Synopses & Reviews
HAS AMERICA LOST ITS MARBLES?
- Television sensation Glenn Beck warns of White House plots to institute fascism, communism, and other terrifying “isms.”
- Radio titan Rush Limbaugh charges that a racist Obama regime encourages black schoolchildren to beat up white kids.
- Evangelical luminary James Dobson frets that Christians will be arrested for thought crimes and people will be allowed to marry donkeys.
- Protesters in knickers and colonial-style hats march on Washington with signs that order Hitler-like caricatures of President Obama to return to Kenya.
As madness reigns, pundits, politicians, and cab drivers debate the source of the hysteria. Some blame ignorance; some blame racism; some blame the economy.
After poring over mountains of political screeds and heedlessly subjecting himself to countless hours of Fox News, author Michael Wolraich discovered the secret formula that turns ordinary men and women into fire-breathing, smoke-blowing, right wing maniacs. It’s “persecution politics” . . again.
In Blowing Smoke, Wolraich documents, dissects, and deconstructs the myths that underlie the right’s growing reliance on the politics of persecution, from Joe McCarthy to the Tea Party movement. In the process, he delivers an original and compelling hypothesis with penetrating insight and blistering wit.
At turns hilarious, disturbing, and edifying, Blowing Smoke is a must-read account of modern American politics.
Review
The Belltown Messenger, November 2010
“It's one of those books I couldn't put down, blazing through it in a day… Do get Wolraich's book. In addition to making me cry, it also made me laugh.”
Instinct Magazine, January 2011
“A well researched look at media and politics (and the politics of media) delivered with a Daily Show-esque tone.” Booklist, 12/7/10“Wolraich is keenly analytical and often caustic in this compelling look at the use of persecution to push politics to the extreme.”
Synopsis
Bill OReillys famous campaign against todays ubiquitous greeting, Happy Holidays,” is not just about remembering the true meaning of Christmas. He has told his audience that secular conspirators have a secret plan” to persecute” Christians and eliminate Christianity. And OReilly is not the only one crying persecution. The success of these conspiracists has nurtured a self-propagating industry of rightwing paranoia, which is wreaking havoc on American political discourse.
How Bill OReilly Saved Christmas documents, dissects, and deconstructs the myths that underlie the conservative movements growing reliance on persecution politics. It examines the psychological and sociological appeal of conspiracy theories as well as the history of these ideas from the Goldwater era through the campaigns against affirmative action and gun control to the contemporary era of talk shows, Christian activism, and anti-immigration sentiments. In a lively and engaging style that makes readers both laugh and cringe, prominent blogger Michael Wolraich explores the current political environment as he pursues answers to two questions: Why is this happening? And what can we do about it?
Synopsis
In time for the fall elections, a witty and penetrating political analysis of the wacky world of rightwing persecution politics,” mixing polemic, history, and strategy
About the Author
Michael Wolraich is a respected contributor to the popular blog Talking Points Memo Café. In 2008, Wolraich and several other commentators founded Dagblog, which offers a mix of politics, sports, business, and humor. He lives in Philadelphia.