by Jean Bethke Elshtain (1996)
What is our business "within this common mortal life?" Augustine asks and bids us to ask ourselves. What can Augustine possibly have to say about the conditions that characterize our contemporary society and appear to put democracy in crisis? Who is Augustine for us now and what do his words have to do with political theory? These are the underlying questions that animate Jean Bethke Elshtain's fascinating engagement with the thought and work of Augustine, the ancient thinker who gave no political theory per se and refused to offer up a positive utopia. In exploring the questions, Why Augustine? Why now? Elshtain brings Augustine's thought into the contemporary political arena and presents an Augustine who created a complex moral map that offers space for loyalty, love, and care, as well as a chastened form of civic virtue. The result is a controversial book about one of the world's greatest and more complex thinkers, one whose thought continues to haunt all of Western political philosophy.
Bill Rentschler
"There have been few political figures as original as Barry Morris Goldwater." "This collection of exclusive anecdotes and personal stories brings the senator from Arizona to life and reveals the indelible mark he left on the political landscape of the twentieth century, shedding light on this self-effacing political giant whose notion of public service and passion for the defense of freedom should not - and cannot - be forgotten."--BOOK JACKET.
written and
"The bestselling ABC book for families who want their kids to grow up in a space that is unapologetic about activism, environmental justice, civil rights, LGBTQ rights, and everything else that we believe in and fight for."--Page [4] of cover.
John H. Currie, Craig Forcese, Valerie Oosterveld
"International Law: Doctrine, Practice, and Theory is an innovative and unique volume which crosses the traditional boundaries between textbook, casebook, and scholarly monograph. The book is designed primarily to introduce students and practitioners of law, political science, and international affairs to the system and substance of international law. It is also a convenient and comprehensive reference work on the most important aspects of this burgeoning field. International Law includes introductory materials on the nature, history, and theory of international law from an international relations, as well as a legal, perspective. Carefully selected and edited primary materials - including treaties, UN documents, and cases - take readers to the very sources of the rules and principles that comprise modern international law. Extensive and critical commentary on, and analysis of, these primary materials guide the reader to an understanding of the rules, their strengths and weaknesses, and their place in the international legal system. Descriptions of contemporary real-world situations provide concrete context to the discussion."--Pub. desc.
Stephen Law
Wacky and ridiculous belief systems abound. Members of the Heaven's Gate suicide cult believed they were taking a ride to heaven on board a UFO. Muslim suicide bombers expect to be greeted after death by 72 heavenly virgins. And many fundamentalist Christians insist the entire universe is just 6,000 years old. Of course it's not only cults and religions that promote bizarre beliefs. Significant numbers of people believe that aliens built the pyramids, that the Holocaust never happened, and that the World Trade Center was brought down by the US government. How do such ridiculous views succeed in entrenching themselves in the minds of sane, intelligent, college-educated people and turn them into the willing slaves of claptrap? How, in particular, do the true believers manage to convince themselves that they are the rational, reasonable ones and that everyone else is deluded? Believing Bullshit identifies eight key mechanisms that can transform a set of ideas into a psychological flytrap. Philosopher Stephen Law suggests that, like the black holes of outer space, from which nothing, not even light, can escape, our contemporary cultural landscape contains numerous intellectual black-holes--belief systems constructed in such a way that unwary passers-by can similarly find themselves drawn in. While such self-sealing bubbles of belief will most easily trap the gullible or poorly educated, even the most intelligent and educated of us are potentially vulnerable....