Decay -- Heroin -- Work -- Sadism -- Hate -- Gambling -- Freedom

"A deep and troubling examination of the dark corners of working-class America, where unemployment and the loss of traditional jobs have produced an epidemic of drug abuse, bigotry, and even suicide, coupled with an urgent plea to rearrange our priorities to address the ills of middle America and emphasize the common good"--

"Is America in a state of irrevocable decline? In this provocative and disturbing examination of our country, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Chris Hedges argues that the United States shows unmistakable signs of a dying culture. Across the country Americans are suffering from chronic unemployment, declining wages, and a morbid despair that expresses itself through compulsive gambling, sadistic pornography, and a deadly opioid epidemic. Xenophobia has become rampant as a desperate and bitter underclass searches for scapegoats. America's social fabric is unraveling, while at the same time we face global upheaval caused in part by catastrophic climate change. All these ills presage a frightening reconfiguration of the nation and the planet. Donald Trump rode this disenchantment to power. In [this book], Hedges argues that neither political party, now captured by corporate power, will address our systemic problem. Until our corporate coup d'état is reversed, our problems will grow and ravage the country. A poignant cry reported from communities across the country, from Atlantic City to San Francisco, [this book] seeks to jolt us out of our complacency while there is still time to take action."--Dust jacket

America in is crisis: unemployment, deindustrialization, and a bitter hopelessness and malaise have resulted in an epidemic of diseases of despair. Hedges believes that as our society unravels and we face global upheaval caused by catastrophic climate change, these ills presage a frightening reconfiguration of the nation and the planet. He argues that since both political parties are captured by corporate power, neither will address the systemic problems. This book is his attempt to jolt us out of our complacency while there is still time. -- adapted from publisher info