Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1392968 in Books
• Published on: 2003-04-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 126 pages

Synopsis
Is Uncle Sam a psychopath? Or is Richard Neville the lunatic? Judge for yourself! Richard Neville, seasoned social commentator and feral futurist, provoked outrage over his denunciation of the United States as nation "out of control," bent on serving its own interests at any cost. After the events of September 11th, his claims were viewed as prophetic. Since then, Neville has maintained close watch over U.S. foreign policy, warning from the outset that the "wounded Goliath is on a rampage - armed to the teeth, adored by the polls, unfettered by law and licensed to kill." While insisting he's not anti-American, Neville mocks a culture that sees that world as "either a target market, or a target;" a culture that through its movies, media, products, politics and foreign policy reveals an identification with Imperial Rome, asserting the sanctity of its lifestyle, even as the ice caps melt. These bubbling essays, old and new, reject the hopeless gridlock of us/them, good/evil, and suggest a more profound and sustainable project than simply being "with America or against it." The choice is stark - self discovery for Uncle Sam, or the further destruction of earth.

Customer Reviews

The Empire Strikes Back
A good read from Neville, with an insightful analysis of not just an emerging imperial American power, but also questioning of more social/cultural issues, e.g. the breakdown of relationships in society.

Although very short (127 pages or so), it is broken down in to many sections, each dealing with quite distinct topics.

If I had one criticism, however, it would be that I felt that although there was a certain synergy with the book, overall, during many of the chapters, Neville tended to digress frequently. He would begin a chapter discussing, for example, the breakdown of relationships in the modern society, or his Australian take on the USA being the most dangerous 'rogue state', and then move on to something completely different - only to return to the issue in hand later on.

Overall all, an enojyable read. In particular, the feedback (due to many of the chapters being articles previously published) in the form of emails from readers. A novel way of showing reaction to one's own work in a book.

Short and Sweet
A compelling and insightful no-frills work. Though short, I really enjoyed this book for Neville's common sense approach to and comment on the ever-growing consumerist and 'Americanisation' of global society. Neither academic nor patronising in tone, this book made for an (albeit swift) excellent, thought-provoking read.