21st Century Revolution (free ebook)

Cover image by cisc1970 http://www.flickr.com/photos/franciscodaum/

Winner 2012 Global Ebook Awards and Readers’ Favorite Award

Free download at:  www.smashwords.com/books/view/120942

Synopsis

21st Century Revolution is the second edition of a collection of essays I published on August 30, 2011, under the title Revolutionary Change: an Expatriate Perspective. Two weeks later the book was out of date, with the launch of Occupy Wall Street in Zuccotti Park. Part I of 21st Century Revolution, about Occupy Wall Street, is totally new. There are also new essays in Part V about gun control and the citizens’ rights movement. A major theme of the book is the difficulty progressives have recruiting low income white and minority workers.

Please feel free to review my book “21st Century Revolution” on askDavid.com

From the Reviews:

A dose of global reality for the US

Amazon Review (of the first edition Revolutionary Change) by Albert Edward Kashner

Sept 11, 2011

This book is a very interesting introduction to some of the many problems confronting the United States of America and World Civilization and should be an eye-opener for anyone who thinks it’s patriotic to pretend American Society and its Free Market Capitalist economy is perfect.

Corporations are required by law to be profit-motivated (greedy). It’s not surprising that these artificial immortal and powerful “persons” live up to their designs and have no loyalty to country or god or anything human except their craving for more and more profit. These artificial immortal agents who are nothing but greedy serve as role models for many humans who instinctively admire and come to resemble those in power over them.

The author criticizes some of the excessive abuses of power by the corporation-dominated United States government and discusses some of the issues of how and when revolutionary change can be accomplished. Capitalism’s addiction to perpetual growth is unsustainable and cheap fossil fuels will soon be depleted and agriculture and transportation will change beyond recognition. The CIA frequently acts to protect the economic interests of corporations who control the United States government even if it means establishing dictatorships in place of emerging democracies.

What is perhaps most interesting about this book is the references to current events and what we might expect as human beings in a post-capitalist world economy, but I won’t spoil the ending by giving that away.

A good read for young and old alike. Talks about the reality of the world as we know it and why it can’t last. Don’t expect confirmation of illusions about the nobility and perfection of a “land of the free” whose prison population is the largest in the world and whose population (alone of all developed countries’) lacks universal health care.

The only slight blemishes are in certain grammatical and typographical errors that will hopefully have been corrected in this edition [author’s note: they have been].

Amazon review:

The Truth is Out There

Andrew  5.0 out of 5 stars

Feb 21, 2012

This book is broken into six parts. The first examining the ‘Occupy Movement’ and what instigated such activism. The author, Dr Bramhall goes onto outline some of the challenges that such movements face and draws upon her vast knowledge and experience in dealing with such activist organisations. Demographic and psychological constraints that hamper such movements are eloquently explained and illustrate why the coordination of such causes are difficult to maintain traction. While the second part of first chapter focuses on capitalism and how it has hit the wall. Drawing from various other authors’, Dr Bramhall goes onto outline how economic growth is not possible due to resource depletion and the Ponzi style structure of growth based systems. A detailed debunking of the debt based crisis in the US and global economies make this a fascinating reading.

The second section is a raw account of the author’s experiences as an expat American living in New Zealand. This self-examination of the similarities and differences between New Zealand and the US explain why many New Zealanders suffer from low wages and high living costs.

The third section aptly named ‘Capitalism’s Last Grasp’ looks at the current economic crisis and implications for the future. Some of the reforms that have swept American schools, prisons, food industry and medical systems are alarming to the uninitiated reader.

The fourth section of this fascinating read examines the psychological oppression and the role corporate media plays in seducing and manipulating individuals to consume and make decisions that are in favour of the corporate elite. This chapter highlights some of the lesser known bailouts that have gone largely unnoticed in the mainstream. A disturbing example is the twelve point five billion dollar taxpayer funded loans between December 2007 and July 2010.

The fifth section of 21st Century Revolution brings to light how the second American Revolution may unfold, with reference to some of the lessons history holds for any positive move forward. The final section looks at what a post capitalist system world might look like, with discussion around population growth, resource depletion, human nature and land ownership.

This well researched and eye opening account of some of the social and economic issues that nations are faced with is a must read for those wishing to understand some of the broader issues at hand. After reading a 21st Century Revolution you will walk away wiser and with a clearer understanding of what it takes to move toward a sustainable and more egalitarian future.

Book Review by Anne B. for Readers Favorite

5.0 out of 5 stars

June 5, 2012

Dr Stuart Jeanne Bramhall offers readers a collection of her essays concerning the political climate. I should first state that while I disagree with the author on some points, there are many where we agree. I admire her for taking a stand. This book is well-organized into six sections, Occupy Wall Street and the New Economics, My New Life in New Zealand, Capitalism’s Last Gasp, Psychological Oppression, Change Making and The Endgame. The essays in this book were first posted on Bramhal’s blog. To say that Dr. Bramhall is not fond of capitalism would be an understatement. She desires change and has obviously spent much time researching and pondering the topics she addresses. In the first part of her book she addresses the Occupy Movement and what prompted such action. In this section she also addresses capitalism and how it is failing. I agree with Dr. Bramhal that there are major problems in capitalism but I disagree with what the problems are. Bramhal utilizes other authors to strengthen her stance. My stance is that we have become too much of a welfare state. I very much enjoyed the author’s second section where she discusses her reasons for migrating from the USA to New Zealand. For many years she had considered and even attempted to immigrate but with little success and eventually she gave up the idea temporarily. Her desire was renewed when he was murdered. One of the points where we agree concerns the Patriot Act. In many ways it is stealing our rights as citizens as listed in The Bill of Rights. Yes, we are giving them up. This section continues by discussing why New Zealand.

I won’t break down the rest of the chapters. I’ll let readers do that for themselves. This book will open the eyes of readers. This is a must read book for all citizens. I would also suggest this book should be made required reading in Economics and Sociology classes. A reader does not have to totally agree with Bramhal to take away knowledge. This book will leave you pondering the future and what actions you should take now.

Table of Contents

Introduction

• Part I  Occupy Wall Street and the New Economics

OWS: Ramifications for Real Change

OWS and the New Economics

• Part II  My New Life in New Zealand

• Part III  Capitalism’s Last Gasp

The End Days

The Privatization of Public Services

Medical Censorship

The Corporatization of Health Care

• Part IV  Psychological Oppression: the Role of Corporate Media

Corporate Censorship

Propaganda and Disinformation

Stigmatizing the Working Class

Left Gatekeepers

• Part V Change Making

Engaging the Working Class

Reclaiming the Commons

• Part VI The Endgame