Sore Winners

Politics and culture, culture and politics. They’ve never been normal in America, but today they’re weirder than ever. Millionaire populists like Bill O’Reilly and Michael Moore dominate a political scene spinning ever further from the real world; meanwhile, we look to bizarre experiments like “Survivor” for our daily dose of reality.In this wonderfully acerbic tour through our increasingly unhinged culture, John Powers takes on celebrities and evangelicals, pundits and politicians, making sense of the mess for the rest of us. He shows how we have come to equate consumerism with patriotism and Fox News with objective journalism, and how our culture has become more polarized than ever even as we all shop at the same exact big-box stores. Insightful, hilarious, and critical of both liberals and conservatives, this is one of the smartest and most enjoyable books on American culture in years.

After having her classmates walk away from her during a soccer game at recess because she hogs the ball, is bossy, and cares only about winning, Sally gets some good advice from her teacher and her mother. Includes note to parents.

Politics and culture, culture and politics. They’ve never been normal in America, but today they’re weirder than ever. Millionaire populists like Bill O’Reilly and Michael Moore dominate a political scene spinning ever further from the real world; meanwhile, we look to bizarre experiments like “Survivor” for our daily dose of reality.In this wonderfully acerbic tour through our increasingly unhinged culture, John Powers takes on celebrities and evangelicals, pundits and politicians, making sense of the mess for the rest of us. He shows how we have come to equate consumerism with patriotism and Fox News with objective journalism, and how our culture has become more polarized than ever even as we all shop at the same exact big-box stores. Insightful, hilarious, and critical of both liberals and conservatives, this is one of the smartest and most enjoyable books on American culture in years.

Praise for The Online Advertising Playbook "Finally, someone has documented all we know about online advertising and how to do it right. As much as this confirms that online advertising really works, we know that marketers don't always get it right. The ARF's The Online Advertising Playbook provides critical insight on what sticks and what doesn't in online advertising and marketing." —Greg Stuart, CEO and President, Interactive Advertising Bureau and coauthor of What Sticks "The Online Advertising Playbook's principles, case studies, and strategic insights equip marketers with the best knowledge available. It will help your online advertising achieve the full range of marketing objectives, from lead generation and customer acquisition to driving trial and loyalty." —Tim Kopp, Vice President, Global Interactive Marketing, The Coca-Cola Company "To grow interactive marketing from here we need to institutionalize our wisdom and experience about what works. This book explains, in a disciplined way, what marketers have learned from a decade of massive change." —Ted McConnell, Interactive Innovation Director, Procter & Gamble "The Online Advertising Playbook is a milestone in the maturation of interactive advertising, but also an invaluable go-to guide for managers trying to make smart decisions with their advertising budgets." —Van Riley, Vice President of Research, AOL "The best marketing communication is spawned from what I call 'informed intuition.' After reading The Online Advertising Playbook, I am far better informed on how to optimize the online channel in our advertising and promotional programs. It's a perfect blend of case studies and research-backed learning." —Rod DeVar, Manager, Advertising and Promotion, United States Postal Service "Savvy marketers should take advantage of The Online Advertising Playbook's findings and principles to get real results." —Chris Theodoros, Director of Industry Relations, Google "A work of wisdom and rigor in the digital space that is as relevant for the newbie as it is for the digerati." —Mike Donahue, Executive Vice President, American Association of Advertising Agencies "This is a must-read for any marketing executive involved in online advertising. It's high time that a book looks at online advertising in the context of an integrative promotional strategy, one meant to set objectives, establish creative strategies, and measure results. The book nicely ties the various components of online advertising to relevant case studies, and the emphasis on measurement and results is refreshing. Not only is it relevant for marketing executives, it would also be a good basic text for any Internet advertising course and a good adjunct to any Internet marketing course." —Henry Assael, Professor of Marketing, Stern School of Business, New York University

In a field dominated by books that focus exclusively on the perspective of business in large corporations or that assume that business has a moral deficiency in need of reform, Al Gini and Alexei Marcoux offers students and business people alike a concise guide to what everyone ought to do when doing business. Where other books are organized topically, Gini and Marcoux look at the moral features of business that recur across topical areas, stressing the considerations that bear on business people whether they be corporate functionaries, principals in family businesses, or solo entrepreneurs who do it all, end to end. They present to students the essential concepts, ideas, and issues involved in ethics in business and emphasize the individual acting person and what it means to have character and integrity when doing business.

The teamwork troubleshooter we all need! Turn your team into a cohesive unit. “This timely book provides readers with a new way of thinking about work and survival strategies for those who find themselves on bad teams. Readers who are looking for a playbook that can help them to understand and develop soft skills needed for teamwork will be eager to have a copy nearby.”—Booklist Why do some team members not get along? What is the best way to get new teams and ad-hoc teams to maximize their performance in the least amount of time? How can meetings be designed to achieve useful outcomes? Teams are the source of problem-solving and innovation that today’s organizations need to survive and thrive in an increasingly complex and challenging marketplace. Teamwork is hard because there is no magic formula or step-by-step procedure to ensure results. Think of a programmer asked to develop new features for a cell phone: they write new code, test the code, troubleshoot problems encountered, revise the code, and repeat the testing process until the new features work without problems. Similarly, a team leader asked to deliver specified outcomes develops a plan, runs team meetings, troubleshoots problems encountered, revises the plan, and repeats until the team outcomes are achieved. The difference is that a programmer has tools to help streamline troubleshooting, while team leaders do not—until now. Valerie Patrick applies a troubleshooting mindset that includes: Proven tactics for team members and leaders to address leadership problems Guidelines for recruiting and changing teams for optimum performance Techniques to identify and address aspects of team climate that are limiting the productivity of one or more team members Examples of effective ways to operate teams and of meeting designs that produce transformative outcomes

Presents a collection of devotional readings comprised of Bible verses, thoughts to grow on, and facts about the world, designed to promote spiritual growth.

In both Europe and North America it can be argued that the associational and institutional dimensions of the right to freedom of religion or belief are increasingly coming under pressure. This book demonstrates why a more classical understanding of the idea of a liberal democracy can allow for greater respect for the right to freedom of religion or belief. The book examines the major direction in which liberal democracy has developed over the last fifty years and contends that this is not the most legitimate type of liberal democracy for religiously divided societies. Drawing on theoretical developments in the field of transnational constitutionalism, Hans-Martien ten Napel argues that redirecting the concept and practice of liberal democracy toward the more classical notion of limited, constitutional government, with a considerable degree of autonomy for civil society organizations would allow greater religious pluralism. The book shows how, in a postsecular and multicultural context, modern sources of constitutionalism and democracy, supplemented by premodern, transcendental legitimation, continue to provide the best means of legitimating Western constitutional and political orders.