Into the Cannibal's Pot: Lessons for America from Post-Apartheid South Africa [Kindle Edition]

Ilana Mercer (Author)

Book Description

In “Into the Cannibal's Pot: Lessons for America from post-Apartheid South Africa,” Ilana Mercer delivers a compelling polemical work anchored in history, reality, fact, and the political philosophy of classical liberalism. “Into the Cannibal's Pot” is a manifesto against mass society, arguing against raw, ripe democracy, here (in the US), there (in South Africa), and everywhere. “Into the Cannibal's Pot” follows Russell Kirk's contention that “true freedom can be found only within the framework of a social order.” It is intended as a reminder that, however imperfect, civilized societies are fragile. They can, and will, crumble in culturally inhospitable climes. Advanced societies don't just die; they either wither from within, or, like South Africa, are finished off by other western societies. And as Ms. Mercer demonstrates, the tyranny of political correctness, so unique to the West—plays a role in their near- collapse.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Into the Cannibal's Pot: Lessons for America from Post-Apartheid South Africa is a very powerful, eloquent, and original indictment of South Africa's 'democracy.' It is a disgrace that such an informative and courageous book could not come out with a major publisher.--PAUL E. GOTTFRIED, Horace Raffensperger Professor of Humanities, Elizabethtown College, author of Conservatism in America: Making Sense of the American Right, After Liberalism (Princeton, 1999), and Multiculturalism and the Politics of Guilt (Missouri, 2002)

"I relish reading Into the cannibal's Pot. Ilana Mercer's conceit in comparing post-apartheid South Africa with post-American-creed America seems brilliant--and timely."--PAUL SPERRY, investigative journalist, Hoover Institution media fellow, author of Infiltration: How Muslim Spies and Subversives Have Penetrated Washington (2005) and the blockbuster book Crude Politics (2003)

"Ilana Mercer has written about a topic that the Western media have almost completely ignored - the failure of [democratic] post-apartheid South Africa to move in the direction of peace, justice, and prosperity."--LEWROCKWELL.COM, anti-state, anti-war, pro-market (July 21, 2011)

"Powerful stuff ...one of the most profound evaluations of human nature and multiculturalism that I have read. It's that good."--JAN MICKELSON, WHO News Radio, 1040

"Cannibal is an achievement of the highest order. Ilana is in much greater supply of that 'manly virtue' than are most male writers today... the richness of Mercer's intellect is as impressive as the soundness of her character"--JACK KERWICK, Ph.D., The New American & Beliefnet's At the Intersection of Faith & Culture.

From the Publisher

This is a book about ideas and ideology. When losing an intellectual argument, there are despicable people who point an accusing finger and shout racism. In our dark times where mob rule and collectivist ideas resonate with so many, this appalling strategy can be very effective. To those who support colorblind civil discourse, rule of law, equality of opportunity, freedom, the golden rule (do unto others as you wish them to do unto you), liberty, freedom of expression and religion and private property rights...regardless of skin color or ethnic background (black, red, white, yellow, brown, green or violet), we extend the hand of friendship. To those who support all forms of thuggery-- including totalitarianism, collectivism, fascism, extremist fundamentalism, unequal treatment under law, income redistribution, nanny state government programs and the soft bigotry of low expectations-- your skin color and ethnicity are irrelevant...and your ideas belong in the dustbin of history.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• File Size: 842 KB
• Print Length: 340 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0982773439
• Publisher: Bytech Services (May 10, 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B00564TFM4
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #43,433 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #12 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Politics & Social Sciences > Social Sciences > Discrimination & Racism
  • #23 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > Political
  • #93 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Sociology > Race Relations

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

134 of 138 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Into the Cannibal's Pot: Lessons for America from Post-Aparthied South Africa June 16, 2011

By Kerry Crowel

Format:Hardcover

"When South Africa was governed by a racist white minority, it was scorned by the West ... Now that a racist, black majority government controls the country ... it's the toast of the West." Classical liberal columnist, writer and former South African Ilana Mercer deconstructs the new democratic South Africa, a country where government corruption, rape and murder are all in a day's work. Scholarly and readable, Mercer gives a detailed account of the country's history, from the early days of the Dutch settlers, all the way through to Colonial rule, apartheid and beyond to the nation's current state of being dismantled from the bottom up, quickly becoming in the authors words "another Islamist friendly, failed African state."

Continually correlated with past and present day America, as the title suggests the book carries with it a lesson. A clarion call if you will to anyone who respects the rule of law and the basic principles of liberty. She illustrates how with relative ease a society can wither away, or in South Africa's case be hacked to pieces with a machete.

"Into the Cannibal's Pot: Lessons for America from Post-Apartheid South Africa" tells the true story of South Africa not the sugar-coated, multi-cultural utopia the Western liberal media and their conservative counterparts will have you believe.

88 of 93 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Into the Cannibals Pot tells the Truth in an Age of Universal Deceit June 27, 2011

By Ross Mahan

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Into the Cannibal's Pot reveals what happens when an advanced nation built by European people upon Christian principles is deceived by the Cultural Marxist dream of racial egalitarianism and in the name of justice and liberty surrenders political power to an African majority that had never shown the capacity to create or sustain a free, just, and civilized society. What we have witnessed since the end of Apartheid is African political leaders in South Africa dragging that nation down to the same violent, primitive and tribal existence found in every other failed African government, and for the same reasons.

Ms. Mercer's book tells the real story of South Africa in the face of almost universal silence by the Liberal Media in the West. Her candor and lack of political correctness is refreshing and her application of the lessons of South Africa to America is instructive. Her book is a timely warning of what can happen when a nation leaves its core principles for the sake of poltical expedience and phony compassion and equality. I was very impressed with her book and look forward to reading more from her in the future.

84 of 89 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Into The Cannibal's Pot July 2, 2011

By George Pal

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

It's always spring somewhere. Once upon a time there was the post-colonial Black African spring that turned into bloodbaths in short order. Now, decades later, the bloodbaths continue. The optimists insisted, based on a belief in egalitarianism, people were fungible; that x, given the opportunity, could be inserted for y and an ordered society would continue apace. South Africa and Zimbabwe (among many others) have proved otherwise and the optimists have been reduced to closing an already blind eye to the consequences.

Ilana Mercer's "Into the Cannibal's Pot: Lessons for America from post-Apartheid South Africa", will have none of that. South Africa, once her home, is put front, center, and under a microscope. The lessons for America are clear and found in Zimbabwe and South Africa she insists i.e., the changing of an ordered society of high-intelligence people sharing the norms of civilization into a disordered society of rudimentary Communism, black/minority empowerment (entitlement), and black/minority dispensation (freedom from culpability).

"Into the Cannibal's Pot" features an invaluable contrast of past and present throughout the book, the past/present of Ian Smith/Robert Mugabe Zimbabwe, deKlerk/Mandela-Zuma South Africa, and is best represented in the U.S. by pre 64' Civil Rights Act America and present day America. Many believe and Ms. Mercer concurs and makes a case that The Civil Rights Act has put us on the road to Zimbabwe with no hope of laughs or a happy ending.

The optimists who look up as we descend, Ms. Mercer points out, are the usual suspects pushing for leveling, pulling for the underachiever, excusing the maladjusted, and all the while ignoring the resultant demolition of society and ultimately the bloodletting that in her South Africa has reached genocidal proportions.

Those easily distracted, bought off cheap, impenetrably obtuse, willfully impercipient and dog faithful to a cause but mole blind to effect will likely object to the book for no other reason than it insists on connecting the dots - Zimbabwe, South Africa, America, pernicious devolution (three of the four definitions for `devolution', common, formal, and legal, apply and are demonstrated in the book).

"Into the Cannibal's Pot" is an eye opener; thorough, skillfully and courageously presented, and utterly conclusive in making its case against social engineering, leveling, pandering; and utterly damning of not just the destruction of societies and people but especially the willful disregard of the world - not in not noticing but in having noticed and failed to point fingers, name names, and call a culprit a culprit.

More About the Author

ILANA Mercer is a widely published classical liberal (libertarian) writer, based in the United States. She pens WND's longest-standing, exclusive, libertarian weekly column, "Return to Reason." ILANA also features on RT (Russia Today) with the "Paleolibertarian Column." ILANA is a fellow at the "Jerusalem Institute for Market Studies." ILANA, who is a Canadian citizen, was born in South Africa to Rabbi Ben Isaacson and raised in Israel--where the family decided to move after Rabbi Isaacson's anti-apartheid preaching and activism led to their harassment by South African security forces. ILANA is the author of "Into the Cannibal's Pot: Lessons For America From Post-Apartheid South Africa." "The titular tease," she explains in the book, "is meant as a metaphor and is inspired by Ayn Rand's wise counsel against prostrating civilization to savagery." ILANA's website is WWW.IlanaMercer.com. She blogs at www.barelyablog.com.