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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
More on McCarthyism, February 9, 2007
When I first got this book, I was anticipating a narrative that would draw parallels between the McCarthy era and post 9/11 America. On the cover, a quote from the Denver Post suggested that the manipulative tactics used by McCarthy were similar to those used by the current Bush administration. The four pictures on the cover showed a portrait of Senator McCarthy, the infamous picture of smoke bellowing from the Twin Towers, President George W. Bush, and a soldier (possibly Middle Eastern) aiming a shoulder-mounted launcher. I was anticipating an analytical discourse.
The first dozen pages (in sections titled "Preface to the Paperback Edition," "To the Reader" and "Prologue") touched on fears of terrorism, leaks of classified information, U.S. invasion of Iraq, and our civil rights. These sections however did not draw strong parallels between McCarthyism and contemporary America. The analysis I was craving was probably in the main chapters--why start the comparison in the introductory chapters that most readers skip?
The next twenty-two chapters (almost four hundred and sixty pages) focused entirely on McCarthyism--its rise, its hey-day, and its decline. The next two chapters (chapters twenty-three and twenty-four) focused on post 9/11 America but the narrative did not link contemporary times with the McCarthy era--at least not convincingly. In the "Epilogue" and "Afterword" no serious attempt was made at comparing post 9/11 America with the McCarthy era.
While the book did not meet my expectations, Johnson should be given credit for a readable and through presentation of the McCarthy era. We probably are too close to post 9/11 America to realize its full historical impact. Johnson urges us to examine the possible consequences of our government's actions-- some of which we are already experiencing. He encourages us to question if these actions are compatible with our ideals of civil liberties. He also outlines some of his recommendations on actions the government should take to balance our liberties vis-a-vie terrorism.
Whether we agree with Johnson is immaterial, what is important is that he encourages us to re-examine our ideals specifically those of freedom and individuality.
Armchair Interviews says: A good book on McCarthyism
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12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Tail Gunner Joe and the Politics of Fear, January 29, 2006
On the evening of December 2, 1954 I sat in the gallery as the Senate, by sixty-seven to twenty-two, voted to "condemn" (commonly known as the "censure" vote) Senator Joseph McCarthy for conduct "contrary to Senate tradition." I was an intern in the early years of a long career with a federal agency. I felt fortunate to be there. As an idealistic WW II combat veteran studying under the GI Bill of Rights, I had joined a new liberal-left veterans organization, the American Veterans Committee (AVC), with the idealistic slogan, Citizens First, Veterans Second. Due to the antics of McCarthy and others, the "loyalty" of anyone connected with it was suspect and I had been the President of my university chapter. I went through an eerie loyalty interview and a "full-field background investigation" under an executive order promulgated by President Truman at the height of the communist scare which McCarthy had a big role in producing. That I was finally "cleared" for a government job is a tribute to the fairness with which the loyalty program was administered, at least in my case, although others were not so fortunate.
So, this book was nostalgic and I also learned much about the McCarthy era that I never knew or had forgotten. It is primarily a historical tracing of McCarthy's communists in government charges and the Senate hearing which finally brought him down. Particularly compelling is Johnson's account of the political fear of national leaders, including Presidents Truman and Eisenhower, to counter him publicly even though they understood the danger he posed to traditional American values.
The tie-in to the present anxieties are more tenuous. Haynes Johnson lays these out, from his perspective, primarily in the last seventy pages although a few links are sprinkled elsewhere. I found myself wishing for more penetrating analysis. I am as troubled by some aspects of current security policy as the more strident voices who rail against it. And yet, I wonder: Are our anxieties and fears much like the McCarthyism of the past? Or are we confronting new, different, and more subtle threats to American liberty? The brilliant and incisive treatise of McCarthyism that the book provides requires historical perspective and would not have been possible at the time. Nevertheless, the Senate, auspiciously and not without controversy, took action even within the prevailing climate of political fear. Let us hope for a similar response, in whatever form it may take, to the present dangers.
Finally, while I have always disagreed vehemently with everything McCarthy stood for, I confess a certain sympathy for Tail Gunner Joe. He was a man who crucified himself amid human frailties and overwrought passions. Few among us have not, on occasion, been likewise tempted.
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17 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
History Repeats Itself, December 16, 2005
A powerful idictment of the politics of fear and those whose would use our fears to increase their own power. The parallels between McCarthy and the current atmosphere are powerful, only this time the liars are in the White House. Well writen and thoughtfully presented, this book is a must read for anybody interested in the anatomy of the politics of fear and how it has played out in our country's history.
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