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Anti-Americanism

Anti-Americanism

List Price: $25.95
Your Price: $16.35
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Spectacular Insight
Review: I highly recommend this book if you really want to know what drives Europeans to be so Anti American, especially the French. This book gives insights on the rationale Europeans have for hating the Americans and why what they do is not hurting the Americans as much as it is themselves.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Sophisticated, well-written critique
Review: I highly recommend this book. The translation is so good that I suspect the original text must be superb. Revel's analysis is researched, informed, and made with style. The arguments are intelligent and powerfully made, and the text itself is a great read. It is a challenging book to people on all sides of the debate about anti-Americanism, its root causes and what can be done about it. Especially recommended to French readers, in its original "L'obsession antiamericain". Topical and excellent.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Bang on accurate!
Review: I used to live in Europe, in the UK and on the continent and this Frenchman couldn't be more correct in describing the dreadful state of affairs Europe is in. He's no apologist for America, he mentions America's flaws sufficiently, but unlike virtually every European TV nightly newscast and major newspaper he also mentions America's great abundance of positive features and positive actions. How sickly prejudiced and bitterly envious European attitudes are towards arguably the best friend Europe has ever had and likely ever will have, it's shameful the hateful and woefully inaccurate things European people believe about America. America is hegemonic and its government corrupt? Take a look at how Europeans under various banners have attempted wide reaching hegemony non-stop for centuries, and continue it today via the America loathing, member-state assimilating strangely-socialist European Union, corruption? The EU beats even the UN for rampant corruption, that's no small feat. American cities violent? Ever walk down a Paris, Madrid, Dublin or London street lately? Keep your valuables close; the police won't be much help and the criminals own the streets! Europe is far more crime ridden than America is, few Europeans will admit that though. America racist? Europeans can't even stamp out anti-Semitism even though Europe carries the lone historic shame of trying to exterminate all of Judaism just a half century ago, Europe is right back at it yet again in a fervour that's not been seen since the 1930's. Naturally European media transfixes on American crime and racism stories instead, if an American wants the most in depth alarmist stories about American crime or racism, read European newspapers, its guaranteed every negative story about America is there, loudly splashed across the front page while comparable (or commonly as of late worse) news stories on local European crime, racism and violence, wind up conspicuously subdued, if not censored entirely. I do love Europe, it's my birthplace, but it's shameful how people can live in such extreme denial, jealousy, and demonstrate such extreme dysfunctional hatred for their best friend America, a very convenient prejudice, it keeps Europeans from being responsible for themselves, just blame "imperial" America for everything, even Europe's fast growing problem with obesity, they blame America for that too! America had frequently been the lone beacon of hope in the world the last century, America saved Europe several times over, what has Europe done but muck things up over and over again, and are now backstabbing America yet again working hard to "rival" America now, this isn't friendly competition, it's spiteful revenge for America being far kinder, more civilized, far more successful and having the gall to eclipse Old Europe. I wager the Europeans will see a lot of themselves in this book, and not feel all that well afterwards.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A plea for coherent and constructive criticism
Review: Imagine being an American and reading what the French are saying about us. About how we're a bunch of meddling isolationists! About how we always do whatever Israel wants, and completely turn our backs on the entire Middle East. And how we are an easily led herd of isolated and uncontrollable individuals!

Of course, it is easy to make fun of self-contradictory criticisms. But Revel shows that these criticisms are often used in tandem on purpose, so that at least one is always applicable. That's one way we can tell that the criticism is insincere and not constructive.

Another example of being criticized no matter what we do comes from de Gaulle's excuse for excluding France from participating in NATO militarily. He said that the United States did come to France's aid in both World War One and World War Two, but we showed up tardily. Yes, we did. As the author points out, that was the main reason for NATO in the first place, so that we would not be tardy the next time.

Revel asks just which groups refused to observe three minutes of silence for the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The answer? Xenophobes, partisans of regressive and repressive regimes, antiglobalists, and so-called "Greens."

Anti-Americanism necessarily includes a number of blatant misrepresentations of America. One excellent example that Revel gives involves the Kyoto Protocol. Out of 168 nations that were signatories, zero had ratified it by mid-2001. That included the United States. But anti-Americans made it appear that the United States was going against the rest of the world here. I feel that some constructive criticism would have been a good idea here. But this wasn't it.

The author explains that many people all over the world admire our American lifestyle. I think this is a good point. Whatever our faults, much of what we do is positive. Many elements of our lifestyle and freedoms could be copied even by poorer nations, and the result would be plenty of happier people. Unless our critics are willing to take this into account, they are going to be regarded as incoherent.

Revel's conclusion is that the critics are being counterproductive by attacking America even if it is in the right. That will only lead to the critics no longer being taken seriously when we are wrong and they are right.





Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Revel reveals the roots of European angst against the US
Review: In a most insightful book, Revel not only debunks excessive Anti-Americanism, he lays bare the reasons why it is embraced so willingly in Europe (specifically France) and around the world. What better way to hide your shortcomings and inadequacies than to highlight the "evil" of a giant that threatens the world at large with "faulty" judgement and is "excessively attached" to agressive means to solve international problems?

Revel usues biting commentary, witty sarcasm, and precise logic to deconstruct and lay bare many popular uses of [tricky] Anti-Americanism. I find this book so well written, and the arguments so well made, that I am going to buy many of the author's other books and read them as well just to examine and learn his critical style. Many investigative journalists and aspiring policy analysts could learn from this man's example.

In summation, the information and examples are priceless, the logic faultless, and the presentation made my emotions range

from breathless with disbelief to incredulous with laughter. A highly recommended book for those seeking some answers to the constant refrains of "America is at fault!".

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A fascinating and eye-opening book
Review: In this fascinating book, French author and Journalist Jean-Francois Revel looks at worldwide anti-Americanism in general, and French anti-Americanism in particular. As has been mentioned repeatedly, immediately after the 911 attack on the United States, people around the world expressed their sympathy for, and solidarity with the United States. However, in short order, the sympathy vanished and the solidarity melted away.

In this book, Monsieur Revel explains that anti-Americanism is based on an anti-rationalist, anti-capitalist obsession that is not entirely rational and cannot be overcome by American actions of any sort. This is not to say that the author sees America as a paragon of virtue, quite the contrary. But, what the author does do is look at the reality of America's actions throughout the world as opposed to the perceptions of its actions, particularly as presented by the world press.

Overall, I found this to be a fascinating and eye-opening book. If you are interested in a penetrating and insightful look at the basis of anti-American thought, particularly in France, as seen by an actual Parisian, then you must get this book. I recommend this book most highly. In fact, if you only read one book this year, I hope that it will be this book!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: a page-turner
Review: Jean Francois Revel's Anti-Americanism is a page-turner. Brilliant, riveting, life-altering---and droll, for god's sake.

How often do you get to read DROLL on the whole subject of French anti-Americanism?

Or on any subject at all?

Buy this book.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Anti-americanism
Review: Jean Revel is a different kind of europian, very clever, realistic and honest when speak about America.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Merci Mr. Revel
Review: Just when I was starting to hate all Frenchmen comes Jean-Francois Revel. This book is right on the money when it comes to the hypocrisy of the leftists all over the world. They all condemn our "meddling" in foreign affairs but when some poor third world country is in trouble, who do they beg to step in? That's right, the good ole' USA. He points out that anti-americanism is basically synomonous with anti-capitalism and most of the anti american sentiment is jealousy. He also points out that while Europe is quick to condemn Israel, it is they who inspired that state with the pogroms and Holocaust. He also touches on the Islamo-fascism movement and puts it in the proper perspective. This is a great read that puts leftists and socialists to shame. God Bless Jean-Francois Revel.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Thank you, sir
Review: My first thought upon finishing this book was echoed someplace by another reviewer: "God Bless You, M Revel". I read it a second time just because it felt good. I've lived in the Soviet Union, and spent years in Western Europe 'but, but, butting' them too. Revel is such an apologist for the United States, it's almost embarrassing, but I agree with him completely about what's going on in Europe. He sees it so clearly, and nails it right on the head without apology or equivocation.

Revel was editor of the French political weekly L'Express and is a member of the Academie Française.


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