Ain't My America: The Long, Noble History of Antiwar Conservatism and Middle-American Anti-Imperialism (American Empire Project) (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "I ABOMINATE AND detest the idea of a government, where there is a standing army,"1 George Mason, father of the Bill of Rights, told the..." (more)
Key Phrases: greatest curse, United States, Cold War, Russell Kirk (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Here begins the effort to restore a principled conservatism after the havoc wreaked by George W. Bush. Bill Kauffman is a terrific writer and Ain't My America is a terrific—and essential—book."—Andrew J. Bacevich, author of The New American Militarism

"This is my kind of book: historically grounded, fiercely honest, and wonderfully expressed. It is one of the best books I’ve read in years. Bill Kauffman is a conservative of the highest order, unlike the false brand now conducting our national affairs."—George McGovern

"You don't have to be a liberal, a progressive, or a socialist to oppose war and imperialism. Bill Kauffman's Ain't My America is a must read for those free-marketers, right wingers and conservatives who want to live in peace with the world. Regardless of your politics, if you are against wars of aggression and would like to try something other than bombing our way out of our problems, you will profit from this lively book."—Nicholas von Hoffman, author of Hoax: Why Americans are Suckered by White House Lies

"For those who have been neoconned into believing that conservatism means unquestioned support for the warfare state, Ain’t My America is the perfect way to show that real conservatives defend peace and liberty."—Ron Paul

Product Description

From “the finest literary stylist of the American right,” a surprising and spirited account of how true conservatives have always been antiwar and anti-empire (Allan Carlson, author of The American Way)

 

Conservatives love war, empire, and the military-industrial complex. They abhor peace, the sole and rightful property of liberals. Right? Wrong.
 
As Bill Kauffman makes clear, true conservatives have always resisted the imperial and military impulse: it drains the treasury, curtails domestic liberties, breaks down families, and vulgarizes culture. From the Federalists who opposed the War of 1812, to the striving of Robert Taft (known as “Mr. Republican”) to keep the United States out of Korea, to the latter-day libertarian critics of the Iraq war, there has historically been nothing freakish, cowardly, or even unusual about antiwar activists on the political right. And while these critics of U.S. military crusades have been vilified by the party of George W. Bush, their conservative vision of a peaceful, decentralized, and noninterventionist America gives us a glimpse of the country we could have had—and might yet attain.
 
Passionate and witty, Ain’t My America is an eye-opening exploration of the forgotten history of right-wing peace movements—and a clarion manifesto for antiwar conservatives of today.

See all Editorial Reviews

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Product Details Hardcover: 304 pages Publisher: Metropolitan Books (April 15, 2008) Language: English ISBN-10: 0805082441 ISBN-13: 978-0805082449 Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1 inches Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #249,952 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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First Sentence:
"I ABOMINATE AND detest the idea of a government, where there is a standing army,"1 George Mason, father of the Bill of Rights, told the 1788 Virginia convention on the adoption of the federal Constitution. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
greatest curse

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
United States, Cold War, Russell Kirk, New England, America First, World War, Spanish-American War, Republican Party, Iraq War, Jimmy Duncan, South Dakota, White House, Upper Midwest, Affairs of Distant Nations, New Left, Howard Buffett, Felix Morley, Woodrow Wilson, Middle American, Middle East, Bill of Rights, Robert Taft, Charles Lindbergh, Coleman Andrews, Louisiana Purchase

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Customer Reviews

11 Reviews 5 star:  (6) 4 star:  (4) 3 star:    (0) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:  (1)           Average Customer Review 4.3 out of 5 stars (11 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 20 of 22 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome apologetic and manifesto, May 29, 2008 By  Andrew S. Rogers (Seattle, Washington) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)       When I look over my old reviews on Amazon.com, I notice that I've given a lot of books four or five stars. On the one hand, it makes sense -- if a book's no good, I'm seldom inclined even to finish it, let alone write a review of it. But this creates the problem of what do I do when a book comes along that really merits the highest possible rating? So let me say here that the only reason I am giving "Ain't My America" five stars is because I can't give it six or even seven. I wish I'd written this book. "Ain't My America" is not simply one of the number of books coming out these days calling on the GOP to resuscitate its ancient dedication to peace, economy, and small government. Admirable as those books are, "Ain't My America" has a much larger scope, and Bill Kauffman a much more ambitious brief: the dismantling of empire, the rediscovery of community, and the rebirth of the patriotism of home, family, and locality. It's, frankly, an unfamiliar and at times uncomfortable message. As the son of a navy family, I found myself strangely moved by Kauffman's description of the toll the unrooted military-family lifestyle has on marriages and children -- and while I admit to never having quite thought of it this way before, I find myself in absolute agreement with his contention that "family-values conservatives" should be the strongest opponents of war and militarism, precisely because of the impact those forces have on families and children. Once you accept that, it's hard to deny the author's contention that George W. Bush "is, by policy, the most antifamily president in American history" (p. 216). And that's just one of the powerful arguments Kauffman presents. It definitely makes we want to track down his other books at the earliest opportunity. So too does his impressive skill as a writer. I particularly enjoyed his facility with the unusual vocabulary word -- though I noted with some disappointment that the flair for this he showed in the introduction and early chapters dissipated somewhat as the book progressed. Souvenirs I carry with me from the first few pages alone include "nescience," "temerarious," "gleet," "omnifariousness," "atrabilious," and "mingy," plus "fossicking about in tramontane sinkholes" and the frankly delightful "the dashing if dotty Samuel F.B. Morse." As "conservative" pundits and politicians bang the war drums and sing songs in praise of empire, I've been wondering more and more if they would still love America if we weren't a -- even the -- global powerhouse. I suspect they would not, and that Bill Kauffman's vision of a "little America" is one they not only couldn't accept, they might not even be able to imagine it. It ain't their America. But more and more, "unrooted" as I admit to being, I'm coming to think it's mine. 8 of 8 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars Celebrating the forgotten road, June 8, 2008 By  Earth that Was - See all my reviews Amazon Verified Purchase Bill Kauffman in "Ain't My America" has delivered an informative, entertaining and passionate tour through almost two hundred years worth of American conservative and middle class anti-militarism and anti-imperialism. This is a tradition that much of modern left and right would rather forget but Kauffman celebrates it. The historian James Martin was once interviewed. Although usually labelled a 'revisionist' Martin preferred to see himself as an 'additionist', remembering what the other books leave out. Kauffman too has delivered a worthy additionist effort. This is a passionately partisan and in many ways joyous book. Kauffman introduces a grand selection of characters, not all, but most of them heroic, making a stand for peace and the defense of the old constitutional republic against the many faces of Mars. Kauffman's shows the great western tradition of American neutralism that crosses party and generational boundaries. George McGovern (Dem.) of South Dakota and North Dakota's Senator Nye (Rep.), the pre-WW2 champion of the Neutrality Acts, both share common roots deep in the American heartland. He explores the careers of Robert Taft and Howard Buffett, of Students for a Democratic Society's Carl Oglesby (who dreamed of a New Left / Old Right alliance against the Vietnam War, before the Marxists threw him out), the Anti-Imperialist League of the late 19th century and Bob Dylan, amongst a phalanx of antiwar artists and writers, more often than not agrarians. He reminds us of the antiwar writings of Robert Nisbet, perhaps postwar America's leading sociologist, certainly leading conservative sociologist, who penned a radical critique of the impact of war as the progenitor of many of the ills of modern society. And he gives exposure to the great postwar critic, Felix Morley, as well as William Appleman Williams. Kauffman's writing style owes much to the gonzo style and "Rolling Stone" than academe, however his book is lovingly researched and sufficiently referenced to allow interested readers to dig into more conventional scholarly works and original authors on their own. The tradition Kauffman embraces is actually too large to fit into a single volume. He doesn't explore the great polemic against the arms trade H.C. Engelbrecht and F.C. Hanighen's "The Merchants of Death" that was influential post-WW1 or how Hanighen went on to edit the conservative digest "Human Events". He doesn't explore early and perceptive critiques of the Vietnam War by right wing conspiracy theorist Dan Smoot, Oswald Garrison Villard (who helped found the NAACP) nor the work of the writer Louis Bromfield, an right wing isolationist who (unusually) regulary rubbed shoulders with the Hollywood set in the forties . Still Kauffman has done a remarkable job for one volume. My main complaint is small. As someone who reads on my daily commute that the chapters do sometimes seem a tad long, I would have preferred more and shorter chapters. Highly recommended. 10 of 11 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Superb, essential, enlightening, May 8, 2008 By  Hulagu Khan (Northern Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews Bill Kauffman's new book is a superb, essential and enlightening look at the noble tradition of skepticism and criticism on the American Right of predatory war and imperialism over two centuries of American history. Kauffman is a lively and entertaining writer sure to enrage many with his well-informed and researched jeremiads (especially his prescription on Texas!). This is a much needed, bracing correction to the spirit of the age, where there are three remaining presidential candidates in May 2008 and all three are unashamed, warmongering interventionists (especially the "conservative" McCain). I loved this book and am amazed at the quality and prolific nature of this writer, what do they put in the water in Batavia? A minor quibble would be parts of chapter five. While interesting and well written, the criticism of space program (certainly a major budgetary boondoggle) doesn't quite seem to fit the overall theme of the book. I feel that I have been introduced to a whole new crew of All-American heroes. I knew something about the eccentric John Randolph of Roanoke, but have a newfound respect for the portly anti-colonialist Grover Cleveland and, who would have thought it, the much maligned George McGovern.		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 1.0 out of 5 stars Philosophical Blather Kauffman tells us that there is a long and honorable tradition of antiwar thought among the American right, though unfortunately muted at times. Read more Published 10 months ago by Loyd E. Eskildson 4.0 out of 5 stars A History of American Antiwar Conservativism In "Ain't My America" Bill Kaufmann gives a history of American politicians that have gone against imperial ambitions during various eras of our government. Read more Published 10 months ago by Scripture Studier 5.0 out of 5 stars Love the language and the YELL! Great to have the sense and humanity of anti-war understanding broadened to include 'conservative'. Great to have anti-imperialism, the same. Read more Published 10 months ago by David W. Grant 4.0 out of 5 stars What have they done with my America I am new to the writings of Bill Kauffman. "Ain't My America" is my first book of his, but I suspect it will not be my last. Read more Published 14 months ago by Bill Wood 5.0 out of 5 stars Finally I was raised by my grandparents, in Northern Wisconsis. The were America First "isolationists". After reading AIN'T MY AMERICA, I have a better understanding and appreciaton for... Read more Published 14 months ago by Peter H. Christiansen 4.0 out of 5 stars War destroys family and community and builds up liberal institutions Author Bill Kaufman's brand of "conservatism" is something completely foreign to modern political taxonomy. Read more Published 16 months ago by J. D. Seagraves 5.0 out of 5 stars Another classic from Kauffman This book joins Kauffman's earlier exploration of the isolationist strain in American history, "America First! Read more Published 17 months ago by John E. Cox 5.0 out of 5 stars Kauffman shows us another way In an era of unwinnable wars and a collapsing American Empire, Bill Kauffman reveals that a strong antiwar, anti-empire sentiment was not unwelcome to those on the right of the... Read more Published 18 months ago by Nepa Reviewer([e-mail]) Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Metropolitan Books (April 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805082441
• ISBN-13: 978-0805082449
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #249,952 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome apologetic and manifesto, May 29, 2008

By	Andrew S. Rogers (Seattle, Washington) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

When I look over my old reviews on Amazon.com, I notice that I've given a lot of books four or five stars. On the one hand, it makes sense -- if a book's no good, I'm seldom inclined even to finish it, let alone write a review of it. But this creates the problem of what do I do when a book comes along that really merits the highest possible rating? So let me say here that the only reason I am giving "Ain't My America" five stars is because I can't give it six or even seven.

I wish I'd written this book.

"Ain't My America" is not simply one of the number of books coming out these days calling on the GOP to resuscitate its ancient dedication to peace, economy, and small government. Admirable as those books are, "Ain't My America" has a much larger scope, and Bill Kauffman a much more ambitious brief: the dismantling of empire, the rediscovery of community, and the rebirth of the patriotism of home, family, and locality.

It's, frankly, an unfamiliar and at times uncomfortable message. As the son of a navy family, I found myself strangely moved by Kauffman's description of the toll the unrooted military-family lifestyle has on marriages and children -- and while I admit to never having quite thought of it this way before, I find myself in absolute agreement with his contention that "family-values conservatives" should be the strongest opponents of war and militarism, precisely because of the impact those forces have on families and children. Once you accept that, it's hard to deny the author's contention that George W. Bush "is, by policy, the most antifamily president in American history" (p. 216).

And that's just one of the powerful arguments Kauffman presents. It definitely makes we want to track down his other books at the earliest opportunity. So too does his impressive skill as a writer. I particularly enjoyed his facility with the unusual vocabulary word -- though I noted with some disappointment that the flair for this he showed in the introduction and early chapters dissipated somewhat as the book progressed. Souvenirs I carry with me from the first few pages alone include "nescience," "temerarious," "gleet," "omnifariousness," "atrabilious," and "mingy," plus "fossicking about in tramontane sinkholes" and the frankly delightful "the dashing if dotty Samuel F.B. Morse."

As "conservative" pundits and politicians bang the war drums and sing songs in praise of empire, I've been wondering more and more if they would still love America if we weren't a -- even the -- global powerhouse. I suspect they would not, and that Bill Kauffman's vision of a "little America" is one they not only couldn't accept, they might not even be able to imagine it. It ain't their America. But more and more, "unrooted" as I admit to being, I'm coming to think it's mine.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Celebrating the forgotten road, June 8, 2008

By	Earth that Was - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

Bill Kauffman in "Ain't My America" has delivered an informative, entertaining and passionate tour through almost two hundred years worth of American conservative and middle class anti-militarism and anti-imperialism. This is a tradition that much of modern left and right would rather forget but Kauffman celebrates it.

The historian James Martin was once interviewed. Although usually labelled a 'revisionist' Martin preferred to see himself as an 'additionist', remembering what the other books leave out. Kauffman too has delivered a worthy additionist effort.

This is a passionately partisan and in many ways joyous book. Kauffman introduces a grand selection of characters, not all, but most of them heroic, making a stand for peace and the defense of the old constitutional republic against the many faces of Mars.

Kauffman's shows the great western tradition of American neutralism that crosses party and generational boundaries. George McGovern (Dem.) of South Dakota and North Dakota's Senator Nye (Rep.), the pre-WW2 champion of the Neutrality Acts, both share common roots deep in the American heartland. He explores the careers of Robert Taft and Howard Buffett, of Students for a Democratic Society's Carl Oglesby (who dreamed of a New Left / Old Right alliance against the Vietnam War, before the Marxists threw him out), the Anti-Imperialist League of the late 19th century and Bob Dylan, amongst a phalanx of antiwar artists and writers, more often than not agrarians. He reminds us of the antiwar writings of Robert Nisbet, perhaps postwar America's leading sociologist, certainly leading conservative sociologist, who penned a radical critique of the impact of war as the progenitor of many of the ills of modern society. And he gives exposure to the great postwar critic, Felix Morley, as well as William Appleman Williams.

Kauffman's writing style owes much to the gonzo style and "Rolling Stone" than academe, however his book is lovingly researched and sufficiently referenced to allow interested readers to dig into more conventional scholarly works and original authors on their own.

The tradition Kauffman embraces is actually too large to fit into a single volume. He doesn't explore the great polemic against the arms trade H.C. Engelbrecht and F.C. Hanighen's "The Merchants of Death" that was influential post-WW1 or how Hanighen went on to edit the conservative digest "Human Events". He doesn't explore early and perceptive critiques of the Vietnam War by right wing conspiracy theorist Dan Smoot, Oswald Garrison Villard (who helped found the NAACP) nor the work of the writer Louis Bromfield, an right wing isolationist who (unusually) regulary rubbed shoulders with the Hollywood set in the forties . Still Kauffman has done a remarkable job for one volume.

My main complaint is small. As someone who reads on my daily commute that the chapters do sometimes seem a tad long, I would have preferred more and shorter chapters. Highly recommended.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb, essential, enlightening, May 8, 2008

By	Hulagu Khan (Northern Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews

Bill Kauffman's new book is a superb, essential and enlightening look at the noble tradition of skepticism and criticism on the American Right of predatory war and imperialism over two centuries of American history. Kauffman is a lively and entertaining writer sure to enrage many with his well-informed and researched jeremiads (especially his prescription on Texas!). This is a much needed, bracing correction to the spirit of the age, where there are three remaining presidential candidates in May 2008 and all three are unashamed, warmongering interventionists (especially the "conservative" McCain).

I loved this book and am amazed at the quality and prolific nature of this writer, what do they put in the water in Batavia? A minor quibble would be parts of chapter five. While interesting and well written, the criticism of space program (certainly a major budgetary boondoggle) doesn't quite seem to fit the overall theme of the book.

I feel that I have been introduced to a whole new crew of All-American heroes. I knew something about the eccentric John Randolph of Roanoke, but have a newfound respect for the portly anti-colonialist Grover Cleveland and, who would have thought it, the much maligned George McGovern.