Online Bookstore: Regnery Publishing, Inc. Useful Idiots: How Liberals Got It Wrong in the Cold War and Still Blame America First Book

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Charen hasn't shied away from controversy in the past and this book is no exception. Liberals who purport to "love America and criticize it only to improve it," will despise this work for lumping all Leftists in with those nefarious folks whose real agenda has been to undermine the cornerstone of American prosperity, private property rights, and would like to see our republic (government action limited by our Constitution) replaced with some form of "pure democracy."

I believe that Mona Charen is right though, in at least most of her assessment of the Left (especially "the true believers"), that much of American Liberalism has been anti-American and anti-freedom. I also believe that her title is also right on the money - those who espouse anti-American sentiments while living in the freest, most prosperous nation on earth, who condemn American government without considering the broader worldview (2/3 of the "modern world" still practices chattel slavery), or decry "American Imperialism" in the face of America's history of liberating and rebuilding nations from Grenada to Kuwait to Serbia - are indeed "useful idiots," for any anti-American cause.

If you believe in the founding principles of Americanism (private ownership, free markets and a Constitutional Republic) you're going to love this book, if not, you may very well hate it.

In some respects, Charen's criticisms seem valid and she explains them reasonably and effectively. It is true, for example, that the liberal media often shows sympathy toward Communism and Socialism. Always ready to embrace the idea that bigger government is better, it's common to see news stories where members of the liberal media elite will try to sway viewers and/or readers into believing that conditions are not really all that bad in Communist countries like Cuba and that America is really the place where poverty and mistreatment of the poor is widespread. This is, of course, complete nonsense but the media always tries to paint a semi- rosy picture of Communism, no matter how bleak the true story really looks. Charen is correct when she points out this stupidity, and she backs up her claims with proof.

In other areas, though, I have to question Charen's assumption that the liberal who spouted off some outrageous claim is necessarily an "idiot" for doing so. Charen has dozens and dozens of quotes in this book from prominant liberals and many of them do, indeed, sound rather idiotic at first. But what Charen doesn't explain is the reason behind the statements. For instance, Charen points out the stupidity of Walter Mondale in 1984, when he tried to say that nuclear war is the greatest threat the U.S. and the world will ever face and that it's an issue that will define whether or not we live or die in the near future. Yes, it's true that Mondale did make statements to this effect. But Charen makes no mention at all that this could have been (and most likely was) motivated by politics. She just sticks with the assumption that Mondale is an idiot to say something like this. Politicians, as we all know (I hope!), are liars by nature. In 1984, Walter Mondale faced a task that was probably even more impossible than winning a nuclear war: He was trying to defeat the immensely popular Ronald Reagan for the presidency. Mondale had to come up with some issue to use in the race for the White House that was scary enough to possibly muster up a few more percentage points in the polls. He decided to choose the possibility of nuclear war. I don't believe that Mondale was really dumb enough to believe his own statements. I think he only did this out of desperation. He had to think of something, so he decided to play politics and use the possibility of nuclear war to scare the public. It didn't work (Mondale lost the election by a huge margin), but you can't blame him for trying. In the same situation, most any politician would have done the same thing. It doesn't necessarily mean that he believed what his own words.

Aside from that, Charen is an excellent writer, and she breaks down statements piece by piece, then uses actual lessons from history to show how the liberal speaker was way off base when he/she made the remark. She is effective, yes, but she fails to point out the motives behind the statements and some of her quotes could very well be taken out of context.

This is one of those books that will be cherished by some, and despised by others. If you worship such political figures as Ronald Reagan, Pat Buchanan, and Bob Dole, then you will undoubtedly enjoy "Useful Idiots". But if your political preferences lean more toward Ted Kennedy, Michael Dukakis, and Bill Clinton, then you should probably avoid "Useful Idiots" completely. The title of the book, the quotes, and the accusations will make liberals' blood boil!

Using her thoughtful work, here is a list of ways to become a useless idiot:

1.Blame America first.
2.Extol enforced, pervasive, subsistence equality.
3.Enjoy freedom but don't understand it.
4.Forget quickly just how wrong critics were about nuclear freezes, the benefits of communism, and the inevitability of Marxism.
5.Believe communist rhetoric, ignore communist reality.
6.Discount governments that murder its dissidents, throttle its people, and drive millions into exile.
7.Deny the value of private property and wealth, usually while having plenty of your own.
8.Make predictions or analyses as to the economic power and success of communist countries.
9.Holding America and capitalism to be standards of perfection while glossing over wholesale problems in communist countries.
10.When in doubt, hate America.

Sure, America has its problems. One of its beauties is the country's ability to accept and absorb critics and self-criticism. Bu those who see communism or socialism, here or abroad, as a better way, are just missing the picture. With all America's faults, it's the place where people seek refuge and a better life, and where both can be found.