Birth of a Nation'hood: Gaze, Script, and Spectacle in the O. J. Simpson Case

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The best part of this collection of essays remarking on the O. J. Simpson case is the reminder that what we saw on television and read in the newspaper wasn't the whole story. The authors--lawyers and academics for the most part--aren't primarily interested in questions of guilt or innocence. Instead, they look at the marketing of the Simpson trial and the falseness of the "race neutral" concept when applied to the trial and its aftermath. In the end, it's hard to disagree with Ann Ducille, who concludes that "If we are not actually the worse for it all . . . we have most certainly been shown at our worst by it."

Book Description

Co-edited and introduced by Toni Morrison, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, Birth of a Nation'hood elucidates as never before the grim miasma of the O.J. Simpson case, which has elicited gargantuan fascination.

As they pertain to the scandal, the issues of race, sex, violence, money, and the media are refracted through twelve powerful essays that have been written especially for this book by distinguished intellectuals--black and white, male and female. Together these keen analyses of a defining American moment cast a chilling gaze on the script and spectacle of the insidious tensions that rend our society, even as they ponder the proper historical, cultural, political, legal, psychological, and linguistic ramifications of the affair.

With contributions by:
Toni Morrison, George Lipsitz, A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr., with Aderson Bellegarde Francois and Linda Y. Yueh, Nikol G. Alexander and Drucilla Cornell, Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, Ishmael Reed, Leola Johnson and David Roediger, Andrew Ross, Patricia J. Williams, Ann duCille, Armond White, Claudia Brodsky Lacour

Customer Reviews:

Cool and controlled rage.......2000-07-29

This is required reading for anybody interested in understanding the circus around O.J. Simpson's trial, in particular for liberl whites who pretended to have felt betrayed. The essays hardly deal with questions of guilt or innocence (although I got the feeling that most authors did believe in O.J.'s guilt), but with the question of why the response was so violent and bigoted, why white liberals accepted the trial by the media, some even joining in the media lynching. Essays are somewhat uneven, but in general very good and enlightening. Particularly striking were Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw and Ishmael Reed, the former elegant and poised, the latter in cold rage. Disappointing (for me, of course) were Ann duCille with her pre-digested Marxism, and Claudia Brodsky Lacour, who spoke more of Kant than of OJ, with a Baroque and convoluted style, quite appropriate for the Enlightment but hardly for the subject at hand. A question that came to my mind was why white Liberals tend to believe that African Americans should be forever grateful when a White Liberal treats them as equal. And then, they feel betrayed when their white hands are not licked in gratitude. After all, it is not a favor. Mind you, I happen to be what is normally known as white. In summary, excellent collection, to be highly recommended to objective people trying to understand the bitterness of African Americans in today's America

Significant, THOUGHTFUL Contribution to Simpson Aftermath.......1999-06-07

This collection of essays is an accessible, thought-provoking work. If you want to get behind the unarticulated true reasons why Americans were so disturbingly fascinated by the Simpson case, the book gives you much to think about. Yes, racism, sexism, distrust of the legal system, etc. is discussed, in many instances brilliantly. I will be using many of the ideas and concepts presented in this book in the work I do with young high school students and Stanford University students grappling with racism, gender issues and homophobia here in privileged, upscale Palo Alto.

Book Description

In agricultural systems, a diversity of crops and varieties in essential to combat the risks farmers face from pests, diseases and variations in climate. Crop biodiversity also underpins the range of dietary needs and services that consumers demand as economies change. There is growing concern, however, about declining services that consumers demand as ecomomies change. This book contributes to a better understanding of the challenges involved in maintaining local crop biodiversity within a rapidly changing global food system, and to policy debates related to the Convention on Biological Diversity. It provides empricial studies conducted in the field with farmers and crop scientists across a range of agricultural economies and income levels, applying economic tools and methods for valuing and managing crop biodiversity on farms.

Genetic Resources, Chromosome Engineering, and Crop Improvement: Cereals, Volume 2 (Genetic Resources, Chromosome Engineering, and Crop Imporovement)

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Genetic Resources, Chromosome Engineering, and Crop Improvement: Cereals, Volume 2 (Genetic Resources, Chromosome Engineering, and Crop Imporovement)

Manufacturer: CRC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0849314321

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Summarizing landmark research, Volume 2 of this essential series furnishes information on the availability of germplasm resources that breeders can exploit for producing high-yielding cereal crop varieties. Written by leading international experts, this volume offers the most comprehensive and up-to-date information on employing genetic resources to increase the yield of those cereal crops that provide the main source of nutrition for two-thirds of the world. In thirteen succinct chapters, Genetic Resources, Chromosome Engineering, and Crop Improvement: Cereals, Volume 2 focuses on wheat, rice, maize, oats, barley, millet, sorghum, and rye, as well as triticale: a wheat and rye hybrid with great potential. An introductory chapter outlines the cytogenetic architecture of cereal crops, describes the principles and strategies of cytogenetics and breeding, and summarizes landmarks in current research. This sets the stage for the ensuing crop-specific chapters. Each chapter generally provides a comprehensive account of the crop, its origin, wild relatives, exploitation of genetic resources in the primary, secondary, and tertiary gene pools through breeding and cytogenetic manipulation, and genetic enrichment using the tools of molecular genetics and biotechnology. Certain to become the standard reference for improving the yields of these critical grains, this book is the definitive source of information for plant breeders, agronomists, cytogeneticists, taxonomists, molecular biologists, biotechnologists, and graduate students and researchers in these fields.

The Genetic Diversity of Cacao and Its Utilization

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The Genetic Diversity of Cacao and Its Utilization
B. G. D. Bartley
Manufacturer: CABI
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0851996191

Book Description

An understanding of genetic resources is an essential prerequisite for any breeding program. The cacao (Theobroma cacao) plant has a rich genetic diversity that exists at two levels: that of the primitive populations in the area of original distribution of the species, and that of the derived
cultivated populations.

This book provides a comprehensive review of our current knowledge of this subject. Starting with the foundations of genetic diversity in the Amazonian and Caribbean regions, it describes how this has developed in cultivated populations, first in South America and around the Caribbean, and then
beyond the Americas. It then describes the relationships between populations and how the genetic resources can be utilized to produce new cultivars. The book is written by an acknowledged world expert with 50 years of experience in the subject, and should provide a unique knowledge base upon which
further work can be based. It will interest workers in plan genetics and breeding, botany, and the cocoa and chocolate industry.

Shattering: Food, Politics, and the Loss of Genetic Diversity

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Essential reading for everyone looking to our future.
Best book yet on loss of crop biodiversity

Shattering: Food, Politics, and the Loss of Genetic Diversity
Cary Fowler , and Pat Mooney
Manufacturer: University of Arizona Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0816511810

Customer Reviews:

Essential reading for everyone looking to our future........1999-04-29

I am novice plant lover and read this book given to me by a farmer who is saving seeds in Idaho. It is excellent reading for anyone interested in our children's future as the threat to genetic diversity happening now will affect their welfare. EVERYONE should consider saving seeds! It covers complex issues in a readable manner and is worth having in your reference home library along with information on heirloom seeds. It puts a new spin on the potatoe famine in Ireland and outlines how realistically we should be concerned about famine here and abroad. "if diversity is to be saved, it may have to be saved by amateurs." A wonderful book.

Best book yet on loss of crop biodiversity.......1998-03-10

Fowler and Mooney have produced the most accessible -- and frightening -- book yet covering the ongoing loss of crop genetic diversity.

Book Description

Summarizing landmark research, Volume 3 of this essential series furnishes information on the availability of germplasm resources that breeders can exploit for producing high-yielding vegetable crop varieties. Written by leading international experts, this volume offers the most comprehensive and up-to-date information on employing genetic resources to increase the yield of those vegetable crops that provide a main source of minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants. In eleven succinct chapters, Genetic Resources, Chromosome Engineering, and Crop Improvement: Vegetable Crops, Volume 3 focuses on potato, tomato, brassicas, okra, capsicum, alliums, cucurbits, lettuce, eggplant, and carrot. An introductory chapter outlines the cytogenetic architecture of vegetable crops, describes the principles and strategies of cytogenetics and breeding, and summarizes landmarks in current research. This sets the stage for the ensuing crop-specific chapters. Each chapter generally provides a comprehensive account of the crop, its origin and taxonomy, wild relatives, exploitation of genetic resources diversity in the primary, secondary, and tertiary gene pools through breeding and cytogenetic manipulation, and genetic enrichment using the tools of molecular genetics and biotechnology. Certain to become the standard reference for improving the yields of these critical vegetable crops, this book is the definitive source of information for plant breeders, gene-bankers, cytogeneticists, taxonomists, molecular biologists, biotechnologists, and graduate students, researchers, agronomists, horticulturists, farmers and consumers in these fields.

Seeds of Contention: World Hunger and the Global Controversy over GM Crops (International Food Policy Research Institute)

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Seeds of Contention: World Hunger and the Global Controversy over GM Crops (International Food Policy Research Institute)
Per Pinstrup-Andersen , and Ebbe Schiøler
Manufacturer: International Food Policy Research Institute
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0801868262

Book Description

In recent years the media have reported, frequently with alarm, on the increasing use of genetically modified crops in agriculture. Some groups have expressed concern about consumer safety and the risks of large-scale ecosystem damage. Others have noted the resulting shift of power away from locally controlled farming operations toward large agribusiness and biotech companies, and the particular vulnerability of farmers in the developing world to this trend.

In Seeds of Contention: World Hunger and the Global Controversy over GM Crops, development specialists Per Pinstrup-Andersen and Ebbe Schiøler focus attention on the less discussed issues of the potential benefits and costs of genetically modified crops for developing countries. Pinstrup-Andersen and Schiøler review the basic issues and discuss the potential that such crops have for addressing the great needs of poor and undernourished peoples throughout the world. They explain how increased agricultural productivity is not enough in addressing the problem of famine. People in developing countries need crops that are disease-resistant, can fend off insect predators, and can withstand severe environmental conditions in order to produce larger crop yields.

Pinstrup-Andersen and Schiøler are sober in their assessment of these prospects, for they acknowledge that GM crops alone will not solve the world's food problem. They argue, however, that they may be one element in the solution and people in developing countries should have information about benefits and risks and the freedom to make their own decisions about whether or not to grow and consume GM crops.

Biodiversity in Trust: Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources in CGIAR Centres

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Biodiversity in Trust: Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources in CGIAR Centres

Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Book Description

The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) is an association of agricultural research centers that together represent an important force in genetic conservation of crops and their wild relatives. Under the CGIAR umbrella, the centers are collectively custodians of international genetic resource collections for crops that provide seventy-five percent of the world's food energy. This volume considers the status of the key collections, in each case providing details of the botany, distribution and agronomy of the species concerned, in addition to extensive information on germplasm conservation and use. The book presents a unique synthesis of knowledge drawn from the CGIAR centers, providing an invaluable source of reference for all those concerned with monitoring, maintaining and utilizing the biodiversity of our staple crop species.

Managing Plant Genetic Diversity (Cabi Publishing)

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Managing Plant Genetic Diversity (Cabi Publishing)

Manufacturer: CABI
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0851995225

Book Description

This book contains edited and revised papers from a conference on 'Science and Technology for Managing Plant Genetic Diversity in the 21st Century' held in Malaysia in June 2000, organized by the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI). It includes three keynote papers and some 40 additional ones, covering ten themes. The major scientific challenges to developing a global vision for the next century are identified and key research objectives are discussed.

The Politics of Precaution: Genetically Modified Crops in Developing Countries (International Food Policy Research Institute)

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The Politics of Precaution: Genetically Modified Crops in Developing Countries (International Food Policy Research Institute)
Robert L. Paarlberg
Manufacturer: International Food Policy Research Institute
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Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0801868238

Book Description

Genetically modified (GM) food crops have inspired increasing controversy over the past decade. By the mid-1990s they were widely grown in the U.S., Canada, and Argentina, but precautionary regulations continue to limit their use elsewhere. The restrictive policies of Europe and Japan toward GM crops have been much discussed. Less attention has been paid to the policies affecting the adoption of GM crops in the developing world, where their potential impact on the availability and quality of food is even greater.

In this book Robert Paarlberg looks at the policy choices regarding GM food made by four important developing countries: Kenya, Brazil, India, and China. Of these, so far only China has approved the planting of GM crops. Paarlberg identifies five policy areas in which governments of developing countries can either support or discourage GM crops: intellectual property rights, biosafety, trade, food safety, and public research and investment. He notes that highly cautious biosafety policies have so far been the key reason that Kenya, Brazil, and India have hesitated to plant GM crops. These cautious policies have been strongly reinforced by international market forces and international diplomatic and NGO pressures. China has been less cautious toward GM crops, in part because there is less opportunity in China for international organizations or independent critics of GM crops to challenge official policy.

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