Reddit mentions: The best public affairs & food policy books

First off, I don't see how that is helpful considering industrial output and per capita consumption are already considered far too high to be sustainable. In fact, since at least the '70's many environmental economists have been calling for planned economic degrowth in the face of unsustainable utilization rates of not just fossil fuels, but other natural resources as well.

Second of all, I think there's a strong argument to be made that high-tech renewable energy is not up to the task of supplying us the the kind of energy we're used to, nor will it ever be. Yet that very likely contingency isn't even being considered in public discourse.

I still agree with the central message of the report, though. Cutting emissions is the best path to prosperity. I just don't think that prosperity and growth have to go hand in hand. The rather standard (and silly) assumption that economic growth is somehow independent of energy needs to be discarded. It is not tenable. And it implies, wrongly, that energy related emissions can be reduced without consequences for growth.

Republicans claim they are for smaller government and privatization and that sort of thing but they only get excited to really push for it when they have a chance to set up a friend or corporate sponsor with a plum crony capitalism deal. Meanwhile they take our tax money (as do the Democrats) to defray the cost of their prime time promotional events (aka national conventions.) I did not know that the Feds also kick in millions to provide security for these things but it does not surprise me.

Now I know you were just kidding, but please stop playing into the 'bash the other guy' game. It only ends up supporting the dinosaur parties. If enough people can get past their fears of "the other horrific candidate" and start supporting an honest unbought outsider, we would have a chance over time to rescue this largely broken country of ours.

P.S. I know it is the inferior voting system that leads to the two party system, but since we don't have initiative rights here in Texas, changing that is not an option. Thus the only option available option is to stop supporting Republicans and Democrats wherever that is possible.

If you can't do that, at least vote for Mark Miller for Oil & Gas (aka Railroad) Commissioner. He is by far the most qualified candidate having written the book about the agency and taught oil engineering at UT for almost 20 years.

Hey there! I know you asked for online but the lists below are everything you probably need, in terms of policy 101:

Books
Thomas Birkland - "An Introduction to the Policy Process"
Dipak Gupta - "Analyzing Public Policy"
Thomas Dye - "Understanding Public Policy"

Blogs/Podcasts
Council on Foreign Relations - "The World Next Week"
NPR- "Planet Money"
Economistsview

Research Institutions
Brookings
Pew
RAND Corp

Those books are solid. The blogs are great at making succinct points and summarize current events well. The research places offer great objective research, and they produce research summaries that help provide key takeaways.

>... should be considered?

This is a normative question. In normative questions the values of some actor(s) determines the answer.

In the case of public policy this means that all manners of people values could have an impact on the policies goals. For example, policymakers (such as legislators) all often have competing visions about what the goal of a policy should be. Bureaucrats often have their own opinions about what the goals should be. Constituents might have all sorts of other competing opinions. The target population may have other opinions. What this means is that in order for policy to pass it usually has to have a certain amount of ambiguity baked in, so as to satisfy the competing values of all the different groups/actors.

Deborah Stone's book Policy Paradox is principally about the role of ambiguity in public policy and in establishing policy goals. Policy Paradox is mandatory reading for any student of Public Policy. She demonstrates how vague (ambiguous) goals are often necessary in order to achieve the votes of all the possible veto actors (committee chairs, speakers, majority leaders, median voters, Presidents, etc...). In short, many actors make it difficult to reconcile what the policy should do. And, often times not all goals can be achieved simultaneously ; Some goals are mutually exclusive to a point. This can make it difficult to determine whether a policy is actually a success or a failure.

Policy Paradox builds on some of the decision making work of Cohen, March, and Olsen who described how ambiguity of goals plays a role in decision making in "organization anarchies" such as governments and universities. Cohen and March also developed the theory of bounded-rationality and discussed the importance of ambiguity in individual decision making as well.

Implementation by Pressman and Wildavsky additionally touches how important it is that the goals of a policy have "buy in" amongst the bureaucrats responsible for implementing the policy. Essentially, if the goals are to outside the organizational culture of the bureaucracy responsible for running the program, the bureaucrats may just not implement the policy fully (or at all).

Anecdotally, I've spoken, in the course of researching legislative oversight, with policy makers who have been personally (and professionally) frustrated when they voted into creation a new policy program and appropriated money to a bureaucracy to implement that program. And then had the bureaucracy simply not implement the program in the slightest because it was simply to far afield from the goals/mission of the bureaucrats.

This is much less of a problem outside of public policy. In "Design Thinking" the only person whose values matter to the "designer" is the clients. The designer merely designs to the clients singular values. This is why "design thinking" approaches are not generally a good approach for policy analysts or policy makers.

If you're looking for a guide on how to perform a policy analysis, I suggest you read Bardach's Eightfold Path to Policy Analysis. It's essentially the standard.

I wish I could recommend a book to you, but I'm no engineer. Consider asking /r/nuclear or /r/nuclearpower?

One chapter of one book I can recommend to you about the politics of the issue in the United States is "The Construction and Collapse of a Policy Monopoly" from Agendas and Instability in America Politics, 2nd edition, by Baumgartner and Jones. These political scientists adopted the concept of "punctuated equilibrium" from evolutionary biology to explain why sometimes issues will stay off the political agenda for many decades, allowing a policy to remain stable for that period, but then suddenly it will attract a lot of attention from politicians, the media, or the public, which leads to a sudden change in the policy. This chapters gives a textbook example of their model of agenda setting and policy change using nuclear power. It gives the story of how nuclear power started with very positive PR ("atoms for peace" and "electricity too cheap to meter") and how that changed. You'll learn why the AEC was replaced with DOE and NRC.

edit: i accidentally a word

If you think you are not informed enough by the general media you can try a book. I read this one: https://www.amazon.co.uk/EU-Referendum-2016-Guide-Voters/dp/1910745510/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1464090004&sr=8-1&keywords=voter%27s+guide

It's a fairly quick (and relatively interesting, actually, if you are at all interested) read. It seems balanced to me, though of course that is all but impossible to actual discern, having only read that book. But that's what it's attempting to do anyway.

It convinced me to vote "remain", but I think what it really showed me a lot was that I don't think anyone is informed enough to actually "know" which choice is best - I don't think it's possible. It's like trying to figure out what the weather is going to be on one particular day 1000 years in the future.

Its not my theory. Its how the financial system works.

So are you now suggesting that the private commercial banking system finances the US government with dollars? So the US government is completely reliant on banks like JP Morgan? LOL! Your logic may have applied 100 years+ ago. Unfortunately most economic textbooks still think we are on a fixed-rate exchange system.

Modern economics since Adam Smith came about during a time when the monetary system was on a gold standard. This means 90-95% of economic monetary pseudo-theory simply does not apply to our monetary system.

Economic textbooks treat the dollar as if it were a scarce commodity ie continuation of gold. This is why you can't understand what I am saying.

The government issues bonds primarily as a result of what went on during the previous 200years+. As I said a relic of the gold standard. A government bond is merely a savings account, its dollars with a term and a coupon. They decide the terms. Its basically a 'risk free asset'. The government never has to issue bonds to finance itself in a fiat-credit system. It can instruct its central bank to Credit accounts for purchases of good/services that it needs to function. As long as someone is willing to accept dollars for something, the government can pay.

The government is the largest buyer of goods/services in the economy.

Government bonds simply remove dollars created by previous deficits out of the system and replace them with dollars + coupon.

There is no such thing as a 'money supply' in our monetary system. Just entries of debts/credits on accounting ledgers. The value of the credit depends on the borrowers ability to repay the debt. ie. labor producing a good/service to satisfy the debt. Labor power backs money in our system.

The banks do not create money because when they issue loans there is a corresponding liability also created. This is different with the government.

When the government deficit spends it creates new dollars that enter the economy the same way when the private sector 'deficit spends' ie borrows money. Its the same thing, the difference is the government never has to repay back its own debt(vertical money) while the private sector has to repay debts(horizontal money).

This is the crucial difference. When the private sector deficit spends ie takes on huge loans, there is almost always a crisis around the corner because the value of the loans exceeds repayment ability primarily due to the 'magic of compound interest'. When the government deficit spends its own currency to make investments it can never be unable to repay the debt.

Here start reading:

https://www.amazon.com/Deadly-Innocent-Frauds-Economic-Policy/dp/0692009590

In ancapistan the GPL won't be enforceable, the maximum one could do is to set up a fine with a certain amount of money if the guy who read the source use it without providing the source for his code. But now, imagine the cost to prove that in a trial, I mean, it's possible but probably not very efficient , better to not license the code and make it truly free.

This book explain these situations very well: http://www.amazon.com/Against-Intellectual-Property-Large-Edition/dp/1479221120/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1406728644&sr=8-1&keywords=stephan+kinsella

Charter schools are also a means to bring about progressive changes with regard to teaching students. A professor that I use to work with wrote a great book on it and I'm happy to have my children in a charter school that reflects those progressive ideals, impossible in a public school system.

https://www.amazon.com/Emancipatory-Promise-Charter-Schools-Progressive/dp/0791462366

Success? Please - people in Sweden go to vets rather than doctors to get treated, the wait times are so long. I suggest you read, Remaking America: Welcome to the Dark Side of the Welfare State. The author is a Swede now living in the US, and I wrote about his experience here.

He has a pretty impressive resume as well as a book out (about the Texas Railroad Commission), so I suppose it wouldn't be too hard to figure out what he would do as a commissioner.

May I recommend this book. We used it in one of my MPA courses and I found it very interesting and easy to read.

The Ethics of Dissent: Managing Guerilla Government, 2nd Edition (Public Affairs and Policy Administration Series) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1452226318/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_YrUQDbR0JK5MX

Here are all the local Amazon links I could find:


amazon.com

amazon.co.uk

amazon.ca

amazon.com.au

amazon.in

amazon.com.mx

amazon.de

amazon.it

amazon.es

amazon.com.br

amazon.nl

amazon.co.jp

amazon.fr

Beep bloop. I'm a bot to convert Amazon ebook links to local Amazon sites.
I currently look here: amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca, amazon.com.au, amazon.in, amazon.com.mx, amazon.de, amazon.it, amazon.es, amazon.com.br, amazon.nl, amazon.co.jp, amazon.fr, if you would like your local version of Amazon adding please contact my creator.

Texts and Reference Books

Days in the Lives of Social Workers

DSM-5

Child Development, Third Edition: A Practitioner's Guide

Racial and Ethnic Groups

Social Work Documentation: A Guide to Strengthening Your Case Recording

Cognitive Behavior Therapy: Basics and Beyond

[Thoughts and Feelings: Taking Control of Your Moods and Your Life]
(https://www.amazon.com/Thoughts-Feelings-Harbinger-Self-Help-Workbook/dp/1608822087/ref=pd_sim_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=3ZW7PRW5TK2PB0MDR9R3)

Interpersonal Process in Therapy: An Integrative Model

[The Clinical Assessment Workbook: Balancing Strengths and Differential Diagnosis]
(https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0534578438/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_38?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ARCO1HGQTQFT8)

Helping Abused and Traumatized Children

Essential Research Methods for Social Work

Navigating Human Service Organizations

Privilege: A Reader

Play Therapy with Children in Crisis

The Color of Hope: People of Color Mental Health Narratives

The School Counseling and School Social Work Treatment Planner

Streets of Hope : The Fall and Rise of an Urban Neighborhood

Deviant Behavior

Social Work with Older Adults

The Aging Networks: A Guide to Programs and Services

[Grief and Bereavement in Contemporary Society: Bridging Research and Practice]
(https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0415884810/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1)

Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy

Motivational Interviewing: Helping People Change

Ethnicity and Family Therapy

Human Behavior in the Social Environment: Perspectives on Development and the Life Course

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work

Generalist Social Work Practice: An Empowering Approach

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association

The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook

DBT Skills Manual for Adolescents

DBT Skills Manual

DBT Skills Training Handouts and Worksheets

Social Welfare: A History of the American Response to Need

Novels

[A People’s History of the United States]
(https://www.amazon.com/Peoples-History-United-States/dp/0062397346/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1511070674&sr=1-1&keywords=howard+zinn&dpID=51pps1C9%252BGL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch)


The Man Who Mistook His Wife For a Hat

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Life For Me Ain't Been No Crystal Stair

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Tuesdays with Morrie

The Death Class <- This one is based off of a course I took at my undergrad university

The Quiet Room

Girl, Interrupted

I Never Promised You a Rose Garden

Flowers for Algernon

Of Mice and Men

A Child Called It

Go Ask Alice

Under the Udala Trees

Prozac Nation

It's Kind of a Funny Story

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Yellow Wallpaper

The Bell Jar

The Outsiders

To Kill a Mockingbird

This. I gave myself a mission statement this year, borrowed from this book: http://www.amazon.com/Class-And-Schools-Educational-Black-white/dp/0807745561

My mission is to develop in students the skills necessary to compete fairly and productively in America's democratic governance and occupational structures.

Thus, helping them stay in dress code and operate within the system definitely falls under my umbrella, and I feel better about it this year.

Read many chapters on both Thinking Government and Understanding Canadian Public Administration more than once. Both give very good pictures of public administration in Canada. I would also suggest Approaching Public Administration- Core Debates and Emerging Issues. I found Frank Ohemeng coverage of the numerous issues and debates in public administration to be really interesting.

Start off with a text on public administration like Understanding Canadian Public Administration or Thinking Government. After that you'll understand enough to be able to make effective use of other sources.

Hey! I'm studying program development for my masters in macro social work right now and recommend the book Trying Hard Is Not Good Enough. https://www.amazon.com/Trying-Hard-Good-Enough-Anniversary/dp/1516971620

Of course you should take the results based approach with a grain of salt - not everything is about results. But it's a helpful way of thinking for grants and forming your model.

Here's a great book on it.

https://www.amazon.com/Deliberate-Dumbing-Abridged-Charlotte-2011-05-03/dp/B01FGMTF02/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=RD42900SGSVCEJP8QCCM

>Because since they receive all these amazing perks by paying such a high tax rate, then wouldn’t it be logical to say that they could achieve perfection if they paid 100% in taxes.

That doesn't follow logic? The logic is that higher input (at a manageable % of income) + higher output (at a manageable % of GDP) = more productive society; not that 100% input = more productive society. I understand where it's possible to get confused, but it does take a bit of a leap to take it to the absolute extreme there.

It could be good for you to read Esping-Anderson's Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism, Clasen's Comparative Social Policy and Pierson's The Welfare State Reader, if you're confused about some of the logic behind Social Democratic states.

Don't make me laugh. Those Scandinavian countries are some of the freest economically in the world, and those in charge have had to pull back from the welfare state in recent years, just to get by. If you are something other than a hellbent socialist ideologue and open to hearing of socialism's joys, I recommend Welcome to the Dark Side of the Welfare State, by a Swede, Sven Larson.

If your library has this book

https://www.amazon.com/Cure-Capitalism-Save-American-Health/dp/159403219X

The most important thing you need to realize is health care after Obamacare is now approaching 20% of GDP. How did Obamacare drive up prices so much? Both sides want to lower costs now.

Newt Gingrich has a lot of good books no matter your poltiics. This one goes into why healthcare was so expensive back when it was written and we were nowhere near 20% of GDP.

https://www.amazon.com/Saving-Lives-Money-Newt-Gingrich/dp/0970548540

You can also just read about Trump's proposals like getting rid of the ban on importing drugs. Look for people discussing cost savings like that and ask why Obamacare drove the cost of healthcare to 20% of GDP when it was supposed to reduce the cost. What went wrong?