Edwin Black s latest book, Financing the Flames: How Tax-Exempt and Public Money Fuel a Culture of Confrontation and Terrorism in Israel, pulls the cover off the robust use of US tax-exempt, tax-subsidized, and public monies to foment agitation, systematically destabilize the Israel Defense Forces, and finance terrorists in Israel. In a far-flung investigation in the United States, Israel and the West Bank, human-rights investigative reporter Edwin Black documents that it is actually the highly politicized human rights organizations and NGOs themselves all American taxpayer supported which are financing the flames that make peace in Israel difficult if not impossible. Black spotlights key charitable organizations such as the Ford Foundation, George Soros s Open Society Foundations, the New Israel Fund, and many others, as well as American taxpayers as a group. Instead of promoting peace and reconciliation between Arabs and Israelis, a variety of taxpayer-subsidized organizations have funded a culture where peace does not pay, but warfare and confrontation do. Ironically, several Jewish organizations, scooping up millions in tax-subsidized donations, stand at the forefront of the problem. At the same time, the author details at great length the laudable and helpful activities of such groups as the New Israel Fund; he chronicles a heartbreaking conflict between stated intent and true impact on the ground. In addition to documenting questionable 501(c)(3) activity, Black documents the direct relationship between taxpayer assistance to the Palestinian Authority and individuals engaged in terrorism against civilians.

For more than three decades, Ed Koch has been one of America's most interesting and outspoken political figures. In this provocative new book, Koch with Rafael Medoff guides readers through the major battles in his life-long fight against anti-Semitism. Interviews, speeches, new essays, never-before published personal correspondence, and more highlight his leadership--on campuses, in the media, on the streets of New York City, and in the halls of power in Washington, DC. The book also features personal letters from Henry Louis Gates, former President George Bush, and other prominent figures. Koch will reveal startling information for the first time here, and his writings are controversial, piercing, teasing, and questioning. This book will ignite discussion for years to come

Islamic supremacism, European cultural disaggregation, American vacillation, and Israeli timidity and confusion. These are the main social contexts that inform political and strategic developments of global and national affairs in our times. In her biweekly commentaries, Caroline B. Glick, the formidable Jerusalem Post columnist, highlights these underlying trends while analyzing events as they unfold both globally and in Israel. This extraordinary collection of her probing and eloquent work is a must read for all who care about winning the war against the multifarious forces of global jihad.

Andrei Codrescu takes us cross-country through the withered, yet alluring American urban landscape, visiting New York, Baltimore, New Orleans, Little Rock, San Antonio, Albuquerque, Las Vegas, and Portland, Oregon. He discovers that cities are at the very center of the forces determining our future, in this major work by one of America's most gifted social critics.

Robert Eisenman's classic work, Islamic Law in Palestine and Israel: A History of the Survival of Tanzimat and Sharia, examines how Islamic law, such as Shari law, survived in Palestine and Israel in a pure form perhaps longer than in any other Ottoman successor state. It did this for a variety of reasons, chief among which are the innate conservatism of the British and the inability of the Israelis, particularly in the country's early days, to do much about it. Besides Lebanon and Gaza, only in Israel did those three great monuments of Islamic and Ottoman modernism: the Ottoman Law of Family Rights, the Ottoman Land Code, and the Mecelle-i Akham-i Adliye, survive simultaneously. Author, Robert Eisenman, traces this continuity from Ottoman times in terms understandable to both specialists, lawyers, and laypersons. The anomaly of Islamic laws', such as Sharia law, survival against the backdrop of British legal concepts and renascent Jewish nationalism is delineated completely. Detailed attention is also given to the effect, or non-effect, of such Israeli reforms in Women's Equal Rights Law on the Muslim community and on Islamic law, as well as to the creation of Israeli hybrid laws, such as the Land Law of 1969, and a new Israeli modernism. The situation in Israel today remains more or less the same. In some areas beyond the 1967 Green Lines, where Israeli Law has been applied, it is as described in this book. In others, which have not been annexed or where it has not, Jordanian Law for the most part still obtains.

'Bower's book is a devastating indictment' Sunday Times 'Explosive ... Bower reveals a remarkable and sinister picture of the man who likes to appear as the ever-smiling hero' Daily Mail A sensational critical biography of the man and his business practices. No British tycoon is better known, few claim to be richer and none has masterminded a more recognisable brand than Richard Branson. What is behind the success of the buccaneering balloonist, the tabloids' favourite celebrity nude, the 'grinning jumper' and the scourge of corporate goliaths? Tom Bower has a uncovered a different tale to the one so eagerly promoted by Virgin's publicists. Here is the full story of Branson: his businesses, his friendships, his ambition, his law-breaking, his drug-taking, his bullying. Offering an intimate scrutiny of exactly how Richard Branson created and sold himself, this biography reveals Branson to be a single-minded profiteer who, while occasionally generous to others, has a fixed purpose to enhance his family's wealth in secret off-shore trust funds. Instead of a glittering saint, Branson emerges as a devious actor, proud of plucking for his own profit the good ideas of others.

Robert Paul Wolff explains the development of the classical theory of value from Adam Smith to Karl Marx in a form readily accessible to readers unfamiliar with anything more than high school algebra, while at the same time offering to the specialist a fundamental criticism of Marxian political economy and an original and controversial interpretation of Capital. He clarifies recent mathematical reinterpretations of classical political economy, so that philosophers, political scientists, psychologists, and sociologists interested in Marx's theories can understand the modern rehabilitation of his political economy. Originally published in 1985.

This book is an attempt to hold the policies of George W. Bush, and his actions as president, up to an ethical standard - including his own. But it goes beyond that. it is also a study in a distinctively American ethic, for there are many features of this ethic that are not widely held elsewhere in the developed world.

This classic comparative study examines the thoughts of seven major writers on the subject of anarchy, using their own words to define the concept of anarchism, with subsidiary investigations of their ideology on the subjects of law, the state, and property. Three-quarters of this book consists of classified quotations from the seven writers—Godwin, Proudhon, Stirner, Bakunin, Kropotkin, Tucker, and Tolstoy; the author’s incisive commentary on each forms the balance of the text. An excellent introduction to anarchist theory and a convenient reference, this volume features a chronological presentation that clearly illustrates the theory’s historical development. The author selects the most important aspects of doctrine and matches them with revealing quotations. His choice of apt illustrations makes this compilation consistently interesting and enlightening, leaving readers with vivid and definite impressions of anarchistic teachings.

The Constitution states that "no religious test" may keep a candidate from aspiring to political office. Yet, since John F. Kennedy used the phrase to deflect concerns about his Catholicism, the public has largely avoided probing candidates' religious beliefs. Is it true, however, that a candidate's religious convictions should be off-limits to public scrutiny? Damon Linker doesn't think so, and in this book he outlines the various elements of religious belief--including radical atheism--that are simply incompatible with high office, and sometimes even active citizenship, in a democracy. In six forceful chapters he enlightens us to the complicated interrelations between churches and states, consistently applying a political litmus test to a range of theological views. Along the way, he clearly explains, among other topics, why the government in a religiously tolerant society must not promote a uniform, absolute code of ethics and behavior; why the conviction that America is worthy of divine attention is dangerous; and why the liberal position on the political deregulation of sex is our nation's only hope for conciliation. In this provocative, hard-hitting manifesto, Linker exhorts both believers and atheists to behave better in the public sphere, and he offers a carefully charted road map for doing so.

To predict likely policy developments around the world over the next thirty years, Bruce Bueno de Mesquita uses game theoretic models as described in Predicting Politics. The tools used in this book have found wide application in business and in the development of significant American foreign policy initiatives over the years. The author uses data from 1948 to show the ability of models to predict the end of the Cold War. He then turns to data from 1980 for about one hundred countries and simulates future states of the world, especially with regard to further democratization. In the process he shows strong evidence that the burst of democratization that occurred at the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s was predictable based on replicable data known in 1980. While delving into rather gloomy predictions about likely developments in Russia and China's domestic affairs, he offers a novel explanation for the failure of Russia to attract more investment and to achieve the higher growth rates commonly associated with democratic government. Although Russia is certainly more democratic in an absolute sense today than it was in 1980, it has fallen farther behind the rest of the world in terms of democratization and so lacks the comparative advantages of property rights, rule of law, and transparent governance that are essential for attracting investment. Bueno de Mesquita shows how policy situations and game theoretical analyses can explain the past, illuminate the present, and forecast future events. At the same time he provides the tools necessary for others to create their own rigorous estimates of future foreign policies.

Michael Ratner (1943-2016) was one of America's leading human rights lawyers. He worked for more than four decades at the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) becoming first the Director of Litigation and then the President of what Alexander Cockburn called "a small band of tigerish people." He was also the President of the National Lawyers Guild. Ratner handled some of the most significant cases In American history. This book tells why and how he did it. His last case, which he worked on until he died, was representing truth-telling whistleblower and now political prisoner Julian Assange, the editor of WikiLeaks. Ratner "moved the bar" by organizing some 600 lawyers to successfully defend habeas corpus, that is, the ancient right of someone accused of a crime to have a lawyer and to be brought before a judge. Michael had a piece of paper taped on the wall next to his desk at the CCR. It read: 4 key principles of being a radical lawyer: 1. Do not refuse to take a case just because it is long odds of winning in court. 2. Use cases to publicize a radical critique of US policy and to promote revolutionary transformation. 3. Combine legal work with political advocacy. 4. Love people. Compelling and instructive, Moving the Bar is an indispensable manual for the next generation of activists and their lawyers.

Achieving social justice is one of the key challenges facing the world today scholars of political theory have long grappled with issues arising from it however, as the history of ideas shows, the concept itself has undergone much change over the centuries and there is no watertight definition of what ‘justice’ connotes in the contemporary context going beyond the existing frontiers of social justice, this unique volume aims to develop theoretical concepts able to respond to real dilemmas facing society today the author closely examines the classical social contract theory, one of the most widely accepted approaches to social justice in the western tradition she focuses in particular on the ideas of one of the greatest names in contemporary political philosophy, john rawls, whose work developed the theory to new philosophical depths and complexity nussbaum moves in a fresh direction and suggests that there is an inherent limitation within the social contract theory, even in the work of rawls—it is premised on the idea of a contract for mutual advantage among approximate equals she demonstrates that it is unable to address questions of social justice between unequal parties instead she goes on to develop a theory of social justice based on the ‘capabilities approach’, which she places generally within the tradition of ‘liberal conceptions’ the author analyses three social issues which could not be resolved, or even really addressed by traditional theories of justice—the problem of achieving justice for persons with physical and mental disability, of extending justice to all citizens of the world, and lastly the problem of doing justice in relation to the treatment of ‘non-human animals’ she helps us to think more clearly about the purpose of political cooperation and the nature of political principles—and to look to a future of greater justice for all

Eric Voegelin is famous as a philosopher of history and a as one of the most eminent political scientists of the 20th century. His most fundamental work on political theory, the "New Science of Politics, is nowadays considered a classic in its field. While the "New Science" has always been a very controversial book, its critics have hardly ever taken the pain to pinpoint the weaknesses they condemmed Voegelins book for. There is, however, one exception: Only shortly after the appearance of Voegelins "New Science" in 1954, Hans Kelsen has written a most detailed reply to this book of his former student. This reply, which was known to Voegelin and is mentioned in his autobiography, is now being published by the ontos verlag. Being a distinguished philosopher himself of an erudition and breadth of knowledge that matches that of Eric Voegelin, Hans Kelsen is able to support the critical stance he takes on Voegelin "New Science" by clear and well founded argument. This critical reply to Voegelins "New Science" is not only an important contribution to the dispute about the foundations of political order in modern society, but will also prove valuable to readers generally interested in Voegelins life and work. Neben Carl Schmitt gilt Eric Voegelin als einer der einflussreichsten Vertreter der Politischen Theologie im Sinne einer mit religiösen Kategorien operierenden Politikdeutung. Seine politische Theorie hat Eric Voegelin in systematischer Form in seiner Schrift "The New Science of Politics" niedergelegt. Das Werk, das bei seinem Erscheinen wenige Jahre nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg großes Aufsehen erregte und bis heute einen nicht unerheblichen Einfluss ausübt, hat - trotz seiner überaus kontroversen Thesen - bislang noch keine Kritik gefunden, die sich en detail mit seiner Argumentation auseinandersetzt. Dabei hat Hans Kelsen bereits unmittelbar nach dem Erscheinen von Voegelins "New Science" eine sehr eingehende Replik auf dieses Werk verfasst. Diese Replik aus der Feder des wohl prominentesten Rechtsphilosophen des 20. Jahrhunderts, die bisher nur in Archiven zugänglich war, wird nun vom ontos verlag veröffentlicht. Mit größter Sorgfalt deckt Hans Kelsen darin Punkt für Punkt die argumentativen Schwächen der Politischen Theologie Voegelinscher Couleur auf. Hans Kelsens Voegelin-Kritik stellt dadurch nicht nur einen wichtigen Forschungsbeitrag zur Diskussion über diese Richtung politischen Denkens sondern auch zur grundlegenden Frage des Verhältnisses von religiösen Rechtfertigungsansprüchen und demokratischer politischer Ordnung dar.

In this collection of essays, eminent scholar Gabriel Almond describes the ways in which the discipline of political science has become divided against itself. "The various schools and sects of political science," writes Almond, "now sit at separate tables, each with its own conception of proper political science, but each protecting some secret island of vulnerability." In his overview, Almond examines the "hard" versus "soft" science approaches, as applied by scholars of both the left and the right. In Part I, he explores the history of model-fitting in communism studies, the strengths and weaknesses of the rational choice movement, and the historical forces and processes that have shaped political culture theory. In Part II, Almond addresses the problem of the transmission of methods and findings within the discipline. He discusses the current emphasis on pluralism among political theorists in Communist countries while a corresponding devaluation of this concept is occurring in the West. He concludes with an evaluation of the neo-statist movement and the evolution of political development studies. With this book, Professor Almond crowns a lifetime achievement, and makes final his case for the study of political culture. "It is a most interesting book. For what it′s worth, I think this book will be a successful one. This is not because of the talent and eminence of the author, but because I think there are lots of political scientists who will enjoy reading about these continuing struggles. In sum, I think the book will be a hit." --Aaron Wildavsky, University of California, Berkeley "Judged by the breadth of his professional knowledge and the depth of his command of the literature, Gabriel A. Almond is the most learned political scientist of today. In these wise and erudite essays he provides careful documentation of where the discipline is and what those who went before really said. Hereafter, no graduate student should feel prepared for general examinations in any field of political science without carefully reading A Discipline Divided, and taking to heart its lesson that getting the record straight is a necessary foundation for advancing social science knowledge." --Lucian W. Pye, Massachusetts Institute of Technology "Who better to provide a prospect and retrospect on the social sciences than a 1938 University of Chicago Ph.D.; a pupil of Frank Knight, Harold Lasswell, and G. H. Mead; and a fellow graduate student with Herbert Simon, George Stigler, Edward Shils, V.O. Key, and others? This book shows that he is still a pioneer in the social sciences, and even prepared to explore ideas that are nowadays fresh because they have been around so long that they are forgotten. The result is a book that is of interest to every social scientist." --Journal of Public Policy

The Military History of the Soviet Union and The Military History of Tsarist Russia treat Russian military history from the rise of the Muscovite state to the present, even peeking briefly into the future. The two volumes will cover Russia's land forces extensively, but will also cover the development of the Russian Navy, and the creation and development of the Russian Air Force, parts of the Russian military machine which are frequently neglected in general writings. The historical analysis will address the development and function of the Russian military whether in peace or in war, as well as the impact of war and changes in the military upon Russian society and politics.

Western Europe is in a strangely neurotic condition of being smug and terrified at the same time. On the one hand, Europeans believe they have at last created an ideal social and political system in which man can live comfortably. In many ways, things have never been better on the old continent. On the other hand, there is growing anxiety that Europe is quickly falling behind in an aggressive, globalized world. Europe is at the forefront of nothing, its demographics are rapidly transforming in unsettling ways, and the ancient threat of barbarian invasion has resurfaced in a fresh manifestation. In The New Vichy Syndrome , Theodore Dalrymple traces this malaise back to the great conflicts of the last century and their devastating effects upon the European psyche. From issues of religion, class, colonialism, and nationalism, Europeans hold a "miserablist" view of their history, one that alternates between indifference and outright contempt of the past. Today's Europeans no longer believe in anything but personal economic security, an increased standard of living, shorter working hours, and long vacations in exotic locales. The result, Dalrymple asserts, is an unwillingness to preserve European achievements and the dismantling of western culture by Europeans themselves. As vapid hedonism and aggressive Islamism fill this cultural void, Europeans have no one else to blame for their plight.

The essays in this volume deal with political ethics; morality and international relations; the meaning of liberalism; the philosophy of history; the nature of totalitarianism; the responsibility of intellectuals in a free society; and the contemporary crisis of democratic theory and practice.

"Noah Feldman tells the story behind the increasingly popular call for the establishment of the sharia--the law of the traditional Islamic state--in the modern Muslim world. Feldman goes back to the roots of classical Islamic law, under which executive power was balanced by the scholars who interpreted and administered the sharia. That balance was destroyed under Ottoman rule, resulting in the unchecked executive dominance that continues to distort politics in so many Muslim states. Feldman argues that a modern Islamic state could provide political and legal justice to today's Muslims through sharia--but only if new institutions emerge that restore this constitutional balance of power. In a new introduction, Feldman discusses developments in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, and other Muslim-majority countries since the Arab Spring and describes how Islamists must meet the challenge of balance if the new Islamic states are to succeed."--P. [4] of cover.