Al Gores "The Assault on Reason" is an INCREDIBLE MUST READ!!!

[LSK]

"Fear is the most powerful enemy of reason."



Al Gores attempt in finding out what happened to our democracy is a brilliant analysis of where we are and how we got here. A lot of his analysis concludes that we are spending less time reading and too much time watching TV. In addition, TV has become a one-way street of communication controlled by a select powerful few with a very limited chance for a legitimate two-way discourse.

In addition, fear and reason are processed in seperate areas in the brain. When fear is triggered it can overwhelm the reason portion of the brain, allowing humans to react in irrational ways and to misjudge legitimate fears for valid fears. Using the TV, fear has been exploited to get us into the present state we are in.

All this and I am barely into chapter 2.

This book is a must read by all DUers. Please get this book as gifts for loved ones and friends.

I purchased this book at Target on Saturday for $18+tax. It is truly a must read.

http://www.amazon.com/Assault-Reason-Al-Gore/dp/1594201226/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/105-7047607-5980463?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180418653&sr=1-1

[Az]

1. Reading it and loving it

But I swear he stole my material! Its like he's speaking my mind. Love it.

[orleans]

2. am going to buy it tomorrow (um...i guess it would be today actually) n/t

[Mojambo]

3. Got the audio book today.

Gonna start on it as soon as I finish Armed Madhouse by Palast, which is a phenomenal read BTW.

[spiderpig]

4. I just finished the audio download

The other night, John Rothman (KGO radio host) said that Al knocked one out of the park with this book, and he couldn't recommend it highly enough.

I couldn't agree more. Al calls Chimpy on just about everything he and his cronies have pulled over the last 6 years, and he doesn't mince words. It's as if he took notes from DU and compiled them all into a thoughtful yet scathing analysis of where we are now and how we got here, along with his fears for the future if we don't change course immediately.

You all owe it to yourselves to read this book and be reassured that somebody knows what's going on and isn't afraid to say so.

[alcibiades_mystery]

5. I liked it better when it was called "The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere"

It still had a slight tinge of an Adornian contempt back when Habermas wrote it.

:-)

[Viva_La_Revolution]

6. Ordered it yesterday morning.

:bounce:

I can't wait!

[The_Casual_Observer]

7. Thanks for this good advice.

I'll pick it up when I get a chance!

T_C_O

[Swamp Rat]

8. I guess I'll go read now.

:)

[malaise]

16. Can't wait for my copy to reach

Run Al Run!!!

[kedrys]

9. Got it, have yet to crack it open

past the table of contents. I need to be in the mood before I get that depressed/wrecked/pissed off.

[Raksha]

10. I'm about halfway through it, and it won't depress you or piss you off.

It's just such a relief that someone so high in the political sphere actually GETS it, what's been going wrong in this country for the past 20 years or so, and can communicate the contemporary American gestalt so clearly. He doesn't say it in so many words, but it's obvious he sees the Pretender's reign as the result of a spiritual malaise as well as an intellectual one (the assault on reason). I truly believe this book will become a classic and be read long after the Bush nightmare is history.

[dalaigh lllama]

24. Agreed

I'm about halfway thru, too, and it is a relief to read the information we've gotten just here laid out in chronological order in his book, with the added insights on how things should/used to be done in the White House. I'm avid to get to the end, where he lays out his ideas on how to get our democracy back on track. Stay safe, Al.

and PLEASE RUN FOR PREZ! :applause:

[tmlanders]

23. I know what you mean

I saw it at a bookstore on Saturday and couldn't pick it up because I didn't want to get pissed off over the long weekend. Last week was pretty long for us libs, and I think I ran out of indignation after the budget vote.

[maine_raptor]

11. It's on the way!

Ordered it from Amazon (along with the latest Robert Conroy novel) and got the notification Sunday that they were shipped. Now waiting for an official US Gov rep to hand deliver it to my house, so please don't spoil the ending for me (Did the Butler really do it?).

I saw Gore on Book TV this weekend and I gotta say:

"Run Al, Run"

[Vadem]

36. Me too! It should be here tomorrow and I can't wait to dig in!...n/t

[DFW]

12. Definitely on my summer reading list when I get back Stateside!

Six weeks to go, and I'll be reading it in the sand dunes!

[bklyncowgirl]

13. Reading it now--and yes--it's very good. nt

[cooolandrew]

14. Fear is the root of all evil, quite clearly.

[yasmina27]

15. I find it very thought provoking -

- not an easy read. I have to stop reading and think about what he just said. For me this indicates brilliant writing. Usually I breeze through books in 1 day or less when they are compelling. So far I'm not even finished with the first chapter (but then it's been a beautiful holiday weekend - between working outside getting our pool deck ready and partying with our neighbor who is moving next month, I haven't had much time for reading)!

I don't want to rush through this book. I want to savor every pearl of wisdom written by the only president who never got to serve.

[greenman3610]

17. "Fear is the mind killer"

[LSK]

18. morning kick n/t

[underpants]

19. I'm on the library's waiting list for it

Maybe sometime this week

[blm]

20. Good time to remind people to donate a copy to their local library.

.

[underpants]

27. "Fiasco" is STILL on the waiting list

I have 100 pages left of it and I actually had a copy of it oh probably 4 months ago.

I have "Cobra II" in the meantime.

[LSK]

28. I'm in the middle of Fiasco

I have a tendency to read 5 books at once and never can finish any of them.

[underpants]

29. *SPOILER*

Doesn't end well.
Everyone knew it wouldn't.*

*not finished but that is the gist of it from what I HAVE read

[LSK]

30. darn you ruined it for me

:P

[mopinko]

21. i keep thinking- he's been listening to randi!

got a chapter and a half to go. it is all in there, folks. even gannon/guckert. and some neurological explanations of why the tv does what it does to us.
imho, he is going to run. this book is partly a test, to see how much of the truth will be acknowledged, and understood. but he is also putting it all out there, and intends to run on the actual truth. think about that one. a platform of the actual truth. be still my heart.
put up the bat al, i'll clean out the bank account.

[Raksha]

33. I have a slightly different take on it, but not all that different.

imho, he is going to run. this book is partly a test, to see how much of the truth will be acknowledged, and understood. but he is also putting it all out there, and intends to run on the actual truth. think about that one. a platform of the actual truth. be still my heart.
put up the bat al, i'll clean out the bank account.

I think he's putting his critics on notice that if he runs, he intends to take the high road whether they like it or not. The talking heads are going to have to deal with him on HIS terms, again whether they like it or not.

There isn't going to be a repeat of the race-to-the-bottom campaign of 2000, when Chris Matthews and Maureen Dowd and the rest of that ilk went on and on about "earth tones" and how Al Gore was "reinventing" himself. Oh, they'll try to drag it down to that level (some of them anyway), but they are going to look even more stupid doing it than they did last time. Because this book *IS* his platform, and nobody will have an excuse for claiming they don't know what Al Gore stands for.

[LSK]

35. Agreed n/t

[dalaigh lllama]

22. He has a great line describing the current M$M

In addition to their usual "If it bleeds, it leads" mantra, add the following:

"If it thinks, it stinks." Ain't it the truth!

[Rob H.]

25. I've only made it through the introduction and the first two chapters

and I already know I'll have to read it again. It's packed with good info so far--if I had to highlight the parts I like I'd have to highlight a few pages in their entirety.

[wryter2000]

26. I just ordered it

It'll go to the top of my TBR pile when it gets here.

[Mabus]

31. The best book of what has happened and is happening to our country

Gore tells it like it is and I'm loving it. It's a wonderful read. I've already gone back and reread some portions of the book. Wow. It will knock your socks off.

[LSK]

32. afternoon kick n/t

[Uncle Joe]

34. I read it over the weekend and it's a most powerful, profound and enlightening book!

Thank you for thread LSK

Kicked and recommended

[Pastiche423]

37. Just started reading it

And as I read, I hear Al's voice speaking the words.

Run, Al, Run!

[LSK]

38. Al Gore is on Countdown kick