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Talking book description
New York Times columnist Frank Rich examines what he says is the trail of fictions manufactured by the Bush administration, from 9/11 to Hurricane Katrina, exposing what he calls the most brilliant spin campaign ever waged. Frank Rich joined the…

Talking book description
In this eloquent and persuasive book, Neil Postman examines the deep and broad effects of television culture on the manner in which we conduct our public affairs, and how "entertainment values" have corrupted the very way we think. As politics, news, religion, education, and commerce are given less and less expression in the form of the printed word, they are rapidly being reshaped to suit the requirements of television. And because television is a visual medium, whose images are most pleasurably apprehended when they are fast-moving and dynamic, discourse on television has little tolerance for argument, hypothesis, or explanation. Postman argues that public discourse, the advancing of arguments in logical order for the public good, once a hallmark of American culture, is being converted from exposition and explanation to entertainment.

Talking book description
Does America's policy toward China make sense? In this vigorous look at China's political evolution and its future, James Mann explores two scenarios popular among our policy elite: The "soothing scenario" foresees the gradual spread of democracy and human rights. In the "upheaval scenario", the contradictions in Chinese society between rich and poor and between the openness of the economy and the unyielding Leninist system will eventually lead to a revolution, chaos, or collapse. Mann poses a third scenario: What will happen if Chinese capitalism continues to evolve and expand, but the government fails to liberalize? And why should this matter to Americans? Mann explores this possibility and offers a startling vision of our future with China that will have a profound impact for decades to come.

Talking book description
In the developing world, land mines claim more than 500 victims a week - and not all soldiers, but innocent civilians, too. On November 21, 1997, Robert O. Muller, President of the Vietnam Veterans of American Foundation, spoke to The City Club on "Banning Land Mines." In December 1997, 112 countries - but not the United States - are expected to sign an international ban treaty.

Talking book description
Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright has had no easy post since she took office in January, 1997. The past several months have proved to be especially difficult with Russia and the Balkans in turmoil, central Africa ablaze with war, terrorist attacks aimed at America, and economic breakdown in Asia. Gregory Craig, Director, Office of Policy Planning Staff, U.S. Department of State, addressed The City Club to provide some thoughtful analysis of the Clinton administration's principal foreign policy voice. Craig provides long-term foreign policy planning advice to Secretary Albright and suggests ways to ensure that current policy initiatives remain true to the United States' broad objectives. He addressed the Club on September 11, 1998.

Talking book description
William J. Ivey, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, addressed the City Club on October 5, 1998. In this speech, Ivey talks about the longstanding controversy surrounding the NEA, his efforts since his appointment in July as Chairman, and much more.

Talking book description
A decade ago, then First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton chronicled her quest, both deeply personal and, in the truest sense, public, to help make our society into the kind of "village" that enables children to become smart, able, resilient adults. For more…

Talking book description
Under the banner of economic development, all private property is now vulnerable to being taken and transferred to another private owner...Nothing is to prevent the State from replacing any Motel 6 with a Ritz-Carlton, any home with a shopping mall, or any farm with a factory...The Founders cannot have intended this perverse result. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, dissenting in the Supreme Court case Kelo v. New London The Supreme Court's decision in the Kelo case created a firestorm of interest in protecting property rights. Through real-life stories and solid legal analysis, this book shows why property rights are the cornerstone of liberty and how they are protected in the U.S. Constitution. It critically examines how courts and legislatures have diminished property rights and then lays out an agenda for protecting these rights in the future.

Talking book description
Peter J. Boyer, moderator. With Stephen L. Carter, Roberta Combs, Susan Jacoby, and Jim Towey. Peter J. Boyer has been a staff writer at The New Yorker since 1992. Stephen L. Carter is a law professor at Yale University. He is the author of se…

Talking book description
Here is the world's most famous master plan for seizing and holding power. Astonishing in its candor, The Prince is a disturbingly realistic and prophetic work on what it takes to be a prince, a king, a president. When, in 1512, Machiavelli was removed from his post in his beloved Florence, he resolved to set down a treatise on leadership that was practical, not idealistic. The prince he envisioned would be unencumbered by ordinary ethical and moral values. Through the years, The Prince has been misunderstood to the extent that Machiavelli's name has become synonymous with unscrupulous political behavior. However, it remains essential reading as the ultimate book on power politics. Included are selections from Machiavelli's Discourses upon the First Ten Books of Titus Livy .