Customer Reviews

Standing Firm

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm no fan of Vice President Quayle's ideological perspective. Still, he sure did get a raw deal. What a few reviewers here failed to note, however, was that a lot of the raw deal came from within the Republican Party. Although the right-wingers love to whine about the media, a close reading of Quayle's book shows that his frustrations often came from dealing with James Baker and many other important people in the Republican Party and the Bush campaign organizations. There is no doubt that the media enjoyed reporting on Quayle's difficulties, but the media ran with the background sources and leaks they were given from WITHIN the Bush White House. Ah, but to recognize that would take some serious self-criticism, and that simply is not allowed.

Otherwise, the book is enjoyable. It was an interesting look inside the Bush Administration and the only first person account of the modern vice presidency. Well-written too.

PS: Anyone else notice how many of the Quayle book reviews have spelling errors? Makes you miss the days of potatoEs, eh?

"Standing Firm" is an insider's viewpoint of Dan Quayle's four years in the White House, beyond the media bias and 30 second sound bites. Written in a very readable style, Quayle gives insights into White House politics and also presents his side of the many "Quaylism" stories.

Having been one of the ex-veep's students at Thunderbird, the American Graduate School of International Management, I can attest to Quayle's genuine concern for such issues as family values and education. His approachability and candor is very much reflected in his book.

The book is not without shortcomings. It does not really convey the intellect and quest for knowledge that the real Dan Quayle possesses. Unfortunately for him, this is something that one really doesn't notice until one meets him in person.

The book does convey the message that despite public mockery, media bias, political sabotage and image problems, Dan Quayle is a man with integrity and is committed to standing firm.

No offence, but this is one of the most laughable "books" I have had the excruciating task of getting through, in quite some time.
The book, however, is not without lessons. Unfortunately, the lessons are so childish as to render them unworthy of mention.
We are lucky to have this handsome but dull and obsequious man step aside and allow the Information Age to occur in his absence.
"If you're going to stand firm. . .stand over there somewhere! There's work to be done here."

The cassette is even funnier! Here you can get a real sense of just how adolescent this former V.P. really was. Listen to how he describes his taking over in Bush's absence.
It will send chills down your spine to think that he was, even momentarily, at the helm.
What could Bush have been thinking?

Buy this book anyway! It will make you appreciate Gore all the more. After all. . . it's hard to know where you're going if you don't know where you've been.
And it's nice to be finally going somewhere!

Dave Beckwith (the other one)
Charlotte Internet Society

STANDING FIRM Dan Qualyle's five-part book tells a long story of a determined writer/politician weathering media storm while he was about to be nominated the 44th Vice-President of the USA. As you open the book you quickly be attracted to his inspiration from II Cor: 3:17 "Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is Liberty" which is probably why he stood firm during media smearing, false accusations and nudge to chicken out.
The drama revealed his affection in his family community and faith especially during his campaign in Huntington.
His accusation of inappropriate enlistment into National Guard and Law School which were all false.
A book that gives insight about numerous US politicians, left and right of the polity - Bill Clinton, John Mcain, Joe Bidden, Ronald Reagan, Jean Kirkpatrick, John Hein etc as well as frontline journalists.
You could feel how intellectually Dan Quayle was endowed. It is a book that can guide any politician or public servant what to expect of the media and how to stand firm if you have no skelton in the cupboard. Because he was defending himself he had no opportunity to say something else about his achievements.

If you read this book you will find yourself wondering if the news media had treated this man fairly what the future might have held.

Reading of Dan Quayle's values I regret that Bush lost in "92" and that Quayle did not follow him to Oval Office in "96".

Read this book and get to know a fine American.

A good man who was hounded out of his career by those who didn't like what he stood for. He is solid in his values and isn't afraid to tell it like it is when it comes to what is right.

When liberals and "progressives" fear the truth, the will use any means to destroy what is not their propaganda.

This book promotes the use of truth in dealing with going on in the world.
Ignore the stupidity of finding fault with "potatos" and realize he was talking spuds and meant it!

Let me start by saying, in absolute honesty. . . surely Dan Quayle is the last best hope for the cause of mankind. . . To borrow another line. . . "One of the hardest things about being a politician may be how to not sound like one". Dan Quayle has this ability mastered. He sounds like he's from prison. Not the gulag-of-the-mind, politically correct type 'prison' - Dan Quayle enforces political correctness - writing "diversity is our strength" and boasting of Americans 'egalitarianism'.

During the chapter on the gulf war Quayle begins to quote his 'war diary'. "Ground war next wednesday". "Schwarzkopf oks plan. All will be done by midnight". The kindest way I can describe how this chapter, combined with the 'diary', make him sound, is 'Cavalier'. This must be where the 'firm' part comes in, and, he was in the National Guard. . . I remember being in the Army. . . I had this friend in the Army who would say, "that hard-core stuff stops at platoon sergeant". Among themselves, they would call each other by their first names. I imagine the brand that is Dan Quayle is a bit like that. Not sure we see the real Quayle here (maybe 60 to 90% of his real views on the issues. . . what other politician could say that!).

If Quayle does sound a bit like an 'adolescent' as some critics and a previous reviewer contend he sounds like an adolescent reminiscent of a character in the film 'Idiocracy' by Mike Judge, where everyone talks lowbrow and tries to 'not sound gay'. Quayle has this ability mastered too. It could be his most valuable asset when he's president. . . Dan Quayle will be president; I really think he will be. To put another joke on me for a moment. . . Here's some 'advice' to Dan Quayle ~ Dan, you don't have to sound indignant all the time. Especially when discussing things like a 3 or 4 percentage difference in the tax rate.

I just finished reading Bill Clinton's and Jesse Helms Memoirs. When I began this book I thought this was perhaps the most honest of the three. When I got to the end - I felt this was the 'least honest'. Bill Clinton is somewhat of a natural story teller and that's what he sticks too in his book, aside from the 'commercials' for the right. Standing Firm is a book more. . . creating a myth. As if it's creation was presided over by a roomful of political operatives discussing a focus groups evaluation of the contents. There is irony in a couple of places late in Jesse Helm's memoir (which is the best of the three in my opinion, probably because Helms was the best writer), here, Quayle manages to contradict himself inside of one sentence. He describes Clarence Thomas', "intellect, his independence, and his passionate commitment to judicial restraint". Just call it impassioned-restraint. Soon after, he writes, "One reason I'm pro-competition is that without a robust economy we won't have the wealth to undertake the legitimate environmental cleanups and protections we all support". This may be one of the more true statements in the book but it sounds like 'George Orwell'. Quayle's a bit of a crusader of sorts in the book. There are all kinds of issue he's interested in and things he wants changed. Perhaps because of this there are some 'contradictions'.

There's a chapter titled, 'Too Many Laws' and a follow up, 'Too Many Lawyers'. He says America employs 70% of the worlds lawyers. A business man informs Quayle that workmen's compensation and health and liability insurance would cost more than the machinery for a plant (which is never built - at least not in this country). Trying to get a handle on what it means to be a conservative (I'm probably a social-conservative, I'm ambivalent to the more popular {and even accepted by most democrats} economic-conservatism) - I think conservatives just want to make things illegal, and then enforce the law. Liberals seem to want programs. In America we have everyone suing each other. In a healthy society, you need a lawyer to protect you from the long arm of the government?

The best thing about Standing Firm, for me, is it's portrayal of president Bush I. He's been my favorite president so far (with his son being my least favorite). Quayle's book confirms a lot of what I thought I already knew about Bush Sr. Bush had a lot going for him. . . He had the whole 'good cop, bad-cop' routine going for him in regards to Reagan (Bush being the good cop). He's very handsome (tho his sturdy wife, with her gray short hair do, is less so). He's very polite. He's independant - even had his own language of sorts. He's 'real', as any caucasian guy will be. His support for Dan Quayle never waivers. Being president was not the most important thing in his life. Quayle mentions, Bush was the last president who could be a sort of fatherly figure to baby boomers. When Bush Jr, famously kept reading a story to a young boy after America was attacked on 9/11, this was something he had learned from his father. Bush was a war hero and also from the greatest generation. People, even staunch democrats, actually felt sorry for him after he lost the election in 1992. Then the nation was swamped with the 'Don't blame me, I voted for Bush' bumper stickers in 1993 or 1994; a great advertisement. Wonder how close they were to choosing 'Quayle was right'? Quayle writes about Bush being hospitalized (it was a big media story - the two times Bush was ill - once in Japan) with Quayle being 'a heartbeat away from the presidency'. Quayle reports Bush had a heart problem brought on by a thyroid condition. For the first time it occurred to me the phenomenon that is George Bush might not be entirely natural. Perhaps they were too forthcoming here. There won't be another human being the equal of George Bush for another 50 years, I bet, if ever.

Dan Quayle tries to make too many points here. He never goes into enough detail on any one particular subject (perhaps this is for the benefit of the reader) but it makes it hard to get a grip on who the real Dan Quayle is. Standing Firm is best, perhaps, when he approaches 'Murphy Brown' topics, but again, he doesn't stay on one subject too long. He begins to talk a bit about his christian faith, and then he's soon talking about problems within the underclass. It ends up looking, perhaps, like he's encouraging faith as a solution to inner city problems.

He talks about challenges from the right, specifically Pat Buchanan in the 1992 primary. Pat did well in New Hampshire, but Quayle notes the Buchanan brigades just weren't big enough to win. I felt this was a 'stock criticism' those on the right use to police their own, 'they just don't have enough votes' (as if the primary vote isn't subject to influence)?

Rather than the other memoirs I've recently read, I would compare this work more to the biography 'Johnny We Hardly Knew Ye'. It compares to that, but instead of being a downer, about naked politics, Quayle is more concerned with documenting a kind of office politics (he is second in command). At least he's able to catalogue and understand what is going on around him.

I didn't remember Quayle's involvement with NASA. Quayle is named to something called the 'Council on Space and Competitiveness' (which seems made up just for him). Later in the Book, on page 280, Quayle notes the camp of Ralph Nader calling it the "Quayle Council". Since, 'Dan Quayle is going to be president. . .' all I could think during the chapter on NASA was, 'Great, Americans are going to walk on Mars'. It's quite interesting that Quayle's very first national exposure was Loyd Bentsen saying, "I knew Jack Kennedy! You're no Jack Kennedy". Quayle's response wasn't too bad. He mutters, "That was uncalled for". He claims before the debate his handlers warned him not to bring up Kennedy if questioned about his inexperience - this would be an example of what I would claim as the books dishonesty. What he reveals is often self depreciating. Also he often admits to a sort-of selfish kind of reasoning behind his actions - lest we misjudge his prison-yard practicality, confusing it for scouts honor? Not a good example, but late in the book he says "How you exit is important - especially if you are thinking of coming back".

Quayle tries to get former astronaut Dick Truly replaced as head of NASA. I really can't tell why Quayle wants him replaced but it does appear Truly is a 'true believer' in the mission of NASA - really fighting any budget cuts. It's his job. At other times later in the book Quayle seems to admire and support those who are ideologues. For all Quayle's interest in space he can't resist observing, "(we need a revival) of wonder in the idea of sending people to explore space, not just orbit around and around in it".

There are some things to not like. Quayle criticizes Mikhail Gorbachev a bit (are there those above criticism?). He reaches too far when he ties the success of the Patriot missile to the feasibility of SDI? In his diary he writes "patriots down 8 missiles out of 9. . . . a big boost for SDI". He claims that the media downplayed this success.

There are things to like. Quayle manages to do a one-liner or two. He writes, "(TV executive) Sydney Pollack accepted the bonus of a Mercedes on top of a whopping 5.5 million fee for directing The Firm - a film he said was about the greed of the Reagan years". He discusses the Bush team doing a possible 'Domestic Desert Storm'. Quayle writes, "The enemy had become ourselves. . . the poverty of values we're too afraid to challenge for fear of appearing 'unsophisticated'."

Of course the Best part of the book is his 'Murphy Brown' speech (possibly the most important speech in the History of what is left of Western Civilization). It's reproduced at the end.

Many years from now when historians look at the legacy of the Bush administration they will most likely site Dan Quayle's book, Standing Firm, for much of their research.

Dan Quayle was crucified unmercifully and underservedly by the press and the media for mistakes that anyone could have made. The current Vice President, Al Gore, has made many similar errors but it seems that the media can forgive him. I think that Dan Quayle exposes the liberal media's hidden agenda to crucify anybody that stands for anything moral. Dan Quayle is one of the most moral politicians that has ever lived. It's a sad comment on our society that we reward that which is evil, base, and vulgar and critisize that which is worthwhile, uplifting, and praiseworthy.

Dan Quayle is a strong decent man and, in my opinion, was the only choice George Bush could have made for Vice President.

I have the hard copy of this book and when Dan Quayle announced he would be running for the Presidency in 2000 I decide to throughly read this book. I wanted to know what he really stood for. As a famous graphologist, (Father Anthony Becker) once told me he could tell the real person by what they wrote. Well, This is Dan Quayle and he didn't hide anything. Anyone who is interested in the future of America must read this book. Very in depth and factual. If you vote you must read!!! To know is to choose right from wrong.

Please, I beg concerned Americans to read this work by the next President of our grand country. There is so much that you do not know about this patriot. He SERVED his country, not avoided service as the current Prez did. He exhibits real family values, unlike.....you know who. He takes us on a ride through the campaign trail and his term as our Vice President. He is intelligent, caring, and moral. If all Americans would just read it, I think they would agree. Please reprint or attain the book for sale again.