Other books that might interest you

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  Bushmanders & Bullwinkles - How...

  Mark Monmonier

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  For years Mark Monmonier, "a prose stylist of no mean ability or charm" according to the Washington Post, has delighted readers with his insightful understanding of cartography as an art and technology that is both deceptive and revealing. Now he turns his focus to the story of political cartography and the redrawing of congressional districts. His title Bushmanders and Bullwinkles combines gerrymander with the surname of the president who actively tolerated racial gerrymandering and draws attention to the ridiculously shaped congressional districts that evoke the antlers of the moose who shared the cartoon spotlight with Rocky the Flying Squirrel. Written from the perspective of a cartographer rather than a political scientist, Bushmanders and Bullwinkles examines the political tales maps tell when votes and power are at stake. Monmonier shows how redistricting committees carve out favorable election districts for themselves and their allies; how disgruntled politicians use shape to challenge alleged racial gerrymanders; and how geographic information systems can make reapportionment a controversial process with outrageous products. He also explores controversies over the proper roles of natural boundaries, media maps, census enumeration, and ethnic identity. Raising important questions about Supreme Court decisions in regulating redistricting, Monmonier asks if the focus on form rather than function may be little more than a distraction from larger issues like election reform. Characterized by the same wit and clarity as Monmonier's previous books, Bushmanders and Bullwinkles is essential background for understanding what might prove the most contentious political debate of the new decade.

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  The Heart of Racial Justice -...

  Brenda Salter McNeil, Rick...

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  Racial and ethnic hostility is one of the most pervasive problems the church faces. It hinders our effectiveness as one body of believers. It damages our witness. Why won't this problem just go away?Because it is a spiritual battle.In response, we must employ spiritual weapons—prayer, repentance, forgiveness. In this book Brenda Salter McNeil and Rick Richardson provide a model of racial reconciliation, social justice, and spiritual healing that creates both individual and communal transformation. Read this book if you want to learn how to
  
  - use your faith as a force for change, not as a smoke screen for self-protection
  - embrace your true self and renounce false racial identities
  - receive and extend forgiveness as an act of racial reconciliation
  - experience personal transformation through the healing of painful racial memories
  - engage in social action by developing ongoing crosscultural partnerships
  This classic is now part of the IVP Signature Collection, which features special editions of iconic books in celebration of the seventy-fifth anniversary of InterVarsity Press. It includes a list of definitions and a discussion and activity guide for groups. A new companion Bible study is also available.

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  The Science of Confident Public...

  Nathaniel Hart

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  The fear of public speaking is a common experience, affecting individuals across diverse professions and backgrounds. This book recognizes that fear and provides a comprehensive approach to understanding and overcoming it. It bridges the gap between the neuroscience of anxiety and the practical application of techniques for building confidence and delivering effective presentations.  
  We'll explore the neurological underpinnings of public speaking anxiety, examining the role of the amygdala, the brain’s fear center, and how our cognitive processes contribute to the amplification of anxiety.  
  You'll learn how cognitive distortions and negative self-talk can perpetuate a cycle of fear, and we'll equip you with strategies to challenge and reframe these unhelpful thought patterns.  
  But this book is not just about understanding the problem; it’s about finding solutions. We will delve into the remarkable power of neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to rewire itself, and demonstrate how consistent practice and positive reinforcement can transform your response to public speaking.  
  We'll introduce you to a range of techniques, including mindfulness, visualization, breathwork, and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), all designed to help you manage stress, cultivate self-compassion, and build unwavering self-efficacy.  
  Furthermore, this book will guide you through the mechanics of effective communication, covering everything from crafting compelling narratives and mastering vocal delivery to employing powerful body language and engaging your audience.  
  Throughout the book, you'll find practical exercises, real-world examples, and case studies to help you integrate these techniques into your daily life and build lasting confidence.  
  Prepare to embark on a transformative journey, one that will not only improve your public speaking abilities but also empower you to become a more confident, clear, and charismatic communicator in all aspects of your life.

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  Europe without Borders - A History

  Issac Stanley-Becker

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  Europe is a place of free movement among nations—or is it? The Schengen area, established in 1985 and today encompassing twenty-nine European countries, allows people, goods, and capital to cross borders without restraint. Schengen transformed European life, advancing both a democratic project of transnational citizenship and a neoliberal project of international free trade. But the right of free movement always excluded non-Europeans, especially migrants of color from former colonies of the Schengen states. In Europe without Borders, Isaac Stanley-Becker explores the contested creation of free movement in Schengen. 
   
   
   
  Schengen laid the groundwork for the making of a single market and the founding of the European Union. Yet its emergence is one of the great untold stories of modern European history, one hidden in archives long embargoed. Stanley-Becker is among the first to have access to records of the treatymaking and Europe without Borders offers a pathbreaking account of Schengen's creation. Stanley-Becker argues that Schengen gave a humanist cast to a market paradigm; but even in pairing the border crossing of human beings with the principles of free-market exchange, this vision of free movement was hedged by alarm about foreign migrants. Meanwhile, these migrants—the sans-papiers—saw in the promise of a borderless Europe only a neocolonial enterprise.

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  The Timaeus

  Plato

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  Explore the Cosmic Blueprint of Western Philosophy. 
  In The Timaeus, Plato offers one of the most influential philosophical visions of the ancient world—a sweeping dialogue that lays out the structure of the cosmos, the nature of the soul, and the divine intelligence behind creation. 
  Presented as a conversation between Socrates, Timaeus the Pythagorean philosopher, Critias, and Hermocrates, this work bridges mythology and metaphysics, blending Greek thought with early scientific speculation. Timaeus explains the origins of the universe as the deliberate design of a benevolent "Demiurge" who imposes order on chaos, crafting the world with mathematical harmony and eternal forms as its template. 
  This foundational work of natural philosophy includes: 
  The geometric and mathematical structure of reality 
  The soul of the universe and how it animates all things 
  The elements—earth, air, fire, and water—and their divine ratios 
  The origins of time, space, and human beings 
  Plato’s cosmological theory that would shape science, theology, and esotericism for centuries 
  Whether you are a student of philosophy, a seeker of metaphysical truths, or a lover of ancient wisdom, The Timaeus opens a door to understanding the cosmos through the lens of one of history’s greatest minds.

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  The Making of White American...

  Ron Eyerman

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  An account of the emergence and development of white consciousness throughout American history. 
   
   
   
  In The Making of White American Identity, Ron Eyerman provides an explanation for how whiteness has become a basis for collective identification and collective action in the United States. Drawing upon his previous work on the formation of African American identity, as well as cultural trauma theory, collective memory, and social movements, he reveals how and under what conditions such a collective identification emerges, as well as how the mobilization of collective action around an ideology of whiteness and white superiority. Eyerman explores how the American identity was, and is still being established, through both historical and more recent events, including the Civil War, the Civil Rights movement, the election of a Black president, the Charlottesville confrontation, and the violent conflict at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. He further shows how each event revitalized the trauma narratives stemming from the nation's founding tensions, mobilizing social forces around the idea of white superiority and white consciousness. Tracing the historical contexts and social conditions under which individuals and groups move through this process, the author also looks forward at the prospects of the ideology of white supremacy as a political force in the United States.

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