New Books at PEOSTA

Note: Library Standing Order.
Description: Ever since Israel ended its occupation of Gaza in 2005, Islamist group Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza have created conflicts with Israel. In 2007, Israel instituted a blockade of the Gaza Strip, restricting border crossings and access to necessities such as food, water, and power. Israel maintains that the intent of the blockade is to eliminate Hamas’s ability to launch rockets into Israel. The Palestinians charge that the blockade effectively weakens Hamas and constitutes suffering and human rights violations among Gaza’s citizens. In this informative and provocative resource, essay authors share their unique perspectives on this contentious issue. (publ.)

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Description: From campaigning for politicians, to speaking out on political issues, to running for public office, celebrities around the world have long played an active role in politics. Their presence in the public sphere often helps them make this leap, but is the fact that we recognize their names and faces enough to make them trustworthy political figures? The diverse viewpoints in this volume explore what role celebrities should play in politics, discuss the phenomenon of making the transition from celebrity to politician, and investigate the place of contemporary media culture in this pattern. (publ.)

Note: Library standing order.
Description: This volume takes a closer look at America’s evolving ideas about the nature and value of the democratic system. A select collection of primary and secondary sources provide viewpoints and arguments on the issue of democracy’s past, present, and future, and will cover issues like the rise and fall of American socialism, the evolution of patriotism, and views on how America’s political system embodies and fails to embody democratic ideals. (publ.)

Description: What do we owe those in our communities? What do we owe strangers? In a sense, those who vie for political office locally and nationally do so, at least in part, from duty and obligation to their fellow citizens, to many they do not know and may never meet. In a democratic society, those who wish to participate in politics have the unbridled freedom to do exactly that. But by the same logic, we also have the freedom not to participate: the freedom not to care to be heard at all. Not so, says Julia Maskivker: such logic collapses when applied to the act of voting. Not only should we vote if we can–we must vote. Even when confronted with two unappealing candidates, or with ballot propositions whose effects we will barely feel, or with the fact that our single vote might never tip an election, we must vote. We have a duty of conscience to vote with care when doing so comes at so small a cost. Maskivker, a political theorist and philosopher, argues that those fortunate to live in democratic societies with freely elected leaders all share, simply, a moral obligation to vote. (publ.)

Reviewed: PW 10 Dec. 2018 p. 94.
Description: Americans once had a coherent and clear understanding of political tyranny, one crafted by Thomas Jefferson and updated for the industrial age by Louis Brandeis. A concentration of power, whether in the hands of a military dictator or a JP Morgan, was understood as autocratic and dangerous to individual liberty and democracy. This idea stretched back to the country’s founding. In the 1930s, people observed that the Great Depression was caused by financial concentration in the hands of a few whose misuse of their power induced a financial collapse. They drew on this tradition to craft the New Deal. Matt Stoller explains how authoritarianism and populism have returned to American politics for the first time in eighty years, as the outcome of the 2016 election shook our faith in democratic institutions. The true effects of populism, a shrinking middle class, and concentrated financial wealth are only just beginning to manifest themselves under the current administrations. The lessons of Stoller’s study will only grow more relevant as time passes. (publ.)

Reviewed: PW 28 Oct. 2019 p. 95
Description: Mussolini, Hitler, Stalin, Mao Zedong, Kim Il-sung, Ceausescu, Mengistu of Ethiopia and Duvalier of Haiti. No dictator can rule through fear and violence alone. Naked power can be grabbed and held temporarily, but it never suffices in the long term. A tyrant who can compel his own people to acclaim him will last longer. The paradox of the modern dictator is that he must create the illusion of popular support. Throughout the twentieth century, hundreds of millions of people were condemned to enthusiasm, obliged to hail their leaders even as they were herded down the road to serfdom. Frank Dikötter returns to eight of the most chillingly effective personality cults of the twentieth century. From carefully choreographed parades to the deliberate cultivation of a shroud of mystery through iron censorship, these dictators ceaselessly worked on their own image and encouraged the population at large to glorify them. (publ.)

Description: People around the world move from their homes for different reasons. Some seek opportunity. Others are fleeing dangerous conditions or have been displaced by environmental disasters. How welcoming should countries be toward immigrants and refugees, and what value do such migrants add to their new surroundings? The diverse viewpoints in this re-source explore the benefits and shortcomings of strict immigration policies and open borders, how immigrants can sustain countries and how they can create larger problems, and what the international community is or is not obligated to do to help. (publ.)
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Reviewed: PW 23 Dec. 2020 p. 94; NYT 15 Mar. 2020 p. SR2 (author op/ed).
Description: A radical spirit of change has overtaken American politics, making once-unthinkable reforms-like abolishing the Electoral College seem possible. Two of the last five elections were won by candidates who lost the popular vote, calling the integrity of the entire electoral system into question. Political passions are already high, and they will reach a boiling point as we enter the 2020 race. The message from the American people is clear: we need major reform, and we need it now. New York Times editorial board member Jesse Wegman makes a powerful case for abolishing the antiquated and antidemocratic Electoral College, and choosing presidents based on a national popular vote. He uncovers the Electoral College’s controversial origins, profiles the many attempts to reform it over the years, and ex-plains why it is now essential for us to remove this obsolete system and finally make every citizen’s vote matter. Wegman addresses objections from both sides of the aisle and presents an argument that moving toward a national popular vote would reduce voter apathy and political polarization, increase voter turnout, and restore belief in our democratic system. (publ.)

Description: One of the tenets of democracy is that everyone has a voice in decision making and that the decisions made are what the majority wants. Many argue that wisdom of the crowd prevails in democracies, but are political decisions actually reached by a clear consensus, or does angry factionalism prevent this? Does irrational mob rule cause people to gang together and lash out against the opposition? Are the majority of citizens satisfied with the political situation? This volume explores whether political organization is possible without the force of mob rule, as well as how contemporary political events fit into this debate. (publ.)
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Description: You can hardly pass through customs at an airport today without having your picture taken and your fingertips scanned, that information then stored in an archive you’ll never see. Nor can you use your home’s smart technology without wondering what, exactly, that technology might do with all you’ve shared with it: shopping habits, security decisions, media choices. Every day, Americans surrender their private information to entities that claim to have their best interests in mind, in exchange for a promise of safety or convenience. This trade-off has long been taken for granted, but the extent of its nefariousness has recently become much clearer. The problem is not so much that data will be used in ways we don’t want, but rather how willing we have been to have our information used, abused, and sold right back to us. …Cappello shows that this state of affairs was not the inevitable by-product of technological progress. … Americans have had numerous opportunities to protect the public good while simultaneously safeguarding our information, and have squandered them every time. The wide range of the debates and incidents presented here shows that, despite America’s endless rhetoric of individual freedom, they actually have some of the weakest privacy protections in the developed world. (publ.)

Note: Graphic Novel.
Reviewed: Economist 14 Dec. 2019 p. 76.
Description: American policy-makers have long been locked in a heated battle over whether, how many, and what kind of immigrants to allow to live and work in the country. Those in favor of welcoming more immigrants often cite humanitarian reasons, while those in favor of more restrictive laws argue the need to protect native citizens. But economist Bryan Caplan adds a new, compelling perspective to the immigration debate: He argues that opening all borders could eliminate absolute poverty worldwide and usher in a booming worldwide economy–greatly benefiting humanity. With a clear and conversational tone, exhaustive research, and vibrant illustrations by Zach Weinersmith, Caplan makes the case for unrestricted immigration easy to follow and hard to deny. (publ.)

Description: Honigsberg conducted 158 interviews across 20 countries so that the people who lived and worked there could tell their heartbreaking and inspirational stories. In each one, we face the reality that the healing process cannot begin until we start the conversation about what was done in the name of protecting our country. These are a few of them. Many alleged operatives in Guantánamo were purchased by the United States for ransom from Afghan and Pakistani soldiers. Brandon Neely, a prison guard who processed the first group of suspected operatives to arrive in Cuba, flew to London to embrace the detainees he guarded after leaving the military. Navy whistleblower Matt Diaz covertly released the names of 500 detainees by sending them in a greeting card to a lawyer in New York. Journalist Carol Rosenberg committed the past 17 years of her career to documenting life at Guantánamo. And Damien Corsetti, an interrogator who came to be known as the “King of Torture,” received ribbons and awards for the same cruel actions for which he was later prosecuted. (publ.)

Description: This volume looks at how American presidents have used the power of the presidency not only to shape America’s domestic and foreign policy, but also for personal gain. Through the lens of presidential personality, chapters show individual approaches to the office, how the exercise of power is affected by partisan competition, economic and civil unrest, and the evolving perception of constitutional principles. Primary documents from periodicals, court cases, executive orders, and the personal correspondence of presidents, presidential advisors, friends, and critics, provide a window in-to how each president viewed his role and used his power. The work demonstrates how public perception of the office has changed and how this perception has enhanced or curtailed presidential power. The reader starts with a detailed introduction that highlights the unique characteristics of the U.S. presidency as defined by the Framers of the Constitution and briefly outlining the development and expansion of the executive office. A comprehensive historical timeline follows, highlighting significant events related to presidential authority from the election of George Washington in 1789 to the impeachment of Donald Trump in 2019. (publ.)

Reviewed: TLS 9 Aug. 2019 p. 3.
Description: A riveting tour through the landscape and meaning of modern conspiracy theories, exploring the causes and tenacity of this American malady, from Birthers to Pizzagate and beyond. American society has always been fertile ground for conspiracy theories, but with the election of Donald Trump, previously outlandish ideas suddenly attained legitimacy. Trump himself is a conspiracy enthusiast: from his claim that global warming is a Chinese hoax to the accusations of “fake news,” he has fanned the flames of suspicion. But it was not by the power of one man alone that these ideas gained new power. … Without lending the theories validity, Anna Merlan gives a nuanced, sympathetic account of the people behind them, across the political spectrum, and the circumstances that helped them take hold. The lack of a social safety net, inadequate education, bitter culture wars, and years of economic insecurity have created large groups of people who feel forgot-ten by their government and even besieged by it. Our contemporary conditions are a perfect petri dish for conspiracy movements: a durable, per-manent, elastic climate of alienation and resentment. (publ.)

Description: The Iraqi city of Fallujah has become an epicenter of geopolitical conflict, where foreign powers and non-state actors have repeatedly waged war in residential neighborhoods with staggering humanitarian consequences. This is the first comprehensive study of the three recent sieges of this city, including those by the United States in 2004 and the Iraqi-led operation to defeat ISIS in 2016. Unlike dominant military accounts that focus on American soldiers and U.S. leaders and perpetuate the myth that the United States “liberated” the city, this book argues that Fallujah was destroyed by coalition forces, leaving public health crises, political destabilization, and mass civilian casualties in their wake. This meticulously re-searched account cuts through the propaganda to uncover the lived experiences of Fallujans under siege and occupation, and contextualizes these events within a broader history of U.S. policy in the Middle East. (publ.)

Note: Library Standing Order.
Description: When considering the damage caused by the hard power of military intervention, soft power comes across as an appealing alternative. Soft power depends on diplomatically appealing to others to gain favor and influence rather than using coercive force, offering a more peaceful means of engaging in international relations. However, whether soft power is as effective as hard power and how it can be achieved is a source of debate. Through the diverse perspectives in this volume, readers will gain an understanding of the differing perspectives on soft power's efficacy as a political strategy and the ways it can be implemented. (publ.)

Reviewed: NYRB 16 Jan. 2020 p. 40.
Description: When President Barack Obama announced the assassination of Osama bin Laden, many Americans hoped the killing of al-Qaida’s leader would sound the death knell for the organization. Since 9/11, killing and capturing terrorist leaders has been a central element in U.S. counterterrorism strategy. This practice, known as leadership decapitation, is based on the logic that removing key figures will disrupt the organization and contribute to its ultimate failure. Yet many scholars have argued that targeted killings are ineffective or counterproductive, questioning whether taking out a terror network’s leaders causes more problems than it solves. Bryan C. Price offers a rich, data-driven examination of leadership decapitation tactics, providing theoretical and empirical explanations of the conditions under which they can be successful. Analyzing hundreds of cases of leadership turnover from over two hundred terrorist groups, Price demonstrates that although the tactic may result in short-term negative side effects, the loss of top leaders significantly reduces terror groups’ life spans. He explains vital questions such as: What factors make some terrorist groups more vulnerable than others? Is it better to kill or capture terrorist leaders? How does leadership decapitation compare to other counterterrorism options? (publ.)

Note: Library Standing Order.
Description: With the introduction of significant tariffs on Chinese goods in 2018 and the resultant talk of a trade war between the United States and China, the questions of whether tariffs are an effective means of political influence, what effect they will have on the domestic and global economy, and how they will ultimately impact the future of trade have become sources of contention. This volume explores opposing perspectives on tariffs and trade wars, offering context on historical tariffs and global trade and projections of the potential impacts of tariffs and trade wars going for-ward. (publ.)

Reviewed: LR June 2019 p. 12.
Description: Not since the early twentieth century has liberalism, and liberals, been under such relentless attack, from both right and left. The crisis of democracy in our era has produced a crisis of faith in liberal institutions and, even worse, in liberal thought. This book is a manifesto rooted in the lives of people who invented and extended the liberal tradition. Taking us from Montaigne to Mill, and from Middlemarch to the civil rights movement, Adam Gopnik argues that liberalism is not a form of centrism, nor simply another word for free markets, nor merely a term denoting a set of rights. It is something far more ambitious: the search for radical change by humane measures. Gopnik shows us why liberalism is one of the great moral adventures in human history-and why, in an age of autocracy, our lives may depend on its continuation. (publ.)

Note: Library Standing Order.
Description: Highly publicized cases involving whistleblowers including Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden, and WikiLeaks have brought whistle-blowing to the public’s attention in recent years. It has gained further attention in the “Me Too” era, as whistleblowers have exposed numerous cases of misconduct among powerful men in the entertainment industry and beyond. Whether whistleblowing is an inherently positive practice and how whistleblowers should be protected and compensated for their deeds are widely debated. Through diverse perspectives from authoritative voices, readers will gain an understanding of the practice of whistleblowing, the laws related to it, and its place in democratic society. (publ.)

Reviewed: NYT 7 Oct. 2019 p. A27 (author op/ed.)
Description: Misconduct by those in high places is always dangerous to reveal. Whistle-blowers thus face conflicting impulses: by challenging and exposing transgressions by the powerful, they perform a vital public service–yet they always suffer for it. This episodic history brings to light how whistleblowing, an important but unrecognized cousin of civil disobedience, has held powerful elites accountable in America. Analyzing a range of whistleblowing episodes, from the corrupt Revolutionary War commodore Esek Hopkins (whose dismissal led in 1778 to the first whistleblower protection law) to Edward Snowden, to the dishonesty of Donald Trump, Allison Stanger reveals the centrality of whistleblowing to the health of American democracy. She also shows that with changing technology and increasing militarization, the exposure of misconduct has grown more difficult to do and more personally costly for those who do it–yet American freedom, especially today, depends on it. (publ.)

Reviewed: LJ June 2019 p. 136; NYRB 26 Sept. 2019 p. 38.
Description: Why is it so much easier for the Democratic Party to win the national popular vote than to build and maintain a majority in Congress? Why can Democrats sweep statewide offices in places like Pennsylvania and Michigan yet fail to take control of the same states’ legislatures? Many place exclusive blame on partisan gerrymandering and voter suppression. But as political scientist Jonathan A. Rodden demonstrates, the left’s electoral challenges have deeper roots in economic and political geography. In the late nineteenth century, support for the left began to cluster in cities among the industrial working class. Today, left-wing parties have become coalitions of diverse urban interest groups, from racial minorities to the creative class. These parties win big in urban districts but struggle to capture the suburban and rural seats necessary for legislative majorities. A bold new interpretation of today’s urban-rural political conflict, this book also points to electoral reforms that could address the left’s under-representation while reducing urban-rural polarization. (publ.)

Reviewed: PW 25 Feb. 2019 p. 21.
Description: “After my sister Meadow was murdered on Valentine’s Day at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the media obsessed for months about the style of rifle that the killer used. All clickbait and politics. No answers or justice. That wasn’t good enough for me or my dad. My dad is a real tough guy, but Meadow had him wrapped around her little finger. He’d do anything she wanted, and she’d want him to find every answer so that this never happens again. So, my dad teamed up with one of America’s leading education experts to launch his own investigation. We’ve found the answers to the questions no one cared to ask, but you need to know them be-cause they matter for your children. If one single adult in the Broward County School District made one responsible decision about the Parkland shooter, then my sister would be alive. But every bad decision they made makes total sense once you understand the awful policies, which started here in Broward and have spread to your school.” (author fwd.)