Benjamin Barber Knihy

Offers liberal society a way of thinking about and of practicing democracy. This title argues that an excess of liberalism has undermined our democratic institutions and brought about the set of crises we find ourselves struggling against: cynicism about voting, alienation, privatization, and the growing paralysis of public institutions.

Political scientist Benjamin R. Barber analyzes the conflict between consumerist capitalism and religious, tribal fundamentalism, coining the term "Jihad versus McWorld" to describe their powerful and paradoxical interdependence.

" Fear's Empire lays the foundation for a principled opposition based on America's truest and best values."--Senator Gary Hart The author of Jihad vs. McWorld analyzes how American foreign policy has gone wrongand how it could go right. In this hard-hitting but pragmatic new critique of the Bush administration's foreign policy, Benjamin R. Barber exposes in detail the folly of an agenda of preventive war, placing it in the context of two hundred years of American strategic doctrine (including the recent history of deterrence and containment). He shows how chosen "rogue states" have been made to stand in for terrorists too difficult to locate and destroy, and how the United States continues to support dictatorship in nations it regards as friends, while still believing we can impose democracy on vanquished enemies at the barrel of a gun. Barber argues for an America that promotes cooperation, multilateralism, international law, and pooled sovereignty. For as law and citizenship alone secure liberty within nations, law and citizenship alone can secure liberty among them, freeing them from fear.

"Powerful and disturbing. No one who cares about the future of our public life can afford to ignore this book." —Jackson Lears

Can cities solve the biggest problems of the twenty-first century better than nations? Is the city democracy s best hope?"

Although the conflict and the bloodshed in the name of democracy have given us some of our noblest moments, democracy itself remains one of the most flawed, confusing, threatened, and complex of human institutions. By examining the paradoxes and perplexities, The Struggle for Democracy provides a clear understanding of the origin and nature of democracy, including the extraordinary idea of citizenship, the tremendous achievement of free speech, and the enormous power placed in the hands of ordinary men and women. The book includes commentary on monumentally historic events such as the destruction of the Berlin Wall, the infamous student demonstrations in Tiananmen Square, and the collapse of communism in the former Soviet Union. In an inspiring introductory chapter, Patrick Watson reflects on the challenges facing world democracy as it enters the new millennium. In a concluding chapter, Benjamin Barber examines the future of democracy and the impact that globalization and technology will have on both emerging and established democracies.

Una critica radicale all'idea di guerra preventiva a cui Berber oppone il modello di una democrazia del futuro, questa sì "preventiva". L'autore ripercorre la storia della politica e della diplomazia americana e condanna la scelta di Bush di ricorrere all'uso delle armi come risposta al terrorismo. Barber evidenzia la tendenza a confondere la propaganda di un modello di società democratica con la reclamizzazione di una miscela seduttiva di libero mercato e marchi il cosiddetto "Mac World". A tutto ciò si contrappone l'idea di un'America esportatrice di alti valori democratici e civili, perché come la legalità e l'impegno civile dei cittadini garantiscono la libertà interna alle nazioni, così la possono garantire fra Stati diversi.

Ein neues Ethos prägt das Gesicht des globalen Kapitalismus: überflüssige Güter werden in großer Zahl produziert, Kinder zu Konsumenten gemacht und Erwachsene in infantile Schnäppchenjäger transformiert. Zielte früher die Wirtschaft auf die Herstellung richtiger und nützlicher Produkte, so ist die neue verbraucherorientierte Ökonomie darauf aus, Bedürfnisse und Marken zu schaffen. An die Stelle eines demokratischen Kapitalismus ist eine infantile Konsumwelt getreten, deren Pathologien die Freiheit der liberalen Welt bedrohen.