Politics Audiobooks | LoveReading

No More Heroes: Grassroots Challenges to the Savior Mentality

'A perfect gift for the age of Trump.' - Robin D. G. Kelley, Author, Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination 'In this marvelous, enormously instructive book, Jordan Flaherty explores how we too often allow the struggle for change to be undermined by would-be saviors—and how today’s grassroots social movements, led by communities on the frontlines of crisis, are charting a far more powerful path forward.' – Naomi Klein, Author, This Changes Everything and The Shock Doctrine Our media and education system often tells us that that generous white people are the solution...but what if they are the problem? How can we build a better world? And why do so many people with privilege end up making things worse when they try to help? From the Crusades to Black Lives Matter, No More Heroes is a grassroots history of resistance to the savior mentality. This book weaves the stories of teachers, international volunteers, sex workers, FBI informants, indigenous organizers, and prison abolitionists into a narrative of revolutionary change that travels from Alaska to Palestine, from Karl Marx to Muhammad Ali, and from KONY 2012 to the Red Cross.No More Heroes brings us real life stories of life-or-death conflict: the mysterious death of Riad Hamad, a Lebanese middle school teacher in Austin, Texas, and his connection to FBI informant Brandon Darby. Monica Jones, a Black transgender sex work activist arrested for “walking while trans” in Phoenix, Arizona. Haidar Eid, a professor in Gaza City. Sophie Lucido Johnson, an idealistic young white teacher in New Orleans. Nelini Stamp, an Occupy Wall Street activist. No More Heroes looks at the people behind the uprisings of the Arab Spring, Occupy Wall Street, and Black Lives Matter, and shows how change happens. 'Buy this book if you believe a better world is possible and want to know how to get there.' - Cynthia McKinney, Former Georgia Congresswoman and presidential candidate

Jordan Flaherty (Author), Donald Lewis Jr, Hannah Pepper, Ian Hoch, Jordan Flaherty, T Duncan, William Bowling (Narrator)

Audiobook

Going Big: FDR’s Legacy, Biden’s New Deal, and the Struggle to Save Democracy

Joe Biden has found his way back to Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. After four decades of diminishing prospects for ordinary people, the public likes what Biden is offering. Yet American democracy is in dire peril as Republicans, increasingly the national minority, try to destroy democracy in order to cling to power. It is the best of times and the worst of times. In Going Big, bestselling author and political journalist Robert Kuttner assesses the promise and peril of this critical juncture. Biden, like FDR in his time, faces multiple challenges. Roosevelt had to make terrible compromises with racist legislators to win enactment of his program. Biden, to achieve the necessary governing coalition, needs to achieve durable multiracial coalitions. Roosevelt had to conquer fascism in Europe; Biden must defeat it at home. And after four decades of neoliberal policy disasters reflecting Wall Street's political influence, Biden needs to go beyond what even FDR achieved, to restore a democratic economy of broad possibility. From a writer with an unparalleled understanding of the history and politics that have made this moment possible, this book is the essential guide to what is at stake for Joe Biden, for America, and for our democracy.

Robert Kuttner (Author), Robert Kuttner (Narrator)

Audiobook

Regenesis: A History of Books and their Readers

Brought to you by Penguin. 'A fascinating journey into our relationship with the physical book...I lost count of the times I exclaimed with delight when I read a nugget of information I hadn't encountered before' Val McDermid, The Times Most of what we say about books is really about the words inside them: the rosy nostalgic glow for childhood reading, the lifetime companionship of a much-loved novel. But books are things as well as words, objects in our lives as well as worlds in our heads. And just as we crack their spines, loosen their leaves and write in their margins, so they disrupt and disorder us in turn. All books are, as Stephen King put it, 'a uniquely portable magic'. Here, Emma Smith shows us why. Portable Magic unfurls an exciting and iconoclastic new story of the book in human hands, exploring when, why and how it acquired its particular hold over us. Gathering together a millennium's worth of pivotal encounters with volumes big and small, Smith reveals that, as much as their contents, it is books' physical form - their 'bookhood' - that lends them their distinctive and sometimes dangerous magic. From the Diamond Sutra to Jilly Cooper's Riders, to a book made of wrapped slices of cheese, this composite artisanal object has, for centuries, embodied and extended relationships between readers, nations, ideologies and cultures, in significant and unpredictable ways. Exploring the unexpected and unseen consequences of our love affair with books, Portable Magic hails the rise of the mass-market paperback, and dismantles the myth that print began with Gutenberg; it reveals how our reading habits have been shaped by American soldiers, and proposes new definitions of a 'classic'-and even of the book itself. Ultimately, it illuminates the ways in which our relationship with the written word is more reciprocal - and more turbulent - than we tend to imagine. © Emma Smith 2022 (P) Penguin Audio 2022

Emma Smith (Author), Emma Smith (Narrator)

Audiobook

Fortress London: Why we need to save the country from its capital

A vividly written and timely polemic tackling the burning injustices shaping British society today. ‘Intelligently written and powerfully argued.’ Paul Mason ‘Witty, scathing, and entertaining.’ Danny Dorling Journalist Sam Bright is a Northerner living in London. He is just one of the millions of people clinging on to the coattails of the capital, sucked in by the prospect of opportunities that the rest of the United Kingdom does not enjoy. Our capital is a vast melting pot of languages, cultures, and ideas, and rightly celebrated for it. For many, though, there is no other option. The only place to access the opportunities this country offers is London. Banking, law, politics, advertising, architecture, the arts and the media are all concentrated here. It is almost impossible to reach the heights of any profession without joining the grey hoards queuing for the next tube. As the economic, political, and cultural epicentre of the country, Fortress London acts more like a renaissance city-state like Florence or Venice than the capital of a modern nation-state. And the gluttony of London, compared to the malnourishment of our regions, dramatically affects life chances in Britain. Fortress London argues that to address Britain’s manifold problems, we need first to end the hegemony of its capital. Enriched by a vast array of interviews and statistics, it will examine how our individual destinies, from childhood to death, are determined by the disproportionate power of London. It will explain why regional inequality has fallen off the Left’s radar, even as the Right pays lip service to it, and it will draw on international comparisons to show where we have gone wrong and, crucially, how we can fix it. Sam Bright’s clear-eyed intervention will convince you that regional inequality is the problem — and that now is the time for change.

Sam Bright (Author), Sam Bright (Narrator)

Audiobook

Entry Lessons: The Stories of Women Fighting for Their Place, Their Children, and Their Futures Aft

Through oral histories, interviews, embedded observation, and research, the daily struggles of women returning to life after incarceration and concrete solutions to the seemingly hopeless issue. At the end of 2019 in the United States, women comprised the fastest growing population within the criminal justice system. Despite this fact, their journey through this system has not received extensive attention; it is only beginning to be documented. As a result, the impact of women's incarceration and reentry-both on their own lives and in the lives of their children and their families-is neither well understood nor effectively confronted. Anthropologist Jorja Leap argues that all aspects of these women's journey must be illuminated to fully grasp the issues. Leap explores first the traumas girls and women suffer, then the particular challenges faced by women in the criminal justice system, in incarceration, and throughout the reentry process. Leap tells the stories of women who suffer childhood abuse and neglect, including for example, Clara, who suffered twice-once as a child within the welfare system and then as a mother whose children were removed from her care and placed within the system-highlighting the ways the system fails women in particular. She finds that the lack of reentry programs is directly related to rates of recidivism, concluding that the cycle of trauma is the embedded in the system of reentry. Having spent countless hours embedded in the reentry programs that do currently exist, including Susan Burton's A New Way of Life, Leap tells the dramatic stories of many women caught in the system. She closes with several future-facing chapters. The experiences of formerly incarcerated women must be translated into lasting structural change through the development of meaningful programs and policies. Leap delves into pilot programs that offer meaningful models for changing the cycles of abuse and trauma in the lives of women.

Jorja Leap (Author), Sonia Kallen (Narrator)

Audiobook

Landscapes of Loss: The Story of an Indian Drought

WINNER OF THE TATA LITERATURE LIVE FIRST BOOK AWARD (NON-FICTION) 2021 Maharashtra, India's richest state by GDP, has its eyes set on becoming the country's first trillion-dollar economy by 2025. At the same time, Marathwada -- a historically backward part of the state adjoining the distressed Vidarbha region -- has seen a surge in farmer suicides. At the heart of the crisis is a cyclical drought that has persisted for almost a decade. Relief packages and loan waivers have not reversed the trend. On the contrary, the stories of dystopia grow more tragic every year as thousands of farmer families flee to the big cities, while those who stay back are plagued by bad credit and crop loss. Landscapes of Loss tells the story of Marathwada through the accounts of its people: marginal farmers, Dalits, landless labourers, farm widows and children. It lays bare the complex factors that have brought the region to this pass -- a story representative, in many ways, of the agrarian unrest in large parts of rural India.

Kavitha Iyer (Author), Shivani Vakil Savant (Narrator)

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American Ambassadors, Second Edition: A Guide for Aspiring Diplomats and Foreign Service Officers

If you ever wondered who becomes an American ambassador and why, this is the book for you. It describes how Foreign Service officers become ambassadors by rising up through the ranks, and why they typically make up about 70 percent of the total number of ambassadors. It also covers where the other 30 percent come from—the political appointees who get the job because they helped elect the president by supporting him as a campaign contributor, a political ally, or a personal friend. It explains why, despite being illegal and a threat to national security, selling the title of ambassador remains a common practice that is also unique to the United States. It considers why some suggestions for reform are misguided, what might be done, and why who the president is matters so much in determining how well the United States will be represented abroad. This updated and revised edition of Jett’s classic book not only provides a timely overview of American ambassadorship for Foreign Service Officers, aspiring diplomats, and interested citizens, but also calls for much-needed reform, describing the dire implications of failing to change our ambassadorial appointments process for the future of American diplomatic practice and foreign policy.

Dennis C. Jett (Author), Joe Barrett (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Infodemic: How Censorship and Lies Made the World Sicker and Less Free

An inside look at how the governments of Iran, Russia, India, Egypt, Brazil, India and the US used COVID as a pretense to undermine freedom The Infodemic lays bare the mechanisms of modern censorship and shows how they were used to undermine the response to the greatest global pandemic in a century. Beginning in China, the book charts the onslaught of COVID censorship through Iran, Russia, India, Egypt, Brazil, India and inside the Trump White House. Modern censors not only restrict the flow of information but also open the floodgates to overwhelm the public with lies and half truths. Increased surveillance in the name of public health, the collapse of public trust in institutions, and the demise of local news reporting, help governments hijack the flow of information and usurp power. The Infodemic shows how, under the cover of COVID, governments have undermined freedom and taken control. This new global political order may be the legacy of the disease. THIS AUDIOBOOK MAY INCLUDE INFORMATION REGARDING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. INFORMATION RELATED TO COVID-19 CONTINUES TO EVOLVE. AUDIOBOOKS.COM ENCOURAGES YOU TO SEEK UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION AND GUIDANCE FROM YOUR LOCAL PUBLIC HEALTH UNIT.

Joel Simon, Robert Mahoney (Author), Rob Shapiro (Narrator)

Audiobook

How Free Speech Saved Democracy: The Untold History of How the First Amendment Became an Essential T

"A historical demonstration of the indispensability of the First Amendment [and] … an earnest and timely argument for [its] enduring value." -Kirkus Reviews 'Great storytelling about the history and importance of the First Amendment, from someone who has spent his life defending - and using - it.' -Mary Beth Tinker Free speech is not an obstacle to change: it is the way change happens Uncovering vivid and engaging stories about First Amendment pioneers, How Free Speech Saved Democracy shows how their struggle made possible the surging protests that aim to expand democracy today. How Free Speech Saved Democracy is a revealing reminder that First Amendment rights have often been curtailed in efforts to block progress, and that current measures to reduce hurtful language and to end hate speech could backfire on those who promote them. To those who see free speech as a threat to democracy, Finan offers engaging evidence from a long and sometimes challenging history of free speech in America to show how free speech has been essential to expanding democracy. From the beginning of American history, free speech has been used to advocate for change. In the 19th century, abolitionists, advocates for women's rights, and leaders of the labor movement had to fight for free speech. In the 20th century, the civil rights and anti-war movements expanded free speech, creating a shield for every protest movement we see today. Written by a historian who became a full-time defender of civil liberties and has spent four decades advocating for the rights of victims of censorship, this book grew out of Finan's desire to address the declining support for free speech that is occurring as our country becomes increasingly polarized. Through his evocative storytelling Finan demonstrates how the most effective antidote for the growth of hate speech and violence is support for and cultivation of the robust alternative of free speech.

Christopher M. Finan (Author), Tristan Wright (Narrator)

Audiobook

Future Peace: Technology, Aggression, and the Rush to War

Today's militaries are increasingly reliant on highly networked autonomous systems, artificial intelligence, and advanced weapons that were previously the domain of science fiction writers. In a world where these complex technologies clash with escalating international tensions, what can we do to decrease the chances of war? In Future Peace, Robert H. Latiff questions our overreliance on technology and examines the pressure-cooker scenario created by the growing animosity between the United States and its adversaries, our globally deployed and thinly stretched military, the capacity for advanced technology to catalyze violence, and the American public's lack of familiarity with these topics. Future Peace describes the many provocations to violence and how technologies are abetting those urges, and it explores what can be done to mitigate not only dangerous human behaviors but also dangerous technical behaviors. Latiff concludes that peace is possible but will require intense, cooperative efforts on the part of technologists, military leaders, diplomats, politicians, and citizens. This compelling and timely book will captivate general listeners, students, and scholars of global affairs, international security, arms control, and military ethics.

Robert H. Latiff (Author), Rick Adamson (Narrator)

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Make Enterprise Great Again: The Gods Must Be Crazy!: Cradle of Communism to Catacomb of Capitalism:

It’s halftime America! Ay Yi Yai Yi! We are in the middle of The New World Order! Empires rise, decline, and fall. History has witnessed this cycle with the Romans, the Ottomans, and the British. They have all toppled, and if we are not careful, the US will be the next. Many of today’s enterprises are a gaggle of debt-addicted extreme financial engineering frogs floundering in tepid snake oil. Unfortunately, many will find their demise in the clutches of IP vultures. If we don't play our trump cards right, the next voracious Empire - the Middle Kingdom of China - will consume us; sending their errand boys to collect bills from the US and over a hundred other countries that it has economically and digitally colonized since the Economic Tsunami of 2008, through “Belt and Road Initiative” (BRI) to its “Digital Silk Road” (DSR). “Make Enterprise Great Again” digs into the foundations of capitalism and traces the ideals, triumphs and zeitgeist of the Roosevelt years in order to “Build Back Better” – and to save us from the impending Fourth Reich. Yeah! It's halftime, America!

Epm Mavericks, Saji Madapat (Author), Ross Pipkin (Narrator)

Audiobook

Das einzige Buch, das du über Finanzen lesen solltest: Der entspannte Weg zum Vermögen Von den Mach

Ab sofort gibt es keine Ausreden mehr, den Vermögensaufbau zu vertagen. Nie war es so einfach wie heute, sein Geld trotz Nullzinsen gewinnbringend anzulegen. Das Buch von den Machern des erfolgreichen YouTube-Kanals »Finanzfluss« holt die Leser ab und gibt Impulse, Verantwortung für die eigene finanzielle Situation zu übernehmen und Begeisterung für die persönliche Vermögensbildung zu entfachen. Der ehemalige Investmentbanker Thomas Kehl und die Journalistin Mona Linke erklären, wie man mithilfe von Aktien und ETFs passiv ein Vermögen aufbauen kann, ohne dabei viel Risiko einzugehen, und wie das genau funktioniert. Ein Empowerment-Programm und Schnellkurs in Sachen Vermögensaufbau für alle verständlich, motivierend und vor allem wirksam!

Mona Linke, Thomas Kehl (Author), Sebastian Waldemer (Narrator)

Audiobook