Liberalism & Conservatism, U.S. Politics & Government - General & Miscellaneous

Death of the Liberal Class

Name: Death of the Liberal Class
Author: Chris Hedges
ISBN: 9781568586793

by Chris Hedges

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Overview

For decades the liberal class was a defense against the worst excesses of power. But the pillars of the liberal class— the press, universities, the labor movement, the Democratic Party, and liberal religious institutions—have collapsed. In its absence, the poor, the working class, and even the middle class no longer have a champion.

In this searing polemic Chris Hedges indicts liberal institutions, including his former employer, the New York Times, who have distorted their basic beliefs in order to support unfettered capitalism, the national security state, globalization, and staggering income inequalities. Hedges argues that the death of the liberal class created a profound vacuum at the heart of American political life. And now speculators, war profiteers, and demagogues— from militias to the Tea Party—are filling the void.

About the Author, Chris Hedges

Chris Hedges, Senior Fellow at the Nation Institute, is the author of several bestsellers, including War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning and Empire of Illusion. He currently writes for numerous publications, including Harper’s, the New York Review of Books, Mother Jones, and Truthdig. He lives in Princeton, New Jersey.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly

In this tsunami of terrifying revelations, juxtaposed truths, and demonstrated facts, Hedges (War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning) argues that the traditional beacons of the liberal class—the universities, media, church, labor unions, and arts–have sacrificed themselves completely to the dominance of corporate greed and unbounded capitalism. We are all to blame and everything moral about our democracy stands to be lost—is indeed already vanishing, in Hedges's view—and those who draw attention to it are banished and booed. While every page erupts with calamities of the human spirit worthy of their own irate broadcasts and bull-horned fury, Hedges is at his best when he unpacks the density of his polemic and embraces the power of his narrative. Regardless of form, however, his most interesting theses include the parallel between the current domestic climate and the fall of Weimar Germany and the conclusion that "Everything formed by violence is senseless and useless. It exists without a future. It leaves behind nothing but death, grief, and destruction." These insights come not just as warning, but as witness. (Nov.)

Library Journal

Anyone who doubts that politics in the first half of the Obama administration has been dirty and a bit frightening should listen to this book. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist/New York Times best-selling author Hedges is not going for laughs here, nor is he simply pointing a finger at a few overzealous pundits; rather, he convincingly argues and supports his view that liberal politics as we know it is as vicious and deceitful as any political philosophy in recent history. Narrator Arthur Morey (arthurmorey.com) gives Hedges's work the solemnity it deserves. Bound to antagonize those of the mind that American participation in global politics (e.g., wars) is guided by idealism and a sincere belief that were other countries to behave as the United States does, this would be a better world. An enlightening, fluff-free title highly recommended for academic libraries and for collections with extensive holdings in political science.—Joseph L. Carlson, Vandenberg Air Force Base Lib., Lompoc, CA