moral conditions

Argues that the entertainment industry, academic orthodoxy, and political ideology have fostered the creation of the middle mind--a failure of imagination and acceptance of mediocrity in mainstream America, and looks at the manifestation of the middle mind in several areas of popular culture.

Looks at turn-of-the-century New York with its prostitutes, casinos, all night bars, and how police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt attempted to clean up the city.

Analyzes Abraham Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address, given on March 4, 1865, discussing how the speech reflected Lincoln's views on slavery, race, and religion.

Contains twenty-two essays that provide opposing viewpoints on issues related to American values, and debates which values are important, whether the country is in a moral decline, how to define patriotism, and whether American values improve cultural relations.

Contains a collection of essays that examine a number of contested moral and political issues of American public lifeduring the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, including a discussion of suicide, abortion, gay rights, stem cell rsearch, and more.

A collection of real-life stories from Mexican people telling of the living conditions, politics, and values of Mexico.