The Last Refuge

by Orr, David W.

• ISBN13: 9781597260329
• ISBN10: 1597260320
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-09-26
• Publisher: Island Pr

Summary

"Patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels" -SAMUEL JOHNSON, 1775 "a tightly reasoned, excellently written book that should be lethally effective in helping readers who aren't experts understand the contours of the crisis." -TOLEDO BLADE Updated and revised following the 2004 elections, The Last Refuge describes the current state of American politics against the backdrop of mounting ecological and social problems, the corrosive influence of money, the corruption of language, and the misuse of terrorism as a political issue. Setting out an agenda that transcends conventional ideological labels, David Orr contends that partisan wrangling is only a symptom of a deeper dysfunction: The whole political machinery that connects Americans' fundamentally honorable ideals with public policy is broken. The book offers a withering critique of the failings of the Bush administration, supplemented by new essays that look at the national-level dominance of the Republican Party and examine the fallacy that the evangelical right represents a Christian majority. After analyzing the challenges of reforming the current system, Orr offers an empowering vision of a second American Revolution that peaceably achieves sustainability and charts a hopeful course for forward-looking citizens.

Author Biography

David W. Orr is the Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics at Oberlin College

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	xiii
Introduction to the 2005 Edition	1	(16)
Politics
James Madison's Nightmare	17	(15)
Authentic Christianity and the Problem of Earthly Power	32	(13)
Walking North on a Southbound Train	45	(10)
Rewriting the Ten Commandments	55	(9)
The Events of 9/11: A View from the Margin	64	(7)
The Labors of Sisyphus	71	(10)
Challenges
Four Challenges of Sustainability	81	(9)
Leverage	90	(8)
A Literature of Redemption	98	(6)
Diversity	104	(11)
Reconstruction
The Uses of Prophecy	115	(20)
The Constitution of Nature	135	(16)
Imagine a World: The Education of Our Leaders	151	(5)
Postscript: The Hour before Dawn	156	(7)
Appendix 1: The Education of Power	163	(10)
Appendix 2: Common Ground/Common Future (with L. Hunter Lovins)	173	(12)
Notes	185	(10)
Selected Bibliography	195	(8)
Index	203