260: Vegetarian America: A History by Karen & Michael Iacobbo

Vegetarian America: A History

Vegetarianism in the United States didn't start with the hippies. Benjamin Franklin kept to a vegetarian diet in his youth, eventually adding fish and some meat to his diet in middle age. In 1838 the American Health Convention recommended vegetarianism as a healthful diet. The American Vegetarian Society was formed in the middle of the 19th century. This history reveals the widespread appeal of vegetarianism throughout the existence of the United States. The authors actually start their history well before the USA came into existence. There have always been vegetarians in the US, and this book helps flesh out their history.

Why this is progressive/liberal: Despite being practiced by people of many different faiths and many different political persuasions, vegetarianism is closely associated with liberals and progressives. This book explains why there's a lot more to the vegetable diet than than the desire to treat animals ethically.



You might also want to check out Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer.

261: Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero

Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook

Maybe the only vegan cookbook you'll ever need. But, if you're a vegan, probably not the only vegan cookbook you'll ever want. If you're thinking about veganism, but don't know where to start, this is the place. While vegetarians don't eat meat, vegans don't use any animal products. Jell-O brand gelatin, for example, obviously isn't meat, but is composed partially of animal products (gelatin is derived from the collagen in an animal's skin and bones). So, while a vegetarian might eat some Jell-O brand gelatin, or drink a glass of milk, or have a slice of cheese, a vegan removes theses items from her or his diet. Vegans also generally avoid wearing leather, fur, or wool. The rule of thumb for vegans is to live without exploiting animals.

The Veganomicon packs a few hundred recipes into a little less than 300 pages. In addition to the recipes the authors help guide the newbie cook through such basics as cooking beans, cooking grains, and cooking vegetables. One especially nice attribute of this collection is that the authors never call for fake meat or egg substitutes. Even if you're not a vegan or vegetarian this is a terrific cookbook to add to your collection.

Why this is progressive/liberal: The overwhelming majority of US progressives and liberals are meat-eaters. And yet vegetarianism is part of the liberal stereotype. This is because if you meet (or are) a vegetarian you are almost certainly tilt to the left side of the political spectrum. And vegans? Forget about it. They're so progressive they make Noam Chomsky look like Rick Perry.

262: Radical Evolution: The Promise and Peril of Enhancing Our Minds, Our Bodies -- and What It Means to Be Human by Joel Garreau

Radical Evolution: The Promise and Peril of Enhancing Our Minds, Our Bodies -- and What It Means to Be Human

Not only will the future be weirder than we imagine, but it will probably be weirder than we CAN imagine. To get a taste of that weird future Joel Garreau (a top-notch journalist) travels across the US interviewing scientists about how their research will change humanity.

From the publisher's description:

"Through advances in genetic, robotic, information, and nanotechnologies, we are altering our minds, our memories, our metabolisms, our personalities, our progeny–and perhaps our very souls. Radical Evolution reveals that the powers of our comic-book superheroes already exist, or are in development in hospitals, labs, and research facilities around the country–from the revved-up reflexes and speed of Spider-Man and Superman, to the enhanced mental acuity and memory capabilities of an advanced species."

Why this is progressive/liberal: In all candor I'm not absolutely sure the transhuman movement IS progressive or liberal. Perhaps it might best be described as techno-libertarian with a dash of secular metaphysics. It's liberal in the sense that liberals are generally supportive of people doing whatever they want to their bodies. Think tattoos, piercings, a woman's right to choose to carry an embryo, and everyone's right to surgically alter their sex. However, there's a weird metaphysical current underlying the transhumanist movement that doesn't really hold up to scientific scrutiny. There's also a strong element of Randian self-importance among many of the acolytes. And, it seems in some ways anti-human. Nonetheless, it's a tremendously attractive idea to many people, and it's a topic that everyone should at least have on their radar. To his credit, Garreau maintains a critical skeptical eye while contemplating what the future may bring.

Buy the Kindle version: Radical Evolution: The Promise and Peril of Enhancing Our Minds, Our Bodies -- and What It Means to Be Human

263: Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air by David J. C. MacKay

Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air

MacKay's clear, straight-forward explanation of energy and energy use helps clear away all the gobbledy-gook surrounding sustainable energy use. Seriously, turning off your phone charger is pointless. If you want to reduce energy usage adjust your thermostat. MacKay claims "I am not pro-wind or pro-nuclear: I am just pro-arithmetic." And by demonstrating the arithmetic of energy use he clearly explains why some ideas about energy sustainability are bogus, and why some should be widely embraced.

Why this is progressive/liberal: Conservative criticism of science is nothing new. Science undercuts the concepts of faith and authority, two of the core pillars of conservatism. And there are times when those conservative ideals are important and beneficial to society. However, denying the science of climate change is not one of those times. While progressives might already be ideological allies with MacKay, they can benefit greatly from the clear insight provided in this book.

Buy the Kindle version: Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air

264: Radical Democracy by C. Douglas Lummis

Radical Democracy

Anyone following the Occupy Together movement has seen radical democracy at work. Volunteers form working groups. The working groups research and discuss the topic for which the working group exists, and then, once they have options to vote on, take it to the whole group. The whole group votes and then everyone abides by the majority. Sometimes there are non-binding polls to determine if the options are divisive are not well understood. It's a fascinating process, almost completely neglected by the mainstream press, and probably one of the most progressive structural elements within the Occupy Together movement. (Here's a .pdf that explains the process in more detail.)

Radical Democracy by C. Douglas Lummis is a book that can help explain the process of radical democracy as well as the importance of its theoretical underpinnings. At its best radical democracy isn't just about majority rules, but about constructing something new that no one group, or interest, could have created on its own.

Why this is progressive/liberal: The conservative/liberal division has been built into the federal government since its inception. During the Constitutional Convention there are very few people who believed that a total democracy would work as a way to govern a nation. However, some democracy was seen as a way to temper the dangers of Republicanism. Pure democracy couldn't work because the people couldn't be counted on to work in the nation's best interest. Sectarian politics and popular enthusiasms would detract from working for larger goals. On the other hand, while leaders should aspire to Republican virtue, history was littered with examples of the less-than-virtuous taking the reins of government. And so, the democratic republic was born. Ever since these two forms of governance have been fighting, just as the framers intended. The democratically-inclined have extended the franchise to more and more of the population, while those who favor the ideals of a Republic have worked to ensure that the levers of government are most likely controlled by a well-educated elite from privileged economic backgrounds. Liberals generally support the democratic republic, while progressives would like to see even more radical forms of democracy infiltrate many more aspects of society.

265: When Abortion Was a Crime: Women, Medicine, and Law in the United States, 1867-1973 by Leslie J. Reagan

When Abortion Was a Crime: Women, Medicine, and Law in the United States, 1867-1973

We forget or we never knew. There was a time when abortion was illegal. Leslie Reagan provides the history of this time and helps explain why decriminalization was fought for and advocated by so many progressives. Her history covers the era from the mid-nineteenth century when abortion was criminalized until the Supreme Court's ruling in Roe v. Wade which ruled that laws criminalizing abortion were unconstitutional.

Why this is progressive/liberal: One of the brightest lines separating conservatives from liberals is the issue of abortion. For many progressives the science of embryonic development, the history of natural and induced abortion, and the importance of individual freedom combine to make a woman's right to choose to continue or to end a pregnancy a fundamental right. The idea that life begins upon conception is rooted in religion rather than science. Neither the government nor one specific faith should interfere with an individual's right to their body.

Buy the Kindle version: When Abortion Was a Crime: Women, Medicine, and Law in the United States, 1867-1973

266: To Die Well: Your Right to Comfort, Calm, and Choice in the Last Days of Life by Sidney Wanzer & Joseph Glenmullen

To Die Well: Your Right to Comfort, Calm, and Choice in the Last Days of Life

Do you have the right to take your own life? Should we allow physician's to help hasten their patients death? In this book the answer is yes. Proponents argue that especially in cases of extraordinary pain and imminent death patients should be allowed to aggressively manage the pain even if it shortens life or leads to death. Opponents worry that unscrupulous people will use the law as a loophole to murder and that suicidal people, who might presumably be cured of their desire to die, might find a way to take advantage of the system. The doctors who wrote this volume argue that the ethical requirements are to let people choose how they will die.

Why this is progressive/liberal: An example of the right/left dimension of the right-do-die movement occurred in the middle of the George W. Bush presidency. The Bush administration opposed Oregon's Death with Dignity act. When the case came before the Supreme Court several state Democrats wrote the court in defense of the law and the liberal/moderate wing of the court found in favor of Oregon. Scalia, Thomas and Roberts dissented.

Buy the Kindle version: To Die Well: Your Right to Comfort, Calm, and Choice in the Last Days of Life