Fight City Hall and Win

Fight City Hall and Win
Author: Connor Murphy
Publisher: Wheatmark, Inc.
Total Pages: 330
Release: 2017-12-07
Genre: Self-Help
ISBN: 1627875476

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How often have you seen a development built that no one wanted or needed -- ruining the neighborhood, harming the landscape, and wrecking property values -- despite grumbling and protests by the neighbors, and sometimes without anyone even knowing it was going to happen until it was too late? All across America, bad development is approved because ordinary people don't have the knowledge they need to stand up and fight back. At any time, you can get a public notice telling you a notorious real estate developer has applied for a permit to build nearby. Will you know how to respond? Will you know what steps to take to protect your rights? Fight City Hall and Win gives ordinary folks the insider knowledge they need to protect their neighborhoods. It is filled with humor, irony, and true-to-life bedtime stories that teach readers how to take on the good old boys at city hall -- and win.

America, the Owner's Manual

America, the Owner's Manual
Author: Bob Graham
Publisher: CQ Press
Total Pages: 422
Release: 2016-07-15
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1483324060

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In 2016, Americans fed up with the political process vented that frustration with their votes. Republicans nominated for president a wealthy businessman and former reality show host best known on the campaign trail for his sharp rhetoric against immigration and foreign trade. Democrats nearly selected a self-described socialist who ran on a populist platform against the influence of big money in politics. While it is not surprising that Americans would channel their frustrations into votes for contenders who pledge to end business as usual, the truth is that we don’t have to pin our hopes for greater participation on any one candidate. All of us have a say—if we learn, master and practice the skills of effective citizenship. One of the biggest roadblocks to participation in democracy is the perception that privileged citizens and special interests command the levers of power and that everyday Americans can’t fight City Hall. That perception is undoubtedly why a 2015 Pew Charitable Trusts survey found that 74 percent of those Americans surveyed believed that most elected officials didn't care what people like them thought. Graham and Hand intend to change that conventional wisdom by showing citizens how to flex their citizenship muscles. They describe effective citizenship skills and provide tips from civic experts. Even more importantly, they offer numerous examples of everyday Americans who have used their skills to make democracy respond. The reader will see themselves in these examples of citizens who chose to be victorious participants rather than tranquil spectators in the arena of democracy. By the end of the book, you will have new confidence that citizen participation is the lifeblood of America -- and will be ready to make governments work for you, not the other way around.

Bleak

Bleak
Author: Lynn Messina
Publisher: Diversion Books
Total Pages: 319
Release: 2012-06-26
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1938120191

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A smart, funny take on the Charles Dickens classic BLEAK HOUSE—for anyone who’s ever held on to a dream just a little too long. New York writer Ricki Carstone knows the odds of Hollywood actually turning her debut novel, Jarndyce and Jarndyce, into a movie are slim. But Moxie Bernard, the most famous teen on the planet, has signed on to star in the option. Plus, the producer is throwing her a super fabulous party in Hollywood (with Moxie!) to celebrate the relaunch of her book with a younger, sexier cover. Maybe it will happen after all. Quitting her dead-end paralegal job to move out to Los Angeles and keep an eye on the project, Ricki meets a handsome out-of-work actor who encourages her to try her hand at screenwriting, and an experienced screenwriter who is willing to help her for a fee, which only starts out small. And then there's her cute neighbor Simon, who thinks her new friends are just taking advantage of her. Will Ricki ever see her name in lights and make it big in Hollywood?

America, the Owner′s Manual

America, the Owner′s Manual
Author: Bob Graham
Publisher: CQ Press
Total Pages: 423
Release: 2016-07-15
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1506371388

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In 2016, Americans fed up with the political process vented that frustration with their votes. Republicans nominated for president a wealthy businessman and former reality show host best known on the campaign trail for his sharp rhetoric against immigration and foreign trade. Democrats nearly selected a self-described socialist who ran on a populist platform against the influence of big money in politics. While it is not surprising that Americans would channel their frustrations into votes for contenders who pledge to end business as usual, the truth is that we don’t have to pin our hopes for greater participation on any one candidate. All of us have a say—if we learn, master and practice the skills of effective citizenship. One of the biggest roadblocks to participation in democracy is the perception that privileged citizens and special interests command the levers of power and that everyday Americans can’t fight City Hall. That perception is undoubtedly why a 2015 Pew Charitable Trusts survey found that 74 percent of those Americans surveyed believed that most elected officials didn′t care what people like them thought. Graham and Hand intend to change that conventional wisdom by showing citizens how to flex their citizenship muscles. They describe effective citizenship skills and provide tips from civic experts. Even more importantly, they offer numerous examples of everyday Americans who have used their skills to make democracy respond. The reader will see themselves in these examples of citizens who chose to be victorious participants rather than tranquil spectators in the arena of democracy. By the end of the book, you will have new confidence that citizen participation is the lifeblood of America -- and will be ready to make governments work for you, not the other way around.

Wild Women of Michigan

Wild Women of Michigan
Author: Norma Lewis
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
Total Pages: 142
Release: 2017-09-04
Genre: History
ISBN: 1439662401

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Wild Women of Michigan commemorates the women of this state who boldly left their marks. Countless Michiganian women performed extraordinary acts that challenged and improved the world. Madame Marie-Therese Cadillac served as the medicine woman in the frontier that became Detroit. Annie Taylor survived rolling over Niagara Falls in a barrel. After suffragist Anna Howard Shaw fought to vote, the state saw an influx of women running for office. In the 1970s, East Lansing's Patricia Beeman aided in efforts to end apartheid in South Africa. Suellen Finatri showcased an extreme side of equestrian sports by riding more than four thousand miles from St. Ignace to Skagway, Alaska. And World War II army flight nurse Aleda Lutz evacuated more than 3,500 wounded soldiers and is still recognized as one of America's most decorated servicewomen. Author and historian Norma Lewis commemorates the women who boldly left their marks.

Nudge

Nudge
Author: Richard H. Thaler
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 384
Release: 2021-01-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0300262280

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An updated and refreshed edition of the groundbreaking book that shows how people can be nudged toward decisions that will improve their lives "If you've read Nudge and think you fully grasp the concept and its uses, you are mistaken. The new edition significantly deepened my understanding of what nudges are and how they can be employed. It truly is a must-read."―Robert Cialdini, New York Times bestselling author of Influence "Few books can be said to have changed the world, but Nudge did. The Final Edition is marvelous: funny, useful, and wise."―Daniel Kahneman, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Thinking, Fast and Slow Since the original publication of Nudge more than a decade ago, the word "nudge" has entered the vocabulary of businesspeople, policymakers, engaged citizens, and consumers everywhere. The book has given rise to more than 200 "nudge units" in governments around the world and countless groups of behavioral scientists in every part of the economy. It has taught us how to use thoughtful "choice architecture"--a concept the authors invented--to help us make better decisions for ourselves, our families, and our society. Now, the authors have rewritten the book from cover to cover, making use of their experiences in and out of government over the past dozen years as well as the explosion of new research in numerous academic disciplines. It offers a wealth of new insights, for both its avowed fans and newcomers to the field, about a wide variety of issues that we face in our daily lives--COVID-19, health, personal finance, retirement savings, credit card debt, home mortgages, medical care, organ donation, climate change, and "sludge" (paperwork and other nuisances that we don't want and keep us from getting what we do want)--all while honoring one of the cardinal rules of nudging: make it fun!