The West's Last Chance: Will We Win the Clash of Civilizations?

by Tony Blankley, Mark Warner (Translation)

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Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Islamism, History

Audiobook

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Ellis · Rating 1 out of 5]

From the title I was skeptical of this book. I am really disappointed that I didn't take the time to write my impressions after the first 50 pages. This book has some TERRIBLE logic, and I wish that I had written an example then since I don't remember it now (it's three days later and my mind is a sieve). Let's see how it continues....

Oh, man, I'm glad that is over. Well, I gave this book two stars for covering an important topic...Oh, screw it, I'm taking one down right now. I also could write a crap book about an important topic. I'm sure without too much effort, other than lots of sore fingers and a sore butt, I could sit down and write something with equally flawed logic and unsupported claims, oh yeah, about an important subject. I made notes, on some gloves while I was working, to remind myself of the "great" logic I mentioned initially. Well, I forgot to save my glove, so somewhere in a landfill, is a glove with Blankley's ideas all over it. Just like The One Ring, Blankley's ideas yearned for their rightful place and willed my glove there. I can't get into all of the reasons I didn't like this book because there isn't enough space here, and becuase I find myself torn between wanting to rant about this book, and never wanting to discuss it. It's just not fun to talk about something so crappy.

This book does mention some valid facts that we can all agree on. We do have a problem with radical Islam. After that everything Blankley said was refuse. I'll briefly mention some of the books major themes. Because we are having problems with radical Islam, this means that multiculturalism, in general, is a failure. This is ridiculous. Some of what was said on this topic made me think what some of the propaganda, like this, was like in the 50s and 60s when blacks were finally allowed to integrate. I don't know how much success we can have when we shun everyone who is different. Blankley goes to great lengths to show that we need to start having more babies, becuase if not then the Islamists will win the baby race and will soon outnumber us. He says that Europe is having problems with radical Islam because it provides lots of social programs to its citizens. Thankfully, his poor support of this claim refutes the claim itself. (The only reason to read this book is to get a look at this silliness. It may be worth reading the first 50 pages just to get a laugh.) Blankley also really gets into religion (Christianity) and statistics of religion throughout Europe and the U.S. Now, I am a religious person, and my faith is very important to me, but I have come to understand that separation of church and state isn't just in the constitution so that we won't offend the nonreligious. I think that while, of course, our values will influence our decisions, and they should, that this should be done on a personal basis. Religion shouldn't be overtly summoned to unite a people for/against a political agenda. This causes people to act without thinking about policy. It also leads to fanaticism. The leaders of my religion encourage political activities such as voting and community activism, but they never tell church members how to vote. I am always very wary of politicians and pundits who push religion to try to get support of public policy. I think it is pure priestcraft and manipulation. The involvement of religion in politics needs to happen at a personal and private level. That is where religion is effective, not in the public display and certainly not for voter manipulation. Blankley wants an official declaration of war on militant islam so that we can do things like imprisoning Arabs in the U.S. (you know, because imprisonment of Japanese Americans was such a proud part of WWII, right?).

Throughout this book Blankley hints at a lot that he doesn't say. After a while I just wanted the guy to come out and say the "unspeakable" course of action he wished for so that I could stop guessing about it.

[Joseph R. Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must for anyone who is in denial about the world today and the threat the Western World faces from Radical Islamists! Buckle your seat belt because no punches are pulled here. If you can't handle the stern truth, and you believe we should or do live in a Utopian existence, keep away. This is an extremely well-written and researched book!

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tony Blankley begins the first chapter of The West's Last Chance with a hypothetical scenario depicting occurences chillingly similar to that of the Danish cartoon controversy, where a Danish cartoonist and newspaper both recieved death threats after publishing a cartoon deemed offensive to Islam. With such descriptions of actual instances mixed with hypothetical scenarios of militant Islamic violence and intimidation in western countries, Blankley creates a compelling case for what he describes as a "clash of civilizations". I don't think I'm as quick to jump on Blankley's "us v. them" mentality, but I will say that his book (as doomsday as it often is) does help to at least create awareness for such an crucial issue. To any naysayers who may deem Blankley's writing as nothing more than right-wing paranoid propaganda, first read it with an open mind remembering that Blankey (who is British) simply writes to create awareness and not to advocate or promote any specific political party. Regardless of whether or not you choose to agree with it, this book is an interesting, informative read I highly recommend.

[James Johnson · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author is trying to obligate our country to a religious war that he (and nobody else) has a right to commit us. Blankley likes to point out Muslim atrocities and ignore Christian aggression. The only point I will concede is I agree with the author that we should end all American wars every 2 years and then require Congress to authorize any future war efforts.

[Gabriella Hoffman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book #20 — a response to Samuel Huntington’s “Clash of the Civilizations”? Perhaps. I don’t agree with every observation this book laid out, but a lot of them are true.

15 more books to churn through by 12/31.

[Madras Mama · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is undeniably a partially well-researched book. As a wise individual once remarked, Americans tend to perceive the world as divided into two distinct realms: the United States and the remainder of the globe. However, Tony, armed with his meticulous research, appears to categorize the world into four distinct segments: America, Europe (comprising America's allies), the tumultuous Middle East plagued by terrorism, and the less developed regions beyond.

While the issue of terrorism he addresses is undoubtedly genuine and devoid of exaggeration, limiting the scope exclusively to Western nations displays a lack of awareness, a certain immaturity in perspective, and a failure to grasp the broader reality. It also overlooks the significant sufferings, contributions, and capabilities of emerging nations like India and China, thereby neglecting their rightful recognition and credit.

Tony's discourse seems to suggest that the Western world functions as a unified organism, sharing identical perspectives, experiences, and vulnerabilities. As he articulates in the book, advocating for a forward-looking approach while drawing lessons from history, it's worth noting that both World Wars were indeed initiated by Western powers. In fact, designating them as "World Wars" may exhibit a certain narrowness of perspective, considering that the principal belligerents, except Japan, were primarily European and American nations. Other Asian and African countries were compelled to participate in these conflicts on behalf of their European colonial rulers.

As previously highlighted, the issue at hand is undeniably genuine. However, lauding Winston Churchill, who held racist beliefs, for his role in World War II while overlooking the contributions of emerging Asian powers and their collaborative efforts does not serve to enhance the West's prospects of success in warfare.

[Mandi Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wake Up Call
Written by Mandi Chestler on March 28th, 2007
Book Rating: 4/5
I have to admit--before listening I was pre-disposed to dislike the book. Why? Because as a political progressive, I was bound and determined to disagree with anything Tony Blankley had to say, based on his past employment for 7 years as former House Speaker Newt Gingrich's press secretary. However, the more I listened to the book, the more I became convinced that Mr. Blankley has a very valid viewpoint on modern day, radical Islamists. If even half of what this author has to say is correct, then the Western culture in general, and democracy specifically, is indeed in major jeopardy. Folks, this book is no joke; it is, in fact, an absolute wake up call. Conservatives and progressives alike can benefit from the higher awareness of today's political Islamist agenda this book provides.

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

While some ideas and principles still apply, the author uses very dated examples. I didn't realize it when I started reading the book that it was a very time sensitive piece and that a lot has changed since the author released the book. So no fault of the author, and the book was good, but would have been a much more interesting read 14-15 years ago. Kind of fun to compare his projections to actual events though.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read "No Go Zones" earlier this week by Kassam, and am glad I read this book as well! Where the other book is rather anecdotal and intended to scare the public, this book is more rational, filled with good intellectual arguments and references. It makes me understand that times like the Muslims taking over Spain in the past, could perhaps be the equivalent to our future.

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

I listened to the audio book and it is now 19 years old and while still relevant and important especially given what just happened in Israel this book is terrible.

The last 90 minutes of the nearly 7 hour book was the only part I enjoyed.

I cannot recommend this book.

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Menace, crisis, threats, destroy, last chance...Tony Blankley, editor at Washington Times, past press secretary to Newt Gingrich, past policy analyst for Ronald Reagan...thinks that Europe could be overwhelmed by militant Islam and become a bigger threat to the world than even Nazism. A discussion of WMD figures quite large in this scenario. The author offers very specific antidotes to various clamaties. Rush Limbaugh liked this book. If you aren't already paranoid, this book will do it.

[The American Conservative]

'Fiercely proud of his British heritage—his parents went through the Blitz—the most reliably hawkish of “The McLaughlin Group,” Tony Blankley is sometimes referred to by co-panelists as Colonel Blankley or Lord Blankley. In The West’s Last Chance, Lord Blankley is in full-throated Churchillian roar.'

Read the full review, "The Struggle for Europe," on our website:
http://www.theamericanconservative.co...

[Tmachuga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding! A must read! Blankley is a great investigative reporter (writes for the Washington Times) and gives us a great history lesson and discusses the future or our civilization.

[Chuck Russo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book, fast easy read. Shines further light on the nature of the conflict between the Muslim world and the non-Muslim world.

[Attycorcoran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good though dated.