| Acknowledgments |
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xi | |
| About the Author |
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xii | |
| Introduction |
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xiii | |
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1 Overview of an Inferior Nation |
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1 | (22) |
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Conflicting Images and Misplaced Priorities |
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1 | (3) |
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Comparative and Absolute Standards |
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4 | (5) |
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9 | (2) |
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Sources of the Myth's Robustness |
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11 | (3) |
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The Informational Defaults of the Media and Government |
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14 | (3) |
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An Integrated Power Structure |
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17 | (2) |
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19 | (4) |
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2 The Economy, Work, Recent Federal Budgets, and Business and Government |
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23 | (52) |
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The Paradox of Poverty in the Midst of Wealth |
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23 | (6) |
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23 | (1) |
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24 | (5) |
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Income Inequality and Social Mobility |
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29 | (4) |
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The Rollover from Record Budget Surplus to Record Budget Deficit in Two Years |
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33 | (2) |
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35 | (2) |
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37 | (1) |
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38 | (1) |
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38 | (1) |
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Productivity, Job Stress, and Child Care for Working Parents |
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39 | (3) |
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42 | (2) |
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Other Comparisons with Europe |
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44 | (5) |
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44 | (2) |
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Contribution of Employers to Social Security |
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46 | (1) |
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Gross Domestic Product (GDP) |
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46 | (3) |
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Consumer Confidence and Spending |
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49 | (1) |
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50 | (6) |
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Consumption and Happiness |
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56 | (1) |
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Enron and Beyond: Corporate Fraud, Regulatory Laxity, and Tax Evasion |
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57 | (7) |
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Corporations as Persons and Their Political Ascendancy |
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64 | (11) |
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3 Health, Health Care, and Costs |
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75 | (32) |
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Leading Causes of Death, Major Illnesses, and Disabilities |
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76 | (5) |
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81 | (1) |
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82 | (1) |
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83 | (1) |
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Alcohol and the Use of Illicit Substances |
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83 | (1) |
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Prevention of Illness, Deferment of Death |
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84 | (2) |
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86 | (12) |
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87 | (1) |
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Distribution of Health Costs |
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87 | (11) |
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The Quality of Health Care |
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98 | (2) |
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The Health of Americans Compared with That of Citizens of Other Advanced Nations |
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100 | (4) |
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An Afterword on the Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act of 2003 |
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104 | (3) |
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107 | (18) |
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Educational Achievement Compared with Other Nations |
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107 | (3) |
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Spending on Education as a Measure of National Commitment |
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110 | (2) |
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Factors Related to School Achievement |
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112 | (3) |
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Innovation and the Organization of Education |
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115 | (2) |
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Dropping Out of Secondary Education and the Negative Role of the Federal Government |
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117 | (4) |
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Access to Higher Education |
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121 | (4) |
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125 | (18) |
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Crime, Its Fluctuation, and Its Costs |
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125 | (2) |
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Imprisonment, Rehabilitation, and Parole |
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127 | (5) |
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132 | (3) |
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Drug Control: Enforcement or Prevention, Crime or Disease? |
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135 | (2) |
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137 | (6) |
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6 The Environment, Energy, and Natural Resources |
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143 | (20) |
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Energy Consumption, Pollution, and Global Warming |
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143 | (12) |
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Actions of the Current Administration That Endanger the Nation's Environment |
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155 | (2) |
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Other Crises of the Global Environment and America's Response |
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157 | (6) |
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7 Foreign Affairs-Selected Issues |
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163 | (60) |
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Foreign Assistance to Poor and Developing Countries |
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163 | (15) |
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Economic, Social, and Environmental Deprivation in the World |
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163 | (4) |
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The U.S. Response to the Need for Assistance |
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167 | (8) |
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Public Attitudes toward Foreign Assistance |
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175 | (3) |
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The Afghanistan War: A Case Study of Military Mismanagement with Tragic Consequences |
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178 | (18) |
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An Afterword on Civilian Casualties |
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196 | (1) |
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The Iraq War of 2003 and More Military Mismanagement |
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197 | (14) |
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Corporate Influence on Military Preparedness |
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211 | (3) |
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The Sanctions Alternative |
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214 | (1) |
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215 | (8) |
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8 Racial, Ethnic, and Gender Inequality |
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223 | (18) |
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223 | (9) |
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Other Victims of Ethnic or Racial Prejudice and Discrimination |
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232 | (2) |
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234 | (7) |
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241 | (14) |
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The Bill of Rights vs. the Patriot Act and Other Government Policies and Regulations |
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241 | (6) |
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Anecdotal Evidence of Abuse |
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247 | (4) |
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Public Reaction to Curtailment of Civil Liberties |
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251 | (4) |
| 10 The Media and Their Relationships with Corporations, the Government, and the Public |
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255 | (28) |
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Media Mediocrity and Concentration |
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255 | (6) |
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The Media and Corporate Enterprise |
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261 | (8) |
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A Brief History of Corporate Control of the Media |
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269 | (6) |
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275 | (8) |
| 11 Democracy |
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283 | (28) |
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283 | (6) |
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289 | (4) |
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Filling the Electoral Power Vacuum with Special-Interest Wealth and Influence |
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293 | (5) |
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What Difference Does It Make If Democracy Is Weak? |
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298 | (6) |
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Where the Rubber Hits the Road: The Elusive Realm of Bureaucratic Performance |
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304 | (7) |
| 12 Conclusions and a New Beginning |
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311 | (10) |
| Notes |
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321 | (60) |
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321 | (50) |
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1. Overview of an Inferior Nation |
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321 | (2) |
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2. The Economy, Work, Recent Federal Budgets, and Business and Government |
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323 | (11) |
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3. Health, Health Care, and Costs |
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334 | (9) |
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343 | (3) |
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346 | (4) |
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6. The Environment, Energy, and Natural Resources |
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350 | (5) |
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7. Foreign Affairs-Selected Issues |
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355 | (10) |
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8. Racial, Ethnic, and Gender Inequality |
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365 | (4) |
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369 | (2) |
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10. The Media and Their Relationships with Corporations, the Government, and the Public |
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371 | (5) |
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376 | (4) |
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12. Conclusions and a New Beginning |
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380 | (1) |
| Index |
|
381 | |
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