Issue No.
4
August 2007
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| Welcome to August’s spiked review of books |
 Tim Black
There is a new law of politics; we might call it the Law of Intended Curmudgeonliness. It rules that the more that life improves – the wealthier, healthier and safer we become – the more that miserabilists will fret about the dangers we face. Money makes us unhappy, they claim; affluence gives rise to ‘affluenza’; world travel tramples local communities underfoot, etczzz. The August issue of the spiked review of books is devoted to breaking this law. Daniel Ben-Ami counterpunches the critics of economic growth and puts the case for infecting all of humanity with 'affluenza' (that is, liberating everyone from the ‘realm of necessity’). Helene Guldberg argues that childhood is not as fraught or frightening as some believe. Peter Smith celebrates the benefits of increased international mobility. We also have Michael Fitzpatrick on why communism survived for so long, Dolan Cummings on the true spirit of Enlightenment, and studies of the heart and the brain and the role they play (or don’t play) in making us human. Enjoy… [Cover picture by Jan Bowman.] |
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