic quotas so stringent that it choked off large-scale immigration for decades, sharply curtailing arrivals from southern and eastern Europe and outright banning those from nearly all of Asia. In a riveting narrative filled with a fascinating cast of characters, from the indefatigable congressman Emanuel Celler and senator Herbert Lehman to the bull-headed Nevada senator Pat McCarran, Jia Lynn Yang recounts how lawmakers, activists, and presidents from Truman through LBJ worked relentlessly to abolish the 1924 law. Through a world war, a refugee crisis after the Holocaust, and a McCarthyist fever, a coalition of lawmakers and activists descended from Jewish, Irish, and Japanese immigrants fought to establish a new principle of equality in the American immigration system. Their crowning achievement, the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act, proved to be one of the most transformative laws in the country’s history, opening the door to nonwhite migration at levels never seen before—and changing America in ways that those who debated it could hardly have imagined. Framed movingly by her own family’s story of immigration to America, Yang’s One Mighty and Irresistible Tide is a deeply researched and illuminating work of history, one that shows how Americans have strived and struggled to live up to the ideal of a home for the "huddled masses," as promised in Emma Lazarus’s famous poem.
One Million Steps
by Bing WestBattalion 3/5 suffered the highest number of casualties in the war in Afghanistan. This is the story of one platoon in that distinguished battalion. Aware of U.S. plans to withdraw from the country, knowing their efforts were only a footprint in the sand, the fifty Marines of 3rd Platoon fought in Sangin, the most dangerous district in all of Afghanistan. So heavy were the casualties that the Secretary of Defense offered to pull the Marines out. Instead, they pushed forward. Each Marine in 3rd Platoon patrolled two and a half miles a day for six months--a total of one million steps--in search of a ghostlike enemy that struck without warning. Why did the Marines attack and attack, day after day? Every day brought a new skirmish. Each footfall might trigger an IED. Half the Marines in 3rd Platoon didn't make it intact to the end of the tour. One Million Steps is the story of the fifty brave men who faced these grim odds and refused to back down. Based on Bing West's embeds with 3rd Platoon, as well as on their handwritten log, this is a gripping grunt's-eye view of life on the front lines of America's longest war. Writing with a combat veteran's compassion for the fallen, West also offers a damning critique of the higher-ups who expected our warriors to act as nation-builders--and whose failed strategy put American lives at unnecessary risk. Each time a leader was struck down, another rose up to take his place. How does one man instill courage in another? What welded these men together as firmly as steel plates? This remarkable book is the story of warriors caught between a maddening, unrealistic strategy and their unswerving commitment to the fight. Fearsome, inspiring, and poignant in its telling, One Million Steps is sure to become a classic, a unique and enduring testament to the American warrior spirit. Advance praise for One Million Steps "One Million Steps should be mandatory reading for every citizen who wants to understand the reality of the war we are in with those who would destroy our civilization and kill us. It is a stunning, sobering, and brilliantly written book. Every presidential candidate should read it and then meet with Bing West. It is a first step to rethinking the thirteen years of strategic failure we have been engaged in."--Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House of Representatives and author of A Nation Like No Other: Why American Exceptionalism Matters "One Million Steps transcends combat narrative: It is an epic of contemporary small-unit combat that in austere prose depicts the old fighting virtues of selflessness, skill, and perseverance. It is, at the same time, a stinging indictment of our strategy in Afghanistan that inspires reflection on wars upon which we have closed one chapter, but not, in all probability, the book."--Eliot A. Cohen, author of Supreme Command: Soldiers, Statesmen, and Leadership in Wartime "Bing West has created another masterpiece of war reporting. His first, The Village, was his personal account of leading a Marine rifle platoon in Vietnam. Now he has done it again. If you want a firsthand account of small-unit infantry combat, this book is it, and few others will ever top it."--Colonel Gian Gentile, U.S. Army (retired), author of Wrong Turn: America's Deadly Embrace of CounterinsurgencyFrom the Hardcover edition.
One Minute Out (Gray Man #9)
by Mark GreaneyFrom Mark Greaney, the New York Times bestselling author of Mission Critical and a coauthor of Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan novels, comes another high-stakes thriller featuring the world's most dangerous assassin: the Gray Man. <P><P>While on a mission to Croatia, Court Gentry uncovers a human trafficking operation. The trail leads from the Balkans all the way back to Hollywood. Court is determined to shut it down, but his CIA handlers have other plans. The criminal ringleader has actionable intelligence about a potentially devastating terrorist attack on the US. The CIA won't move until they have that intel. It's a moral balancing act with Court at the pivot point. <P><P><b>A New York Times Bestseller</b>
One Minute To Ten: Cameron, Miliband and Clegg. Three Men, One Ambition and the Price of Power
by Dan Hodges10 PM, on the 7 May. The exit poll predicting the result of the 2015 General Election is announced. In that instant three lives are changed for ever.David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg were three very different men, from very different backgrounds. But they shared one ambition. To lead their country.In pursuit of their dream they were forced to make sacrifices. Of their principles. Of those they loved. Of themselves.And right up until the final moment the exit poll was released each man clung to the hope those sacrifices had not been in vain. Then the clock struck ten.In One Minute to Ten, Dan Hodges brings to life the most dramatic general election campaign in living memory, and tells the untold story of the three men who contested it. And in doing so reveals the price paid by those who risk everything in their quest for the ultimate political prize...
One Monday Morning (Fountas & Pinnell LLI Blue #Level H)
by Uri ShulevitzIn this elaboration on an ancient French song, a king, queen, and prince with an increasingly large retinue try to pay a call on a young boy who is rarely home.
One Money, One Market--A Revised Benchmark
by Theo S. Eicher Christian HennA report from the International Monetary Fund.
One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America's Future
by Ben Carson Candy CarsonDear Reader, In February 2013 I gave a speech at the National Prayer Breakfast. Standing a few feet from President Obama, I warned my fellow citizens of the dangers facing our country and called for a return to the principles that made America great. Many Americans heard and responded, but our nation's decline has continued. Today the danger is greater than ever before, and I have never shared a more urgent message than I do now. Our growing debt and deteriorating morals have driven us far from the founders' intent. We've made very little progress in basic education. Obamacare threatens our health, liberty, and financial future. Media elitism and political correctness are out of control. Worst of all, we seem to have lost our ability to discuss important issues calmly and respectfully regardless of party affiliation or other differences. As a doctor rather than a politician, I care about what works, not whether someone has an (R) or a (D) after his or her name. We have to come together to solve our problems. Knowing that the future of my grandchildren is in jeopardy because of reckless spending, godless government, and mean-spirited attempts to silence critics left me no choice but to write this book. I have endeavored to propose a road out of our decline, appealing to every American's decency and common sense. If each of us sits back and expects someone else to take action, it will soon be too late. But with your help, I firmly believe that America may once again be "one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." Sincerely, Ben Carson
One Nation
by Candy Carson Ben CarsonDear Reader, In February 2013 I gave a speech at the National Prayer Breakfast. Standing a few feet from President Obama, I warned my fellow citizens of the dangers facing our country and called for a return to the principles that made America great.Many Americans heard and responded, but our nation's decline has continued. Today the danger is greater than ever before, and I have never shared a more urgent message than I do now.Our growing debt and deteriorating morals have driven us far from the founders' intent. We've made very little progress in basic education. Obamacare threatens our health, liberty, and financial future. Media elitism and political correctness are out of control.Worst of all, we seem to have lost our ability to discuss important issues calmly and respectfully regardless of party affiliation or other differences. As a doctor rather than a politician, I care about what works, not whether someone has an (R) or a (D) after his or her name. We have to come together to solve our problems.Knowing that the future of my grandchildren is in jeopardy because of reckless spending, godless government, and mean-spirited attempts to silence critics left me no choice but to write this book. I have endeavored to propose a road out of our decline, appealing to every American's decency and common sense.If each of us sits back and expects someone else to take action, it will soon be too late. But with your help, I firmly believe that America may once again be "one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."Sincerely,Ben Carson
One Nation After Trump: A Guide for the Perplexed, the Disillusioned, the Desperate, and the Not-Yet Deported
by E. J. Dionne Jr. Norman J. Ornstein Thomas E. MannTHE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES AND WASHINGTON POST BESTSELLERA call to action from three of Washington's premier political scholar-journalists, One Nation After Trump offers the definitive work on the threat posed by the Trump presidency and how to counter it.American democracy was never supposed to give the nation a president like Donald Trump. We have never had a president who gave rise to such widespread alarm about his lack of commitment to the institutions of self-government, to the norms democracy requires, and to the need for basic knowledge about how government works. We have never had a president who raises profound questions about his basic competence and his psychological capacity to take on the most challenging political office in the world.Yet if Trump is both a threat to our democracy and a product of its weaknesses, the citizen activism he has inspired is the antidote. The reaction to the crisis created by Trump’s presidency can provide the foundation for an era of democratic renewal and vindicate our long experiment in self-rule.The award-winning authors of One Nation After Trump explain Trump’s rise and the danger his administration poses to our free institutions. They also offer encouragement to the millions of Americans now experiencing a new sense of citizenship and engagement and argue that our nation needs a unifying alternative to Trump’s dark and divisive brand of politics—an alternative rooted in a New Economy, a New Patriotism, a New Civil Society, and a New Democracy. One Nation After Trump is the essential book for our era, an unsparing assessment of the perils facing the United States and an inspiring roadmap for how we can reclaim the future.
One Nation Britain: History, the Progressive Tradition, and Practical Ideas for Today’s Politicians
by Richard CarrWhat is One Nation politics? What has it been, and what should be it be today? Since Ed Miliband’s speech at the 2012 Labour Party Conference these questions have been much asked, but not so often clearly answered. Outlining the historical context, and offering suggestions for contemporary thinkers, this comprehensive overview shows how all three major UK political parties have made a significant contribution to the One Nation agenda over the past century and a half. Re-asserting the One Nation tradition inherent in interventionist liberals like Keynes and Lloyd George, it encourages us to look beyond reformist high Tory politicians such as Benjamin Disraeli and sketches out precedents for current politicians in areas such as house building, local government, the living wage, a financial transaction tax, and the welfare state. Providing an accessible guide to the One Nation ideal, Richard Carr gives those of all political persuasions some food for thought whilst pointing the way for future policy making.
One Nation, One Standard
by Herman BadilloWhy aren't Hispanics succeeding like Asians, Jews, and other immigrant groups in America? Herman Badillo's answer is as politically incorrect as the question: Hispanics simply don't put the same emphasis on education as other immigrant groups. As the nation's first Puerto Rican-born U. S. congressman, the trailblazing Badillo once supported bilingual education and other government programs he thought would help the Hispanic community. But he came to see that the real path to prosperity, political unity, and the American mainstream is self-reliance, not big government. Now Badillo is a champion of one standard of achievement for all races and ethnicities. In this surprising and controversial manifesto, you will learn:* Why Hispanic culture's trouble with education, democracy, and economics stems from Mother Spain and the "five-hundred year siesta" she induced in Latin America. * Why the Congressman who drafted the first Spanish-English bilingual education legislation now believes that bilingual education hurts students more than it helps. * Why "social promotion" - putting minority students' self-esteem ahead of their academic performance and then admitting them to college unprepared - continues to this day, despite the system's documented failures and injustices. * How self-identifying as "Hispanic" or "white" or "black" undermines achievement, and what lessons we can learn from Latin American countries, where one's race is irrelevant. With Central and Latin America exporting a large portion of their poor, Hispanics are on the way to becoming a majority in the United States. . . but one with all the problems of a minority culture. Badillo's solution to this problem relies on traditional values: hard work, education, and achievement. His lessons are important not only for Hispanics but for every American.
One Nation, One Standard
by Herman BadilloWhy aren't Hispanics succeeding like Asians, Jews, and other immigrant groups in America? Herman Badillo's answer is as politically incorrect as the question: Hispanics simply don't put the same emphasis on education as other immigrant groups. As the nation's first Puerto Rican-born U.S. congressman, the trailblazing Badillo once supported bilingual education and other government programs he thought would help the Hispanic community. But he came to see that the real path to prosperity, political unity, and the American mainstream is self-reliance, not big government. Now Badillo is a champion of one standard of achievement for all races and ethnicities. In this surprising and controversial manifesto, you will learn: Why Hispanic culture's trouble with education, democracy, and economics stems from Mother Spain and the "five-hundred year siesta" she induced in Latin America. Why the Congressman who drafted the first Spanish-English bilingual education legislation now believes that bilingual education hurts students more than it helps. Why "social promotion" -- putting minority students' self-esteem ahead of their academic performance and then admitting them to college unprepared -- continues to this day, despite the system's documented failures and injustices. How self-identifying as "Hispanic" or "white" or "black" undermines achievement, and what lessons we can learn from Latin American countries, where one's race is irrelevant. With Central and Latin America exporting a large portion of their poor, Hispanics are on the way to becoming a majority in the United States... but one with all the problems of a minority culture. Badillo's solution to this problem relies on traditional values: hard work, education, and achievement. His lessons are important not only for Hispanics but for every American.
One Nation, Two Cultures: A Searching Examination of American Society in the Aftermath of Our Cultural Rev olution
by Gertrude HimmelfarbIn One Nation, Two Cultures, one of today's most respected and articulate cultural critics gives us a penetrating examination of the gulf between the two sides of American society -- a divide that cuts across class, racial, ethnic, political, and sexual lines. While one side originated in the traditional idea of republican virtue, the other emerged from the counterculture of the late 1960s and has become the dominant culture of today.In clear and vigorous prose, Himmelfarb argues that while the dominant culture pervades journalism, academia, television, and film, a "dissident culture" continues to promote the values of family, a civil society, sexual morality, privacy, and patriotism. The clash between these two cultures affects all areas of American society.Despite her forceful critique, Himmelfarb sees encouraging signs for the future of American culture. She explores the place of religion, family, and the law in American life and proposes democratic remedies for the nation's moral and cultural diseases. Though there are many legitimate grievances against government, she contends, our citizenry cannot afford to delegitimize it. And she concludes that it is a tribute to Americans that, without serious social strife, we remain one nation even as we are divided into two cultures.One Nation, Two Cultures is a stimulating work, one sure to provoke lively discussion and controversy.From the Hardcover edition.
One Nation Undecided: Clear Thinking about Five Hard Issues That Divide Us
by Peter H. SchuckLet's be honest, we've all expressed opinions about difficult hot-button issues without always thinking them through. With so much media spin, political polarization, and mistrust of institutions, it's hard to know how to think about these tough challenges, much less what to do about them. One Nation Undecided takes on some of today's thorniest issues and walks you through each one step-by-step, explaining what makes it so difficult to grapple with and enabling you to think smartly about it.In this unique what-to-do book, Peter Schuck tackles poverty, immigration, affirmative action, campaign finance, and religious objections to gay marriage and transgender rights. For each issue, he provides essential context; defines key concepts and values; presents the relevant empirical evidence; describes and assesses the programs that now seek to address it; and considers many plausible solutions. Schuck looks at all sides with scrupulous fairness while analyzing them rigorously and factually. Each chapter is self-contained so that readers may pick and choose among the issues that interest and concern them most. His objective is to educate rather than proselytize you—the very nature of these five issues is that they resist clear answers; reasonable people can differ about where they come out on them.No other book provides such a comprehensive, balanced, and accessible analysis of these urgent social controversies. One Nation Undecided gives you the facts and competing values, makes your thinking about them more sophisticated, and encourages you to draw your own conclusions.
One Nation Under Contract: The Outsourcing of American Power and the Future of Foreign Policy
by Allison StangerInternational relations scholar Allison Stanger shows how contractors became an integral part of American foreign policy, often in scandalous ways--but also maintains that contractors aren't the problem; the absence of good government is. Outsourcing done right is, in fact, indispensable to America's interests in the information age. Stanger makes three arguments. The outsourcing of U. S. government activities is far greater than most people realize, has been very poorly managed, and has inadvertently militarized American foreign policy; Despite this mismanagement, public-private partnerships are here to stay, so we had better learn to do them right; With improved transparency and accountability, these partnerships can significantly extend the reach and effectiveness of U. S. efforts abroad. The growing use of private contractors predates the Bush Administration, and while his era saw the practice rise to unprecedented levels, Stanger argues that it is both impossible and undesirable to turn back the clock and simply re-absorb all outsourced functions back into government. Through explorations of the evolution of military outsourcing, the privatization of diplomacy, our dysfunctional homeland security apparatus, and the slow death of the U. S. Agency for International Development, Stanger shows that the requisite public-sector expertise to implement foreign policy no longer exists. The successful activities of charities and NGOs, coupled with the growing participation of multinational corporations in development efforts, make a new approach essential. Provocative and far-reaching,One Nation Under Contractpresents a bold vision of what that new approach must be.
One Nation Under Debt: Hamilton, Jefferson, and the History of What We Owe
by Robert E. WrightLike its current citizens, the United States was born in debt-a debt so deep that it threatened to destroy the young nation. Thomas Jefferson considered the national debt a monstrous fraud on posterity, while Alexander Hamilton believed debt would help America prosper. Both, as it turns out, were right. <p><p> One Nation Under Debt explores the untold history of America's first national debt, which arose from the immense sums needed to conduct the American Revolution. Noted economic historian Robert Wright, Ph.D. tells in riveting narrative how a subjugated but enlightened people cast off a great tyrant-“but their liberty, won with promises as well as with the blood of patriots, came at a high price.” He brings to life the key events that shaped the U.S. financial system and explains how the actions of our forefathers laid the groundwork for the debt we still carry today. <p> As an economically tenuous nation by Revolution's end, America's people struggled to get on their feet. Wright outlines how the formation of a new government originally reduced the nation's debt-but, as debt was critical to this government's survival, it resurfaced, to be beaten back once more. Wright then reveals how political leaders began accumulating massive new debts to ensure their popularity, setting the financial stage for decades to come. <p> Wright traces critical evolutionary developments-from Alexander Hamilton's creation of the nation's first modern capital market, to the use of national bonds to further financial goals, to the drafting of state constitutions that created non-predatory governments. He shows how, by the end of Andrew Jackson's administration, America's financial system was contributing to national growth while at the same time new national and state debts were amassing, sealing the fate for future generations.
One Nation Under God: How Corporate America Invented Christian America
by Kevin M. KruseConventional wisdom holds that America has been a Christian nation since the Founding Fathers. But in One Nation Under God, historian Kevin M. Kruse argues that the idea of "Christian America" is nothing more than a myth-and a relatively recent one at that.The assumption that America was, is, and always will be a Christian nation dates back no further than the 1930s, when a coalition of businessmen and religious leaders united in opposition to the FDR's New Deal. With the full support of Dwight Eisenhower in the 1950s, these activists-the forerunners of the Religious Right-propelled religion into the public sphere. Church membership skyrocketed; Congress added the phrase "under God" to the Pledge of Allegiance and made "In God We Trust" the country's official motto. For the first time, America became a thoroughly religious nation. Provocative and authoritative, One Nation Under God reveals how the comingling of money, religion, and politics created a false origin story that continues to define and divide American politics today.
One Nation, Under Gods: A New American History
by Peter ManseauA groundbreaking new look at the story of AmericaAt the heart of the nation's spiritual history are audacious and often violent scenes. But the Puritans and the shining city on the hill give us just one way to understand the United States. Rather than recite American history from a Christian vantage point, Peter Manseau proves that what really happened is worth a close, fresh look. Thomas Jefferson himself collected books on all religions and required that the brand new Library of Congress take his books, since Americans needed to consider the "twenty gods or no god" he famously noted were revered by his neighbors. Looking at the Americans who believed in these gods, Manseau fills in America's story of itself, from the persecuted "witches" at Salem and who they really were, to the persecuted Buddhists in WWII California, from spirituality and cults in the '60s to the recent presidential election where both candidates were for the first time non-traditional Christians.One Nation, Under Gods shows how much more there is to the history we tell ourselves, right back to the country's earliest days. Dazzling in its scope and sweep, it is an American history unlike any you've read.