Real Common Sense: Using Our Founding Values to Reclaim Our Nation and Stop the Radical Right from Hijacking America

Real Common Sense: Using Our Founding Values to Reclaim Our Nation and Stop the Radical Right from Hijacking America

by Brian Kahn
Real Common Sense: Using Our Founding Values to Reclaim Our Nation and Stop the Radical Right from Hijacking America

Real Common Sense: Using Our Founding Values to Reclaim Our Nation and Stop the Radical Right from Hijacking America

by Brian Kahn

Hardcover

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Overview

America's extreme Right falsely claims the Founding Fathers as allies for their radical agenda. Pundit Glenn Beck has gone so far as to use the title of Tom Paine’s famous 1776 pamphlet Common Sense for his own book—a book that attacks the political, social and economic rights which Paine and the Founders fought for.
It’s time to cut through the rhetoric, smoke, and spin, and get back to our core American values. We have gone off course as a country by emphasizing consumerism over citizenship, entertainment over education, and "me" over "we." By rediscovering the moral compass our Founders put into place, we can create a united America, and a future worthy of our grandchildren.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781609801267
Publisher: Seven Stories Press
Publication date: 04/19/2011
Pages: 223
Product dimensions: 8.08(w) x 5.56(h) x 0.88(d)

About the Author

BRIAN KAHN is host of the award–winning public radio program Home Ground. He has been published in the Los Angeles Times, The Nation, and Field & Stream. He has worked as a ranch hand, college boxing coach, lawyer, conservationist, journalist, and lives in Montana.

Table of Contents

Dedication 11

Introduction 13

Chapter 1 Where We Stand 17

Chapter 2 Where We've Been 25

Chapter 3 Citizenship and Community 33

An Army of One 37

Citizen versus Consumer 40

Advertising Aimed at Children: Commerce without Conscience 43

Rights and Responsibilities 49

Restoring the Balance Between "Me" and "We" 51

The Corporation 52

The Public Good 55

Failings of Government 60

What Is Public and What Is Private? 62

Chapter 4 Restoring Responsible Media 65

TV "News" 67

Socialism as Bogeyman 70

Sex and Violence on Television 78

Taking Back TV 82

Chapter 5 Revitalizing Citizenship 87

Freedom and Community 89

Public Schools 91

Universal Service 95

Promoting Philanthropy and Volunteerism 98

Chapter 6 Checks and Balances 101

Eliminating the Money Warp 107

Reforming the Corporate Structure 109

Employee Rights 111

Environmental Costs 113

"Everybody Needs a Speed Limit" 114

Wealth and Taxes 120

Chapter 7 Conservation 129

A False Debate: Nature versus Human Needs 131

Conservation and Poverty 133

Short-Term Profit versus Long-Term Productivity 136

Using Market Forces 138

Chapter 8 The American Conscience 141

"With Liberty and Justice for All" 142

The New Deal 144

World War II 145

Ending Segregation 146

Medicare 147

Protecting Our Environment 148

The Rights of Women 149

Human Rights 151

Fighting Poverty in America 157

Chapter 9 Common Ground 173

Our Moral Compass 175

Confronting Fear 176

A Plan for Action 179

Health Care and Personal Responsibility 184

Restoring Our Public Lands 186

Climate Change 187

Other Key Challenges 188

The American Spirit 191

Acknowledgments 193

Appendix: Political Definitions 195

Notes 201

Index 213

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