Rating: 
Summary: At last!
Review: Here's a look at US that doesn't require one to go into training in order to "get it." And that's because it relies on a thing that -- while it may lie dormant in some -- all of us possess. That thing is common sense. Before I ordered The Ten Things You Can't Say in America, I read all the reviews that were available here. The only negative comment I saw at that time was one that berated Elder over the fact that he had written of a "Cal State Berkely" while no such school exists. Well, I have to say that I laughed aloud when I ran across that reference in the book. It was part of a newspaper headline that never existed either. It was intended hypothetically! I can't say enough about this book except that it is well-written, honest, and often amusing. If I had a complaint it might be that I was dissapointed when I turned a page thinking that I still had approximately 20 percent of the book left to read, only to discover that it was over. I was enjoying it that much. However, the good news is that the remainder of the book is dedicated to references for the various data that Mr. Elder used to support statements he made throughout the book. What? Basing statements on verifiable data? Such a concept! Great, GREAT book! I strongly recommend it to anyone whose common sense hasn't been allowed to atrophy beyond repair, and who either knows or can learn what a hypothetical example is.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent commentary on American life and times...
Review: This should be required reading for everyone in junior high all the way to the elderly! This guy is so on target, so logical and just so darn smart in a commom sense way it gets you all fired up. I actually had to read only a chapter every few days because there was so much to ponder, or to get infuriated over! Whether you agree with his views or not, you will respect the way he offers facts and shows the reality of situations. Sometimes I was laughing out loud, sometimes I would yell at my husband over all of the crazy, stupid things that go on in this country. My poor husband would tell me to calm down, he wasn't the one participating in the outrageous things going on, but I couldn't help myself. I would read some things out loud to him and get so riled up that I would stomp around, infuriated at the ridiculous things that our government gets away with. I highly recommend this book, it is as entertaining as it is informing and riveting.
Rating: 
Summary: The Undercurrent of America
Review: Although libertarianism is fatally flawed in the America, Larry Elder brings power to this point of view. Technically, I thought the book was poorly edited and repetitive at times, but that doesn't weaken his arguments for increasing personal liberty and reducing government intrusion. I think most Americans would strongly agree with the basic principles. I think Mr. Elder's weakest arguments were for the legalization of all drugs. Many Americans would consider marijuana, but drugs like heroine demand hard evidence and not just fuzzy principles. As a conservative libertarian, I hope everyone in the U.S. will read this book and open their mind to these issues. This book could be a gateway to more pedantic, but scholarly books like John Lott's, "More Guns, Less Crime".
Rating:
Summary: Says what most people are afraid to say.
Review: Elder broaches many taboo topics to point out where America has forgotten common sense and decency. He spells out why many problems have not gotten resolved, and why, unless things change, they'll only persist or get worse. Everything is backed up by references; it's not just him spouting off his opinion. Though I have long noticed the double standard given when certain types of news stories are reported, I never knew the media was predominantly liberal! I never knew of Malcolm X's change of heart. I never knew of the large differences the '96 Welfare Reform made.
Rating:
Summary: The Prophet Motive
Review: Like Moses descending the mountaintop with the Ten Commandments, Larry Elder, in this libertarian manifesto, seeks to lead his people out of the slavery of entitlement into the promised land of opportunity. Elder's ten taboos of political correctness translate into a latter day gospel of individual morality filtering down to one golden rule: thou shalt take responsibility for thyself. The book takes on all comers: welfare cheats, criminals, teenage mothers, youth gangs, the AFL-CIO, Medicare, the liberally biased media, and the two party system. It is the "victicrats", those well-meaning operatives of the American left, who occupy the lowest rung in Elder's pantheon of oppressors. From Hillary Clinton to Ted Kennedy, Alton Maddox to Maxine Waters, Elder deconstructs motive and policy to reveal how society's most prominent "leaders" conspire, accidentally or not, in holding citizenry down in a mire of self pity and entitlement. The book starts out with an indictment of black "leadership" and attitudes, and the first chapters are a clarion call for self-respect and personal responsibility. Elder topples a lot of totems in the first pages,but much old ground is trodden when he examines the pernicious effects of AFDC on the black (don't tell Elder to use "African-American") family. The revelations of the moral bankruptcy of Al Sharpton aren't exactly a transformative experience, either. Later, when he delves into a more wide ranging discussion of Libertarianism and its implications, things really get interesting. He offers a trenchant examination of the US health care system, the most understandable that this reader has ever encountered. The chapter on the war on drugs could convert Nancy Reagan to the cause. Gun control advocates have never had such an effective foe. The greatest weaknesses in the book come when Elder is at his most self-serving. He gives a weak argument for why he benefited from affirmative action while he would deny it to others. His indictment of the media includes such specious claims as the one that "they know nothing about the laws of economics." Since he's now a prominent member of the media, he would do well to back up such statements with at least some evidence. In the vast majority of the book, Elder uses statistics and anecdotal evidence to devasting effect. If for this reason only, he needs to apply this technique more evenly throughout this interesting work. Even with such weaknesses, Larry Elder has shown us the way on a journey to a greater humanity, and for that he deserves our rapt attention.
Rating:
Summary: I wish I had more stars to give this book
Review: Not only is the title of the book "Ten Things You Can't Say in America" perfectly appropriate, but it should also contain a sub-head reading "Especially with this color skin, or you'll be called an Uncle Tom, Oreo, Self-Hating Black Man, and More!" As Larry often relates in his radio program, "Facts are like Kryptonite to liberals," which explains why so many of them attempt to counter his well crafted points with name calling, thus making his thoughts better left unsaid (according to them). Thank, God, he says them anyway in a very entertaining and straight forward book which will challenge the minds of those who are open to it.
Rating:
Summary: Thoughtful and thought provoking
Review: Larry Elder dares to say what many it white america fear to say (not wanting to be called racist) and what many in Black america fear to say (for fear of rejection or being dubbed Uncle Toms. He says it fearlessly and directly in the manor of a grandparent talking to her daughter who has read a million books on child rearing but still can't get her kid to listen. The act of dispelling myths is a thankless tasks, particularly since so many profit by them. Elder hits each situation head on and reminds me of an incident I once experienced: At my business years ago a young black kid was caught shoplifting by an employee (also a teenager) as per standing orders he called the police. The kids mother came in fuming and asked to speak with the employee. Aranging a meeting they went upstairs and went at it neither backing down an inch. As she left she greeted another black customer at the counter, which produced this conversation. ME: Do you know her CUSTOMER: Yea, thats XXXXX, (slight pause) she's a racist. ME: Why do you say that? CUSTOMER: She doesn't like my mom 'cause she's white. At that the entire store broke out laughing. It taught a valuable lesson. Mr. Elder's similar experience brought me back. Elders points on non-racial issues are well argued and well taken as well. They are presented with conviction without being so preachy that they are unreadable. He doesn't shrink from the arguement but over and over makes the point that denying what's in front of your face solves nothing. As long as our society fails to do that we will be in a dire situation. As long as books like Mr. Elder's are published, read and thought on we will be ok.
Rating:
Summary: TRUTH and the slaying of the messenger.
Review: I thought Tocqueville's "Democracy In America" was powerful. It was, but Larry Elder is a close second. I takes a lot of guts to put your neck on the chopping block like Larry does. It also takes a lot of morals, values and personal responsibility (something that is not common in the society of today.) If you want to get in touch with what really matters in life, give this book a chance to help you see things in the clear light of day. As an author and a speaker, I know what works. Morals, ethics, princinples, values and character work. Larry teaches them all.
Rating:
Summary: This is the book!
Review: Of all the books I've ever read about contemporary America, its politics, politicians, social structures, institutions, welfare state system, social problems and prospects, this book is head and shoulders above the rest, in my opinion. The author, Larry Elder, who is a black conservative radio talk-show host, has a profound understanding of the main problems that face us as a society and their prospective solutions. Unfortunately, my fear is that loud-lunged zealots with far less insight are drowning his book and his message out with their drivel. "The statist government view shared, for the most part, by both Democrats and Republicans, assumes a large government role in nearly every facet of our lives. Whether education, health care, transportation, charity, the statist view says, 'Let government do it.' Not only does the Constitution forbid the federal government from assuming these responsibilities, most state-run functions can and should be performed by the private sector..." (Page 190) The "ten things you can't say in America" are stated in his chapter heads, in the table of contents: 1. Blacks are more racist than whites
2. White condescension is as bad as black racism
3. The media bias--it's real, it's widespread, it's destructive
4. The glass ceiling--full of holes
5. America's greatest problem: not crime, racism or bad schools--it's illegitimacy
6. There is no health-care crisis
7. America's welfare state: the tyranny of the status quo
8. Republicans vs. Democrats--maybe a dime's worth of difference
9. The war against drugs is Vietnam II: we're losing this one, too
10. Gun control advocates--good guys with blood on their hands This is the only public man today with whom, as far as I can see from his writing, I agree 100 percent. I hope you read this book, and I hope you are persuaded, as I am, that he is absolutely 100 percent correct. Joseph H. Pierre
author, Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenance
Rating:
Summary: Statements of Truth Backed Up with Documentation
Review: This is a very important book! Whatever your political bent or race, I hope that you will consider reading this book. If you do not agree with Mr. Elder's findings (I purposefully did not use the word "opinions" here) and this, his book, can not persuade you to agree, then you can (at least) rest assured that it will still be worth the read - because you should have found your position will have been strengthened by a good argument. Of course, that is true only if your rebuttal is one based on sound reason and backed up by factual documentation. I say this because Mr. Elder's findings are just that - conclusions derived by reason from factual documentation. Mr. Elder makes (what at this time in American society) are very bold and controversial statements of truth and he backs them up with independent (at least, independent of any association with him, as far as I can tell) data from various non-government and government sources. Throughout the book, Mr. Elder presents a topic (something "You Can't Say in America"), gives example after example to illustrate the significance of the topic and his statement, presents and discusses scientific documentation and other reference documents directly related to the topic, and wonderfully posits and defends one or more truths derived from reasoned examination of the presented information. I greatly appreciate the inclusion of the appendix containing well-presented supporting data and the notes section that provides other documents to which the book refers. I also enjoyed the form of argument in which Mr. Elder shows the fallacy of an opposing opinion by assuming its truth and letting it run to its logical conclusion - as in his discussion of racial and sexual discrimination by employers and retailers. Mr. Elder's presentation of ideas that are in accord with the philosophy of the founding fathers of our nation (a philosophy based upon individual liberty and individual responsibility) are eloquent, accessible to a wide audience, and refreshing to hear in a somwhat mainstream publication. More often than not, I have been disappointed by other books written by social commentators whose primary realm of presentation is television or radio. I was not disappointed by Mr. Elder's book - quite the opposite. All such books present opinions or findings and references to supporting documentation; however, they often seem to depend heavily on arguments derived from "common sense", emotionalism, or anecdotal information. Because of this, such books often lack the substantiality or credibility of a work produced by an author who has a consciously identified and honed philosophy. What sets Mr. Elder's book apart is that it is, obviously, a book written by a man who has 1) recognized that we all live our lives (consciously or subconsciously) according to some philosophy and, 2) a man who has consciously identified, refined, and bravely presented his philosophy while knowing that the majority of those around him do not agree with it. Mr. Elder's philosophy is evident in this work and it is worthy of your examination. I admire and salute you, Mr. Elder.
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