Customer Reviews

How to Talk to a Liberal (If You Must)

5 star:		(316)
4 star:		(69)
3 star:		(39)
2 star:		(39)
1 star:		(319)

 

 

I recently finished Ann Coulter's latest book. It did raise some interesting points, although some are exaggerated or given slanted coverage in the book.

What interests me, looking through the reviews, is that nerly everyone has given the book either "5 stars" or "1 star" reviews. Many people who read these books do so with their minds already made up from the start.... if they read them at all. I would bet that a quarter of these reviews are written by political "zealots" who have never actually read the book.

Think about it.

This book should have a strong warning label. My face still hurts from laughing so hard. This book is a masterpiece of sarcasm, irony and a good degree of truth. If you can't take a joke or don't appreciate mild scarcasm, it's probably not for you. But if you are familiar with any of Ms. Coulters prior works or her persona as a talking head, you will enjoy it thoroughly, as I did.

It's not out until October 5, so stop reviewing it. To the person that gave this book one star already, don't review the author, review the book as soon as YOU HAVE READ IT!!!

READ IT FIRST, REVIEW IT SECOND

There are certain authors I make a point of reading only if someone lends their work to me, or I'm near the library. I had that intuition before I picked up her book, and it served me well. The only thing that annoys me about this screed is that I took the time to read it--most of it.

While others have found her a great writer, I'm afraid I missed it. Her logic is narrow. When she talks about who ended the cold war, she suggests that the reader just say, Ronald Reagan. This is an oversimplistic response, because Harry Truman's Berlin Airlift, Eisenhower, Kennedy's enforcement of the Monroe Doctrine and others also set the stage for Ron's appointment with destiny. Two of those presidents were mighty liberal too. Let's not forget that Reagan got nowhere with Russian leaders Breshnev and Andropov. His success came with the ascendancy of Gorbachev, and his programs of glasnost and perestroika. It didn't hurt that both got on famously with each other. This is an example of where Coulter chooses to see things through the narrow tunnel of her assumptions, and shuts the door on any other factors that do not fit her frame of reference.

Coulter adds a lot of her previous columns. If I wanted to read them, I would have bought the papers. Adding this filler to her book, suggests that she lacks the acumen to write a book of any length or profound thought. Coulter also added some of her columns that weren't published. She claimed that they would have been published if we lived in a free America. Oh well, that's free market economics for you! This is the same Ann Coulter who suggested that Robert Walker Lindh, the captured American who was fighting for the Taliban, should be executed. It would be a lesson, she added, to other liberals that the same thing could happen to them. This is, of course, if we lived in her idea of a free America. Incidentally, Lindh was fighting for a reactionary, ultra-conservative government, but that too must have escaped her attention.

This author's book is the equivalent of "shock jock" radio with one liners that are as banal as the Sahara is dry. There are no illuminating statements here, only clever ones.

Personal attacks are always thought to be the last resort of a poor argument. You'll find this book is filled with them.

God Ann, I thought you were sexy until you opened you're mouth. I gathered from you're book you define liberal as one who doesn't support interests of corporate america.

If you're not wealthy you should sacrifice your own interests so the rich can be richer. It's better to die because you can't afford you're prescriptions than be defined as a liberal. It's better to support companies like Georgia Pacific that plans on dumping 160 million gallons of toxic waste a day into the St, Johns river than have the scorn of a hot blond like you (NOT). I guess it's OK because you're interests are Jesus's interests like supporting our imperialist nation that occupies other nations to exploit their resources. I'm sure Jesus would suppport that because we all know he only allows the ultra rich

who exploit the rest of us into heaven.

First of all, living in St. Louis, I have never read Ann due to my local openly Democratic newspaper. Second, I was taken in by the catchy title. Third, when buying the book, I failed to note that 98% of the book is previously published material. Great job getting paid twice for one effort! Shame on me. Fourth, I consider myself a moderate Republican. Now for the book. I was expecting provocative, insightful, humorous, pithy, intelligent, well researched writing that would blow up the crap spumed by most liberal Democrats. Instead, what I got was cheap, unimaginative, name-calling crap spumed an equally extreme "journalist". Borrowing from a Steve Martin routine, if I could have one wish, it would be for extremist of all political pursuations to be taken to an island and let fend for themselves. Now that would be a reality show that would really bring in the ratings!

Let me start out by saying I like Ann Coulter alot. I find her witty informed and a good writer. One thing I tell her is that unless someone is a mass murderer, I am most happy to talk to them regardless of their politics.

Her book is entertaining and very well written. I enjoy reading Anne and listening to the ultra right wing talk show hosts on radio because they are a lot more interesting than the moderate hosts or those that are ultra left.

One thing Anne sees and many people that express her views, is a world where everybody is extreme right or extreme left with no middle ground. The truth of the matter is that most people I know are middle ground. Regardless, if you are not offended by Ms. Coulter's assumptions, you will really enjoy this book.

I am _still_ waiting for a review that isn't partisan: Could someone in the center please read this book? I feel like the only ones who read it do so either so they can agree with everything she says or solely so that they may hate her even more than before.

I suspect, however, that someone who is completely non-partisan would say that though the book is funny, it is funny in a way that is insensitive and low-brow; valid points about liberals may exist, but the amount of ad hoc insults and exaggerated vituperatives she uses tends to discredit her to a point where she seems incapable of reasonable thought, convictions aside.

I also think too many of her opinions are based on Christianity. Conservatism isn't exclusive to that religion.

Further, compromise is not a sin; personal integrity regarding one's opinions is admirable but stubborn close-mindedness is not.

Coulter refuses to put _any_ fault with conservatives (aside from those who supposedly cater to liberals); that is ridiculous. It is seldom that one side is totally innocent.

Frankly, this book is childishly opinionated -- as a graded essay, I suspect it would receive a very low score. She presents no counter-arguments. She insults. She replaces colloquy with contumely. It is very difficult to read, like a many-paged internet rant.

And all of my own personal reactions aside, I have heard it said that the number of fabrications and inaccuracies in her books is rather unbelievable -- and that her publishers refuse to correct them. I don't know it that's true or not. I haven't the inclination to do counter-research.

From a literary stand-point, I would call the writing amateurish, but that's nothing unusual for a political book.

I think this book is too radical and near-sighted to be appealing to anyone who doesn't already believe what Ann Coulter says... I doubt she's doing any converting. It takes reasoned argument to do that.

Political orientation nothing: I would give this book as bad a review as one by Michael Moore. The only compliment I would give either is that each presents their propaganda in forms which are _meant_ to be opinionated -- as opposed to journalists, who are supposed to be non-partisan. (And that goes both ways, despite what Coulter says: The newspapers may be liberal, but television is conservative. More people watch television, anyway, so I don't know why she's complaining.)

I may have to rescind even that compliment, however: Both seem to present to the unsuspecting and uneducated public what they would have dubbed "facts." Readers don't seem to know better.

I do not recommend reading this book.

First off, I'd like to make it clear that I am not a liberal. To be fair, I'm not a conservative either. I'd classify myself more as a political spectator, who occasionally takes sides based on certain policies. Regarding Miss Coulter and her newest book, I am adamant in my dislike. I have nothing against the fact that she's a conservative. I know many intelligent, rational people who are conservatives, and I consider them to be good, honest people who happen to align themselves with a certain ideology. That's what America is about: accepting that there's a difference, and meeting in between. Miss Coulter fails to realize this. Her attacks are based entirely on personal belief and she expects readers and the United States government to take this belief as their moral dictum. Miss Coulter oversteps the boundaries of individual authority. By claiming that we (the US) should "convert them to Christianity" she disregards the selfsame freedoms and liberties that she personally advocates in this book. First and foremost, then, Miss Coulter contradicts herself: in defense of her own position, she claims that the state is obligated to give its constituents freedom of belief, but at the same time argues that liberals are just plain wrong, that their beliefs should be disregarded, and that they are (because of their beliefs) enemies of the state.

This is the first Ann Coulter book I have read. I intend to read some of her other works down the road. As a former liberal who is now a conservative I was very interested in what she had to say as having been on both sides of the fence. I was disappointed in the book that it didn't turn out the way I thought it would but I enjoyed it nontheless. The book is basically a summary of articles that Ann Coulter wrote but couldn't get published. They range on a lot of different subjects - to her time at George Magazine working for John Kennedy Jr to the confederate side of the cival war to basic arguments against liberals. My own impression of Ms. Coulter is that she is damn smart and interesting to listen to (not to mention hot to look at). I recommend this book to anyone. If you are of the liberal persuasion I CHALLANGE you to read this book and see what you will get out of it. You may not agree with her but I guarantee you one thing - it WILL make you think.