Liars! Cheaters! Evildoers!: Demonization and the End of Civil Debate in American Politics

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NYU Press, 2005 - Всего страниц: 228

The level of vitriol in American politics has been rising with no end in sight. Terms like “evildoer,” “war on terror,” and “axis of evil” have become commonplace in our discussion of international politics. What ever happened to civil debate? Where has all this moralizing come from? And what harm has this new level of attack caused to democracy in America?
In this compelling and cogent account, Tom De Luca and John Buell chart the rise of what they rightly label as the “demonization”of American politics, showing how political campaigns often neglect debates over policy in favor of fights over the private character and personal lives of politicians. Political interests are still served by this style of politics, but democracy, the authors contend, is the loser. Covering everything from the Clinton impeachment to the war on terrorism to the 2004 presidential campaign, the authors show the distinctly American qualities of demonization and how their frequency and intensity has grown in the last four decades.
Suggesting that demonization is not inevitable or irreversible, this important book offers ways out of the political mudpit and back to a more civilized debate where democracy and freedom of speech can coexist in a productive, idea-rich environment.

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Содержание

Introduction
1
Part I Demonization in America
17
1 Demonization AmericanStyle
30
2 The Politics of Moral Personae
31
3 Americas Moral Paradox
44
4 The Deep Divide and the Most Vulnerable
64
Part II Demonization and Wars Seeking the Enemy
85
6 Terror Evil and the New Cold War
102
7 Terror Wars and Culture Wars
129
8 Preserve the Environment Become an Environmental Sport
149
Conclusion
164
Notes
199
Index
221
About the Authors
228
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Стр. 106 - terrorism" means premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience.
Стр. 121 - States like these, and their terrorist allies, constitute an axis of evil, arming to threaten the peace of the world. By seeking weapons of mass destruction, these regimes pose a grave and growing danger.
Стр. 121 - I will not wait on events, while dangers gather. I will not stand by, as peril draws closer and closer. The United States of America will not permit the world's most dangerous regimes to threaten us with the world's most destructive weapons.
Стр. 106 - Investigation (FBI) defines terrorism as 'the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segments thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives...
Стр. 121 - This is a regime that has already used poison gas to murder thousands of its own citizens, leaving the bodies of mothers huddled over their dead children. This is a regime that agreed to international inspections, then kicked out the inspectors. This is a regime that has something to hide from the civilised world. States like these, and their terrorist allies, constitute an axis of evil, arming to threaten the peace of the world.
Стр. 157 - Hence, it means that principally there are no mysterious incalculable forces that come into play, but rather that one can, in principle, master all things by calculation.

Об авторе (2005)

Tom De Luca is associate professor of political science at Fordham University and the author of The Two Faces of Political Apathy. He is the 2006 Fulbright Distinguished Thomas Jefferson Chair in American Social Studies at the University of Amsterdam. John Buell is a columnist for the Bangor Daily News and a former editor at The Progressive. He is also co-author of The End of Homework.

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