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Summary: Horowitz not interested in truth, only in winning
Review: This is a highly valuable text for those on both the left & the right. Read 'Left Illusions' to learn how not to do things & who to avoid
3 important observations:
1)Some people enter politics for reasons not related to the cause but due to unresolved personal issues (e.g. family, parental). H. details his dysfunction in 'Left Illusions', which should be read in its entirety. These Freudian cases are not people of principle like Buchanan, Buckley, Nader or Chomsky.
They are only interested in short term political victory. They are sloppy intellectuals who will take you & your cause down with them. Note H.'s continual quoting out of context. Like Nixon before him, H. has a psychological need for 'enemies'. Building up conservatism doesn't interest him, only tearing down 'socialism'.
2) H. saw & sees the world in black & white. His life is about political war but sucessful politics is about compromise.
3)What to do with a Horowitz in your midst?
Don't give him a leadership position, don't let him make decisions but certainly don't censor him - that's what he wants, it's his life blood.
Rating:
Summary: Very helpful book
Review: This is a very helpful book. If you are like me, struggling to understand the liberal viewpoint, you will find this book to be the rosetta stone.Basically, our Judeo-Christian heritage urges us to be open, humble, generous, and forgiving. These are not qualities conducive to success in our capitalist system (my viewpoint here is perhaps biased by 20 yrs on Wall Street). Americans generally realize there is a contradiction between ethical existence as defined by a Judeo-Christian morality and success in the material world. This contradiction results in internal conflict, ie. guilt. Part of the path liberals suggest for dealing with this guilt is to turn against ourselves -- to be anti-American, anti-capitalism, and generally defeatist. This is the element of liberalism I've never been able to get. Horowitz shows clearly how this nihilist streak in liberalism developed. His point is that the conflict between Capitalism and a Judeo-Christian ethical structure has been coopted by people who are truly out to do Americans harm -- the Communists preyed on this internal conflict throughout the 20th century, and they managed to significantly influence America's liberal philosophy. The nihilist streak in liberal thought is particularly unhelpful in regard to terrorism, a simple and straightforward threat to American property and lives. I've been searching for something similar from a "liberal" viewpoint, but I've been unable to find it. I actually found Horowitz's thoughts and arguments very liberal in the sense that they are guided by an ethical bedrock, a practical sense of reality, and a rational mind. Those are qualities I've always considered "liberal." :)
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Summary: Left Illusions: An Intellectual Odyssey
Review: This new collection of 43 essays complements Horowitz's powerful 1996 memoir, Radical Son. Beginning with his early work, composed while he helped found the New Left during the 1960s, Horowitz (Hating Whitey) recounts his intellectual progression from leftist to conservative by the beginning of the Reagan administration. While Horowitz had intellectual reasons for his change, a powerful one was also personal. When a friend was murdered, allegedly by a member of the Black Panthers, the lack of concern his political allies seemed to display led Horowitz to question his beliefs. As with his other books, Horowitz explains his political shift plus his views on race, multiculturalism, political strategy, and the war on terrorism. Particularly interesting is the section containing chapters on Marx's Communist Manifesto, the environmental movement, and what constitutes the Left and Right in contemporary American politics. Horowitz of course continues his sparring with former colleagues on the Left. One does not need to agree with his political, social, or cultural views to appreciate his sharp intellectual and writing skills. Like another political convert, Whittaker Chambers, he is worth reading. Recommended for all politics collections.-
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