Arthur Goldwag

This little volume was a fascinating read for me because I have a thing for quirky aspects of American history, such as conspiracy theorists and all the strange fascinating stories Americans love to get worked up about. Goldwag basically takes the reader through a quick historical tour of the bizarre relationship between American populist right politics and hate-centered conspiracy theories. The "New Hate" is just a sarcastic title that the reader begins to understand as commonalities show more between each wave of populist phobias manifest themselves in new fear-fests. Goldwag goes over all the hysterics including the Illuminati, the Freemasons, the KKK, the anti-Catholicism movement, McCarthyism, the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, the gold standard movement, John Birch Society, Holocaust Deniers, Black Nationalism, White Power Movement, Birthers, 9-11 Truthers, as well as the Tea Party Movement. It is quite compelling to see how the specific language, conspiracy elements, and logical fallacies used by each wave of populism gets passed on to the new generation. It reminds me of meme theory. There is always a new "other" to focus the hate and blame on. It's almost sadly and morbidly humorous how often Jews are the "other" and have been blamed so repeatedly over and over again for everything.
My only criticism is how Goldwag's writing style is a bit digressive. Plus his sense of sarcasm is not unlike early 90's Noam Chomsky, just not so polemical. I thought it was hilarious, but I could see how some might not get the jokes. Regardless, if you enjoy reading well documented and researched American history texts like me, this book is unique, a bit scary, and at times quite funny. show less

The lengthy title and subtitle of Arthur Goldwag's book, "Cults, Conspiracies, and Secret Societies: The Straight Scoop on Freemasons, The Illuminati, Skull and Bones, Black Helicopters, The New World Order, and many, many more," belies the brevity with which he addresses most of the myriad subjects between the book's covers. It's true even a mildly avid researcher can find on the Internet or in a public library or well-stocked bookstore vast amounts of exhaustively detailed material devoted show more to each of the subjects Goldwag surveys in his book. This is the advantage, rather than disadvantage, of Goldwag's approach. Goldwag's book supplies only the tantalizing breadcrumbs. He leaves it for the reader to follow the trail if she's hungry to find more information on the matters that interest her, many of which she may never had known of before exploring Goldwag's work. Goldwag's writing is savvy, crisp and clean, often tongue-in-cheek, and he's not afraid to voice his personal opinion on some of the wackier Cults, Conspiracies, and Secret Societies featured in his book. It's a quick, informative and entertaining read, which I believe is exactly what the author intended. show less

A very good introduction to the Kabbalah for the novice and the dabbler. If you're an "expert" then a bunch of this will sound familiar. It covers the history, the basic tenets, various schools of Kabbalah, thumbnail biographies of kabbalists, etc. I have several books on the Kabbalah, and even found useful stuff here.

Goldwag only goes off the tracks in his "conclusion," where he interviewed a candidate for rabbi in the Jewish Renewal, which is a sort of New Age, egalitarian reform movement show more in Judaism. The interviewee, and interviewer, push Kabbalah towards a "one source, many wells" philosophy of religion that standard Kabbalah would not brook. They mock the ideas of an aged, old-school kabbalist in Israel. The interviewee disregards biblical laws. It's funny that they can make fun of the unorthodoxy of Kabbalah Centre, yet revel in their own unorthodoxy. It gave a bad aftertaste to an otherwise good book.

Get it for cheap if you can. A useful glossary, endnotes, a serviceable bibliography, a few explanatory illustrations. show less

An excellent look at the many quirky, loony, and outright crazy theories espoused by people on all sides of the political spectrum. A great read if you're, like me, interested in the lunatic fringe of the world simply for the laughs their theories bring. Comes with a free aluminum foil deflector beanie!