{"product_id":"how-america-lost-its-mind-the-assault-on-reason-that-s-crippling-our-democracy-volume-15-the-julian-j-rothbaum-distinguished-lecture-series","title":"How America Lost Its Mind: The Assault on Reason That’s Crippling Our Democracy (Volume 15) (The Julian J. Rothbaum Distinguished Lecture Series)","description":"Americans are losing touch with reality. On virtually every issue, from climate change to immigration, tens of millions of Americans have opinions and beliefs wildly at odds with fact, rendering them unable to think sensibly about politics. In How America Lost Its Mind, Thomas E. Patterson explains the rise of a world of “alternative facts” and the slow-motion cultural and political calamity unfolding around us.\n\nWe don’t have to search far for the forces that are misleading us and tearing us apart: politicians for whom division is a strategy; talk show hosts who have made an industry of outrage; news outlets that wield conflict as a marketing tool; and partisan organizations and foreign agents who spew disinformation to advance a cause, make a buck, or simply amuse themselves. The consequences are severe. How America Lost Its Mind maps a political landscape convulsed with distrust, gridlock, brinksmanship, petty feuding, and deceptive messaging.\n\nAs dire as this picture is, and as unlikely as immediate relief might be, Patterson sees a way forward and underscores its urgency. A call to action, his book encourages us to wrest institutional power from ideologues and disruptors and entrust it to sensible citizens and leaders, to restore our commitment to mutual tolerance and restraint, to cleanse the Internet of fake news and disinformation, and to demand a steady supply of trustworthy and relevant information from our news sources.\n\nAs philosopher Hannah Arendt wrote decades ago, the rise of demagogues is abetted by “people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.” In How America Lost Its Mind, Thomas E. Patterson makes a passionate case for fully and fiercely engaging on the side of truth and mutual respect in our present arms race between fact and fake, unity and division, civility and incivility.\u003cbr\u003eASIN: 0806168919\u003cbr\u003eVSKU: DBV.0806168919.G\u003cbr\u003eCondition: Good\u003cbr\u003eAuthor\/Artist:Patterson, Thomas E.\u003cbr\u003eBinding: Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eNote:\u003c\/b\u003e Any images shown are stock photographs and product may differ from what is shown.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition Notes\u003c\/b\u003e: Gently used with minimal wear on the corners and cover. A few pages may contain light highlighting or writing, but the text remains fully legible. Dust jacket may be missing, and supplemental materials like CDs or codes may not be included. May be ex-library with library markings. Ships promptly!  \u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Dream Books Co.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41537888157754,"sku":"DBV.0806168919.G","price":14.1,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/6011\/0138\/files\/0806168919-0.jpg?v=1784347812","url":"https:\/\/shop.dreambooksco.com\/products\/how-america-lost-its-mind-the-assault-on-reason-that-s-crippling-our-democracy-volume-15-the-julian-j-rothbaum-distinguished-lecture-series","provider":"Dream Books Co.","version":"1.0","type":"link"}