The Treachery of the Elites: On Political Discontent

Description

This book gives explanations for the growing gap in wealth and income and the rise of anti-democratic movements. The power of the elites today is supposedly founded on merit (education, intelligence etc.), but a closer look shows that a well-marked-out pool is just self-re-producing. The power these in-groups wield often leads to moral insensibility, made worse by a condescending attitude towards people further down the food chain. The pre-dominance of the model of the nation-state, with its centralism and top-down structure, is one of the roots of this problem, as is the lack of comparisons and value judgements; examples from transport and urbanism show that they are possible. The deplorable situation is made worse by the "anti-"social-media scuppering open and productive discussions. Cover Dedication Table of Contents Preface 1. Sentinels, Guardians, Custodians 2. Does Power Corrupt? 3. It’s the Attitude, Stupid 4. Elites: Entitlement and “Meritocracy” 5. Reciprocity 6. The Rest of the West 7. The Rich and the Rest Epilogue Bibliography Index