omigod! democratic capitalism under attack!!
http://www.manhattan-institute.org/democratic_capitalism/index.htm
ANNOUNCING NEW BOOK Democratic Capitalism and Its Discontents
(ISI Books, 2007)
By Brian C. Anderson
Despite its victory over the messianic creeds of communism and
national socialism, democratic capitalism, the economic-political
system that has provided the nations of the West with an
unprecedented degree of prosperity and freedom, faces extraordinary
challenges in the new millennium. Not only has a fanatical form of
Islam disrupted the peace of the postcommunist era, which some had
wrongly heralded as the “end of history,” Western societies also
remain haunted by internal demons: egalitarian fantasies, moral
libertinism, an arid and unsustainable secularism, a suicide of culture.
Yet, in Democratic Capitalism and Its Discontents, Brian C. Anderson
argues that nothing ordains the triumph of these demons over the
democratic capitalist prospect. Drawing on a rich anti-utopian
tradition of political thought, he defends the real achievements of
the free society against an array of critics, from Jean-Paul Sartre
and John Gray to John Rawls and Antonio Negri.
Anderson pays particularly close attention to the United States, the
democratic capitalist nation par excellence, showing how it differs
from other liberal democracies in its robust religiosity, vigorous
civil society, and constitutionalism—all under threat from the
American Left. Finally, Anderson explores the thought of some of the
most insightful friends of the modern regime of liberty, including
the brilliant French political theorist Pierre Manent and the
godfather of neoconservatism, Irving Kristol.
Crisply and vividly presented, Democratic Capitalism and Its
Discontents is an essential guide to the conflicts of our time.
ADVANCE PRAISE
“Thoughtful, meaty, finely honed essays from one of the rising
intellectual stars of American public life. Brian Anderson’s work
should be required reading for culture-war combatants who want a
powerful demonstration of how ideas really do have consequences, for
good and for ill.”
— George Weigel, senior fellow, Ethics and Public Policy Center
“Anyone interested in understanding our political conversation will
find Democratic Capitalism and Its Discontents an invaluable guide.
In vigorous and clear prose, Brian Anderson surveys the important
ideas and thinkers that for good or ill underlie political issues
from judicial activism to civil society. His defense of democratic
capitalism is all the more persuasive for its honest recognition of
liberal democracy’s weaknesses. This is the book every voter should
read before the next election.”
— Bruce S. Thornton, author of Greek Ways: How the Greeks Created
Western Civilization
“Brian Anderson always brings great intelligence and clarity—and even
wisdom—to whatever he touches. This book shows the scope of his
vision and the qualities that have made him one of our most prominent
younger social commentators.”
— Robert Royal, president, Faith & Reason Institute
“Not just a brilliant anatomy of how capitalism nurtures political
freedom, but also a wise and penetrating analysis of the manifold
illusions besetting modern culture, from the temptations of
totalitarian ideology to the desiccations of radical secularism. As
erudite as it is readable, Brian Anderson’s new book is sure to take
its place as a contemporary classic.”
— Roger Kimball, coeditor and publisher, The New Criterion