History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

The Overspent American : Upscaling, Downshifting, and the New Consumer

Average customer rating:

Excellent analysis of contemporary American
Interesting book, with a few flaws.
Good book . . . but it left me hungry
The Overspent American: Why We Want What We Don't Need
Explores the psychology of spending

The Overspent American : Upscaling, Downshifting, and the New Consumer
Juliet B. Schor
Manufacturer: Basic Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Economic History | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Macroeconomics | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Microeconomics | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Consumer Behavior | Marketing & Sales | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Budgeting & Money Management | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Credit Ratings & Repair | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Consumer Guides | Reference | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0465060560

Amazon.com

If getting and spending define our lives, then Juliet Schor now has us covered. Six years ago, her book The Overworked American scrutinized the getting part. It focused public attention on the disappearance of leisure and the harmful effects thereof on families and society. It sparked a debate over whether Americans really work as much as we proudly claim. (If so, how to explain the audience for Monday Night Football?) Nevertheless, Schor can take credit for helping push Congress into passing the Family Leave Act in 1993.

Now she is back with a critique of our spending. Schor notes that, despite rising wealth and incomes, Americans do not feel any better off. In fact, we tell pollsters we do not have enough money to buy everything we need. And we are almost as likely to say so if we make $85,000 a year as we are if we make $35,000. Schor believes that "keeping up with the Joneses" is no longer enough for today's media-savvy office workers. We set our sights on the lifestyles of those higher up the organizational chart. We seek to emulate characters on TV. For teenagers, "enough" is the idle splendor that hardly exists outside of what MTV un-ironically calls The Real World. Schor offers an original and provocative analysis of why many Americans feel driven and unhappy despite our success. As an alternative, she profiles several "downshifters" who've taken up voluntary simplicity in search of a more satisfying way of life. No policy solutions suggest themselves this time, only a change of heart. --Barry Mitzman

Book Description

The Overspent American explores why so many of us feel materially dissatisfied, why we work staggeringly long hours and yet walk around with ever-present mental "wish lists" of things to buy or get, and why Americans save less than virtually anyone in the world. Unlike many experts, Harvard economist Juliet B. Schor does not blame consumers' lack of self-discipline. Nor does she blame advertisers. Instead she analyzes the crisis of the American consumer in a culture where spending has become the ultimate social art.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent analysis of contemporary American.......2007-08-16

The title says it all, doesn't it. We want, want, want, and spend, spend, spend. When I worked in corrections, I often said to the inmates (who lusted after fancy cars, expensive sneakers, and gold jewelry): "We want things we don't need and can't afford, and it gets us into big trouble." This book explains why we are captivated by the spirit of more is more is more.

Interesting book, with a few flaws........2007-05-15

This is a very well researched book and has many interesting ideas on how to spend less and worry less about things we don't really "need" but really "want." My only concerns were in the section about "downshifters" - people who work less and make less, but are happier. The book notes that most people who "downshift" were only making $30,000 a year or so to start with - not a lot of room to maneuver downward. I was interested more in those who made much more but kept spending more, which she also alludes to. Still, a very interesting book, with some intriguing ideas about how to control expenditures.

Good book . . . but it left me hungry.......2006-12-17

I thought this was a very good book, but I guess I was expecting more from the author. Having just read Fast Food Nation and then getting this book right after, the layout and format was similar but what Eric Schlosser did, fell very short in Juliet B. Schor's book.

I wanted so much more but as each chapter came to an end, I felt very let down. I wanted to point my finger at the big corporations and say "see what you did" but I found myself finding fault more with the author than the corporations. I really wanted to read a well researched book on this topic so now I find myself reading the books she cited.

They were a few good parts of the book where the author made reference to the sitcom Friends and how we as americans making $40,000 to $ 60,000 a year are trying to keep up with the Jonese making 1 million per episode. Also that the Jonese are no longer our next door neighbors but with the expanse of the internet and TV our Jones are actors, singers and record producers. I found this to be so true and wanted more, but time and time again her argument ended right there.

It was here that the author's solution would then be picked up, and what is her solution you may ask? (scratching your head) communal living. I found this advantageous because I acutally expected the author to skirt the issue. Juliet B. Schor's example, why have every house buy a lawn mower when one house can and the neighborhood could share it. I found so many arguments to refute this (I live in New York, was one) that I felt the book did not give the topic the right amount of justice. So I'm still searching . . .

The Overspent American: Why We Want What We Don't Need.......2006-11-15

Outstanding, the book is very well written and documented. Juliet B. Schor gives very cogent anecdotes in the book concerning consumerism. As a matter of fact, being in the process of "upgrading" the appliances in the house for no apparent reason, the book totally redirected my excesses.

A must read for every hedonist, capitalistic American.

Explores the psychology of spending.......2006-07-03

To change behavior, it helps to understand behavior. This book does a great job exploring the psychology behind why people spend so much money.

Some of the topics it covers include
-the strange need to keep up with "the Joneses"
-how some material goods force you to spend more to maintain and upkeep them (i.e., auto, large house)
-how kids are influenced by peers and advertisements at an early age and subsequently pressure parents to buy stuff
-how certain professions lead you to spend more on clothes and cars in order to succeed in that profession
-the correlation between increased television watching and increased spending
-the willingness of people to spend significantly more for certain brand name items (purses, lipsticks, shoes) that provide no more quality than generic items

The book also gives solid advice about how to break the overspending habit and provides interesting examples of people who have "downshifted" their lives.

Once you understand the etiologies of your thoughts and desires, you are better able to control and redirect them. For anyone who wants to decrease or have more control over their spending behavior, this is a great book for them. Even if you consider yourself frugal already, this is still a very interesting book.

It is very concise at 170 pages (the rest is references) so it doesn't get boring or repetitive. I think it is more effective than the similar book Affluenza.

Ashes to Ashes: America's Hundred-Year Cigarette War, the Public Health, and the Unabashed Triumph of Philip Morris

Average customer rating:

Great history book
Wall Street Journal Reporter Narrates History of CIgarette Making
A History Lesson in Tobacco
Long, but good
Y'all said it: good but loooooong

Ashes to Ashes: America's Hundred-Year Cigarette War, the Public Health, and the Unabashed Triumph of Philip Morris
Richard Kluger
Manufacturer: Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Company Profiles | Biography & History | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Smoking | Recovery | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Customs & Traditions | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Public Health | Administration & Policy | Medicine | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0375700366
Release Date: 1997-07-29

Book Description

No book before this one has rendered the story of cigarettes -- mankind's most common self-destructive instrument and its most profitable consumer product -- with such sweep and enlivening detail.

Here for the first time, in a story full of the complexities and contradictions of human nature, all the strands of the historical process -- financial, social, psychological, medical, political, and legal -- are woven together in a riveting narrative. The key characters are the top corporate executives, public health investigators, and antismoking activists who have clashed ever more stridently as Americans debate whether smoking should be closely regulated as a major health menace.

We see tobacco spread rapidly from its aboriginal sources in the New World 500 years ago, as it becomes increasingly viewed by some as sinful and some as alluring, and by government as a windfall source of tax revenue. With the arrival of the cigarette in the late-nineteenth century, smoking changes from a luxury and occasional pastime to an everyday -- to some, indispensable -- habit, aided markedly by the exuberance of the tobacco huskers.

This free-enterprise success saga grows shadowed, from the middle of this century, as science begins to understand the cigarette's toxicity. Ironically the more detailed and persuasive the findings by medical investigators, the more cigarette makers prosper by seeming to modify their product with filters and reduced dosages of tar and nicotine.

We see the tobacco manufacturers come under intensifying assault as a rogue industry for knowingly and callously plying their hazardous wares while insisting that the health charges against them (a) remain unproven, and (b) are universally understood, so smokers indulge at their own risk.

Among the eye-opening disclosures here: outrageous pseudo-scientific claims made for cigarettes throughout the '30s and '40s, and the story of how the tobacco industry and the National Cancer Institute spent millions to develop a "safer" cigarette that was never brought to market.

Dealing with an emotional subject that has generated more heat than light, this book is a dispassionate tour de force that examines the nature of the companies' culpability, the complicity of society as a whole, and the shaky moral ground claimed by smokers who are now demanding recompense

Customer Reviews:

Great history book.......2005-10-15

Just about every great society has one crop whose presence is intertwined throughout its history, effecting the history, culture, and economics of the nation. For China it would be rice, potatoes for Ireland, coca for Columbia, and most likely tobacco for America. This Pulitzer-Prize winning book shows how and why tobacco is so important to America's history. Specifically, the book traces and examines the economic role of tobacco and the economic policies of the tobacco companies (growers, traders, sellers, etc...) from the 1800s on through the 1990s.

Subjects that are covered in this tome include tobacco farming, the making of cigarettes, advertising in papers, radio, TV and billboards, lobbying of govt officials to reduce regulation, PR wars with health advocates, promotion of overseas sales, and of course, the court cases fought between Big Tobacco (RJR,Philip Morris, Brown & Williamson, etc...) and various consumers, consumer groups, government agencies, and governments. The book puts all of this together in a chronological history of tobacco with an emphasis on the role of big corporations like Philip Morris. The author has put this book together using a wide variety of sources both primary and secondary, including a lot of interviews with former and current employees at tobacco companies.

By reading this book, one learns a lot about various aspects of American law, culture, economics, and history. These include consumer relations, agro-business, medical research, lobbying, and advertising. OVerall, this is a great book, and I highly recommend it for anyone to read.

Wall Street Journal Reporter Narrates History of CIgarette Making.......2005-08-03

Well deserving of the Pulitzer Prize that it won, this book
tells the story of the growth of the industry - and the political
controversies about it - largely through the eyes of the main Tobacco Industry executives and lawyers. Beautifully written and
wittily objective, this is the best single place to start to understand this complex 20th century American phenomeon.

A History Lesson in Tobacco.......2002-10-21

I highly recommend Ashes to Ashes, by Richard Kluger, to anyone who wants to know more about the tobacco industry. Kluger provides a comprehensive history, beginning with the temperance of the tobacco leaf and the physical labor involved in producing marketable tobacco, and ending with the struggles the tobacco industry now faces with public health groups and government regulations. Kluger's narrative style makes this thick, fact packed book easy to read. Rich in history, critical, and thought provoking, Ashes to Ashes is a worthwhile read.

Long, but good.......2002-07-03

I'm not a smoker (fortunately my parents totally discouraged me from it, and I had enough smarts to avoid it anyway) but I found this history of the cigarette industry to be quite interesting--especially the facts about the early years.

It got a little dry towards the end, and the whole indictment of the industry has gotten a bit repetitious; I suspect at the time the book was published the message was new, but the message has gotten old fast. (Yes, it's clear that they knew about the health issues, and yes, they did very little about it.)

Overall it's a good read, especially the first half. If you're at all curious about how the cigarette industry came to be, the book does a great job of describing the companies and personalities involved.

Y'all said it: good but loooooong.......2001-09-28

Kluger's research is impressively thorough, his writing is lucid, and his insights -- well, insightful. But his inability to leave any detail unexamined makes this more of a resource book than a narrative. Slogging through to the end, became a chore. I mean, there ARE a few other books I'd like to get to before I die . . .

Life and Death in the Delta: African American Narratives of Violence, Resilience, and Social Change (Palgrave Studies in Oral History)

Average customer rating:

Life and Death in the Delta: African American Narratives of Violence, Resilience, and Social Change (Palgrave Studies in Oral History)
Kim Lacy Rogers
Manufacturer: Palgrave Macmillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books

Civil Rights & Liberties | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1403960364
Release Date: 2006-02-05

Book Description

Using oral histories with African American activists and community leaders, Kim Lacy Rogers explores the civil rights movement in several Mississippi communities in the context of the region's history of white supremacy, racial oppression, and African American cultural vitality. Terrorism, black poverty, and economic exploitation led to a condition of collective trauma and social suffering for thousands of black Deltans in the twentieth century. This work reveals the impact of that oppression, and of African American traditions of community service and leadership in the lives of women and men who became activists. It also examines the disillusionment and anger that many Delta leaders feel about the changes that took place during the post-movement years.

Getting and Spending: American and European Consumer Society in the Twentieth Century (Publications of the German Historical Institute)

Average customer rating:

Getting and Spending: American and European Consumer Society in the Twentieth Century (Publications of the German Historical Institute)

Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Economic History | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Macroeconomics | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

20th Century | World | History | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Consumer Guides | Reference | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Reference Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0521626943

Book Description

The history of consumption is a prism through which many aspects of social and political life may be viewed. The essays in this collection represent a variety of approaches and raise such themes as consumption and democracy, the development of a global economy, the role of the state, the centrality of consumption to Cold War politics, the importance of the Second World War as a historical divide, the language of consumption, the contexts of locality, race, ethnicity, gender, and class, and the environmental consequences of twentieth-century consumer society. They explore the role of the historian as social, political, and moral critic. Unlike other studies of twentieth-century consumption, this book provides international comparisons.

Indian Gaming and Tribal Sovereignty: The Casino Compromise

Average customer rating:

Indian Gaming and Tribal Sovereignty: The Casino Compromise
Steven Andrew Light , and Kathryn R. L. Rand
Manufacturer: University Press of Kansas
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Hospitality, Travel & Tourism | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

Public Affairs & Administration | Government | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Law | Subjects | Books

Human Rights | Constitutional Law | Law | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Business & Investing | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Entertainment | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0700614060

Book Description

From Connecticut to California, Native American tribes have entered the gambling business, some making money and nearly all igniting controversy. The image of the "casino Indian" is everywhere. Some observers suspect corruption or criminal ties, or have doubts about tribal authenticity. Many tribes disagree, contending that Indian gaming has strengthened tribal governments and vastly improved the quality of reservation life for American Indians.

This book provides the clearest and most complete account to date of the laws and politics of Indian gaming. Steven Light and Kathryn Rand explain how it has become one of today's most politically charged phenomena: at stake are a host of competing legal rights and political interests for tribal, state, and federal governments. As Indian gaming grows, policymakers struggle with balancing its economic and social costs and benefits.

Light and Rand emphasize that tribal sovereignty is the very rationale that allows Indian gaming to exist, even though U.S. law subjects that sovereignty to strict congressional authority and compromised it even further through the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988. Their book describes Indian gaming and explores today's hottest political issues, from the Pequots to the Plains Indians, with examples that reflect a wide range of tribal experience: from hugely successful casinos to gambling halls with small markets and low grosses to tribes that chose not to pursue gaming. Throughout, they contend that tribal sovereignty is the key to understanding Indian gaming law and politics and guiding policy reform-and that Indian gaming even represents a unique opportunity for the emergence of tribal self-determination.

As political pressure on tribes to concede to state interests grows, this book offers a practical approach to policy reform with specific recommendations for tribal, federal, state, and local policymakers. Meticulously argued, Indian Gaming and Tribal Sovereignty provides an authoritative look at one of today's most vexing issues, showing that it's possible to establish a level playing field for all concerned while recognizing the measure of sovereignty--and fairness--to which American Indians are entitled.

Average customer rating:
Freedom from Want: American Liberalism and the Idea of the Consumer (New Studies in American Intellectual and Cultural History)
Kathleen G. Donohue
Manufacturer: The Johns Hopkins University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Consumer Behavior | Marketing & Sales | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Liberalism | Political Doctrines | Political Science | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Consumer Guides | Reference | Subjects | Books
All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Business & Investing | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Reference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

The Liberal Tradition in America

Creating a Democratic Public: The Struggle for Urban Participatory Democracy During the Progressive Era

Making a New Deal: Industrial Workers in Chicago, 1919-1939

The Reconstruction of American Liberalism, 1865-1914

A Godly Hero : The Life of William Jennings Bryan

ASIN: 0801874262

Book Description

In 1941, Franklin Delano Roosevelt identified "four essential human freedoms." Three of these -- freedom from fear, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion -- had long been understood as defining principles of liberalism. Roosevelt's fourth freedom -- freedom from want -- was not. Indeed, classic liberals had argued that the only way to guarantee this freedom would be through an illiberal redistribution of wealth. In Freedom from Want, Kathleen G. Donohue describes how, between the 1880s and the 1940s, American intellectuals transformed classical liberalism into its modern American counterpart by emphasizing consumers over producers and consumption over production.

Donohue first examines this conceptual shift through the writings of a wide range of late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century social critics -- among them William Graham Sumner, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Richard T. Ely, Edward Bellamy, and Thorstein Veblen -- who rethought not only the negative connotations of consumerism but also the connection between one's right to consume and one's role in the production process. She then turns to the politicization of these ideas beginning with the establishment of a more consumer-oriented liberalism by Walter Lippmann and Walter Weyl and ending in the New Deal era, when this debate evolved from intellectual discourse into public policy with the creation of such bodies as the National Recovery Administration and the Agricultural Adjustment Administration.

Deftly combining intellectual, cultural, and political history, Freedom from Want sheds new light on the ways in which Americans reconceptualized the place of the consumer in society and the implications of these shifting attitudes for the philosophy ofliberalism and the role of government in safeguarding the material welfare of the people.

The Economic Evolution of American Health Care

Average customer rating:

Good, but not great
Easy to Read and Informative
A Good Primary Text for Physicians in Training
Excellent overview of history and challenges of health care
Dry reading

The Economic Evolution of American Health Care
David Dranove
Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Economic History | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Personal Health | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Administration & Policy | Medicine | Subjects | Books

Health Care Delivery | Administration & Policy | Medicine | Subjects | Books

Health Policy | Administration & Policy | Medicine | Subjects | Books

Practice Management & Reimbursement | Administration & Policy | Medicine | Subjects | Books

Public Health | Administration & Policy | Medicine | Subjects | Books

General | Medicine | Subjects | Books

History | Special Topics | Medicine | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Health Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Business & Investing | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Medicine | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0691006938

Book Description

The American health care industry has undergone such dizzying transformations since the 1960s that many patients have lost confidence in a system they find too impersonal and ineffectual. Is their distrust justified and can confidence be restored? David Dranove, a leading health care economist, tackles these and other key questions in the first major economic and historical investigation of the field. Focusing on the doctor-patient relationship, he begins with the era of the independently practicing physician--epitomized by Marcus Welby, the beloved father figure/doctor in the 1960s television show of the same name--who disappeared with the growth of managed care. Dranove guides consumers in understanding the rapid developments of the health care industry and offers timely policy recommendations for reforming managed care as well as advice for patients making health care decisions.

The book covers everything from start-up troubles with the first managed care organizations to attempts at government regulation to the mergers and quality control issues facing MCOs today. It also reflects on how difficult it is for patients to shop for medical care. Up until the 1970s, patients looked to autonomous physicians for recommendations on procedures and hospitals--a process that relied more on the patient's trust of the physician than on facts, and resulted in skyrocketing medical costs. Newly emerging MCOs have tried to solve the shopping problem by tracking the performance of care providers while obtaining discounts for their clients.

Many observers accuse MCOs of caring more about cost than quality, and argue for government regulation. Dranove, however, believes that market forces can eventually achieve quality care and cost control. But first, MCOs must improve their ways of measuring provider performance, medical records must be made more complete and accessible (a task that need not compromise patient confidentiality), and patients must be willing to seek and act on information about the best care available. Dranove argues that patients can regain confidence in the medical system, and even come to trust MCOs, but they will need to rely on both their individual doctors and their own consumer awareness.

Customer Reviews:

Good, but not great.......2004-07-07

there is no question that Dranove is an expert in the field of health care economics. His book is interesting and contains a great deal of good information.
Unfortunately, it also leaves out a great deal of critical information and occasionally he editorializes when he should be reporting facts.
For instance, Dranove refers to the changes in health care, saying that prior to the 1930s, most hospitals were of the for-profit variety and not-for-profits began to gain momentum in the '30s. He neglects to mention something that happened in 1929 that might have had some effect on the profitability of for-profits -- the stock market crash.
He also makes a statement that the era of big government ended with the inauguration of Ronald Reagan, but makes no attempt to substantiate the statement. In fact, the federal government was larger when Reagan left office, was spending far more and had hundreds of thousands more employees.
There are numerous examples of this kind of sin of omission in the book. It would have been much more enjoyable and legitimate had Dranove addressed some of these issues, even tangentially.
So, while Dranove's book is a good, thought-provoking read. It is by no means the final word on the issue.

Easy to Read and Informative.......2003-07-29

I am in Healthcare IT area and I learned lots of insights about the problems of the healthcare industry from this book for excelling our product offer to physicians. Great Book Great Author...

A Good Primary Text for Physicians in Training.......2001-09-15

This is an excellent book that covers the most important functional elements of health economics. I am a teaching Clinical Professor of Pediatrics in the University of Virginia Health System and I plan to incorporate this book as a primary text for discussion in our resident program. The only deficiency is a lack of discussion of past, present, and future insurance models such as classic and discounted fee for service, capitation, defined benefit versus defined contribution, and medical savings accounts.

Excellent overview of history and challenges of health care.......2001-07-25

"The Economic Evolution of American Health Care" provides an excellent summary of the factors which have created our current health care system. Prof. Dranove clearly understands the complexities of health care and the dynamics which drive much of the public debate around it.

Dry reading.......2001-03-26

Certainly the economics of American healthcare is an issue that has risen into the social consciousness in the last several decades. The issues are complex, but important to anyone who may be a provider or consumer of healthcare. Since this includes all of us, you might expect this book to have broad appeal. However, I doubt that it will.

Do not let the lighthearted subtitle "From Marcus Welby to Managed Care" beguile you into thinking this is causal reading. It is not. It is a well-researched, well-written and scholarly look at changes in healthcare delivery in the last several decades. This does not lend itself to casual reading. While healthcare administrators and physicians may find this material worthy, it is not a book that many would read for enjoyment.

Mr. Dranove has done a very fine job of concisely summarizing the issues in a very complicated subject. The reader is not presented with any equations or formulas and numbers and jargon are kept to a minimum. This is a very nice conceptual presentation of the issues surrounding largely unsuccessful attempts to reform American healthcare delivery. Emphasis is placed on prior attempts to affect marketplace forces and how these efforts failed because of unforeseen variables. The dullness of the material is not the fault of the author. The material is actually very well presented; it is just a very dry subject.

Book Description

In the depths of the Great Depression, when America's future seemed bleak, nearly one hundred million people visited expositions celebrating the "century of progress." These fairs fired the national imagination and served as cultural icons on which Americans fixed their hopes for prosperity and power.

World of Fairs continues Robert W. Rydell's unique cultural history—begun in his acclaimed All the World's a Fair—this time focusing on the interwar exhibitions. He shows how the ideas of a few—particularly artists, architects, and scientists—were broadcast to millions, proclaiming the arrival of modern America—a new empire of abundance build on old foundations of inequality.

Rydell revisits several fairs, highlighting the 1926 Philadelphia Sesquicentennial, the 1931 Paris Colonial Exposition, the 1933-34 Chicago Century of Progress Exposition, the 1935-36 San Diego California Pacific Exposition, the 1936 Dallas Texas Centennial Exposition, the 1937 Cleveland Great Lakes and International Exposition, the 1939-40 San Francisco Golden Gate International Exposition, the 1939-40 New York World's Fair, and the 1958 Brussels Universal Exposition.

Customer Reviews:

World Fairs as Seen Through a Marxist Lens.......2004-09-21

If you want to know what the Worlds' Fairs would look like to a Marxist, then this is the book for you. The basic idea of Marxism is that Capitalism is an unsustainable system of "consumption" that relies on exploitation and imperialism to feed itself. The thesis of this book is that the Fairs were tools of the Bourgeois to enjoin the masses to become fully engaged in the imperialistic feeding frenzy that was Capitalism from 1850-1950. The meaning of the fairs is as broad an issue as the meaning of Capitalism and western civilization - you can't find the meaning of the fairs by looking only at the fairs themselves. Such an analysis naturally depends heavily on the context the author brings to the task - and Rydell's context is Marxism.

I loved this book........1999-02-02

Rydell posits that the world's fairs that occurred from the late 19th century until the mid-twentieth century were designed to promote corporate and government agendas of imperialism, and to inaugurate the populace into a culture of unchecked consumerism. After reading this book, I'm convinced.

Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Latin American Issues (Taking Sides)

Average customer rating:

Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Latin American Issues (Taking Sides)
Analisa DeGrave , Eva Santos-Phillips , and Jeff DeGrave
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill/Dushkin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0073515043

Book Description

TAKING SIDES: CLASHING VIEWS ON LATIN AMERICAN ISSUES presents current controversial issues in a debate-style format designed to stimulate student interest and develop critical thinking skills. Each issue is thoughtfully framed with an issue summary, an issue introduction, and a postscript. An instructor’s manual with testing material is available for each volume. USING TAKING SIDES IN THE CLASSROOM is also an excellent instructor resource with practical suggestions on incorporating this effective approach in the classroom. Each TAKING SIDES reader features an annotated listing of selected World Wide Web sites and is supported by our student website, www.mhcls.com/online.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books