Addictions to iphones, painkillers, cupcakes, alcohol and sex are taking over our lives.Our most casual daily habits can quickly become obsessions that move beyond our control. Damian Thompson, who has himself struggled with a range of addictions, argues that human desire is in the process of being reshaped. Shunning the concept of addiction as disease, he shows how manufacturers are producing substances like ipads, muffins and computer games that we learn to like too much and supplement tradition addictions to alcohol, drugs and gambling. He argues that addictive behaviour is becoming a substitute for family and work bonds that are being swept away by globalisation and urbanisation.This battle to control addiction will soon overshadow familiar ideological debates about how to run the economy, and as whole societies set about "fixing" themselves, the architecture of human relations will come under strain as never before.The Fix offers a truly frightening glimpse of the future and is essential reading for fans of Naomi Klein's `No Logo', Oliver James's `Affluenza' and Francis Wheen's `How Mumbo-jumbo Conquered the World'.

The Fix

Politics & Social Sciences

Thompson, Damian

Sociology

HarperCollins, Publishers

Addictions to iphones, painkillers, cupcakes, alcohol and sex are taking over our lives.
Our most casual daily habits can quickly become obsessions that move beyond our control. Damian Thompson, who has himself struggled with a range of addictions, argues that human desire is in the process of being reshaped. Shunning the concept of addiction as disease, he shows how manufacturers are producing substances like ipads, muffins and computer games that we learn to like too much and supplement tradition addictions to alcohol, drugs and gambling. He argues that addictive behaviour is becoming a substitute for family and work bonds that are being swept away by globalisation and urbanisation.
This battle to control addiction will soon overshadow familiar ideological debates about how to run the economy, and as whole societies set about “fixing” themselves, the architecture of human relations will come under strain as never before.
The Fix offers a truly frightening glimpse of the future and is essential reading for fans of Naomi Klein’s ‘No Logo’, Oliver James’s ‘Affluenza’ and Francis Wheen’s ‘How Mumbo-jumbo Conquered the World’.

Reference

Collins

An important and compelling book on the viral dissemination of misinformation in today's world. We are being swamped with dangerous nonsense. From 9/11 conspiracy theories to Holocaust denial to alternative medicine, we are all experiencing an epidemic of demonstrably untrue descriptions of the world. For Damian Thompson, the misinformation industry is wreaking havoc on the once-lauded virtues of science and reason. Unproven theories and spurious claims are forms of "counterknowledge," and, helped by the Internet, they are creating a global generation of misguided adherents who repeat these untruths and lend them credence. Thompson explores our readiness to accept falsehoods and the viral role of technology in spreading quack remedies, pseudo-history, and creationist fanaticism. Following in the footsteps of Richard Dawkins's The God Delusion, Sam Harris's The End of Faith, and Christopher Hitchens's God Is Not Great, Counterknowledge is a brilliant defense of scientific proof in an age of fabrication.

Counterknowledge: How We Surrendered To Conspiracy Theories Quack Medicine Bogus S

Politics & Government

Penguin Canada

How can people believe that the supernatural end of the world lies just around the corner when, so far, every such prediction has been proved wrong? Some scholars argue that millenarians are psychologically disturbed; others maintain that their dreams of paradise on earth reflect a nascent political awareness. In this book Damian Thompson looks at the members of one religious group with a strong apocalyptic tradition--Kensington Temple, a large Pentecostal church in London--and attempts to understand how they reconcile doctrines of the end of the world with the demands of their everyday lives. He asks such questions as: Who is making the argument that the world is about to end, and on whose authority? How is it communicated? Which members are persuaded by it? What are the practical consequences for them? How do they rationalize their position? Based on extensive interviews as well as a survey of almost 3000 members, Thompson finds existing explanations of apocalyptic belief inadequate. Although they profess allegiance to millennial doctrine, he discovers, members actually assign a low priority to the "End Times." The history of millenarianism is littered with disappointment, Thompson notes, and the lesson has largely been learned: "predictive" millenarianism--with its risky time-specific predictions of the end--has been substantially supplanted by "explanatory" millenarianism, which uses apocalyptic narratives to explain features of the contemporary world. Most apocalyptic believers, he finds, are comfortable with these lower-cost explanatory narratives that do not require them to sell their houses and head for the hills. He does uncover a handful of "textbook" millenarians in the congregation--people who are confident that Jesus will return in their lifetimes. He concludes that their atypical beliefs were influenced by their conversion experiences, individual psychology, and degree of subcultural immersion. Although much has been written about apocalyptic belief, Thompson's empirically-based study is unprecedented. It constitutes an important step forward in our understanding of this puzzling feature of contemporary religious life.

Waiting for Antichrist: Charisma and Apocalypse in a Pentecostal Church

Christian Books & Bibles

Protestantism

Oxford University Press

An important and compelling book on the viral dissemination of misinformation in today's world. We are being swamped with dangerous nonsense. From 9/11 conspiracy theories to Holocaust denial to alternative medicine, we are all experiencing an epidemic of demonstrably untrue descriptions of the world. For Damian Thompson, the misinformation industry is wreaking havoc on the once-lauded virtues of science and reason. Unproven theories and spurious claims are forms of "counterknowledge," and, helped by the Internet, they are creating a global generation of misguided adherents who repeat these untruths and lend them credence. Thompson explores our readiness to accept falsehoods and the viral role of technology in spreading quack remedies, pseudo-history, and creationist fanaticism. Following in the footsteps of Richard Dawkins's The God Delusion, Sam Harris's The End of Faith, and Christopher Hitchens's God Is Not Great, Counterknowledge is a brilliant defense of scientific proof in an age of fabrication.

Counterknowledge

Computers & Technology

W.W.Norton&Company

An important and compelling book on the viral dissemination of misinformation in today's world.We are being swamped with dangerous nonsense. From 9/11 conspiracy theories to Holocaust denial to alternative medicine, we are all experiencing an epidemic of demonstrably untrue descriptions of the world. For Damian Thompson, the misinformation industry is wreaking havoc on the once-lauded virtues of science and reason. Unproven theories and spurious claims are forms of "counterknowledge," and, helped by the Internet, they are creating a global generation of misguided adherents who repeat these untruths and lend them credence. Thompson explores our readiness to accept falsehoods and the viral role of technology in spreading quack remedies, pseudo-history, and creationist fanaticism. Following in the footsteps of Richard Dawkins's The God Delusion, Sam Harris's The End of Faith, and Christopher Hitchens's God Is Not Great, Counterknowled

Counterknowledge: How We Surrendered to Conspiracy Theories, Quack Medicine, Bogus Science and Fake History

Social Sciences

VIKING

1st trade edition paperback, fine In stock shipped from our UK warehouse

The End Of Time

Science & Math

RANDOM HOUSE UK

It could not have been better stage managed. Brian Brindley died over dinner at The Atheneum Club in London having consumed stuffed crab and as boeuf en croute was being prepared in the kitchen. Surrounded by his acolytes, he would certainly agree with Sydney Smith that heaven was Foie Gras and Trumpets but his heaven started on earth.
There was much sadness in Brian Brindley`s life. Emerging from Oxford (Pi in the High) he eventually took up an appointment as a Vicar in Reading having fought vigorously against the ordination of women and other manifestations of modernity.
But one fine day a journalist from a nasty Tabloid tricked him into talking about his sexual life and fantasies, recorded the interview and printed extracts in his newspaper.
The result was devastating and Brindley resigned. He retired to Brighton and was received into the Roman Catholic Church. But in the process he became a hero to countless thousands of people who love the Old Order. High Tories for whom ritual remains of the utmost importance. And having been stitched up by a tabloid newspaper only increased the admiration in which he was held.
Alan Bennett, leader of the fan club, has written a brilliant opening chapter in which he describes Brindley's magic but also his deep charity and pastoral care.Others follow including A.N. Wilson and Telegraph correspondent Damian Thompson.
This will become a cult book for assuredly Brindley was the last of his kind.

Loose Canon: A Portrait of Brian Brindley

Religion & Spirituality

Bloomsbury Academic

Presents the history of apolcalyptic doctrines and movements, looking at why calendar changes have such a profound effect on human beings

The End of Time: Faith and Fear in the Shadow of the Millennium

Univ Pr of New England

The complete history of millennialism from Zoroaster to David Koresh and Heaven's Gate.

History

Loxterkamp, David, M.D.

World

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Thompson, Damian. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Thompson, Damian

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Thompson, Damian. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Fix

The Fix

Counterknowledge: How We Surrendered To Conspiracy Theories Quack Medicine Bogus S

Waiting for Antichrist: Charisma and Apocalypse in a Pentecostal Church

Counterknowledge

Counterknowledge: How We Surrendered to Conspiracy Theories, Quack Medicine, Bogus Science and Fake History

The End Of Time

Loose Canon: A Portrait of Brian Brindley

The End of Time: Faith and Fear in the Shadow of the Millennium

The End of Time: Faith and Fear in the Shadow of the Millennium