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Ann Coulter's new book

 
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Has anyone read this book yet??Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism

Some colleagues from an ex-'Company' group we gather on have really praised it. I'm wondering if anyone from MD, (who's views I may be able to put into perspective), has read this book.
Here is the Amazon review:


Amazon's Book Description
“Liberals’ loyalty to the United States is off-limits as a subject of political debate. Why is the relative patriotism of the two parties the only issue that is out of bounds for rational discussion?”
In a stunning follow-up to her number one bestseller Slander, leading conservative pundit Ann Coulter contends that liberals have been wrong on every foreign policy issue, from the fight against Communism at home and abroad, the Nixon and the Clinton presidencies, and the struggle with the Soviet empire right up to today’s war on terrorism. “Liberals have a preternatural gift for always striking a position on the side of treason,” says Coulter. “Everyone says liberals love America, too. No, they don’t.” From Truman to Kennedy to Carter to Clinton, America has contained, appeased, and retreated, often sacrificing America’s best interests and security. With the fate of the world in the balance, liberals should leave the defense of the nation to conservatives.
Reexamining the sixty-year history of the Cold War and beyond—including the career of Senator Joseph McCarthy, the Whittaker Chambers–Alger Hiss affair, Ronald Reagan’s challenge to Mikhail Gorbachev to “tear down this wall,” the Gulf War, and our present war on terrorism—Coulter reveals how liberals have been horribly wrong in all their political analyses and policy prescriptions. McCarthy, exonerated by the Venona Papers if not before, was basically right about Soviet agents working for the U.S. government. Hiss turned out to be a high-ranking Soviet spy (who consulted Roosevelt at Yalta). Reagan, ridiculed throughout his presidency, ended up winning the Cold War. And George W. Bush, also an object of ridicule, has performed exceptionally in responding to America’s newest threats at home and abroad.
Coulter, who in Slander exposed a liberal bias in today’s media, also examines how history, especially in the latter half of the twentieth century, has been written by liberals and, therefore, distorted by their perspective. Far from being irrelevant today, her clearheaded and piercing view of what we’ve been through informs us perfectly for challenges today and in the future.
With Slander, Ann Coulter became the most recognized and talked-about conservative intellectual of the year. Treason, in many ways an even more controversial and prescient book, will ignite impassioned political debate at one of the most crucial moments in our history.

 
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What I appreciate in conservatives, is their innate inability to see things from *another*'s point of view. I mean, when they get an insight (which occasionally happens to all of us), they would call the doctor and ask for pills to eliminate this *unhealthy* insight, rather than trying to understand and to expand their picture of the world (if they did, they would be called "liberals" and this is another game). This makes them good in military defense politics, and I am not kidding here. You do not want your Army working hard on understanding other POVs. You want them to crush their opponents -- that's all, and that's hard beyond imagination already, to ask for more.
For civilian population, I would advise to try to read first-hand accounts of Cold War, for example, heck, they are translated, rather then interpretations of them from American POV, which interpretations are about as bright as men's vision of women. . Err.. I mean men's vision of women is interesting also, I would just warn from taking it as a whole true, if anybody was naive enough, which I doubt, and which devaluate this my posting, which I am going to complete nevertheless.
 
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Originally posted by Mapraputa Is:
What I appreciate in conservatives, is their innate inability to see things from *another*'s point of view.


:roll: This is simply not true of course. People can still see things from another's point of view. consider and appreciate that different point of view, and still take action in opposition to that other perspective.
When presented with two sides of an argument for example, most of us can weigh both arguments and make a determination for ourselves which argument we feel is more valid. Just because we feel a certain argument is more valid does not mean we have ignored the other argument.
 
John Dunn
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Map: What I appreciate in conservatives, is their innate inability to see things from *another*'s point of view. I mean, when they get an insight (which occasionally happens to all of us), they would call the doctor and ask for pills to eliminate this *unhealthy* insight, rather than trying to understand and to expand their picture of the world (if they did, they would be called "liberals" and this is another game). This makes them good in military defense politics, and I am not kidding here. You do not want your Army working hard on understanding other POVs. You want them to crush their opponents -- that's all, and that's hard beyond imagination already, to ask for more.
For civilian population, I would advise to try to read first-hand accounts of Cold War, for example, heck, they are translated, rather then interpretations of them from American POV, which interpretations are about as bright as men's vision of women. . Err.. I mean men's vision of women is interesting also, I would just warn from taking it as a whole true, if anybody was naive enough, which I doubt, and which devaluate this my posting, which I am going to complete nevertheless.

Hmmm... I guess its safe to say that Mapraputa hasn't read this book. :roll:
It is being sold quite a bit these days. I wonder if Mapraputa has any suggestions for some easy cold war reading? Come to think of it there is a book my Dad mentioned to me - something like "Tower of Lies" or "Tower of Sin" about a Soviet Intelligence officer that grew disillisioned with the system and escaped and wrote a book about his start in the Party and his eventual disillisionment. Map do you know this book?? I can call my Dad and get the name.
I do want to read the book about Kim Philby and the other Oxford jokers (Blunt, Burgess, Maclean and Cairncross), who penetrated the highest echelons of American/British intelligence while at the same time acted as spys for the Soviets.
Master Spy
The book Spy Catcher by Peter Wright goes over the British counter-intelligence side of that story.
 
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Originally posted by John Dunn:

... any suggestions for some easy cold war reading?


I think any of the books on the Venona files (NSA interceptions of KGB communications) would be interesting. One of the articles of faith amongst the Left is that the Right overreacted during the Cold War to the Soviet threat. They still use the term "McCarthyism" today in their most bitter attacks on conservative security policy. Read and find out why McCarthy was right after all - Soviet agents had infiltrated many levels of US govt in significant and threatening numbers. Search on "Venona" on Amazon or Google.
 
John Dunn
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Search on "Venona" on Amazon or Google.
Thank you I will.
It is interesting to me that there was a contingent of U.S./British citizens that so greatly feared the power of the Allies, even though they themselves were 'good' citizens, that they decided to spy for the Soviets. (i.e. Rosenberg, and few other scientists on the Atom Bomb project and then of course the 5 Brits, Philby, Burgess, MacClean, etc. just to name a few.)
I have to wonder if there are folks out there now that are helping our enemies for the same reasons, today. Apparently one of the lead U.S. spys has just quit in the middle of the investigation over how bin Laden and Sadaam acquired top-notch computer software. I wonder what that is all about??
Top U.S. spy catcher quits in the middle of an investigation...
 
Mapraputa Is
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From your link:
"The software is said to enable the two most wanted men in the world to avoid capture because it can pinpoint every move in the global manhunt."
What "can pinpoint every move in the global manhunt" means? Move of what/whom?
 
John Dunn
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What "can pinpoint every move in the global manhunt" means? Move of what/whom?
I'm not sure myself - I was wondering if anyone heard anything on this guy, Paul Redmond??
 
John Dunn
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Link on McCarthyism This guy compares McCarthyites to today's anti-war protesters. Hmmm, I never thought of that...
 
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Originally posted by John Dunn:

I have to wonder if there are folks out there now that are helping our enemies for the same reasons, today.


yes. me (right smiley is OBL, left is me)
gee. dem-bashing.
Going to buy the book, I think.
Sorry caballeros, but that's again so much simplification in a world so complex.
Liberals don't love america.
That's plain strong & easy.
Reagan won the cold war.
And what about Gorbatchev, some politicians and protesters in eastern europe?
What about Kohl/Genscher?
What about german Ost-Politik since 1969?
[ July 07, 2003: Message edited by: Axel Janssen ]
 
John Dunn
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Come to think of it there is a book my Dad mentioned to me - something like "Tower of Lies" or "Tower of Sin" about a Soviet Intelligence officer that grew disillisioned with the system and escaped and wrote a book about his start in the Party and his eventual disillisionment. Map do you know this book??
I found it: Tower of Secrets: A Real Life Spy Thriller by Victor Sheymov
According to Pops this is an awesome book.
 
John Dunn
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OBL is dead, man.
 
Mapraputa Is
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I wonder if Mapraputa has any suggestions for some easy cold war reading?
I believe Khrushchev's memoirs are translated... I also have this old book, and it's good. Both authors appear sincere enough to provide some insight of how things looked liked from another side.
Axel: And what about Gorbatchev
Why, everybody knows, he had no other choice (please, don't look at Cuba or North Korea's example, let's pretend they do not exist). He had to do what Reagan told him to do. If we give some credit to Gorbachev, then we'll have to admit that the Soviets weren't quite as evil as we believe, and then what, the whole Cold War will become a grand manifestation of stupidity, enormous waste of resources from both sides? Who wants it? Let's forget about Gorbatchev. And Kohl Genscher... Who cares about him? :roll: This would be anti-patriotic.
[ July 08, 2003: Message edited by: Mapraputa Is ]
 
Mapraputa Is
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WASHINGTON — The White House has suspended Republican pundit Ann Coulter today for her disparaging remarks on ethnicities such as Asians and Arabs in her latest book.
In Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism, Coulter characterizes Asians as “savage Oriental beasts” and Arabs as smelly. Most media outlets have ignored these potentially controversial portions of the book, but the President himself came forward to demand an apology from Ms. Coulter and to issue the suspension from cable-news for one month.
“Coulter’s observations of Asians and Arabs were unfortunate,” a White House source said. “We take this issue very seriously at the GOP. We will not tolerate bigots in our ranks.”
http://www.gwbush04.com/archives/000093.php

Did she really said it? (John must have already read the book)
[ July 15, 2003: Message edited by: Mapraputa Is ]
 
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You post a link to a bogus site and want to know if the contents are accurate?
 
Jason Menard
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Map, that's not a real news site.
 
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WASHINGTON � The White House has suspended Republican pundit Ann Coulter today for her disparaging remarks on ethnicities such as Asians and Arabs in her latest book.


Margarita, where do you think she was suspended from? Unless I am wrong I think that she is independent and does not work for the White House. Thus there is nothing they can do to her. I also doubt that she said those things. Simply because you have to be an idiot to say something like that.

President himself came forward to demand an apology from Ms. Coulter and to issue the suspension from cable-news for one month.


Unless White House started their own cable network :-), there is no cable news they control to suspend anybody there.
[ July 15, 2003: Message edited by: Michael Bronshteyn ]
 
John Dunn
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Did she really (said ) it? (John must have already read the book)
No, I haven't, yet. I hate hardcovers - they're too bulky, you can't read 'em with one hand, they take up too much space, they are too expensive, and they're a pain to carry around. I ~may~ get this one though. I'll put it right next to my bible...
 
Mapraputa Is
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Map, that's not a real news site.
I did put smile, right?
Of course, it's not a real news site, only look at this: "President points out that Iraqi war is over, no more killing is allowed"
You post a link to a bogus site and want to know if the contents are accurate?
So all it said is a lie? That's not how good jokes are made. They are trying to be funny, and to falsely atribute a racist comment to somebody is anything but funny, so I suspected it's true.
 
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So all it said is a lie?
Not necessarily, but any serious speculation based on the contents of the site seems a huge waste of time. Surely if there's any realistic basis for the comments, a real news source can be found.
And while I did see your , its meaning wasn't exactly clear. It could have meant that you thought it was a legit story, and were amused at the apparent irony of some of the quoted comments. Things were clearer after I looked at the rest of the site myself and ascertained it was obviously satire, but that's not obvious from your quote. At least, not to someone like me who was unfamiliar with Coulter's book. For all I knew, she might've said those things. So the joke didn't work as well as you might have hoped, IMO.
[ July 15, 2003: Message edited by: Jim Yingst ]
 
Jason Menard
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For what it's worth, I couldn't find a real news site supporting the claims.
 
John Dunn
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I think... that people here are not checking up on links before they post their responses
 
Mapraputa Is
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AOL runs a "discussion" about her new book today, "What Makes a Patriot", and somebody said that you can find her book for free on FOX web site. So I searched for it and instead of a free book found that site.

By the way, here is AOL's poll (for what it's worth):
Is one political wing more patriotic than the other?
54%No, they just have different opinions about what is best
41%Yes, the right
5%Yes, the left
Total votes: 222,623
Here I have to comment I do not understand what's so appealing in the idea of "patriotism" for Americans.
Sorry for overusing quotes, but they express my our thoughts much better than I could, plus, I am sure, there are less grammatical mistakes. So please bear with me...
"Over the centuries, moral philosophers have wrestled with the fact that patriotism is always a kind of bias, a disposition to favor one's own nation beyond what the objective facts would warrant. As Max Eastman wrote in 1906, "If one were loyal to one's nation only because it was good and true... one would not be loyal to any nation, but to truth and goodness. The idea of patriotism would have no place either in our dictionaries or our lives."
...the idea, as the 18th-century English radical William Godwin put it, that there's a "magic in the pronoun 'my.' "
Source.
 
mister krabs
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Patriotism is simply defined as love for one's country.
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=patriotism
Why do you think there is something wrong with loving one's country?
 
John Dunn
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"If one were loyal to one's nation only because it was [good and true]... one would not be loyal to any nation, but to [truth and goodness]. The idea of patriotism would have no place either in our dictionaries or our lives." I find this to be erroneous. Is the idea of patriotism synomynous with loyalty towards one's nation ONLY because it is good and true? Folks in America were probably patriotic to America b/c it was damn better than where so many of them fled. Did a lack of perfection in America mean they had no right to be patriotic??
Can any nation ever be good and true and still remain a nation in an imperfect world? Haven't rogue nations marauded docile nations all throughout mankind? So is this DEFINITION of 'being patriotic' or rather 'being loyal to a country that is [good and true]' ever possible?
 
Mapraputa Is
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Still thinking about patriotism...
Meanwhile, here is all I could find regarding Ann Coulter quotes:
"Coulter's book contains the usual name-calling, the usual spinning of the facts, the occasional racial insult -- McCarthy, for instance, "took enemy fire from savage Oriental beasts" in World War II..."
Richard Cohen. Crackpot Conservatism
Ann Coulter managed to embarrass even fellow conservatives. Check David Horowitz's "The Trouble with Treason" and Andrew Sullivan's CoulterKampf. The Problem With Ann.
More detailed analysis:
Brendan Nyhan. Screed: With Treason, Ann Coulter once again defines a new low in America's political debate
[ July 16, 2003: Message edited by: Mapraputa Is ]
 
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Mapraputa Is: Ann Coulter managed to embarrass even fellow conservatives. Check David Horowitz's "The Trouble with Treason" and Andrew Sullivan's CoulterKampf. The Problem With Ann.
I read David Horowitz's article. I think his criticism of the book is about as objective and accurate an evaluation as one can hope to find.
I find Ann Coulter highly entertaining, but she goes over the top sometimes. She's like a Republican version of Maureen Dowd or Paul Krugman. There may be a place for ranting, but this subject (left-of-center treason) is a serious subject that deserves more sober treatment.
 
Paul Stevens
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At least you didn't say James Carville.
 
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