Now available at your local bookstore or online via this link.
Truth and Consequence: Reflections on Catastrophe, Civil Resistance, and Hope is a collection of previously unpublished writings by the former government official, whistleblower, and activist Daniel Ellsberg, exploring his life, work, and most deeply held beliefs. Edited by his son, Michael Ellsberg, and his longtime assistant, Jan R. Thomas, this posthumous collection draws from 50 years of his handwritten notebooks, starting with the year he released the Pentagon Papers. It also features autobiographical accounts of his childhood, including the accident that changed his life.
In a vast repository of notes to himself, Ellsberg pondered the madness within humanity. Truth and Consequence reflects his broad lifelong preoccupations with the problem of evil, the massacre of “innocents,” the threat of nuclear war, the dangers of unquestioned obedience, and how to cultivate empathy for those whom we have been taught to see as enemies.
Now available at your local bookstore or online via this link.
REVIEWS
“A fascinating window into the inner life of a whistleblower and the psychological turmoil behind a sweeping societal shift.” —Publishers Weekly
“These pages trace (Ellsberg’s) evolving meditations on conscience, obedience, war, and humanity’s capacity for self-destruction, interwoven with historical and psychological insights and flashes of daily life. … A resonant volume that affirms Ellsberg’s rare moral conviction and his unwavering belief in truth as a force for change.” —Kirkus Reviews
“[A] poignant, prescient, and clarifying posthumous collection of unpublished musings. Three heart-seizing essays about Ellsberg’s anguished childhood set the template for his ardent and risky life as a marine, national security analyst, whistleblower, and antinuclear, peace, and environmental activist… Here readers can immerse themselves in the depth and wisdom of his profound concerns about evil, conscience, compassion, and complicity… Knowledgeable and bracing perceptions and truths abound in this treasury of galvanizing insights, convictions, and conundrums.” —Booklist
“Daniel Ellsberg possessed the kind of moral clarity and courage that seems almost entirely absent among today’s political, corporate, and social elites. … The notebook entries are a fascinating window into Ellsberg’s thought process, revealing an individual grappling with existential questions and complex systems.” —California Review of Books
“In this extraordinary book, Daniel Ellsberg candidly reflects on his own life and on the wider human predicament-and fearlessly calls out the ‘reckless, evil gamble’ that America and other nuclear powers take every day. … We encounter here a fascinating story, but more to the point, an inspiring quest to live life with meaning and utter honesty.” —Jerry Brown, Former Governor of California and current executive chairman of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists
“In this gripping collection, Ellsberg and the world he so deeply engaged come into sharp focus, highlighting the fascinating human dimension of his life and work.” —Christian G. Appy, author of American Reckoning: The Vietnam War and Our National Identity and Director of the Ellsberg Initiative for Peace and Democracy
“In this book we see into Ellsberg’s mind and soul, his strengths, his fears and doubts. Through his own words one can begin to understand the forces that forged him into one of the 20th centuries most honorable, intriguing, and all-too human figures.” —Robert J. Rosenthal, CEO Emeritus for The Center for Investigative Reporting
“You will never read a more profound book about obedience and conscience. This book draws you close, sharing the innermost thoughts and visionary wisdom of America’s greatest whistleblower.” —Norman Solomon, author of War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine