Why We're Liberals: A Handbook for Restoring America's Most Important Ideals

by Eric Alterman

Overview

The bestselling author and Newsweek columnist takes a characteristically irreverent look at the rampant mistreatment of liberals and liberalism

The "most honest and incisive media critic writing today"(National Catholic Reporter), Eric Alterman is committed to restoring the liberal tradition to its honored place as the political philosophy of mainstream American citizens. In this bracing and well-documented counterattack on right- wing spin and misinformation, Alterman briskly disposes of the canards and false definitions that have been foisted upon liberals by the right and have been accepted unquestioningly by nearly everyone else. The perfect post-election book for all those who are ready to fight back against the conservative mudslinging machine and reclaim their voices in the political process, Why We're Liberals brings clarity and perspective to the possibility of a new day in America.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781101202906
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	03/13/2008
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	416
File size:	488 KB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Eric Alterman, media columnist for the Nation, is professor of English at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York, senior fellow of the Center for American Progress, and “Altercation” weblogger for MSNBC.com. He is the author of five previous books, including The Book on Bush (with Mark Green), What Liberal Media? and Sound and Fury.

Table of Contents

Introduction     1
What is This Thing Called "Liberal"?
Liberalism: A Crooked Branch of Timber     21
What Do Liberals Believe, Anyway?     56
What Does Liberalism Look Like?     62
So What's the Problem?     72
And Why Do They Hate America?
Why Do Liberals Hate Patriotism?     131
Conservatives and the Military I: The "Chickenhawk" Issue     133
Conservatives and the Military II: Tools for Nation-Building     137
Conservatives and the Military III: Soldier, Defend Thyself     141
Conservatives and the Military IV: Insufficient Troops, Forced Rotations, and Depleted Reserves     145
Conservatives and the Military V: No Shared Sacrifice     149
Conservatives and the Military VI: Sunshine Patriotism     150
Conservatives and the Military VII: Torturous Logic     151
Why Do Liberals Always Blame America First?     159
But Aren't Liberals Awfully Cavalier about Protecting Our National Security?     162
Why Are Liberals So Damn Elitist?     168
Why Do Liberals Love Hollywood Smut Peddlers?     179
When Will Liberals Stop Undermining America's Values and Poisoning the Minds of Its Youth?     186
Why Do Liberals Deny That America Was Founded as a Christian Nation?     196
Why Won't Liberals Admit That America Is Suffering from a Crisis in Moral Values?     202
If Liberals Are So Peace-Loving, Why Do They Want to Murder the Unborn?     218
Why Do Liberals Believe in Marriage Only for Homosexuals?     224
Why Are Liberals Educating Our Children to Be Perverts?     229
Why Do Liberals Hate Religion?     236
Why Do Liberals Hate the Jews?     245
Why Are Liberals So Contemptuous of Individual Freedom?     261
Why Do Liberals Love "Activist Judges"?     265
When Will Liberals Stop Crying "Racism" at Every Opportunity?     270
Why Are Liberals So Soft on America's Enemies?     281
Why Do Liberals Love to Tax and Spend?     294
Don't Conservatives Do a Better Job of Promoting Economic Growth Than Liberals?     308
But Why Are Liberals So Nasty?     310
Why Are Liberals Such Wimps?     319
Conclusion     325
Acknowledgments     335
Notes     337
Index     383
Jacket Key     402

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"It is difficult to imagine anyone better qualified to update Arthur Schlesinger Jr.'s notion of liberalism as the 'vital center' of American politics."
-The New York Times

"A vigorous defense of liberalism as a credo-a credo, Alterman argues persuasively, that most Americans actually subscribe to."
-The Atlantic

Editorial Reviews

Never mind that liberalhas for decades been a perjorative word when used by the Right. The "we" in Alterman's title stands for America rather than merely progressive Democrats. That's Alterman's point: he reminds readers that many Americans define themselves as embracing liberal values and that the country's political future could turn on a renewed understanding of liberalism. Those open to the concept will enjoy this read-and may wish to recommend it to others who think that liberalis a dirty word. (This is not a "handbook" in ready-reference terms.) [See Prepub Alert, LJ11/15/07.]

—Donna L. Davey, Margaret Heilbrun

Library Journal

A longtime cheerleader for progressive causes makes an enthusiastic though not entirely original case that liberalism is poised to rise again. "Liberal" is only a "dirty word" so long as people are confused about what it means, avers Alterman (What Liberal Media?: The Truth about Bias and the News, 2003, etc.). In reality, he argues, most Americans are liberal. They believe that government should care for those who can't care for themselves, that health care is a fundamental human right, that corporate profits are out of control. Starting with the Enlightenment, Alterman walks briskly through the history of American liberalism, pinpointing as the end of its hegemony the late 1960s, when liberal policies improved the living conditions of minorities but greatly increased the insecurity of the white working class. Since then, left-wing activists and thinkers have been systematically driven from American political and intellectual life, he contends, while conservatives have hijacked the mainstream media, claimed "tradition" and "patriotism" as conservative, not American, values and painted liberalism as a philosophy that rejects religion, is oblivious to national security, embraces elitism and supports restrictions on individual freedom. Alterman outlines a long list of obstacles liberals will have to overcome if they want to return to their former position of power: racial, ethnic and class conflicts among potential allies; the divide between secular and religious Americans; and a lack of disciplined networks to recruit converts. Nonetheless, after seven years under the Bush Administration, he thinks liberals can reclaim American hearts and minds, as long as they're willing to embrace theterm "liberal" and welcome people into the party who harbor conservative social positions or strong religious convictions-a majority of the U.S. population, the author notes. Alterman's conclusion-triangulate or perish-will be familiar to anyone who paid attention during the Clinton years, and it's unlikely to provide much comfort to readers who'd rather have their liberalism without a stiff shot of cultural conservatism. Agent: Tina Bennett/Janklow & Nesbit

Kirkus Reviews

"It is difficult to imagine anyone better qualified to update Arthur Schlesinger Jr.'s notion of liberalism as the 'vital center' of American politics."
-The New York Times

"A vigorous defense of liberalism as a credo-a credo, Alterman argues persuasively, that most Americans actually subscribe to."
-The Atlantic

From the Publisher