Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Goldwater: The Man Who Made a Revolution by Lee Edwards ISBN: 0-89526-471-4 Publisher: Regnery Publishing Pub. Date: 01 May, 1995 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.25 (4 reviews)
Rating: 2
Summary: Interesting man dumb book
Comment: Barry Goldwater was a politician who wrote a book called the conscience of a conservative. It proposed a number of positions which were popular in the extreme right wing of American Politics in the 60's. Barry stood against Lyndon Johnson in 1964 and was trounced.
After that he continued to be a senator for many years. As he grew older his economic ideas remained unchanged but he never joined the rest of the right as it moved to be concerned with Abortion and civil decay as witnessed by the growing acceptance of homosexuality. Goldwater as a person seems to have been honest open and in his personal qualities admirable.
The author of this book is a conservative. He believes that Goldwater was perhaps something that he was not. That is a casual factor in the shift to the right of American politics. A far more convincing argument for America's shift to the right is Lydon Johnon's civil rights legislation which changed the old south from a one party democratic province to a two party state. Added to this were the problems that Jimmy Carter had as a president.
Goldwaters ideas for America in 1964 were just dumb. (Which is not to say that the man himself was dumb. The world is a complex place and to work out solutions to political problems is never easy) He supported the continuation of a policy of states rights. This policy meant in practice not using federal power to achieve integration. It is clear that Goldwater was not a racist and his commitment to this policy rested on his ideas of government rather than on the true place of Black Americans. His policy however would have delayed the end of segregation for ever. The Jim Crow political structures in the South disenfranchised those voters who would want change. Further he believed that American should fight a conventional war against Vietnam to end the Vietnam war. Further that bombing should be used against Hanoi and civilian infrastructure. Such a policy had the very real danger of involving China in the conflict. His political instinct also lacked sophistication. He was a person who had been elected in Arizona a small state. He had no real idea of the sorts of compromises that were needed to achieve higher office. Of course his refusal to compromise were part of his charm to his supporters.
The book is interesting as it is about an interesting man. However the writing is so insular it is annoying. One can understand the author may not like the moderately left wing governments that had been in the 50's and 60's but to call them socialist or big spending lacks an understanding of what those terms mean. In Sweden the government controls some 65% of the GDP. The Labour Party of England in the 40's nationalized the steel industry the coal industry and all of public transport. The United States has never had a either a Labour or Socialist Party. Trade Unions were restricted in their activities to the 30's.
Rating: 5
Summary: Sympathetic, but honest, deep, and well-written.
Comment: Lee Edwards' biography of Barry Goldwater is obviously sympathetic, but the scholarship is still quite solid. Edwards' sources are strong and diverse: interviews, oral histories, books, manuscripts, government documents, personal papers, etc. Edwards uses particularly well Goldwater's two autobiographies: 1979's With No Apologies and 1988's Goldwater (with Jack Casserly). Edwards dives into these books, comparing and contrasting, and comes up with some great insights.
Edwards is obviously a conservative and Goldwater sympathizer, but that doesn't detract from the book significantly. Two small areas where it does: (1) his treatment of the booing of Nelson Rockefeller at the GOP convetion is *very* confusing. He tries to say how Goldwater is not to blame, but ends up ruining the whole narrative. I actually had to consult Theodore White's "Making of the President, 1964" to figure out what really happened. (2) Some of his terms might be considered offensive (ie. Edwards has harsh words for homosexuals). In general, however, Edwards stays well away from mushy admiration for Goldwater and the other extreme, outright hatred, which you might get from some liberals. The result is a sympathetic, but honest and comprehensive account of Goldwater's life, and an effort to put his life into some overall framework.
(Addendum) 1/14/2002. The recent publication of Rick Perlstein's "Before the Storm" gives Goldwater readers an absolutely unbiased history of Goldwater and the conservative movement. If Edwards is a bit too partisan for you, I suggest that one instead.
Rating: 5
Summary: The Founder of Modern Conservatism Was a Brilliant Visionary
Comment: Lee Edwards has a wonderful writing style. I found it quite easy to get sucked into this biography and relive the events he describes. There are very few books that I can honestly say were hard to put down - this definitely is one of them. As far as the subject of discussion, Barry Goldwater, he was a brilliant man. He was well ahead of his time and clearly understood problems that only today we are beginning to appreciate. Goldwater was indeed a visionary who established the fiscal tenets of modern conservatism that eventually established the foundation for Ronald Reagan. Goldwater was a rare breed - one who spoke his mind no matter the cost - and for that was admired and adored by many. Some of those "many" are today living testimony to the inspiration of Barry Goldwater. Yet, Barry Goldwater was also an enigma in that he defied conservatives later in his political life. He always remained a stalwart supporter of limited government, less taxes, maximum freedom, and personal responsibility. But in later years, he became discontent with the Republican Party when he perceived social conservatives as trying to use government to impose their narrow interpretation of morality and goodness. He apparently despised the use of government in this fashion just as much as he despised its use to redistribute wealth and engage in social engineering. Edwards believes that Goldwater was a Libertarian who only had the opportunity to show his full colors when social conservatives tried to use the GOP to further its moral goals. Perhaps Goldwater didn't really change all that much but rather the Republican Party drifted from his premise of smaller government in all respects. Despite these later differences, Goldwater was a class act and will probably always remain the icon for modern conservatism. I highly recommend this book to those who are interested in the history of the modern conservative movement. While the book is fairly lengthy, Edwards does a fantastic job of making it interesting and captive, such that it seems to make the pages fly by.
 |
Title: With no apologies: The personal and political memoirs of United States Senator Barry M. Goldwater by Barry M Goldwater ISBN: 0688035477 Publisher: Morrow Pub. Date: 1979 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
 |
Title: Goldwater by Barry Morris Goldwater, Jack Casserly ISBN: 0385239475 Publisher: Bantam Dell Pub Group Pub. Date: 01 October, 1988 List Price(USD): $21.95 |
 |
Title: Barry Goldwater by Robert Alan Goldberg ISBN: 0300062613 Publisher: Yale University Press Pub. Date: 01 September, 1995 List Price(USD): $19.00 |
 |
Title: Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus by Rick Perlstein ISBN: 0809028581 Publisher: Hill & Wang Pub. Date: 15 April, 2002 List Price(USD): $17.00 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
