The Ten Things You Can't Say in America

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read for every American
Review: I loved this book, and I have recommended it to many friends. He is a tell-it-how-it-is type of guy, and he says the truths about American society and politics where nobody else will. Not only will it make you think about the current position America is in, but he will also give you tips that are applicable to real life. He talks about a "victicrat," a person who always falls into the victim perspective. In other words, these people think everything is somebody else's fault. By realizing this pitfall, the victicrat can move on to being a more successful person by refusing to take the victicrat stance. I also recommend Dr. Phil McGraw - similar philosophies. LARRY ELDER is a great writer. If we all listened to what he has to say, we would be MUCH BETTER OFF!

Rating:
Summary: Why isn't he a black leader?!
Review: I thought this was a wonderfully, and thought provoking book. Yes, I am a white male, who is fairly conservative, but I am no bigot. I have black friends, and a gay family member. I love them dearly and get along with them fine, and am very in favor of them having equal rights. Did you know that Cheney and Powell are pro-gay rights in their free time? Did you know during the Civil Rights era, more Republicans voted for the Civil Rights bill than did the Southern Democrats? Remember, Lincoln was a Republican, the KKK during the 1800's attacked blacks AND the white republicans, because the Klan wanted to keep the strong Southern Democratic vote. It's too bad our schools aren't teaching those facts.

In fact, Elder is also pointing out that there were Republicans who busted their hump to get blacks equal rights. For example, Nixon was the first one to instate Affirmative Action, and Reagan increased social spending during his administration.

Elder is not saying racism doesn't exists. He is just saying that blacks need to look at how far they have come, instead of using past treatments to justify what he calles, "Victicrat mentality." Even he admits to being called the "N" word, but he said we need to not spend our energy on bigots, because that doesn't help us accomplish our goals in life.

I think we all suffer, whether we are black or white, gay or straight, woman or man. Calling Elder "smart and stupid" as one reviewer did, shows that he is having a knee jerk reaction to someone speaking the truth. Yes, it is interesting as Larry points out that blacks are the first ones to complain about racism, wanting special rights than do so other minorities that come here.

Booker T. Washingtonan African American once said this:
"There is a class of colored people who make a business of keeping the troubles, the wrongs and the hardships of the Negro race before the public. Having learned that they are able to make a living out of their troubles, they have grown into the settled habit of advertising their wrongs-partly because they want sympathy and partly because it pays."

Congratulations Larry for speaking the truth. Blacks calling him a "sell out" or an "Uncle Tom" might do best to calm down, and read this book with an open mind. They might learn something.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing Statistics...
Review: While not the most well written book of its nature (a few too many unsubstantiated anecdotal stories), the verified facts and statistics will astound you. Larry Elder has done his homework, and it is truly incredible what he has uncovered and courageously shared with the reader.

If you are even the slight bit interested in the current state of race relations, Mr. Elder has two very interesting chapters for you. Contrary to what a few other reviewers have said, the author decries both the black AND white races for the serious dilemmas facing the black community. It is not true the white race is solely to blame for black troubles, and I applaud Mr. Elder for boldly stating this unpopular fact. And yes, he does back up his statements with rather frightening (and verifiable) statistics. The rest of the book delves into politics, the myth of female inequality in the workplace, and media bias. All are presented in an well organized fashion and flow very well.

If you are a free-thinker (as both Republicans and Democrats will find reason to dislike this book) then take the time enrich your mind. Well worth a look.

Rating:
Summary: A CONSERVATIVE-LIBERTARIAN FANTASY WRITTEN BY ELDERS:
Review: Larry Elder book follows the predictable pattern of Conservative material in sensationalizing, misrepersenting facts, and their favorite sport of liberal bashing that has become tiresome and pointless.

Larry starts in the first chapter that Blacks Americans are more racist that whites without offering any real proof.

His only proof is the violent attacks on whites by Colin Fergerson and Ronald Taylor along with angry comments by blacks on racism as Justification for this claim, but no legit research to support it.

In this first chapter Elders is playing the same race card [in a sensationalized fashion] while moralizing against it in a later chapter of his book.

He knew that making the "blacks are more racist" claim would not be challenged by a mostly white conservative audience that hide their prejudices under Moral and Patrotic claims.

To them Elders is the truth teller attacking issues he knows Conservatives have never supported.

In the second chapter he claims blacks uses white guilt and have a victicrat mentality.

The claim is that black leaders and white liberals are making whites feel guilty about racism, where there is none, to manipulate those afraid of being labled racist to serve their own "liberal" goals.

Elders never explains what benefits Black Leaders and Liberals would gain from doing this, but accusing them of that is enough to [Race bait] his readers into accepting his claim.

The facts is Black leader are still concerned about racism.

White liberals, and whites in general supported the Civil Rights movement because of the South racist behavior regularly seen of national television during the 50's and 60's.

Including the reported incidents of hate violence and murder that showed the real intolerant "Southern Hospitality".

IT WAS NOT GUILT OR MANIPULATION THAT GOT THAT SUPPORT, BUT DISGUST WITH RACISM!

The white guilt myth makes it easier for Elders to dismiss the continuing problems with racism and it violent history to an conservative audience that never cared for the issue in the first place.

The Conservative-Republician party has never suported Civil Rights.

And when the push was started in the late 50's Southern Democrats like Jesse Helms switch to the Republician party because of their support for segregation, and the violent race hate methods used in the South.

But the James Byrd murder, proven incidents of discrimination by businesses and the Dept. of Justice yearly report of race hate violence continues to make it an concern for the Black, hispanic, Jewish and Asian communities that still have to deal with it even if Elders does not.

It is easy to reject the fantasy, utopia view that racism is no longer a problem that Elders presents in this book.

In every other chapter he dismisses Women discrimination; Job bias, and anything else not supported by Conservative-Republicians.

Elders either ignore or downplay all of these serious issues.

Elders takes the usual Conservative stance on Gun control that guns save lives of their owners, but some owner have used them to kill family members or suicide instead of defending themselves from criminal intruders.

The reality of this arguement is Gun control has become a Zealot issue for both Liberal and Conservative without any real solutions on how to stop gun violence!

Elder also claims Liberal Media bias, but says nothing about the many Conservative sites like NEWSMAX, WORLD NET DAILY, WASHINGTON TIMES, FOX NEWS along with many other Conservative and Religious Right sites that express a "Despised view" of liberalism, and publish Conservative views only.

And Conservative attack dogs like: Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, Matt Druge and Sean Hanity who make a issue of expressing their hate of liberalism!

Elder is another "Conservative hypocrite" screaming about "Liberal bias" while practicing his own Conservative bias!

A number of book reviews claims that Elders presents the real truth, but the only real truth in this book is the political motivated presentation of the Conservative Agenda written for those who have a "Zealot belief" in Conservatism that supports their continuing hate of Liberalism.

That the only "truth" this book offers.

Rating:
Summary: Three stars for entertainment value alone
Review: Larry Elder is much more palpable in book form than on TV or Radio. In those two mediums he comes across as peevish and hostile. In "Ten Things You Can't Say In America" Elder gives it straight, no chaser, no kiss. He makes strong points about the "healthcare crisis," the war on drugs, and welfare. In short, there is no crisis in health care, the war on drugs is a costly mistake, and welfare creates the very problems it tries to solve. He has done a great job to roundly discount several major cultural fronts, but he forsakes depth to write such a broad book. And, his partial retro-Christian Right rhetoric abruptly ends any conversation about him being "Libertarian." In the end he delivers the goods in greater potency than any other media personality, but after all is said and done he is in fact a personality. That might account for all the make-up and effectuals covering the intellectual blemishes. They don't call it the entertainment industry for nothin'.

Rating:
Summary: Blunt and no-nonsense...don't read if you are "PC"
Review: I've been reading this book over the past few months. I am a hard-core libertarian ... one should be free to choose to do whatever he or she wishes, as long as he or she doesn't harm someone else. The problem arises in how we define "harm." That's what the courts are for.

Let me say that if you find Mr. Elder's tone to be too harsh or his writing to be too condescending, then I highly recommend "Healing our World" by Dr. Mary Ruwart. She discusses many of the same issues, but she offers more insight and better solutions...without the harsh tone. (Although...I would like to see Elder's 10-point government plan enacted.)

The reason for four stars: I find Mr. Elder's rhetoric to be stimulating and it strikes a chord with me. However, while he says that he is a pure libertairan, some of the things that he asserts hint at a "right-wing" streak...while he opposes the pro-lifers, he talks favorably about conservative family values and cites illegitimacy as a social ill to be dealt with. (Sometimes he sounds too much like a self-righteous Christian Conservative. For that, I'll ding him one star.) If you want to have a child out of wedlock, then that's your business. While I agree that government entitlement programs tend to encourage such behavior, I also wouldn't want to see Bush's recently proposed social engineering scheme...I agree with Elder that private charity is much more efficient than government welfare.

He discusses race relations a great deal, but I really don't pay much attention to "race relations." I just think that it is a tremendous waste of time. I go to a college with a sizeable international student population that is also in a relatively undesirable inner-city neighborhood. Racial tensions are non-existant and everyone seems to get along. Maybe it's just me, but I think that the so-called "race relations problem" is a minor issue that is blown way out of proportion by our elitist "ruling class." (Read: our "royal family: The Kennedys!")

However, I agree with his views on the so-called "health care crisis." I see it all the time...it's so hard to schedule an appointment with a doctor b/c they're always BOOKED. Maybe if there were simply MORE DOCTORS, supply would meet demand and prices would go down. Then, we could cut back the government intervention that drives prices up.

Also, I agree with his analysis of the New Deal and the Marshall plan. Although his argument was terse, his view can be verified and backed up if you do some research on your own.

The New Deal gave us Social Security...which is a disaster...forget about the financial aspects, just focus on the moral: why should I surrender 7.5% of my income to the government? They don't save the money for me...they just pay current beneficiaries with it and spend the rest...the program is unworkable and I could make much more money even if I only bought EE Savings Bonds instead of paying the Social Security Tax.

I also agree with his points about the Drug War...there's so much money to be made if they would just legalize it. Those greedy congressmen can excise-tax the hell out of pot, acid, or whatever else. Also, they can regulate its content and make it safer to use (decrease the violent crime associated with drug use.) ...and to those who say that drugs are bad I ask this: What's the difference between alcohol and pot? Alcohol is legal.

As much as I can't stand the elitist "we-need-to-control-the-economy" Democrats, I have just as much disdain for the "Good-'ole-boys-down-at-the-Church" Republicans. Elder is right. They're both the same. If you want more of the same BS from our government, keep voting for the Reps or the Dems.

One last point. If someone means to do harm unto me, I want the deadliest, most efficient means of stopping that person. That means I want a handgun. I can't believe the hypocrisy of people like Sen. Dianne Fienstein (sp?) who would seek to ban handgun ownership while having her own conceal-carry permit; or Rosie O'Donnell, who blasts gun-owning guests on her show and openly supports gun manufacturer law suits but she hires an armed body guard for her kids. Keep guns legal. You have no right to tell me that I can't defend myself.

Rating:
Summary: Preachin' that Libertarian Gospel
Review: Larry Elder's book is nice introduction into libertarian thought. Libertarians, to oversimplify, are basically conservative economically, keeping regulations and government to a minimum, and liberal socially, letting people live according to what they think is right in their own eyes. Elder covers a myriad of hot button issues bravely and he's not afraid to say things that may offend others, whether liberal or conservative. He sounds like a conservative on many issues though.

He mentions that young black men are responsible for a disproportionate amount of crime in this country and attributes it to fatherless homes in the black community. He also promotes optimism for blacks especially, rather than a defeatist victim mentality, to overcome alleged prejudice in society and to become a success through hard work and overcoming obstacles.

He also condemns whites for condescension of blacks, holding them to a lower standard than what they expect from whites. He attacks the liberal bias of the mainstream media and has an admiration for Reagan. He talks about how government should get out of health care to lower its costs and quit restricting the number of doctors that can get into med school since there is a doctor shortage. He wants the free market and competition to drive down prices for health care.

He advocates getting government out of the welfare business, letting more effective and cost efficient private and religious charities to step into the gap of solving people's poverty problems. He says that the democrats and republicans are really much the same--tired political hacks. He offers his ten point plan to reduce government and increase our freedom and resposibility for our own lives.

As far as the war on drugs goes, he says stop it and legalize the drugs, baby. (Imagine getting some acid at a convience store). It's your body to abuse.

--What about guns? We need guns to defend ourselves against criminals who will always find a way illegally to get guns. He breaks out his stats showing that guns are used millions of times to prevent crime and assault.

Abortion? Let everyones' conscience decide. If you think that abortion is wrong, you have no right to stop someone else from doing it. (I must say he doesn't confront the counter-argument that stopping abortion protects the life of the child.)

--Minimum wage? Abolish it, he says. It destroys jobs and opportunity for blacks especially. I felt he needed to say how we could avoid rock-bottom wages under such a policy though. Market demand for workers would raise wages, perhaps?

Offended yet? Good. --Anyway, he brings out some thought provoking arguments. Some of his sentences are awkward and he uses the slang term "like" to often (he's Californian). Some arguments are faulty like the one in which he says a racist employer will be at an economic disadvantage if he doesn't hire blacks that are better candidates than whites, then he admits that blacks are generally not as good as students than whites (and therefore probably workers). Something's wrong with this picture, I don't think he's comparing apples to apples.

As far as the many racial conflicts that he covers, one gets the feeling that maybe we aren't all meant to live together and our racial problems will never be solved given peoples' desire to pick fights with other ethnic groups.

I also couldn't figure out whether he wanted to punish people for saying racist things or he wanted to go the libertarian way and let people say whatever is on their minds.

Rating:
Summary: I now vote libertarian
Review: Makes absolute sense; Elder should be syndicated instead of Rush.

Rating:
Summary: Elder makes good points, I'd fire the editor
Review: Ten Things You Can't Say in America

Mr. Elder has made some very good points in his book that might interest those constant readers of the thoughts and opinions of others. However, if one is looking for a riveting read or is interested in remaining engaged and awake during an the entire book. I would suggest "Bias" by Bernard Goldberg, "The Final Days" by Barbara Olsen, "America's Real War" by Rabbi Daniel Lapin, "The Conservative Mind" by Russell Kirk, "Uncivil Wars" by David Horowitz and the Bill O'Reilly books before this one.

Larry Elder is much better on the TV and Radio than in this book and it may be that he gets his information and answer across more efficiently in that forum. In trying to make this a 300 plus page book, he failed to do three things. First he failed to make it flow from one sentence to the next, or from paragraph to paragraph and from one chapter to the next. It simply does not flow, which I have decided must be a sign of bad publicists and/or editors. He definitely did not get anyone as capable and professional as those listed above did.

This could easily have been a 100 to 150 page book and much more interesting and engaging. It would certainly have been a much more reader friendly adventure than it was. Like I said some very good points. But they were drowned out by superfluous diatribe and never ending point making by using only two or three sources that became annoying in the long run, as it appeared that his whole book was based not on a wealth of research, but on just one mans opinions, Mr. John Lott. The book also unfortunately shifts with each paragraph form one subject to another entirely unassociated topic.

Second the spelling, word use and phrase construction was atrocious throughout the book, at times to a point where the statements do not even make sense. Certainly I am no better but I do not have a publishing staff behind me either. I would say if he had proofreaders...fire them...and if he ever writes another book, don't hire the same ones or he will fail again.

Finally Larry is correct on so many issues, bad schools, crime, guns, taxes, social security, racism, health-care, unemployment and illegitimacy. But he is dead wrong about drugs, smoking, governance and abortion. Yes a lack of individual responsibility has always been the modern day gargantuan failure of the liberal and progressive movements, but libertarians do not have the answers that our nation needs. What is needed is a conservative Supreme Court who will strictly interpret the Constitution and bring back a sense that morality and virtue are acceptable, prefered and constitutional and we would see a huge turn around.

Encouraging minorities and lower income people to "marry the government" as Larry indicates is a form of continued slavery pure and simple, but we have always known these things and Larry does not make any profound statements or suggestions about them, he just revisits the facts over and over again.

He failed to address the moral decline in America and the deviance of the rich and infamous as a major problem in our nation, a very bad oversight in the opinion of many.

The most impressive chapter however was the one on taxes and just how simple it is for the Democrats and special interest icons, to manipulate so many simple-minded voters, who continue to elect liberals to office. The lazy, gutless and deviant among us are so easily conned into swallowing this redistribution of wealth insanity, hook, line and sinker that it is a compliment to call them imbecilic.

This is a good informative book and a valuable source for statistics, polls and opinions. However the format leaves so much to be desired that it is no wonder that Mr. Elder did not enjoy the notoriety and praise for it that the others received for theirs. It simply gets bogged down in almost every chapter and puts the reader to sleep.

Not a three star due to Elder but due to shoddy publishing, editing and proofreading. Enjoyed struggling though it for the piecemeal bits of good info, but it is not on my top ten best books to read.

670 Words, Jim Ledbetter,

Rating:
Summary: The Wisdom of Elder
Review: I live on the East Coast, so I haven't heard Larry Elder's radio talk show, but thanks to his new book, The Ten Things You Can't Say in America I've had the pleasure of his viewpoints.

Larry Elder is part of a growing vanguard of black Libertarians, along with the likes of Denver Radio Talk Show Host Ken Hamblin, Destiny Magazine founder Emanuel McLittle, George Mason Universities' Walter E. Williams and syndicated columnist Tom Sowell. Like his cohorts, Elder rails against the "cult of victimology" which strangles the advancement of all who subscribe to it.

To be sure, it's a controversial book - like much Libertarian rhetoric, it runs counter to what so many people "think they know." If you've found yourself a "reluctant Republican," Larry Elder's chapter "Maybe a Dimes Worth of Difference" will explain why. As he states, "The difference between a Republican and a Libertarian is massive. The difference between a Democrat and a Libertarian is gargantuan. Libertarians believe people are smart enough, wise enough, mature enough and capable enough to manage their own affairs to the fullest extent possible."

It's an interesting take, though most Libertarians who've voted Republican can point to tons of bitter disappointments, like the '94 Republicans who ran on "term limits" and abandoned them once in office, Moderate Republicans pushing for welfare reform, while continuing corporate welfare and many more. Still, Elder is right that only the GOP has even mouthed support for Constitutional limits on government and severe restrictions on federal spending. Most Democrats seem to believe that much of the Constitution is outdated and ineffectual.

Elder proposes a ten point Libertarian agenda which includes abolishing the IRS and replacing the Income Tax with a National Retail Sales Tax, reducing government spending by 80%, abolishing the Davis-Bacon Act, removing the government from education, legalizing/decriminalizing drugs, abolishing the minimum wage, eliminating Corporate Taxes (there are no such things as "corporate taxes" because these taxes are passed on to us as consumers), ending welfare entitlements and special privileges, getting the government out of the charity industry (an idea that Marvin Olasky has written extensively about in "The Tragedy of American Compassion") and ending protectionism.

One of Elder's contentions that draws considerable ire from many people is that "there is no health car crisis." Nobel Laureate, Milton Friedman would be proud. Friedman has argued for decades that it is medical insurance itself that has driven up the costs of health care. Health care, like plumbing and carpentry, is a commodity supplied by human skill and effort. If insurance didn't mask the cost of care, we'd all be better health care consumers and the price of this commodity would reflect that. After all, any commodity is worth only what the market will bear.

What insurance does is to distribute the existing commodity and charge the consumer indirectly, either in lieu of wages (when "given" at work), or through higher taxes and/or rationing when delivered through government. In fact, the costs of "insured" health care are always higher because the middleman (the insurer) always adds in his own "costs" to the mix.

Elder puts it, "The natural laws of supply and demand don't work in health care, precisely because government has intruded...distorting incentives along the way." He is, of course, right. One of the inane platitudes of socialism is that since, health care, food and housing are all necessary to our survival, they are all "basic human rights." That's a nice, but dumb way of justifying chattel slavery, because if commodities like food, housing and medical care are "rights," than those who produce these "rights" must be enslaved or controlled. If they don't produce enough, they must be forced to be more productive, if their costs run too high, they must be compelled to offer these commodities at or below their own cost, if necessary. Slavery, the control of one human for the benefit or delight of another, is always wrong, even, maybe especially when it benefits "the greater good."

Elder offers perhaps one of his most controversial views in his opening chapter, "Blacks Are More Racist Than Whites." Growing up, I played on a number of basketball teams that were predominantly black. I can attest to the observation that blacks do tend to be more "color conscious" than whites, but that, in and of itself, isn't bigotry. For instance, after one summer league game in which I enjoyed a match-up advantage over the guy guarding me, allowing me to take and make a lot of open shots, I was given the compliment, "I never saw a white guy play that good!" Was that "racist?" I don't think so, because it was said without malice. It struck me as being incongruous with my own experiences - two of the three toughest covers for me in this league happened to be white. But that doesn't mean my reality was his. Maybe he matched up better against those players than I did.

The point is that in my own experience I've found overt bigotry to be rare in virtually every group I've come across. Still, Larry Elder gives his own examples; Spike Lee saying, "I give interracial couples a look. Daggers. They get uncomfortable when they see me on the street." Or California State Senator Diane Watson's attack on Ward Connerly, "He's married to a white woman. He wants to be white. He wants a colorless society. He has no ethnic pride. He don't want to be black." Or USA Columnist Julianne Malveaux's expressed hope that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas' wife feed him "lots of eggs and butter and he dies early...of heart disease."

Elder has an engaging writing style and his points are all meticulously backed up with cogent arguments. "The Ten Things You Can't Say in America" will be an eye opening read for any open-minded Democrats and Moderate Republicans who might come across it - for Libertarians, it's an enjoyable sermon to the choir.