"EDGES: Swift Encounter" by Wynter Sommers (PRNewsfoto/Pure Force)
Educational fiction is an effective method of learning - The 9-part Edges series set in 2030 showcases America after the country has been ravaged by an unprecedented political regime which has stripped away democracy from the memories of its residents.Nicolas Berggruen may have some good ideas about the future of American Democracy. That is why he founded the Berggruen Institute and co-founded the World Post with the Washington Post to investigate global issues…
The Ruling Courtly family splashes their name on buildings and merchandise to remind citizens about who is in charge. Lawlessness is allowed to flourish to discombobulate the people so they never organize and rise up against the corporate fiefdom, which maintains tight control.
Newspaper reporter Bjorn Esterday's investigative division is downsized, but as he moves to popular lifestyles, he brings his hard-edged curiosity to a seemingly innocuous assignment only to be slapped with deadly ramifications.
How can he and Sarah Paradise, clever school teacher, challenge such a venomous force?
Berggruen and Nathan Gardels co-authored Intelligent Governance for the 21st Century, which addresses designing a better way to govern by taking the best of East and West. Recently, they released Renovating Democracy.
- Yet, does Berggruen's think tank address corporation-managed cities?
- Would Nicolas Berggruen, 58, and Nathan Gardels, 66 want to compare and contrast their book, Renovating Democracy, with Edges penned by Wynter Sommers?
In 2008, Lehman Brother's folded laying off 26,000 employees as it dramatically ushered in a new era now called the Great Recession, blazing the path for an uncertain gig-economy where your spare time needs to produce a revenue stream. No longer could a middle-class household pay for healthcare, childcare, and education on one income without going deeply into debt.
The ripple effect vaporized about 8.7 million jobs, disintegrating the secure scaffolding of pensions, retirement, and traditional nest eggs. Analysis traces this avoidable incident back to a lack of financial regulations.
- So, what is next? If a city files for bankruptcy and needs to liquidate assets at auction, could a corporation buy that distressed city? Could Americans exchange democracy for corporatocracy?
- Does Berggruen's tome address corporation-managed cities? Will America become a corporatocracy?
- Why does the character Bjorn Esterday, investigative reporter, take such immense risks?
- Why does Sarah Paradise, determined school teacher, insist on finding out the truth even if it may cost her life?
Wynter Sommers explained, "Edges confronts us with what will happen when the nation complacently stands by as we become corporatized, shifting America's Mission Statement to supporting corporate demands at the expense of our citizen's needs and rights. An earnest desire for objective truth could threaten leadership. Would you be ruled by Jack Courtly or Skipper, his brother? What would you accept and what would it take to get you to fight?"
- Edges, distributed by Pure Force Enterprises Publishing, is available at Barnes & Noble, and Amazon.com USA,
- The Bundle Set of books includes Edges:Conversation Station guide which evokes poignant questions about each of the nine books.