Rating: 
Summary: Funnier than "Seabiscuit"
Review: In the last couple years I've read two books that I couldn't put down. One was "Seabiscuit", which is about a plucky little horse. The other is "Lies (and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them)" by Al Franken, who is a plucky little comedian and fabulously well-received corporate speaker.These are both really, really great books. Both are filled with great truths, a lot of heart and emotion, and each has its own tale about standing together against the establishment and winning. Actually, there was more winning in "Seabiscuit". But I have to admit that "Lies" is waaaay funnier than "Seabiscuit" (the book, anyway -- the horse was reportedly quite a punster). In "Seabiscuit" there's a compelling story about a huge pile of horse manure that had accumulated over many years near the racetrack in Tijuana. One night it started to rain and the place became flooded. The water seeped under the dung heap and the thing started to move. Pretty soon, the entire fecal mountain went sliding across the racetrack and out the gates until it finally disintegrated in a horrible, stinking mass right there in the middle of town. Similarly, in "Lies" Al Franken takes us on a detailed tour of the steaming heap of poop that suffices for conservative thought in America. Maybe that should be "conservative movement". Al and his fifteen member brain trust ("TeamFranken") expose and easily refute the myriad lies and stupidity foisted on the public by pundits like Ann Coulter, Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity and politicians like, oh, the entire Bush administration. "Lies" is also similar to "Seabiscuit" because it tells the truth in such a compelling manner that you instinctively *know* it's true, and the truth is even backed up by something called "facts". If you've ever been confused by right-wing rhetoric and you know in your heart that it's wrong but you can't quite put your finger on why -- get this book. It fingers the right quite a bit. Let's hope that Al Franken's book is like the beginning of that rain in Tijuana. Buy the book. Share it with your friends. Better yet, make them buy the book. Share the book (or even some of the truths in it) with some conservatives and maybe it will make them question the lies they hear every day on Fox TV and talk radio. Once the word gets out, maybe that whole steaming pile of dung will start to slink off and disintegrate. But make no mistake. There are very few references in "Lies" to horses. OK, Ann Coulter maybe. And a little thing about the civil war. But that's it.
Rating: 
Summary: its about time someone stuck it to the cable news channels
Review: In the last ten years the cable news channels have manufactured scandals during the clinton years(whitewater,"travelgate",mark rich and even monica)while ignoring more serious matters during the dubya years(the stealing of election 2000, the saudi connections,haliburton,enron ties to bush,energy task force,etc.)Most glaring among the biased media outlets has been the so called fair and balanced FNC, although other newa outlets have also been biased.Thus it comes as a relief to see that someone to the left of the Republican National Committee is finally willing to fight back,albeit in a humorous way. Since liberals are routinely portrayed, even in the New York Times as down on their knees and out for the count, it is good to see the fiesty Al Franken take his shots.
Rating:
Summary: God Bless TeamFranken
Review: In the scary world of Bush's Politburo and his pitchfork yielding shrill squad, it's reassuring to know that TeamFranken is out there vigilantly exposing these anti-American forces of evil. And hats off to U.S. District Judge Denny Chin for throwing out Fox's litigious attempt at book burning. "It is ironic" he said "that a media company that should be seeking to protect the First Amendment is seeking to undermine it". The painful truth to the lying liars is that you can only fool some of the people some of the time. Thanks to Al Franken (and TeamFranken), the rest of us know the real story.
Rating: 
Summary: Horrid Liberal Propaganda ... Fight This Trash!!!
Review: In the war on terror, weapons, the economy, physical resources and organization play a role. So too do spirit and soul. A new and sinister weapon is used against a nation's spiritual strength: Propaganda! America lost the Vietnam War because it did not recognize the danger of liberal propaganda. It collapsed spiritually. That may not and will not happen again! Liberal propaganda wants to break the American people's will to resist by slanders, rumors, suspicions, and with political, military, or simply general lies. The methods of liberal propaganda include: leaflets, appeals, false pictures, atrocity stories, rumors, radio incitement and systematic complaining. All those who are reached by liberal propaganda and have their will to victory reduced by it, whether consciously or unconsciously, are tools of liberal propaganda. Complainers and grumblers, doubters and agitators are the liberals' spiritual Foreign Legionnaires amidst the American people. It is often only a short step from doubting the justice of one's cause to the complete collapse of the will to resist. The Vietnam War proved this! How do you respond to liberal propaganda? If you encounter liberal propaganda in word, print, picture, radio, in conversation about the news or through rumors, it depends on your intelligence and good sense whether or not you render it ineffective. You must immediately collect the liberal propaganda material and explain what it is to citizens who have come in contact with it. I know that the greatest danger of liberal propaganda is in the phrase: "There must be some truth in it." Be careful in all your conversations and correspondence. Letters and conversations could reach the liberals and provide them with material. You must strengthen the will to victory of citizens who may be wavering. If you encounter citizens who are being overcome by liberal propaganda, confront them directly and make clear to them the enormous danger they face, appealing to their sense of honor. Anyone who becomes a tool of liberal propaganda and contributes to weakening our spiritual strength places himself outside the national community. He should not be surprised if he is treated as an enemy of the people and of the state. If all your warnings are in vain, do your duty and turn him over to the authorities. Actively oppose liberal propaganda whenever you encounter it. Also do this with foreigners and friends abroad whom you talk with or write to. If you have pro-American propaganda material at hand, include it in your letters and emails. If you find or are given liberal propaganda material, quickly write in large, clear letters "Liberal propaganda" on it and turn it over immediately to the nearest police station. Do not show such liberal propaganda material to strangers. Obey all regulations against listening to liberal talk shows, not only because there are none but also because it is your obvious patriotic duty. Know that liberal propaganda material is an enemy method of warfare. Liberal Propaganda is poison! He who falls for it is lost.
Rating:
Summary: Al Franken says what needs to be said!
Review: In these days of Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh, Al Franken is a breath of fresh air. He tells it like it is from a liberal perspective. Franken is a PATRIOTIC liberal and so am I. I completely understand and agree with his feelings about the right wing in this nation. This is a well-written book that finally says what needs to be said. There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with being liberal and American! Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: A 2 for humor
Review: In this name calling screed supported by facts void of context, Franken displays his alarming ignorance of economics and human nature. A cursory study of military history would disabuse the notions of any open minded person away from solutions dictated by Marxist theory, but clearly our author is anything but open minded. His mind is a closed shop, uninterrupted and unmoved by his factual inconsistancies, unfazed by his own ignorance, and aglow with the sense and certainty of his own moral virtuousness and its attendant superiority. What should we do with a dolt like this? Answer: put him on SNL and as his career wains subject him to being an objest of ridicule. Perhaps?
Rating:
Summary: I no longer want to bang Ann Coulter
Review: In this very funny and well-researched book, Al Franken doesn't just call Ann Coulter and other right-wing media members liars, he gives examples of the lies and shows us their intent to deceive. He also illustrates how laziness in mainstream media can allow untrue stories to go from the conservative press to a credible mainstream outlet. And still, the book is funny. Bill O'Reilly ("lying, splotchy bully") and Sean Hannity ("an angry, Irish ape-man") are completely dismantled in consecutive chapters, the entire Bush family (including Barbara) are similarly scrutinized, and Rush Limbaugh is back in another episdode of "Operation Chickenhawk." What more could a Liberal want? And yeah, I still kind of want to bang Ann Coulter. But only from behind.
Rating:
Summary: Hilarious ... and Depressing
Review: In this work, Al Franken uses facts to tackle the lies, half-truths, and falsehoods spewed forth by the neo-conservative right in recent years ... and he does so with humor. That Al Franken is funny goes without saying as he's entertained us for many years, most notably on Saturday Night Live and in his various television appearances/speeches. What is striking in this book is that Al Franken also knows how to research issues. Basically, Franken takes statements made by Bill O'Reilly, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, George W. Bush, as well as a host of others and then compares them to reality, to the facts. The result is at first humorous, and, as they sink in, quite depressing. Goebbels, Hitler's propaganda chief, once said that a lie becomes truth if repeated enough. After reading Franken's work it is clear that the neo-conservative right has bought into Goebbels theory. Even after Bush, O'Reilly, et al. have been clearly shown by Franken that their statements are untrue they keep repeating them. In short, buy this book for some great laughs but be forewarned: you'll end up depressed when you see the direction we're being taken in.
Rating:
Summary: Franken does it again! (Better than his Rush book.)
Review: In writing a satirical political tract, there is a challenge to provide enough detail to thoroughly present and defend your point of view while still being entertaining. Franken knows this better than anybody, and I bought this book with the hopes that it would match the wit of his Rush Lindbaugh book -- his supposed interviews with Rush's fact checker were particularly funny. This time, Al Franken (instructed by God himself) offers a scathing rebuke of the current crop of Republican pundits and politicians, as well as the media which he feels has become lazy and prone to sensationalism. He does this while throwing in hilarous barbs about Newt Gingrich's 3rd wife, Bill O'Reilley's splotchy picture on the cover, and the 11 things Sean Hannity knows. He also plays on the "fair and balanced" theme throughout the book as he claims to be trying to give both sides a fair shake, etc. Thank you FoxNews for letting me know about this book!
Rating:
Summary: Check the facts
Review: Initially, I was expecting a rather lighthearted expose on the Republican/Christian machine due to the author's reputation. But all of Franken's stats and musings are backed up with a wealth of sources. To all those who question the content and author's veracity, check the facts. "Lies" is a great read to boot.
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