Shooting The Bull

by Guy Smith

In politics, everyone lies. Voters distrust everything they are told by politicians, the media and even their neighbors. Despite universal suspicion of news and opinion makers, very few people understand how political lies are created and thus most folk are unable to dissect spin and discover truth. Shooting the Bull details how all political falsehoods are created, why they work and how to detect them. Nowhere on the political landscape are more lies told than within the churning bowels of the gun control industry. Fighting America's revolutionary reluctance to submit and the public’s continuing fear of criminals not currently incarcerated in Congress, voters have resisted legislative agendas proposed by The Brady Campaign, Violence Policy Center and the Clinton administration. For decades, significant victories have eluded their ilk, leaving only one strategy with which to sway voters – lying. Shooting the Bull serves two purposes. First, it catalogs the common canards of politicians and activists. Readers will recognize how they have been psychologically scammed by special interests and deceived by elected sycophants. They will also experience disquieting revelations as they discover forms of fibs they had previously encountered but not recognized. By the end of the book, readers will be infinitely more cynical about politicians and propagandists and be equipped to dissect future electoral effluvium. The second purpose of Shooting the Bull is to document the deceits peddled by the gun control lobby. Each chapter is devoted to at least one major initiative proffered by anti-gun activists, exposing their falsities through dissection of their motives, methods and inconvenient facts. The art and science of political pretense is illustrated through Senator Dianne Feinstein's "assault weapon" ban, the Million Mom March's campaign to register all guns and license all owners, and Michael Moore's deluded “documentaries”

Genres: Nonfiction, Ebooks

217 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 19, 2011

About the author

Guy Smith is a writer, songwriter, and political provocateur. At times Smith has been a cowboy, surfer, computer guru, and a marketing strategist. Smith contributes Op/Ed pieces to major metropolitan newspapers (San Francisco Chronicle, Oakland Tribune). He has published over 150 magazine articles, and writes both fiction and non-fiction books.

Reviews

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shooting the Bull by Guy Smith is a no-nonsense book looking at the issue of gun control and how politicians can misuse facts in order to get their point across. I may not share the author's view on the subject, but I do see what his point is, and it is a valid one: propaganda works. Whether it is for or against guns, propaganda rules the airwaves.

In making his point, the author does a good job finding the misinformation and matching it up with the statistics that were available to the person making the claims. He also uses definitions of different types of lies to better illustrate his points. The book does go into attack mode at some points, but overall it's an interesting read.

While this book may focus on the single issue of gun control in the United States, it does speak to some bigger truths as well, one in particular: politicians lie. Politicians from every side will use facts to their advantage, whether they need to misconstrue the situation or not. This is how the political game is played and has been played for years. People interested in the politics of gun control laws will want to check this book out.

*Reviewer received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far it's entertaining light reading with some interesting facts introduced that I've never heard. So now I need to check these interesting facts to see if the other side is blowing smoke up my a$$. Is this healthy skepticism? Or paranoia? To quote President Reagan, "Trust but verify"

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rollicking good review of gun control claims

Mr. Smith's book is a breath of fresh air in the gun control debate. Unafraid to be cowed by authoritarian pronouncements from people in positions of power and influence, he makes his case plainly and dares to tell the truth.

[Josh]

Was free, snagged to to check it out.

[Robbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read! Funny and enlightening.

[Stephanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Recieved as a giveaway - just not my cup of tea. I thought to branch out - and I didn't enjoy it.
Others might - those who like this type of genre and topic.