Ain't My America: The Long, Noble History of Antiwar Conservatism and Middle-American Anti-Imperialism
by Bill Kauffman
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Book Summary Information
Author: Bill KauffmanEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2008-04-15
ISBN: 0805082441
Number of pages: 304
Publisher: Metropolitan Books
Book Reviews of Ain't My America: The Long, Noble History of Antiwar Conservatism and Middle-American Anti-Imperialism
Book Review: What have they done with my America
Summary: 4 Stars
I am new to the writings of Bill Kauffman. "Ain't My America" is my first book of his, but I suspect it will not be my last. I admit I am a product of a conservatism that has morphed over the years. Pursuing a system of thought that ties all of the dangling ends together is never ending. This book has provided me with yet another piece of the puzzle and some new alley-ways to explore.
I appreciate Kauffman's self-disclosure on p. 10, "...My politics are localist, decentralist, Jeffersonian. I am an American rebel, a Main Street bohemian, a rural Christian pacifist..." I find this intellectually refreshing and wish that all authors would follow this model. No longer do I have to wonder what worldview this author is trying to foist upon me. With a disclosure of the underlying premise or presupposition, I am free to turn the ideas over on their merit.
This book is only five chapters long, but one should not be mislead by that anecdotal piece of information. The chapters are long and develop threads of thought that appear to need extended treatment in these broad buckets he designed. For me, one of the true revelations was Kauffman's extensive treatment of George McGovern. I think there is some similarity between McGovern and Goldwater in that, absent a personal study of these two figures of near history, one's view of these men is likely to be shaped entirely by the media of their day. It seems that both of them suffered the fate of having their stories managed and told by others. On p. 134, McGovern's depiction of life in a small town sounded like something lifted right out of a speech of today's vice-presidential candidate. "there is a wholesomeness about life in a rural state that is a meaningful factor. It doesn't guarantee you are going to be a good guy simply because you grow up in an agricultural area, but I think the chances of it are better, because of the sense of well-being, the confidence in the decency of life that comes with working not only with the land but also with the kinds of people who live on the land." Kauffman blames the "neoconservatives" for framing a story much different than this as it pertains to McGovern. It seems to me in the game of politics, if you don't tell your story others will. In other sections of the book Kauffman describes choices McGovern made that may have contributed to his story getting away from him. I will admit that I intend to read a sympathetic biography of McGovern's life as a result of Kauffman's treatment.
Here is my rub with "Ain't My America." Kauffman, a self described pacifist, gives me no insight about how I can join him in his pacifism. As a Christian myself, pacifism is certainly a natural bent of mine, but I admit I wrestle with evil, not necessarily in the world, but rather in my own neighborhood. What do we do about an 84 year old aunt who has her home broken into and all of her possessions stolen by slugs of society? I know what I want to do, but my religious convictions have to inform my behavior. I wonder if there is anything that Kauffman would consider worthy of fighting for today?
Another thing I found mildly irritating was Kauffman's tendency to associate a pejorative adjective in his every reference to Bush, Cheney, Fox News and anyone else that was identified with today's conservative embodiment. The one notable exception was Duncan of Tennessee. He consistently gives passes to liberals, I assume because they are anti-war and even though their most hideous form of elitism would scoff at the very thing that McGovern held out as a more noble way of life, life in a small town - all things local. The liberal tells us we live in a global community and we will never again see the days of Ward and June Cleaver. Those days are gone, get over it. I think Kauffman would say that does not have to be the case, and I would want to agree with him. I would like to explore that more fully.
I wish one time I could pick up a book, written in an engaging style, and not feel like I am under assault and that those I have supported are lampooned or dismissed as merely "petulantly vacant mug(s)" (p.238). An author should have as his primary goal to arouse in his reader a response, to imaginative ideas, not a reaction, to harsh or over the top words. I did find myself in agreement with much of Kuffman's summary, "...decentralism, liberty, economy in government, religious faith, family centeredness, parochialism, smallness..." (p.233), as a form of conservatism that he would advocate. This was a good read.
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