The Shackled Continent: Power, Corruption, and African Lives
Author: Robert Guest
A scathing critique of Africa's governments by the Africa editor at The Economist.
Why is Africa so poor? Why are so many of its nations at war? Why is AIDS devastating Africa like nowhere else? And why do African entrepreneurs find it so hard to borrow money?
In this provocative and thoughtful book, Guest argues that the continent remains poor primarily because it is badly governed. Since the colonial powers pulled out, the autocrats who largely replaced them have struggled to keep order, let alone create an atmosphere conducive to economic development. The results have been devastating: Two-fifths of African nations are at war, AIDS has lowered life expectancy to as young as 40 years, lack of collateral makes investment almost impossible, and foreign aid has had very little effect on the daily lives of the poor. The Shackled Continent provides a persuasive look into the persistent problems of modern Africa and offers some possible solutions.
What Africa needs is peace, the rule of law, and greater freedom for individuals to pursue prosperity without hindrance from their rulers. The prescription may sound simple, but it is tough to administer, as Guest's investigations from Angola to Zimbabwe reveal.
Author Biography: Robert Guest is the Africa editor of The Economist. In 2003, he won both the Queen's English Society's and Foreign Press Association's award for Best Economic Story of the Year. He lives in London.
Book about: Das Bilden der Wirtschaftsgesellschaft
All the Centurions: A New York City Cop Remembers His Years on the Street, 1961-1981
Author: Robert Leuci
The bestselling book and acclaimed film Prince of the City told only part of Robert Leuci's story. In All the Centurions, he shares the full account of his years as a narcotics detective with the New York Police Department -- a tale of daring adventure, shattered illusions, and finally, astonishing spiritual growth.
Leuci reminisces about cops both celebrated and notorious, like Frank Serpico, Sonny Grosso, and Frank King from the French Connection case. Also here are politicians, Mafia figures, corrupt defense lawyers, and district attorneys, including a young Rudolph Giuliani. Leuci reveals the dark side of the criminal justice system: the bitterness, greed, cruelty, and ambition that eventually overflowed into the streets, precinct houses, and courtrooms of the city.
As vivid and entertaining as the best crime novels, All the Centurions is the story of a man descending into a hell of his own making who ultimately finds his way out through truth and justice.
Publishers Weekly
Ex-cop Leuci presents an unflinching if familiar tale of the ravages of drug-related police corruption in New York City. The broad aspects of his story were previously treated in Robert Daley's Prince of the City, later adapted into a Sidney Lumet movie starring Treat Williams as Leuci. Here the author traces in detail the incremental steps that turned him from a naive and idealistic beat cop into an arrogant dirty one, who easily rationalized ripping off drug dealers and playing along with rampant graft. To his credit, Leuci doesn't sugarcoat or paper over his lies, his betrayal of the public and his family, or pretend that he was unaware at the time that what he was doing was wrong. These flaws make him a classic tragic figure, especially when he begins to make a belated effort to redeem himself by cooperating with the Knapp Commission. Though Leuci still lectures to police departments around the country, and presumably continues to follow the NYPD, his failure to comment on more recent scandals or offer insights as to how corruption could be minimized is unfortunate. Still, for those new to his story, this will be an eye-opening look at some of the wages of the war on drugs during the 1960s and '70s. Agent, Esther Newburg at ICM. (On-sale June 29) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Library Journal
It has often been said that the police are a type of fraternity bound together by a sense of loyalty and commitment. Leuci felt the ugly side of that brotherhood when he testified in a landmark police corruption trial, an experience portrayed in Robert Daly's Prince of the City. Having mined his cop experiences in several best-selling novels (e.g., Blaze), Leuci tells it straight in a gritty memoir that provides graphic and realistic descriptions of life in the NYPD, giving the reader an insightful glimpse inside the world of law enforcement. His fascinating personal stories range widely, reflecting U.S. history itself; for instance, he worked in Harlem during the 1964 riots and then only a few weeks later was guarding the stage at a Beatles concert, where a 19-year-old George Harrison helped him up when he tripped. Highly recommended for all true-crime and criminal-justice collections.-Tim Delaney, SUNY at Oswego Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Kirkus Reviews
Archetypal street-smart cop Leuci (Blaze, 1999, etc.) initiates us into the workings of the brotherhood of New York's finest a generation ago. And he should know: his experiences as a crooked detective who cooperated in a corruption investigation were the basis for Robert Daley's Prince of the City (1978). Leuci, a neighborhood guy who spent decades out there, vividly depicts his adventures from the day he first twirled a nightstick. He quickly learned the rules: if it doesn't fold, don't take it; never rat out a partner; there is no such thing as a warning shot; show the skels and the yoms who's in charge. (The text sometimes sounds like cop-bar repartee, but there are explanations for readers who never met a skel or a yom). The author guarded the Beatles. He landed in the heart of a riot. He went undercover as a high-school student scoring drugs and soon was known on the street as "Babyface." In the vaunted Special Investigations Unit, the scrupulous cop with all the great collars became the bought cop. He made cases and he made money. Dealing with informants, wiseguys, and top-of-the-line narcs, he yearned to surpass the haul in the recent French Connection, much of which went missing. Leuci turned, finally, against the bad cops, fixers, crooked bondsmen, judges, shysters, and the whole corrupt system. He wore a wire and came under the protection of bodyguards as intrigue and danger mounted. Old friends were jammed as he became an important witness. Before being retired, Babyface grew up. It's a dramatic police story, worthy of Wambaugh presenting with vitality players from Mario Cuomo, Rudy Giuliani, Vinny Albano, and Leuci's cousin Johnny Tarzan to bimbos, pimps, pushers, made guys,and, especially, lieutenants, sergeants, and all the brothers on the job (generally described as attractive). A shrewd confessional by a knowing veteran-and a helluva cop book. Agent: Esther Newberg/ICM
Table of Contents:
| The Biggest, Baddest Gang in Town | 1 | |
| Heave Heaven | 11 | |
| Commandos | 45 | |
| Combat | 58 | |
| Dope Street | 108 | |
| A Partner | 147 | |
| The Dark Side of the Moon | 183 | |
| The Awakening | 230 | |
| Mounting Casualties | 301 | |
| Prince of the City | 344 | |
| At the End of the Day | 367 | |
| Acknowledgments | 369 |