The World's Best Book Summaries
What is ranked-choice voting and how does it work? What benefits does ranked-choice voting promise voters? Ranked-choice voting is gaining popularity across the United States with advocates claiming it gives a voice to people who don’t feel represented by polarizing candidates. But the jury’s still out on whether it’s a step forward or backward for U.S. democracy. Keep reading to learn what ranked-choice voting is and how it works.
Why is ranked-choice voting (RCV) a bad idea? What drawbacks have critics identified? How successful has RCV been in elections so far? Ranked-choice voting is a system in which voters rank candidates by preference on their ballots, and it’s gaining popularity across the United States. However, critics say ranked-choice voting is a bad idea due to its complexity and potential to waste votes. Keep reading to learn why critics say ranked-choice voting is a bad idea for the U.S.
What conspiracies are associated with the Federal Reserve? Is there anything to them? Edward Griffin discusses two conspiracies that are said to be behind the Federal Reserve: the bank cartel conspiracy and the world domination conspiracy. Griffin believes that these help us understand what’s going on with the Fed specifically and economics and politics in general. Keep reading to learn about these two Federal Reserve conspiracies.
What is The Gulag Archipelago? What was the book’s purpose, and what difference did it make? In the Soviet Union, prisoners such as Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn were arrested on minor or fabricated charges, abused by officials, and held in camps for decades. Many were worked to death. Solzhenitsyn’s landmark exposé was banned, and he was persecuted by his own government for publishing it. Keep reading to learn about the significance of The Gulag Archipelago.
How does the Federal Reserve System affect the economy? Should it be abolished? If so, how? In his book The Creature from Jekyll Island, Edward Griffin argues that much of what the Federal Reserve does is contrary to the best interests of the American people. He lays out a case that the Fed harms the economy, and he offers a strategy to abolish the system. Continue reading for an overview of this thought-provoking book.
What were Soviet prison labor camps like? Why was The Gulag Archipelago so courageous and impactful? What lessons does it hold for us today? The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn describes life in Soviet prison labor camps from the late 1910s to the mid-50s. It exposed human rights abuses by the Soviet Union, counteracting decades of propaganda. Today, it acts as a warning of how governments can use violence, paranoia, and repression to control and exploit their citizens. Keep reading for an overview of this important book and an exercise you can use to apply Solzhenitsyn’s lessons to the modern
What’s causing the recent election threats? Why are poll workers being impacted? How could voting be affected? Heading into the midterm elections, threats and political pressures have left the U.S. with a potential shortage of election workers to staff polling locations. A sufficient number of election workers is crucial to the democratic process and to running elections smoothly. Keep reading for an overview of the poll worker shortage and election threats facing the 2022 midterm elections.
Why are there protests in Iran? Could the recent protests lead to lasting reforms? Violent protests are sweeping Iran as citizens condemn a woman’s death in police custody and, more broadly, the government’s oppressive theocratic rule. However, Iranians have protested the regime before and failed. Read on to learn more about the protests in Iran and if they have the potential to cause government reform.
What were Soviet citizens told about the West? How did the government exploit the xenophobia it created? One way the Soviet government indoctrinated its citizens was by setting up a kind of us-versus-them mentality. This provided the impression that the Soviet Union was the bastion of morality and strength and had to be defended unquestioningly against other, more corrupt nations. Learn how the Soviet government cultivated Russian xenophobia and then exploited it to gain more power.
How much did the public know about the Soviet gulags when they were in operation? How much did people fear them? Though the conditions in Soviet gulags were obviously inhumane, they were rarely discussed in public—let alone protested—prior to Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s first novel about the camps in 1962. This silence, and the extent and brutality of the gulags, were made possible by the near-total control the government had over its citizens. Read more to learn how Soviet society was kept in the dark about the gulag system for so long.