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The Tyranny of Clichés

How Liberals Cheat in the War of Ideas

Author Jonah Goldberg

Paperback

$17.00 US

Penguin Adult HC/TR | Sentinel

5.5"W x 8.4"H x 0.9"D (14.0 x 21.3 x 2.3 cm) | 11 oz (318 g) | 36 per carton

On sale Apr 30, 2013 | 336 Pages | 978-1-59523-102-4

Sales rights: World

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Nonfiction > History > U.S. History > 21st Century U.S. History
Nonfiction > Politics > Domestic Politics

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“An indispensable and enduring field guide to the arguments the left makes—and the ones it tries to avoid.”
—The Claremont Review of Books

According to Jonah Goldberg, if the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist, the greatest trick liberals ever pulled was convincing themselves they’re not ideological.

Today, “objective” journalists, academics, and “moderate” politicians peddle some of the most radical arguments by hiding them in homespun aphorisms. Barack Obama casts himself as a disciple of reason: He’s a pragmatist, opposed to the ideology and drama of the Right, solely concerned with “what works.” And today’s liberals follow his lead, spouting countless clichés such as:

   • One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter: Sure, if the other man is an idiot. Was Martin Luther King Jr. a terrorist? Was Bin Laden a freedom fighter?
   • Violence never solves anything: Really? It solved our problems with King George III and ended slavery.
   • We need complete separation of church and state: In other words, all expressions of faith should be barred from politics . . . except when they support liberal programs.
With humor and passion, Goldberg dismantles these and many other Trojan horses that liberals use to cheat in the war of ideas. He shows that the Progressive tradition of denying an ideological agenda while pursuing it vigorously under the false flag of reasonableness is alive and well. And he reveals how this dangerous game may lead us further down the path of self-destruction.

“Jonah Goldberg is the voice of the post-Reagan conservative generation.”

—John Podhoretz, editor, Commentary magazine

“Everyone says ‘think for yourself’ but very few people do. In The Tyranny of Clichés, Jonah Goldberg reveals how we’ve become trapped by ideas we think we understand but don’t. A must read.”

—Vince Vaughn, actor and producer

“Bold, brilliant, and bursting with humor, every page of The Tyranny of Clichés is right on the money. If you thought Liberal Fascism was good, wait till you read The Tyranny of Clichés—it is fantastic!”

—Brad Thor, bestselling author of Full Black

“It might be the best and most fun-to-read primer on the tenets of conservative politics since P. J. O’Rourke’s Parliament of Whores.”
—Mark Hemingway, senior writer, The Weekly Standard

“Whether you love or hate what he has to say, you’ve got to love the way Jonah Goldberg says it.”
—SENATOR MARCO RUBIO (R–FLORIDA), AUTHOR OF AN AMERICAN SON

“The puncturing of pretentions and disruption of lazy thinking are extra base hits in journalism. Doing so with humor and originality on every page qualifies Goldberg’s work as a grand slam.”
—FORMER GOVERNOR MITCH DANIELS (R–INDIANA), AUTHOR OF KEEPING THE REPUBLIC

JONAH GOLDBERG is a columnist for the Los Angeles Times and contributing editor to National Review. A USA Today contributor and former columnist for the Times of London, he has also written for The New Yorker, Commentary, the Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. He lives in Washington, D.C. View titles by Jonah Goldberg

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