- Table View
- List View
A Sociology of Culture, Taste and Value
by Simon StewartThis book explores sociological debates in relation to culture, taste and value. It argues that sociology can contribute to debates about aesthetic value and to an understanding of how people evaluate.
The Sociology of Health, Healing, and Illness
by Gregory Weiss Denise CopeltonWith thorough coverage of inequality in health care access and practice across the field it surveys, The Sociology of Health, Healing, and Illness is widely acclaimed by instructors as the most comprehensive of any available. Written in an engaging and accessible style, with multiple student-friendly features, it integrates and contextualizes recent research in medical sociology and public health to introduce students to a wide range of issues affecting health, healing, and health care today.This new edition links information on COVID-19 into each chapter, providing students with timely and familiar examples to deepen their understanding of the many social dimensions of health care, such as the social history of medicine, social epidemiology, social stress, health and illness behavior, the medical profession, nurses and allied health workers, complementary and alternative medicine, the physician-patient relationship, medical ethics, and the financing and organization of medical care.Important changes and enhancements to this eleventh edition include: A heightened focus on social disparities in race, class, gender, and sexual identity, addressing how these differences impact health outcomes in the United States and why Updates to the boxed sections that explore topics “In the Field” and “In Comparative Focus,” sparking readers’ curiosity and drawing their attention to topics such as medical education and student debt, as well as the continuities and differences in health care and public health issues across time and space Thorough examination of newer perspectives and developments in the field, including the issue of nurse and physician burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic, quality concerns in nursing homes, and the inner workings of health care systems in other parts of the world Improved support materials for instructors, featuring updated exam questions and lecture slides that correspond to the book’s newer content Altogether, the new edition of The Sociology of Health, Healing, and Illness maintains the foundational coverage of the field that the book is well known for and enriches its presentation with considered attention to contemporary patterns, perspectives, and research – perfect for introducing readers to the important and tremendously meaningful issues studied by medical sociologists.
The Sociology of Health, Healing, and Illness
by Gregory L. Weiss Denise CopeltonWith thorough coverage of inequality in health care access and practice, this leading textbook is widely acclaimed by instructors as the most comprehensive of any available. Written in an engaging and accessible style, with multiple student-friendly features, it integrates recent research in medical sociology and public health to introduce students to a wide range of issues affecting health, healing, and health care today. This new edition links information on COVID-19 into each chapter, providing students with a solid understanding of the social history of medicine; social epidemiology; social stress; health and illness behavior; the profession of medicine; nurses and allied health workers; complementary and alternative medicine; the physician-patient relationship; medical ethics; and the financing and organization of medical care. Important changes and enhancements in the eleventh edition include: Inclusion of material on COVID-19 in the main text of every chapter, with special sections at the end of each chapter exploring additional intersections of COVID-19 with chapter content. Expanded coverage of fundamental cause theory and the social determinants of health. New centralized discussions of how and why social disparities in race, class, gender, and sexual identity impact health outcomes in the United States. New “In the Field” boxed inserts on topics such as medical education and student debt, physicians’ use of medical jargon, and corporate greed. New “In Comparative Focus” boxed inserts on topics such as the 1918 influenza pandemic, infant and maternal mortality in Afghanistan, the patient care coordination process, drug prices, long-term care, and global health. A more in-depth look at both physician and nursing shortages. Expanded discussion of nurse burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic. Curricular and pedagogical changes in medical schools. Discussion of continued changes in the financing of the US health care system. A more in-depth look at quality concerns in nursing homes. Increased attention to the health care systems in Norway, Germany, Cuba, and Mexico. An updated instructor’s guide with test bank and PowerPoint slides.
A Sociology of Justice in Russia (Cambridge Studies in Law and Society)
by Marina Kurkchiyan Agnieszka KubalMuch of the media coverage and academic literature on Russia suggests that the justice system is unreliable, ineffective and corrupt. But what if we look beyond the stereotypes and preconceptions? This volume features contributions from a number of scholars who studied Russia empirically and in-depth, through extensive field research, observations in courts, and interviews with judges and other legal professionals as well as lay actors. A number of tensions in the everyday experiences of justice in Russia are identified and the concept of the 'administerial model of justice' is introduced to illuminate some of the less obvious layers of Russian legal tradition including: file-driven procedure, extreme legal formalism combined with informality of the pre-trial proceedings, followed by ritualistic format of the trial. The underlying argument is that Russian justice is a much more complex system than is commonly supposed, and that it both requires and deserves a more nuanced understanding.
Sociology of Law
by Indra DevaThis volume is a well structured and well organized reader on the sociology of law in India. It takes stock of the relationship between the legal system with other social subsystems.
The Sociology of Law: Classical and Contemporary Perspectives
by A. Javier TrevinoThe purpose of this book is to introduce the sociology of law by providing a coherent organization to the general body of literature in that field. As such, the text gives a comprehensive overview of theoretical sociology of law. It deals with the broad expanse of the field and covers a vast amount of intellectual terrain. This volume is intended to fill a gap in the literature. Most textbooks in the sociology of law are insufficiently theoretical or else do not provide a paradigmatic analysis of sociological theories.The content of this text consists of discussions of the works of scholars who have contributed the most to the cumulative development of the sociology of law. It surveys the major traditions of legal sociology but is not wedded to any one particular theoretical approach. Both the "classical," or nineteenth-century, and "contemporary," or twentieth-century, perspectives are covered. The reader will see that nineteenth-century thought has directly influenced the emergence of twentieth-century theory.One unique feature of this book is that key sociological and legal concepts, presented in bold print and italics, are defined, described, and illustrated throughout. Although the nature of the subject matter is highly theoretical and, at times, quite complex, Trevino values every effort to present the material in the most straightforward and intelligible form possible without compromising the integrity of the theories themselves. In short, this book aims to accomplish three objectives: inform about the progressive advancement of sociological theory, teach the reader to analyze the law as a social phenomenon, and develop in the reader a critical mode of thinking about issues relevant to the relationship between law and society.
Sociology of Law: A Study of Cultural Contextualism
by Qiliang WangThis book, based on extensive ethnographic material, analyzes the complex relationships between the law and various social controls, helping to answer the question of how social order is formed. Formal law exists in a web of complex structures and meanings. Accordingly, legal study must take into account multiple types of order, allowing us to understand in depth the strengths and weaknesses, reasonable and absurdity, and successes and failures of the law. In addition, the interactions of numerous actors shape the structure and context of the law. Exploring these aspects—while also highlighting diverse informal/non-state norms that influence day-to-day social practices, and which have never been replaced by modern laws—the book offers an insightful resource for all readers who are interested in the practice of Chinese law or in the connections between culture, society, and the law.
The Sociology of Law and the Global Transformation of Democracy (Global Law Series)
by Chris ThornhillThis book provides a new legal-sociological account of contemporary democracy. It is based on a revision of standard positions in democratic theory, reflecting the impact of global legal norms on the institutions of national states. Chris Thornhill argues that the establishment of fully democratic, fully inclusive governance systems in national societies was generally impeded by inner-societal structural factors, and that inclusive patterns of democratic citizenship only evolved on the foundation of global legal norms that were consolidated after 1945. He claims that this process can be best understood through a transposition of key insights of classical legal sociology onto the form of global society. Extensive analysis of select case studies in different regions illustrate these claims. Thornhill offers a sociological theory of global law to explain contemporary processes of democratic integration and institutional formation, and contemporary constructions of citizenship and political rights. This title is also available as Open Access.
Sociology of Law as the Science of Norms (Studies in the Sociology of Law)
by Håkan HydénThis book proposes the study of norms as a method of explaining human choice and behaviour by introducing a new scientific perspective. The science of norms may here be broadly understood as a social science which includes elements from both the behavioural and legal sciences. It is given that a science of norms is not normative in the sense of prescribing what is right or wrong in various situations. Compared with legal science, sociology of law has an interest in the operational side of legal rules and regulation. This book develops a synthesizing social science approach to better understand societal development in the wake of the increasingly significant digital technology. The underlying idea is that norms as expectations today are not primarily related to social expectations emanating from human interactions but come from systems that mankind has created for fulfilling its needs. Today the economy, via the market, and technology via digitization, generate stronger and more frequent expectations than the social system. By expanding the sociological understanding of norms, the book makes comparisons between different parts of society possible and creates a more holistic understanding of contemporary society. The book will be of interest to academics and researchers in the areas of sociology of law, legal theory, philosophy of law, sociology and social psychology.
The Sociology of Medical Regulation
by John Martyn ChamberlainThis book provides a comprehensive examination of the complex issues surrounding the regulation of the medical profession. It offers up-to-date information on the current legislative framework and institutional arrangements surrounding the regulation in the United Kingdom. Well organized and written in an accessible way, it offers an insight into key sociological theories surrounding medical regulation. It gives a historically situated analysis of the contemporary relationship between medicine, the state and the public, and an overview of relevant social scientific research. Case studies highlight the practical or applied circumstances in which issues can occur. Readers will gain insight into possible future directions for medical governance.
A Sociology of Post-Imperial Constitutions: Suppressed Civil War and Colonized Citizens (Cambridge Studies in Law and Society)
by Chris ThornhillCovering the period from the eighteenth century to the present, A Sociology of Post-Imperial Constitutions combines global history and historical legal sociology to explain how democratic constitutions were created by imperialism and military policies related to imperialism. It challenges common views about the relation between democracy and peace, examining how, in different locations and different periods, the constitutional ordering of citizenship both reflected and perpetuated warfare. It also isolates the features of constitutional systems that have been successful in obviating military violence, separating democracy from its military origins. It discusses how the emergence of democratic government after 1945 depended on a dialectical transformation of the war/law nexus in constitutional rule. It then assesses ways in which, and the reasons why, many contemporary constitutions have begun to remilitarize their societies and to rearticulate military constructs of legitimacy.
A Sociotheological Approach to Catholic Social Teaching: The Role of Religion in Moral Responsibility During COVID-19
by Vivencio O. BallanoThis book introduces Catholic social teaching (CST) and its teaching on the common good to the reader and applies them in the realm of public health to critically analyze the major global issues of COVID-19 that undermine public interest. It uses the sociotheological approach that combines the moral principles of CST and the holistic analysis of modern sociology and also utilizes the secondary literature as the main source of textual data. Specifically, it investigates the corporate moral irresponsibility and some unethical business practices of Big Pharma in the sale and distribution of its anti-COVID vaccines and medicines, the injustice in the inequitable global vaccine distribution, the weakening of the United States Congress’s legislative regulation against the pharmaceutical industry’s overpricing and profiteering, the inadequacy of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) law enforcement system against corruption, and the lack of social monitoring in the current public health surveillance system to safeguard the public good from corporate fraud and white-collar crime. This book highlights the contribution of sociology in providing the empirical foundation of CST’s moral analysis and in crafting appropriate Catholic social action during the pandemic. It is hoped that through this book, secular scholars, social scientists, religious leaders, moral theologians, religious educators, and Catholic lay leaders would be more appreciative of the sociotheological approach to understanding religion and COVID-19. “This book brings into dialogue two bodies of literature: documents of Catholic social teaching, and modern sociology and its core thinkers and texts...The author does especially well to describe how taking ‘the sociotheological turn’...will benefit the credibility and dissemination of Catholic social thought.”- Rev. Fr. Thomas Massaro, S.J., Professor of Moral Theology, Jesuit School of Theology, Santa Clara University, Berkeley, California.
¡Socorro! Me he quedado sin trabajo.
by Richard G Lowe Jr I. Fernandez E2eLa mayor parte de nosotros nos sentimos orgullosos de nuestra profesión y nuestro trabajo. Necesitamos el trabajo para dar de comer a nuestra familia, pagar el alquiler, reparar el coche y permitirnos un capricho de vez en cuando. Establecemos un vínculo con la gente con la que trabajamos y generalmente sentimos que ese sitio es nuestra segunda casa. No ha de sorprendernos ya que la mayoría de nosotros se pasa un tercio de su vida en la oficina. Por tanto, la perdida repentina de trabajo puede ser dolorosa, deprimente y, según el individuo y su situación económica, la entrada en una situación de emergencia. Para aquellos que viven al día, la pérdida de trabajo repentina podría suponer perder su hogar o no comer. El objetivo de este libro es ayudarte a ti, un trabajador que recientemente ha visto como se terminaba su contrato o siente que el día está llegando, a encontrar las respuestas que necesitas para realizar la transición de un trabajo a otro de la manera más llevadera posible.
Socorro! O Meu Chefe é Maluco!
by Andreia Afonso Richard G Lowe JrSobrevivendo ao chefe Whacko Melhore sua vida profissional. Aumente sua renda. Seja mais produtivo e satisfeito no trabalho. Sinta-se mais feliz e mais em controle O chefe está te deixando louco? Você está sofrendo de assédio? É o seu local de trabalho desagradável e tornando-o fisicamente ou mentalmente doente? Alguma vez você já sentiu como você quer Whack seu chefe por causa de assédio? Eu estive onde você está hoje. Os Whackos Na minha vida, eu tive todos os tipos de gerentes, de um chefe que foi declarado insano para o micromanager compulsivo e, pior de tudo, o gerente para a aposentadoria que não queria aprovar ou fazer qualquer coisa que possa balançar o barco . Eu me sentia atacada, desprezada, desvalorizada e oprimida, às vezes tudo ao mesmo tempo. Essas situações afetaram minha saúde e bem-estar e causaram um sentimento de desamparo e depressão que nada parecia consertar. A vida parecia ser nada, mas fracasso devido às constantes invalidações e negatividade. Seu chefe está te deixando louco? Seu chefe está te deixando louco ou assediando você? É ele ou ela fazendo o seu miserável, negando-lhe levanta e promoções, ou micromanaging cada movimento seu? Você está feliz com sua situação de trabalho? Você entende que não vai melhorar a menos que você faça algo sobre isso? Você prefere olhar para a frente para ir trabalhar todos os dias? Você não gostaria de ser respeitado, ganhar mais dinheiro e ir para casa sentindo-se satisfeito em fazer um trabalho bem feito? Faça alguma coisa sobre isso Bem, eu percebi que eu poderia fazer algo sobre o chefe whacko. Havia muitas opções, de uma conversa simples todo o caminho para encontrar um novo emprego. O que eu percebi é que leva dois para ser uma vítima - o vitimizador (o chefe whacko) ea vítima. Eu decidi quebrar aquela dança louca. Entenda que você pode fazer algo para corrigir a situação
Socorro! Perdi meu emprego
by Richard G Lowe Jr Rodrigo dos Santos LaraDicas do que fazer quando você fica desempregado inesperadamente - repentinamente ter que deixar o emprego pode ser um momento difícil e deprimente na sua vida. Aprenda algumas das coisas que você precisa considerar e lidar caso isso aconteça.
Socrates Comes To Wall Street
by Thomas I. WhiteFor courses in Business Ethics A fresh approach to the assumptions that underlie business practices Two recent events — the 2008 economic meltdown and the ongoing concentration of the nation’s wealth in the hands of a very small percentage of the population — have led many people to question a number of basic assumptions about business, corporations, and the workings of contemporary free-market capitalism in a global economy. Written as a dialogue between Socrates and a hypothetical contemporary CEO, Socrates Comes to Wall Street leads students to think critically about perspectives and practices that are taken as “givens” in most American business schools and corporations. Employing this original and provocative approach, author Thomas White seeks to encourage the next generation of business leaders to be more astute about the implications of their actions, and to act more prudently and more fairly than we have seen in the recent past.
Socratic Dialogue: Voicing Values (Giving Voice to Values)
by Sira Abenoza Josep M. LozanoGiving Voice to Values is a very important tool that has helped many professionals better align what they do with what they value and believe. This book introduces the methodology of Socratic Dialogue as a complementary set of tools for creating spaces of joint reflection in which one can gain clarity about one’s values and gain the confidence to voice them effectively. Socrates’ main concern was to progressively reach a higher alignment between ideas and actions: that is, to achieve a harmony between what we think, what we say and what we do. The first step to giving voice to our values involves introspection and dialogue with others – which is how we can become aware of what we really think and value. An examined life, Socrates reminds us, is a fulfilled one. Based on the authors' more than ten years’ experience teaching Socratic Dialogue to business and law students, executives and professionals, faculty, incarcerated people and other vulnerable groups, the book provides teachers and practitioners with a roadmap to conceive, design and conduct Socratic Dialogue courses and sessions. It provides context for the method and its adaptation to the challenges of the 21st century. The book also offers guidance on how to structure a Socratic Dialogue classroom, as well as a series of tried-and-true activities and exercises, practical recommendations and testimonies of the transformative impact that dialogue courses have had on participants. The book is of prime interest to professors and educators of business ethics, as well as professional consultants working to help organizations become more responsible and introduce ethical reasoning in their decisions. It also serves as a valuable resource for social educators and practitioners in prisons and rehabilitation units, as well as teachers in primary and secondary education.
Socratic Moral Psychology
by Thomas C. Brickhouse Nicholas D. SmithSocrates' moral psychology is widely thought to be 'intellectualist' in the sense that, for Socrates, every ethical failure to do what is best is exclusively the result of some cognitive failure to apprehend what is best. Until fairly recently, the view that, for Socrates, emotions and desires have no role to play in causing such failure went unchallenged. This book argues against the orthodox view of Socratic intellectualism and offers in its place a comprehensive alternative account that explains why Socrates believed that emotions, desires and appetites can influence human motivation and lead to error. Thomas C. Brickhouse and Nicholas D. Smith defend the study of Socrates' philosophy and offer a new interpretation of Socratic moral psychology. Their novel account of Socrates' conception of virtue and how it is acquired shows that Socratic moral psychology is considerably more sophisticated than scholars have supposed.
Socratic, Platonic and Aristotelian Studies: Essays in Honor of Gerasimos Santas
by Georgios AnagnostopoulosThis volume contains outstanding studies by some of the best scholars in ancient Greek Philosophy on key topics in Socratic, Platonic, and Aristotelian thought. These studies provide rigorous analyses of arguments and texts and often advance original interpretations. The essays in the volume range over a number of central themes in ancient philosophy, such as Socratic and Platonic conceptions of philosophical method; the Socratic paradoxes; Plato's view on justice; the nature of Platonic Forms, especially the Form of the Good; Aristotle's views on the faculties of the soul; Aristotle's functionalist account of the human good; Socratic, Platonic, and Aristotelian views on the nature of desire and its object. The volume will be of interest to students and scholars of ancient philosophy and classics.
Soda Politics: Taking on Big Soda (and Winning)
by Marion Nestle Mark Bittman Neal BaerSodas are astonishing products. Little more than flavored sugar-water, these drinks cost practically nothing to produce or buy, yet have turned their makers - principally Coca-Cola and PepsiCo - into a multibillion-dollar industry with global recognition, distribution, and political power. Billed as "refreshing," "tasty," "crisp," and "the real thing," sodas also happen to be so well established to contribute to poor dental hygiene, higher calorie intake, obesity, and type-2 diabetes that the first line of defense against any of these conditions is to simply stop drinking them. Habitually drinking large volumes of soda not only harms individual health, but also burdens societies with runaway healthcare costs. So how did products containing absurdly inexpensive ingredients become multibillion dollar industries and international brand icons, while also having a devastating impact on public health? In Soda Politics, Dr. Marion Nestle answers this question by detailing all of the ways that the soft drink industry works overtime to make drinking soda as common and accepted as drinking water, for adults and children. Dr. Nestle, a renowned food and nutrition policy expert and public health advocate, shows how sodas are principally miracles of advertising; Coca-Cola and PepsiCo spend billions of dollars each year to promote their sale to children, minorities, and low-income populations, in developing as well as industrialized nations. And once they have stimulated that demand, they leave no stone unturned to protect profits. That includes lobbying to prevent any measures that would discourage soda sales, strategically donating money to health organizations and researchers who can make the science about sodas appear confusing, and engaging in Corporate Social Responsibility(CSR) activities to create goodwill and silence critics. Soda Politics follows the money trail wherever it leads, revealing how hard Big Soda works to sell as much of their products as possible to an increasingly obese world. But Soda Politics does more than just diagnose a problem - it encourages readers to help find solutions. From Berkeley to Mexico City and beyond, advocates are successfully countering the relentless marketing, promotion, and political protection of sugary drinks. And their actions are having an impact - for all of the hardball and softball tactics the soft drink industry employs to maintain the status quo, soda consumption has been flat or falling for years. Health advocacy campaigns are now the single greatest threat to soda companies' profits. Soda Politics provides readers with the tools they need to keep up pressure on Big Soda in order to build healthier and more sustainable food systems.
Sodomites, Pederasts, and Tribades in Eighteenth-Century France: A Documentary History
by Jeffrey MerrickIn this book, Jeffrey Merrick brings together a rich array of primary-source documents—many of which are published or translated here for the first time—that depict in detail the policing of same-sex populations in eighteenth-century France and the ways in which Parisians regarded what they called sodomy or pederasty and tribadism. Taken together, these documents suggest that male and female same-sex relations played a more visible public role in Enlightenment-era society than was previously believed.The translated and annotated sources included here show how robust the same-sex subculture was in eighteenth-century Paris, as well as how widespread the policing of sodomy was at the time. Part 1 includes archival police records from the 1720s to the 1780s that show how the police attempted to manage sodomitical activity through surveillance and repression; part 2 includes excerpts from treatises and encyclopedias, published nouvelles (collections of news) and libelles (libelous writings), fictive portrayals, and Enlightenment treatments of the topic that include calls for legal reform. Together these sources show how contemporaries understood same-sex relations in multiple contexts and cultures, including their own. The resulting volume is an unprecedented look at the role of same-sex relations in the culture and society of the era.The product of years of archival research curated, translated, and annotated by a premier expert in the field, Sodomites, Pederasts, and Tribades in Eighteenth-Century France provides a foundational primary text for the study and teaching of the history of sexuality.
Sodomites, Pederasts, and Tribades in Eighteenth-Century France: A Documentary History
by Jeffrey MerrickIn this book, Jeffrey Merrick brings together a rich array of primary-source documents—many of which are published or translated here for the first time—that depict in detail the policing of same-sex populations in eighteenth-century France and the ways in which Parisians regarded what they called sodomy or pederasty and tribadism. Taken together, these documents suggest that male and female same-sex relations played a more visible public role in Enlightenment-era society than was previously believed.The translated and annotated sources included here show how robust the same-sex subculture was in eighteenth-century Paris, as well as how widespread the policing of sodomy was at the time. Part 1 includes archival police records from the 1720s to the 1780s that show how the police attempted to manage sodomitical activity through surveillance and repression; part 2 includes excerpts from treatises and encyclopedias, published nouvelles (collections of news) and libelles (libelous writings), fictive portrayals, and Enlightenment treatments of the topic that include calls for legal reform. Together these sources show how contemporaries understood same-sex relations in multiple contexts and cultures, including their own. The resulting volume is an unprecedented look at the role of same-sex relations in the culture and society of the era.The product of years of archival research curated, translated, and annotated by a premier expert in the field, Sodomites, Pederasts, and Tribades in Eighteenth-Century France provides a foundational primary text for the study and teaching of the history of sexuality.
Sodomscapes: Hospitality in the Flesh
by Lowell GallagherSodomscapes presents a fresh approach to the story of Lot’s wife, as it’s been read across cultures and generations. In the process, it reinterprets foundational concepts of ethics, representation, and the body. While the sudden mutation of Lot’s wife in the flight from Sodom is often read to confirm our antiscopic bias, a rival tradition emphasizes the counterintuitive optics required to nurture sustainable habitations for life in view of its unforeseeable contingency.Whether in medieval exegesis, Russian avant-garde art, Renaissance painting, or today’s Dead Sea health care tourism industry, the repeated desire to reclaim Lot’s wife turns the cautionary emblem of the mutating woman into a figural laboratory for testing the ethical bounds of hospitality. Sodomscape—the book’s name for this gesture—revisits touchstone moments in the history of figural thinking and places them in conversation with key thinkers of hospitality. The book’s cumulative perspective identifies Lot’s wife as the resilient figure of vigilant dwelling, whose in-betweenness discloses counterintuitive ways of understanding what counts as a life amid divergent claims of being-with and being-for.
The Soft Cage: Surveillance in America From Slavery to the War on Terror
by Christian ParentiOn a typical day, you might make a call on a cell phone, withdraw money at an ATM, visit the mall, and make a purchase with a credit card. Each of these routine transactions leaves a digital trail for government agencies and businesses to access. As cutting-edge historian and journalist Christian Parenti points out, these everyday intrusions on privacy, while harmless in themselves, are part of a relentless (and clandestine) expansion of routine surveillance in American life over the last two centuries-from controlling slaves in the old South to implementing early criminal justice and tracking immigrants. Parenti explores the role computers are playing in creating a whole new world of seemingly benign technologies-such as credit cards, website "cookies," and electronic toll collection-that have expanded this trend in the twenty-first century. The Soft Cage offers a compelling, vitally important history lesson for every American concerned about the expansion of surveillance into our public and private lives.
Soft Corruption: How Unethical Conduct Undermines Good Government and What To Do About It
by William E. SchluterNew Jersey has long been a breeding ground for political corruption, and most of it is perfectly legal. Public officials accept favors from lobbyists, give paid positions to relatives, and rig the electoral process to favor their cronies in a system where campaign money is used to buy government results. Such unethical behavior is known as “soft corruption,” and former New Jersey legislator William E. Schluter has been fighting it for the past fifty years. In this searing personal narrative, the former state senator recounts his fight to expose and reform these acts of government misconduct. Not afraid to cite specific cases of soft corruption in New Jersey politics, he paints a vivid portrait of public servants who care more about political power and personal gain than the public good. By recounting events that he witnessed firsthand in the Garden State, he provides dramatic illustrations of ills that afflict American politics nationwide. As he identifies five main forms of soft corruption, Schluter diagnoses the state government’s ethical malaise, and offers concrete policy suggestions for how it might be cured. Not simply a dive through the muck of New Jersey politics, Soft Corruption is an important first step to reforming our nation’s political system, a book that will inspire readers to demand that our elected officials can and must do better. Visit: www.softcorruption.com (http://www.softcorruption.com)