Nazis, Communists, Klansmen, and Others on the Fringe: Political Extremism in America (Hardcover)

by John George (Author), Laird Wilcox (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
In four essays followed by short but detailed profiles of more than 35 extremist groups on the left and right, the authors survey the history of extremism in America. Extremism, they argue in bland but clear prose, is less a matter of ideology than an ideological style consisting of such traits as the advocacy of double standards and a Manichaean world view. They survey the motivations of extremists before launching into their profiles, which should prove a useful resource for scholars and students. However, a few of the entries, such as the one on the Communist Party USA, are outdated, and the authors should have better delineated which groups continue to be active, since some of those listed are not. An intriguing appendix catalogues fabricated documents and fake quotes; several are attributed to Lenin. George ( They Never Said It ) is professor of political science at the University of Central Oklahoma; Wilcox assembled a collection of extremist literature now housed at the University of Kansas.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
This survey of American extremism, right and left, cries out for editing. The authors have seemingly thrown in all the material that was at hand, some useful and much tangential and distracting. Meaningful details and research are intermingled higgledy-piggledy with feeble history, banal analysis, and outright sloppiness, and the result is a shapeless mass of information. The bulk of the book is a series of descriptions of specific extremist groups, and its selling point would be that it includes both ends of the spectrum. But the book's digressions and scattershot quality undermine its value both as reference work and as reading material. Libraries would do better with books treating either end of the spectrum more systematically--for instance, Mari Jo Buhle and others' Encyclopedia of the American Left ( LJ 6/15/90) and the Anti-Defamation League's Extremism on the Right: A Handbook (A.D.L., 1988).
- Timothy Christenfeld, Columbia Univ.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 443 pages
• Publisher: Prometheus Books (December 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879756802
• ISBN-13: 978-0879756802
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.8 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #437,075 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Indispensible, November 6, 2003

By	Brian A. Schar (Menlo Park, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

If you have any interest in left or right extremist movements in the U.S., this book is indispensible, and it is without peer. The authors neither glamorize nor excoriate their subject matter. Rather, they present each group or movement, from the Spartacist League to Father Coughlin, as nonjudgmentally and factually as possible. You will discover obscure Marxist sects and strange racist splinter groups you have never heard of before, each of which has a fascinating history backed up with ample footnotes. Do not hesitate to buy this book!

5.0 out of 5 stars very informative, March 28, 2000

By	"ripper2thebone" (dallas) - See all my reviews

this is a very informative book that compares and contrasts these "political groups" definately explores the darker side of out human nature. but this book mostly covers things like the nazi party in america and how it spread in the 1930's and how the kkk rose up out of the south. also covers the american communist movement in the early century. a must read