Richard Wainwright, the Liberals and Liberal Democrats: Unfinished Business now available in paperback, offers new research on familiar themes involving loyalties of politics, faith and locality. Richard Wainwright was a Liberal MP for seventeen years during the Party's recovery, but his life tells us about much more than this. Wainwright grew up in prosperity, but learned from voluntary work about poverty; he refused to fight in World War Two, but saw war at its cruelest; he joined the Liberal Party when most had given up on it, but gave his fortune to it; lost a by-election but caused the only Labour loss in Harold Wilson's landslide of 1966. He then played a key role in the fall of Jeremy Thorpe, the Lib-Lab Pact and the formation of the SDP-Liberal Alliance and the Liberal Democrats; he represented a unique Yorkshire constituency which reflected his pride and hope for society; and though he gave his life to the battle to be in the Commons, he refused a seat in the Lords.Richard Wainwright's story is central to the story of the Liberal Party and sheds light on the reasons for its survival and the state of its prospects. At the same time this book is a parable of politics for anyone who wants to represent an apparently lost cause, who wants to motivate people who have been neglected, and who wants to follow their convictions at the highest level.

This textbook brings together an introduction to the political theory of democracy since Ancient times and a critical picture of its place in Britain today. The author examines the work of Plato and Aristotle, Rousseau and Mill, Marx and Weber, and locates them and others in the debate about what democracy means. He then scrutinises Britain's claim to be a developing democracy, from the power of the Prime Minister and the role of political parties to the influence of pressure groups and the media, as well as recent constitutional changes. In the context of declining public trust in political institutions and increasing reluctance to vote, crucial questions are tackled: do we have a democracy, and why does it matter? Key Features: *A wide-ranging, accessible introduction to the place of Democracy in Britain today *Divided into two halves: on democratic theory (reflecting its history, development, and key concepts) and democratic practice (examining political institutions) *Offers examples of documentary material to illustrate the ideas presented *Up-to-date: includes material written after the 2005 General Election

Aesop Cop is a collaboration between Franklin Crawford, who scans police logs around the world (mostly in his hometown of Ithaca, N.Y.) and writes an Aesop-inspired morality poem about notable crimes, and Rigel Stuhmiller, a Berkeley, CA-based artist, who illustrates the poems. These oddball transgressions are handled with a charmingly light tough. The verses are often as absurd as the police report. The illustrations take the whole business into a mythical world where jealous men wearing dead weasels deliver frontier justice to their bewildered foes, fathers and sons seek revenge upon assailants in community ERs and Russian hairdressers turn armed robbers into sex slaves. As Aesop himself would say: "Buy this book, you shant regret it: Curiosity did not kill the cat, but rather fed it " We agree

This series introduces the key areas of Politics courses, centred on the topics most frequently taught at school and undergraduate level. Each book is structured in the same way, with all chapters including the following: An introduction, setting out the broad area to be explored; A brief conclusion summarising what you should have learnt; A glossary of key terms; Sample examination questions; Helpful websites; Suggestions for further reading. This series responds to student needs by producing up-to-date material written in a user-friendly style.

This introduction to political parties in Britain offers an examination of the main parties' individual characteristics (including policy, organisation and support) and explains the impact of smaller parties. Key themes traced throughout the book are the factors contributing to parties' fortunes and identities, and the causes of recent changes in both. Key Features Identifies the functions of parties in a democracy Outlines the key characteristics of Britain's significant parties Explains the relationships between them as a party system Evaluates their success as democratic institutions