Meets monthly in San Francisco to discuss all manner of books about politics in the world today.
San
Francisco Bistro Barnies
Good food, great conversation and fabulous company. The San Francisco Bistro Barnies launch with Elisabetta Gasparoni-Abraham, facilitator and Marco Ambron, personal chef.
An enjoyable gathering to discuss contemporary issues of interest - such as art, music, literature, politics and science - in an informal setting. Elisabetta and Marco would welcome the pleasure of your company.
"Something Incredibly Wonderful Happens: Frank Oppenheimer and the World He Made Up" by K.C. Cole, a long-time science writer for the Los Angeles Times, and a professor at USC’s Annenberg School of Journalism.
"What happens to a person schooled in art, science and “ethical culture” who finds himself a pacifist building an atomic bomb, a physicist exiled from science because of his outspoken efforts to stop the madness, a New York Jew raising cattle and teaching high school in the Colorado mountains? If you’re Frank Oppenheimer, you use what you’ve learned from art and science and teaching and ranching to make up your own world...a “museum of human awareness” The Exploratorium in San Francisco--which is soon imitated all over the world."
'Strange Fruit: Science, Race and Politics' by Kenan MalikThe debate about race is back - and with a vengeance. In the past scientific ideas of race reflected political ideas of inferiority and superiority, whereas today it reflects contemporary notions of diversity. Malik challenges both sides of the race debate, controversially revealing that it is not through the scientific study of human differences but through our political obsession with identity and diversity that racial ideas are once more catching fire.
'The Thin Blue Line: How humanitarianism went to war' by Conor Foley
"Humanitarian NGOs," argues Conor Foley, "are becoming increasingly dependent on western government donors, who comprise the only constituency that can hold them accountable".
So should there be more regulation holding them to account; or does it mean that NGOs should be encouraged to be more independent of so-called donor 'interest groups'? Will either be a good thing for the people that NGOs purport to defend? Or should we be more critical of any form of intervention in the national sovereignty of other countries?
'Dying to Live: a story of U.S. immigration in an age of global apartheid' by Joeseph Nevins"Illegal immigration has become one of the intensely controversial social issues of our day. What are the side effects of the United States' stern position on Mexican immigration? "Dying to Live: A Story of U.S. Immigration In an Age of Global Apartheid" is a definitive criticism by author Joseph Nevins of the U.S.'s practices on immigration today. Following the story of Julio Cesar Gallegos, a man who died crossing the border to try to reach his wife and son, it's an eye opening account of immigration that is judicially defined as illegal — and the cruelty that sometimes lies within. Discussing human rights and homeland security as well, "Dying to Live" is a deftly written treatise on immigration, a must to those who want to further understand the subject." Midwest Book Review
'Modern China: A Very Short Introduction' by Rana MitterChina today is never out of the news: from human rights controversies and the continued legacy of Tiananmen Square, to global coverage of the Beijing Olympics, and the Chinese "economic miracle." It is a country of contradictions and transitions: a peasant society with some of the world's most futuristic cities, an ancient civilization that is modernizing as rapidly as possible, a walled-off nation that is increasingly at the center of world trade. This Very Short Introduction offers an indispensable starting point for anyone who needs to quickly know the themes and controversies that have shaped modern China. Prize-winning author and scholar Rana Mitter examines the modern history, politics, economy, and thriving cultural scene of contemporary China, and its relations with the wider world.
'The Enemies of Progress' by Austin Williams This polemical book examines the concept of sustainability and presents a critical exploration of its all-pervasive influence on society, arguing that sustainability, manifested in several guises, represents a pernicious and corrosive doctrine that has survived primarily because there seems to be no alternative to its canon: in effect, its bi-partisan appeal has depressed critical engagement and neutered politics. It is a malign philosophy of misanthropy, low aspirations and restraint. This book argues for a destruction of the mantra of sustainability, removing its unthinking status as orthodoxy, and for the reinstatement of the notions of development, progress, experimentation and ambition in its place. Al Gore insists that the debate is over . Here the author retorts that it is imperative to argue against the moralizing of politics.
Please mail Elisabetta Gasparoni-Abraham for futher information.
