This densely researched, compellingly argued book exposes how public-sector unions and their leaders--the "shadowbosses" of the title--are destroying the rule of law, stealing elections, degrading government services, paralyzing public education, and pushing the United States into a grim future of insolvency and decline. Authors Mallory and Elizabeth Factor disturbingly reveal the unions' plan to exert control over Social Security and disability recipients, veterans, and every other group that receives government money. A chilling exposé, SHADOWBOSSES is also a call to citizen action against those who really hold the power in America today.

    He analyzed mental institutions in the remarkable Madness and Civilization; hospitals in The Birth of the Clinic; prisons in Discipline and Punish; and schools and families in The History of Sexuality. But the general reader as well as the specialist is apt to miss the consistent purposes that lay behind these difficult individual studies, thus losing sight of the broad social vision and political aims that unified them.Now, in this superb set of essays and interviews, Foucault has provided a much-needed guide to Foucault. These pieces, ranging over the entire spectrum of his concerns, enabled Foucault, in his most intimate and accessible voice, to interpret the conclusions of his research in each area and to demonstrate the contribution of each to the magnificent - and terrifying - portrait of society that he was patiently compiling.For, as Foucault shows, what he was always describing was the nature of power in society; not the conventional treatment of power that concentrates on powerful individuals and repressive institutions, but the much more pervasive and insidious mechanisms by which power "reaches into the very grain of individuals, touches their bodies and inserts itself into their actions and attitudes, their discourses, learning processes and everyday lives."Foucault's investigations of prisons, schools, barracks, hospitals, factories, cities, lodgings, families, and other organized forms of social life are each a segment of one of the most astonishing intellectual enterprises of all time - and, as this book proves, one which possesses profound implications for understanding the social control of our bodies and our minds.

    The latest generation of titles in this series also features glossaries and visual elements that complement the classic, familiar format.CliffsNotes on Atlas Shrugged is your guide to author Ayn Rand's masterpiece, an impassioned defense of the freedom of man's mind. She shows that without the independent mind, our society would collapse into primitive savagery.Delve into the post-World War II historical context of Atlas Shrugged and the modern implications of its conclusions. Other features that help you study includeCharacter analyses of major playersA character map that graphically illustrates the relationships among the charactersCritical essaysA review section that tests your knowledgeA Resource Center full of books, articles, films, and Internet sitesClassic literature or modern modern-day treasure you'll understand it all with expert information and insight from CliffsNotes study guides."

    Crackling with caustic wit and insight, no aspect of American life is safe from Jimmy's hilarious scrutiny. He gets to the heart of the issues: why Republicans should support gay marriage or why the President shouldn't have Secret Security until the country has gun control, bringing clarity and hilarity to the incoherent noise of our punditocracy. This outrageously entertaining manifesto is an excellent resource for those who have survived long arguments during family dinners. And in a media environment dominated by corporate interests, Jimmy's take-no-prisoners approach is fearless: going after both political parties, and all corners of mainstream news. A David against an army of Goliaths. Equal measures of silliness and spleen-venting, Your Country IsJust Not That Into You is the most oddly uplifting political book ofthe year.

    Noted English philosopher and cultural commentator Roger Scruton argues that to comprehend Islamist terrorism, one must understand both the unique historical evolution of the state and the dynamic of globalization.

    Is this phenomenon the end of neoliberalism or its monstrous offspring?In the Ruins of Neoliberalism casts the hard-right turn as animated by socioeconomically aggrieved white working- and middle-class populations but contoured by neoliberalism’s multipronged assault on democratic values. From its inception, neoliberalism flirted with authoritarian liberalism as it warred against robust democracy. It repelled social-justice claims through appeals to market freedom and morality. It sought to de-democratize the state, economy, and society and re-secure the patriarchal family. In key works of the founding neoliberal intellectuals, Wendy Brown traces the ambition to replace democratic orders with ones disciplined by markets and traditional morality and democratic states with technocratic ones.Yet plutocracy, white supremacy, politicized mass affect, indifference to truth, and extreme social disinhibition were no part of the neoliberal vision. Brown theorizes their unintentional spurring by neoliberal reason, from its attack on the value of society and its fetish of individual freedom to its legitimation of inequality. Above all, she argues, neoliberalism’s intensification of nihilism coupled with its accidental wounding of white male supremacy generates an apocalyptic populism willing to destroy the world rather than endure a future in which this supremacy disappears.

    During the campaign, not only dreams but also principles, careers & personal relationships are dashed or strengthened. The candidate who survives may be the fittest, or merely the most durable, the most pliable or the luckiest. To a country scarred by scandal, disillusioned by unkept promises & wearied of politics, the '76 presidential election seemed no different from previous ones. But Witcover makes it clear, in this vivid account, that this time it was very different. On the Democratic side the field was wide open. On the Republican side an unelected incumbent faced a strongly partisan challenger in a demoralized & fragmented party. There were more volatile issues, new rules, new influences. In this 1st post-Watergate race it couldn't be politics as usual. The campaign proceeded with a new awareness of the effects of mass-media techniques of propaganda & manipulation, & the role money plays. Marathon is the story of what political life was like from the time the '76 campaign began--for the Democrats in late '72 & for the Republicans within months of Nixon's fall in '74. It's the story of the army of people who took part in the marathon--the chief competitors, the behind-the-scenes enthusiasts, the party pols who organized the race, the people who sustained or tripped up the runners. It's also the story of life on the stump for both candidates & reporters. Morris Udall, Ronald Reagan, Frank Church, Gerald Ford, Henry Jackson & dozens of others--this is the story of their day-to-day experiences fighting for political control & survival. Most important, it's the story of Jimmy Carter--who he is, where he came from & how he reached the finish line. Witcover covered the presidential campaign from start to finish--in interviews with all the candidates (during the primaries, the campaign proper & after the election), scores of campaign aides & key politicians, pollsters, reporters on the trail & voters. His is a detailed account of the major events in politics during the past four years, the issues & nonissues, the personality clashes, the policy debates, the technicalities (His analysis of the new election-finance laws & their effect on politics & the media is essential), &, above all, the participation & response of the voter. Never before was there a presidential race like this one. Never before has there been a book that has told the story so comprehensively & accurately.

    Attention has been focused on forms of social organization, be it civil society, democratic communitarianism, or associative democracy, that can humanize the market and the administrative state. In their new Introduction the authors relate the argument of their book both to the current realities of American society and to the growing debate about the country's future. With this new edition one of the most influential books of recent times takes on a new immediacy.

    The rugged mountains that lay beyond America’s frontier remained mostly unexplored. In those days, when beaver were plentiful and the buffalo roamed freely, the killing was good. The two young men would also find that life would be hardscrabble in the high frontier. They would face grizzly bears and hostile Indians. And they would risk horse wrecks and mountain storms to trade their furs each year at “rendezvous.” Crossed Arrows is the story of two adventurers who lived hard in the earliest days of the Wild West.

    

    Edna sends the young ladies West to marry strong faithful men whom she knows will properly care for her wards. Each book is a complete story of one of our Bridge Creek brides. Three Times Bride - The Story of Erin Hathaway & Ross Aldridge When Erin Hathaway is thrown out by her parents and abandoned with child by her dishonest husband, she is taken under the caring wing of of the widow, Edna White. When Edna dies, her will provides for Erin and her young son, Trevor, in a most unexpected way. To fulfil the will’s requirements Erin must travel West to meet and marry again the man who abandoned her 6 years earlier. Run Away Bride - The Story of Flora Wright & Jacob Jake Mackenzie Flora Wright’s mother has always wanted to be part of Boston’s elite, and is wiling to stoop to any measure to make it happen - even promise her 16-year-old daughter’s hand to Archibald Channing, a vile old man of questionable morals. When Flora flees after uncovering Archibald’s illegal dealings, she is taken under the caring wing of the courageous widow, Edna White. When Edna dies, Flora travels West with her two friends to meet a man of Edna’s choosing whom she is to marry. The Innocent Bride - The Story of Bernice Hallstead & Raymond Bridges Bernice Hallstead and her younger brother lived a charmed life, until their beloved pa dies an untimely death. When their mother remarries the new man of the house forces the two children into a life of petty crime. A bungled robbery leaves the young wards injured and homeless, fleeing for their lives. Terrified Bernice is taken under the caring wing of the courageous widow, Edna White. When Edna dies, Bernice travels West with her two friends, Erin and Flora, to meet a man of Edna’s choosing. It is only the power of unconditional love that has the strength to wipe away the shame of yesteryear and open the door to a bright tomorrow. Mute Mail Order Bride Speaks The Words I Do For The Very First Time (Valentine Brides Book 2) Clara Broadhurst never says a word. She cannot. And when she travels as a mail order bride to Valentine, a Western frontier town, she is soundly rejected by her would-be husband, who considers her silence burdensome. Will anyone have an ear to hear the longings of her heart? Or will Clara’s incredible love remain unspoken and unanswered forever? Miracles have been known to take place in valentine before, can Clara claim hers before it is too late? New Year Bride - A Gift For Jedidiah Abandoned by the man she thinks to be her God given partner, Salome Newton travels west to track him down. A trail of destroyed families, robberies and broken promises uncover that he is, in fact, an untrustworthy wife stealing huckster. Her heartbroken search leads her finally to the small town of Pine Wood, and to the storm lashed Starry Stud Ranch. Waiting there are two bruised but trusting hearts, believing God for a New Year’s day miracle.

    Diving deep into recent cases where public and private figures were shamed, fired, or boycotted for social missteps, Loesch shows us how the politics of outrage is fueling the breakdown of the American community. How do we find common ground without compromising? Loesch urges readers to meet the face of fury with grace, highlighting inspiring examples like Congressman Dan Crenshaw's appearance on Saturday Night Live.

    Except for the time Reagan went to the Vietnam Memorial and shouted, Gorbachev, tear down this wall! Heidi Fleiss and Dr. Kevorkian [are] two visionaries of American social life, the queen and king of coming and going.The Packwood diaries must be pretty racy, because most of the people who read them apparently cannot wait to get to the bottom of the next page. Which, of course, was Packwood's problem, too."Politically Incorrect is almost single-handedly reviving political satire. . . . [It] has pulled off the rare trick of being irreverent without being irrelevant."The New York Times"A funny collection of jibes, jokes and tidbits from his hilarious late-night show."Playboy

    Then came the 9/11 attacks, which sorely tested that relationship. In Thicker than Oil, Rachel Bronson reveals why the partnership became so intimate and how the countries' shared interests sowed the seeds of today's most pressing problem--Islamic radicalism. Drawing on a wide range of archival material, declassified documents, and interviews with leading Saudi and American officials, Bronson chronicles a history of close, and always controversial, contacts. She argues that contrary to popular belief the relationship was never simply about oil for security. Saudi Arabia's geographic location and religiously motivated foreign policy figured prominently in American efforts to defeat godless communism. From Africa to Afghanistan, Egypt to Nicaragua, the two worked to beat back Soviet expansion. But decisions made for hardheaded Cold War purposes left behind a legacy that today enflames the Middle East. In this landmark work, Bronson exposes the political calculations that drove this secretive relationship. Her lively narrative is interwoven with colorful stories of diplomatic adventures and misadventures--including details of high-level backchannel conversations, awkward cross-cultural encounters, and a bizarre American request for the Saudi government to subsidize Polish pork exports, a demand the U.S. Ambassador refused to deliver. Looking forward, she outlines the challenges confronting the relationship. The Saudi government faces a zealous internal opposition bent on America's and Saudi Arabia's destruction. Yet from the perspective of both countries, the status quo is clearly unsustainable. This book shows how this crucial relationship evolved, and suggests ways to chart its future course.

    But today, at the dawn of the new Millennium, Europe is pointing a new way to the future. In this major new book, best-selling author Jeremy Rifkin argues that Europe has a vision of its own and is overtaking America as the world's next superpower. The American Dream was based on economic growth, personal wealth and independence. It was synonymous with love of country and patriotism, frontier mentality and the unbridled exercise of power. Yet what were once considered prime virtues - cherished and idealised not only in America but throughout the world - are increasingly seen by many as drawbacks and even impediments. But while the American Dream tires and languishes in the past, a new European Dream is being born. Today we see a new set of values emerging which are focused on sustainable development, quality of life and multilateralism. More cosmopolitan and less concerned with the brute exercise of power, the European Dream is better positioned to accommodate the many forces that are propelling us into a more interconnected and interdependent world. Where does Britain fit into this story? The British find themselves betwixt and between a fading American Dream and a newly emerging European Dream which is gaining the upper hand in our contemporary global age. Rifkin argues that Britain is uniquely positioned to play a bridge role between Europe and America and has the potential to help create a synergy between the two superpowers of the 21st century. But in order to exercise any real influence in world affairs, Britain must choose to be part of a larger political entity. In a globally connected world, no people can exist any longer as an island unto themselves. The only question for Britain is whether it will make its home with America or with Europe.