The American Manifesto

Do you fear for our democracy? Are you ready to throw in the towel? Don't! This is your guidebook to reassembling our hyperpolarized American society in six (not-so-easy) steps, written by the cohost of WNYC's On the Media. As is often observed, Trump is a symptom of a virus that has been incubating for at least fifty years. But not often observed is where the virus is imbedded: in the psychic core of our identity. In American Manifesto: Saving Democracy from Villains, Vandals, and Ourselves, popular media personality Bob Garfield examines the tragic confluence of the American preoccupation with identity and the catastrophic disintegration of the mass media. Garfield investigates how we've gotten to this moment when our identity is threatened by both the left and the right, when e pluribus unum is no longer a source of national pride, and why, when looking through this lens of identity, the rise of Trumpism is no surprise. Overlaying this crisis is the rise of the Facebook-Google duopoly and the filter bubble of social media, where identity is insular and immutable. But fear not! WNYC's On the Media cohost Garfield has ideas about how we may counter the forces of fragmentation—the manifesto itself: six steps to take to reassemble our fractured society. A quick, fascinating read, American Manifesto offers not only a vision of a country in extremis, but also a plan for how to address the ways in which our democracy is imperiled. Provocative, profound, and sometimes hilariously profane, American Manifesto is a call to action like no other.

As the American election increasingly resembles a production of CATS performed by actual cats, U.S. citizens are looking for a new leader. That leader is Canada, and they want your vote for president of the United States. Since launching their viral video campaign in January, the Canada Party has been covered around the world, including CNN, BBC, the Huffington Post, and German State Television. America, but Better: the Canada Party Manifesto, balances the doctrine of American exceptionalism with a dose of Canadian humility and common sense to secure Canada as the new leader of the free world, by proxy. Their promises: One gay couple will be allowed to marry for every straight couple that gets divorced. The phrase "job creators" will be changed to "job creationists," and they will be given seven days to actually create some. Corporations will still be people, but if they can't provide a birth certificate they will be legally obligated to care for your lawn. Corners will be installed in the Oval Office, and timeouts given to congressmen who can't play nice. Devoted to restoring America to its former glory, the Canada Party will soon have the whole world chanting, "Yes We Canada."

There are no differences between the orient and the occident, there is only a difference between backwardness and modernity. --Mustafa Kemal Ataturk America is on the brink from the volatility of the disruption and unrest from 2020. The question that all Americans must ask is how did we get here and where do we go from here?

In arguably the most radical book published in decades, cartoonist/columnist Ted Rall has produced the book he was always meant to write: a new manifesto for an America heading toward economic and political collapse. While others mourn the damage to the postmodern American capitalist system created by the recent global economic collapse, Rall sees an opportunity. As millions of people lose their jobs and their homes, they and millions more are opening their minds to the possibility of creating a radically different form of government and economic infrastructure. But there are dangers. As in Russia in 1991, criminals and right-wing extremists are best prepared to fill the power vacuum from a collapsing United States. The best way to stop them, Rall argues, is not collapse—but revolution. Not by other people, but by us. Not in the future, but now. While it's still possible.

In this third volume of his award-winning American Crisis series, James Gustave Speth makes his boldest and most ambitious contribution yet. He looks unsparingly at the sea of troubles in which the United States now finds itself, charts a course through the discouragement and despair commonly felt today, and envisions what he calls America the Possible, an attractive and plausible future that we can still realize. The book identifies a dozen features of the American political economy--the country's basic operating system--where transformative change is essential. It spells out the specific changes that are needed to move toward a new political economy--one in which the true priority is to sustain people and planet. Supported by a compelling "theory of change" that explains how system change can come to America, the book also presents a vision of political, social, and economic life in a renewed America. Speth envisions a future that will be well worth fighting for. In short, this is a book about the American future and the strong possibility that we yet have it in ourselves to use our freedom and our democracy in powerful ways to create something fine, a reborn America, for our children and grandchildren.

Politics is an extension of your personality. It all begins in childhood, particularly among individuals from large, traditional families. Each sibling in the birth order develops a unique personality, which then develops into extroversion or introversion. As each sibling matures and grows, their personality begins to have an impact on their politics, with the extroverted siblings becoming more liberal and the introverted siblings becoming more conservative. This not only results in a divided family, but as the siblings go out into American society, they bring their politics with them, resulting in a divided America. When they register to vote, the more conservative join the Republican party while the more liberal join the Democratic party. They vote for political candidates who they believe support their political views. This has resulted in an extremely divided Congress and a constant fight over the presidency and Supreme Court. Over the years, America has suffered from unregulated capitalism, endured two world wars, suffered through the Great Depression, suffered a military loss in Vietnam, a major terrorist attack on 9/11, suffered through the 2008 Great Recession, and may now be on the path to ether a dictatorship or a second civil war. Can we find some way out before it's too late?

In "The Redneck Manifesto", Goad elucidates redneck politics, religion, and values in his own unique way. "A furious, profane, smart, and hilariously smart-aleck defense of working-class white culture".--"Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel".

In this compelling study of the moral principles that most influenced the thinking of Abraham Lincoln, historian Allen Jayne argues persuasively that Lincoln regarded the Declaration of Independence, above all other documents, as the most important embodiment of American principles. This "American manifesto," as Jayne calls it, with its eloquent expression of the ideals of individual liberty and government created to protect and preserve that liberty, was the script that Lincoln followed in his struggle to preserve the Union and extend individual liberties to African Americans. Moreover, Jayne demonstrates that Lincoln''s philosophy was rooted, not in a Bible-based evangelical Christian perspective, but in the European Enlightenment and deism, which so profoundly influenced the thinking of Thomas Jefferson and other Founding Fathers. Jayne begins with a chapter devoted to the influence of deism on Jefferson''s formulation of the Declaration of Independence. Next, he discusses Lincoln''s adoption of the deistic perspective and the crucial role that the Declaration played in his thoughts and actions. He also considers Lincoln''s moral sense, based on deism''s tolerance of different belief systems and universal moral idealism. Finally, he describes Lincoln''s role as chief advocate for the Declaration''s principles and how the Gettysburg Address and his Second Inaugural Address reflect this underlying philosophy. This insightful look into the thinking of one of our nation''s greatest presidents during a time of crisis is highly relevant in today''s climate of religious extremism and debates over the balance between individual liberty and national security.