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America and the Art of the Possible
- Author
- Christopher Buskirk
- Narrator
- Alex Boyles
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Publish Date
- 10 January 2023
- Run Time
- 6 hours 22 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
What to expect
Between 1920 and 1950, America saw an unprecedented expansion of wealth and power underwritten by technological innovation, cultural confidence, and victory in war. American elites won World War II, rebuilt the world order with America at its head, inaugurated the jet age, and put a man on the moon. The boom led to a larger, richer middle class that confirmed America’s best ideals.
By the early 1970s, that ended. American elites have captured a disproportionate share of the social and economic rewards over the last fifty years. Meanwhile, the middle class has shrunk in size and has become economically insecure, owning a smaller share of national wealth than at any time in the nation’s history. This has happened even while most households have two income earners, versus the single-income households that characterized the period of shared prosperity. At the same time, technological innovation that improves people’s standard of living has dramatically slowed.
These trends undermine the basic premise behind the broad acceptance of a meritocratic elite, whose rule is predicated on the belief that if the best rise to the top, their talent and energy will create a rising tide that lifts all boats. We had that once. We can have it again.
Critics Review
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“Unlike many critiques of a sclerotic America, [Bushkirk] offers concrete proposals for how to stop the decline by encouraging and honoring the kind of unorthodox people and policies that have always rescued the country in the past. A historically sourced and much-needed manual for national renewal.”
Victor Davis Hanson, Hoover Institution Fellow and author of The Dying Citizen
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“In this brilliant book, Chris Buskirk argues that America has become a stagnant society, with no national self-confidence or ability to deliver better lives for its people. But he does more than diagnose. He offers concrete ideas for how to recapture our vitality. I suspect this book will influence American politics for decades. Our leaders would do well to absorb its message and arguments.”
J. D. Vance, author of Hillbilly Elegy and founder of Narya Capital
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- Christopher Buskirk
- Narrator
- Alex Boyles
- Duration
- 6 hours 22 minutes
- Release Date
- 10 January 2023
- ISBN
- 9798212279833
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Genre
- Social classes, Nationalism, Political science and theory, History of the Americas
Synopsis
Between 1920 and 1950, America saw an unprecedented expansion of wealth and power underwritten by technological innovation, cultural confidence, and victory in war. American elites won World War II, rebuilt the world order with America at its head, inaugurated the jet age, and put a man on the moon. The boom led to a larger, richer middle class that confirmed America’s best ideals. By the early 1970s, that ended. American elites have captured a disproportionate share of the social and economic rewards over the last fifty years. Meanwhile, the middle class has shrunk in size and has become economically insecure, owning a smaller share of national wealth than at any time in the nation’s history. This has happened even while most households have two income earners, versus the single-income households that characterized the period of shared prosperity. At the same time, technological innovation that improves people’s standard of living has dramatically slowed. These trends undermine the basic premise behind the broad acceptance of a meritocratic elite, whose rule is predicated on the belief that if the best rise to the top, their talent and energy will create a rising tide that lifts all boats. We had that once. We can have it again.
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