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The Trouble with Democracy shows that the ancient as well as American and Canadian democracies were established on practical social and political grounds vastly different from the strange modern dream of a democracy of autonomous individuals that is now venerated everywhere.
Gairdner explains clearly how, in this time of heretofore unimagined wealth and the tax harvesting that it makes possible, warring utopian impulses from deep within our history have combined to produce a form of "hyperdemocracy" never before imagined in all of human history. The result is a comfortable illusion of increased personal freedom that camouflages the reality of pervasive state control in every aspect of modern life.
We now live, says Gairdner, under a regime of "libertarian socialism" in which citizens imagine they have all the rights and their governments all the duties.
This masterpiece of vigorous, compelling, even prophetic writing represents an exciting turning point in social thought. It challenges citizens to reconsider standard interpretations of democracy and to think much more deeply about the nature, subtlety, and complexity of our actual situation, all the while offering a new and refreshing understanding of the proper nature of a free and civil society.
About the author
About the AuthorAs a young athlete, Bill competed for Canada in the decathlon at the Pan-Am Games in Brazil (1963) and at the Olympic Games in Tokyo (1964), and then in two Commonwealth Games (Jamaica, 1966 and Scotland, 1970) in the 400 metre hurdles event. After earning a number of higher degrees, including a Doctorate in Literature and Philosophy from Stanford University, he taught at York University in Toronto, and then decided to pursue a career in business, from which he retired in 1988 to devote his time to writing. Beginning in 1990 and in quick succession, he produced a string of bestselling books, including The Trouble With Canada, and The War Against The Family. He was then the managing editor of Canada's Founding Debates - now an historical landmark. On the heels of that he published The Trouble With Democracy and also The Book of Absolutes. And now, looking back over twenty years, we have The Trouble With Canada ... Still! His most recent political work is The Great Divide: Why Liberals and Conservatives Will Never, Ever Agree (2015), a timely analysis of the underlying ideological stresses and strains that are presently producing so much political disagreement and policy conflict on the surface of everyday life. At this crucial time in our history, William Gairdner presents fresh and bold insights helping readers understand the successes and strains in their midst and in Western civilization as a whole. WilliamGairdner.ca.
