November 16th, 2008

OverSuccess

The author’s own brush with American urgency has soured him on the 24/7 work life: “The intention of this book is to free me and tens of millions like me from the hamster’s treadmill,” he says. Rubens ties mindless ambition in the U.S. to major depression, addiction, personal and public debt and even the popularity of American Idol. “Unless we change our nation’s culture,” he cautions, “we will die alone and unhappy with our basalt countertops, Sub-Zero wine storage and massive credit-card debt.” Wait–is that bad?

About Jim Reubens...

I attended Dartmouth College, dropping out in my Junior year during the cultural turbulence of the early 1970s after nearly completing a major in chemistry. I joined one of New England’s first modern communes, dropping out again live my next twenty years as a serial entrepreneur. I then “retired” to follow my passion, politics, and became platform committee chair of the national 40-state Independence Party in 1992. I then served as a GOP state senator in New Hampshire, ran for governor, and served as senior policy advisor and spokesman for former U.S. Senator Gordon Humphrey when he ran for governor. Today, I am an angel investor and member of the Granite State Angels at the Tuck School of Business, focusing on New England high-tech startups. I consult on energy and climate politics for the Union of Concerned Scientists.