62. 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America

100 People Who Are Screwing Up America (And Al Franken Is #37) - Bernard Goldberg

A book full of the expected cast of characters and then some I did not know about. Mr. Goldberg says this is his list and that there won't be two people in the whole country that agree with all of it. The following paragraph is from the introduction:

"And it won't take you long to notice that there are a lot of liberals on the list, which, of course, is just how it ought to be. If I were compiling the list years ago, say, when I was in college, there’d be a lot of conservatives on it. But this isn’t years ago, and besides, I’m smarter now than I was back then. And, believe it or not, it’s not so much because of their left-of-center politics that they’re on the list, as because of their willingness – make that eagerness- to live up to the most embarrassing stereotypes many of us hold about today’s cultural-elite liberals: that they’re snooty, snobby know-it-alls, who have gotten angrier and angrier in recent years and who think they’re not only smarter, but also better than everyone else, especially everyone else who lives in a “red state”-a population they see as hopelessly dumb and pathetically religious. And it is precisely this elitist condescension- this smug attitude that middle America is a land of right-wing yahoos who are so damn unenlightened that they probably don’t even know where the Hamptons are- that hurts liberals and their causes way more than it helps them…”

So, who does Mr. Goldberg put on his list?

The expected: Al Sharpton, Michael Moore, Jesse Jackson, Anthony Romero (ACLU), Jimmy Carter, Paul Krugman (NYT), Noam Chomsky, John Edwards, Al Gore, George Soros, Howard Dean, Maury Povich, Jerry Springer, Al Franken, Markos Moulitsas (Daily Kos), Eminem, Ludacris, Michael Savage, Howard Stern, David Duke, Oliver Stone, Jimmy Swaggart, Tim Robbins, etc.

Many of these folks have multiple reasons to be on the list. I was surprised by the reasoning Mr. Goldberg used for a few of them. It was not the straight forward reasoning.

There was a section at the beginning where people within certain cultural aspects of out country are causing problems. These were: 1)America Bashers…people who think America is always wrong. 2)Hollywood Blowhards…just because you can act or sing does not make you smart nor do I care more about your opinion. 3)TV Schlockmeisters…like Springer, Povich, Montel, Donahue…cheapening us on an hourly basis. 4)Gangsta Rap…all about bitches and violence and drugs…where are the feminists anyway? 5)American Jackals…lawyers looking to sue and sue and sue and sue and…sue again. 6)The Offended…everyone is a victim of something. 7)Racial Enforcers…NAACP etc 8)White Collar Thugs…Enron and the total greed come to mind. 9)Sex Warriors…feminists without a cause. And more….

Then there is a list of 100 individuals. The above mentioned folks are on the list.

100: Rick and Kathy Hilton…”Paris has an excuse. She’s a moron. But her parents can’t be let off so easily.”

97. Todd Goldman…the guy who made boy bashing t-shirts. “Boys are stupid. Throw rocks at them.” Funny? Yeah…if you have no brain it is hilarious.

88. Aaron McGruder…the creator of the cartoon The Boondocks. The dude is just full of hate.

86. Chris Ofili…Paint a virgin Mary, cover it with cow manure and tiny photos of breast…call it art. Come on dude…controversial is not art and it only plays to a certain crowd.

85. Dumb Celebrities…Cameron Diaz, Fred Durst, Janeane Garafolo, etc.

84. The Vicious Celebrity…Alec Baldwin, Sean Penn, Janeane Garafolo, etc.

83. The Dumb and Vicious Celebrity…Linda Ronstadt, Martin Sheen, Janeane Garofolo, etc.

82. Laurie David…Larry David’s wife. She likes to “confront” SUV drivers in LA and push her global warming agenda…and then fly in private corporate jets and live in mansions. When she is “confronted” she says “Everybody has to strike their own balance between how they want to live and how they can reduce their impact.” Oh, Laurie should be able to make choices, but not YOU!

Ahhhh. I can’t do it. I was going to try and keep the countdown going. I can’t.

There are lots of university folks, lots of politicians, lots of activists, lots of celebrities…go read it if you care. I am done with it.

I did like the book. It was a bit different. At least Mr. Goldberg explained his reasons for each and every choice he made.