Summer Readings Recommended
For my final column of the semester, I have decided to recommend some good reads which have helped to influence my own views (you can decide for yourself whether or not this is a good thing!). Think of it as a unique summer reading list (it's a safe bet you won't find most of these books on your professor's summer reading lists).
First of all, for those concerned about the liberal bias that often plagues higher education, Illiberal Education: The Politics of Race and Sex on Campus is an insightful book. Written by Dinesh D'Souza over a decade ago, it still applies very well even today. I would also recommend Letters to a Young Conservative, also by D'Souza, which is a great primer for conservative thought.
For those who enjoy history, I recommend A History of the American People, by British historian Paul Johnson. If you're not intimidated by long books (almost a thousand pages), this is an outstanding tome. Whether or not you agree with all of Johnson's assertions, it's impossible to read his book without coming away with great pride for being an American.
Columnist Mona Charen also offers a view of history that we don't often hear in our classes. In Useful Idiots: How Liberals Got it Wrong in the Cold War and Still Blame America First, she sheds light on some aspects of history many liberals want us to forget, such as their sympathy for communism and Pol Pot's massacres in Cambodia, which were widely denied in leftist circles.
Why the Left Hates America: Exposing the Lies That Have Obscured Our Nation's Greatness continues on this theme. The title is very provocative, but author Daniel J. Flynn (whom the Issues Committee, much to their credit, recently brought to UT) delivers the goods with example after example of the anti-American bias so predominant in the media and academia.
George Orwell's nightmarish vision of the future, 1984, is probably his most famous book, as well as one of his best. Now more than ever, we should heed Orwell's warnings about the dangers of "Big Brother."
Economics is one of the most misunderstood subjects in America today. Many Americans consider it boring subject and aren't interested in learning about it. Fortunately, Thomas Sowell has written two great books, Basic Economics and Applied Economics that make economics understandable, and, even better, readable. Sowell is one of my all-time favorite writers, and I would recommend any book he has written.
If you're a Democrat, chances are you hate Sen. Zell Miller. The conservative Democrat from Georgia is viewed by many in his own party as a traitor for his endorsement of President Bush and for his book, A National Power No More: The Conscience of a Conservative Democrat. That's really a shame, because Miller's book makes many good points that Democrats would be wise to listen to in this election year.
In the aftermath of 9/11 and in the lead up to the war with Iraq, we were barraged with pleas from the media and leftists in academia that we try to understand "why they hate us." French author Jean-François Revel has an answer. In his outstanding critique of the dogma of hatred for America, Anti-Americanism, Revel explains why this hatred is so widespread in Europe, as well as reveals its ultimate flaws. Through it all, Revel keeps the reader smiling with his biting wit.
Whether you're a Christian or not, I recommend C.S. Lewis' classic Mere Christianity, which I am currently reading. It's one of the greatest primers ever written on Christian thought. It's especially enlightening if you buy into the notion propagated by the media of Christians being bigoted, holier-than-thou zealots.
If you find yourself buying into Thomas Walker's columns, then I suggest you pick up Uncle Sam's Plantation: How Big Government Enslaves America's Poor and What We Can Do About it. Ms. Parker speaks with authority on this issue, having herself once been a slave to welfare and drugs, but worked her way out. Her story is inspiring, and her ideas provide hope for those trapped by the tyranny of the status quo.
If these books strike you as too serious, pick up James Hirsen's Tales From the Left Coast: True Stories of Hollywood Stars and Their Outrageous Politics. This book is not a scholarly work, but it's not intended to be. Instead, it is a hilarious look at some of the sillier ideas to come out of Hollywood.
I'll close with a shameless plug for my blog (http://johnnbrown.blog-city.com), which will be updated throughout the summer! I hope everyone of all political persuasions have a great summer!
John Brown is a senior in political science at the University of Tennessee. He can be reached at johnnyb325@aol.com or visit www.johnnorrisbrown.com. This column originally appeared in the April 22, 2004 edition of The Daily Beacon, available here.