(Part 2) Best political science books according to redditors
We found 507 Reddit comments discussing the best political science books. We ranked the 215 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
Would be, except for
... which implies either a cryptocracy (deep state) or a kakistocracy (rule by psychopaths), depending on whether you are a fascist-fetishist or not. For most it's a cryptokakistocracy. edit: linkins
Well...I agree History is key...but...
You really need to read Political Theory first for a foundation. Every modern day political ideology is based off of these books in one way or another.
-Jean-Jacques Rousseau - The Basic Political Writings
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel - Introduction to the Philosophy of History
And....
Bentham and Mill - The Classical Utilitarians: Bentham and Mill
Karl Marx, Freidrich Engels -The Marx-Engels Reader -Second Edition Don't worry, it still contains the Communist Manifesto.
Machiavelli couldn't hurt to know either.
For some basis on International Organizations - whether it be trade theory, regimes, etc.... this book is top of its class.
Friedrich Kratochwil, Edward D Mansfield - International Organization and Global Governance: A Reader
You also should really read into and understand the Treaty of Westphalia
Then from there
You can look into History, Economic Theory, and/or whatever specific part of the political spectrum you have interest in.
If you are a student try to take advantage of JSTOR...if you aren't a student...you can always purchase access if you are genuinely interested in this stuff.
AFTER you atleast have a foundation under your belt.
You can then use Think Tanks most of what I will link are Internationally known and used and are unbiased, non partisaned.
*Think tank for Action on Social Change - Based out of Ireland
All of these are widely used, widely respected. Whether you agree with their stances or not. Each of them have had their fair share of Criticism.
I firmly believe that Think Tanks provide the best source of political information, and that they allow one to mold their own political views on grounds of academia and not propaganda and misinformation. (I'm looking at you MSN and Fox news)
Conservative
Acton Institute
American Civil Rights Union
American Enterprise Institute
Bradley Foundation
Center for Security Policy
Claremont Institute
Employment Policies Institute (Fiscal)
Goldwater Institute
The Heritage Foundation
Manhattan Institute for Policy Research
National Center for Policy Analysis
Libertarian
Ludwig von Mises Institute
Cascade Policy Institute
Cato Institute
Competitive Enterprise Institute
Foundation for Economic Education
The Heartland Institute
The Independent Institute
Reason Foundation
Progressive
Center for American Progress
Center for Economic and Policy Research
The Century Foundation
Drum Major Institute
Institute for Policy Studies
New Democrat Network
Third Way (Independent - Dem leaning)
World Policy Institute
Liberal
Economic Policy Institute
Economic
American Institute for Economic Research
Analysis Group
Committee for Economic Development
Global Financial Integrity
James Madison Institute (Free Market)
Milken Institute
National Bureau of Economic Research
Peterson Institute for International Economics
Political and Economic Research Council
Tax Foundation
National
Center for a New American Security
Center for Defense Information
Discovery Institute This one has a religious agenda. It's a good use...but beware they are attacking Religion
International
American Foreign Policy Council
Aspen Institute
Atlantic Council
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Center for Global Development
Council on Foreign Relations
EastWest Institute
Foreign Policy Research Institute
Inter-American Dialogue
Migration Policy Institute
RAND Corporation VERY good Think-Tank
Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Non-Partison Public Policy
Brookings Institution
Center for Ethical Solutions
Center for Governmental Studies
Center for Immigration Studies
Center for International Policy
Center for Media and Democracy
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Foundation for Excellence in Education
Global Development and Environment Institute
Hoover Institution
Hudson Institute
Information Technology and Innovation Foundation
James Baker Institute
New America Foundation
Pew Research Center (I love Pew)
Urban Institute
Bi-Partison
Center for Strategic and International Studies
Constitution Project
Most Universities around the World have think tanks also
The only one I care about and rely on is the Think Tank at the University of Virginia.
The University of Virginia's Miller Center
Think Tank Directory
Elections, Candidates
Vote Smart
On The Issues
Sorry in advance if the Format is shit
I just searched it on DDG and the first link that came up was Amazon?
https://www.amazon.com/Vidal-History-National-Security-State-ebook/dp/B00MX4LILG#mobile-udp-contributor-popover-id_1554993001425
Damn i'm stupid. Regardless, this is the book he put out in 2015.
https://www.amazon.ca/Leviathan-Thomas-Hobbes/dp/0199537283/ref=sr_1_1/154-5195785-5062237?ie=UTF8&qid=1481467964&sr=8-1&keywords=leviathan+hobbes
https://www.amazon.ca/Social-Contract-Jean-Jacques-Rousseau/dp/0140442014/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481468107&sr=8-1&keywords=rousseau+the+social+contract
https://www.amazon.ca/Second-Treatise-Government-John-Locke-ebook/dp/B004UJCSBG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481468187&sr=8-1&keywords=locke+second+treatise
Otherwise, I don't think what you're looking for exists. I know the Supreme Court has written some flowery words about where the government derives its powers whenever it feels the need, but it's not in any one document, and I wouldn't know where to find it. We don't reinvent the wheel every time we build a car, and we don't rejustify the existence of the state every time we form a new one.
A bit of a different book from me.
The Politics Book - Paul Kelly
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1409364453/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_VvB1xbAZFK029
It is a good, fairly unbiased, summary of politics and philosophy from history and is great for beginners who want to grasp political ideas and understand political history at a basic level.
The layout is modern and easy to understand so I highly recommend it.
Understanding Power - The Indispensable Chomsky (footnotes)
Side note: the footnotes are incredible. They source all the obscure and seldom-publicized historical events and documents that Chomsky cites as evidence to support his arguments.
> Osama Bin Laden's attacks were justified by his religion. If he was an atheist, he wouldn't be able to hide behind the Qu'ran and say "This is Allah's will" or any such nonsense.
You have a very simplistic understanding of Osama bin Laden. You should read Through our Enemies' Eyes. As I said Bin Laden published hundreds of documents outlining his case. He was upset about Israel displacing Palestinians and American support of that nation. He was upset about US support for the Saudi Royal family, an entity he saw as horribly corrupt and detrimental to its people. He voiced outrage that the US dragged its feet to protect Bosnian Muslims in the 90s... That the US bullied Oil producers in the Middle East... etc.
Look, the man is a fuck. I was in DC on 9/11. I dislike the guy as much as anyone. But, I acknowledge that to become that influential and to actually challenge a superpower, you have to have cogent reasons; not "good" reasons in our eyes, but cogent ones.
> In the vast majority of terrorist activities, the perpetrators are religious, and use their religions to sanction their own activity.
People like easy excuses/labels to mask deep complexities. Do you think Catholic/Protestant violence in Northern Ireland had anything to do with theological beliefs? Surely people said "I hate Catholics" or "I hate Protestants." But was it religious at all? When a Sunni in Iraq kills a Shia do you think it's because they truly hate century old Shiite interpretations of Islam? Or is it political? The Shiites now have overwhelming power and are marginalizing the once empowered Sunnis. Or is it cultural? The Shiites look towards Iran while the Sunnis look towards Saudi Arabia. Or is it a complicated mix of everything?
Blaming things on religion is naive.
It wasn't in an article per say but you can read all about it in his book Captive State
> DC v Heller was politically and wrongly decided by a biased conservative court
According to the loser of the court decision, Justice John Paul Stevens, you forgot to say. The guy was pretty upset not just about Heller, but also a string of cases that he was on the losing side of and even went so far as to say that the Constitution should be amended so his view would become the law of the land.
He was a bitter old man. Thankfully he was just one of nine Justices.
> and overturned long standing jurisprudence.
The Supreme Court does not bow to the wishes or failures of lower courts' jurisprudence. Lower courts must bow to the Supreme Court's.
> Only modern day conservatives with their complete abdication of truth and reality and using Breitbart and Fox News style mental gymnastics that only they understand make the obviously false argument that the 2nd Amend was intended to protect an individuals right.
Don't forget Barak Obama, the right wing conservative that he is.
> Had that been the intention of the 2nd Amend, it would have said, "individual rights," not , "A well regulated Militia..."
Had it said that it was a right of the mitilia, it would not have said "the right of the people..."
> Furthermore elsewhere in the Constitution its clear the 2nd Amend supports the militia, not individual rights.
Citation required.
If you are interested in more the function of politics rather than its subject matter of policy, then here is a decent list of foundational texts to get you started:
On theory:
The Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers
Democracy in America
On Campaigning:
What it takes
Game Change
Campaigns and Elections- American Style
On Legislating/Governing:
Congress- The Electoral Connection
Party Politics in America
Political Polarization of American Politics
Interest Group Politics
Obviously this is quite a bit to read- but renting or using library resources will soften the blow to your wallet.
If I have misread your question, and you are interested in policy rather than politics, more recommendations can be provided depending on both your political persuasion and your specific interests.
PS: Assumed you meant American politics. If not- can provide other texts.
More info...
Interestingly enough, the reason why this early government failed is due to a weak federal government and we even had an insurrection. The new federal government called for this stronger federal government that we have today.
The founders were split on this and we had Federalists and Anti-federalists. You can find their writings on Amazon and the books as called Federalist and Anti-Federalist papers. If you look at parts of the Democratic and Republican party policies, they all stem from this basic argument: how powerful should our government be?
>My plan this time around is to base a collection of ten threads each based on a chapter of 'The Politics Book' published by Dorling Kindersley.
I bought that yesterday! Asdas for £8, cheaper than Amazon, I thought it was a bargain considering how clear and yet how jam packed it was.
I've read Through Our Enemies Eyes which is a collection of letters from Osama bin Laden. He absolutely DOES have a political goal, but there also is an element of "revenge" to it. Like the US military doesn't do the same thing.
I'm just going to spam some stuff in here and let you guys sort it out, sorry. It's from another post on another thread, so it's easier to cut and paste. Some of this may already be in there, but I'm sure there's a bunch that isn't:
I'm a big fan of John Paul Stevens' Six Amendments: How and Why We Should Change The Constitution.
I also recommend Carl Bogus: The Hidden History of the Second Amendment.
This op-ed written by David Hemenway back in 2015: There's scientific consensus on guns -- and the NRA won't like it. Much like climate change, the vast majority of researchers studying gun violence agree that gun control works, but news media insists on presenting the progun side as if it has equal scientific weight. It does not. In fact, Hemenway's book Private Guns, Public Health is another you should pick up.
Next is a blogger calling himself the Propaganda Professor. Their blog has many great posts backed up by links to hard science:
https://propagandaprofessor.net/2013/09/30/the-poorly-armed-assault-on-gun-control-how-the-gun-culture-manipulates-statistics-part-1/
https://propagandaprofessor.net/2013/12/09/the-poorly-armed-assault-on-gun-control-how-the-gun-culture-manipulates-statistics-part-2/
https://propagandaprofessor.net/2014/11/23/the-poorly-armed-assault-on-gun-control-how-the-gun-culture-manipulates-statistics-part-3/
https://propagandaprofessor.net/2015/04/25/the-poorly-armed-assault-on-gun-control-how-the-gun-culture-manipulates-statistics-part-4/
https://propagandaprofessor.net/2014/01/20/home-invasion-defensive-gun-use-or-creative-headline/
https://propagandaprofessor.net/2018/01/19/second-amendment-follies-part-1-an-inconvenient-clause/
https://propagandaprofessor.net/2018/02/19/second-amendment-follies-part-2-a-well-regulated-militia/
And my personal favorites:
https://propagandaprofessor.net/2012/02/18/estimating-defensive-gun-uses-reasonably/
https://propagandaprofessor.net/2013/01/06/more-on-defensive-gun-use/
(The guntrolls really hate those, it cuts the legs out from under their #1 argument.)
Investigating the Link Between Gun Possession and Assault - Peer reviewed study showing that people with a gun are 4.5x more likely to be shot than those not
The Myth Behind Defensive Gun Ownership
Gun Threats and Self-Defense Gun Use - from the Harvard School of Public Health
Strong Regulations on Gun Sales Prevent High-Risk Individuals from Accessing Firearms and Can Reduce Violent Crime - 2015 study from Johns Hopkins University showing that gun control works.
Firearm Violence, 1993-2011 - US Dept. of Justice report showing that firearm homicides are down since 1993 (coincidentally the year the Brady Bill was passed); 60% of criminals get their firearms from legal sources like friends, family members, and gun stores; most victims of firearms violence knew their assailant
Victimization During Household Burglary - another DoJ report, this time showing that only 1 in 4 household burglaries result in violent crime, and most of those are performed by a person known to the victim. It also shows that locking doors and windows, putting lights on timers, and other methods are far more effective at deterring and preventing crimes than firearms.
Weapon Involvement in Home Invasion Crimes - Now, I'm not going to lie to you, Kellerman is controversial. I wouldn't go throwing him around as a trump card, pardon the expression. But his research is interesting and provides some insight, even if it isn't exactly the strongest.
Tracing the Guns: The Impact of Illegal Guns on Violence in Chicago - report from Office of the Mayor of Chicago showing that over 60% of guns used in crimes in Chicago come from out of state, proving that Chicago's gun laws would work, if they were not subverted by weak laws in Indiana, Mississippi, Missouri, etc. as well as gun stores located outside city limits in Illinois.
Statistics on the Dangers of Gun Use for Self-Defense
A breakdown of the $229 billion gun violence tab that American taxpayers are paying every year - Yeah, you read that right. $229 BILLION. Think of the tax cuts they could give their cronies if they just outlawed guns...
Right-to-carry gun laws linked to increase in violent crime, Stanford research shows and here
One of my personal favorites, from the National Bureau of Economic Research:
More Gus, More Crime - they hate this one, because they can't find anything against it that isn't "John Lott."
Speaking of, Armed With Reason is another great resource.
Finally, I'm going to leave you with this piece from the "failing" NY Times: How to Reduce Shootings. That ought to keep you out of trouble for some time, and maybe even give you some hard ammo to fight back with.
EDIT: also, why isn't the academic resource page in the sidebar? That should be stickied or something.
Read this
I wouldn't say the expenses scandal was particularly bad - it was mostly pathetic petty theft in the grand scheme of things. The real cronyism and corruption is the links between government and business - whether that's through behind the scenes lobbying or the rather more open use of advisers (or even ministers) who have come straight out of companies with massive vested interests in the policies that they are advising on.
George Monbiot's book Captive State talks about how pervasive this was under Labour, and it's far from improving under the current crowd.
> HUMINT in the United States, then, was kind of a "gentleman's club" of well-heeled, bad-mannered men ... Policy was determined at dinner parties - if you wanted to rule the world, you came from the right family, attended the right prep schools ...
An apt description. To get a sense of the dynamic and social background of the people involved, "Who Paid the Piper?: CIA and the Cultural Cold War " is recommended.
However, this is no unique US phenomenon. While the makeup of other branches of civil service "democratized" over the course of the 20th century, foreign affairs--esp. the more "high stakes" domains of diplomacy/espionage--remained disproportionally an elite affair.
It was this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Vidal-History-National-Security-State-ebook/dp/B00MX4LILG/ref=sr_1_44?keywords=gore+vidal&qid=1554992621&s=gateway&sr=8-44
The art style? Well it's kinda like a deliberately simple sort of thing, couldn't find any pictures of the inside but the cover should give you an idea of what it's like: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Politics-Book-Paul-Kelly/dp/1409364453
Here is the book you're mentioning.
And here are all of the book's footnotes online along with excerpts. Very, very informative and a huge time saver for research nuts.
>Thats a thing? Why havent i heard of them before? Like during ap history when we were going through the federalist papers...
Yep. And once you read them you'll realize why you haven't heard of them.
The Complete Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers
Required reading for the 218, if you know what I mean.
>You had me at "STK"
Happy reading. I'll leave you with a good AF one-liner:
>...the gilded pill, is often found to contain the most deadly poison.
Brutus 3
Protip: you can read most of them for free there.
How to Win a Local Election
http://www.amazon.com/Local-Election-Revised-Step-Step/dp/0871318784
I had no idea the book existed. I am... intrigued.
Could definitely go that way at this point. Glad my weak starter was enough to interest you though. The main text on Patchwork was published by Moldbug, here are the 4 chapters:
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Moldbug has an interesting style, he writes like he's just shooting the shit but the guy understands insane amounts of political and economic theory.
There are a lot of blogs on Patchwork as well, which go at it from various perspectives that aren't as far-right as Moldbug. The blogger Xenogoth in particular compiled a "patchwork reader" of all the writings on it, but that's escaping my googling right now.
a shitty textbook made in the Clinton years. Covers up until WW1 reasonably well then falls apart. America: Pathways to Present.
I generally make my own stuff for all my non US History classes and only use this occasionally in US History.
I use this for gov: https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Idiots-Guide-U-S-Constitution/dp/1592576273 and think it does a great job for what I want of the class.
>coming up with a coherent political theory
For what it's worth, my personal impression is that intellectuals on the far right are more coherent in their politics than intellectuals on the far left. Intellectuals on the far right can often point to specific things they think work well, such as Singapore, or European monarchies. Sometimes they even have radical new proposals... but at least they are concrete. I less often here of concrete ideas coming from the far left. My general impression is that the far left has strong ideals about radical egalitarianism, but no plan for how to achieve it that's more sophisticated than "destroy everyone who disagrees with us".
Of course, most of the people on both sides who show up for events like this one are not intellectuals and don't have coherent views.
Captive State: The Corporate Takeover of Britain by George Monbiot [2001]
> The Dome, the lottery, the Scottish Parliament, the Manchester tram scam, the destruction of the railways and London Underground: these are all scandals we know about and which make us think the lunatics are running the asylum. We feel bewildered disempowered, ripped off and plain scared for the future of our country and the world.
> None of these episodes is covered in this book. Yet through its coverage of the Skye Bridge, the Coventry hospitals, the “regeneration” of Southampton, genetic engineering in agriculture and medicine, the takeover of our universities - and much, much more it explains everything about the decline in quality of life, accelerating gap between rich and poor, and the total destruction of anything remotely resembling “democracy” which is going on all around us while we sit there swigging Special Brew and watching reality tv.
> If Monbiot never wrote another thing he would have entirely justified his existence with this book which is quite simply THE most important book on politics in Britain this century. In reading it you realise that you are not mad after all and neither are “they”!
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Captive-State-Corporate-Takeover-Britain/dp/0330369431
This but without sarcasm
Highly recommended, btw though I can't really vouch for this specific translation:
https://www.amazon.com/Prince-Nicolo-Machiavelli/dp/1494461943
Also see Thrasymachus' quote about justice
Chocolate Raspberry
Any one of the first 4 that are 4cents would be great
I've never tried them, so I'm just going to guess cherry lemon? If that's a filling?
this book seems hilarious.
I would also recommend this book, https://www.amazon.com/Britain-Initiated-both-World-Wars/dp/1530993180, called "How Britain Initiated Both World Wars", by Nick Kollerstrom. Very enlightening.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1542651417
If you are a person of the female persuasion, Women in Government Relations runs a really fantastic course on congressional procedure by Judy Schneider, who is the procedural expert at the library of Congress.
She's also written a book, and if you google her name there's a bunch of reports out there she's done.
Looking good! That's an amazing stash! :D
I found this the other day. I read an excerpt on Tumblr and it just seems like the funniest thing :D Thanks for the contest! <3
Yes.
> Congress, the Senate, and the Electoral College. How the election works, etc. Just a primer on the basics.
That's a lot of information.
The Congressional Deskbook: The Practical and Comprehensive Guide to Congress is 616 pages and that's just how Congress works, not elections, not the electoral college.
Try the EdX course. Also follow congressional/politics/election reporters on Twitter. Read the Congressional publications, the AP wire, Campaigns and Elections, books by political journalists, stay generally informed.
The AP Gov textbook will give you the official, constitutional how a bill becomes a law but not the practical how the sausage gets made.
Link to the Pocket Constitution on Amazon
>Most Trots are anti-Americanist.
And most anti-Americanists aren't Trots.
>Cite your arguments.
https://www.amazon.com/Anti-Chomsky-Reader-Peter-Collier/dp/189355497X
http://www.paulbogdanor.com/chomskyhoax.html
The idea is that Germany found a way to operate independently from the international banking system - Britain then embarked on a campaign to use war to weaken Germany. I was not sure if this was related to Holocaust denial or not. See https://www.amazon.com/Britain-Initiated-both-World-Wars/dp/1530993180
BTW the blueprints of this are freely available for purchase on the internet:
https://www.amazon.com/Prince-Nicolo-Machiavelli/dp/1494461943
Amazon says 64 pages
http://www.amazon.com/Art-War-Sun-Tzu/dp/161382288X/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1411579391&amp;sr=8-3&amp;keywords=art+of+war+sun+tzu
https://www.amazon.com/Prince-Nicolo-Machiavelli/dp/1494461943 /s