What You Should Know About Politics...But Don't: A Nonpartisan Guide…

I hate to admit it, but I couldn't finish it. There was nothing there I didn't already know, and the writing style reminded me unpleasantly of textbooks.

Let me say first, that there was not a lot of new information in this book and I found the title only slightly less offensive than the "for dummies" series of books, which I refuse to consult on principle. I've read over a couple of them, meh. It went downhill from there.



The book starts off talking about elections and explains about voting districts and political parties and the electoral college. Then it gets into voter suppression and fraud, gerrymandering campaign finance and the trouble with electronic voting machines. The following chapters take on a long list of hot button issues: recession. stagflation, the mortgage crisis, isolationism, health care, homeland security, no child left behind, all the while maintaining a neutral non partisan tone, the News Hour with Jim Lerher, on Prozac. "Some believe that torture is inherently morally repugnant and is never justifiable. Others think there may be some very restricted circumstances in which torture is morally acceptable, while still others contend that those conditions are broader."

Some people bend over backwards to not have an opinion, too, and Jessamyn Conrad is one of them. Some people think torture is sometimes OK? Let's put it out there, Jessamyn. The Bush Administration denies that it ever tortured anyone and if it did, then they must have deserved it. And besides, if the President does it, it's legal.

I became weary of the neutrality. None of the burning issues of the day have any relevance weight, meaning or value in this book, just on the one hand and on the other.
The publisher got blurbs from Barack Obama and Bob Dole for the front cover. I guess John McCain was too busy to answer the email.

I'll Never Forget The Day I Read A Book!

Conrad does an excellent job showing both sides of controversial issues. Her tone is intelligent and unbiased. She lives up to her book's title - - and then some. ( )

This handy book is laid out so that it's easy to follow. Topics are divided by chapters: Elections, The Economy, Foreign Policy, The Military, Health Care, Energy, The Environment, Civil Liberties, Culture Wars, Socioeconomic Policy, Homeland Security, Education, and Trade. Each chapter begins with a bulleted list of major points, next comes the background to current debates, and then current debates follow with a more in-depth discussion. Both sides of each issue are laid out. Time and again the reader sees "opponents" and "advocates" as each side is presented in a no-nonsense style of writing. Results of polls and majority of opinions are incorporated where applicable and overall trends are examined.

This is a useful guide to be used and referred to often. I recommend it. ( )