The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy by

Description: FREE SHIPPING UK WIDE The Vision of the Anointed by Thomas Sowell Sowell presents a devastating critique of the mind-set behind the failed social policies of the past thirty years. Sowell sees what has happened during that time not as a series of isolated mistakes b FORMAT Paperback LANGUAGE English CONDITION Brand New Publisher Description Sowell presents a devastating critique of the mind-set behind the failed social policies of the past thirty years. Sowell sees what has happened during that time not as a series of isolated mistakes but as a logical consequence of a tainted vision whose defects have led to crises in education, crime, and family dynamics, and to other social pathologies. In this book, he describes how elites,the anointed,have replaced facts and rational thinking with rhetorical assertions, thereby altering the course of our social policy. Author Biography Thomas Sowell has taught economics at a number of colleges and universities, including Cornell, University of California Los Angeles, and Amherst. He has published both scholarly and popular articles and books on economics, and is currently a scholar in residence at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. Table of Contents * Flattering Unction * The Pattern * By the Numbers * The Irrelevance of Evidence * The Anointed Versus the Benighted * Crusades of the Anointed * The Vocabulary of the Anointed * Courting Disaster * Optional Reality Review "As always, Sowells analysis is well informed and displays a great deal of that increasingly uncommon quality, common sense... In the largest sense, The Vision of the Anointed is a book about the perils of ideology--those dazzling intellectual-moral constructions that seduce the unwary into ignoring the way the world works for the sake of dreams about the way it must."--Roger Kimball, The American Spectator"Avid conservatives, for whom Sowell is a true-blue intellectual force, will certainly seize upon his analysis for succor."--Booklist"Mr. Sowells eye is sharp, and everyone who has been up against progressive orthodoxy will find his or her own candidate for Most Annoying Liberal Kiss-Off Award."--Suzanne Garment, Washington Times"This is as compelling an explanation as any for the seemingly disproportionate amount of condescension and politically correct invective that emanates from the liberal side of the political spectrum toward the conservative opposition."--Scott McConnell, Wall Street Journal Kirkus US Review Conservative gadfly Sowell doesnt like the vision thing - at least, not as long as the vision is that of his political opponents on the left. Sowell (Race and Culture, 1994, etc.) sardonically refers to his targets here as the "anointed" - a kind of authoritarian liberal cabal whose view predominates in todays world (despite 12 years of Reagan/Bush, despite a Republican-controlled Congress). Exemplars of this mindset, according to Sowell, are David I. Bazelon, chief judge of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in the 1960s, who argued for rehabilitation of criminals rather than punishment, and New York Times columnist Tom Wicker, who wrote of a "right to income." How do these do-gooders maintain their predominance? With a rhetorical repertoire that includes, for instance, what the author calls "aha!" statistics, numbers that purport to show cause and effect (e.g., low rates of prenatal care among black women and high black infant mortality rates), pointing to neglect by society of various "mascot groups" (blacks, gays, women, etc.). The anointed ignore all evidence that their theories and policies have failed: Since the war on poverty was started, Sowell claims, dependence on government largesse has increased. Similarly, despite the institution of sex education, teenage pregnancy rates have skyrocketed (the quantity and quality of these programs, let alone other factors, dont figure into this discussion). Sowell himself espouses a different vision, one that assumes the tragedy of the human condition. Its a vision of limited possibilities for social change, with no solutions, only trade-offs; no have-nots, only do-nots who deserve no compassion. The anointed are not well-meaning but rather infatuated with their own virtue; not misguided, but a threat to "the social cohesion that makes civilized life possible." Sowells venomous tone dominates his own, sometimes thin evidence, making this a polarizing screed rather than a rational argument. (Kirkus Reviews) Long Description Sowell presents a devastating critique of the mind-set behind the failed social policies of the past thirty years. Sowell sees what has happened during that time not as a series of isolated mistakes but as a logical consequence of a tainted vision whose defects have led to crises in education, crime, and family dynamics, and to other social pathologies. In this book, he describes how elites,the anointed,have replaced facts and rational thinking with rhetorical assertions, thereby altering the course of our social policy. Review Quote "This is as compelling an explanation as any for the seemingly disproportionate amount of condescension and politically correct invective that emanates from the liberal side of the political spectrum toward the conservative opposition."-- Scott McConnell , Wall Street Journal Details ISBN046508995X Author Thomas Sowell Short Title VISION OF THE ANOINTED Pages 320 Language English ISBN-10 046508995X ISBN-13 9780465089956 Media Book Format Paperback Year 1996 Imprint Basic Books Place of Publication New York Country of Publication United States Residence US Birth 1930 Subtitle Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy DOI 10.1604/9780465089956 US Release Date 1996-06-28 UK Release Date 1996-06-28 Publisher Basic Books Publication Date 1996-06-28 DEWEY 361.610973 Audience General NZ Release Date 1996-06-27 AU Release Date 1996-06-27 We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. 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