Synopses & Reviews
The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina exposed to the world what many U.S. politicians and pundits have long been able to ignore. The media images that commanded our attention spoke loudly of the class and racial divisions that still exist in the United States today. Despite the stock market gains of the 1990s, which increased the ranks of millionaires and created greater wealth for those already wealthy, U.S. society has witnessed a dramatic increase in class inequality over that last two decades. A host of newly available research indicates that the United States is afar more classbound society than was previously supposed. The rich are becoming both relatively and absolutely richer while the poor are becoming relatively, if not absolutely, poorer.
More Unequal: Aspects of Class in the United States is a sobering examination of the dynamics of class relations today. John Bellamy Foster, William K. Tabb, David Roediger, Stephanie Luce, and Mark Brenner— among others—contribute essays that challenge many of our assumptions about class and provide a multilayered analysis. Topics include the impact of social and economic policy on class; wealth and prospects for the working poor; undocumented workers and their exploitation in the U.S. informal economy; race and class struggles post-Hurricane Katrina; women and class over the last forty years; and education reform and the devastating effects for public schooling. Editor, Michael D. Yates shares a personal story of his working-class life and values, the shaping of his political consciousness, and the people and ideas that inspired his teaching.
For the vast majority of us, a strong work ethic and desire to see the next generation in better circumstances are no longer enough. The barriers separating classes are hardening. Class inequality manifests itself in wealth, income, and occupation, but also in education, consumption, and health. More Unequal: Aspects of Class in the United States demonstrates that an analysis of society as a whole—its relationships of power, conflict, and potential for social change— is not possible without a thorough investigation of the role and meaning of class.
Review
“This book will prove useful to teachers, students, researchers, and activists as we struggle to understand how class is working in the twenty-first century United States.”
-Peter Rachleff,professor of history, Macalester College, and President, Working Class Studies Association
Review
“Binds diverse, informed, often compellingly personal explorationsof social and economic inequity together into a revealing journey through the scarred terrain of today's working-class reality. This book should be off the shelf and in the hands, and backpacks, of a new generation of working-class activists who can lead the struggle to collectively claim a new direction.”
-Jerry Tucker,former UAW International Executive Board Member and co-founder of the Center for Labor Renewal
Synopsis
It is common to become anxious in situations such as job interviews, exams, or a public speaking engagement. For some, however, anxiety symptoms become so severe and persistent that they become disabling. In some cases people develop episodes of sudden and intense anxiety, known as panic attacks, with physical symptoms so severe that they may be mistaken for heart disease or a stroke. Some sufferers begin to avoid situations they believe will cause them stress, to the point that they become fearful of restaurants or supermarkets, or even of leaving their homes.
Overcoming Panic has been developed as a self-help guide for overcoming and preventing panic attacks and associated agoraphobia. Based on the clinically proven techniques of cognitive behavioral therapy, this step-by-step management program will be indispensable for those affected, as well as their families and friends, psychologists, and those in the medical profession.
About the Author
Derrick Silove is a practicing clinical psychiatrist and Director of the Psychiatry Research and Teaching Unit, School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales.
Vijaya Manicavasagar is a senior clinical psychologist and is Research Coordinator of the Psychiatry Research and Teaching Unit of the University of New South Wales.