This was a great book written on the trailing edge of the 20th C as an unheard call for action against the various forces that are now controlling theThis was a great book written on the trailing edge of the 20th C as an unheard call for action against the various forces that are now controlling the media and society at large. Singer predicted that without critical thinking being foremost in education and that rampant, unfettered capitalism is not the inevitable solution to the issues to be faced in the 21st C. He was right, but unfortunately died in Paris of lung cancer in 2000. He would hardly have been surprised at how things have turned out since as his widow told me when I met her back in 2001 not long after 9/11. In their apartment on the Left Bank over coffee, she told me what a gentle person he was but how heartbroken he would have been to see that the warnings he issued in this fantastic book went unheeded and ignored. Perhaps, with Drumpf's swamp seeping into the White House and threatening to erode basic liberties for non-white and non-male citizens of the US, this is a critical read and call to action....more
Alexander Beckman was clearly very disheartened by the way that the October Revolution turned out and his analysis in The Bolshevik Myth is a classic Alexander Beckman was clearly very disheartened by the way that the October Revolution turned out and his analysis in The Bolshevik Myth is a classic of political theory and a warning about all forms of totalitarianism including Drumpfism....more
On the even more intellectual edge of the left, Noam Chomsky has relentlessly fought against the blindness of American foreign policy and how the presOn the even more intellectual edge of the left, Noam Chomsky has relentlessly fought against the blindness of American foreign policy and how the press manipulates public opinion to endorse and encourage catastrophes such as the Vietnam War (and more recently, the disaster of the two Iraq Wars, the War in Afghanistan, etc.) This book explains how the press (even when it takes a slightly more critical view of events), is still at heart manipulating the truth in service of power. The most recent example was Drumpf's use of misinformation, false news, lies and the press' blind belief in a solid Clinton victory which allowed him to sweep states that Obama had won in 2008 and 2012 and win the electoral college (which naturally he had criticized as useless in 2012). The erudite vision of Chomsky is perhaps hard to stomach for those who wish to guard their blinders but nonetheless, he has been right time after time. On a side note, last year's Independant film Captain Fantastic does a beautiful and moving (to me anyway) homage to Noam :) Happy reading!...more
Once you have read A People's History and are interested in more of Zinn's views on the world and politics, this collection of essays from The Nation Once you have read A People's History and are interested in more of Zinn's views on the world and politics, this collection of essays from The Nation and The Progressive is a wonderful way of enjoying his wit and intelligence....more
This is one of the most eye-opening books I have ever read. The late Howard Zinn takes off the filters with which American history is taught in schoolThis is one of the most eye-opening books I have ever read. The late Howard Zinn takes off the filters with which American history is taught in schools and takes an unflinching look at how the US has not been the benevolent protector of democracy that propaganda would like us to believe. Not that the founding principles were wrong - they were ideal then and with some modifications re slavery and women's rights are still relevant today - but American domestic and foreign policy has been held hostage by Big Capital and Old Money for over two centuries. It should be made essential reading for high school seniors and college freshmen to avoid the kind of knee-jerk reactionism that resulted in Drumpf's election in 2016. The US is not a perfect country and has its share blood on its hands and conscience and ignoring that ensures that we will repeat the same errors resulting in the deaths of innocent people again and again. An absolutely critical read.
Especially in the current hagiography of praising America's past as the if there was some lost utopia to which Drumpf, Inc wants to return to "Make America Great Again", Zinn's open-eyed, factual, and documented history reveals that this is all pure right-wing propaganda. All corporate and imperialistic entities commit atrocities in order to rise and maintain power, and the US is no exception to that. Yes, there is an ideal of freedom but it is one that has to be fought for generation after generation or it will be lost forever - THAT is what Zinn's book is all about and why it is important now!
The news just gets worse every day and the truth ever more elusive. Zinn's book remains a critical assessment of American history and a reminder that all of our rights from the Constitution to Social Security to Civil Rights to the Great Society were paid for with blood and sweat and must be preserved despite the constant attacks by Drumpf and his Republican cronies....more
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