{"product_id":"why-democracy-is-oppositional-john-medearis-9780674725331","title":"Why Democracy Is Oppositional","description":"\u003cp\u003eIs infrequent voting the most we can expect from a free citizenry? Would democracy be more robust if our political discourse were more deliberative? John Medearis's trenchant and trend-bucking work of political philosophy argues that democracies face significant challenges that go beyond civic lethargy and unreasonable debate. Democracy is inherently a fragile state of affairs, he reminds us. Revisiting fundamental questions about the system in theory and practice, \u003ci\u003eWhy Democracy Is Oppositional\u003c\/i\u003e helps us see why preserving democracy has always been--and will always be--a struggle. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs citizens of democracies seek political control over their destinies, they confront forces that threaten to dominate their lives. These forces may take the form of runaway financial markets, powerful special interests, expanding militaries, or dysfunctional legislatures. But citizens of democracies help create the very institutions that overwhelm them. Hostile threats do not generally come from the outside but are the product of citizens' own collective activities. Medearis contends that democratic action perpetually arises to reclaim egalitarian control over social forces and institutions that have become alienated from large numbers of citizens. Democracy is therefore necessarily oppositional. Concerted, contentious political activities of all kinds are fundamental to it, while consensus and easy compromise are rarities. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eRecovering insights from political theorists such as Karl Marx and John Dewey, \u003ci\u003eWhy Democracy Is Oppositional\u003c\/i\u003e addresses contemporary issues ranging from the global financial crisis and economic inequality to drone warfare and mass incarceration.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e John Medearis\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0674725336\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780674725331\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Harvard University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/09\/2015\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 272\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.10lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.50h x 6.30w x 1.00d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/01\/2016","brand":"John Medearis","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":43925565636863,"sku":"9780674725331","price":47.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/products\/img_dcf239d2-4ae2-4c8c-8101-53ba70677913.jpg?v=1681078027","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/why-democracy-is-oppositional-john-medearis-9780674725331","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}