Bøger af Max J. Skidmore

Poverty in America too often goes unnoticed, and disregarded. This perhaps results from America's general level of prosperity along with a fairly widespread notion that conditions inevitably are better in the USA than elsewhere. Political rhetoric frequently enforces such an erroneous notion: "the poor live better in America than the middle class elsewhere," "America has the best health care in the world," "income inequality is a sign of 'freedom'," and the like. With American poverty increasing, social mobility decreasing, and income inequality growing it has become urgent that our society direct its attention to poverty as one of the country's most troublesome issues. Poverty and Public Policy helps to focus that attention worldwide; this book, Poverty in America will help to emphasize the issue in this country. Max J. Skidmore (Ph.D., University of Minnesota) teaches at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where he is University of Missouri Curators' Professor of Political Science, and Thomas Jefferson Fellow. He has been Distinguished Fulbright Lecturer in India, where he was Director of the American Studies Research Centre in Hyderabad, and has been Senior Fulbright Scholar at the University of Hong Kong. He has published over two dozen works on numerous topics, including Social Security and its Enemies (1999), Securing America's Future: A Bold Plan to Preserve and Expand Social Security (2008), Bulwarks Against Poverty: Social Security, Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act (2014), and Presidents, Pandemics, and Politics (forthcoming, 2016).

Unworkable Conservatism looks at what passes these days for "conservative" principles-small government, low taxes, minimal regulation-and demonstrates that they are not feasible under modern conditions. First, for many reasons, they are difficult, at best, to implement. Second, if they are put into place, they please no one, not even those who advocated them in the first place. Most people now are too young to remember the presidency of Mr. Conservatism, himself, Ronald Reagan. If they are old enough, they generally have forgotten how dissatisfied those on the right were with the Reagan administration. Frustrated at not being able to bring themselves to criticize the Republican Party's idol directly, they had to be content to screech at Reagan's aides: "let Reagan be Reagan!" Along with direct analysis and criticism, this book takes an innovative approach, and incorporates some of the author's review essays. Using other important works as an intellectual launching pad, it adds to them and reveals numerous overlooked yet vital facts that should have been obvious even to casual observers. It makes clear that things in America have gone very wrong, how and why this has happened, and what might be done about it. Max J. Skidmore is University of Missouri Curators' Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Thomas Jefferson Fellow at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He has been Distinguished Fulbright Lecturer to India, where he directed the American Studies Research Centre, and Senior Fulbright Scholar at the University of Hong Kong, where he headed the American Studies Programme. Among his numerous books are several dealing with the American presidency, with Social Security and Medicare, with American political thought, and with other topics, including American highway travel in the early 20th century. He is a member of the National Academy of Social Insurance. His Ph.D. is from the University of Minnesota.

This book is an examination of the manner in which American presidents respond to pandemics and other public health crises. Closer examination, however, suggests the contrary, demonstrating the potential of government to act quickly and effectively against public health emergencies, even when facing formidable obstacles.

Certain 19th Century presidencies contrast common perceptions of the office's authority and strength. These presidents were a strong group and were anything but insignificant. They fought substantial battles with Congress, and often won. This book seeks to provide more substantive analysis of maligned presidencies, and the legacies left behind.

Presents the story of Theodore Roosevelt and the highway he inspired. This book shows how Max Skidmore unearthed the remnants of America's most fascinating auto trail and experienced it all the way from Portland, Maine to Portland, Oregon.

Securing America's Future counters the attacks on Social Security, making clear that the system is not in crisis. The book calls for several changes, including Social Security's expansion, universal health care, and reforms that would enhance Social Security and make it even more beneficial for Americans.

Presidential rankings emerged in 1948 when Life Magazine published an article by the prominent historian, Arthur M. Schlesinger. This book provides useful criticism of these presidential rankings. It is arranged chronologically, and discusses each presidential performance and each ranking study in detail.