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18th out of 1,336 books
—
4,914 voters
Arguing with Idiots: How to Stop Small Minds and Big Government
FUNNY.
FRIGHTENING.
TRUE.
It happens to all of us: You're minding your own business, when some idiot informs you that guns are evil, the Prius will save the planet, or the rich have to finally start paying their fair share of taxes.
Just go away! you think to yourself -- but they only become more obnoxious. Your heart rate quickens. You start to sweat. You can't get away...more
FRIGHTENING.
TRUE.
It happens to all of us: You're minding your own business, when some idiot informs you that guns are evil, the Prius will save the planet, or the rich have to finally start paying their fair share of taxes.
Just go away! you think to yourself -- but they only become more obnoxious. Your heart rate quickens. You start to sweat. You can't get away...more
Hardcover, 336 pages
Published
September 22nd 2009
by Threshold Editions
(first published August 31st 2009)
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2.0 stars. Okay...not terrible but also nothing that caused me to feel anything close to enthusiasm for the material. I was hoping to enjoy it more than I did. After having just finished Hamilton's Curse: How Jefferson's Arch Enemy Betrayed the American Revolution--and What It Means for Americans Today with its excellent discussion about America's transformation from Jeffersonian federalism to a big, bloated centralized government, this book suffered significantly by comparison and came across a...more
5 likes · like · see review
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I’ll avoid beginning this review with a silly pun like “the only real idiot is Beck” or something like that because he clearly is not an idiot, but I will begin with a joke I heard in one of my Finance classes back in college.
The premise of Beck’s book is how to argue with idiots. His answer to this is -use the facts, here is the problem with that.
A man is interviewing some people for a job and asking a basic question, “what is 2 + 2” the Statistician interviewing for the job says “Well, 2 + 2...more
The premise of Beck’s book is how to argue with idiots. His answer to this is -use the facts, here is the problem with that.
A man is interviewing some people for a job and asking a basic question, “what is 2 + 2” the Statistician interviewing for the job says “Well, 2 + 2...more
10 likes · like · see review
Any of you who have read reviews by me of other political type or current events books will not be surprised at my rating of this book. The answers given are to actual questions and objections to (here's that evil word) "Conservative" ideas and stances that I've heard given.
Yes, this is Glenn Beck....yes some of it is played for laughs....yes when you write a book containing a fictional dialogue or debate you get to put the words in your opponents mouth. All true. Still, it's a good book and the...more
Yes, this is Glenn Beck....yes some of it is played for laughs....yes when you write a book containing a fictional dialogue or debate you get to put the words in your opponents mouth. All true. Still, it's a good book and the...more
3 likes · like · see review
Enjoying it so far. It's interesting, and occasionally makes me chuckle. I don't agree with everything that he claims, but his points and data have made me think (especially in the areas of education).
***I probably did the equivalent of skimming the book. After the husband pointed out that Glenn Beck is crazy, I started paying more attention to how far fetched his information ties were. But really, I think I just lost interest in the politics of the book. The subject has never really been an int...more
***I probably did the equivalent of skimming the book. After the husband pointed out that Glenn Beck is crazy, I started paying more attention to how far fetched his information ties were. But really, I think I just lost interest in the politics of the book. The subject has never really been an int...more
My review from The Brooklyn Rail:
Glenn Beck doesn’t bother me all that much. My secret: I don’t really watch his TV show, and I’ve only heard his radio show a few times. Aside from other people’s rants about him, my only real sense of Beck comes from the occasional mocking YouTube clip where his guests pass out, he screams at his callers, or gets tripped up during interviews on other shows. So, as far as I’m concerned, he’s just another talking head. Which is okay because as far as he’s concern...more
Glenn Beck doesn’t bother me all that much. My secret: I don’t really watch his TV show, and I’ve only heard his radio show a few times. Aside from other people’s rants about him, my only real sense of Beck comes from the occasional mocking YouTube clip where his guests pass out, he screams at his callers, or gets tripped up during interviews on other shows. So, as far as I’m concerned, he’s just another talking head. Which is okay because as far as he’s concern...more
Arguing with Idiots: How to Stop Small Minds and Big Government by Glenn Beck and Kevin Balfe is divided into twelve chapters including: In Defense of Capitalism, The Second Amendment, Education, America's Energy Future, Unions, Illegal Immigration, The Nanny State, Owning a Home, Economics 101, U.S. Presidents, Universal Health Care, and The U.S. Constitution. Each chapter covers a single topic and is packed full of facts.
His arguments/replies are well researched. The book includes 25 pages of...more
His arguments/replies are well researched. The book includes 25 pages of...more
Three and a half stars, with kudos for the inclusion of footnotes this time. I've had this book for a while, but finally grabbed it on audio to keep me company on a driving trip.
I so miss Glenn when he spent more time being funny and sarcastic, and much less on emotionally embroiled fatalism; this book brought back some of that humor, but with a good dose of research.
The chapters that were most impactful were those on Capitalism, Economics, Mortgages & Home Ownership, the Nanny State, and U...more
I so miss Glenn when he spent more time being funny and sarcastic, and much less on emotionally embroiled fatalism; this book brought back some of that humor, but with a good dose of research.
The chapters that were most impactful were those on Capitalism, Economics, Mortgages & Home Ownership, the Nanny State, and U...more
Beck presents the case for individual liberty and limited government in a clear and entertaining way. Chalked full of facts about issues such as the true sources of the housing bust and subsequent economic collapse (hint: it WASN'T too much capitalism) and why government health care is a bad idea, it will give you reasoned arguments and evidence to use when debating liberals. The book is also full of interesting historical tidbits about America's founders and the roots of progressivism, along wi...more
Read the first five chapters and the last one (the reason a friend gave me the book in the first place). I believe there are some good philosophical points here, however most are carried to a ridiculous extreme (e.g., I own guns and believe in the right to bear arms, but find it ludicrous that anyone can support the ownership of assault weapons with high capacity magazines, Beck's supercilious arguments about automatic vs. semi-automatic aside). The logic is often poor, and to a truly open mind,...more
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Funny and completely sarcastic political commentary from Glenn is always entertaining. Beck makes a full-on assault of Progressive rhetoric and their so-called facts, from Woodrow Wilson's day to Barack Obama, with his collection of data belittling populist arguments of today.
Politics is one very confusing merry-go-round of statistics, agreeably all affected by presentation. Where do arguments separate by looking at the data in order to illuminate truth. Beware the slant and read everything wit...more
Politics is one very confusing merry-go-round of statistics, agreeably all affected by presentation. Where do arguments separate by looking at the data in order to illuminate truth. Beware the slant and read everything wit...more
Great information! I'm very glad/relieved to finally see sources for what Glenn has been talking about--I think it gives him a little more credibility.
I've decided, though, that I'm not totally in line with some of what he often argues in the book (does that mean I'm an idiot?) For instance, I'm not sold on the education vouchers idea. He argues that it will dramatically increase the qualities of schools, which may be possible, but I think it's more likely to get schools marketing for students a...more
I've decided, though, that I'm not totally in line with some of what he often argues in the book (does that mean I'm an idiot?) For instance, I'm not sold on the education vouchers idea. He argues that it will dramatically increase the qualities of schools, which may be possible, but I think it's more likely to get schools marketing for students a...more
Като че ли най-добрата книга на Глен Бек.
Глен се прави на клоун в предаването си, поради което голяма част от Америка го има за олигфрен. Незнайно защо, той упорито подклажда този си имидж, както е видно и от корицата на тая книга. Като кажа на някой американец, че съм фен на Глен Бек, ме гледат сякаш съм ги поздравил с вдигната ръка и Heil Hitler!
Въпрекит това обаче, нещата, които Глен обсъжда и начинът по който подхожда към това - със здрав разум, разумно и иронично, ме карат да го поставя ср...more
Глен се прави на клоун в предаването си, поради което голяма част от Америка го има за олигфрен. Незнайно защо, той упорито подклажда този си имидж, както е видно и от корицата на тая книга. Като кажа на някой американец, че съм фен на Глен Бек, ме гледат сякаш съм ги поздравил с вдигната ръка и Heil Hitler!
Въпрекит това обаче, нещата, които Глен обсъжда и начинът по който подхожда към това - със здрав разум, разумно и иронично, ме карат да го поставя ср...more
This is a great book. It certainly doesn't have the least controversial title or subjects, but for anyone who has to deal with "idiots" when discussing politics, this book is for you. For the record, the "idiots" referred to in the book are not one particular group of people. As a libertarian, Beck lambasts both sides of the political spectrum for signing onto unAmerican and idiotic ideas, bills, and programs.
I believe this is more of a reference book than anything else. The sheer number of stat...more
I believe this is more of a reference book than anything else. The sheer number of stat...more
I'm not a fan of the way Beck presents himself. He puts people off who might otherwise be interested in his ideas (I mean, the title of the book itself is offensive). That being said, I like a lot about Beck's worldview. I think he's intelligent and thoughtful, and when he's being sincere I really like him. I read this book because I was interested in facts that would help me better understand some of today's issues. I didn't read it to be told what my opinion should be, because a lot of my opin...more
This book is a fairly difficult one for me to review. On the one hand, I am not of the same political philosophy as Beck, and indeed the reason that I picked the book up in the first place was because I had been hearing so much about Beck and seeing how his name is being touted around as the new intellectual of the conservative movement. So I wanted to hear what he had to say.
There is no doubt that Beck is a talented debater and he is also a gifted entertainer. Despite the fact that I sometimes...more
There is no doubt that Beck is a talented debater and he is also a gifted entertainer. Despite the fact that I sometimes...more
This book can be described in one word: specious.
The amount of logical fallacies and sourcing follies for ten writers and nine contributors is mind-numbing. Red herrings abound. Implying that the cherry picked comparisons are the only options. The Logic 101 fails are beyond numerous and epic.Even more frustrating is their use of an index format collection of citations at the end - makes fact checking so laborious that I gave up after the second chapter. It took too much to try to figure out what...more
The amount of logical fallacies and sourcing follies for ten writers and nine contributors is mind-numbing. Red herrings abound. Implying that the cherry picked comparisons are the only options. The Logic 101 fails are beyond numerous and epic.Even more frustrating is their use of an index format collection of citations at the end - makes fact checking so laborious that I gave up after the second chapter. It took too much to try to figure out what...more
Positives: I love the graphics. And I thought his A.D.D. moments were hilarious.
Negatives: I've heard it all before. No liberal will be swayed by his arguments and no conservative has the guts to do what he is suggesting.
Glenn Beck puts a lot of the material from his radio show into print here. If you dislike him, or hate his guts, it's just going to annoy you. If you like him, or love him, you'll want to have this book at your beck and call. Yes, I punned on purpose.
He addresses, among other th...more
Negatives: I've heard it all before. No liberal will be swayed by his arguments and no conservative has the guts to do what he is suggesting.
Glenn Beck puts a lot of the material from his radio show into print here. If you dislike him, or hate his guts, it's just going to annoy you. If you like him, or love him, you'll want to have this book at your beck and call. Yes, I punned on purpose.
He addresses, among other th...more
Political views aside, I found the layout of this book distracting. The colors, fonts and insets work against it having a complete and competent message. It was a disorganized and distracting mess. The parts I did read varied greatly in writing style. The random facts were clear and brief. I found them to be enjoyable. The actual text is illogical and random. I am surprised I made it as far as I did. (For those of you counting, it was page 8).
On page 4 Beck writes the following with regards to g...more
On page 4 Beck writes the following with regards to g...more
Though I occasionally find Beck a little too sarcastic, I love his honesty. (Does that seem contradictory?) I feel like he doesn't have any motive other than love of country, and he does what he does and says what he says out of a desire to serve this country. Whether or not I always agree with him, I very much respect that and appreciate hearing a viewpoint that I don't feel is politically driven. In this book, I particularly appreciate his focus on our founding. He goes through the Constitutio...more
Sep 29, 2009
Pamela Jo
marked it as to-read
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Any conservative-minded American.
Recommended to Pamela Jo by:
I saw it being discussed on TV.
REVIEW OF THE AUTHOR:
I have not read this book yet. But I watch the "Glenn Beck Show" every weekday on the FOX News Network, and I am looking forward to reading this book as well his "Common Sense" book. That is why I added it to the GoodReads website. I wanted to be able to put it on my "to read" list.
I do know that Beck has, literally, millions of viewers every day. Bill O'Reilly is his only major ratings rival on FOX. And O'Reilly's "The Factor" has been THE top-rated cable TV show for the pa...more
I have not read this book yet. But I watch the "Glenn Beck Show" every weekday on the FOX News Network, and I am looking forward to reading this book as well his "Common Sense" book. That is why I added it to the GoodReads website. I wanted to be able to put it on my "to read" list.
I do know that Beck has, literally, millions of viewers every day. Bill O'Reilly is his only major ratings rival on FOX. And O'Reilly's "The Factor" has been THE top-rated cable TV show for the pa...more
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I thought this book was excellent. The title is a little put-offish so I wouldn't have read it except that I saw it in a bookstore and thumbed through it out of curiosity. When I saw the various charts and figures as well as the various humorous cartoons I decided to give it a try.
In case you're worried that the book is just about bashing democrats it really isn't. In his introduction he explains that there are idiots on both sides of the aisle and that for the purposes of this book, idiots are...more
In case you're worried that the book is just about bashing democrats it really isn't. In his introduction he explains that there are idiots on both sides of the aisle and that for the purposes of this book, idiots are...more
An incredibly interesting book. I've never watched his show (the clips I've seen of him, something about his delivery rubs me the wrong way and I can't get past it), but I really like that everything he says is backed up and thoroughly researched, even if I don't agree with his conclusion. There are some doozies in here about actual historical facts that are never brought up because they would hurt the cause of liberals that I found very eye opening. I do agree that the federal government is a b...more
1 like · like · see review
I wasn’t sure what to expect, picking up a book by Glenn Beck. I don’t watch much television so I haven’t been exposed to the likes of him through that venue. But how can one deny the title? As it turns out, we are kindred spirits when it comes to interpreting the Constitution (there really isn’t an interpretation required as it seems pretty cut and dried). We are also in agreement on every issue facing Americans today, and for the same reasons.
Unions once had a reason to exist in our country, b...more
Unions once had a reason to exist in our country, b...more
All textbooks should be written like this and then more people would read them. It was so well written and funny. I especially lobbed the final chapter on our constitution and the bill of rights. I learned more than I ever did in school. That is a sad commentary on our educational system. If you love our country the way our founders intended it, then read this book.
I just got finished reading the book and quite a few of the reviews put out by the "1 star" people. It's obvious the weak and feeble left is slowly falling from the mountain top you feel you've reached. It's very fun for the hard workers of this country to watch all your terrible ideas crumble down around you! Enjoy the next 3 years, they're the last you'll have!
As Glenn Beck carefully documents, only an idiot would think you can get something for nothing. Someone has to pay for an expanded, uni...more
As Glenn Beck carefully documents, only an idiot would think you can get something for nothing. Someone has to pay for an expanded, uni...more
As usual, Glenn Beck writes a hilarious book that takes a sarcastic look at how some of the "Idiots" in the world try to justify their irrational and emotional positions on controversial issues. Beck takes on gun control, the rich "paying their fair share", the "Nanny State", etc. He provides facts to refute idiotic arguments (and provides references so you don't have to take his word for it). Probably one of the best sections in the book is the one dealing with socialized health care. The facts...more
I must admit I skimmed most of this book. This is not a book meant for reading. It is full of little cute charts (Beck's book equivalent of the blackboard), blurbs, cartoons, etc. This is a Libertarian primer for the ADD person. It even has little "ADD moments" nicely labeled. It's a good book to get a handle on Beck's ideology and just how nutty he is. The problems isn't with his "facts" but where he takes them. There is a nice section on the second amendment but Beck ends up defending the owne...more
Apr 25, 2010
Bernie
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
any one who can overlook the goofy title.
For someone with a good grasp of history, a basic knowledge of economics, the importance of our American Constitution, and a dash of logic and common sense this book was a "skimmer".
For someone who has yet to, but honestly wants to attain these things this book is an entertaining, easy to read primer.
And for those currently orbiting in Liberal circles it's a must-read if they would not want to crash into the sun.
Beck pounds numerous liberal myths and half truths into the ground in workman-lik...more
For someone who has yet to, but honestly wants to attain these things this book is an entertaining, easy to read primer.
And for those currently orbiting in Liberal circles it's a must-read if they would not want to crash into the sun.
Beck pounds numerous liberal myths and half truths into the ground in workman-lik...more
This book was about political comparisons between conservative ideals and liberal ideals. Basically there are no main characters, it’s mostly a factual book, not a story, however, it is just as entertaining as a fiction. The book obviously sided with the republicans, and I can clearly see why. Democrats lie, cheat, and twist words or thoughts into propaganda. Republicans tell it the way it is, with no lies or fog of cushy words to cover the truth.
I liked how the book revealed scary truths, but...more
I liked how the book revealed scary truths, but...more
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Glenn Edward Lee Beck is one of America's leading radio and television personalities. His quick wit, candid opinions and engaging personality have made The Glenn Beck Program the third highest rated radio program in America and Glenn Beck, one of the most successful new shows on the Fox News Channel. His unique blend of modern-day storytelling and insightful views on current events allowed him to...more
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