Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
From the former editor-in-chief of the Wall Street Journal, a must-read autopsy on how America went from a shining beacon to a country wallowing in self-hatred in just thirty years. WHAT WENT WRONG investigates the fatal combination of cultural warfare and economic failure in America, and reimagines the American system coupled with a reassertion of the values of our democracy for the sake of a better and brighter future. Thirty years ago, America stood triumphant. The nation that had been founded in pursuit of the simple ideal of human freedom had become the most successful and powerful country in history. In the space of half a century it had defeated both fascism and communism. This was above all a victory for the universal values the United States had pioneered: of free people and free markets. With the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union, Americans could be uniquely proud of their country's indispensable role in defeating evil and promoting good all over the world.
Just three decades later, that pride and self-confidence lies in tatters. America is now widely denounced at home and abroad as a malignant power built on discrimination, imperialism, and oppression. Millions of Americans say they have little faith in their country's future. A loud and increasingly powerful elite argues that the country is irredeemably flawed, its culture, heritage, and history widely condemned as fundamentally prejudiced, bigoted -- even genocidal. WHAT WENT WRONG is a deeply reported and thought-provoking account that explores the ways in which Americans have been betrayed and undermined, and how that same nation can reclaim its sense of purpose for a better future.
Synopsis
From the former editor-in-chief of the Wall Street Journal, a must-read account of how America suffers from a "trust deficit" that has weakened its cornerstone institutions and divided our society. AMERICAN BREAKDOWN dissects how, in the space of a generation, the pillars that sustained the once-dominant superpower have been dangerously eroded. From government to business, from media to medicine--the strength and security of the American experiment have been weakened by a widening gap between the elites who control these institutions and the public.
At the root of this breakdown is a precipitous fall in Americans' trust in their political, business and cultural leaders. As Baker writes, "This pathology of distrust across American society is eating the country away from the inside." Millions of Americans say they have little faith in their country's future, and no longer seem to have trust in their leaders, in their important social and civil institutions, even in their common values and ideals, or ultimately in each other.
America in fact hasn't failed. Americans have been failed--misled by inept and deceitful political leaders, deserted by predatory and cynical corporate chiefs, and, above all, betrayed by a cultural elite that has exploited the very freedom this country provided in order to destroy it.
AMERICAN BREAKDOWN is a deep analysis and thought-provoking account that explores the ways in which Americans have been let down and offers solutions for how we rebuild trust and reclaim purpose for a better future.