Saralee Says
I grew up in a politically active Republican family in East Tennessee and married into a strong Democrat family, so it is fair to say I have been around politics all of my life. I had a choice of either loving it or loathing politics, much like many of the political authors today. Some are spewing venom while others are using logic to try to convert the opposing side. Many are funny and worth reading, and I think others should go straight to the recycling bin with an apology to the tree used to manufacture the pages for the book. Before you read any of these, follow the wise advice of my mother and listen to Beethoven, his music helps put the books in perspective.
Politicians, Partisans, and Parasites: My Adventures in Cable News (Warner Books) by Tucker Carlson is my favorite of the current political books because I think it is the best written, the most informative. It is also a true picture of what goes on behind the scenes as politicians try to convert us on live television. Carlson, the man with the bow tie, is the conservative on CNN's television show Crossfire.
Who's Looking Out For You (Broadway) by Bill O'Reilly is not as much about politics as his other books - The O-Reilly Factor and The No Spin Zone - so therefore is not as interesting to political junkies. O'Reilly goes after the government, corporations and even the Catholic Church to explain why some are poor and some are not and this book is thought provoking and sure to continue the controversy around O'Reilly.
I have not figured out if Ann Coulter believes everything she writes in Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism (Crown Forum) or is just out to sell books. The author of Slander does not want to bring liberals and conservatives together. Her reasons for leaving the defense of the United States to the conservatives are sure to cause dialogue for years to come, and her sharp dialogue is very popular with many today.
Don't bother reading Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right (E P Dutton) unless you have a sense of humor. Al Franken, the author of Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot assembled a team from Harvard and has painstakingly assembled every fact possible to defeat President Bush in the upcoming election. He had me bent over laughing when he described the environmental consequences of pig farms if they are not supervised correctly.
If you read Molly Ivin's columns, you know this Texan is no fan of President George W. Bush. In Bushwhacked: Life in George W. Bush's America (Random House) and she and Lou Dubose pick up where her earlier book Shrub ended. I did enjoy the additional information offered about Ken Lay and his fellow Enronites.
Larry's Language
I admit it: I like the books by Al Franken, James Carville, Molly Ivins and Michael Moore - you know the tax raising, environment protecting, justice seeking, campaign money limiting, war opposing, job promoting bleeding heart liberals like me. However, I am so committed to politics as a way of life that I even enjoyed the tax cutting, Artic National Refuge drilling, military loving, Patriotism Act supporting conservative books by Dick Morris, Tucker Carlson, and Bill O'Reilly. I cannot say the same for the Ann Coulter book.
It is all in the language. As we, our political leaders and our media pundits encourage, inspire, disappoint and confuse, it is the language that counts. Notice how almost all of us can agree on the basic political language. Patriotism, courage, good health, great schools, religious freedom and productive jobs are values and goals that appeal to each of us. But the devil is in the details and in these books.
Political authors rarely agree on the details. Instead, some books like Thieves in High Places: They've Stolen Our Country - And It's Time To Take It Back by Jim Hightower or Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism by Coulter tend to pick personal examples that illustrate support for their philosophy and ignore the examples that counter their position. Both Hightower and Coulter are trying to make a point, Hightower using humor and Coulter using indignation with heaps of scorn.
The books by liberal authors like Bushwhacked by Ivins and Dubose and Dude, Where's My Country? by Moore focus their attacks on the leading conservative office holders such as President Bush and the conservative media. Of course, if you want a gladiator and lions picture of the conservative media, read the very best of these books which is Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them by Franken who slices and dices Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, and the Reverend Moon's Washington Times with sarcasm, satire, scolding and over-the-top humor. Franken defends his scorching gut shots with exacting research by his Harvard students. How come they did not have courses like this when I was in college?
The books by conservative authors such as Politicians, Partisans and Parasites: My Adventures in Cable News by Carlson and Who's Looking Out For You by O'Reilly highlight their adventures as media professionals who are at the top of their game and have strong opinions about what values are appropriate in America today.
If you want direct conflict with the other authors, read the Franken book. Otherwise read a good basic political science 101 textbook by the author of your choice.
Our next Book Club discussion will highlight great book gifts for the holidays.
