Standing for Justice

出版者:Shepheard-Walwyn

作者:John Stewart

页数:250

出版时间:2002-09-01

价格:USD 29.95

装帧:Hardcover

isbn号码:9780856831942

具体描述

A radical, Andrew MacLaren fought not for right or left, but for justice. Long before George Orwell, he recognised the dangers of bureaucratic socialism, while attacking the Tories for blocking the one reform that would eradicate the poverty and social injustice of the 19th century, without diminishing the liberty and sturdy independence of the individual. Born in Glasgow the year Karl Marx died, his was not a privileged beginning: aged ten ,his first job was as a tailor's errand boy, followed by an engineer's apprenticeship at sixteen, though he had little feel for engineering. Art was his love, but times were hard and he had to help support the family. However, his fierce denunciation of the degrading effects of poverty and his gift for public speaking soon brought him to the fore. Two men dominated the thinking of radicals at the time: Karl Marx and Henry George. The latter is scarcely remembered today, but his was the inspiration behind the Liberal government which swept to power in 1906. George's influence was also considerable in the emerging Labour Party, enjoying the support of Ramsay MacDonald and Phillip Snowden, respectively the first Labour Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer. MacLaren entered parliament in 1922 as a Labour member, supporting the Georgist approach to social reform rather than bureaucratic socialism. He was an outstanding constituency MP, twice winning against the national swing. So what was this approach? The way MacLaren described it was that, "whilst a man had the right to possess what he produced or received in exchange for his work, there is no such right to private ownership of the elements upon which all men depend - air, water, sunshine and land. Indeed, he held that the right of access to these basic elements is as strong and equal for all men as the right of life itself, and that if such private ownership of the basic elements is permitted, the suppression and exploitation of one class of the community by another is inevitable. The consequent hardship and injustice must become more acute as the community develops". The accuracy of this forecast is borne out by the fact that the gap between rich and poor has continued to widen during the 20th century, despite the huge increase in wealth and all the efforts to redistribute income through taxation and welfare. This biography is a timely reminder of an unbureaucratic method of undoing the social injustices of the 19th and 20th centuries

用户评价

我必须承认，一开始我对这本书的期待并没有那么高，觉得可能又是一本泛泛而谈的社会评论。然而，它却给了我一个巨大的惊喜。作者的论证逻辑严谨，观点犀利，而且非常有深度。他不仅仅停留在对现象的描述，而是深入挖掘了产生这些现象的根源，并且提出了切实可行的解决之道。尤其是在讨论到公民参与在推动社会进步中的作用时，他的分析让我耳目一新。我一直认为，作为个体，我们在庞大的社会结构中似乎微不足道，但这本书让我看到了个人力量的汇聚能够产生多么惊人的效应。它让我意识到，沉默不是明智的选择，积极发声、参与讨论，才能真正为正义的实现贡献力量。这本书的语言也很有感染力，读起来既有学术的严谨，又不失文学的温度，让我能够沉浸其中，并且深受启发。

这本书的阅读体验是相当沉浸式的。作者善于运用引人入胜的叙事手法，将复杂的社会议题娓娓道来。我常常会在某个故事点上停下来，思考主人公的处境，代入他们的情感，然后被作者的分析所折服。书中关于权利的界定、责任的承担，以及在冲突中如何寻求平衡的论述，都非常有启发性。它不仅仅是一本关于“正义”的书，更是一本关于如何成为一个更有担当、更有智慧的社会成员的书。我特别喜欢作者在处理一些敏感话题时所展现出的那种克制而又坚定的态度，既不回避矛盾，又不会走向极端。这让我觉得，他是一位真正思考过这些问题，并且带着深深的同情心去写作的作者。这本书让我对“公平”有了更客观的认识，也让我更加坚信，每一个个体都有能力，也都有责任去捍卫它。

我可以说，这本书彻底改变了我对“行动”的理解。它不仅仅是停留在理论层面，而是充满了实际的指导意义。作者通过大量的案例分析，展示了如何在现实生活中，在面对不公时，采取有效的行动。那些关于倡导、组织、谈判、甚至抗争的策略，都写得非常具体，让我觉得那些看似遥不可及的“正义行动”其实是可以触及的。我印象最深的是，书中提到了一些非常小的，但却意义非凡的个体努力，它们像一颗颗种子，最终汇聚成了推动社会变革的力量。这让我意识到，我们不必等待伟大的英雄出现，我们每个人都可以是那个微小的行动者。这本书给我带来的最大价值，就是让我看到了希望，看到了改变的可能性，并且给了我勇气去尝试。我绝对会向我的朋友们推荐这本书，我相信它能够激励更多人加入到争取正义的行列中来。

这本书的封面设计就吸引了我，那种沉静而坚定的力量扑面而来。我一直对社会公平正义的话题抱有浓厚的兴趣，总觉得在这个纷繁复杂的世界里，总有一些声音需要被放大，总有一些角落需要被照亮。当我看到这本书名的时候，直觉告诉我，它可能触及了我内心深处一直在思考和探寻的某些东西。我尤其喜欢封面那种留白的艺术，仿佛预示着这本书会给我留下广阔的思考空间，而不是直接给我答案。有时候，一本好书就像一位引路人，它不会替你行走，但会让你看到前方的路，让你思考该如何迈出自己的步伐。我期待这本书能够提供一些深刻的洞见，帮助我理解那些看似难以逾越的社会鸿沟，以及那些在其中默默抗争的力量。我相信，阅读的过程本身就是一种学习和成长，而关于正义的讨论，更是关乎我们每个人如何在这个集体中找到自己的位置，如何贡献自己的力量。

读这本书的过程，与其说是在吸收信息，不如说是在经历一场心灵的洗礼。作者的叙事方式非常独特，他并没有选择那种高高在上的说教，而是通过一个个鲜活的案例，将那些抽象的正义概念具象化。我尤其被其中一个关于社区法律援助的故事所打动，主人公面对强大的不公，没有被压垮，而是凭借着坚韧的意志和对原则的坚守，最终赢得了尊重。这让我深刻体会到，正义并非遥不可及，它就存在于我们身边，存在于每一个为了维护公平而付出的努力中。这本书让我重新审视了“力量”的定义，它不只是物质上的强大，更可以是精神上的不屈。我发现，作者在字里 আকর্ষণীয়间流露出的对弱势群体的关怀，以及对体制性弊端的深刻剖析，都让我受益匪浅。每一次翻页，都像是与作者进行了一次深度对话，他引导我思考，激发我辩驳，最终让我对“站在正义一边”有了更深刻的理解。