About this item
A provocative and eye-opening look at the most explosive and controversial state in America, where everything is bigger, bolder—and shaping our nation's future in surprising waysTo most Americans, Texas has been that love-it-or-hate it slice of the country that has sparked controversy, bred presidents, and fomented turmoil from the American Civil War to George W. Bush. But that Texas is changing—and it will change America itself.Richard Parker takes the reader on a tour across today's booming Texas, an evolving landscape that is densely urban, overwhelmingly Hispanic, exceedingly powerful in the global economy, and increasingly liberal. This Texas will have to ensure upward mobility, reinvigorate democratic rights, and confront climate change—just to continue its historic economic boom.
About the Author
Richard Parker grew up in Hot Springs, Arkansas, a resort town known as a vacation spot for mobsters until the 1950s. (See Stephen Hunter's novel named after the town for an account that is not entirely fiction.) He was an undergraduate at the University of Arkansas and completed a Ph.D. at the University of Washington, where he concentrated on logic and philosophy of law. He joined the philosophy department at California State University, Chico, in the 1970s, and also served there as chair of the university senate, dean for undergraduate education, and executive assistant to the president.Now semi-retired, Richard drives a 1962 MG and rides a Harley-Davidson (not the bike in the photo; that one was hand-built by his brother). He plays golf, not always very well, and is a founding member of a Friday afternoon game at a local pool hall that has continued for 23 years. He is an accomplished flamenco guitarist and performs with dancer Mónica Taboada at various northern California venues.Parker has written a weekly newspaper column and for ten years did a weekly commentary on North State Public Radio. During the 1990s, the commentaries were broadcast over 20 public radio stations in California.Parker's collaboration with Brooke Moore on the critical thinking project produced a book that became the model for critical thinking texts throughout the industry. It has been the best-selling, most imitated, and most highly acclaimed book in the field for two decades. It is constantly updated so that students recognize the names in the examples and see the material presented in contexts that are familiar.Parker spends part of most years in southern Spain, studying flamenco guitar and trying to learn Andalusian Spanish.
