People Power: A User's Guide to Democracy - Hardcover

Jellinek, Dan

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 059307050X ISBN 13: 9780593070505

Publisher: Bantam Press, 2013

Synopsis

A fascinating and accessible guide to democracy in the UK: what it means, how it works and why we need to protect it.
     Politicians have a notoriously bad reputation: one recent survey found people trust them less than used-car salesmen. Voter turn-out in most elections is shockingly low; and episodes like the MPs' expenses scandal of 2009 simply serve to confirm the opinion of many that 'they're all as bad as each other'. But deep down, most of us also know we are incredibly lucky to live in a democracy, with freedoms that billions of people across the planet would give anything to enjoy.

     So we are lucky -- but still, we don't like our system and we don't trust our politicians. In the face of growing global unrest, from the Occupy movement and the 2011 summer riots to the Arab Spring, what is the answer?

     Part of the cure must be to better understand the disease: to understand how our democracy works, with all its strengths and weaknesses, achievements and archaisms, complexities and flaws.

     In People Power Dan Jellinek provides a unique and accessible guide to democracy in the UK, investigating how our government and our communities function, and the role that we, the general public, need to play to keep the wheels turning. If you want to know what it really means to be British, how your small actions can bring about big changes, and how you can improve your life and the lives of others then this book is a must-read. Wake up, stand up and be counted; the power is in your hands.

About this title

About the Author

DAN JELLINEK is the co-founder of Headstar, a publishing, research and events company focusing on technology, government and social issues. Dan is a journalist and publisher with more than 15 years' experience in technology and government. In his early career he wrote for The Guardian and BBC Online. Dan is on the international board of E-Democracy.Org, a charity which aims to improve participation in democracy through the use of information networks. In 2004 he was voted among the top 10 individuals and organisations in the world having the greatest impact on the way the Internet is changing politics.

Edition details

• Publisher: Bantam Press
• Publication date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 059307050X
• ISBN 13: 9780593070505
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 288