Triumph of Ignorance and Bliss: Pathologies of Public America

Polk, James

ISBN 10: 1551643146 / ISBN 13: 9781551643144

Published by Black Rose Books, 2008

Befriedigend/Good: Durchschnittlich erhaltenes Buch bzw. Schutzumschlag mit Gebrauchsspuren, aber vollständigen Seiten. / Describes the average WORN book or dust jacket that has all the pages present. Seller Inventory # M01551643146-G

Synopsis:

A brilliant analysis which shows that North Americans have largely abandoned the public sphere for the sake of individual fortune.
In The Triumph of Ignorance and Bliss, Polk examines the foundations of a culture that he sees as favouring firepower over diplomacy, passions from the pulpit over rational critique, and the star appeal of media idols over a debate about the real problems. Where engaged public discourse should channel effective dissent, there is ignorance; where public outrage should ignite corrective action to oppose the blatant wrongs, there is bliss.

Polk portrays a society sidetracked by television-inspired fantasies of fame, fun, and perfect bodies, where public school systems are close to collapse, where millions live without health insurance, where tax policies openly favour the wealthiest, where corporations brazenly take control, not only of decision-making processes, but also of the very means by which issues, content, and public priorities are defined, where the optimism of the past has been replaced by a sense of despair and foreboding because of abuses of trust.

James Polk's portrait of America is riveting ... his arguments are sound and convincing. An important, fascinating book written with a strong message. - Norm Goldman, Bookpleasures.com

Table of Contents

Preface

Chapter 1 Nowhere In Suburbia

Chapter 2 Starbucks And The Public Sphere

Chapter 3 Onward Christian Taliban

Chapter 4 America Means Business

Chapter 5 God’s Own People

Chapter 6 The Evil Of Banality

Chapter 7 The Fading American Empire

Index

James Polk holds a PhD in philosophy for his work on Kant and Heidegger. Other publications include essays and translations in social philosophy and comparative social history. He teaches at the University of Southern California.

2008: 256 pages, 6x9, bibliography and index

About the Author:

James Polk holds a PhD in philosophy for his work on Kant and Heidegger. Polk is a former fellow of the Heinrich-Heine-Stiftung für Philosophie und kritische Sozialwissenschaft and the author of Am Horizont der Zeit. Previous publications include a number of essays on social philosophy and comparative social history. Polk teaches at the University of Southern California.

Bibliographic Details

Title: Triumph of Ignorance and Bliss: Pathologies ...
Publisher: Black Rose Books
Publication Date: 2008
Binding: Soft cover
Condition: good