What's the Matter With Kansas?

[CTLawGuy]

http://www.henryholt.com/holt/whatsthematter.htm

This is a book by Thomas Frank, a native Kansan. In it, he talks about how the Republicans managed to ally wealthy business interests and the blue collar workers they were constantly screwing over.

He talks about how RW media creates a bogeyman, the "liberal". The "liberal" is a wealthy, overeducated, conceited Easterner who looks at "normal" everyday Heartland Americans with contempt. This "liberal" sits in his ivory towers and labors to dictate to the Heartland how to live their lives... (ie by forcing abortion rights, affirmative action, and welfare on them).

The RW tells the Heartland that capitalism is inviolate, they are helpless against it. Everything that is wrong with them is caused by the "liberal menace". This propaganda distracts blue-collar kansans away from economic issues and gets them concerned about their values being under attack.

What he writes at the end of the book is fantastic. He theorizes that the Democrats are partially to blame for this RW alliance between blue collar whites and the business class. This is because the Dems and Pugs basically agree on economic issues (at least the DLC controlled incarnation of the Dems). they are both pro-NAFTA, pro-tax cuts, anti-welfare, and they both pander to corporate interests.

This is an excellent book, which I just finished yesterday. Everyone should read it.