Who will tell the people : the betrayal of American democracy

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Summary

Published Reviews

Booklist Review: "In The Secrets of the Temple , Rolling Stone national editor Greider detailed the inner workings of the Federal Reserve System, emphasizing its unchecked power over government and daily life. He is just as bristly this time out as he presents evidence of "the decayed condition of American democracy." So what, Greider avers, if people regularly go to the polling place and cast ballots in races local and national? Citizens don't really have a say in their governance anymore, says he. Yes, they may vote, but the truth of the matter is, government is swayed to a much larger degree by various interest groups and elites. From the defense budget to working conditions, from the state of education to that of the environment, the issues that condition our present reality in this country are more colored by the captains of industry than John and Jane Doe. Rigorously and thoughtfully argued, this is not for the slightly interested reader, but the many issues-concerned citizens who catapulted Greider's previous book onto the best-seller lists will undoubtedly want to read this one as well. (Reviewed Mar. 15, 1992)067168891XBrad Hooper"
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Publisher's Weekly Review: "In a provocative, thoughtful manifesto, Rolling Stone national editor Greider charges that America's two major political parties, unions, the press and mass media no longer mediate between citizens and the powerful moneyed elites that control the political process. The result of this collective failure, he asserts, is a near-total breakdown of democracy. With hard-edged reporting, Greider shows how concerned citizens are regularly excluded from a meaningful political voice through deceptive laws drafted on behalf of vested interests, manipulation by big corporations, a money-driven campaign system and Washington's permissive web of regulatory bargaining and deal-making. Using the savings-and-loan debacle as a case in point, he argues that the self-correcting mechanisms of our political system no longer work. Greider gives credit to grassroots activists but calls for a national resuscitation of democratic dialogue that goes beyond special pleading. His compelling inquiry is especially timely in an election year. Author tour. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved"
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Additional Information

Subjects	Political participation -- United States. Democracy -- United States. Representative government and representation -- United States. Pressure groups -- United States. Political corruption -- United States. United States -- Politics and government -- 1989-
Publisher	New York :Simon & Schuster,1992
Language	English
Description	464 pages ; 24 cm
Bibliography Notes	Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN	067168891X :
Other	Classic View