political science / international relations / general

Contains essays discussing the United States place in the changing geopolitical environment covering foreign policy, military and limitations of Western democracy.

Goes behind the scenes of political power and industry into the debate about the use of Agent Orange and its potential side effects, as veterans seek justice in the court of law and public opinion. Unprecedented in its access to legal, medical, and government documentation, and the testimonies of veterans.

The story of political prisoners finally freed in December 2014, after being held captive by the United States since the late 1990s. Anti-Castro groups based in Florida carried out hundreds of military attacks on Cuba through the 1980s and 1990s, bombing hotels and shooting up Cuban beaches with machine guns. The Cuban government struck back with the Wasp Network--a dozen men and two women--sent to infiltrate those organizations. The Last Soldiers of the Cold War tells the story of those unlikely Cuban spies and their eventual unmasking and prosecution by U.S. authorities. Five of the Cubans received long or life prison terms on charges of espionage and murder.

First-hand account of NBC's chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel's two decades of reporting stories of the Middle East revolutions, the Arab Spring, war, and terrorism seen up-close--sometimes dangerously so. Over two decades Engel has been under fire, blown out of hotel beds, and taken hostage. He has watched Mubarak and Morsi in Egypt arrested and condemned, reported from Jerusalem, been through the Lebanese war, covered the whole shooting match in Iraq, interviewed Libyan rebels who toppled Gaddafi, reported from Syria as Al-Qaeda stepped in, and was kidnapped in the Syrian cross currents of fighting. He goes into Afghanistan with the Taliban and to Iraq with ISIS.

"Travel is no longer a past-time but a colossal industry, arguably one of the biggest in the world and second only to oil in importance for many poor countries. One out of 12 people in the world are employed by the tourism industry which contributes $6.5 trillion to the world's economy. To investigate the size and effect of this new industry, Elizabeth Becker traveled the globe. She speaks to the Minister of Tourism of Zambia who thinks licensing foreigners to kill wild animals is a good way to make money and then to a Zambian travel guide who takes her to see the rare endangered sable antelope. She travels to Venice where community groups are fighting to stop the tourism industry from pushing them out of their homes, to France where officials have made tourism their number one industry to save their cultural heritage; and on cruises speaking to waiters who earn $60 a month--then on to Miami to interview their CEO. Becker's sharp depiction reveals travel as a product; nations as stewards. Seeing the tourism industry from the inside out, the world offers a dizzying range of travel options but very few quiet getaways"--.

"Award-winning teacher and high-profile public speaker John Hunter offers insights into conflict resolution and collective problem-solving gleaned from his many years teaching kids through the "world peace game," an innovative global systems simulation he created"--Provided by publisher.