The heavier books I get into between fiction.
Political Education Public
Created by CousinDanny
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Manufacturing Consent by Edward S. Herman, Noam Chomsky
4 stars
In this work, Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky show that, contrary to the usual image of the news media …
CousinDanny says: Understanding media as both a profit driven business and a self-sustaining ideological filter.
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The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Karen Chilton, Michelle Alexander, Michelle Alexander
5 stars
As the United States celebrates the nation's "triumph over race" with the election of Barack Obama, the majority of young …
CousinDanny says: Helps to put modern American race and economic issues into proper historical context.
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CousinDanny says: Title is the spoiler. Dispels the myth, with data and in a compelling way, that homelessness is primarily an issue of drug addiction or some sort of personal deficiency.
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CousinDanny says: Lays the groundwork for understanding political power in Los Angeles throughout it's early and middle history. Some parts are slightly less relevant in today's changing ecosystem but some are as clear as ever.
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3 stars
An unmatched guide to the religious dimensions of American politics, Jeff Sharlet journeys into corners of our national psyche where …
CousinDanny says: I love Jeff Sharlet's muted style of writing. His time spent with various MAGA cultists and evangelical frauds is enlightening and at times, really funny.
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On the Nature of Things by Titus Lucretius Carus
4 stars
This is regarded as a seminal text of Epicurean science and philosophy. Epicurians discarded both the idea of immortality and …
CousinDanny says: The New Atheist movement may have popularized it for modern audiences, but the material world view was already pretty clearly established by the Julio-Claudian dynasty.
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Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
5 stars
In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American history and ideals to the most intimate concerns …
CousinDanny says: Bleak but honest. I hope it's not as bad as all this, but I won't say it's not.
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Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber
4 stars
The author shows that before there was money, there was debt. For 5,000 years humans have lived in societies divided …
CousinDanny says: Graeber was such an incredible voice and helped me be willing to think about even everyday things in a new way. A committed revolutionary, against any odds. I really miss his public appearances.
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Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber
4 stars
Be honest: if your job didn't exist, would anybody miss it? Have you ever wondered why not? Up to 40% …
CousinDanny says: Lol. He really got our ass with this one.
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A Discourse on Inequality by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
4 stars
Discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality Among Men (French: Discours sur l'origine et les fondements de l'inégalité parmi …
CousinDanny says: An early attempt to articulate what happens to humanity under the conditions of modern nation-states. Rousseau, with good intentions, oversimplifies non-industrialized societies.
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CousinDanny says: Not too sure what Hedges is up to these days, but I do love his apocalyptic pessimism. Keeps me from getting my hopes up.
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CousinDanny says: Having grown up around them, Hedges is writing about the people he knows best. In my experience with the evangelical community, he's spot on.
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The Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. Du Bois
5 stars
The Souls of Black Folk: Essays and Sketches is a 1903 work of American literature by W. E. B. Du …
CousinDanny says: Sets up the contrast between accommodationists and tries to wrestle with those compromises and contradictions that would become more familiar with modern readers between say MLK and Malcolm X, or today's BLM movement and the "centrist" Democrats.
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Capitalist Realism by Mark Fisher
4 stars
Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative? explores Fisher's concept of "capitalist realism," which he takes to describe "the widespread sense …
CousinDanny says: What are the limits of imagination under modern capitalism? An all-time favorite of mine. Like Graeber and Michael Brooks, I miss his voice. We're so much less without Mark Fisher.
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Harvest of Empire by Juan Gonzalez
4 stars
Spanning 500 years of Hispanic history, from the first New World colonies to the 19th century westward expansion in America, …
CousinDanny says: A history of Latinos in America, with an emphasis on immigration to the US and the forces that drive it.
