Download or read book Cult of Power written by Martha Burk and published by Scribner Book Company. This book was released on 2005 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The women's advocate who dared suggest that the nation's premier golf club open its door to women provides an incisive analysis of the international firestorm of debate about "women's place" that raged from the kitchen table to the White House.
Download or read book Rituals and Power written by S. R. F. Price and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1984 with total page 324 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Simon Price attempts to discover why the Roman Emperor was treated like a god.
Download or read book Building Your Cult written by Dantalion Jones and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2010-02-12 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book deals with the art and science of protecting and promoting your own interests. It is about reaching that pentacle of accomplishment where you have groups of people devoted to you, your goals and your ambitions. In other words, it is about the politics of life. It is about making your own cult. No one has to build a cult from this book. That's a personal decision and you'll get some very useful tools to do that... if you decide. What this book should do is help you to create a personal sense of purpose. More often when someone talks about a sense of purpose or a feeling of destiny they are met with cynicism. People generally don't even have a language to understand the concept of purpose and destiny. Yes, we have plans and goals and problems to solve and we work to solve those problems but there are few who can say they are driven by a sense of purpose. Those who are are usually are live like unstoppable forces of nature. If you have to wait to find your sense of purpose then it will likely never happen. Right NOW you are in the perfect place to choose your purpose. When you do, life gains a clearer perspective and you can do the ordinary and mundane acts of daily life with more vigor and joy because everything is connected by your sense of purpose.
Download or read book The Stalin Cult written by Jan Plamper and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2012-01-17 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Between the late 1920s and the early 1950s, one of the most persuasive personality cults of all times saturated Soviet public space with images of Stalin. A torrent of portraits, posters, statues, films, plays, songs, and poems galvanized the Soviet population and inspired leftist activists around the world. In the first book to examine the cultural products and production methods of the Stalin cult, Jan Plamper reconstructs a hidden history linking artists, party patrons, state functionaries, and ultimately Stalin himself in the alchemical project that transformed a pock-marked Georgian into the embodiment of global communism. Departing from interpretations of the Stalin cult as an outgrowth of Russian mysticism or Stalin's psychopathology, Plamper establishes the cult's context within a broader international history of modern personality cults constructed around Napoleon III, Mussolini, Hitler, and Mao. Drawing upon evidence from previously inaccessible Russian archives, Plamper's lavishly illustrated and accessibly written study will appeal to anyone interested in twentieth-century history, visual studies, the politics of representation, dictator biography, socialist realism, and real socialism.
Download or read book The Cult of the Presidency written by Gene Healy and published by Cato Institute. This book was released on 2009 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Intro -- Table of Contents -- Acknowledgements -- Introduction -- 1. Our Chief Magistrate and His Powers -- 2. "Progress" and the Presidency -- 3. The Age of the Heroic Presidency -- 4. Hero Takes a Fall -- 5. Superman Returns -- 6. War President -- 7. Omnipotence and Impotence -- 8. Why the Worst Get on Top ... and Get Worse -- 9. Toward Normalcy -- Afterword: Our Continuing Cult of the Presidency -- Notes -- About the Author -- Cato Institute
Download or read book The Power and the Glory written by Ross S. Tipon and published by . This book was released on 2005 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Power Worshippers written by Katherine Stewart and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2020-03-03 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For readers of Democracy in Chains and Dark Money, a revelatory investigation of the Religious Right's rise to political power. For too long the Religious Right has masqueraded as a social movement preoccupied with a number of cultural issues, such as abortion and same-sex marriage. In her deeply reported investigation, Katherine Stewart reveals a disturbing truth: this is a political movement that seeks to gain power and to impose its vision on all of society. America's religious nationalists aren't just fighting a culture war, they are waging a political war on the norms and institutions of American democracy. Stewart pulls back the curtain on the inner workings and leading personalities of a movement that has turned religion into a tool for domination. She exposes a dense network of think tanks, advocacy groups, and pastoral organizations embedded in a rapidly expanding community of international alliances and united not by any central command but by a shared, anti-democratic vision and a common will to power. She follows the money that fuels this movement, tracing much of it to a cadre of super-wealthy, ultraconservative donors and family foundations. She shows that today's Christian nationalism is the fruit of a longstanding antidemocratic, reactionary strain of American thought that draws on some of the most troubling episodes in America's past. It forms common cause with a globe-spanning movement that seeks to destroy liberal democracy and replace it with nationalist, theocratic and autocratic forms of government around the world. Religious nationalism is far more organized and better funded than most people realize. It seeks to control all aspects of government and society. Its successes have been stunning, and its influence now extends to every aspect of American life, from the White House to state capitols, from our schools to our hospitals. The Power Worshippers is a brilliantly reported book of warning and a wake-up call. Stewart's probing examination demands that Christian nationalism be taken seriously as a significant threat to the American republic and our democratic freedoms.
Download or read book Losing Reality written by Robert Jay Lifton and published by The New Press. This book was released on 2019-10-15 with total page 142 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A definitive account of the psychology of zealotry, from a National Book Award winner and a leading authority on the nature of cults, political absolutism, and mind control In this unique and timely volume Robert Jay Lifton, the National Book Award–winning psychiatrist, historian, and public intellectual proposes a radical idea: that the psychological relationship between extremist political movements and fanatical religious cults may be much closer than anyone thought. Exploring the most extreme manifestations of human zealotry, Lifton highlights an array of leaders—from Mao to Hitler to the Japanese apocalyptic cult leader Shōkō Asahara to Donald Trump—who have sought the control of human minds and the ownership of reality. Lifton has spent decades exploring psychological extremism. His pioneering concept of the "Eight Deadly Sins" of ideological totalism—originally devised to identify "brainwashing" (or "thought reform") in political movements—has been widely quoted in writings about cults, and embraced by members and former members of religious cults seeking to understand their experiences. In Losing Reality Lifton makes clear that the apocalyptic impulse—that of destroying the world in order to remake it in purified form—is not limited to religious groups but is prominent in extremist political movements such as Nazism and Chinese Communism, and also in groups surrounding Donald Trump. Lifton applies his concept of "malignant normality" to Trump's efforts to render his destructive falsehoods a routine part of American life. But Lifton sees the human species as capable of "regaining reality" by means of our "protean" psychological capacities and our ethical and political commitments as "witnessing professionals." Lifton weaves together some of his finest work with extensive new commentary to provide vital understanding of our struggle with mental predators. Losing Reality is a book not only of stunning scholarship, but also of huge relevance for these troubled times.
Download or read book The Cult of Trump written by Steven Hassan and published by Free Press. This book was released on 2020-09-01 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A masterful and eye-opening examination of Trump and the coercive control tactics he uses to build a fanatical devotion in his supporters written by “an authority on breaking away from cults…an argument that…bears consideration as the next election cycle heats up” (Kirkus Reviews). Since the 2016 election, Donald Trump’s behavior has become both more disturbing and yet increasingly familiar. He relies on phrases like, “fake news,” “build the wall,” and continues to spread the divisive mentality of us-vs.-them. He lies constantly, has no conscience, never admits when he is wrong, and projects all of his shortcomings on to others. He has become more authoritarian, more outrageous, and yet many of his followers remain blindly devoted. Scott Adams, the creator of Dilbert and a major Trump supporter, calls him one of the most persuasive people living. His need to squash alternate information and his insistence of constant ego stroking are all characteristics of other famous leaders—cult leaders. In The Cult of Trump, mind control and licensed mental health expert Steven Hassan draws parallels between our current president and people like Jim Jones, David Koresh, Ron Hubbard, and Sun Myung Moon, arguing that this presidency is in many ways like a destructive cult. He specifically details the ways in which people are influenced through an array of social psychology methods and how they become fiercely loyal and obedient. Hassan was a former “Moonie” himself, and he presents a “thoughtful and well-researched analysis of some of the most puzzling aspects of the current presidency, including the remarkable passivity of fellow Republicans [and] the gross pandering of many members of the press” (Thomas G. Gutheil, MD and professor of psychiatry, Harvard Medical School). The Cult of Trump is an accessible and in-depth analysis of the president, showing that under the right circumstances, even sane, rational, well-adjusted people can be persuaded to believe the most outrageous ideas. “This book is a must for anyone who wants to understand the current political climate” (Judith Stevens-Long, PhD and author of Living Well, Dying Well).
Download or read book The Cult of the Constitution written by Mary Anne Franks and published by Stanford University Press. This book was released on 2019-05-14 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A powerful challenge to the prevailing constitutional orthodoxy of the right and the left . . . A deeply troubling and absolutely vital book” (Mark Joseph Stern, Slate). In this provocative book, Mary Anne Franks examines the thin line between constitutional fidelity and constitutional fundamentalism. The Cult of the Constitution reveals how deep fundamentalist strains in both conservative and liberal American thought keep the Constitution in the service of white male supremacy. Franks demonstrates how constitutional fundamentalists read the Constitution selectively and self-servingly, thus undermining the integrity of the document as a whole. She goes on to argue that economic and civil libertarianism have merged to produce a deregulatory, “free-market” approach to constitutional rights that achieves fullest expression in the idealization of the Internet. The fetishization of the first and second amendments has blurred the boundaries between conduct and speech and between veneration and violence. But the Constitution itself contains the antidote to fundamentalism. The Cult of the Constitution lays bare the dark, antidemocratic consequences of constitutional fundamentalism and urges readers to take the Constitution seriously, not selectively.
Download or read book The Cult of the Fox written by Xiaofei Kang and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2006 with total page 263 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For more than five centuries the shamanistic fox cult has attracted large portions of the Chinese population and appealed to a wide range of social classes. Deemed illicit by imperial rulers and clerics and officially banned by republican and communist leaders, the fox cult has managed to survive and flourish in individual homes and community shrines throughout northern China. In this new work, the first to examine the fox cult as a vibrant popular religion, Xiaofei Kang explores the manifold meanings of the fox spirit in Chinese society. Kang describes various cult practices, activities of worship, and the exorcising of fox spirits to reveal how the Chinese people constructed their cultural and social values outside the gaze of offical power and morality.
Download or read book Putin Mystique written by Anna Arutunyan and published by eBook Partnership. This book was released on 2014-01-30 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A vivid and revealing exploration of the way in which myth, power and religion interact to produce the love-hate relationship between the Russian people and Vladimir Putin.
Download or read book Cult of the Irrelevant written by Michael Desch and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2021-09-28 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How professionalization and scholarly “rigor” made social scientists increasingly irrelevant to US national security policy To mobilize America’s intellectual resources to meet the security challenges of the post–9/11 world, US Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates observed that “we must again embrace eggheads and ideas.” But the gap between national security policymakers and international relations scholars has become a chasm. In Cult of the Irrelevant, Michael Desch traces the history of the relationship between the Beltway and the Ivory Tower from World War I to the present day. Recounting key Golden Age academic strategists such as Thomas Schelling and Walt Rostow, Desch’s narrative shows that social science research became most oriented toward practical problem-solving during times of war and that scholars returned to less relevant work during peacetime. Social science disciplines like political science rewarded work that was methodologically sophisticated over scholarship that engaged with the messy realities of national security policy, and academic culture increasingly turned away from the job of solving real-world problems. In the name of scientific objectivity, academics today frequently engage only in basic research that they hope will somehow trickle down to policymakers. Drawing on the lessons of this history as well as a unique survey of current and former national security policymakers, Desch offers concrete recommendations for scholars who want to shape government work. The result is a rich intellectual history and an essential wake-up call to a field that has lost its way.
Download or read book The Immortal Class written by Travis Hugh Culley and published by Villard. This book was released on 2001-07-02 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Travis Hugh Culley came to Chicago to work and live as an artist. He knew he'd have to struggle, but he found that his struggle meant more than hard work and a taste for poverty. In becoming a bike messenger, he found a sense of community and fulfillment and a brotherhood of like-minded individualists. He rode like a postmodern cowboy across the city's landscape; he passed like a shadow through its soaring office towers; he soared like a falcon through the roaring chaos of the multilayered streets of Chicago. He became an invisible man in society, yet at the same time its most intimate observer. In one of the most dangerous jobs on dry land, he found freedom. In The Immortal Class, Culley takes us in-side the heart and soul of an urban icon the bicycle messenger. In describing his own history and those of his peers, he evokes a classic American maverick, deeply woven into the fabric of society from the pits of squalor to the highest reaches of power and privilege yet always resolutely, exuberantly outside. And he celebrates a culture that eschews the motorized vehicle: the cult of human power. The Immortal Class, Culley's vivid evocation of a bicycle messenger's experience and philosophy, sheds a compelling light on the way human beings relate to one another and to the cities we inhabit. Travis Hugh Culley's voice is at once earthy and soaringly poetic a Gen-X Tom Joad at hyperspeed. The Immortal Class is a unique personal and political narrative of a cyclist's life on the street.
Download or read book Let s Start A Cult The Power of Radical Belief written by Braxton Amundson and published by . This book was released on 2019-11-22 with total page 76 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Let's Start A Cult: The Power of Radical Belief" is not your typical personal development book. Instead, this is a witty, tongue-in-cheek guide of man's path from student to mentor; then, mentor to creator. In life, when you have reached a certain level of success, positively impacted others' lives, and have overcome tragedy with grace and enlightenment-- the next logical step is to create a cult. Challenging the religious conservative upbringing of his childhood, Braxton Amundson, successful entrepreneur, discovered how to lead a life of gratitude and purpose, all while empowering others and ultimately reconnecting to a power higher than himself. Be Empowered! Challenge your own personal values and increase your awareness of life's challenges as the greatest catalyst to living your best life. Take ownership and accountability over your mistakes, celebrate your successes and embrace life's trials -- all to unleash the radical power of the belief within--find your purpose - your cult will find you.
Download or read book Cultish written by Amanda Montell and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2021-06-15 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author of the widely praised Wordslut analyzes the social science of cult influence: how cultish groups from Jonestown and Scientology to SoulCycle and social media gurus use language as the ultimate form of power. What makes “cults” so intriguing and frightening? What makes them powerful? The reason why so many of us binge Manson documentaries by the dozen and fall down rabbit holes researching suburban moms gone QAnon is because we’re looking for a satisfying explanation for what causes people to join—and more importantly, stay in—extreme groups. We secretly want to know: could it happen to me? Amanda Montell’s argument is that, on some level, it already has . . . Our culture tends to provide pretty flimsy answers to questions of cult influence, mostly having to do with vague talk of “brainwashing.” But the true answer has nothing to do with freaky mind-control wizardry or Kool-Aid. In Cultish, Montell argues that the key to manufacturing intense ideology, community, and us/them attitudes all comes down to language. In both positive ways and shadowy ones, cultish language is something we hear—and are influenced by—every single day. Through juicy storytelling and cutting original research, Montell exposes the verbal elements that make a wide spectrum of communities “cultish,” revealing how they affect followers of groups as notorious as Heaven’s Gate, but also how they pervade our modern start-ups, Peloton leaderboards, and Instagram feeds. Incisive and darkly funny, this enrapturing take on the curious social science of power and belief will make you hear the fanatical language of “cultish” everywhere.
Download or read book The Power of Cult Branding written by Matthew W. Ragas and published by Crown Currency. This book was released on 2011-02-09 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Like religious cults that can attract thousands of devoted disciples, is it possible for company brands to build legions of loyal followers? In a marketer's dream come true, can certain products—with the right combination of positioning and branding—take on magnetic characteristics and galvanize die-hard customers who become walking, talking viral marketers? Can your company harness the power of cult branding without blowing a fortune on advertising? According to authors Matthew W. Ragas and Bolivar J. Bueno the answer is yes. In fact, you need not look much farther than a Harley-Davidson rally, a Star Trek convention, or a Jimmy Buffett concert to see the cult branding phenomenon at work: thousands of passionate, faithful fans spreading the good word and spending lots of money. Not all brands have the dash of edginess, the devoted fan base, or the niche positioning to be cult brands. But those that do tend to share similar characteristics that make them successful, what the authors call the Seven Golden Rules of Cult Branding. Through meticulous research and scores of interviews Ragas and Bueno have uncovered the remarkable and oft-untold stories behind nine very successful cult brands: ·Star Trek ·Harley-Davidson ·Oprah Winfrey ·World Wrestling Entertainment (formerly WWF) ·Apple ·Volkswagen Beetle ·Jimmy Buffett ·Vans Shoes ·Linux These nine brands follow the Seven Golden Rules and have millions of fans and billions of dollars in revenue to show for it. Now you can learn first hand what these special brands did to set themselves apart and how to apply the Seven Golden Rules to your own marketing strategies. Written for advertisers, marketers, sales executives, and business owners who want to thrive in an increasingly competitive marketplace, The Power of Cult Branding is the ultimate guide to creating a loyal core of repeat customers and winning the positioning battle.
