Rating: 
Summary: Superbly entertaining; makes good points as well.
Review: This wonderful little gem is something I would assign in a second were I a teacher of American history in a liberal school like Berkeley where, contrary to the alleged situation in the rest of the country, undergraduates are forced, via a required class, to be sensitive to American diversity, which (in the class I took there) ended up containing a great many cliched leftist attacks on white males, heterosexuality, Christianity, and many favorite targets of Bay Area lefties. This book attacks the liberal scapegoating of poor, uneducated whites that is prevalent in the "liberal media." It does this with a rather impressive array of evidence combined with a hilarious argumentative style which, regrettably, will almost ensure the book's absence in American history courses. Jim Goad doesn't hate anyone but jokingly advocates the enslavement of all white liberals. (It's a joke.) But on the way he points out American hypocrisy in, for example, thinking it abhorrent to ridicule poor, uneducated blacks but hilarious to ridicule poor, uuneducated whites. He explodes the conflation between the Old Boy Network and Good Old Boys and writes the funniest critique of liberal free weekly newspapers that I have ever seen -- for he worked for one himself and knows them intimately. This book will have you listening to Elvis in no time, if you don't already. If you are one of those humorless uptight liberal types who haunt my steps in the Bay Area, you will probably dislike this book; but, if, like me, you are somewhat left of center but enjoy reading viewpoints from many angles, especially if they are written well, you will adore this book.
Rating:
Summary: Surprisingly Great Book
Review: This was a very well done book that should be read by anyone in the humanities.I've seen a number of 4/5 star reviews of this book, yet a couple 1 star reviews, usually by individuals spouting some nonsense about blacks vs whites. It's OBVIOUS these persons did not even read the book! Heaven forbid whites have been as oppressed as blacks! you might even have to get off the pity-pot. "If class is more important than race, then why do poor whites, in general, despise people of color more than middle class whites?" says one of the aforementioned persons. How do YOU know that?? Is there some study I'm not aware of?? About 90% of white/black marriages are LOW class, not middle/upper class marriages; that entirely refutes your ignorant supposition.
Rating:
Summary: must read
Review: A fun and enlightening read for anyone who does or doesn't want to get in touch with their redneck roots. Also an essential to the serious student of American history or sociology.
Rating:
Summary: A MUST READ
Review: Of the last 100 books I've read, I'd put this on the top!
Rating: 
Summary: Used to like J. Goad...
Review: ...I actually used to like J. Goad in that hipster/ironic way back in the day. But you know what? When all is said and done, he's a jerk. He beat his wife for years. And beats his girlfriends. Complete jerk. So, he might be articulate enough to write a tome, but if he were not "articulate" he'd just be called what he is. A jerk. But the hipster legions who follow him are too dense to realize that this one of the most dangerous and sickest people ever to be given a voice in the media. When you read what he has to say, just keep in mind. None of it is irony. This dimwit believes it all.
Rating:
Summary: Razor Sharp
Review: If you decide to read this book, you are in for a major treat. This is a book unlike any other. As I read the book, I kept wondering how it ever got published. Jim Goad is one angry redneck, to be sure. His goal is to show how poor white trash has become the only acceptable scapegoat left in this country. Along the way, he rides roughshod over every type of politically correct supposition known to man. Goad doesn't care a whit about whiny blacks or liberal do-gooders. He doesn't give a fig about conservatives with their big-business loving mentality, either. Goad is concerned with one thing: the mistreatment of people, regardless of their skin color. Goad reduces the ills of poor white trash to one simple formula: economic exploitation by the wealthy. Goad believes that the rich, throughout history, have consistently played off classes against each other in order to maintain their privileged status. The recent black vs. white warfare is just the latest incarnation of this exploitation. Goad disproves the widespread belief that blacks suffered alone. The majority of whites in America got here as indentured servants, many of whom were kidnapped and tossed on a boat against their will. America also served as a dumping ground for poor white criminals. The indentured servants were often treated worse than black slaves. Owners of indentured servants knew that they only had a limited amount of time to exploit these white slaves, so they worked them to a frazzle. Goad cites statistic after statistic to show that the vast majority of whites had it as bad, if not worse, than blacks. Most of the book concerns razor sharp insights into white trash values. Goad looks at Elvis, Bigfoot and snake hugging Christians and sees within them new religions of the trash class. Militias and conspiracy addicts are also examined and shown to have somewhat of a basis for their paranoia. Probably the best part of the book, in my opinion, is when Goad describes a night out on the town in a poor white bar. His observations on the denizens of this bar are hilarious and sad at the same time. Most of the time that is the charm of this book: it is thigh-slapping funny. I would love to quote to you some of the witty aphorisms contained in this book, but I can't because they are so obscene. If you are not a fuzzy-wuzzy liberal, you'll laugh at this gem of a book too. After reading this book, I'm sure my reparations check is only a trip to the mailbox away. Highly recommende
Rating: 
Summary: Took the easy way out.
Review: I'd heard a bit about this book and the author (as well as read an interview) before this book, so I was quite interested to read it. It is worth a look. The best thing about this book is definitely his writing style. He's caustic, and he doesn't pull punches. He also doesn't care whom he offends. I guess you'll either love that or hate it. I love it personally. I certainly found this book informative historically. I was under no illusions about most of the material beforehand, but it was still interesting and intriguing. My main problem with Goad was the philosophical conclusion he drew from all of this. He's often been described as a libertarian (although I think he refuses the title). I don't find this to be accurate. Any libertarian (myself included) would find him incredibly frustrating for what amounts to acceptance of the status quo. At the end of the day, after all his shouting dies down, Goad not only accepts his place in life, but revels in it. The upper class doesn't need to keep him in his place because he's the first to put his hand up for that job. He becomes a self-fulfilling stereotype, just like all those he criticises. Whilst I found this book to be great entertainment, as well as interesting history, I found its philosophy profoundly disappointing. Goad is a very intelligent and capable man, and it seems a shame that he should wallow in self-pity and self-oppression.
Rating:
Summary: An absolutely phenomenal book....
Review: This book remains a favorite of mine several years after I first read it. This is the story of 'white-trash' in America-- a people set apart-- by their historically low socioeconomic status, their backwards backwoods culture, and the tremendous scorn that proper society has heeped upon them for generations. People here are characterizing Goad as a liberal: there is nothing further from the truth. Most likely, Goad is a libertarian: he shouts on high perches above both the left and the right. This book is a polemic: a shout in the dark against the scourges of political correctness, the welfare state, affirmative action, and also rich, liberal, sentimental white people. Goad sounds old-order Marxist at times. He is riotously funny, perceptive, and this book truly is one that most people are unable to put down. This book is absolutely phemonenal, and should be reading as much in the hallowed halls as in the shopping malls containing Wal-marts from West Virginia to North Dakota. This is a book that is truly a necessary read....
Rating: 
Summary: Enlightening & Entertaining
Review: I was always interested in why someone was designated a "redneck" or "hillbilly" and have tried asking many American friends but all they have been able to tell me are stuff I already know. Perhaps it is coz they come from middle class white families and have their own ideas and prejudices against this particular class of people. Goad's book really managed to give me the perspective from the other end of it...being a self-confessed "redneck" -- whatever that means. It's not like in Singapore we do not have prejudices of our own, but the "redneck" phenomenon is something very unique. Behind Goad's humour and sarcasm is alot of anger and bitterness on his part as he has been judged according to the social class he comes from, and his book is a winning retort against a nation of people who has put him down. Give me any middle or upper class git who can express his views in the way Goad has. Although I found Goad's book entertaining and humourous, it was also very sad when you think about it, the world seeing people for where they are from, for their colour, for their money or lack thereof, rather than what they are and we are all guilty of judging people wrongly. I guess the "rednecks" just have it worse. I still read redneck jokes when I come across them but I dun mind them anymore. Goad's well-researched book is a must for everyone who is interested in society and what moves and guides us. The sections on historical roots of the redneck/ white trash nonsense is also engaging. What is especially interesting is the fact that "red neck" is territorially specific and applies only to the American continent while "white trash" seems to be applicable to anywhere in the world with a lower class white population. Perhaps more could be expanded on the difference among the various terms used and the reasons behind them.
Rating:
Summary: A "Working-Class" Masterpiece
Review: I am now reading this book for the third time. Mr. Goad manages to single-handedly repaint a portrait of American and European history based on obscure facts not found in either modern or antiquated history books. With relative ease he seems to smite the viewpoints of both white liberals and conservatives. But, unlike most of his contemporaries who would just leave it at that and gloat over his/her intellectual prowess, he offers ideas on how these "race" and "class" problems can be solved. I beleive "EVERY WORKING-CLASS AMERICAN" regardless of race, creed or color should read this book. As a result of reading this book I find myself knowing exactly who I should be angry with and why.
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