A New Style, A New Hope

books:


	• The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream Barack Obama Three Rivers Press, 2007 - 384 pages average customer review:based on 523 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

What does THIS mean?

A direct quote from this book:

"I will stand with the Muslims should the political winds shift in an ugly direction."

What, exactly, does he mean by that statement??

A New Style, A New Hope

Barack Obama's second book looks at the intricacies of American politics and looks at where it has all gone wrong. The book itself reads like an elongated speech, and in a way it is; Obama's first expressed many of these ideas in his keynote speech-also entitled, `The Audacity of Hope'- during the 2004 democratic convention. The book looks at a wide range of issues, from the constitution to education to the Iraq War. However, the portion of the book that really stuck out to me was his views on Republicans and Democrats and the toll their bickering is taking on the American public. Obama states that politicians and even the public need to look past the tag of Republican or Democrat and look at the best interest of the country. I completely agree with this assessment, because I feel that acts such as filibustering in the senate, is holding the US back from passing legislation, that could potentially benefit the American public. Obama's book has been criticized by someone people, because they believe the literature itself is not that great and that the book reads too much "like outtakes from a stump speech-NY Times". However, I believe that this a book that can be read in short spurts, because each chapter analyzes different issues, pertaining to American politics. This book may not be the best piece of literature, but it is very interesting, a characteristic I believe is more important than the writing techniques. In our growing cosmopolitan society, it is increasingly important for books to be captivating, because people only have time to read books that quickly grab their attention and don't waste time with the fancy language, that the reader then has to wade through in order to actually find the story. That is why The Audacity of Hope is such a great book for this day and age; it can be read for short periods of time and it doesn't waste any time, in getting the reader captivated.

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The Hopemongering ;-)

Barck Obama is a self described hopemongerer ( I think we need to add this word to the dictionary if it is not already there given the publicity it has gotten!). In this book he gives practical advice on what an individual can do to make a difference. I found the chapter 4 on politics particularly interesting. He openly talks about campaign financing and how expensive it is in the Illinois media market (and by extension rest of the country) and how it is almost impossible to run a campaign unless you have deep pockets. He talks about the cold calls he had to make to raise funds and the disappointments one goes through in the process. As you read this you realize nothing is easy in this world, even great people like Barack Obama had disappointments, doubts, insecurity..not that infallible after all and that is kind of reassuring in the sense that disappointments are a natural process of getting ahead, we are not alone in this. What also struck me was the openness with which he writes about fund-raising, he brings out the contradiction of the current political system pretty clearly. On one hand you have to represent the poor and the middle class to get their votes and on the other hand if you do not accept contributions form the rich people like law firm partners, investment bankers, hedge fund managers, you are not going to go anywhere in the campaign. He says the more senior the senator is, chances are even more that he is deeply connected with rich people to finance their perpetual campaigns. A reality in present day America, so "matter-of-factly" written by Barack! I love this book, but particularly liked chapter 4. Read this book if you want to get some insights into this phenomenon which is called Barack Obama!

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

?A government that truly represents these Americans?that truly serves these Americans?will require a different kind of politics. That politics will need to reflect our lives as they are actually lived. It won?t be pre-packaged, ready to pull off the shelf. It will have to be constructed from the best of our traditions and will have to account for the darker aspects of our past. We will need to understand just how we got to this place, this land of warring factions and tribal hatreds. And we?ll need to remind ourselves, despite all our differences, just how much we share: common hopes, common dreams, a bond that will not break.?
?from The Audacity of Hope

In July 2004, Barack Obama electrified the Democratic National Convention with an address that spoke to Americans across the political spectrum. One phrase in particular anchored itself in listeners? minds, a reminder that for all the discord and struggle to be found in our history as a nation, we have always been guided by a dogged optimism in the future, or what Senator Obama called ?the audacity of hope.?

Now, in The Audacity of Hope, Senator Obama calls for a different brand of politics?a politics for those weary of bitter partisanship and alienated by the ?endless clash of armies? we see in congress and on the campaign trail; a politics rooted in the faith, inclusiveness, and nobility of spirit at the heart of ?our improbable experiment in democracy.? He explores those forces?from the fear of losing to the perpetual need to raise money to the power of the media?that can stifle even the best-intentioned politician. He also writes, with surprising intimacy and self-deprecating humor, about settling in as a senator, seeking to balance the demands of public service and family life, and his own deepening religious commitment.

At the heart of this book is Senator Obama?s vision of how we can move beyond our divisions to tackle concrete problems. He examines the growing economic insecurity of American families, the racial and religious tensions within the body politic, and the transnational threats?from terrorism to pandemic?that gather beyond our shores. And he grapples with the role that faith plays in a democracy?where it is vital and where it must never intrude. Underlying his stories about family, friends, members of the Senate, even the president, is a vigorous search for connection: the foundation for a radically hopeful political consensus.

A senator and a lawyer, a professor and a father, a Christian and a skeptic, and above all a student of history and human nature, Senator Obama has written a book of transforming power. Only by returning to the principles that gave birth to our Constitution, he says, can Americans repair a political process that is broken, and restore to working order a government that has fallen dangerously out of touch with millions of ordinary Americans. Those Americans are out there, he writes??waiting for Republicans and Democrats to catch up with them.?

From the Hardcover edition.

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