The Dictator's Handbook: Why Bad Behavior Is Almost Always Good Politics
| AUTHOR | Smith, Alastair; Bueno de Mesquita, Bruce |
| PUBLISHER | PublicAffairs (04/26/2022) |
| PRODUCT TYPE | Paperback (Paperback) |
Description
"A lucidly written, shrewdly argued meditation on how democrats and dictators preserve political authority." --Wall Street Journal
Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith's canonical book on political science turns conventional wisdom on its head. They start from a single proposition: leaders do whatever keeps them in power. They don't care about the "national interest"--or even their subjects--unless they must. As Bueno de Mesquita and Smith show, democracy is essentially just a convenient fiction. Governments do not differ in kind, but only in the number of essential supporters or backs that need scratching. The size of this group determines almost everything about politics: what leaders can get away with and the quality of life or misery under them. And it is also the key to returning power to the people.
Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith's canonical book on political science turns conventional wisdom on its head. They start from a single proposition: leaders do whatever keeps them in power. They don't care about the "national interest"--or even their subjects--unless they must. As Bueno de Mesquita and Smith show, democracy is essentially just a convenient fiction. Governments do not differ in kind, but only in the number of essential supporters or backs that need scratching. The size of this group determines almost everything about politics: what leaders can get away with and the quality of life or misery under them. And it is also the key to returning power to the people.
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Product Format
Product Details
ISBN-13:
9781541701366
ISBN-10:
1541701364
Binding:
Paperback or Softback (Trade Paperback (Us))
Content Language:
English
More Product Details
Page Count:
400
Carton Quantity:
20
Product Dimensions:
5.40 x 1.40 x 8.20 inches
Weight:
0.70 pound(s)
Feature Codes:
Bibliography,
Index,
Price on Product,
Illustrated
Country of Origin:
US
Subject Information
BISAC Categories
Philosophy | Political
Philosophy | Political Process - General
Philosophy | Political Ideologies - Fascism & Totalitarianism
Dewey Decimal:
303.34
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc.
publisher marketing
"A lucidly written, shrewdly argued meditation on how democrats and dictators preserve political authority." --Wall Street Journal
Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith's canonical book on political science turns conventional wisdom on its head. They start from a single proposition: leaders do whatever keeps them in power. They don't care about the "national interest"--or even their subjects--unless they must. As Bueno de Mesquita and Smith show, democracy is essentially just a convenient fiction. Governments do not differ in kind, but only in the number of essential supporters or backs that need scratching. The size of this group determines almost everything about politics: what leaders can get away with and the quality of life or misery under them. And it is also the key to returning power to the people.
Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith's canonical book on political science turns conventional wisdom on its head. They start from a single proposition: leaders do whatever keeps them in power. They don't care about the "national interest"--or even their subjects--unless they must. As Bueno de Mesquita and Smith show, democracy is essentially just a convenient fiction. Governments do not differ in kind, but only in the number of essential supporters or backs that need scratching. The size of this group determines almost everything about politics: what leaders can get away with and the quality of life or misery under them. And it is also the key to returning power to the people.
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List Price $21.99
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