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Daring Democracy: Igniting Power, Meaning, and Connection for the America We Want
An optimistic book for Americans who are asking, in the wake of Trump’s victory, What do we do now? The We need to organize and fight to protect and expand our democracy.
Americans are distraught as tightly held economic and political power drowns out their voices and values. Legendary Diet for a Small Planet author Frances Moore Lappé and organizer-scholar Adam Eichen offer a fresh, surprising response to this core crisis. This intergenerational duo opens with an essential It’s not the magnitude of a challenge that crushes the human spirit. It’s feeling powerless—in this case, fearing that to stand up for democracy is futile. It’s not, Lappé and Eichen argue. With riveting stories and little-known evidence, they demystify how we got here, exposing the well-orchestrated effort that has robbed Americans of their rightful power. But at the heart of this unique book are solutions. Even in this divisive time, Americans are uniting across causes and ideologies to create a “canopy of hope” the authors call the Democracy Movement. In this invigorating “movement of movements,” millions of Americans are leaving despair behind as they push for and achieve historic change. The movement and democracy itself are vital to us as citizens and fulfill human needs—for power, meaning, and connection—essential to our thriving. In this timely and necessary book, Lappé and Eichen offer proof that courage is contagious in the daring fight for democracy.
Americans are distraught as tightly held economic and political power drowns out their voices and values. Legendary Diet for a Small Planet author Frances Moore Lappé and organizer-scholar Adam Eichen offer a fresh, surprising response to this core crisis. This intergenerational duo opens with an essential It’s not the magnitude of a challenge that crushes the human spirit. It’s feeling powerless—in this case, fearing that to stand up for democracy is futile. It’s not, Lappé and Eichen argue. With riveting stories and little-known evidence, they demystify how we got here, exposing the well-orchestrated effort that has robbed Americans of their rightful power. But at the heart of this unique book are solutions. Even in this divisive time, Americans are uniting across causes and ideologies to create a “canopy of hope” the authors call the Democracy Movement. In this invigorating “movement of movements,” millions of Americans are leaving despair behind as they push for and achieve historic change. The movement and democracy itself are vital to us as citizens and fulfill human needs—for power, meaning, and connection—essential to our thriving. In this timely and necessary book, Lappé and Eichen offer proof that courage is contagious in the daring fight for democracy.
216 pages, Paperback
Published September 26, 2017
38 people are currently reading
475 people want to read
About the author
Frances Moore Lappé
66 books126 followersFrances Moore Lappe--author of fifteen books, including three-million-copy bestseller Diet for a Small Planet --distills her world-spanning experience and wisdom in a conversational yet hard-hitting style to create a rare "aha" book. In nine short chapters, Lappe leaves readers feeling liberated and courageous. She flouts conventional right-versus-left divisions and affirms readers' basic sanity - their intuitive knowledge that it is possible to stop grasping at straws and grasp the real roots of today's crises, from hunger and poverty to climate change and terrorism. Because we are creatures of the mind, says Lappe, it is the power of "frame"--our core assumptions about how the world works--that determines outcomes. She pinpoints the dominant failing frame now driving out planet toward disaster. By interweaving fresh insights, startling facts, and stirring vignettes of ordinary people pursuing creative solutions to our most pressing global problems, Lappe uncovers a new, empowering "frame" through which real solutions are emerging worldwide."
Frances Moore Lappé is married to Dr. Marc Lappé a former experimental pathologist interested in the problem of environmental contamination.
Frances Moore Lappé is married to Dr. Marc Lappé a former experimental pathologist interested in the problem of environmental contamination.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
October 21, 2017
First, I am a registered Republican. Second, I watched Donald Trump become president with much apprehension. Unfortunately, I had read a great deal about his career, watched him faithfully on his reality show (a fact I am not proud of) and saw how he dealt with others. As a news junkie, I have watched with endless fascination mixed with horror as Trump has governed. Seeing what his true objectives are and feeling helpless to change things, I picked up this book. This is a book of hope, a book that clearly shows how we can become active to change things for the better and save our democracy. This is a book for anyone who cares about our country and our future. It is time we banded together and demand our basic rights - the right to vote, the right to have fair elections without big money controlling them, the right to basic health care, the right to be able to earn a fair salary, etc. It is time to take our country back from the top one percent and this book shows us how we can do that! Thank you!
September 18, 2017
Summary: Responding to the concentration of political power within monied elites, the authors expose their strategy, and advocate a growing Democracy Movement to recover American democratic institutions.
Perhaps one of the most disturbing consequences of politics in the post-Citizens United era is the enlarged role that hidden financial donors in what I would propose are rival plutocracies play in our national politics. That is also a concern of the authors of this work, although they only acknowledge the plutocracy of the right. While I think that is a defect of this book, the broader case they make for an active citizen’s democracy movement to challenge the hegemony of wealth in our politics is an important one. These rival plutocracies have created a polarization of the extreme right and left that doesn’t reflect the broader center of the country that has been dis-enfranchised because of the power of money, and the rippling developments that have made it more difficult to elect candidates who do not represent one of these extremes.
Frances Moore Lappe’, who I first encountered in the 1970’s in her Diet for a Small Planet teams up with young Democracy Movement activist Adam Eichen to expose the anti-democratic developments that have brought us to this place, and the need for and promise of a grassroots Democracy Movement to recovering and preserving democracy in America. There are three “powerful ideas” upon which this book is based:
1. Democracy is essential to address public needs and advance public goods.
2. Democracy is possible–a real democracy accountable to people and not narrow, private interests.
3. Each of us has a rewarding and exhilarating role to play in making democracy real.
After describing the powerful ideas that have arisen to respond to what they call “the anti-Democratic movement, the authors trace the development of this monied anti-Democratic movement. They begin with a confidential memo by Justice Lewis Powell commissioned by the U. S. Chamber of Commerce prior to his nomination to the Supreme Court. Powell expresses great concern for “free enterprise” and outlines a strategy to save it by 1) discrediting critics, branding them all as Marxists, 2) avoiding use of the word “capitalism,” substituting the rhetoric of “free” enterprise, 3) promoting a conservative presence in education, from campus speakers to textbooks, 4) gaining control of media outlets. They then describe two sets of strategies that arose from this memo. The first set of four strategies were to control the culture’s mindset:
Strategy 1: Command the Narrative. Think tanks pump out anti-government and pro-market gospel.
Strategy 2: Delegitimize Democracy’s Norms and Institutions.
Strategy 3: Quietly create a parallel political operation pushing the anti-democratic message with hundreds of front groups, community by community.
Strategy 4: Build big donors’ common purpose and coordinate their efforts to achieve the three strategies above.
The second four strategies then rig the rules to favor the monied elites:
Strategy 1: Open doors ever wider to big-money influence in our political system.
Strategy 2: Expand an army of lobbyists and usher anti-democracy forces into government.
Strategy 3: Reduce the voting power of those most likely to be hurt by, and therefore opposed to, the anti-democracy agenda. Curbing voting rights and access and the ruthless gerrymandering of districts.
Strategy 4: Where possible, wipe out local democracy altogether. Eliminate local control, destroy worker protections.
Part three of the book outlines the agenda of the nascent Democracy Movement and gives examples of the kind of impact citizens can have. What must clearly be focused on is finance reform, limits to the power of lobbyists, and redistricting reforms, along with bringing increased transparency about funding sources. The last several chapters are motivational, describing what the authors see as a growing and diverse grassroots movement that came together around a march from Philadelphia to Washington, around resistance to anti-democratic actions in North Carolina, the Women’s March, and other actions. The final chapter is a call for daring engagement in the pursuit of democracy, and outlines additional strategies each of us might pursue. Generally, these strategies combine individual courageous initiative, finding like-minded individuals via events and social media, joining forces with similar movements, and thus amplifying one’s voice.
One thing I think these writers get right is the need for an engaged democracy–that there are a number of us who are not being heard in our highly polarized political discourse. I call us “the adults” who believe a good society has to work for all of us, across race, social class, economic status, religion and gender. We realize it won’t be perfect for anyone, but that good solutions don’t leave anyone out, and the contributions of everyone are considered vital to our society’s health. It has to address concerns of both conservatives and liberals. Most of us are not extremists in any form–Marxist, fascist, anti-facist, you name it. We’re Americans who still think a democratic republic is worth preserving and enhancing, and it won’t be if a monied plutocracy controls it. We are the people we’ve been waiting for, whether young or old, and it is time to make our voices heard and not leave our politics and governance to the extremes.
At the same time, this work left me with two concerns. One is that the authors, (and Lappe’, a veteran activist should know better) do not adequately articulate a long term vision of pursuing democracy. The “anti-democracy” movement they describe was a disciplined, long-term effort by highly committed and focused alliances of individuals, and not simply the influence of a lot of money. Unless there is similar long-term discipline and focus to the democracy movement they envision, their efforts will be little more than attention-deficit disordered emotivist ventilation.
More concerning is that this work at best makes passing references to major funding of progressive causes, which was eclipsed in 2016. But to authentically represent “the adults” in the middle, the authors needed to denounce and expose the monied interests on both extremes in American politics, the elites on both extremes that have controlled our political conversation. Not doing so exposes this movement to the charge of being “stalking horses” for these progressive causes, particularly when they move beyond questions of electoral reform to social issues supported by the left while concerns of thoughtful moderate conservatives are ignored. I would suggest that until the writers do so, this proposal is not democratic enough.
____________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher via LibraryThing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
Perhaps one of the most disturbing consequences of politics in the post-Citizens United era is the enlarged role that hidden financial donors in what I would propose are rival plutocracies play in our national politics. That is also a concern of the authors of this work, although they only acknowledge the plutocracy of the right. While I think that is a defect of this book, the broader case they make for an active citizen’s democracy movement to challenge the hegemony of wealth in our politics is an important one. These rival plutocracies have created a polarization of the extreme right and left that doesn’t reflect the broader center of the country that has been dis-enfranchised because of the power of money, and the rippling developments that have made it more difficult to elect candidates who do not represent one of these extremes.
Frances Moore Lappe’, who I first encountered in the 1970’s in her Diet for a Small Planet teams up with young Democracy Movement activist Adam Eichen to expose the anti-democratic developments that have brought us to this place, and the need for and promise of a grassroots Democracy Movement to recovering and preserving democracy in America. There are three “powerful ideas” upon which this book is based:
1. Democracy is essential to address public needs and advance public goods.
2. Democracy is possible–a real democracy accountable to people and not narrow, private interests.
3. Each of us has a rewarding and exhilarating role to play in making democracy real.
After describing the powerful ideas that have arisen to respond to what they call “the anti-Democratic movement, the authors trace the development of this monied anti-Democratic movement. They begin with a confidential memo by Justice Lewis Powell commissioned by the U. S. Chamber of Commerce prior to his nomination to the Supreme Court. Powell expresses great concern for “free enterprise” and outlines a strategy to save it by 1) discrediting critics, branding them all as Marxists, 2) avoiding use of the word “capitalism,” substituting the rhetoric of “free” enterprise, 3) promoting a conservative presence in education, from campus speakers to textbooks, 4) gaining control of media outlets. They then describe two sets of strategies that arose from this memo. The first set of four strategies were to control the culture’s mindset:
Strategy 1: Command the Narrative. Think tanks pump out anti-government and pro-market gospel.
Strategy 2: Delegitimize Democracy’s Norms and Institutions.
Strategy 3: Quietly create a parallel political operation pushing the anti-democratic message with hundreds of front groups, community by community.
Strategy 4: Build big donors’ common purpose and coordinate their efforts to achieve the three strategies above.
The second four strategies then rig the rules to favor the monied elites:
Strategy 1: Open doors ever wider to big-money influence in our political system.
Strategy 2: Expand an army of lobbyists and usher anti-democracy forces into government.
Strategy 3: Reduce the voting power of those most likely to be hurt by, and therefore opposed to, the anti-democracy agenda. Curbing voting rights and access and the ruthless gerrymandering of districts.
Strategy 4: Where possible, wipe out local democracy altogether. Eliminate local control, destroy worker protections.
Part three of the book outlines the agenda of the nascent Democracy Movement and gives examples of the kind of impact citizens can have. What must clearly be focused on is finance reform, limits to the power of lobbyists, and redistricting reforms, along with bringing increased transparency about funding sources. The last several chapters are motivational, describing what the authors see as a growing and diverse grassroots movement that came together around a march from Philadelphia to Washington, around resistance to anti-democratic actions in North Carolina, the Women’s March, and other actions. The final chapter is a call for daring engagement in the pursuit of democracy, and outlines additional strategies each of us might pursue. Generally, these strategies combine individual courageous initiative, finding like-minded individuals via events and social media, joining forces with similar movements, and thus amplifying one’s voice.
One thing I think these writers get right is the need for an engaged democracy–that there are a number of us who are not being heard in our highly polarized political discourse. I call us “the adults” who believe a good society has to work for all of us, across race, social class, economic status, religion and gender. We realize it won’t be perfect for anyone, but that good solutions don’t leave anyone out, and the contributions of everyone are considered vital to our society’s health. It has to address concerns of both conservatives and liberals. Most of us are not extremists in any form–Marxist, fascist, anti-facist, you name it. We’re Americans who still think a democratic republic is worth preserving and enhancing, and it won’t be if a monied plutocracy controls it. We are the people we’ve been waiting for, whether young or old, and it is time to make our voices heard and not leave our politics and governance to the extremes.
At the same time, this work left me with two concerns. One is that the authors, (and Lappe’, a veteran activist should know better) do not adequately articulate a long term vision of pursuing democracy. The “anti-democracy” movement they describe was a disciplined, long-term effort by highly committed and focused alliances of individuals, and not simply the influence of a lot of money. Unless there is similar long-term discipline and focus to the democracy movement they envision, their efforts will be little more than attention-deficit disordered emotivist ventilation.
More concerning is that this work at best makes passing references to major funding of progressive causes, which was eclipsed in 2016. But to authentically represent “the adults” in the middle, the authors needed to denounce and expose the monied interests on both extremes in American politics, the elites on both extremes that have controlled our political conversation. Not doing so exposes this movement to the charge of being “stalking horses” for these progressive causes, particularly when they move beyond questions of electoral reform to social issues supported by the left while concerns of thoughtful moderate conservatives are ignored. I would suggest that until the writers do so, this proposal is not democratic enough.
____________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher via LibraryThing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
January 22, 2018
This book outlines what it calls the "Anti-Democracy movement," using material from books I've read, including Dark Money and The New Jim Crow. Then it highlights a number of efforts to counteract these trends, including Poor People's Campaign and other initiatives. I'm not as optimistic as the authors, but I do believe we need to try to counteract money in politics, racism, voter suppression, etc.
A Unitarian Universalist reading selection
A Unitarian Universalist reading selection
November 10, 2017
I'm not sure this is an unbiased review, as I am finishing up this book on the 1 year anniversary of the 2016 Elections, and it's dark and raining and I'm feeling down. So there is the disclaimer.
Reading this book I wanted to be inspired, and in a few spots I was. But overall the sections on the anti-democracy movement and what they have done to create a government working for the few, rich, elites, was dismaying and stuck with me far more than the section on the pro-democracy movement and its efforts.
It's still a good book, contributing to a very important discourse for our society.
Reading this book I wanted to be inspired, and in a few spots I was. But overall the sections on the anti-democracy movement and what they have done to create a government working for the few, rich, elites, was dismaying and stuck with me far more than the section on the pro-democracy movement and its efforts.
It's still a good book, contributing to a very important discourse for our society.
Read
March 17, 2023Bob's review is highly rated and provides a good summary.
The authors argue that it's too late for pessimism, that Americans are united by a desire to have leaders who side with "regular folks against the elite populating 'the swamp,'" and that "poll after poll shows striking common ground in our values" except that the ultra rich have a different view (3). Argues that constant refrain that we're divided prevents us from acting on these common interests, such as that 84% of Americans believe money has too big a place in our elections, or that a study found "no statistical difference" between those in red and blue congressional districts on a 388 question survey (12 -- though of course not, there are people of both persuasions in "red" and "blue" districts, which are likely gerrymandered precisely to achieve a (almost always red) outcome). 74% of Americans, including half of Republicans, believe we should do more to combat climate change (12).
Argue that we're not disspirited by the size of a task, but by feeling useless - that we can't contribute, that our efforts don't count and won't make a difference (4).
Usual summaries of Milton Friedman's "one-rule market," of a market not embedded in community but as a single driving premise of bringing the highest return to existing wealth. In this context, Friedman argues that "market serves freedom by enabling people to make choices based on their values." But "then the market serves human freedom only if people have purchasing power to express their values in the market" (15).
Viewing the market economy as in opposition to government causes disdain for ourselves (since government is us) and causes us not to see the value of regulation: that the Clean Air Act provides $2T in benefits, 30x more than the cost. And 61% of people still think taxes they pay are fair, though you wouldn't know this from listening to the news (18).
"If freedom means defense against government, all rules that government sets are perceived as evil interference. But if freedom is the opportunity to participate in exercising power with others," its impact depends on what we do (19). Basic security may be the basis of freedom, not a threat to it, as seen in the Nordic countries (19).
"The dogma of an infallible market, the crusade against government, and a narrow view of freedom result in a brutal form of capitalism that denies many of us a sense of agency as well as community" (19).
It's not democracy that's failing - it's lack of democracy that's taking us down (23)
We don't have to have absolute equality to have progress - the distribution of wealth in Sweden is the same as here, yet they have made much more equality of opportunity in education, health care, etc. and kept money out of politics (21).
They focus on not blaming even the ultrarich whose think tanks and strategies are disenfranchising us, b/c "all of us are complicit" if only by our inaction. Blaming 'bad people' can be a dangerous diversion from the real task of remaking our society's rules and norms, ensuring that power is always widely distributed, transparent, and accountable.
Chamber of Commerce grew under the influence of memo written by Lewis Powell that it needed to protect free enterprise against the forces arrayed against it (1963 Clean Air Act freedom to breathe healthy air, Civil Rights Act, etc.). Called critiques of free enterprise "Marxist doctrine." Angered that critiques were coming from places that got public money. Insisted on saying "free enterprise" instead of "capitalism." Chamber listened - they are now the largest lobbying force in the US - by 2-3x the next one (really? more than fossil fuel lobby?) 33 None of their support goes to Democrats.
Olin, DeVos, and Koch families in particular took this up (35), along with Richard Mellon Scaife (Mellon and Gulf Oil), Harry and Lynde Bradley (defense contracts), Joseph Coors, Robert Mercer & Rebekah Mercer (hedge fund investments). Bob Mercer, frustrated by Koch's failure to defeat Obama, "geared up to 'erect an alternative media ecosystem' with the encouragement of Steve Bannon - including 5 ventures for "sowing distrust of big government and eroding the dominance of the major news media" (37).
Fairness Doctrine eliminated 1987 (42), 1996 eliminated cap on # of radio stations a company could own (42), FCC approved many mergers, such that 1/1-10/26 2016, 3 major networks did a total of just 32 minutes to issues coverage, while giving $2B in free media coverage to Trump. In 2011 longtime Congressional staffer Mike Lofgren (R) quit and quoted Hannah Arendt "a disciplined minority of totalitarians can use the instruments of democratic government to undermine democracy itself" (48).
Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity acts as a parallel Republican party and operations a 'nationally federated, full-service, ideologically focused parallel" that in 2016 pledged more than twice what the RNC spent in the previous election (49).
Powell's vision "failed America because it leaves out something big. It ignores the need for transparent public decision-making that reflects and is accountable to the will and well-being of the people. In other words, it leaves out democracy" (52).
Argues that even before Citizens United, the Buckley decision struck down limits on campaign finance reform. They argue that there is language within that decision that a democracy movement could use, since their language includes an argument that campaign limits could actually help achieve the purposes listed in the opinion. This is one place where it seems to me the book hasn't aged well since it was published in 2017 - it seems to me delusional to think that the Supreme Court would support any such thing. They are now clearly on the side of Christian Nationalism, not democracy, and they don't even try to hide it any more.
Lots of effects of lack of democracy and accountability: drinking water contaminated with lead, a quarter of American families losing 75% of their wealth from 2007 to 2011, ten-fold increase in cancer treatment costs from 2005 to 2012 (78).
Represent.us - innovator in grassroots organizing against political corruption
Every Voice - Maine Citizens for Clean Elections (84)
Congress has a third fewer committee staff than it had in 1980! (91) "and the staff it does have are less experienced. If you want a legislative branch run by K Street lobbyists and 25-year-old staffers, mission accomplished" (91)
"Steve Silbertstein, cofounder of a California software company serving libraries worldwide, tells us that 'a few simple fixes' could be made to the system to make every vote count." National Popular Vote, Every Vote Equal: "it entails state legislators passing laws that require their states' Electoral College electors to assign their votes to the presidential candidate winning the national popular vote, which is perfectly constitutional" (103).
The authors argue that it's too late for pessimism, that Americans are united by a desire to have leaders who side with "regular folks against the elite populating 'the swamp,'" and that "poll after poll shows striking common ground in our values" except that the ultra rich have a different view (3). Argues that constant refrain that we're divided prevents us from acting on these common interests, such as that 84% of Americans believe money has too big a place in our elections, or that a study found "no statistical difference" between those in red and blue congressional districts on a 388 question survey (12 -- though of course not, there are people of both persuasions in "red" and "blue" districts, which are likely gerrymandered precisely to achieve a (almost always red) outcome). 74% of Americans, including half of Republicans, believe we should do more to combat climate change (12).
Argue that we're not disspirited by the size of a task, but by feeling useless - that we can't contribute, that our efforts don't count and won't make a difference (4).
Usual summaries of Milton Friedman's "one-rule market," of a market not embedded in community but as a single driving premise of bringing the highest return to existing wealth. In this context, Friedman argues that "market serves freedom by enabling people to make choices based on their values." But "then the market serves human freedom only if people have purchasing power to express their values in the market" (15).
Viewing the market economy as in opposition to government causes disdain for ourselves (since government is us) and causes us not to see the value of regulation: that the Clean Air Act provides $2T in benefits, 30x more than the cost. And 61% of people still think taxes they pay are fair, though you wouldn't know this from listening to the news (18).
"If freedom means defense against government, all rules that government sets are perceived as evil interference. But if freedom is the opportunity to participate in exercising power with others," its impact depends on what we do (19). Basic security may be the basis of freedom, not a threat to it, as seen in the Nordic countries (19).
"The dogma of an infallible market, the crusade against government, and a narrow view of freedom result in a brutal form of capitalism that denies many of us a sense of agency as well as community" (19).
It's not democracy that's failing - it's lack of democracy that's taking us down (23)
We don't have to have absolute equality to have progress - the distribution of wealth in Sweden is the same as here, yet they have made much more equality of opportunity in education, health care, etc. and kept money out of politics (21).
They focus on not blaming even the ultrarich whose think tanks and strategies are disenfranchising us, b/c "all of us are complicit" if only by our inaction. Blaming 'bad people' can be a dangerous diversion from the real task of remaking our society's rules and norms, ensuring that power is always widely distributed, transparent, and accountable.
Chamber of Commerce grew under the influence of memo written by Lewis Powell that it needed to protect free enterprise against the forces arrayed against it (1963 Clean Air Act freedom to breathe healthy air, Civil Rights Act, etc.). Called critiques of free enterprise "Marxist doctrine." Angered that critiques were coming from places that got public money. Insisted on saying "free enterprise" instead of "capitalism." Chamber listened - they are now the largest lobbying force in the US - by 2-3x the next one (really? more than fossil fuel lobby?) 33 None of their support goes to Democrats.
Olin, DeVos, and Koch families in particular took this up (35), along with Richard Mellon Scaife (Mellon and Gulf Oil), Harry and Lynde Bradley (defense contracts), Joseph Coors, Robert Mercer & Rebekah Mercer (hedge fund investments). Bob Mercer, frustrated by Koch's failure to defeat Obama, "geared up to 'erect an alternative media ecosystem' with the encouragement of Steve Bannon - including 5 ventures for "sowing distrust of big government and eroding the dominance of the major news media" (37).
Fairness Doctrine eliminated 1987 (42), 1996 eliminated cap on # of radio stations a company could own (42), FCC approved many mergers, such that 1/1-10/26 2016, 3 major networks did a total of just 32 minutes to issues coverage, while giving $2B in free media coverage to Trump. In 2011 longtime Congressional staffer Mike Lofgren (R) quit and quoted Hannah Arendt "a disciplined minority of totalitarians can use the instruments of democratic government to undermine democracy itself" (48).
Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity acts as a parallel Republican party and operations a 'nationally federated, full-service, ideologically focused parallel" that in 2016 pledged more than twice what the RNC spent in the previous election (49).
Powell's vision "failed America because it leaves out something big. It ignores the need for transparent public decision-making that reflects and is accountable to the will and well-being of the people. In other words, it leaves out democracy" (52).
Argues that even before Citizens United, the Buckley decision struck down limits on campaign finance reform. They argue that there is language within that decision that a democracy movement could use, since their language includes an argument that campaign limits could actually help achieve the purposes listed in the opinion. This is one place where it seems to me the book hasn't aged well since it was published in 2017 - it seems to me delusional to think that the Supreme Court would support any such thing. They are now clearly on the side of Christian Nationalism, not democracy, and they don't even try to hide it any more.
Lots of effects of lack of democracy and accountability: drinking water contaminated with lead, a quarter of American families losing 75% of their wealth from 2007 to 2011, ten-fold increase in cancer treatment costs from 2005 to 2012 (78).
Represent.us - innovator in grassroots organizing against political corruption
Every Voice - Maine Citizens for Clean Elections (84)
Congress has a third fewer committee staff than it had in 1980! (91) "and the staff it does have are less experienced. If you want a legislative branch run by K Street lobbyists and 25-year-old staffers, mission accomplished" (91)
"Steve Silbertstein, cofounder of a California software company serving libraries worldwide, tells us that 'a few simple fixes' could be made to the system to make every vote count." National Popular Vote, Every Vote Equal: "it entails state legislators passing laws that require their states' Electoral College electors to assign their votes to the presidential candidate winning the national popular vote, which is perfectly constitutional" (103).
November 28, 2017
I was hoping that this book would be more uplifting and inspiring. It provides a solid history into the rise of the anti-democracy movement and how Trump won, but the "igniting power" wasn't there. As someone who has done a lot of advocacy to only see everything I worked for taken away/dismantled, this book didn't provide any great insights on how to take advocacy to the next level. Everything they offer is good, just not new/innovative.
December 8, 2017
I read this book for our Unitarian Universalist book discussion group. I have really been pretty passive in the current political environment - truly feeling that there is not much I can do to make any change in the system, but this book changed that for me. Yes there is something we can do - and we all have to stand-up and DO that something that we CAN do. So count me in for making a change!! I commit to standing-up and getting involved in getting democracy back in America!!!
June 11, 2018
Quotable:
Democracy requires our species, or at least the vast majority of its members, to share a deep sensitivity to fairness, along with capacities for empathy and cooperation.
[C]onsider the celebrated success of US agriculture, where the “free market” efficiency myth is dispelled by one stunning fact: per acre, US agriculture feeds fewer people than does Indian or Chinese.
[M]ore Americans are choosing self-reinforcing news sources, from blogs to websites – creating an echo chamber that alternative narratives can’t penetrate.
[D]emocracy depends on citizens trusting that they are in one conversation with shared facts.
The most comprehensive study on the subject [voter fraud], conducted by the Justice Department in 2006, confirmed a voter-fraud rate of 0.00000013 percent, which makes the incidence of voter fraud less frequent than humans being struck by lightning.
Have you ever agonized over whether to vote your head (what you believe is possible) or you heart (what you really want)?
Constitutionally protected human rights are foundational to democracy.
We did not know how much we had in common until we told our stories of struggle to one another. –Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II
[H]ow do we get even better at spreading our story? We might start with “watching our words.”
In telling the story of democracy, we can consciously reclaim words that snit-democracy forces have twisted. “Freedom” is one with special power in our culture, and it’s been actively narrowed to mean opposition to government: freedom for interference. But let’s work to reconceive freedom to include the positive - freedom as opportunity in education and employment, for example, and in having a real voice in governance.
Democracy requires our species, or at least the vast majority of its members, to share a deep sensitivity to fairness, along with capacities for empathy and cooperation.
[C]onsider the celebrated success of US agriculture, where the “free market” efficiency myth is dispelled by one stunning fact: per acre, US agriculture feeds fewer people than does Indian or Chinese.
[M]ore Americans are choosing self-reinforcing news sources, from blogs to websites – creating an echo chamber that alternative narratives can’t penetrate.
[D]emocracy depends on citizens trusting that they are in one conversation with shared facts.
The most comprehensive study on the subject [voter fraud], conducted by the Justice Department in 2006, confirmed a voter-fraud rate of 0.00000013 percent, which makes the incidence of voter fraud less frequent than humans being struck by lightning.
Have you ever agonized over whether to vote your head (what you believe is possible) or you heart (what you really want)?
Constitutionally protected human rights are foundational to democracy.
We did not know how much we had in common until we told our stories of struggle to one another. –Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II
[H]ow do we get even better at spreading our story? We might start with “watching our words.”
In telling the story of democracy, we can consciously reclaim words that snit-democracy forces have twisted. “Freedom” is one with special power in our culture, and it’s been actively narrowed to mean opposition to government: freedom for interference. But let’s work to reconceive freedom to include the positive - freedom as opportunity in education and employment, for example, and in having a real voice in governance.
October 28, 2017
Daring Democracy is that rare book that should be read by anyone along the political spectrum as long as that reader does indeed desire to live in a democracy. Those who, for whatever reason, prefer some other form of governance will find nothing with which to attack a genuine democracy. The idea of a democracy is not, and should not be perceived as, a partisan issue. In the current atmosphere it is because the right has chosen to be (or been manipulated into being) anti-democracy and any attempt for the ideal of one person one vote somehow appears liberal. That is simply how the powers behind the anti-democracy movement have framed the dialogue and does not reflect how democracy can and should work.
This book provides background and history of the anti-democracy movement, what can be done to work toward achieving the democratic government we once thought we had or was working toward perfecting. The information is well documented and almost everything is public record. This is not simply a book with a lot of opinion and little to no substance.
This is a short but dense book, a quick read but one that rewards a second slower read. The resources cited are wonderful and the suggestions for action are workable and within reach, at least for the time being. But action must be taken before the few remaining pillars of our democratic government are destroyed by the anti-democracy and un-American people currently running the country (into the ground).
Highly recommended across political opinions as long as the reader is at least open to the idea of the United States returning to being a democracy.
Reviewed from a copy made available through Goodreads' First Reads.
This book provides background and history of the anti-democracy movement, what can be done to work toward achieving the democratic government we once thought we had or was working toward perfecting. The information is well documented and almost everything is public record. This is not simply a book with a lot of opinion and little to no substance.
This is a short but dense book, a quick read but one that rewards a second slower read. The resources cited are wonderful and the suggestions for action are workable and within reach, at least for the time being. But action must be taken before the few remaining pillars of our democratic government are destroyed by the anti-democracy and un-American people currently running the country (into the ground).
Highly recommended across political opinions as long as the reader is at least open to the idea of the United States returning to being a democracy.
Reviewed from a copy made available through Goodreads' First Reads.
January 24, 2018
As a biased reader, I found this book to be hugely informative. It was also hugely disturbing. I found the writing in the first part of the book to be difficult to read. I had to re-read many sentences to get the full meaning. This did not continue once the book settled down to business. Written after the election of our current 45th president, the authors showed no love for this president. I am with them! The manipulations of the Anti-Democracy Movement are astounding. Having just read Barber's "The Third Reconstruction" I should not have been as surprised as I was. The good news is that the Democracy Movement seems to be gaining ground. The authors tell much of what is happening to counter the Anti-D movement. The authors (an unlikely and interesting pair) have much to say about how we, the ordinary citizens, can add strength to the Democracy Movement and gain true Democracy.
January 16, 2020
I probably expected too much from this book in terms of uniting peeps to take action around democratic principles such as dispersion of power, transparency, and mutual accountability. There’s a brief history of the media as a public good and the FCC’s role, but no clear path I could find for today’s social media and cable news to become a public good again. The authors offer reasoned arguments for removing corporate money from politics, including polls that 80% of Americans think it’s “bad for democracy” and 90% of Americans believe financing elections need reform; but it wasn’t clear to me how this could be done in a bipartisan way. Almost all the positive examples were Democrats and almost all the negative examples were Republicans, so I don’t see how someone seeking bipartisan solutions to what the authors call the anti-democracy movement are going to connect to the ideas in this book.
October 25, 2017
Excellent and extremely timely. Very good for people who have not been politically active or aware but are looking for ways to get involved. The book is also encouraging, in a realistic way, for those who are discouraged.
What I liked best about this was the argument for democracy as an essential, empowering value for its own sake rather than, as some such as Lawrence Lessig argue, a means to an end.
I also was very glad to see the call for progressive, pro-democracy organizations to reach out to people of color and the Black Lives Matter movement in particular to include them in the movement that has historically been predominantly comprised and run by white people.
Only peripherally-related to the book but a quotation I just found and like:
"Too much sanity may be madness — and maddest of all: to see life as it is, and not as it ought to be!" Don Quixote
What I liked best about this was the argument for democracy as an essential, empowering value for its own sake rather than, as some such as Lawrence Lessig argue, a means to an end.
I also was very glad to see the call for progressive, pro-democracy organizations to reach out to people of color and the Black Lives Matter movement in particular to include them in the movement that has historically been predominantly comprised and run by white people.
Only peripherally-related to the book but a quotation I just found and like:
"Too much sanity may be madness — and maddest of all: to see life as it is, and not as it ought to be!" Don Quixote
August 7, 2019
Naming the “Anti-democracy Movement”
Well documented catalog of the political actions of the interests the authors name collectively, “the anti-democracy movement.” Though not a conspiracy, those involved have been bound together by fears that true government by the people would threaten things they value. Well documented catalog of the political actions of the interests the authors name collectively, “the anti-democracy movement.” Though not a conspiracy, those involved have been bound together by fears that true government by the people would threaten things they value.
What will save the Republic? Grass roots activism by you and me. The book concludes with examples of how it can happen.
Well documented catalog of the political actions of the interests the authors name collectively, “the anti-democracy movement.” Though not a conspiracy, those involved have been bound together by fears that true government by the people would threaten things they value. Well documented catalog of the political actions of the interests the authors name collectively, “the anti-democracy movement.” Though not a conspiracy, those involved have been bound together by fears that true government by the people would threaten things they value.
What will save the Republic? Grass roots activism by you and me. The book concludes with examples of how it can happen.
October 31, 2017
The title can be taken two different ways: challenging the the current American system or encouraging radical changes to the system. I feel that the work went in both directions pushing the liberal agenda of remaking America in their dream world. It is a special interest piece. With degrees myself in political science, history, and social science I would have liked a more objective work. If for no other reason than to explore all viewpoints objectively, Daring Democracy should be read. This was a free review copy obtained through Goodreads.com.
June 3, 2022
Phew, finally finished this one. I was too bummed out for a long time to read this, and I continue to be bummed about the state of government in america. I guess 3 stars because I don't really feel empowered or knowledgeable after reading this as to how I can actually make a difference when I don't have the time or capacity to do some of the things mentioned in the book. So I started out bummed, and ended bummed.
December 28, 2017
This one took me forever to get through, but it was an important read. Some of the anti democracy information (vital for understanding politics in our country) was fairly depressing and daunting. Can we overcome decades of dark money being pumped almost continuously into undoing democracy as we know it? I don’t know. But I am committed to trying.
October 4, 2018
I guess I just wanted more from this book. There's a lot of history, but I didn't come away from it with a good sense of what I should DO. From having read some of Lappé's other work, I know she actually excels at telling people things that they could/should do, which made it all the more confusing that I didn't really get that from this book.
June 28, 2020
Brutal capitalism and its associated politics need to die.
Brutal capitalism, and the families who control it, have done more harm in one generation: buying influence in politics, writing policies that are then enacted (think ALEC), actively encouraging " fear of the other". This slim volume has some recommendations.
Brutal capitalism, and the families who control it, have done more harm in one generation: buying influence in politics, writing policies that are then enacted (think ALEC), actively encouraging " fear of the other". This slim volume has some recommendations.
October 10, 2017
Meh? The intro is solid, delving into building community, emphasizing agency, etc. And then the book fizzles, using the same platitudes and sound bytes that already abound in the news, editorials and Facebook posts.
May 19, 2019
I found the first half of this book to be incredibly depressing (but necessary.) The second of was very encouraging and uplifting. If you feel like you can’t face the first half, start with the second and read the first in bits and pieces.
November 21, 2019
A short and concise read. Part history, part action guide, this book outlines clearly for those who need a brush up on the playbook of the anti-democracy movement and how to continually fight back and own our collective role as the guardians of democracy.
July 21, 2020
I have heard before that the US has a problem with real democracy. ButI didn't know the extent to which the current system has gone wrong. Eye opening. I cross my fingers for all those that are working to restore democracy!
July 31, 2020
A mile wide and an inch deep. Authors do a lot of passive voice and pretend ideology doesn’t exist, pretend left and right are equally bad etc. Good 101 book for basic intro to left of center politics in the Trump era.
November 26, 2017
A great book to recharge with and serving a timely reminder that the “Democracy Movement” is alive, well and growing.
January 11, 2018
Wondering what you can do to promote positive change? This book offers a powerful analysis of why we got here and what we can do to renew our democracy.
January 18, 2018
I won't say I enjoyed reading parts of this book, but it helped me see that there are many ways to "do" democracy which I found inspiring. Looking forward to an upcoming book club discussion.
June 8, 2018
I thought this book was positive.
August 1, 2018
Ideas worth pursuing and the enthusiasm to find the energy to do so! Great timing.
December 13, 2018
Clear analysis of what's wrong and some steps to fix things. Easy to read.
January 25, 2021
Ok, it may be viewed as a political book. But it’s not GOP vs Dems or White vs Black or a religious division challenging the constitution written by our forefathers. It’s really the haves vs the have nots. The top 1% is using these other divisions to foster their personal goals. The income inequality is eliminating the American Dream and leading to a shrinking middle class. It historically details how the intermingling of money into politics may end the democracy upon which our country was founded.
Only giving three stars as it wasn’t the easiest book to read.
Only giving three stars as it wasn’t the easiest book to read.
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