Counterfeit Community: The Exploitation of Our Longings for Connectedness

Freie, John F.

ISBN 10: 0847688712 / ISBN 13: 9780847688715

Published by Rowman & Littlefield, 1998

About this Item

**HARDBACK** No dustjacket.

Seller Inventory # mon0000376252

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Counterfeit Community: The Exploitation of Our Longings for Connectedness
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
• Publication Date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0847688712
• ISBN 13: 9780847688715
• Binding: hardcover
• Condition: Fine

About this title

Synopsis

From gated communities to Heaven's Gate, the idea and practice of community in America have not only declined but mutated. In the process, Americans' longing to be connected to something greater than themselves has intensified. This longing, coupled with an absence of genuine community alternatives, opens the way to counterfeit claims by those promoting economic rather than social agendas. This book examines "counterfeit community" as it has become manifest throughout contemporary American society—in housing, as it shapes our public spaces; in the workplace; in politics; in religion; and most recently, in cyberspace. Promises of community come from those hawking exclusive golf course housing developments, from shopping malls and shopping channels, from "total quality management" and mission statement rhetoric, from televangelists and electronic town meetings—and all lure us in, only to disappoint. As Counterfeit Community shows, building genuine community means no quick fixes and no false appeals. The hard work of weaving relationships must be combined with political, economic, and social change to counter the counterfeit trend. Marshaling positive examples of genuine community as well as increasing our sensitivity to false ringers, this book starts us along the way.

About the Author

John F. Freie is associate professor of political science at Le Moyne College.