The Seven Books
Explore impactful initiatives presented in the book collection designed to foster affordable cities, towns and communities. Join us in transforming urban and rural living for everyone. Entire book collection launching May 1, 2026.
Bad Billionaires Vs. Good Governors
Bad Billionaires vs. Good Governors is a guide for people who know their state already has the resources to make life affordable—and are tired of being told “there’s no money.” It argues that every state in the U.S. has the assets to ensure five essential services—housing, healthcare, food, transportation, and childcare—are affordable for everyone; the real issue is political priorities and billionaire influence, not scarcity. The book helps readers learn how to elect pro‑affordability governors, push state governments to stop catering to oligarchs, and redirect budgets and policies toward everyday residents. Designed for organizers and everyday altruists, it offers concrete strategies to reinvent state government as a vehicle for safety and well‑being, and to push back against greed so that entire states—not just wealthy enclaves—become places where all can truly thrive.
Stories of Surviving and Thriving: The Annotated Dissertation
Stories of Surviving and Thriving: The Annotated Dissertation is the origin story of the entire 5 Essentials Platform—a 3.5‑year academic journey in which Dr. Dominic Cappello turns rigorous research into real‑world solutions. Drawing on narrative inquiry with New Mexicans working on the social drivers of health, the book follows six community champions as they move from critical awareness to action, showing how people on the ground confront injustice and begin to redesign systems. The annotated format lays out the original dissertation, then adds commentary, frameworks, and insights that later became the foundation for all seven books in the collection. It’s written for students, faculty, practitioners, and organizers who want to see how research can fuel community mobilization, policy advocacy, and a practical agenda to make housing, healthcare, food, transportation, and childcare truly affordable for all.
Bots, Bread, and Bad Billionaires
Bots, Bread, and Bad Billionaires is a manifesto for AI activists, tech workers, and everyday users who refuse to let the Age of AI be defined by billionaire greed. It imagines a different path: using technology as a tool for human compassion, organizing, and policy change so that five vital services—housing, healthcare, food, transportation, and childcare—become truly affordable for everyone. The book shows how to “flip the script” on oligarch‑controlled platforms by using AI to educate, connect, and mobilize people around the affordability movement instead of fueling distraction, division, and surveillance. With practical strategies and real‑world use cases, it helps readers build an AI era where tech strengthens democracy, protects the most vulnerable, and supports a society in which no one has to fight alone just to meet basic needs.
If You Meet a Bad Billionaire with a Chainsaw on the Road
Share somIf You Meet a Bad Billionaire with a Chainsaw on the Road is a playbook for everyone who looks at the world, feels that jolt of “this is not okay,” and wants to do something real about it. It starts with clarity—seeing how billionaire power shapes housing, healthcare, food, transportation, childcare, media, and politics—and then shows how to turn that shock into focused action. The book invites “everyday altruists” to step up as change agents, commit to making the five essentials truly affordable, and help rein in oligarchs who treat our lives and communities like disposable assets. Along the way, it offers practical strategies for electing pro‑affordability leaders, organizing locally, and building a future where systems serve people—not billionaires with metaphorical chainsaws.
The Little Red Schoolhouse Vs. Bad Billionaires
The Little Red Schoolhouse vs. Bad Billionaires argues that public schools are not just classrooms—they are the most powerful, existing infrastructure we have in every state to drive the affordability movement. When schools help families connect to affordable housing, healthcare, food, transportation, and childcare, students can finally stop worrying about survival and start focusing on learning. This book is for teachers, principals, counselors, parents, and community allies who want schools to be hubs of safety, health, and democracy—not just test scores. A central focus is how to design, fund, and sustain a school‑based Family Resource Center that links visitors to vital services onsite, online, and through dedicated staff navigators. Step by step, it shows how schools can anchor a new era in which student and family well‑being comes first—and how, one school at a time, that shift can transform entire communities.
Five Essential Services, Public Health, and Bad Billionaire Backlash
Five Essential Services, Public Health, and Bad Billionaire Backlash is a call to action for people in public health who are tired of treating symptoms while billionaires rig the system. It starts from a simple truth: we cannot end our costliest health crises—chronic disease, untreated mental health conditions, substance misuse, nutrition‑related illness, and lack of care access—without making housing, healthcare, food, transportation, and childcare truly affordable for everyone. This book is for everyday altruists in clinics, health departments, nonprofits, universities, and communities who want to move beyond reports and pilot projects and actually confront oligarchic power. It lays out how billionaire influence distorts healthcare and other vital systems, then offers a grounded, collective strategy to fight back: organizing around the five essentials, pushing for pro‑affordability policy, and helping build a nation where public health isn’t an afterthought but the outcome of a just, well‑designed society.
Mayors, Affordable Cities, and Bad Billionaire Pushback
Mayors, Affordable Cities, and Bad Billionaire Pushback is a handbook for anyone who believes city hall should work for residents, not billionaires. It gives readers the sharp, practical questions to ask every current and future mayor: How will you make housing, healthcare, food, transportation, and childcare truly affordable—and how will you be held accountable? Aimed at change agents, organizers, and everyday altruists, the book shows how to elect pro‑affordability mayors, reinvent city hall as a results‑driven “engine of care,” and push back when billionaire interests try to capture local power. Step by step, it helps readers build cities where safety and quality of life are non‑negotiable, and where policy, budgets, and services are redesigned so that all residents—not just the wealthy—can thrive.
A humble disclaimer and invitation from the author:
This book collection is the result of decades of engagement in public health, safety, and education, as well as years of doctoral coursework and research focused on learning strategies, community adversity, and the dynamics of social justice change. Doctoral training taught me to avoid sweeping generalizations—unlike much of the internet, where hunch, spin, and half-truths run wild. Not all billionaires are villains; some may even be altruistic and invest in the public good. I just haven’t met one yet—but the invitation stands!
Ready to Win Your City Back?
Step 1: Pick your playbook from the seven-book series.
Step 2: Buy the book.
Step 3: Use the Toolkit to act locally, organize regionally, and demand policy change.
Let the 5 Essentials Platform book collection guide and strengthen the Affordability Movement. Take the first step toward making housing, healthcare, and childcare more affordable. Every action counts in reshaping our cities.