The Assault on Reason by Al Gore

This book is surely to be hailed by the left and dismissed by the right. I think it's at least very informative about the modern day political process. I liked the book, but I have to admit the book didn't tell me much that I didn't already know.

I thought the book was going to be about why Americans in general are more hostile to reason and intellect these days. It was, to some extent, but the bulk of it was dedicated to every way in which the Bush administration has defied all logic in its political decisions and is beholden to nothing but its political masters (the people with money).

He does offer some very interesting insights on the way modern political campaigns are run. One story he describes about a pollster advising him on buying so much advertising and predicting that it would increase his lead by so many points was pretty disturbing when it turned out the pollster was exactly right. It show how easily manipulable people the general public are because most of their information comes from television, a subject which Gore discusses in depth as well.

Gore talks about the one-way nature of modern political "dialogue". These days what we expect to see are speeches or debates on tv, which we are unable to participate in. Before the age of radio it was much more interactive since political discourse was conducted in either newspapers (which were almost all locally owned) or in person. This has had a noticeable, dramatically depressive effect on the nature of political discourse in America.

While Gore slams Bush pretty hard, he does find fault in the overall political process and does acknowledge that the problem manifests in both parties because of the way campaigns are conducted these days. The way they're so totally dependent on campaign contributions is simply killing the political process.

Since most of us aren't big fans of Bush (at least any more), this book should be suggested reading for most anyone. And it's pretty well written. Gore is a smart guy and a fine writer, but sometimes I just get tired reading political catchphrases, and even Gore is guilty of using those from time to time. Still, it's well worth reading.