Regional, state and other local government Books

Book SynopsisUsing an approach that combines transnational and comparative social policy analysis with international relations, this book assesses various global social policy actors and compares their ideas and prescriptions about national health care systems. It highlights the importance of considering health policies across multiple scales.Table of Contents1. Global Social Policy Actors and Health Care Systems Ideas2. UN Organisations: Health for All and All for Health Care Systems?3. The OECD and the WTO: Outside the UN but Increasingly Important?4. The New Centres of Power? G8, G20 and the BRICS and Health Care Systems5. The Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria: A Hybrid Organisation as the Best Health Care Systems Actor?6. Non-Governmental Organisations and Health Care System Ideas7. The Polish Health Care System Under Global Scrutiny8. Conclusions: Multiple Actors, Uncertain Ideas, Nested Discourses

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Book SynopsisAn understanding of personal debt requires an understanding of the complex social systems that produce poverty. By drawing upon international perspectives, this book investigates why more and more people are in debt, why it is causing so much mental distress and exactly who is benefiting from what has become the world's number one growth industry.Table of ContentsIntroduction; Serdar M. Degirmencioglu and Carl Walker PART I: AUSTERITY, FINANCIALISATION AND SERIAL ASSET EXTRACTION: UNDERSTANDING INSTITUTIONALISED SUFFERING 1. Debt in the Everyday Lives of 100 Families Experiencing Urban Poverty in New Zealand; Darrin Hodgetts, Shiloh Groot, Kerry Chamberlain and Emily Garden 2. All Roads Lead to Finance: A Critical Overview of Debt in the U.S.; Daniel G Cooper and Bradley D Olson 3. The Impact of the 'Swiss Francs Loans' Crisis on Croatian Households; Petra Rodik 4. The Consequences of Evictions in Spain; Aida Ballester, Moises Carmona, Ruben David Fernandez, Ana Gonzalez, Johanna Jimenez, Elies Martinez, Irene Moulas, Laura Peret, and Carolina Viano 5. The Experiences of Individuals in Debt During an Era of Extreme Austerity in Greece; Alexandre Papamichail and Petros Mizamidis PART II: THE PUBLIC FACE OF THE DEBT INDUSTRY: DISCOURSE AND WELLBEING 6. Debt Dynamics in the UK and Beyond: How Propaganda Impedes Effective Political Action; Mark Burton 7. The Social Construction of 'Indebted Man': Economic Crisis, Discursive Violence and the Role of Mass Media in Italy; Adriano Zamperini and Marialuisa Menegatto 8. Chasing Happiness through Personal Debt: An Example of Neoliberal Influence in the Norwegian Society; Salman Turken, Erik Carlquist and Henry Allen 9. 'Financial Capability' Considered from a Community Psychology-informed Process in the North East of England; Jacqui Akhurst and Jacqui Lovell 10. The Indebted Individual: Dominant Discourses and Alternative Understandings of Personal Debt in the UK; Paul Hanna, Liz Cunningham and Carl Walker PART III: POLITICAL HISTORIES OF PERSONAL DEBT: MANAGED DECLINE, THE DEBT INDUSTRY AND WELLBEING 11. Peer-to-Peer Lending As a New Profit Industry and Debt Trap; Ceylan Cizmeli and Mert Demir 12. Rethinking the Personal Debt Industry: Voices from Puerto Rico; Dolores S. Miranda Gierbolini and Ida de Jesus Collazo 13. Personal Debt in a Third World Latin American society; Douglas Marlon Arevalo Mira 14. The Personal Debt Industry: Racist debt practices and Pasifika peoples in New Zealand; Bruce Curtis and Cate Curtis Conclusion

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Book SynopsisIn many countries, the number of people working beyond pension age is increasing. This volume investigates this trend in seven different countries, examining the contexts of this development and the consequences of the shifting relationship between work and retirement.Trade Review “Paid Work Beyond Pension Age – Comparative Perspectives is an important book for all those who are interested in social policy, employment and labour law, old age and ageing and social inequalities. It is not designed for members of the academic community alone, but it reaches a wider circle of readers where it resonates with the search for many answers that come from actual questions about paid work beyond pensionable age.” (Filip Bojic, European Journal of Social Security, Vol. 20 (4), December, 2018)“The authors in Paid Work Beyond Pension Age: Comparative Perspectives make a significant contribution to these ongoing discussions by examining antecedence, context, and outcomes of labor market activity among older adults in England, Germany, United States, Italy, Sweden, Russia, and China. … I highly recommend this book.” (Ernest Gonzales, Gerontologist, Vol. 56 (3), June, 2016)“One of the first books to examine this emerging phenomenon. It outlines the extent and characteristics of work after retirement and it ties the empirical evidence in with established theories.. … I found the book an interesting read which presents new insights. … Readers who are familiar with current arguments in ageing research may therefore, want to read the case studies only, whereas readers who are new to this topic would benefit from reading the entire volume.” (Kathrin Komp, Acta Sociologica, Vol. 59 (3), 2016)Table of Contents1. Introduction: Paid Work Beyond Pension Age - Causes, Contexts, Consequences; Simone Scherger PART I: COUNTRY CASES 2. Work Beyond Age 65 In England And The United States; David Lain 3. The Social Stratification Of Work Beyond Pension Age In Germany And The UK: Quantitative And Qualitative Evidence; Anna Hokema And Thomas Lux 4. Characteristics Of Working Pensioners In Italy: Between Early Retirement Tradition And Reforms To Extend Working Life; Andrea Principi, Pietro Checcucci, Mirko Di Rosa And Giovanni Lamura 5 Work Beyond Pension Age In Sweden: Does A Prolonged Work Life Lead To Increasing Class Inequalities Among Older People?; Bjorn Hallerod 6. Work Beyond Pension Age In Russia: Labour Market Dynamics And Job Stability In A Turbulent Economy; Jonas Radl And Theodore P. Gerber 7. Working Pensioners In China: Financial Necessity Or Luxury Of Choice?; Ge Yu And Klaus Schomann PART II: CONTEXTS 8. Pension Reform In Europe: Context, Drivers, Impact; Karen M. Anderson 9. The Transition To Retirement: The Influence Of Globalization, Public Policy And Company Policies; Victor W. Marshall 10. Companies And Older Workers: Obstacles And Drivers Of Labour Market Participation In Recruitment And At The Workplace; Jutta Schmitz 11. Concepts Of Retirement: Comparing Unions, Employers And Age-Related Non-Profit Organizations In Germany And The UK; Steffen Hagemann And Simone Scherger PART III: CONSEQUENCES 12. Later-Life Work, Health And Wellbeing: Enduring Inequalities; Katey Matthews And James Nazroo 13. The Decline Of 'Late Freedom'? Work, Retirement And Activation - Comparative Insights From Germany And The USA; Silke Van Dyk 14. Open Questions And Future Prospects: Towards New Balances Between Work And Retirement?; Harald Kunemund And Simone Scherger

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Book SynopsisPULITZER PRIZE FINALISTAn epic, riveting history of New York City on the edge of disasterand an anatomy of the austerity politics that continue to shape the world todayWhen the news broke in 1975 that New York City was on the brink of fiscal collapse, few believed it was possible. How could the country's largest metropolis fail? How could the capital of the financial world go bankrupt? Yet the city was indeed billions of dollars in the red, with no way to pay back its debts. Bankers and politicians alike seized upon the situation as evidence that social liberalism, which New York famously exemplified, was unworkable. The city had to slash services, freeze wages, and fire thousands of workers, they insisted, or financial apocalypse would ensue.In this vivid account, historian Kim Phillips-Fein tells the remarkable story of the crisis that engulfed the city. With unions and ordinary citizens refusing to accept retrenchment, the budget crunch became a str

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Book SynopsisThis volume investigates what role colonial communities and diaspora have had in shaping the Portuguese empire and its heritage, exploring topics such as Portuguese migration to Africa, the Ismaili and the Swiss presence in Mozambique, the Goanese in East Africa, the Chinese in Brazil, and the history of the African presence in Portugal.Trade Review“This is an extremely well-conceived, well-edited volume, shedding salutary light on a whole range of subjects related to diaspora and migration. It will be of great interest to those working on history, cultural studies, and politics.” (Gabriel Paquette, Luso-Brazilian Review, Vol. 52 (2), December, 2015)"The role of the empire in building the grandeur of the Portuguese destiny has, as Imperial Migrations shows so excellently, obscured the multiple agencies involved in imperial constructions. Decentring empires involves acknowledging diasporas, and in so doing acknowledging the multiplicities inherent in the project of modernity, both in the past and in the present." - Toby Green, Africa, 84(4) "This book provides a wide panorama [...] aim in 330 pages of the migrations within the spaces colonized by Portugal and/or those of the people subjected to Portuguese colonization. [...] it allows us to draw interesting comparisons with other imperial situations. Thus it contributes, by including the spaces colonized by Portugal, to current debates within the field of imperial studies, connected history, and global history." - Victor Pereira, African Affairs, 144(456)Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Notes of Contributors Introduction: Portugal, Empire and Migrations; E.Morier-Genoud & M.Cahen PART I: LONGUE-DUREE MIGRATIONS IN AND AROUND THE PORTUGUESE EMPIRE 'Portuguese' Diasporas: A Survey of the Scholarly Literature; E.Alpers & M.Ball Africans in Portuguese Society: Classification Ambiguities and Colonial Realities; I.C.Henriques PART II: COLONIAL MIGRATIONS IN THE THIRD PORTUGUESE EMPIRE Colonial Migration to Angola and Mozambique: Constraints and Illusions; C.Castelo Imperial Actors? Cape Verdean Mentality in the Portuguese Empire Under the Estado Novo, 1926–1974; A.Keese Unlike the other Whites? The Swiss in Mozambique under Colonialism; S.Chichava The Ismailis of Mozambique. History of a Twofold Migration (late 19th Century-1975); N.Khouri & J.P.Leite PART III: MIGRATIONS AT THE MARGINS OF THE THIRD EMPIRE Representing the Portuguese Empire: Goan Consuls in British East Africa, c.1920-1950; M.Frenz The Making of a Portuguese Community in South Africa, 1900-1994; C.Glaser From Mozambique to Brazil: The 'Good Portuguese' of the Chinese Athletic Club; L.Macagno PART IV: IDEOLOGY AND HERITAGE Luso-African Intimacies: Conceptions of National and Transnational Community; R.Williams 'Mundo Pretuguês': Colonial and Postcolonial Diasporic Dis/articulations; A.Vakil 'Portugal is in the Sky': Conceptual Considerations on Communities, Lusitanity and Lusophony; M.Cahen Conclusion: Decolonization and Diaspora; J.Darwin Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisPreface Introduction PARTI: 1960s-1970s The 'Old': Self-help, Phoenix House and the Rehabilitation of Drug Users The 'New'? New Social Movements and Release Drug Voluntary Organisations and the State in the 1960s and 1970s PART II: 1980s Rolling Back the State? The Central Funding Initiative for Drug Services Activism and Health: The Impact of AIDS PARTII: 1990s-2000s Business Models or the Revival of the State? Users: Service Users and the Drug User Movement Conclusion BibliographyTrade Review'We are lucky that two such talented scholars, with such a wealth of knowledge in the field, have joined together to write this ambitious and analytically rich book.' Catherine Carstairs, University of Guelph, Social History of Medicine, vol 24, no 3, December 2011Table of ContentsPreface Introduction PART I: 1960s-1970s The 'Old': Self-help, Phoenix House and the Rehabilitation of Drug Users The 'New'? New Social Movements and Release Drug Voluntary Organisations and the State in the 1960s and 1970s PART II: 1980s Rolling Back the State? The Central Funding Initiative for Drug Services Activism and Health: The Impact of AIDS PART II: 1990s-2000s Business Models or the Revival of the State? Users: Service Users and the Drug User Movement Conclusion Bibliography

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Book Synopsis1. Healthcare Policy and Governance in Internal Perspective; Ellen Kuhlmann, Robert H. Blank, Ivy Lynn Bourgeault, and Claus Wendt PART I: HEALTHCARE POLICY AND GLOBAL GOVERNANCE 2. Healthcare Policy and Innovation; Richard B. Saltman 3. Global Healthcare Policy and the Austerity Agenda; Arne Ruckert, Ronald Labonté and Rylan H. Parker 4. Healthcare Policy and Finance; Claus Wendt 5. Primary Healthcare as a Global Concept; Robin Gauld 6. Maternity Care as a Global Health Policy Issue; Cecilia Benoit, Eugene Declercq, Susan F. Murray, Jane Sandall, Edwin van Teijlingen and Sirpa Wrede 7. Typologies of Healthcare Systems and Policies; Viola Burau, Robert H. Blank and Emmanuele Pavolini 8. Comparison of Healthcare Systems Performance; Irene Papanicolas and Jonathan Cylus PART II: HEALTH POLICY REFORM: GLOBAL TRENDS, LOCAL ROADMAPS 9 Health policy reform in China Vivian Lin and Hongwen Zhao 10. Health Policy Reform in India: Some Critical Concerns; Gita Sen and Aditi Iyer 11. Health PolicyTrade ReviewTable of Contents1. Healthcare Policy and Governance in Internal Perspective; Ellen Kuhlmann, Robert H. Blank, Ivy Lynn Bourgeault, and Claus Wendt PART I: HEALTHCARE POLICY AND GLOBAL GOVERNANCE 2. Healthcare Policy and Innovation; Richard B. Saltman 3. Global Healthcare Policy and the Austerity Agenda; Arne Ruckert, Ronald Labonté and Rylan H. Parker 4. Healthcare Policy and Finance; Claus Wendt 5. Primary Healthcare as a Global Concept; Robin Gauld 6. Maternity Care as a Global Health Policy Issue; Cecilia Benoit, Eugene Declercq, Susan F. Murray, Jane Sandall, Edwin van Teijlingen and Sirpa Wrede 7. Typologies of Healthcare Systems and Policies; Viola Burau, Robert H. Blank and Emmanuele Pavolini 8. Comparison of Healthcare Systems Performance; Irene Papanicolas and Jonathan Cylus PART II: HEALTH POLICY REFORM: GLOBAL TRENDS, LOCAL ROADMAPS 9 Health policy reform in China Vivian Lin and Hongwen Zhao 10. Health Policy Reform in India: Some Critical Concerns; Gita Sen and Aditi Iyer 11. Health Policy Reform in Low-income and Lower Middle-income Countries in Southeast Asia; Göran Tomson and Olivia Biermann 12 . Health Policy Reform in Sub-Saharan Africa; Alex E. Asakitikpi 13. Health Policy Reform in South America; Ligia Giovanella and Mariana Faria 14 . Health Policy Reform in North America; Antonia Maioni and Theodore R. Marmor 15. Health Policy Reform in the Countries of the Former Soviet Union; Bernd Rechel 16. Health Policy in the European Union; Scott L. Greer and Margitta Mätzke PART III: HEALTH HUMAN RESOURCES POLICY AND WORKFORCE GOVERNANCE 17. Bringing the Health Workforce Challenge to the Policy Agenda; Gilles Dussault 18. Health Human Resources Policy in Europe; Ellen Kuhlmann, Peter P. Groenewegen, Ronald Batenburg and Christa Larsen 19. Deploying and Managing Health Human Resources; Ivy Lynn Bourgeault 20 . Clinical Management and Professionalism; Ian Kirkpatrick, Kathy Hartley, Ellen Kuhlmann and Gianluca Veronesi 21 . Health Worker Migration in Context; James Buchan PART IV: CONCEPTS OF HEALTH POLICY AND GOVERNANCE 22. Mixed Governance and Finance in East Asian Healthcare Systems; Robert H. Blank and Shou-Hsia Cheng 23. Public-private Partnerships in Healthcare; A. Venkat Raman and James Warner Björkman 24. Financial Incentives and the Governance of Performance; Ruth McDonald 25. Dezentralization and Health System Governance; Scott L. Greer and Elize Massard da Fonseca 26. Leadership and Innovation in Healthcare Governance; Jean-Louis Denis and Nicolette van Gestel PART V: AREAS OF HEALTH POLICY AND GOVERNANCE 27. Governing Public Hospitals; Antonio Durán and Richard B. Saltman 28. Long-term Care Policies; Emmanuele Pavolini and Hildegard Theobald 29. Mental Health Policy and Governance; Joan Busfield 30. Health Policy and Complementary and Alternative Medicine; Mike Saks 31. Governing Regenerative Medicine; Andrew Webster and Alex Faulkner 32. E-health Policy and Benchmarking in the European Union; Wendy L. Currie and Jonathan J. M. Seddon PART VI: HEALTHCARE POLICY AND THE EQUALITY GAP 33. Equity in Health Reform; Marc J. Roberts 34. Citizenship and Healthcare Policy; Sigrun Olafsdottir and Elyas Bakhtiari 35. Gender and Healthcare Policy; Ellen Kuhlmann and Ellen Annandale 36. Addressing Violence Against Women in Health Policies; Avni Amin, Eszter Kismödi and Claudia García-Moreno 37. Ethnic Minority Groups in Healthcare Governance; Hurriyet Babacan and Narayan Gopalkrishnan 38. European Policies on Healthcare for Undocumented Migrants; Ewout van Ginneken and Bradford H. Gray 39. Ethics of Healthcare Policy and the Concept of Solidarity; Barbara Prainsack and Alena Buyx ?

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Book SynopsisWhile Mexico's spiritual history after the 1910 Revolution is often essentialized as a church-state power struggle, this book reveals the complexity of interactions between revolution and religion.Trade Review"Together, these thirteen essays and Matthew Butler's introduction make an outstanding contribution to the study of twentieth-century Mexico and the politics of religion during the tumultuous 1910-1940 period. This book amounts to the first far-reaching entry into the history of church and religion in Mexico then that goes beyond the Cristero Rebellion and a teleological, top-level narrative of nation-building and 'defanaticization.' The roots and many branches of anti-clericalism are at the center of the book, and the perspectives are novel, often based on skillful use of hitherto untapped civil and ecclesiastical archives. Especially valuable is the attention to the southern states of Oaxaca, Campeche, Chiapas, and Tabasco, and to counterpoints of beliefs and practices, laws and their implementation, church and state, centers and peripheries, leaders and their constituencies, priests/politicians/teachers/lay catechists, Catholics/Protestants/Spiritists/ atheists in ways that break through familiar ways of thinking about tradition and modernity. The result is a more complex, synoptic understanding of a deeply contested history of religion and religious institutions in Mexico's public life." - William B. Taylor, Muriel McKevitt Sonne Professor of History, University of California, BerkeleyTable of ContentsIntroduction: A Revolution in Spirit? Mexico, 1910-40 - Matthew Butler * PART I: REVOLUTIONARY RELIGIONS? * The Mentality and Modus Operandi of Revolutionary Anticlericalism - Alan Knight * The Regional Dynamics of Anticlericalism and Defanaticization in Revolutionary Mexico - Adrian A. Bantjes * Protestants, Freemasons, and Spiritists: Non-Catholic Religious Sociabilities and Mexico's Revolutionary Movement, 1910-20 - Jean-Pierre Bastian * Ethereal Allies: Spiritism and the Revolutionary Struggle in Hidalgo - Keith Brewster & Claire Brewster * "Anti-Priests" versus Catholic-Socialists in 1930s Campeche: Federal Teachers, Revolutionary Communes, and Anticlericalism - Ben Fallaw * Revolutionary and Not-So-Revolutionary Negotiations in Catholic Annulment, Bigamy, and Divorce Trials: The Archdiocese of Mexico, 1929-40 - Kristina A. Boylan * PART II: CATHOLICISM REVOLUTIONIZED? * Mexico's "Ritual Constant": Religion and Liberty from Colony to Post-Revolution - Fernando Cervantes * "The First Encounter": Catholic Politics in Revolutionary Jalisco, 1917-19 - Robert Curley * Trouble Afoot?: Pilgrimage in Cristero Mexico City - Matthew Butler * "El Indio Gabriel": New Religious Perspectives among the Indigenous in Garrido Canabal's Tabasco (1927-30) - Massimo De Giuseppe * Religious Conflict and Catholic Resistance in 1930s Oaxaca - Jean Meyer * A Revolution in Local Catholicism?: Oaxaca, 1928-34 - Edward Wright-Rios * "The Priest's Party": Local Catholicism and Panismo in Huajuapam de León - Benjamin Smith

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Book SynopsisMakes the case that metropolitan governments would promote the economic competitiveness of Australia's cities and enable more effective and democratic planning and management. The contributors explore the global metropolitan “renaissance”, document the history of metropolitan debate in Australia and demonstrate metropolitan governance failures.

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Book SynopsisChapter 1: Introduction: What Works in Crime Prevention? David Weisburd, David P. Farrington, and Charlotte Gill.- Chapter 2: Developmental and social prevention David P. Farrington, Friedrich Losel and Maria M. Ttofi.- Chapter 3: Community interventions Charlotte Gill.- Chapter 4: Situational prevention Kate J. Bowers and Shane D. Johnson.- Chapter 5: Policing Cody W. Telep and David Weisburd.- Chapter 6: Sentencing and deterrence Amanda E. Perry.- Chapter 7: Correctional programs David B. Wilson.- Chapter 8: Drug interventions Katy R. Holloway and Trevor H. Bennett.- Chapter 9: Qualitative data in systematic reviews Mimi Ajzenstadt.- Chapter 10: Evidence mapping to advance justice practice Michael S. Caudy, Faye S. Taxman, Lienshang Tang and Carolyn Watson.- Chapter 11: Economic analyses Jacqueline Mallender and Rory Tierney.- Chapter 12: Conclusion: What Works in Crime Prevention Revisited David Weisburd, David P. Farrington, and Charlotte Gill. Trade Review“What Works in Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation: Lessons From Systematic Reviews, a volume in the Springer series on evidence-based crime policy, is a timely collection of 12 compendious chapters written by leading scholar … . Weisburd et al. is currently the best sourcebook of “big data” on correctional programs and would appeal to varied audiences, such as criminal justice policymakers and practitioners; crime prevention researchers and scholars; and advanced undergraduate and graduate students in criminology courses.” (Arthur J. Lurigio, PsycCRITIQUES, Vol, 61 (40), October, 2016)​Table of ContentsChapter 1: Introduction: What Works in Crime Prevention? David Weisburd, David P. Farrington, and Charlotte Gill.- Chapter 2: Developmental and social prevention David P. Farrington, Friedrich Losel and Maria M. Ttofi.- Chapter 3: Community interventions Charlotte Gill.- Chapter 4: Situational prevention Kate J. Bowers and Shane D. Johnson.- Chapter 5: Policing Cody W. Telep and David Weisburd.- Chapter 6: Sentencing and deterrence Amanda E. Perry.- Chapter 7: Correctional programs David B. Wilson.- Chapter 8: Drug interventions Katy R. Holloway and Trevor H. Bennett.- Chapter 9: Qualitative data in systematic reviews Mimi Ajzenstadt.- Chapter 10: Evidence mapping to advance justice practice Michael S. Caudy, Faye S. Taxman, Lienshang Tang and Carolyn Watson.- Chapter 11: Economic analyses Jacqueline Mallender and Rory Tierney.- Chapter 12: Conclusion: What Works in Crime Prevention Revisited David Weisburd, David P. Farrington, and Charlotte Gill.

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Book SynopsisStudents in state and local politics courses frequently have low levels of prior knowledge about the topic and even lower levels of engagement. Hamiltonia: A State Government Simulation promotes experiential and active learning by boosting engagement and making the content memorable and meaningful. By putting themselves in the driver's seat of creating state and local government institutions, students understand how variations in the rules of the game drastically affect the outcome in state politics and the policy areas they care about, like education, criminal justice, health care, and the environment.This new text and simulation provide a full grounding in the basics of state and local government while also giving students an opportunity to apply what they have learned by building their own fictional fifty-first state from the ground up. Students will write a state constitution that gives shape to the institutions and rules, then engage directly with what they built participating in an election, addressing pressing policy issues, and experiencing the challenges and opportunities of state-level political leaders. Hamiltonia brings political science concepts alive, provides the context for students to more fully understand state and local politics and feel more empowered to influence politics and policy where they live. Features of this exciting book include: An out of the box, class-tested simulation, ready to use in multiple settings and in a full range of course sizes A full package of instructor resources available at rowman.com, including an instructor manual, lecture slides, a test bank, and downloadable support materials for the simulation Pedagogical aids like learning objectives, key terms, and suggested discussion questions to ensure students understand the basics before they jump into the simulation Policy chapters on education, criminal justice, environment, and health to show the real-world implications of state and local government institutions and processes

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Book SynopsisMost Americans are more aware of the workings of the federal government than of their own state governments. But these “laboratories of democracy” constitute perhaps the most creative components of the American political experiment.This book serves as a guide for students of government and provides a historical context for understanding the forces at work in the state’s political system. Among the states, Tennessee’s unique blend of legislative and executive powers is, in some respects, far more a product of personality than political ideology. This second edition describes these often colorful leaders and the issues they grappled with, including education, health care, corrections, economic development, and other key factors. A full analysis of government institutions embodied in the legislative, executive, and judicial branches is supplemented by added attention to county government and public administration.Fully up to date, this edition also provides key chapters on the media, political campaigns, and the rising dominance of the Republican Party in recent decades. In addition, it focuses on how a new generation of politicians—among them, Governor Bill Haslam, House Speaker Beth Harwell, and Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero—have emerged to carry on the legacy of state leadership.

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Book SynopsisThrough Many Dangers, Toils, and Snares, originally published in 1985, was the first book to make an indepth examination of the cadre of African American lawmakers in Texas after the Civil War. Those few books that addressed the subject at all treated black legislators en masse and offered little or nothing about their individual histories. They tended to present isolated events of the violence and political deterrents inflicted upon black voters but said very little about how these obstacles affected black lawmakers.Author Merline Pitre has departed from this traditional method and relied upon the untapped original materials found on these black lawmakers. This third edition features a new preface and extended, updated appendixes, ensuring that this study will remain useful to political scientists, sociologists, and historians of Texas political history, Afro-American history, and revisionists of Reconstruction.

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Book SynopsisThe Mississippi Secession Convention is the first full treatment of any secession convention to date. Studying the Mississippi convention of 1861 offers insight into how and why southern states seceded and the effects of such a breech. Based largely on primary sources, this book provides a unique insight into the broader secession movement.There was more to the secession convention than the mere act of leaving the Union, which was done only three days into the deliberations. The rest of the three-week January 1861 meeting as well as an additional week in March saw the delegates debate and pass a number of important ordinances that for a time governed the state. As seen through the eyes of the delegates themselves, with rich research into each member, this book provides a compelling overview of the entire proceeding.The effects of the convention gain the most analysis in this study, including the political processes that, after the momentous vote, morphed into unlikely alliances. Those on opposite ends of the secession question quickly formed new political allegiances in a predominantly Confederate-minded convention. These new political factions formed largely over the issues of central versus local authority, which quickly played into Confederate versus state issues during the Civil War. In addition, author Timothy B. Smith considers the lasting consequences of defeat, looking into the effect secession and war had on the delegates themselves and, by extension, their state, Mississippi.

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Book SynopsisCayce Myers is professor at the School of Communication at Virginia Tech, specializing in the history legal, regulatory, and ethical aspects of public relations.

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