{"product_id":"they-dont-represent-us-and-heres-how-they-could-a-blueprint-for-reclaiming-our-democracy","title":"They Don't Represent Us: And Here's How They Could--A Blueprint for Reclaiming Our Democracy","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWITH A NEW AFTERWORD ABOUT THE 2020 ELECTION\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"This urgent book offers not only a clear-eyed explanation of the forces that broke our politics, but a thoughtful and, yes, patriotic vision of how we create a government that's truly by and for the people.\"--DAVID DALEY, bestselling author of \u003cem\u003eRatf**ked\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eUnrigged\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn the vein of \u003cem\u003eOn Tyranny\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eHow Democracies Die\u003c\/em\u003e, the bestselling author of \u003cem\u003eRepublic, Lost\u003c\/em\u003e argues with insight and urgency that our democracy no longer represents us and shows that reform is both necessary and possible.\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAmerica's democracy is in crisis. Along many dimensions, a single flaw--unrepresentativeness--has detached our government from the people. And as a people, our fractured partisanship and ignorance on critical issues drive our leaders to stake out ever more extreme positions. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eThey Don't Represent Us\u003c\/em\u003e, Harvard law professor Lawrence Lessig charts the way in which the fundamental institutions of our democracy, including our media, respond to narrow interests rather than to the needs and wishes of the nation's citizenry. But the blame does not only lie with \"them\"--Washington's politicians and power brokers, Lessig argues. The problem is also \"us.\" \"We the people\" are increasingly uninformed about the issues, while ubiquitous political polling exacerbates the problem, reflecting and normalizing our ignorance and feeding it back into the system as representative of our will.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat we need, Lessig contends, is a series of reforms, from governmental institutions to the public itself, including: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA move immediately to public campaign funding, leading to more representative candidates\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA reformed Electoral College, that gives the President a reason to represent America as a whole\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA federal standard to end partisan gerrymandering in the states \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA radically reformed Senate\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA federal penalty on states that don't secure to their people an equal freedom to vote\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eInstitutions that empower the people to speak in an informed and deliberative way\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003eA soul-searching and incisive examination of our failing political culture, this nonpartisan call to arms speaks to every citizen, offering a far-reaching platform for reform that could save our democracy and make it work for all of us.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Dey Street Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51984330064103,"sku":"9780062945723","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0449\/4075\/5096\/files\/imageloader_ae2bd184-46ab-4b95-a968-0169cfbf6269.jpg?v=1776316654","url":"https:\/\/arvidabookco.com\/products\/they-dont-represent-us-and-heres-how-they-could-a-blueprint-for-reclaiming-our-democracy","provider":"Arvida Book Co.","version":"1.0","type":"link"}