Why do so many Americans feel that politics has become irrelevant to t heir daily lives? Why is there so little public discussion of importan t social issues, despite unprecedented access to mass media and new co mmunication technologies? This book delves beneath the sound bites and news headlines to explore the ongoing process of depoliticization in the United States. Attuned to the many contemporary trends eroding the public sphere, Carl Boggs illuminates the American retreat to an eeri ly privatized landscape of shopping malls, gated communities, new-age fads, rural militias, isolated computer terminals, and postmodern inte llectual discourse. Yet Boggs maintains hope that current trends can b e reversed, issuing an eloquent call for revitalizing politics, cultur e, and civic society. The paperback concludes with a new postscript on the movement against corporate globalization and the tumultuous presi dential election of 2000.