The Cheating Culture: Why More Americans Are Doing Wrong to Get Ahead - Paperback

Cheating on every level--from highly publicized corporate scandals to Little League fraud--has risen dramatically in recent decades. Why all the cheating? Why now?

You're standing at an ATM. It can't access account information but allows unlimited withdrawals. Do you take more than your balance? David Callahan thinks most of us would.

Callahan pins the blame on the dog-eat-dog economic climate of the past two decades. An unfettered market and unprecedented economic inequality have corroded our values, he argues--and ultimately threaten the level playing field so central to American democracy itself. Through revealing interviews and extensive data, he takes us on a gripping tour of cheating in America and offers a powerful argument for why it matters.

Lucidly written, scrupulously argued, The Cheating Culture is an important, original examination of the hidden costs of the boom years.

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Updated with a new afterword
Free cable television. Imaginary tax deductions. Movies and music downloadable on your home computer. Do you take your chance to cheat? David Callahan thinks many of us would: witness corporate scandals, doping athletes, plagiarizing journalists. Why all the cheating? Why now?
Callahan blames the dog-eat-dog climate of the past twenty years: An unfettered market and unprecedented economic inequality have corroded our values and threaten to corrupt the equal opportunity we cherish. Callahan's "Winning Class" has created a separate moral reality where it cheats without consequences -- while the "Anxious Class" believes choosing not to cheat could cancel its only shot at success in a winner-take-all world.
Analyzing the very latest scandals, "The Cheating Culture" takes us on a gripping tour of cheating in America and makes a powerful case for why it matters.
"Everything you ever wanted to know about what's gone wrong with ethics in our society is explained in David Callahan's remarkable and readable new book. For its meticulously researched, thoughtful and damning look at our broken moral compass, this should be required reading . . . This is one of those rare books that will make you mad, ashamed, and one may hope, determined to change."--"Philadelphia Inquirer"
David Callahan is cofounder of the public policy center Demos, where he is a senior fellow. He is the author of five previous books, and his articles have appeared in many publications, including the" New York Times, "the "Washington Post, "and "USA Today." He received a Ph.D. in politics from Princeton University and lives in New York City. Look for more information about cheating on his Web site, www.cheatingculture.com.