Are you looking for read ebook online? Search for your book and save it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Download Bluffocracy PDF full book. Access full book title Bluffocracy by James Ball. Download full books in PDF and EPUB format.
Author: James Ball Publisher: Biteback Publishing ISBN: 1785904175 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 78
Book Description
Britain is run by bluffers. At the top of our government, our media and the civil service sit men – it's usually men – whose core skills are talking fast, writing well and endeavouring to imbue the purest wind with substance. They know a little bit about everything, and an awful lot about nothing. We live in a country where George Osborne can become a newspaper editor despite having no experience in journalism, squeezing it in alongside five other jobs; where a newspaper columnist can go from calling a foreign head of state a 'wanker' to being Foreign Secretary in six months; where the minister who holds on to his job for eighteen months has more expertise than the supposedly permanent senior civil servants. The UK establishment has signed up to the cult of winging it, of pretending to hold all the aces when you actually hold a pair of twos. It prizes 'transferable skills', rewarding the general over the specific – and yet across the country we struggle to hire doctors, engineers, coders and more. Written by two self-confessed bluffers, this incisive book chronicles how the UK became hooked on bluffing – and why we have to stop it.
Author: James Ball Publisher: Biteback Publishing ISBN: 1785904175 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 78
Book Description
Britain is run by bluffers. At the top of our government, our media and the civil service sit men – it's usually men – whose core skills are talking fast, writing well and endeavouring to imbue the purest wind with substance. They know a little bit about everything, and an awful lot about nothing. We live in a country where George Osborne can become a newspaper editor despite having no experience in journalism, squeezing it in alongside five other jobs; where a newspaper columnist can go from calling a foreign head of state a 'wanker' to being Foreign Secretary in six months; where the minister who holds on to his job for eighteen months has more expertise than the supposedly permanent senior civil servants. The UK establishment has signed up to the cult of winging it, of pretending to hold all the aces when you actually hold a pair of twos. It prizes 'transferable skills', rewarding the general over the specific – and yet across the country we struggle to hire doctors, engineers, coders and more. Written by two self-confessed bluffers, this incisive book chronicles how the UK became hooked on bluffing – and why we have to stop it.
Author: Yasmin Alibhai-Brown Publisher: Biteback Publishing ISBN: 1785904256 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 99
Book Description
Individual rights cannot always take precedence over collective, social responsibility. Without self-moderation, our streets, schoolyards, public transport, waiting rooms and restaurants would turn into bear pits. Most citizens understand that. Some, however, seem determined to cause disorder in the name of free speech. Powerful, machiavellian and wealthy individuals are leading this disruption and breaking the old consensus. Thus, anti-political correctness has taken over the UK and US, spearheaded by some of the most influential voices in media and politics. Invective, lies, hate speech, bullying, intemperance and prejudice have become the new norms. Intolerance is justified through invocations of liberty. Restraint is oppression. A new order has been established in which racism, sexism, homophobia and xenophobia are proudly expressed. In this powerful new book, Yasmin Alibhai-Brown puts forth a spirited defence of political correctness, forcefully arguing that, in spite of many failures, this movement has led to a more civilised, equal and tolerant world. By tracing the history and definition of the term, Alibhai-Brown looks to clarify the very nature of PC, which is ultimately grounded in human decency, understanding and compassion – all of which are essential for a safer and kinder world.
Author: Jonathan Heawood Publisher: Biteback Publishing ISBN: 1785905457 Category : Social Science Languages : en Pages : 83
Book Description
What does press freedom mean in a digital age? Do we have to live with fake news, hate speech and surveillance? Can we deal with these threats without bringing about the end of an open society? In a fast-moving narrative, Heawood moves from the birth of print to the rise of social media. He shows how the core ideas of press freedom emerged out of the upheavals of the seventeenth century, and argues that these ideas have outlived their sell-by date. Heawood draws on his unique experience as a journalist, campaigner and the founder of the UK's first independent press regulator. He describes his own crisis of faith as his commitment to absolute press freedom was rocked – first by phone hacking at the News of the World, and then by the rise of social media. Nonetheless, he argues powerfully against censorship, and instead sets out the five roles that democratic states should play to ensure that people get the best out of the media and mitigate the worst.
Author: Fiona Gardner Publisher: Lutterworth Press ISBN: 0718848209 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 244
Book Description
Given their rhetoric on safeguarding, the response of religious organisations to abuse by the clergy - sexual, physical and spiritual - has been inept, thoughtless, mean, and without any sense of urgency. Sex, Power, Control explores the underlying reasons for the mishandling of recent abuse cases. Using psychoanalytical and sociological insights, and including her own experiences as shown in the BBC documentary Exposed: The Church's Darkest Secret, Gardner asks why the Churches find themselves in such a crisis, and how issues of power and control have contributed to secrecy, deception and heartache. Drawing on survivor accounts and delving into the psychology of clergy abusers, she reveals a culture of avoidance and denial, while an examination of power dynamics highlights institutional narcissism and a hierarchical structure based on deference, with defensive assumptions linked to sex, gender and class. Sex, Power, Control is an invaluable resource for all those in the church or similar institutions, and for anyone concerned about child abuse.
Author: James Bloodworth Publisher: Biteback Publishing ISBN: 1785900765 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 80
Book Description
The best jobs in Britain today are overwhelmingly done by the children of the wealthy. Meanwhile, it is increasingly difficult for bright but poor kids to transcend their circumstances. This state of affairs should not only worry the less well-off. It hurts the middle classes too, who are increasingly locked out of the top professions by those from affluent backgrounds. Hitherto, Labour and Conservative politicians alike have sought to deal with the problem by promoting the idea of 'equality of opportunity'. In politics, social mobility is the only game in town, and old socialist arguments emphasising economic equality are about as fashionable today as mullets and shell suits. Yet genuine equality of opportunity is impossible alongside levels of inequality last seen during the 1930s. In a grossly unequal society, the privileges of the parents unfailingly become the privileges of the children. A vague commitment from our politicians to build a 'meritocracy' is not enough. Nor is it desirable: a perfectly stratified meritocracy, in which everyone knew their station based on 'merit', would be a deeply unpleasant place to live. Any genuine attempt to improve social mobility must start by reducing the gap between rich and poor. PROVOCATIONS is a groundbreaking new series of short polemics composed by some of the most intriguing voices in contemporary culture and edited by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown. Sharp, intelligent and controversial, Provocations provides insightful contributions to the most vital discussions in society today.
Author: Sohrab Ahmari Publisher: Biteback Publishing ISBN: 1785901591 Category : Social Science Languages : en Pages : 66
Book Description
Contemporary art is obsessed with the politics of identity. Visit any contemporary gallery, museum or theatre, and chances are the art on offer will be principally concerned with race, gender, sexuality, power and privilege. The quest for truth, freedom and the sacred has been thrust aside to make room for identity politics. Mystery, individuality and beauty are out; radical feminism, racial grievance and queer theory are in. The result is a drearily predictable culture and the narrowing of the space for creative self-expression and honest criticism. Sohrab Ahmari's book is a passionate cri de coeur against this state of affairs. The New Philistines takes readers deep inside a cultural scene where all manner of ugly, inept art is celebrated so long as it toes the ideological line, and where the artistic glories of the Western world are revised and disfigured to fit the rigid doctrines of identity politics. The degree of politicisation means that art no longer performs its historical function, as a mirror and repository of the human spirit - something that should alarm not just art lovers but anyone who cares about the future of liberal civilisation.
Author: Andrew Neiderman Publisher: Simon and Schuster ISBN: 1982182644 Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 288
Book Description
“The woman who emerges from these pages is as riveting as her books” (The Wall Street Journal) in this compelling celebration of the famously private V.C. Andrews—featuring family photos, personal letters, a partial manuscript for an unpublished novel, and more. Best known for her internationally, multi-million-copy bestselling novel Flowers in the Attic, Cleo Virginia Andrews lived a fascinating life. Born to modest means, she came of age in the American South during the Great Depression and faced a series of increasingly challenging health issues. Yet, once she rose to international literary fame, she prided herself on her intense privacy. Now, The Woman Beyond the Attic aims to connect her personal life with the public novels for which she was famous. Based on Virginia’s own letters, and interviews with her dearest family members, her long-term ghostwriter Andrew Neiderman tells Virginia’s full story for the first time. Perfect for anyone hoping to learn more about the enigmatic woman behind one of the most important novels of the 20th century, The Woman Beyond the Attic will have you “transfixed” (Publishers Weekly) from the first page.
Author: Edward Byrne Publisher: Pearson Education ISBN: 1292276533 Category : Education Languages : en Pages : 246
Book Description
More than ever, we need our universities to be engines of change and social justice. Universities can play a major role in making this complex and changing world a better place, helping economies and societies to adapt and respond to the grand challenges we face, from tackling climate change to harnessing artificial intelligence. This is their mission and their challenge. If universities are to remain true to their higher purpose, they must also find a higher gear. Ed Byrne and Charles Clarke show how transforming universities can change the world.
Author: James Ball Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing ISBN: 1526607212 Category : Law Languages : en Pages : 230
Book Description
'A fascinating exposé of the world behind your screen. Timely, often disturbing, and so important' Caroline Criado Perez, author of Invisible Women 'Takes us beyond Zuckerberg, Bezos et al to a murkier world where we discover how everything online works and who benefits from it. Fascinating, engaging and important' Observer 'Could not be more timely' Spectator The internet is a network of physical cables and connections, a web of wires enmeshing the world, linking huge data centres to one another and eventually to us. All are owned by someone, financed by someone, regulated by someone. We refer to the internet as abstract from reality. By doing so, we obscure where the real power lies. In this powerful and necessary book, James Ball sets out on a global journey into the inner workings of the system. From the computer scientists to the cable guys, the billionaire investors to the ad men, the intelligence agencies to the regulators, these are the real-life figures powering the internet and pulling the strings of our society. Ball brilliantly shows how an invention once hailed as a democratising force has concentrated power in places it already existed – that the system, in other words, remains the same as it did before.
Author: Andrew Greenway Publisher: London School of Economics and Political Science ISBN: 9781907994784 Category : Internet in public administration Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
"Organisations that grew up on the web have changed our attitude to the services we rely on every day. We expect them to work, be simple, cheap or free. They have done this by perfecting new technologies, practices, cultures and business models. However, organizations founded before the Internet aren't keeping pace - despite spending millions on IT. Faced with the digital revolution, many people working in large organisations instinctively see its consequences as another layer of complexity. To some of them, `digital' promises a better fax machine, a quicker horse, a brighter candle. In fact, digital is about applying the culture, practices, business models and technologies of the Internet era to respond to people's raised expectations. It is not a new function. It is not even a new way of running the existing functions of an organisation, whether those are IT or communications. It is a new way of running organisations. A successful digital transformation makes it possible not only to deliver products and services that are simpler, cheaper and better, but for the organisation as a whole to operate effectively in the online era. This book is a guide to building a digital institution. Based on experience and not theory it explains how a growing band of reformers in businesses and governments around the world have helped their organisations pivot to this new way of working, and what lessons others can learn from their experience. It is based on the authors' experience designing and helping to deliver the UK government's successful `Government Digital Service'. The GDS was a new institution made responsible for the digital transformation of government, designing public services for the Internet era. It snipped GBP4 billion off the government's technology bill, opened up public sector contracts to thousands of new suppliers, and delivered online services so good that citizens chose to use them over the offline alternatives, without a big marketing campaign. Other countries, and private sector companies too, took note. Here is a simple map to navigate a path through the blockers, buzzwords and bloody-mindedness that doom analogue organisations."--Publisher's description.
Author: James Ball
Author: James Ball
Author: Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
Author: Jonathan Heawood
Author: Fiona Gardner
Author: James Bloodworth
Author: Sohrab Ahmari
Author: Andrew Neiderman
Author: Edward Byrne
Author: James Ball
Author: Andrew Greenway