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Please click here to check the book price and shipping information ... Air America : The Playbook , by Al Franken, Rachel Maddow, Randi Rhodes, Sam Seder, Robert F. Kennedy. Jr., et al. |
Book Review New from Air America Radio, the country's first commercial, liberal talk-radio network, is an anthology of sixty articles. It's Air America : The Playbook by David Bender, Chuck D, Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, Thom Hartmann, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Rachel Maddow, Mike Malloy, Mike Papantonio, Randi Rhodes, Mark Riley, and San Seder. Al Franken wrote the introduction. The complete title of the book is: Air America : The Playbook --- What a Bunch of Left-Wing Media Types Have to Say about a World Gone Right 
Several of the article are single-author essays. In her short essay "What Liberals Believe", Randi Rhodes shows that liberals have a coherent list of principles to present. Item 5 is: "We believe in effective crime prevention, which starts with ending poverty (the leading cause of crime)." [38] "Big Money, Bad Science" is an essay by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. about the distortion of science for political purposes. An environmentalist, Kennedy compares some of the government's recent actions to the events of 400 years ago when authorities persecuted those who said the earth revolves around the sun. He asserts that President Bush has a "radical anti-environmental agenda", and that some scientists have been not only censored but also blacklisted. [131]
About the Authors Some of the articles are transcipts of conversations or interviews. Rachel Maddow interviews Al Gore [136] about the planet's environmental crisis. John Edwards and Jackie Guerra hold a dialogue [41] about about the working poor (families with jobs who are in poverty because wages stink). Humor breaks up the seriousness. The "Intersectional Awards" are funny-if-they-weren't-so-tragic newspaper clippings, sorted over according to the accompanying red lights or green lights. Yes, there really is an evangelist who uses dinosaur puppets and cartoons when indoctrinating little children about creationism versus evolution. [154] Read the tongue-in-cheek "Psycho-Political Personality Profile" to discover how politically correct you are. [184] The "Liberal Lexicon" is a glossary. It will help you understand that a "compassionate conservative" demands that "a lethal injection must be accompanied by a Coors Light." [188] What they wish they had never said is documented here to haunt them. On May 29, 2003, President Bush declared, "We found the weapons of mass destruction." [93] The publisher, Rodale, based in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, says: "Air America : The Playbook shows the failures in policy, ethics, initiative, and imagination that have, sadly, characterized the United States in the new millennium. The book offers farsighted and easy-to-follow principles that will put power back where it belongs -- in the hands of the people. It's called a democracy. Now make it one!" Air America Radio, founded in March of 2004, features commentary, guest interviews and news. The syndicated network has had recurrent financial problems. It filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October of 2006, but the staff expects to stay on the air with a significant loss on the part of the investors. The network seems to be struggling to attract a greater number of quality advertisers, and many of its current advertisers are get-rich-quick offers. Some of the affiliate radio stations are owned by Clear Channel, the huge media corporation that owns more than 1,000 music and talk radio stations in the U.S. Most of the Clear Channel talk stations are ultra-conservative. To find a local affiliate, refer to the Wikipedia list of Air America affiliate radio stations . If your local stations don't carry the network, you can play Air America Radio live on your computer . All of the compositions in the new book show passion about social justice and progress. The reader will be entertained while being educated. Printed attractively in numerous colors, the book would also make a great gift, provided that the recipient either holds anti-establishment views or is in possession of a good sense of humor. Book review by Mike Lepore for crimsonbird.com |
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Please click here to check the book price and shipping information ... This is an Amazon.com link for Air America : The Playbook by Rachel Maddow, Randi Rhodes, et al. Read a book excerpt |
Book Description from the Publisher Have you ever secretly felt that you would do a better job of running the country than the people in charge now? Well, the truth is, you're right. And you're not alone in that feeling. Air America : The Playbook -- What a Bunch of Left-Wing Media Types Have to Say about a World Gone Right offers a rowdy and incisive challenge to the astoundingly stupid ideas and actions of the Bush administration. Here's what the loudest and funniest voices in talk radio have to say about taking back your country. Air America stars Al Franken, Randi Rhodes, Sam Seder, Rachel Maddow, and the rest of the network's lineup have created a simple, bracing referendum on stopping the madness and getting maximum mileage out of your citizenship. This book is a call to make the United States of America work for you, not vice versa. Twelve in-depth, thought-provoking original essays by the heavy guns at Air America map out the deep-rooted problems that confront this great country and point the way to a better future. Fascinating conversations with high-octane visitors such as Vice President Al Gore and President Jimmy Carter, as well as rising stars such as Senator Russ Feingold and Governor Mark Warner, illustrate how Air America, every day, showcases the fact that progressives do have a plan for making America great again. Their lively interviews are included alongside riveting exchanges that testify to why live radio remains such a powerful medium, even in the age of 500 TV channels. Here is Randi Rhodes confronting Ralph Nader over his controversial third-party presidential bid in 2004. Here are Al Franken and Joe Conason taking author Ed Klein to task over the shoddy journalism in his attack-biography of Hillary Clinton. Memorable appearances by progressive activists such as Whoopi Goldberg, Robert Redford, and Michael Stipe round out the collection, making Air America : The Playbook the one truly complete picture of what progressive thinkers have to offer the United States today. Critics predicted that Air America would be a fly-by-night adventure in liberal folly: the radio network that wouldn't last the week. Instead, in twenty-four dynamic months, it has risen to become the most charged and entertaining forum for citizens committed to change. In this entertaining and informative volume, the collective expertise of Air America's extended family has been distilled to show readers what went wrong after George W. Bush took office, why, and how to fix it. It all begins with understanding who is pulling the strings -- how deliberate campaigns of misinformation on everything from Iraq's so-called weapons of mass destruction to global warming have obscured the truth about the country's real problems. In a time when short-term profits of corporations and the narrow-minded values of the religious right have trumped every other concern, the regular citizen is looking for a way to fight back. Air America : The Playbook shows the failures in policy, ethics, initiative, and imagination that have, sadly, characterized the United States in the new millennium. The book offers farsighted and easy-to-follow principles that will put power back where it belongs -- in the hands of the people. It's called a democracy. Now make it one! Book Reviews "This is such a welcome development, and not a moment too soon." -- Jackson Browne "Your unique voice is informing and entertaining America. I wish you many years of continued success." -- Rep. Nancy Pelosi "The influence of the average citizen wielding knowledge and strong opinions has shrunk, and we've got to fight back. Air America is a big part of the push back." -- Al Gore "You're growing faster than the deficit under the Bush administration, and I'm glad to see it." -- Rep. Jerry Nadler "A great organization. I think the future is going to be more assured because of the work of people like Air America." -- George McGovern "Thank goodness for a strong progressive voice on the radio." -- Sen. Dick Durbin |
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Please click here for current price and shipping information ... This is an Amazon.com link for Air America : The Playbook |