Kevin Phillips
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Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Economics -> Economic Conditions
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Government -> Federal Government
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 192
Average rating: 4.0 of 5
Articulate, much research, and 2/3 badly misleading 3 out of 5 stars.
2 of 5 people found this review helpful.
Then the remaining one-third is shot through with doubtful connections. The author commendably states clearly his three big topics right off the bat: 1. Oil is "done"; 2. Religion in America is poisoning us; 3. The US is drowning in debt. Topics #1 and #3 as stated in "American Theocracy" have been shown to be largely untrue by many, many sources, and #2 seems to conclude that Americans are bad because we let religion (fundamental kinds, anyway) drive us to all sorts of homicidal and larcenous behaviors. Southern Americans, anyway. Actually southern white Americans of English/Dutch/ sometimes Celtic/sometimes German/sometimes other ethnic origins. These awful prejudices unfortunately weave through the whole book.
The book in one sense is well-written, though. The line of arguments are clearly stated, and the facts and stories Kevin Phillips chooses to write about can sometimes be interesting and informative. As many reviewers noted, there are pounds of research cited and statistics listed. The problem is that he is extremely selective about which he presents. In the "oil" segment, for example, you will find almost no mention of experts who estimate the relatively long period of oil reserves worldwide (one actually makes a cameo appearance, and the reader is hereby challenged to find it!). Nor does he cite the fact that estimated reserves have always, always edged upwards. In the "religion" segment he makes a quite-wrong statement about Newt Gingrich's historical fiction series on the Civil War, meaning he could not have actually read the books. With this kind of selective reporting, one cannot sift the truth of his arguments. Then there is the ending: there isn't one. No summary, no conclusions, no points for action. After all that.
For the sake of backing up the title of this review, the badly-misleading part of the "debt" section in this book concerns the author's own - perhaps unwitting - argument against himself. He actually stated that the amount of total personal savings was greater than the total personal debt. Gracious, mendacious! If the statistics sound overwhelming in this section of the book, the reader is invited to skim over them, because they are hard to trust anyway.
In spite of these rather harsh judgments (and overly long review!), "American Theocracy" really is interesting. The prudent reader will discount the alternating condescension and panic, and just enjoy the discussion. If you are inclined to think as the author does, you will certainly like the debating points you could use. If you are inclined to dismiss the author's point of views, then don't - just read it. If you are wary of what a leftist-in-charge might do, then note the line of argument and hone your own.
Editorial Review:
An explosive examination of the coalition of forces that threatens the nation, from the bestselling author of American Dynasty In his two most recent bestselling books, American Dynasty and Wealth and Democracy, Kevin Phillips established himself as a powerful critic of the political and economic forces that rule—and imperil—the United States, tracing the ever more alarming path of the emerging Republican majority’s rise to power. Now Phillips takes an uncompromising view of the current age of global overreach, fundamentalist religion, diminishing resources, and ballooning debt under the GOP majority. With an eye to the past and a searing vision of the future, Phillips confirms what too many Americans are still unwilling to admit about the depth of our misgovernment.
