Z Books
Recent Z Books
Morgan: Mass Media and the Mythical "Sixties"
Jan 27, 2012
The book provides systematic documentation of the way mass media covered social movements of the 1960s era, how that coverage influenced the trajectory of the 60s and produced the images, texts, personalities and framing that were heavily used by both the (rightist and corporate) forces of backlash and the forces of commercial exploitation by entertainment and consumption media, thus facilitating the turn to the neo-liberal world we live in today --with its erosive and manipulative political discourse.
Burns: The Vanishing Individual:
Jan 16, 2012
Confronted with such an impregnable, all powerful, all devouring System, individuals have no choice but to take evasive measures. And if they choose some version of parasitic anarchism they can, Burns maintains, find all kinds of encouragement and help in books -- more particularly in the great novels of the past and near past.
SteveEconomicsKeen: Debunk time
Nov 28, 2011
Book
Mcchesney: The Political Economy of Media
Nov 08, 2011
More than any other work, The Political Economy of Media demonstrates the incompatibility of the corporate media system with a viable democratic public sphere, and the corrupt policymaking process that brings the system into existence. Among the most acclaimed communication scholars in the world, Robert W. McChesney has brought together all the major themes of his two decades of research. Rich in detail, evidence, and thoughtful arguments, The Political Economy of Media provides a comprehensive critique of the degradation of journalism, the hyper-commercialization of culture, the Internet, and the emergence of the contemporary media reform movement. The Political Economy of Media is mandatory reading for anyone wishing to understand and change media, and the political economy, in the world today. As Chomsky is to linguistics, Ben & Jerry’s to ice cream, and Elvis to shaking one’s hips, McChesney is to media analysis. He is the King: there is no one more definitive. —Danny Schechter, founder of MediaChannel.org McChesney’s work has been of extraordinary importance. It should be read with care and concern by people who care about freedom and basic rights. —Noam Chomsky Robert McChesney follows in the great tradition of Upton Sinclair, George Seldes, I.F. Stone, and Ben Bagdikian in exposing the ruthless hold of corporate power on the nations media. —Howard Zinn As with all his prior works, this new volume demonstrates McChesney’s signal strengths as America’s leading critic and historian of the media: unrivaled erudition across several disciplines; a bracing theoretical lucidity; and – not least – a blunt and lively style, enlivened by a killer sense of humor. This book, in short, is a must-read not just for all admirers of McChesney’s work, but for everyone concerned about the global sway of the commercial media, and keen to put a stop to it at last. —Mark Crispin Miller, professor of media studies at NYU Author of Fooled Again Robert W. McChesney is the Gutgsell Endowed Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is the author of Communication Revolution, The Problem of the Media, and Rich Media, Poor Democracy.
Girdner: USA and the New Middle East
Oct 24, 2011
US Imperialism, The Neocons and the Iraq War
Girdner: The Israel Lobby
Oct 23, 2011
Details the organizations in the United States, particularly AIPAC, which have been able to control US Foreign Policy toward Israel and limit political criticism of Israel in the US. Argues that such blind support of Isreal is not in the US national security interest.
Girdner: The Endless War
Oct 23, 2011
An Account of how the War in Afghanistan has turned into a disaster
Girdner: Perilous Passage
Oct 23, 2011
A History of the Emergence of European and American Imperialism from the Sixteenth Century to the Twentieth Century
Watson: Post-Darwinian Historicism
Oct 20, 2011
'Breakthrough' is the first volume of The 2010 Trilogy, PP415. Its topic is the concrete, self-conscious dialectics of universal history. Although it is written primarily for the lay reader, it is not a bed-time story.
Ostrowski: To Inspire Activism
Oct 19, 2011
Bridger Banes, an unlikely renegade, is swept into the momentum of a personal revolution. This book is fast paced and loaded with political and religious juxtaposition.
Guerin: No Gods No Masters
Oct 18, 2011
The first English translation of Guérin’s monumental anthology of anarchism, published here in one volume. It details a vast array of unpublished documents, letters, debates, manifestos, reports, impassioned calls-to-arms and reasoned analysis; the history, organization and practice of the movement—its theorists, advocates and activists; the great names and the obscure, towering legends and unsung heroes. This definitive anthology portrays anarchism as a sophisticated ideology whose nuances and complexities highlight the natural desire for freedom in all of us. The classical texts will re-establish anarchism as both an intellectual and practical force to be reckoned with. Includes writings by Emma Goldman, Kropotkin, Berkman, Bakunin, Proudhon, and Malatesta. Daniel Guérin was the author of Anarchism: From Theory to Practice
Varoufakis: The Global Minotaur
Oct 17, 2011
In this remarkable and provocative book, Yanis Varoufakis explodes the myth that financialisation, ineffectual regulation of banks, greed and globalisation were the root causes of the global economic crisis. Rather, they are symptoms of a much deeper malaise which can be traced all the way back to the Great Crash of 1929, then on through to the 1970s: the time when a 'Global Minotaur' was born. Just as the Athenians maintained a steady flow of tributes to the Cretan beast, so the 'rest of the world' began sending incredible amounts of capital to America and Wall Street. Thus, the Global Minotaur became the 'engine' that pulled the world economy from the early 1980s to 2008. Today's crisis in Europe, the heated debates about austerity versus further fiscal stimuli in the US, the clash between China's authorities and the Obama administration on exchange rates are the inevitable symptoms of the weakening Minotaur; of a global 'system' which is now as unsustainable as it is imbalanced. Going beyond this, Varoufakis lays out the options available to us for reintroducing a modicum of reason into a highly irrational global economic order. An essential account of the socio-economic events and hidden histories that have shaped the world as we now know it.
Gandhi: Satyagraha
Oct 16, 2011
This volume focuses on Gandhi's vision of Satyagraha, whereby one appeals to reason and conscience and puts an end to evil by converting the evil-doer. The book begins with an explanation of Satyagraha and proceeds with detailed discussions of the self-training and courage necessary for Satyagraha. (Dover's description)
Waugh: Charles Taylor and Liberia
Oct 01, 2011
Ambition and Atrocity in Africa's Lone Star State
Hallward: Damming the Flood
Sep 10, 2011
“This riveting and deeply informed account should be carefully read by those who recognize that Haiti's tragic history is a microcosm of imperial savagery and heroic resistance.” – Noam Chomsky “A detailed account of the 'democratic containment' of Haiti's radical politics in the past two decades ... an outstanding book.” – Slavoj Žižek, New Statesman “An excellent book ... the first accurate analysis of recent Haitian history, and of its history in the making.” – Dr. Paul Farmer, Harvard University “Damming the Flood is a brilliant, politically sophisticated and morally infuriating work on a shameful piece of very recent history that the US press has either distorted or ignored. It is the most important and devastating book I’ve read on American betrayal of democracy in one of the most tormented nations in the world.” – Jonathan Kozol, author of Death at an Early Age, Rachel and her Children, and Savage Inequalities “The book is a masterpiece. As someone who lived through those years, Damming the Flood is not only incredibly accurate and well sourced but the analysis is also flawless.” – Ira Kurzban, immigration lawyer and former attorney for the Haitian Government “This is a book about the latest crime that the world’s most powerful nation committed against one of the world’s poorest. I like this book for its scholarship, its measured tone, and its good writing. But I am grateful for it above all because at long last it presents another side of a story that has been reported, almost universally, with stunning tendentiousness and in apparent ignorance of the lives and opinions of most Haitians. This book goes a long way to setting the record straight ... It ought to be required reading for every historian of the Americas and for every student of political science.” – Tracy Kidder, author of Mountains Beyond Mountains Long before a devastating earthquake hit in January 2010, Haiti was one of the most impoverished and oppressed countries in the world. However, in the late 1980s a remarkable popular mobilization known as Lavalas (“the flood”) sought to liberate the island from decades of US-backed dictatorial rule. Damming the Flood analyzes how and why the Lavalas governments led by President Jean-Bertrand Aristide were overthrown, in 1991 and again in 2004, by the enemies of democracy in Haiti and abroad. The elaborate campaign to suppress Lavalas was perhaps the most successful act of imperial sabotage since the end of the Cold War. It has left the people of Haiti at the mercy of some of the most rapacious political and economic forces on the planet. Updated with a substantial new afterword that addresses the international response to the earthquake, Damming the Flood is both an invaluable account of recent Haitian history and an illuminating analysis of twenty-first-century imperialism. This new edition provides an additional chapter which updates us with the events in Haiti after and around the earthquake. These fateful events don't alter the conclusions Hallward arrived at in the first edition; if anything they're re-enforced and proved right. The speed at which a humanitarian tragedy was turned into an opportunity to further deepen military occupation, allowing the US take over the island, proves that Haiti has not lost its appeal for the “Humanitarian Interventionists” in any way. Also, the widespread acceptance of the occupation as a positive action by most of the world's media shows that popular perception has come to accept that it is natural to keep Haitians at gun point, even in the most extraordinary and tragic circumstances. Lastly, it sadly proves through the series of logistical blunders, such as the primacy of military over humanitarian aid, the state of neglect in which the victims were abandoned for weeks before they saw any meaningful help (with the exception of understaffed Cuban doctors), and by the fact that most aid which was promised by foreign donors (both agencies and governments) has not been delivered more than one year later, that Haitian people's lives are a very low priority on the international community's agenda. This year's anniversary of the earthquake was one of shame for all the self-proclaimed “friends” of Haiti.
Chomsky: 9-11
Sep 06, 2011
This new edition of 9-11, published on the tenth anniversary of the attacks and featuring a new preface by Chomsky, reminds us that today, just as much as ten years ago, information and clarity remain our most valuable resources in the struggle to prevent future violence against the innocent, both at home and abroad.
