Reading Gandhi in the Twenty-First Century

by Ramakrishnan, Niranjan

• ISBN13: 9781137325143
• ISBN10: 1137325143
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2013-02-01
• Publisher: Palgrave Pivot

Summary

Niranjan Ramakrishnan examines the surprising extent to which Gandhi's writings still provide insight into current global tensions and the assumptions that drive them. This book explores how ideas Gandhi expressed over a century ago can be applied today to issues from terrorism to the environment, globalization to the 'Clash of Civilizations.' In particular it looks at Gandhi's emphasis on the small, the local, and the human an emphasis that today begins to appear practical, attractive, and even inescapable. Written in an accessible style invoking examples from everyday happenings familiar to all, this concise volume reintroduces Gandhi to today's audiences in relevant terms.

Author Biography

Niranjan Ramakrishnan grew up in New Delhi and now lives in the USA. Since 2003 his writings on politics and current affairs have appeared on web and print journals in India and the USA. He is a regular contributor to Counterpunch and Countercurrents, online publications with a large readership. His work has also been carried by Z-Mag, Common Dreams and Dissident Voice, among others. Among the print outlets that have featured his writings are The Oregonian, Indian Express, The Hindu, India Today and The Economic Times. His first book, Bantaism – The Philosophy of Sardar Jokes, published in 2011, was hailed for its audacity by noted author and historian Khushwant Singh. In other lives, he has worked for a bank and run two software companies.

Table of Contents

1. Prologue: A World at Sea
2. What's so Great about Gandhi, Anyway?
3. Gandhi in the Time of Terrorism
4. Privatization…Privation…Privacy
5. Globalization…of What?
6. A Fundamental(ist) Irony
7. Environmentalism
8. The C(l)ash of Civilizations
9. East Vs. West: Win, Lose or Draw?
10. Media Matters, Citizen Mutters
11. Technological Titans, Moral Midgets
12. Corruption and its Discontents
13. Of Suicides and Stock Markets
14. Unbroken Connectivity, Broken Lives: Industrialism and its Consequences
15. W(h)ither the State?
16. Epilogue: Where do we go from here?