The Truth (with jokes)
by Al Franken
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Book Summary Information
Author: Al FrankenEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-09-26
ISBN: 0452287677
Number of pages: 384
Publisher: Plume
Book Reviews of The Truth (with jokes)
Book Review: Keep it up, Al...please!
Summary: 5 Stars
How can anyone think the Bushes, DeLays, and Cheneys of the world are in it for anything other than money and power? Why do the electorally jiggered "we" keep electing them to office, in defiance of commen sense and the self-interest of the overwhelming majority (of non-obscenely wealthy, non-power-wielding Americans)? This is one of the great mysteries of our times -- a triumph of cynicism, dirty politics, and declining standards.
Thank G-d for the Frankens of this world -- sadly, too few -- who have made it their work to expose the lies, the corruption, and the abject sleaziness of the right-wing elect and its lackey press (Fox network and friends). The epilogue to AF's latest looks forward to a time, not so far off, when Americans will reflect on these last 8 years as an aberration in our nation's progress (ahead and back again) towards achieving a democracy worthy of the name, under a government genuinely committed to social, economic, and environmental justice.
I wish I could share AF's optimism. The 'ascendancy' of the right, in recent years, represents nothing like the mandate that the right so often claims, but mandate or no, the damage that has been done (to our environment, to our standing in the world's esteem, to our economy, to our schools) by our current leadership has been so profound, that it's hard to imagine we can recover -- the more so since doing so requires that our citizenry put officials in office who truly have the public's interests at heart, a dubious proposition at best.
If AF has reason to hope this might come to pass, though, then that's one good reason for me to consider suspending my disbelief for a while. In an age of an almost completely toothless news media, when the likes of Tim Russert and the New York Times allow the Hannitys, O'Reillys, and Limbaughs of this world to make facts simply by saying they're so, AF has done us all (once again) an enormous service by exposing lies and the liars who propagate them. That he has done so with just the right blend of righteous anger and humor makes TT(WJ) as entertaining as it is stirring. Keep 'em coming, Al!
Summary of The Truth (with jokes)
Al Franken?s landmark bestseller, Lies (And the Lying Liars Who Tell Them): A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right, was praised as a ?bitterly funny assault? (zThe New York Times) that rang ?with the moral clarity of an angel?s trumpet? (The Associated Press). Now, this master of political humor strikes again with a powerful and provocative message for all of us.
In these pages, Al reveals the alarming story of how:
- Bush (barely) beat Kerry with his campaign of ?fear, smear, and queers,? and then claimed a nonexistent mandate.
- ?Casino Jack? Abramoff, the Republicans? nearest and dearest friend, made millions of dollars off of the unspeakable misery of the poor and the powerless. And, also, Native Americans.
- The administration successfully implemented its strategy to destroy America?s credibility and goodwill around the world.
Complete with new material for this paperback edition, The Truth (with jokes) is more than just entertaining, intelligent, and insightful. It is at once prescient in its analysis of right-wing mendacity and incompetence, and inspiring in its vision of a better tomorrow for all Americans (except Jack Abramoff).
Nearly a year after the presidential election of 2004, Al Franken is still checking facts, exposing lies, and trying to clear the record as he sees it. Sneering at President Bush's declaration of a mandate after a two-and-a-half percent victory, he deconstructs Bush's 2004 platform of "fear, smear, and queers," and explains how the president has done some flip-flopping of his own. He offers comment on well-known stories, including the Terri Schiavo case, and some more obscure, such as reports of forced prostitution, indentured servitude, and squalid conditions at clothing factories in Saipan (which is part of the American Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands). Franken focuses on Tom DeLay's connection to the territory and his efforts to prevent bills from being passed that would have required Saipan to follow U.S. labor laws. Iraq, too, is discussed, from its planning stages to the huge sum of money currently unaccounted for, including $8.8 billion missing from the Coalition Provisional Authority's coffers.
On the home front, Franken covers President Bush's attempt at Social Security reform, explaining how they came up with the projected shortfall figure of $11 trillion. For one thing, they adjusted life expectancy to 150 years, while leaving the retirement age at 67: "That's an eighty-three-year retirement. They're never gonna get to that without stem cell research." He also takes some wickedly funny swipes at Karl Rove, lobbyist Jack Abramoff, pundits and hosts such as Rush Limbaugh, Tim Russert, and Sean Hannity, and, of course, President Bush. The Truth succeeds in providing ammunition to liberals and others dissatisfied with the current power base in Washington, D.C.--only this time (with jokes). --Shawn Carkonen
An Exclusive Video for The Truth (with jokes) from Al Franken
We try to keep things civil in our customer review section, but Al Franken, who apparently trained at the Saturday Night Live school of conflict mediation, didn't get the message in his exclusive video for his book The Truth (with Jokes): see high bandwidth and low bandwidth versions.
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