Customer Reviews

Going Rouge: An American Nightmare

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(23)

 

 

"Going Rouge" is closer to the truth than "Going Rogue," depicting Sarah Palin as a conservative fundamentalist Christian flaunting ignorance as a virtue - 'America's nightmare.' (Given her stance on global warming, 'world's nightmare' might even be appropriate.) On the other hand, she's not that much different from Bush '43 and some of the other leading Republican candidates. Her approval rating among Republicans stood at 70% before the Huckabee pardon scandal (Maurice Clemmons - 4X cop killer), and is most likely higher now.

The book is actually a collection of more than 50 short essays written about Palin during the campaign - as a result, the material is generally dated. (Example: "Going Rouge" credits Palin with not getting into the Obama 'birther' controversy, while since it was written she has.) In addition, the essays do not cover well her early controversial days as Mayor of Wassila. Worse yet, the material is superficial and probably no more credible than Palin's "Going Rogue." Readers would do better to read the accountings within the Anchorage Daily News about her various ethics challenges.

Whether one likes or dislikes Sarah Palin, however, is not that important. A more significant issue is "Why do personages like Sarah Palin or Bush '43 appeal to so many in the U.S.?" My suspicion is that it derives from our historical values of personal freedom and limitations on government, coupled with educational laziness that easily translates into simple solutions consistent with those values. On the other hand, the general inability of academics or the educated elite to 'solve' basic economic, business, education, and social problems doesn't help them garner respect either; neither do dogmatic and authoritarian religions, the daily avalanche of confusing half-truths promulgated by various position advocates, and the near domination of dogmatic party-line responses to issues instead of pragmatic, data-driven analyses.

Bottom Line: The names don't matter. Whether its Sarah Palin, George W. Bush, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, or Joe-the-Plumber - someone with similar simple-minded 'solutions' will crop up to lead the right because its in our collective DNA. Meanwhile, the left's 'thinking' and solutions usually aren't much better. Thus, when combined with arcane Senate rules, gerrymandering, and the domination of elections by monied interests, major problems such as global warming, terrorism, oil shortages, out-of-line expenditures for health care, defense, drug control, government overhead, and education (vs. other developed nations), unfunded Social Security liabilities, deteriorating infrastructure, and illegal immigration all go unresolved. The U.S. political system is unable to cope with the complications of the 21st century.

I bought this for my mom, in South Carolina, for Christmas. She thought it was the other one when she opened and she is very polite but was happy when I pointed out is was Going Rouge. My parents are the extinct type of republicans - socially liberal and fiscally conservative. They held their noses and voted for McCain/Palin in the last election mostly because they didn't know anything about Palin. I spoke with my mom yesterday and she is in the middle of reading the book and commented that it is frightening that this woman was actually on the ticket. This is a great book for rational readers who haven't yet been exposed to the truth about Palin.

We can only hope that Palin runs in 2012 - but unfortunately, I think she's just being a tease to milk more $$$ from her groupies.

This isn't a single, discursive analysis of the Palin phenomenon, but a collection of essays and articles that appeared at some point in that extraordinary arc, the Palin political parabola. It is a graph plot that goes from nothing - (0,0) to a high point at the Republican convention, then the rapid descent on the y-axis as her amazing unsuitability for any major post became clear. However, just when you think her vertical coordinate must be about zero, she manages to slide into an asymptotic approach and indeed even turn the graph upwards again, at least in terms of staying in the public eye.

The problem with selling the book, I suppose, is that those rational beings who have already read about as much as they can stomach about the lipsticked pit bull, may feel it unnecessary to read much of the same again. To them I say - no, get the book, it's well worth it. You are sure to find new nuggets of information about Palin's dishonesty, aggression, and also skill in playing to the lowest common denominator of the public: a section that has never been quite so clearly delineated as by her supporters. They are a vivid reminder that this is the only country that once actually had a political party called the "Know-Nothings." She plays on a sort of rube distrust of those pointy-headed intellectuals who have the nerve to think that in government, knowledge and intelligence may be more necessary than knowing how to fix a diesel engine or shoot a 12-bore. Not that there is anything wrong with the latter, but to interact with leaders on the world stage, a little more is required.

I recommend this book for the diversity of writing and styles. Enjoy that wild man Matt Taibbi's ferocious rant (he says that watching the convention speech was like seeing Gidget addressing the Reichstag!) and Juan Cole's fascinating comparison of Palin to Ahmadinejad. (Did that get your attention? Thought so. So it should.)

I won't hide my liberal bias, but I thought I had read just about EVERYTHING about Sarah Palin since her arrival on the national scene. With this book, I was surprised at how much more there was to learn. To the reviewer who says this book is a disgrace, I say that freedom of speech and of the press are the foundations of this nation, and I'm grateful to the publishers for presenting the truth about Palin, since she won't.

If her supporters were "duped" by the similar cover art and title, all the better, since this may be the only avenue to reach them with FACTUAL information about the former mayor and governor. I hope many millions of people who have not been closely following her actions or dangerous words during the past year will read "Going Rouge" with their eyes wide open. It is not a "hatchet job".... it just tells the truth. And that is frightening.

Created and published with the self-identified purpose of capitalizing on the success of Sarah Palin's book, this is a hastily compiled collection of essays published in the wake of John McCain's addition of Palin to the GOP ticket. Some essays (notably Matt Taibbi's "Mad Dog Palin") are worth reading a second time, but most of the work in this collection comes off as dated, partisan grumbling. Some essays are so poorly rendered that one wonders if they were written on deadline over half a bottle of Chardonnay at 4:00 a.m.; excusable for newspaper or blog pabulum, but not altogether worthy of being published in a book.

The contributors, editors and publisher of "Going Rouge" are committed progressives with a genuine interest in political matters; which is what makes the book itself such an oddity. There is very little political savvy in its pages. There is plenty of scoffing, loads of eye-rolling, some haughty indignation, and occasionally some well-crafted zingers... but almost no serious political acumen. There is also nothing new or noteworthy. On any given day, a red-blooded lefty can revel in a limitless supply of pithy and intelligent commentary on Sarah Palin online - this book is not merely underwhelming, it's unnecessary.

Brilliant and funny antidote to the nonsense in that "other" book. Boasts an impressive lineup of contributors and editors. If the "real" book left you feeling lost and despondent, try this one - you'll feel better.

This is not the fluff piece called "Going Rogue", but deals with the reality of Sarah Palin--who she truly is, what she is about, what she says and tweets (see Palintolgy Section).

This will irritate the sheep who blindly follow her and feel she is being attacked by the "liberal elite" not realizing the irony that she is an elitist who is using them as pawns for economic and political power.

This book bares that Palin as all about Palin. The book does what it sets out to do and points out that Palin is a fake populist who who wants to be in the spotlight as a celebrity, the better for the Palin brand.

Spouting rightwing populist talking points is great as long as it gets her where she wants to go (and sells books!!!) and it is used as an excuse when people question why she is a quitter.

My,my. As if we should expect anything less from a compilation of leftist hack job 'journalism'? They did a fine job in one respect, culling through the stack of BS out there assassinating Palin to find the 'best'. A fine read for leftist, socialist Palin haters.

To think that Sarah Palin has gotten so far and received so much media attention after reading this book is frightening. The multiple authors and sources provided in this book are remarkable. This is a piece that well documents the nightmare Sarah and more succinctly the Republican right is.

What I found in Going Rouge was a good journalistic balance. Of course, going into this book, I knew that the content would be liberal driven just as Going Rogue was biased towards the conservative base. This is fair journalism. When you are in a courtroom, you expect two points of view. The editors of this piece choose intelligent, skilled writers who had done their homework to back up their points of view. I like being able to step aside from the practical, illogical, emotional and factual and make my own opinion. The one suggestion I would make for readers of both books, is that they take the time to read Going Rogue With Sarah by Kause O'Grady. After the brutal, intellectual pounding and emotional competition of the other two books, this one sets you free to laugh at at the pride and foibles of Sarah and her competition.