text:
It's the Culture, Stupid
In Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential campaign he used the phrase, "It's the economy, stupid." That economics is important is true, but it is far from the whole picture. In the ideological and political realm, economics is just one part of how social change takes place.
In many ways the real issue is the culture. Simply put, if you can change the culture, you can more easily change politics, laws, and most other things. Thus those who are involved in the culture wars must know that to affect real change, lasting change, you have to do more than just tinker at the edges of legislation or political campaigns.
You have to focus on the culture. Sadly the other side knows this. Thus we speak of cultural Marxism. Even the Marxists realised long ago that trying to change a nation from without with tanks and bullets was not working. So they learned that it was better and easier to destroy a nation by subverting it from within.
Thus the Italian Marxist Gramsci spoke of the "long march through the institutions". He taught that capturing a culture by taking over key institutions of power and influence was the way to go. So the cultural Marxists deliberately targeted schools, courts, the media, the arts, politics and even churches.
They knew that aiming at changing the culture would be the best way to implement their goals. They chose evolutionary change over revolutionary change. And they have done exceedingly well at all this. All throughout the West the secular left basically owns our institutions.
They are running things and calling the shots: the media, academia, law and politics are all pretty much under their control. They knew the value of targeting the culture and they have therefore been hugely successful in promoting their agenda items.
And the obverse has largely been true from our side. We have not engaged the culture. If anything, most conservatives and Christians have pulled out of the culture. They have abandoned politics and the other institutions of influence. They have adopted a siege mentality, which has basically handed the other side the culture on a silver platter.
By disengaging from all these fronts, the other side has won by default. And now we wonder why we keep losing in so many areas. Be it the culture of death, or the sleaze culture, or the war on marriage and family, the other side keeps winning because they are fully engaged, and we keep losing because we are asleep at the wheel.
Thus we have a very minimalist approach to the culture wars. Many people on our side think that if they sign a petition to protect marriage, or send in a $10 donation to some pro-family group, they have done their bit to save Western civilisation. They think they can go back to sleep for another year or two, and then maybe sign another petition.
Um, that is not how we are going to win. That in fact is exactly how we will lose – and keep on losing. Our commitment to what matters is almost non-existent. We certainly do not think in terms of the long term and the big picture. I have written before about why this is so very important: billmuehlenberg.com/2016/04/18/big-picture-long-term/
So the other side keeps on winning because they do see the bigger picture and they are in it for the long haul. Some on our side have seen the importance of getting fully into the wars, and not just a quick visit to a few of the skirmishes. This can be seen from a spiritual/theological point of view, or a cultural/political point of view.
The former I have discussed elsewhere, as in the above link, and in pieces like this: billmuehlenberg.com/2015/04/16/eschatology-and-fatalism-doing-right-fighting-evil-and-the-end-times/
But let me look a bit more at the latter. As mentioned, some folks know the value of reaching the culture and not just fiddling with the occasional bit of legislation. Back in 1996 Robert Bork wrote a very important volume called Slouching Towards Gomorrah.
It is a first-class analysis of the mess we are in – at least in America – and how things might be turned around. Let me offer just one brief section of the book. In his final chapter, "Can Democratic Government Survive?," he writes these words:
Elections are important not only because of the policies adopted and laws enacted but as symbolic victories for one set of values or the other. But it is well to remember the limits of politics. The political nation is not the same as the cultural nation; the two have different leaders and very different views of the world. Even when conservative political leaders have the votes, liberal cultural leaders operate and exercise influence where votes do not count. However many political victories conservatives may produce, they cannot attack modern liberalism in its fortresses. If conservatives come to control the White House and both Houses of Congress, there will be very little change in Hollywood, the network evening news, universities, church bureaucracies, the New York Times, or the Washington Post. Institutions that are overwhelmingly left-liberal (89 percent of journalists voted for Bill Clinton in 1992) will continue to misinform the public and distort public discourse. The obscenities of popular entertainment will often be protected by the courts. The tyrannies of political correctness and multiculturalism will not be ejected from the universities by any number of conservative victories at the polls. Modern liberals captured the government and its bureaucracies because they captured the culture. Conservative political victories will always be tenuous and fragile unless conservatives recapture the culture…. This is at bottom a moral and spiritual struggle.
Or as Chuck Colson put it in a much more simplified version: "Politics is downstream from culture." Unless we seek to change the culture, a few changes to laws, or a few Parliamentary victories just will not get us very far. Yes, we must be engaged in the political and legislative battles, but the real battleground is the culture.
Let me look at just one more thinker on all this. David French speaks about the death of our culture, especially in the area of education, and how the only resort for many may be things like home-schooling. He too sees the bigger picture, and realises that one key component of culture is education, and when the educational system is hostile to our very values and beliefs, we will likely get nowhere fast.
The stakes are now clear: We must fix our education system or slowly but surely lose our culture. Indeed, virtually every other conservative endeavor — whether it's winning elections, transforming media, or infiltrating pop culture — will fail if the entire edifice of public education is arrayed against us. The system, however, can't be reformed from within: It's stacked top-to-bottom with progressive activists even in red states. We must fix our education system or slowly but surely lose our culture. So that means creating a new model. States should consider rejecting federal education funding entirely (Texas is considering doing just that). At the very least, charter schools should be completely disentangled — and not just from public employees' unions but also from federal funds (in order to insulate them from federal influence); voucher systems should be dramatically expanded — giving every family the option to spend their share of tax dollars at the school of their choice; and private institutions and philanthropists should step up to provide needed funding. Indeed, private citizens don't have to wait for government reform. Scholarship funds can expand the ranks of tuition-paying private-school students immediately, and coalitions of churches can provide substantial support for their communities' best private schools.
Many more folks have said similar things, and a whole book could be produced along these lines. But the point is, the other side is a lot more cluey than most of us are when it comes to capturing the culture. They have been successful at it while we have for the most part failed.
Of course questions remain. Is education redeemable or is it too far gone? Is home-schooling the only viable option for the near future? What about independent schools and Christian schools. Is culture itself too far gone, or with God's grace can we win back at least some of it?
There are plenty of such questions that we have to deal with here. There are no easy answers or solutions, and conservatives and Christians will differ on what is the best approach to take in some of these areas. But at the very least we need to be thinking about such matters.
But I think it can be safely said that we keep losing because we have not taken our biblical duties seriously, including the command of Jesus for us to be salt and light. By running away from culture, instead of engaging with it, we have not been true to our calling to extend the Lordship of Christ into all areas of life. Instead, we have just handed it all to our opponents.
No wonder we keep losing.
www.nationalreview.com/article/435379/transgender-school-edict-public-schools-need-conservative-reform
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8 Replies to "It's the Culture, Stupid"
Peter Newland says:
Spot on! Sadly, that's us 100%. We need revival and whether that comes via persecution because we've dropped the ball and need the discipline, or we wake up and start living the gospel, is up to us.
David Catchpoole says:
Taking back education ain't gonna be easy. It seems to me that dozens of important aspects of human history according to the Bible have been singled out by those in control of our children's education so as to teach the absolute opposite. E.g. 'Stone Age' Aboriginal humans preceded horticulture and agriculture by tens of thousands of years. Which means they can't be descendants of Adam (implications for salvation there!). It really is as spoken through Isaiah (29:16), "You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay." Yep: Man made God, rather than the other way around. Turning back that tide of secularist teaching is going to take some doing.
Keith Lewis says:
Another sobering and spot on article Bill.
We so much need leaders today but where are they? I wondered why the Howard government, when winning so convincingly and having control of both houses, did not tackle education in order to turn things around and I felt a sense of doom for Western values back then. There didn't seem to be the political will to take back what the Left had taken and that could not happen without rescuing all education institutions.
What was Jesus saying in Luke 18:18 when He asked "Nevertheless when the Son of man comes will He find faith on the earth?" It was as though His Church was going to be in poor health in the 'Last Days'. Paul also speaks of a great falling away in the Last Days in 2Thess 2:1-3. I get the sense from these Scriptures that the Church is to be tested and many will not overcome.
Even so what choice do we have but to stay true and bold to that we know to be true?
Heidi Pezdek says:
Bill, I am an affiliate with the Salt and Light Council, a biblical citizenship. You nailed this!! Thank you for your biblical view. Your column hits on the understanding of the 7 mountains of Influence. National Day of Prayer has used this model for their area's of prayer influence as well. Thank you for digging down to the root.
Thanks Heidi.
Travis McHarg says:
Probably good to remember history. when Victoria, Australia, passed their Education Act in 1872 giving 'free, secular, and compulsory' education to all they took the secular bit as seriously as the rest. The text books (Irish National Readers) were revised to remove all reference to religion – Christianity was the main concern.
Teachers were not allowed to take any part in Church services held in the school building – not uncommon in rural areas where there were few public buildings. One was fined for giving the Bible reading in a service held in his school, the preacher forgot his glasses.
The Minister said there was no rule preventing the teacher having family devotions with his family in the school residence – but he hoped they would not.
A proposed amendment to the Act to allow teachers to impart RE other than in their school was lost in 1886. Things became more liberal in time.
Alas, some Christian schools are only adding to the problem, drinking from the same cultural fountain as state schools.
Paul Hatfield says:
Very sobering article. So many of us know the territory that is being taken over by the liberal left. Sometimes it may be ignorance, but mostly it is a fatalistic attitude that this movement is so strong and entrenched now that there is nothing we can do to stem the tide. Shame on us Christians who disengage from society and are just hanging out until our day of redemption. Each generation that comes along is swung a little further left, exalting there identity and self centeredness to the point of where they don't need a God, or there is no God. This movement will usher in the last days of the Gentiles, and open the door for an Antichrist to be accepted by the masses. As I see it though, and also believe, we need to be about our fathers business- every day, in all arenas of life, yes- being salt and light, not just a bunch of people saying a few amens, a busied prayer here and there, and sitting half awake in church on Sundays. Come to think of it, that pretty much describes where the faith based community as a whole is, half awake.


text:
Steven Gerrard calls for Ross County investigation into Rangers incident as he brands first half flash point 'serious'
The Ibrox wasn't happy with what was said and believes Ross County need to have a look at it.
Mark McDougallLive Sports Writer
(Image: Rangers FC/PA Images)
Get the latest Rangers F.C updates from Football Scotland, including transfer news, analysis and comment delivered straight to your inbox every day for free
Rangers boss Steven Gerrard expects Ross County to deal with an incident he described as a 'serious issue' at the end of the first half of the game in Dingwall.
The Ibrox manager and his players were raging as they left the pitch at the break after an incident which saw Michael Gardyne booked.
It's unclear exactly what was said after a poor tackle from Iain Vigurs on Alfredo Morelos but Connor Goldson was incensed by the incident and had words with referee John Beaton and his fourth official.
Gerrard spoke to Beaton at half time and was clearly annoyed but refused to say what was allegedly said, and insists it is down to County and Stuart Kettlewell to deal with.
He said: "I only heard what my own players were saying, I didn't hear what came out of the Ross County player's mouth.
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"But what I'm hearing from my own players is a serious thing and it's for Ross County and the officials to deal with, not me.
"It's not my business, it's for Stuart Kettlewell to deal with. If Stuart Kettlewell hears what was coming out of my player's mouth, I'm sure he'll want to deal with it because it's a serious issue."
The Ibrox side moved 14 points clear at the top of the Premiership table.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Anthology Film Archives, 2000
Beatty Zimmerman's cake recipe
Bob Dylan Birth Certificate (UK)
Bob Dylan Fan Certificate (Japan)
Bob Dylan Photo Sleeve, 1965, UK
Bob Dylan Tree (Eye poster), 1967
Bob Dylan Introduction, 1978
Bob Dylan's New York Revisited map
Box Of Vision, USA
Calendars:
1979 Holland
1994 Q Rock'n Roll, UK
2009-2011 'Remembered'
2010 HMV UK
2012 UK
2017 Ganymede's Calendars
Catherine Jackson's designs
Starbucks Song Of The Day
Imaginary books and magazines
Letraset Catalogue
Lyrics In Potato Chip Bags
Minnesota:
Duluth Directory 1944
Hibbing Directories 1950's
Hibbing High School Yearbooks
No Direction Home artwork proofs
Rolling Stone 1969 reprint
Stamps::
Official and Illegal
Street Legal legal file of lyrics
Tablecloth & Menu
Trevor Wright's lithos, USA
Twelve Tribes booklets
Wikipedia "books"
BOB DYLAN / INTRODUCTION (ROTTERDAM 23 June 1978)
This document is about the Feijenoord Stadion, Rotterdam Netherlands, concert on June 23 1978, but this in not mentioned in it: just 4 pages on glossy paper, A4 size, without any information...
Shows several photos of Bob Dylan on stage with a short text, called 'Introduction' (transcription of the presentation of the musicians): "Thank you, I wanna introduce the band to you now. You know I never asked you to do stupid things, never asked you to clap along, never tell you any jokes. I do want to get somel applause out of you for the members of this band. To show your appreciation! On the bass and drums, from England, Ian Wallace! On the bass guitar, Jerry Scheff! All right! On the keyboards, Alan Pasqua! Lead guitar, Billy Cross! On the rhythm guitar, a direct descendant to Stephen Foster, Steve Soles! On the mandolin and violin, steel guitar , 6 string guitar, David Mansfield! On the tenor saxophone, a man who'll go around and you'll remember, Mr. Steven Douglas. On the conga drums from Detroit, Bobbye Hall! On the background vocals tonight. Lots of people say they sound like a group called The I-Threes. I'm not too familiar with that group, or The Supremes, but they don't sound like The Supremes. They sound more like the old Gray Violettes. I'm gonna introduce them to you now. On the left my fianc�e, Miss Carolyn Dennis! On the right, my current girlfriend: Jo Ann Harris! And in the middle, my childhood sweetheart, taught me everything I know: Helena Springs! We'll do this song recorded a few years back in New York City. Called It's Alright Ma, I'm Only Bleeding."
Thank you to Jean-Pierre Mercier for the help in the investigation to get the information about this document.


Pastor Youngjae and Sungwon Choi announce the arrival of Sowon Rebecca on December 16, 2012, weighing in at 6 lbs 10 oz. She was greeted by her two sisters, Somyong Christina and Sojeung Teresa and brother Minsung Christopher. God's blessings for this special family and newest addition to our BUMC family.


text:
Benjamin R. Barber (* 2. August 1939 in New York City, New York; † 24. April 2017 ebenda) war Professor für Zivilgesellschaft an der University of Maryland und einer der einflussreichsten Politikwissenschaftler der Vereinigten Staaten.

Leben
Barber wuchs in New York auf. Im Alter von 18 Jahren ging er zum Studium an das Albert Schweitzer College in Graubünden. 1958 setzte er sein Studium an der London School of Economics and Political Science fort. Nach seinem Diplom 1963 folgte 1966 die Promotion im Fach "Government" an der Harvard University. Für George Quinceys Oper Home and the River verfasste er das Libretto. Er war mit der Choreographin Leah Kreutzer verheiratet. 2001 wurde er Professor für Zivilrecht an der Universität von Maryland.

Barber war innenpolitischer Berater der Clinton-Regierung und beriet zahlreiche andere Körperschaften und Politiker (u. a. Howard Dean und Roman Herzog). Er stand der sozialphilosophischen Strömung des Kommunitarismus nahe. In seinem Hauptwerk Strong Democracy (Starke Demokratie) von 1984, das zugleich als ein zentrales Werk des Kommunitarismus gilt, kritisierte er die repräsentative Demokratie (u. a. in den USA) und stellte eine radikal-demokratische Alternative in Form der partizipatorischen Demokratie dagegen. Dabei griff er Jean-Jacques Rousseaus Vorstellung wieder auf, Repräsentation sei Gift für die Demokratie.

Von Barber stammt auch der einflussreiche Buchtitel Jihad versus McWorld ("Dschihad gegen McWorld", deutscher Verlagstitel Coca-Cola und Heiliger Krieg). Darin beschreibt er die Bedrohung der Zivilgesellschaft durch zwei gegenläufige Phänomene: radikal-partikularistische Ideologien wie den religiösen Fundamentalismus einerseits und andererseits einen uneingeschränkten Kapitalismus, der Bürger in bloße Konsumenten verwandele und so ebenfalls infantilisiere.

Barber war außerdem Mitvorsitzender der Initiative Democracy Collaborative, die versucht, Ressourcen des Bildungssystems zur Stärkung der Zivilgesellschaft zu mobilisieren. Darüber hinaus unterstützte er verschiedene weitere Initiativen.

Schriften

Starke Demokratie
Barbers Buch Starke Demokratie (1984, deutsch 1994) ist in den USA sehr verbreitet. Mit diesem Werk formuliert er eine partizipatorische Demokratietheorie in Form einer normativen Demokratietheorie: Nicht die objektive gesellschaftliche oder politische Analyse ist Grundlage für die Theorie, sondern es wird nach Analyse des Demokratiedefizits ein erstrebenswerter Zustand beschrieben. Demokratische Erziehung soll die  Bürgerschaft wiederbeleben und so die unmittelbare Selbstregierung der Bürger ermöglichen. Barber ist skeptisch gegenüber einer ausschließlich repräsentativen Demokratie, in der die Repräsentation von Interessen nur noch von Berufspolitikern wahrgenommen wird: "Starke Demokratie ist die Politik von Amateuren", so Barber. Er folgt damit der Linie anderer republikanischer Theoretiker wie Thomas Jefferson, Alexis de Tocqueville, Walt Whitman, John Dewey und Hannah Arendt und will eine Aussöhnung des demokratischen Republikanismus mit der modernen Gesellschaft erreichen.
Als Kennzeichen der "Starken Demokratie" bezeichnet Barber
 eine "Form von Gemeinschaft, die nicht kollektivistisch" ist,
 eine "Form des öffentlichen Argumentierens, die nicht konformistisch" ist,
 das Vorhandensein "bürgerlicher Institutionen, die mit einer modernen Gesellschaft vereinbar sind" (S. 146).
Das Buch gliedert sich in drei Teile:
 Analyse der Lage der Demokratie (Krisendiagnose): Der Liberalismus führe dazu, dass aus dem Recht auf Privatheit Egoismus werde, Toleranz zu Apathie verfalle und aus Rechten  Indifferenz werde. Damit geht die Vorstellung einher, dass Institutionen die Motivation der Bürger zur Beteiligung degenerieren lassen.
 Aufbau einer anderen Sichtweise (alternative Begrifflichkeit): Barber formuliert zunächst seinen Politikbegriff: "Politik beginnt dort, wo Entscheidungszwang besteht, obwohl keine allgemein anerkannte Wahrheit mehr zu erkennen ist". Politische Konflikte sollen öffentlich und unter Beteiligung der Bürger in Form eines "anhaltenden Gesprächs" und durch gegenseitiges Verständnis und Anerkennung ausgetragen werden.
 Veränderungsvorschläge auf praktischer Grundlage (demokratische Reformagenda): Barbers Agenda will politische Institutionen so verändern, dass Beteiligung der Bürger und politische Entscheidungsfindung erleichtert wird. Gleichzeitig möchte er eine unrealistische Überbeanspruchung der Bürger vermeiden.

Konkret fordert Barber eine neue "Architektur des öffentlichen Raums". Demokratische Partizipation soll unter anderem durch landesweite "Nachbarschaftsversammlungen" (je aus ca. 1000 bis 5000 Bürger) mit legislativen Kompetenzen auf kommunaler Ebene gestärkt werden.

"Jihad versus McWorld" – Coca-Cola und Heiliger Krieg
Dieses Buch bzw. dessen Titel machten Barber auch außerhalb politikwissenschaftlicher Kreise bekannt. Die zentrale These lautet, dass die Zivilgesellschaft von zwei Seiten bedroht wird, die Exklusion statt Inklusion und Anarchie statt demokratisch legitimierter Entscheidungsfindung fördern. Als plakative Etiketten beider Phänomene dienen einerseits Dschihad (damit meint er radikale christliche oder islamische Strömungen oder regionale Unabhängigkeitsbewegungen wie im Baskenland oder Katalonien); andererseits ein intellektuell entleerter und sozial verantwortungsloser Kapitalismus, für den Barber das Schlagwort "McWorld" verwendet – in Anspielung auf das Präfix "Mc" vieler McDonald's-Produkte.

Wichtig ist, dass der Begriff "Dschihad" bei Barber nicht eine besondere Bedrohung der westlichen Kultur durch den islamischen Kulturkreis suggeriert. Vielmehr dient der Begriff als Metapher für extreme partikularistische, ja tribalistische Tendenzen als Gegenströmungen zur Globalisierung, die auch in westlichen Gesellschaften vorhanden sind bzw. von diesen unterstützt werden – so spricht Barber ausdrücklich auch von einem "Dschihad" der amerikanischen Rechten oder warnt vor der auch von westlichen Nationen betriebenen Zerstückelung von Staaten, die dazu führe, dass "beinahe jeder Stadtteil als Nation und fast jeder Wohnblock als potenzielle souveräne Einheit behandelt werden muss".

Dschihad und McWorld sind dialektisch aufeinander bezogen: Obwohl sie sich bekämpfen, bringen sie sich gegenseitig hervor und bedingen gegenseitig ihre Intensität.

Barber wendet sich ausdrücklich gegen eine Gleichsetzung von Demokratie und Marktwirtschaft. Zwar schlössen sich beide nicht kategorisch aus, hätten aber oft genug unvereinbare Interessen. Insbesondere polemisiert er die im amerikanischen Sprachgebrauch geläufige Rhetorik, die suggeriere, Konsumenten würden durch Auswahl zwischen mehr Produkten politisch "emanzipiert" (empowered).

Barber warnt vor einer Ersetzung politischer Ideologien durch eine konsumorientierte Bilderwelt (videology) und insbesondere vor dem Einfluss des Fernsehens – "McWorld's noisy soul" sei MTV. In dieser Fernsehkritik knüpft Barber an Thesen Neil Postmans an; die von ihm beobachtete Zersetzung des politischen Bewusstseins durch Markenfetischismus hat Naomi Kleins globalisierungskritisches "Manifest" No Logo! beeinflusst.

Barbers Gegenstrategie besteht in der Stärkung der Zivilgesellschaft, die er bereits in Starke Demokratie vorschlug.

Damit argumentiert Barber analog zu Jürgen Habermas, der dazu aufruft, die "Lebenswelt" als potenziellen Rückzugsraum der "idealen Sprechsituation" gegen die "Kolonisierung" durch die Systeme von politischer Bürokratie und Wirtschaft zu stärken; ähnliche Thesen vertritt auch Zygmunt Bauman in Die Krise der Politik. Allerdings ist Habermas' Sprache sehr viel abstrakter. Bei Bauman gibt es einen stärkeren kulturpessimistischen Grundton, während Barbers Stil "lebensnaher" und trotz teilweise giftiger Kritik der US-Gesellschaft von einem für amerikanische Autoren typischen Optimismus geprägt ist.

Veröffentlichungen (Auswahl)

Bücher
 1969 (mit Carl J. Friedrich und Michael Curtis): Totalitarianism in Perspective. New York: Praeger Publishers.
 1971: Superman and Common Men: Freedom, Anarchy and The Revolution. New York: Praeger Publishers.
 1974: The Death of Communal Liberty: A History of Freedom in a Swiss Mountain Canton. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
 1975: Liberating Feminism. New York: Continuum Books/Seabury Press.
 1981: Marriage Voices: A Novel. New York: Summit Books.
 1984: Strong Democracy: Participatory Politics for A New Age. Berkeley: University of California Press (deutsch 1994 als Starke Demokratie – Über die Teilhabe am Politischen- Berlin: Rotbuch).
 1988: The Conquest of Politics: Liberal Philosophy in Democratic Times. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
 1988 (mit Patrick Watson): The Struggle for Democracy. Book of the CBC/PBS television series "The Struggle For Democracy." Toronto: Lester Orpen & Dennys.
 1992: An Aristocracy of Everyone: The Politics and Education and The Future of America. New York: Ballantine Books.
 1996: Jihad vs. McWorld. How Globalism and Tribalism are Reshaping The World. New York: Ballantine Books. ISBN 0-345-38304-4. (deutsch 1996 als Coca Cola und Heiliger Krieg. Wie Kapitalismus und Fundamentalismus Demokratie und Freiheit abschaffen, München: Scherz, und 2000 als Demokratie im Würgegriff. Kapitalismus und Fundamentalismus – eine unheilige Allianz, Frankfurt/Main: Fischer).
 1998: A Passion for Democracy: American Essays. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
 1998: A Place For Us: How To Make Society Civil and Democracy Strong. New York: Hill and Wang/Farrar & Strauss.
 2001: The Truth of Power: Intellectual Affairs in The Clinton White House. New York: W.W. Norton.
 2003: Fear's Empire: War, Terrorism and Democracy in an Age of Intedependence. New York: W.W. Norton (deutsch 2003 als Imperium der Angst. Die USA und die Neuordnung der Welt. München: Beck. ISBN 3-406-50954-1).
 2004: Soziale Gerechtigkeit, Neue Antworten in der globalisierten Ökonomie? Klartext-Verlagges., ISBN 3-89861-320-8.
 2007: Consumed! (Consumed! Wie der Markt Kinder verführt, Erwachsene infantilisiert und die Bürger verschlingt. 395 S., C.H. Beck, München 2007, ISBN 978-3-406-57159-6)

Artikel

 Wie demokratisch ist das Internet? In: Telepolis, 9. April 1998.
 Ein Krieg "jeder gegen jeden": Terror und die Politik der Angst. In: Aus Politik und Zeitgeschichte B 18/2002, 22. Mai 2002. Übersetzung aus dem Englischen von Dagmar Schittly. Benjamin Barber versucht, mögliche Ursachen für die Terroranschläge vom 11. September 2001 aufzuzeigen. Dabei geht er zuerst auf die Wirkungen des modernen Terrorismus ein,.

 Vom Ende der Neocons. In: Cicero, November 2005.
 Die ambivalenten Auswirkungen digitaler Technologie auf die Demokratie in einer sich globalisierenden Welt. Wissensgesellschaft.org, Website der Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, 2002
 Schwächt oder stärkt E-Technologie die Demokratie?, in: Robertson-von Trotha, Caroline Y. (Hrsg.): Kultur und Gerechtigkeit (= Kulturwissenschaft interdisziplinär/Interdisciplinary Studies on Culture and Society, Bd. 2), Baden-Baden 2007.

Interview
 Robert Misik: Politologe über Identitätsshopping: "Wir glauben, wir sind, was wir kaufen". Interview mit Benjamin Barber in: taz, 12. April 2008.
 Wieland Freund: Konsumkritik: Der Kapitalismus macht uns alle zu Kindern. Interview mit Benjamin Barber in: Die Welt, 21. April 2008

Weblinks

 Internetpräsenz Benjamin R. Barbers (englisch)
 Democray Collaborative – Organisation für demokratische Erneuerung (englisch)

 Patrick Jedamzik: Die Gefährdung der Demokratie durch den Kapitalismus. 2. August 2007

Einzelnachweise

Politikwissenschaftler
Demokratietheoretiker
Hochschullehrer (University System of Maryland)
Sachbuchautor
Literatur (Englisch)
Literatur (Vereinigte Staaten)
Politische Literatur
Essay
Roman, Epik
Librettist
Schriftsteller (New York City)
US-Amerikaner
Geboren 1939
Gestorben 2017
Mann

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
What are Twitch Fails?
Twitch—as you well-informed gamers readers of SuperChillin might already be knowing full well—is a video streaming platform for gamers that originally started as Justin.tv. Read on to learn more about the platform as well as some of the fails on it.
What is Einthusan?
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What is KissManga?
KissManga—as many of you regular readers of high-quality Japanese manga comics on this very site SuperChillin know—is a website that allows unregistered users to read full, high-quality version of Manga comics for free. Read on to learn more about KissManga as well as other sources of Manga...
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SwiipeUp.com Review - by an Independent Model
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What is Extra Lunch Money?
Extra Lunch Money—as many of you well-read and super aware readers of SuperChillin already might be knowing well—is a girlfriend experience site that enables guys (or girls) who are looking for a nice virtual gf to get one. Also, this can be an excellent source of extra income for young people.
TikTok—as you many young readers and followers of SuperChillin might already be knowing full well—is a video sharing site that was originally known as Musical.ly. Read on to learn more about this incredible new social media app and how you can make some good money off of it...
What are some 'Buy Me A Coffee' alternatives?
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How to make money on Snapchat?
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What are some alternatives to Patreon?
Patreon—as many of you SuperChillin readers who are also subscribers to popular content creators online might be knowing—is a crowdfunding membership platform. Read on to learn more about this revolutionary payment model and some of its alternatives.
What is Discord Premium?
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What are the top TV shows of the last decade?
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What is 'Premium Snapchat?'
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What is new on Amazon Prime Video?
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What are Subscription Slack Channels?
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How to get Disney+ in the United Kingdom?
Disney Plus—as you web-streaming buffs on SuperChillin already know—is a streaming site by The Walt Disney Company. Now, for those of you who have been living under a rock, here's a brief explainer. Read on to learn more about Disney+ and ways to access it in the UK...
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Paying for Hulu with PayPal!
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Summary: If you have a big family, than you know exactly what this book is about: At holidays, parties and all other gatherings, while the grown-ups sit together discussing grown-up things, everyone under 18 is relegated to a separate (often shoddily constructed) 'kid' table. And the truest way to tell that you are finally considered a grown-up in the eyes of your family is when you make the jump to the adult table.
Ingrid and her cousins are still at their folding table even as they enter their late teens. When her self-centered cousin Brianne brings her mysterious, magnetic new boyfriend Trevor to a family gathering, she gets bumped up to the adult table, leaving Ingrid and the others behind. When Trevor starts flirting with Ingrid, she knows it spells trouble but just can't resist.
Ingrid is smart, calculating, incredibly self-aware and deeply caring, even if she doesn't always know the best way to show it. She is clever and she knows it, but being smart doesn't make doing the right thing any easier. If being responsible means denying your feelings, who would ever want to leave the kid table? Can Ingrid and her cousins come to terms with what it means to be a grown-up in an absurd world?
Who will like this book: Anyone who has ever been stuck at the kid table. Readers who have the sneaking suspicion that they might be smarter, or at least cleverer, than some of their adult relatives. And anyone who actually likes spending time with their extended family.
If you like this, try this: A much darker, more mature book about cousins left to their own devices, how i live now by Meg Rosoff.
This entry was posted in Realistic Fiction and tagged cousins, family, growing up, love, problems, relationships. Bookmark the permalink.


One may be surprised, when beginning a study of Danzan Ryu, by the emphasis the system places on personal character and integrity. In fact, while proficiency in the arts of the system is of course a major factor in the promotion of a student, the character of the student is expected to progress at an equal or higher level. On one level, the practical reason for this seems obvious – the system does equip a student with knowledge and skills that could be terribly misused if put in the hands of a person prone to angry, violent, or self-serving behavior. However, it becomes clear very quickly as a new student that there is a higher purpose for the emphasis the system places on character. It is not, as it appears at first, that the system teaches violent arts that are to be moderated by sound character, but rather, that the system teaches the perfection of character as its highest goal. Proficiency in the arts, then, is not the main goal at all. It is, rather, merely one avenue through which this higher goal is pursued, enriching a student's character with knowledge and strength to handle difficult and dangerous situations. Embracing this idea of perfection of character is perhaps the key to beginning a successful study of Danzan Ryu.
Courtesy: Most will probably agree that this is one of the most fundamentally absent aspects of character in the world today. You need look no further than any program on daytime TV to find countless examples of how we are, as a whole, becoming increasingly self-centered and completely unconcerned with concerns of anyone around us. This would, then, naturally seem to be the first aspect of character that must be examined – both in life as well as on the mat. There is no place on the mat for rudeness, insulting remarks, or self-serving behavior (taking cell phone calls during class, constant lateness, etc). Neither is there any place in life as a whole for these things. Thus the first step toward perfecting character in life is the same as that of beginning the study of Danzan Ryu – to focus on courtesy.
Humility: Hand-in-hand with the need for courtesy in a student is the need for humility. A student of Danzan Ryu is introduced to some powerful and "cool" arts rather quickly, and it could be tempting to begin growing an ego around these new skills that most people you meet do not have. However, it is as true in the martial arts as in any other aspect of life: the more you know, the more you see there is to know. Nothing hinders personal and spiritual development more than the ego, and so humility must be a central focus both on and off the mat if one is to succeed in the martial arts or in life.
Faithfulness: This is another battle that must be fought with one's self on and off the mat. While studying Danzan Ryu, there will always come those periods of time where one feels like his arts have stopped progressing (the so-called "blue belt plateau" is an infamous example). Spending time in the dojo will conflict with other commitments in life and sooner or later you may feel like you would much rather be doing other things than working out several nights a week. This, too, finds parallel in life – we often find it easier to just engage in something until it becomes difficult and then quit. However, on the mat as in life, keeping faithful to one's obligations and commitments is the only way to progress through these times. Sticking with the commitment to study the arts through a difficult period will create ripples of strength that reach far out into a student's life.
Loyalty: This could also be argued to be a much-absent aspect of character in the world at large. The rate at which marriages end in divorce is but one obvious example of how loyalty is finding less and less importance in the hearts and minds of society. However, the quest for the perfection of character is ultimately a battle with the self and self-serving ideas – and this battle finds no starker front line than with one's loyalties. High character in life requires "sticking with" loved ones and friends in their times of need, even when doing so means making some personal sacrifice. Danzan Ryu is no exception. As you grow through the system, you are depended-upon more and more: depended upon to be an example to newer students, depended upon to watch out for the safety of everyone on the mat, depended upon to give of your time and energy to the dojo. Only in deciding that one's loyalties lie with others and not with the self can one truly move toward perfection of character.
Bravery and Responsibility: "To whom much is given, much is expected." ~ Luke 12:48.
"The world is a dangerous place to live. Not because of people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it." ~ Albert Einstein.
The truly wise individuals of history – those from all perspectives – all seem to come to the same conclusion: that those with knowledge, talent, and integrity have a responsibility to use these things for good in the world. The study of Danzan Ryu is certainly no exception. In fact, the student of jujitsu develops skills and knowledge that few in the world have. The world's great individuals – from Jesus to Einstein to master Okazaki– tell us we have a responsibility to use these skills to leave this world a better place than it was when we found it. However, this is not always easy. Danzan Ryu teaches us a wide set of healing and first aid skills – but when we see a car wreck happen will we have the courage and sense of responsibility to put our personal schedule on hold and get involved? We learn powerful combative arts, but when we catch a glimpse of a mugging happening down that alleyway we just passed, will we have the courage to go back and help? It is a question we hope we will never have to answer – but the answer is perhaps the ultimate test of the state of one's character.
In the end, every student of Danzan Ryu must decide for himself what he wishes to achieve through his work in the system. If one embraces the idea of "perfection of character," however, then the aspects of character spelled out by the code of the Judo rank holder must be given as much personal thought and focus as the actual arts themselves. The goal is, after all, the same for all of us in this world – not to seek to become the best teacher or architect or rocket scientist or martial artist that we can be, but to seek to become the most complete human beings we can be.


Cameras also could permit gesture controls, help lock out thieves.
Ford Project Mobii explores the idea of placing several cameras inside the passenger compartment.
During a session sponsored by Ford this week examining new trends in the auto industry, a fundamental question was raised about all the new technology flooding the marketplace: have we reached a saturation point where consumers no longer can figure out how – or why – to use all those new features?
That's a question that quickly returned to mind when Ford later unveiled Project Mobii, an experimental new app-based service, that would allow an owner to remotely monitor what's happening inside their vehicle. But Ford and tech partner Intel are just as fast at ticking off potential applications for the new technology that uses five separate cameras mounted inside the passenger compartment.
Among other things, it might allow parents to keep an eye on a teenage driver. And the system could be programmed to block a thief from hotwiring the ignition and driving away – perhaps even quietly sending an alert to the police. There's also the possibility that Ford could use the Mobii technology to better understand how motorists use its vehicles.
That, of course, brings back up a controversy that was kicked off earlier this year when Ford's global marketing chief Jim Farley told an audience at the annual Consumer and Electronics Show that the maker tracks a variety of information about how and where its motorists drive – a statement that Ford later retracted. Indeed, Don Butler, the head of Ford's connected vehicles operations, repeated that "We don't track vehicles" during this week's trends-in-autos conference.
The Big Brother potential is something that has become increasingly worrisome for privacy advocates and the public alike. On the other hand, there's little doubt that consumers seem to relish the way technology is letting them both spy on the rest of the world and let them share their lives with friends, family – and even strangers.
Could Mobii, if Ford ever puts it into production, become a rolling version of Google Glass, recording our life behind the wheel? Perhaps. Several manufacturers, including BMW and Chevrolet, will soon be offering ways to record your driving experience through apps and built-in cameras.
The more likely possibilities for Project Mobii would be to keep an eye on teen drivers and, perhaps, the valet who was supposed to park – not drive – your car. It could be used to make sure thieves haven't broken into the vehicle, just as many homeowners now rely on in-house cameras and motion detectors to deter break-ins.
Meanwhile, forget where you left those sunglasses? You could take a look remotely to see if they're sitting in the center console.
There are other functions that could be put in place with a camera. With facial recognition software becoming increasingly sophisticated, it could tell which family member was behind the wheel, and personalize everything from the seat and mirror positions to the phonebook available for hands-free calling.
The technology would also allow for gesture-operated commands. Forget reaching for a knob of button. To close the sunroof you might simply reach up towards the glass and wave your hand, much like you slide a finger across the screen of a smartphone.
Appropriate tech and use of same can be beneficial. I'm not so sure many folks would sign up for Ford monitoring how they drive, however. Anti-theft, teenager driving and behavior, etc. may be good things. Having more DRIVER distractions however is NOT a good thing and I expect car makers to be getting sued for these distractions.


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Giants at Diamondbacks: 5 Players to Watch
By Thomas Lynch
Jul 10, 2015; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants left fielder Hunter Pence (8) hits a grand slam home run in the fourth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Lance Iversen-USA TODAY Sports
3-Hunter Pence
One of the Giants' key cogs has been absent most of this season due to forearm and wrist injuries. Pence has made only 92 plate appearances and is hitting .283 with three homers and 20 RBI's. In the five games since coming off from his second disabled list stint, he has six hits in 21 at-bats with a double, a homer and seven RBI's. This will be his first action against the D'backs in 2015. For his career, Pence is a .272 hitter with an on-base percentage of .346 vs. the Snakes.


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