Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: The Art of Political Manipulation by William H. Riker ISBN: 0-300-03592-6 Publisher: Yale Univ Pr Pub. Date: July, 1986 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $17.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (2 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Wonderful work
Comment: I read this when I was in high school, I not only found it easy to comprehend (which says alot given the state of education in this country), but narrated quite well. Riker provides both access to the material without requiring a graduate degree, but provides new material to even those with graduate degrees. A must read for those who wish to know how bills really become or don't become laws.
Rating: 3
Summary: Well-Written, but Confusing and Sometimes Dry
Comment: The first and most important thing to understand about this book is that it is NOT a political psychology book. Anyone looking for that will be sorely disappointed. This is a book dealing primarily with the manipulation of voting rights and practices to achieve a given result.
It is difficult to imagine the average reader getting excited about the subtle implications of what order certain proposals, etc. are voted on in. However, the author is obviously enthusiastic, and to an extent, it is catching. If you read carefully enough (and it should be noted that it is a dry subject, so it can be slow going), the games played become clear, and it can be exciting-- up to a point.
This book is organized as a series of case studies, beginning all the way back in Classical Greece, moving up through the Lincoln-Douglas Debates, and on to modern-day club voting and Congressional vote-trading. This last example is probably the most useful to the modern reader, as it does provide a useful explanation of the utility and even necessity of what is commonly seen as "sleazy politics".
This book is lacking in the explanation of theory or conclusion, either in the realm of the morality of the sort of manipulation presented or in the theory of practice. Riker's one stab at theory comes in the form of coining a new word to cover the art of voting effectively. The examples given, however, are well-explained, and can be useful to anyone involved in parliamentary procedure. It should be noted that this IS an important subject, and provided an important impetus toward the development of modern parliamentary procedure.
 |
Title: Liberalism Against Populism: A Confrontation Between the Theory of Democracy and the Theory of Social Choice by William H. Riker ISBN: 0881333670 Publisher: Waveland Press Pub. Date: July, 1988 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
 |
Title: Analyzing Politics: Rationality, Behavior, and Institutions by Kenneth A. Shepsle, Mark S. Bonchek ISBN: 0393971074 Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: August, 1997 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
 |
Title: The Logic of Congressional Action by R. Douglas Arnold ISBN: 0300056591 Publisher: Yale Univ Pr Pub. Date: August, 1992 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
 |
Title: Governing the Commons : The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action by Elinor Ostrom, Randall Calvert, Thrainn Eggertsson ISBN: 0521405998 Publisher: Cambridge University Press Pub. Date: 30 November, 1990 List Price(USD): $22.00 |
 |
Title: Agendas and Instability in American Politics (American Politics and Political Economy Series) by Frank R. Baumgartner, Bryan D. Jones ISBN: 0226039390 Publisher: University of Chicago Press Pub. Date: July, 1993 List Price(USD): $18.00 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
