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terrypaulpearce's review against another edition
2.0
There was some good stuff in here and I really wanted to like it, but the language was too academic and theoretical for me personally.
cosmicllama's review against another edition
3.0
Takes a good look at 5 different popular movements that intended to move away from representative democracy and their attempts to use direct or protagonist democracy. Consisting mostly of interviews with people on the ground, with different activist backgrounds, the book succeeds in telling their stories. The different stories highlight the troubles they have all run into and the different solutions they have tried. The book serves to highlight how tough the struggle for continued freedom and increased democratic control is. It also is filled with passion from the people who are continuing to take back the power in their own lives.
The biggest downside to the book is there is some repetition and not much of a conclusion from the authors. This problem is somewhat minimized however by focusing on the most recent events first, and then returned to the longer standing fights in Argentina and Venezuela. While the authors don't provide a conclusion, they show how far some of these movements have come, while still having a lot to learn and dealing with a lot of push back from the state. It's not the most optimistic look, but the people they interviewed who are involved daily, constantly talk about how much fuller their lives feel in taking control of them.
Recommended for anyone interested in exploring democracy, revolution, worker's right struggles who want to learn what to expect when organizing.
The biggest downside to the book is there is some repetition and not much of a conclusion from the authors. This problem is somewhat minimized however by focusing on the most recent events first, and then returned to the longer standing fights in Argentina and Venezuela. While the authors don't provide a conclusion, they show how far some of these movements have come, while still having a lot to learn and dealing with a lot of push back from the state. It's not the most optimistic look, but the people they interviewed who are involved daily, constantly talk about how much fuller their lives feel in taking control of them.
Recommended for anyone interested in exploring democracy, revolution, worker's right struggles who want to learn what to expect when organizing.
cosmicllama's review
3.0
Takes a good look at 5 different popular movements that intended to move away from representative democracy and their attempts to use direct or protagonist democracy. Consisting mostly of interviews with people on the ground, with different activist backgrounds, the book succeeds in telling their stories. The different stories highlight the troubles they have all run into and the different solutions they have tried. The book serves to highlight how tough the struggle for continued freedom and increased democratic control is. It also is filled with passion from the people who are continuing to take back the power in their own lives.
The biggest downside to the book is there is some repetition and not much of a conclusion from the authors. This problem is somewhat minimized however by focusing on the most recent events first, and then returned to the longer standing fights in Argentina and Venezuela. While the authors don't provide a conclusion, they show how far some of these movements have come, while still having a lot to learn and dealing with a lot of push back from the state. It's not the most optimistic look, but the people they interviewed who are involved daily, constantly talk about how much fuller their lives feel in taking control of them.
Recommended for anyone interested in exploring democracy, revolution, worker's right struggles who want to learn what to expect when organizing.
The biggest downside to the book is there is some repetition and not much of a conclusion from the authors. This problem is somewhat minimized however by focusing on the most recent events first, and then returned to the longer standing fights in Argentina and Venezuela. While the authors don't provide a conclusion, they show how far some of these movements have come, while still having a lot to learn and dealing with a lot of push back from the state. It's not the most optimistic look, but the people they interviewed who are involved daily, constantly talk about how much fuller their lives feel in taking control of them.
Recommended for anyone interested in exploring democracy, revolution, worker's right struggles who want to learn what to expect when organizing.
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