The Great Divide: Retro vs. Metro America [Paperback]

John Sperling (Author), Suzanne Wiggans Helburn (Author), Samuel George (Author), John Morris (Author), Carl Hunt (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0976062100 | ISBN-13: 978-0976062103 | Publication Date: August 24, 2004

This book reframes the "red state"/"blue state" debate as "retro America" -- the South, the Plains states, the Mountain West, and Appalachia -- vs. "metro America," composed of the populous states on both coasts and the Great Lakes states. The authors -- three of them economists -- detail how the Republicans pander to the fears of retro America's fundamentalist Christians while frantically outsourcing jobs, shredding the social safety net, and subsizing corporate interests at the expense of the lives of average citizens. The book then shows Democrats how to take back the country by focusing entirely on the metro states -- their natural base, which also happens to account for 65 percent of the population. Once a strong base is built, the authors argue, the Democrats can work on unifying America as a whole. A wealth of color photos, political cartoons, maps, charts, and graphs make this important book an accessible, lively read.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Great Divide is a blueprint for how the Democratic Party can regain, and maintain, control of the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives. John Sperling and his co-authors acknowledge that the U.S. has seldom been truly united, and there currently exists such a wide gap that the U.S. is effectively two nations: "one traditional and rooted in the past, and one modern and focused on the future." They are divided along racial, ethnic, religious, cultural, political, and geographic lines. The battle, they write, is not Left versus Right; rather, it's Metro versus Retro America. Retro America is defined by the South, the Midwest, and the Rocky Mountain states; Metro America consists of the two coasts and the Great Lakes states. The authors argue that neither the Republicans nor the Democrats are national parties, so there is no point in behaving as such. They recommend that the Democrats concede the Retro states and focus entirely on the Metro states, which should be their base. This would allow the party to develop a coherent message that would connect with voters and to take advantage of the fact that Metro states account for 65 percent of the population. Then, once a strong base is built, the Democrats can work on unifying America as a whole.

The authors, led by John Sperling, former chairman of the Apollo Group Inc. and founder of the University of Phoenix, show how the Republicans brilliantly built a brand image by manipulating facts and waging a culture war, and they offer specific ways in which the Democrats can counter the attacks and build a brand of their own on the basis of concepts of inclusion, security, and science. The book also includes highly specific policy recommendations for the Democratic Party, as well as compelling information on a wide range of issues, including corporate welfare and subsidies, the role of religion in America, and ways to reduce poverty. Copious statistics, charts, poll results, and graphs complement the text without drying it out, making this a thoughtful, well-researched, and intriguing book that offers much to ponder for readers on both sides of the divide. --Shawn Carkonen

About the Author

Helburn is Professor of Economics Emerita at the University of Colorado at Denver.

Morris is a former administrator with the ISM and is currently Director of a company offering administration services to professional bodies.

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: PoliPoint Press (August 24, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0976062100
• ISBN-13: 978-0976062103
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 9.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,628,327 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

105 of 119 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Divided States of America, September 21, 2004

By 

Jon Hunt "musician, teacher" (Old Greenwich, Ct. USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Great Divide: Retro vs. Metro America (Paperback)

"The Great Divide: Retro vs. Metro America" by John Sperling and company is not so much a book but an extensive and multi-layered study about the divisions that exist in America. While the author is upfront about his political leanings from the outset, he and his co-authors have put together a fine assessment about what's happening to this country from within.

This book takes time to digest and should be read carefully as there is much to be absorbed. If you want a straight out compelling narrative, this is not the book for you. However, the author dissects the major aspects of American life, both economically and culturally with vigor and directness.

Sperling's arguments about Retro vs. Metro with regard to science and religion make the most sense. That the United States should be headed by a president whose main supporters are fundamendalist and born-again Christians is both appaling on its surface and ominous for the future. Losing our competitive technological edge to China and others seems likely in the twenty-first century and the thrust of the religious right to have Biblical dogma be the guide should unnerve every thinking American.

"The Great Divide" bogs down in the middle when Sperling gets into economic matters, especially regarding energy and agriculture. It's not that he doesn't exhibit his points well.... it just seems as if it's a classroom lecture gone on a bit too long.
In the end, however, the major political point is made firmly...that Metro America had better develop a metro political strategy to compete with Retro America. After all, if approximately two-thirds of Americans live in Metro states we need to do a better job in order to re-establish our political advantage.

Laura Bush recently blamed the media for the divisions in the United States. That's a simplistic answer to a complex and growing detachment of Americans from one another on both economic and cultural levels. John Sperling has given us plenty of food for thought. One may not agree with all of his conclusions but he's on the right track. I wish this country was, too.

73 of 84 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Marketing 101 for Democrats...But Can They Make It Happen?, August 25, 2004

By 

Ed Uyeshima (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Great Divide: Retro vs. Metro America (Paperback)

I found this book fascinating, familiar and obviously quite biased all at the same time. The Great Divide between the so-called "Metro" and "Retro" America is really nothing that new in concept, as national election results have fallen along these boundaries when there was no clear victor, as obviously was the case in the last election. What is particularly interesting is the positioning of this book, which is really about how the Democrats can regain footing as the dominant political party through an adjustment in their marketing strategy. What the five co-authors do is provide an interesting treatise on the importance of branding and targeting your audience, basic marketing principles upon which the Democrats have failed to execute. I don't disagree.

The authors consist of three economists, a political strategist and John Sperling, a multi-millionaire Democrat and founder of the privately held University of Phoenix. They appear to have the credentials to back up their claims, and they certainly present their data with enough easy-to-understand graphics to fill a college textbook. Most of the findings are quite illuminating and well worth discussing in a larger political forum. For instance, in the last decade, Metro America, representing 65% of the population, produced almost 70% of the U.S. gross domestic product annually and paid 71% of the federal taxes. Retro America, on the other hand, received $800 billion more in federal payments than it paid in taxes. This lopsided equation has fed into an economy that is not moving us forward, yet the imbalance has provided the Republicans an opportunity to forge a solid identity upon which they have succeeded in building an effective presidential and congressional majority. For that, they should be lauded, but Sperling and company sometimes get a bit didactic when it comes to accusing conservative evangelicals and fundamentalists for taking the nation backwards. The tone frankly undermines the important messages the authors are trying to convey about the need to address the needs of both sides of the divide, as well as the critical energy discussion in Chapter 5 that ties us inexorably to the Middle East.

As a marketing handbook and economic study, this book provides great value, though I am not certain whether either party can take heart to the recommendations presented by the authors. The Democrats appear emboldened to build national security based on multi-lateralism, substantiate an intact Bill of Rights and provide a clear separation of church and state, since all three appear missing from the current administration. That's why I understand why Sperling and company feel the Democrats have more of an incentive to build a new conceptual framework. But at the same time, there is no denying that thus far, the Republicans have actually proven to be the better marketers. And frankly, the waters have become so muddy between the two parties that only time will tell us who will get us to this new framework. Let the real marketing begin.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An interesting, if not thorough, look at an intriguig topic, December 3, 2004

By 

Davey Williams "davey williams" (los angeles, ca USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Great Divide: Retro vs. Metro America (Paperback)

The consensus seems to be the America is a divided country, and this divide seems to be the source of a lot of contention. If you don't believe me, read the reviews for this book and see how the 'five-starers' bemoan conservatism while the 'one-starers' belittle liberals.

All in all, the text sets out to do exactly what it says - it analyzes the urban/rural divide in America, breaking it down into political, economic, geographic and environmental terms. It offers an interesting if not unbiased perspective on the sources of this divide, the legislative result, and some of the consequences. If you like facts, figures and charts, this is the book for you, because it presents a ton of them. All in all, there were some new and interesting ideas, the book was well written, and the facts were backed up pretty well.

But be forewarned, this is not a text that seeks to bridge the divide or create any suggestions on how we can come to a common understanding. In general, its purpose is to create a progressive 'primer', setting down what in the authors' opinion are the policies and strategies that will make America a progressive nation again, and pointing out why regressivism is bad. If you are looking to get a little riled at conservatives, this is a great book. If you're interested in what the divide means for America, this is a great book. If you're tired of political tension and want to forget that the election ever happened, I recommend something else.