I refer to it jokingly as “THE
QUESTION.” It used to bother me, but
now it just amuses me. Usually, it is
phrased like this, “Ray, how did you get
this way?” My standard playful response
is, “Are you referring to what great physical shape I am in considering my
age?” This catches them off guard, but
then they continue. “No, I mean how did you
get all of these … odd … and … radical … ideas?” If I am feeling mischievous, I might reply,
“Well, my parents were professors at Berkeley in the ‘Marxism for the Masses’
department.”
Actually, my parents were not to
blame, although my Mom would certainly applaud my determination to look at life
as openly as possible. So perhaps she
was an accessory to the crime. College
was not the guilty party either. I did
have a few inspirational professors, but mostly Higher Education could just as
accurately be called Higher Indoctrination.
No, the guilty party was - and is - BOOKS!
But not just any books. I’m talking about provocative books that seem
to shout from the pages, “I bet you were not aware of this?!” Books that shake your brain like a washing
machine on the “agitate” setting, until the neurons are rearranged. Books that reveal the beauty and majesty of
life, but that also expose the ugliness and injustice.
*******
In terms of cost, books differ significantly from the rest
of mass media such as television, movies, radio, the internet, newspapers and
magazines. Only entities with really
deep pockets have access to the major media. But book publishing continues to
be more and more available to voices with only modest financial means. And with the recent print-on-demand
technology, turning a vision into a book is now within the reach of almost any
author.
Someone with an unconventional but intriguing
manuscript has at least an outside chance of finding a publisher willing to
take a $5,000 gamble on a book. But the author
of a controversial screenplay has a much tougher time finding studio executives
willing to take a chance on a $50 million film. The result of this arrangement is that someone
seeking information on the way the world really works is far more likely to
find it in books than on TV from the nightly news.
*******
So, when the “summer reading” book lists start to
appear every June, I pay attention to them.
My perennial hope is that perhaps this season will be different. My dream is that the suggested titles will
include some hard-hitting books that will have The Malignant Overlords sweating
in their Brioni suits. But,
unfortunately, as I have sorted through the recent lists they are just more of
the same.
Most of the summer reading lists
are dominated by what many people call “Oprah books.” They typically
include about a half a dozen safe categories such as self-help books, first
love remembrances, health and diet guides, tales of dysfunctional family
struggles, novels on topics that leave the reader wondering why bother, New Age
spirituality and perhaps a memoir of a dangerous liaison. They are mostly well-written and readable,
but they are not controversial or dangerous.
They will never call into question the way you view the world.
Even though an occasional Oprah book
might advertize itself as “edgy,” it will rarely cross certain boundaries. In particular, it will not examine whether
the United States, with its violent imperial policy and its vapid consumer
culture, is a force for good in the world.
And it will never challenge the Winfrey myth that everybody can pull
themselves up by their bootstraps if they just try hard enough. This is a particularly harmful deception,
because it imposes guilt upon millions of hard working people who do not
succeed despite their colossal efforts.
What these types of non-incendiary books do is
reinforce complacency in a subtle and powerful way. The readers congratulate themselves on the
fact that they are not getting their information from the television, but are
instead reading. But these books do not
challenge the prevailing paradigm - in fact, they just strengthen the status
quo.
So, as an antidote for the usual tame and
non-threatening summer book suggestions, allow me to recommend a half a dozen
titles with some intellectual and emotional swagger. These have been important navigational
waypoints on my own personal voyage towards a deeper understanding of how the
world truly works. I cherish these
authors, and hope that they will provide guidance for you even though they
might lead you through troubled waters.
*******
A
People’s History of the United States
This great book by Howard Zinn
is the perfect medicine to counteract “AES - American Exceptionalism
Syndrome.” It should be mandatory
reading in every high school in America.
Go ahead and teach U.S. history with a standard text, but make sure that
this is also taught to broaden the students’ perspectives. Then they can decide which is more accurate -
based on the evidence. Otherwise, George
Carlin’s insistence that “our rulers do not want people capable of critical
thinking, they want obedient workers” is indeed true.
What is even more impressive about Zinn’s work is that
he did not just spout theories from the ivy-covered protection of Academia, he
walked the walk. Literally, for decades he
was in the protests and on the picket lines during the civil rights and
anti-Vietnam War crusades.
Ishmael This modern masterpiece by Daniel Quinn, which
is now taught widely in classrooms and has been translated into 30 languages,
takes the readers’ cherished views of Big C Civilization and turns them upside
down. It examines the incredible
efficiency with which our Mother Culture does not permit us to even question
whether Industrial-Techno Civilization is the only “right way” for humans to
live. And it illuminates how
harmoniously our pre-Agriculture ancestors lived with their fellow humans, the
animals and the Web of Life.
Shock
Doctrine Naomi Klein brilliantly exposes the utter ruthlessness
of The Malignant Overlords when they utilize the most horrific human tragedies
as an opportunity to expand their personal power, wealth and control. And she convincingly makes the connection
between this pathological conduct and the techniques of psychological and
physical torture. She also demonstrates
that Democracy is merely a disguise to cloak the toxic viciousness of Predatory
Capitalism.
Rogue
State I think of William Blum, who is the author
of this very important work, as a Citizen Scholar. He is neither a tenured professor nor a
coddled think tank intellectual. He is
simply a compassionate human trying to help make the world a better place. This book certainly strives to do that as it
reveals the almost unspeakable evils that the U.S. military/corporate power
elites have spewed around the world. The
evidence that he provides to support this position is encyclopedic and almost
terrifying, but his skill as a writer makes this book very readable.
When
Corporations Rule the World David Korten’s most significant book
documents a relatively new danger that has been loosed upon the world. Now that corporations, which are already
greed-crazed amoral institutions, have become TRANS-national, they are even
more ruthless. With no allegiance to a
home country, there is nothing to moderate their insatiable lust for
profits. This is not just an abstract
economic issue. It results in misery for
millions of workers and their families.
Korten presents this brilliantly in this book.
The
Vegetarian Myth This wonderful book by Lierre Keith is a
powerful critique of misguided
nutrition, Big Agriculture, and the obliteration of America’s shimmering
prairies for the sake of mono-crop farmlands.
As a 20 year vegan, who struggled incessantly with health issues, it is
written from an insider’s perspective.
Although she embraces the vegetarian ideals of justice, compassion and
sustainability, she argues persuasively that their approach is
counter-productive. This book is a
valuable addition to the human conversation about our place in the world.
*******
Allow me to circle back to the original question that
inspired this meditation: “Ray, how did you get this way?” I suspect that anyone who reads a few of
these books might soon have a very different perspective on my unconventional
beliefs. In fact, their world-views
might be so altered that they rephrase the question like this: “Ray, why aren’t you much more radical?”