Book Reviews

This post looks at the final three essays in Corruption and American Politics, an essay collection edited by Michael A. Genovese and Victoria A. Farrar-Meyers (Cambria, 2011).

Pay to Play in the Municipal Bond Market
In "Influence Peddling and Voter Suppression," Thomas A. Hollihan looks at the municipal bond market, where sweetheart deals...

The fourth essay in Corruption and American Politics, an essay collection edited by Michael A. Genovese and Victoria A. Farrar-Meyers (Cambria, 2011), is by Wayne S. Le Cheminant. The title of the essay – "Bending the Frame to Corrupt the Lenses" – provides a good picture of his fascinating approach to government ethics.

Le Cheminant begins by noting that "...

The third essay in Corruption and American Politics, a collection edited by Michael A. Genovese and Victoria A. Farrar-Meyers (Cambria, 2011), is by John M. Parrish, a professor at Loyola Marymount University. The essay, which has the intriguing title "Benevolent Skulduggery," starts out by asking the question, Is corruption ever justified? My short answer is that there are...

The second essay in Corruption and American Politics, a collection edited by Michael A. Genovese and Victoria A. Farrar-Meyers (Cambria, 2011), is by Mark E. Warren, a professor at the University of British Columbia. It asks the question, Is low trust in democratic institutions a problem of corruption?

Warren starts off by noting something that is too often...

Corruption and American Politics, an essay collection edited by Michael A. Genovese and Victoria A. Farrar-Myers (Cambria, 2011), has some excellent essays, especially those that deal with institutional corruption. The only serious criticism I have of the book is its price: $30 in both paperback and e-book formats.

Michael A. Genovese's introduction focuses...

Anyone who has seen the movie Chinatown has some idea how much ethical misconduct went into the ongoing battles over water in California. Those who want to get down to the nitty gritty of it will enjoy Robert Gottlieb and Margaret Fitzsimmon's Thirst for Growth: Water Agencies as Hidden Government in California (Univ. of Arizona Press, 1991).

The most important words in the title...