California, with a New Preface: America's High-Stakes Experiment

By Peter Schrag

Book Overview

Peter Schrag takes on the big issues--immigration, globalization, and the impact of California's politics on its quality of life--in this dynamic account of the Golden State's struggle to recapture the American dream. In the past half-century, California has been both model and anti-model for the nation and often the world, first for its high level of government and public services--schools, universities, highways--and latterly for its dysfunctional government, deteriorating services, and sometimes regressive public policies. California explains how many current "solutions" exacerbate the very problems they're supposed to solve and analyzes a variety of possible state and federal policy alternatives to restore government accountability and a vital democracy to the nation's most populous state and the world's fifth-largest economy.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0520254058
• ISBN13: 9780520254053
• Release Date: January 2008
• Publisher: University of California Press
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

A fine survey of investment, dysfunction, and success

From immigration to changing California politics and focus, Peter Schrag surveys the major issues affecting the state, providing an analysis of political, social and technological issues that are affecting California's livability and direction. Schrag was the editorial page editor of the Sacramento Bee for 19 years: his perspective provides a long-term analysis which takes into account past efforts and changing modern focuses alike, with a position near the state's capital offering many close inspections of politics and policy-makers. A fine survey of investment, dysfunction, and success evolves. Diane C. Donovan California Bookwatch