The Revolution: A Manifesto
by Ron Paul
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Book Summary Information
Author: Ron PaulEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-09-24
ISBN: 0446537527
Number of pages: 208
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Book Reviews of The Revolution: A Manifesto
Book Review: We Are Here!
Summary: 5 Stars
We all remember the plaintive wails of the Dr. Seuss Lilliputians in "Horton Hears a Who", crying out from their well-ordered clover flower world for recognition from unseen tormentors outside. Omnipotent and obtuse, these giants had the ability, and the inclination, to destroy the lives of an entire populace out of sheer ignorance and institutional perogative. So it is for us, the American people, Ron Paul argues in "The Revolution", as we struggle against the overreaching fist of the Federal government, and our voices must merge and cry out as one to save the life of the future.
Ron Paul isn't just an excellent writer, he's a sharp and intuitive thinker, and all of the ideas here are worth their weight in gold, the only currency in which he'd be inclined to trade them. While tight and disciplined, the narrative is always accessible and often engrossing, with liberal use of anecdote and priceless quotes from great men that are unlikely to be encountered elsewhere. One of the most startling and powerful is this from George Washington: "Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master."
Paul has a regard for the founding fathers approaching religious fanatacism, and that's always a double edged sword. His exegesis of their intentions and dissection of constitutional probity is always trenchant, and casts an unforgiving light on the dark corners where the termites of bureaucracy chew away against the very foundations of our society. But in his zeal Paul leaves the reader feeling vaguely treacherous if any of his policy prescriptions seem too purist, impractical, or even, gulp, misguided.
On foreign policy Paul struggles to free himself from the net of an isolationist label, with mixed results at best. He presents an air-tight case regarding the founding father's aversion to any type of activism when dealing with international issues, and traces our current woes with terrorists back to the interventionism of Teddy Roosevelt. He's right to point out that the constitution isn't a malleable document, and shouldn't be exploited to the advantage of any particular interest group, least of all the one it was designed to protect against: the Federal government itself.
But the fact is that the world is a malleable place. It seems particularly specious to blame the advent of Hitler on the excesses of the Versailles treaty, and this reader just didn't buy the idea that all of civilized society's struggles with radical Islam are the result of "blowback". Paul never loses his intellectual discipline on foreign policy, but on some of these issues that conscientiousness is actually a hindrance, the classic ivory tower conundrum. The ideas are all solid, but events don't cooperate, and they don't fit into the unique cause and effect paradigm of U.S. government overreach. There are other governments out there, other sources of malfeasance, and as a nation we have been, and will continue to be, forced to confront and neutralize them.
The subsequent chapters on the constitution, economic freedom, civil liberties and the rest, all resonate with exceptional clarity, and the force of Paul's arguments snowballs with each page. In a few short paragraphs he dismantles any logical case for the excesses, or even the existence, of the Federal Reserve, or more famously, the IRS. Why indeed do we need a federal budget 40% higher than it was in 1997? Why is government in the business of subsidizing special interests, but for the fact that the benefits of those subsidies are concentrated, and the costs diffuse? How does regulating George McGovern's New England Inn out of existence help the cause of small business development nationwide?
Throughout "The Revolution" Paul inspires lots of nagging questions like these. But the main one, the one he weaves through the whole book, is really a statement about questions: we are asking the wrong ones. We are debating frivolities. It's not about earmarking, it's not about fiddling with tax cuts, it's not about any specific lobbying group. It's about the exponential growth of federal spending, the tinkering of the Federal apparatus with the workings of the markets, and the resultant economic misery of the nation. We have to fundamentally re-think government involvement on any and all levels of economic life, not just nibble around the sides. And it's in his bold presentation of this assertion that Paul bestows his main service both in this book and in his political career.
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree; in the case of the Paul family it seems never to leave the tree. At this writing Ron's son Rand Paul (wonder where the first name came from) has bucked the Repulican establishment in Kentucky to win the primary for the open Senate seat there, spouting the ideas in "The Revolution" all through his campaign. Like Dad, he promptly inspired accusations of fringe loonyism. But let the powers that be laugh. It's a compelling time for the word to become flesh.
Summary of The Revolution: A Manifesto
Available in paperback for the first time.This Much Is True: You Have Been Lied To.
- The government is expanding.
- Taxes are increasing.
- More senseless wars are being planned.
- Inflation is ballooning.
- Our basic freedoms are disappearing.
The Founding Fathers didn't want any of this. In fact, they said so quite clearly in the Constitution of the
In THE REVOLUTION,
Despite a media blackout, this septuagenarian physician-turned-congressman sparked a movement that has attracted a legion of young, dedicated, enthusiastic supporters . . . a phenomenon that has amazed veteran political observers and made more than one political rival envious. Candidates across
"Dr. Paul cured my apathy," says a popular campaign sign. THE REVOLUTION may cure yours as well.
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