One of the best political books of the past decade

books:


	• Reason: Why Liberals Will Win the Battle for America Robert B. Reich Vintage, 2005 - 272 pages average customer review:based on 54 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

highly recommended

Not very memorable

Not very memorable, honestly, even though I'm a staunch liberal myself. Pick it up if you want a bit of light reading that agrees with your political views, but if that's not your cup of tea, you may want to pass on this.

A must read! Fantastic Book!

This is a "persuasive" book, as opposed to narrative or expository writing. He uses descriptions to facilitate communications instead of trying to be complete. For example, he uses the term "radcons" - radical conservatives. You can get a flavor for this term at http://www.robertreich.org/reich/20040501.asp. One can go on about the different types of conservatives (libertarian, paleo...) but that would not be useful. The real power in recent years has been the radcon; an unholy alliance between religious/social and fiscal conservatives

Mr. Reich takes radcons to task, and rightly so. They complain about moral-bankruptcy, focusing almost completely on sex. Yet, they rarely if ever speak out against the greed and concentrated wealth that is destroying our country. How often do right-wing preachers castigate those that would layoff hard working Americans just to give the CEOs a raise, even when the stock is down! How often do they speak out against a system where CEOs are coddled because they hand pick the people on their board!

How many times did Jesus speak out against wealth and greed? How often did Jesus say we should help the poor and weak? How many times did Jesus speak out against homosexuality? Jesus never said we needed to get rid of the estate tax. Jesus never said capital gains tax cuts were immoral. Radcons focus on the wrong things.

Radcons have hurt this country. Their Greed Over People philosophy has led to many disasters, from Enron-like rip-offs to billions lost in Iraq. This corruption hurts families and small-investors alike.

The FDR quote about radicals, liberals, and conservatives is worth the price alone of this book. A real gem, it explains the reality that is only again coming to light: liberals are the practical politicians. Radicals on the left and right (communists, facists, radcons, libertarians) will bury the world trying to push their ideology. Liberals look at problems and use practical solutions, which may involve government, to solve them. Rural power, Social Security, food safety, civil rights, public transportation, public roads, libraries... all liberal traditions that are solving problems that the free market cannot.

It appears that Mr. Reich's thought parallels mine: history has shown that communism does not work; extreme capitalism does not work; the only way is the middle way, regulated capitalism.

Slightly dated, as it does not (or should say cannot as it was written before 2006) discuss the recent blow-back (i.e., lost elections) conservatives have received from the fiasco in Iraq and their disastrous economic policies, it is still a very worthy read.

for more information click here

One of the best political books of the past decade

I love this book. Reich explains in great detail how progressive ideas and ideals are the true hope for America and how the conservative, regressive programs of the right-wing are bad for America. He uses examples, gives details, explains things. It's really a wonderful read.
That said, you probably have to be a real political junkie to really enjoy it. At times, it's kind of dry reading. Then again, if you picked up the book in the first place, you probably already ARE a political junkie.

This book offers essential ammunition for combatting the right-wing smear mearchants who prefer to talk in sound bites and remember the good old days of "separate, but equal."

for more information click here

Buy it. You'll like it.

In short, I highly recommend this book to anyone who espouses reason over vitriolic spew. If you love America, but are troubled by the current state of affairs, this book may provide you with some level of inspiration.

I purposefully chose the audio version of this book because I have heard Reich speak and his quirky delivery is affecting.

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

For anyone who believes that liberal isn?t a dirty word but a term of honor, this book will be as revitalizing as oxygen. For in the pages of Reason, one of our most incisive public thinkers, and a former secretary of labor mounts a defense of classical liberalism that?s also a guide for rolling back twenty years of radical conservative domination of our politics and political culture.

To do so, Robert B. Reich shows how liberals can:
.Shift the focus of the values debate from behavior in the bedroom to malfeasance in the boardroom
.Remind Americans that real prosperity depends on fairness
.Reclaim patriotism from those who equate it with pre-emptive war-making and the suppression of dissent
If a single book has the potential to restore our country?s good name and common sense, it?s this one.

for more information click here

hot