Reengineering America - Dick Formichella - A Novel on Changing the Government System

Reengineering America


Dick Formichella
iUniverse, 21-Jun-2005 -


A driven entrepreneur who made millions in the software industry, John Payton strongly believes that the American system of government is outdated. In fact, he's on a mission to convince the American people that they need a new 'tech-savvy" Constitution. According to John's calculations, such a version would be more effective, save billions of dollars in taxes, and could even establish a form of government closer to pure democracy.

With the secret help of an ambitious senator and his brilliant chief of staff, Payton starts a movement called 'Reengineering America." The group is dedicated to pressuring Congress to pass a Constitutional Amendment mandating that a second Constitutional Convention rewrite the document.

But Payton's unlikely crusade captures the attention of sinister and powerful forces both in and outside the government. Some want to stop him at any cost-while others want to ensure he succeeds for their own nefarious purposes.

Unable to distinguish friend from foe, John Payton must ultimately put his fortune- and his life-at risk trying to convince a dubious nation it's time to modernize a 200 year old system of government.

http://books.google.co.in/books?id=EYXc2aNJ5mkC

Humility - An Unlikely Virtue

Presentation by Dr. David Bobb on his new book, Humility: An Unlikely Biography of America's Greatest Virtue given at Hillsdale College's Kirby Center on November 5, 2013.

It is the time where people say be assertive, be aggressive. It is surprising to note that some US Presidently has shown humility.


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Conservatism and Radicalism - Burke and Paine

Burke and a lot of conservatives  begin with very low expectations of human beings.They are very limited in the abilities and based on this it is amazing if something is working and giving results. Hence they  want to build on existing working systems it, rather than try to uproot the system and substitute it with a new system.

Paine thinks in the opposite way and starts with the belief that systems put in place by some people earlier can be replaced by new system designed by people now. Therefore,  there is no excuse for failure and things which are not working and delivering expected results have to be redesigned. When we see a society in which injustice reigns, we have to start from scratch and in a radical way change things.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/jan-june14/division_01-01.html


Yuval Levin Author of "The Great Debate: Edmund Burke, Thomas Paine, and the Birth of Right and Left" in an interview.

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Sociology of Cooperation

The Anatomy of Cooperation
http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.soc.24.1.183

Sociological aspects of cooperation
Andreas Diekmann and Siegwart Lindenberg
https://edit.ethz.ch/socio/publications/spieltheorie/anwendungen/Diekmann_Lindenberg.pdf

Dynamic Social Networks Promote Cooperation in Experiments with Humans
http://sociology.yale.edu/publications/dynamic-social-networks-promote-cooperation-experiments-humans

Political consultants in US Congressional Elections - Book Information

Political Consultants in U.S. Congressional Elections

Stephen K. Medvic

Ohio State University Press, 2001 - Political Science - 224 pages
Campaign consultants are arguably now as famous in the United States as are politicians themselves. During the past decade, those who know the names Bill Clinton, George Bush, Newt Gingrich, and Christine Todd Whitman also recognize the names James Carville, Mary Matalin, Frank Luntz, and Ed Rollins. Professional consultants, once part of the privileged inner circle of presidential and gubernatorial candidates, are increasingly found at all levels of politics. Indeed, more than half of congressional candidates hire campaign consultants. These professionals have become as important to a candidate's success as money. In this innovative study, Stephen K. Medvic explores all aspects of political consultancy and develops an empirically based theory that measures the impact consultants have on elections.


Political Consultants in U.S. Congressional Elections answers two simple questions: What do professional political consultants do? and How successful are they? Medvic analyzes the way consultants shape political dialogue and uses empirical data to show the benefits -- and limits -- of a consultant's involvement in a campaign. He focuses on issues as diverse as vote shares, outcomes, and fundraising. Finally, the author demonstrates how the adversarial nature of campaigns fosters the kind of electioneering advocated by most political consultants and argues that this process may not be as harmful for the country as is often suggested.


http://books.google.co.in/books/about/Political_Consultants_in_U_S_Congression.html?id=0FUETF_2vQUC

Nonviolence and Civil Resistance - Talks and Lectures

2 October - International Day of Nonviolence6-2-2012
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What is Morality?

Oxford Dictionary: Moral science, Moral principles, Points of ethics, Particular systems of morals, Degree of conformity to moral principles

What is meaning of "Moral" (adjective) : Concerned with goodness or badness of character or disposition, Dealing with the distinction between right and wrong, Virtuous in general conduct

Moral courage: to meet contempt etc. rather than abandon right course of action
Moral cowardice: fear of others' disapproval

Morality is being interpreted in different ways by different people. Some view it as related to God and Religion.

Some view it good or bad from an individual's personal benefit of view.

Some view it as good or bad for the society. In Sociology, morals are prescribed by the society for the benefit of the society. This view is reflected in the dictionary meaning given for moral courage and moral cowardice.


Very interesting detailed account of morality and religion in Western Philosophy
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/religion-morality/