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Hopeless: Barack Obama and the Politics of Illusion
"Those who feel that like lemmings they are being led over a cliff would be well-advised not to read this book. They may discover that they are right."—Noam Chomsky
“Jeffrey St. Clair and Joshua Frank have skillfully smoked out the real Barack Obama . . . the technofascist military strategist disguised as a Nobel Peace Laureate, but owned, operated, and controlled by Wall Street, Corporate America, and the Pentagon.”—Thomas H. Naylor, co-author of Affluenza, Downsizing the USA
“The writers assembled here hit hard, with accuracy, and do not pull punches."—Marcus Rediker, author of The Slave Ship: A Human History
The Barack Obama revolution was over before it started, guttered by the politician’s overweening desire to prove himself to the grandees of the establishment. From there on, other promises proved ever easier to break. Here's the book that dares not let Obama off the hook. It's all here: the compromises, the backstabbing, the same old imperial ambitions. Covering all major "Obummer" categories since he took office, this fast-paced collection will delight the critical and offer food for thought for those contemplating the 2012 electoral circus—and beyond.
Jeffrey St. Clair is co-editor of CounterPunch, author of Born Under a Bad Sky and Been Brown So Long it Looked Green to Me, and co-author of Whiteout: The CIA, Drugs, and the Press.
Joshua Frank is an environmental journalist and co-editor of Red State Rebels: Tales of Grassroots Resistance in the Heartland. His investigative reports and columns appear in CounterPunch, Chicago Sun-Times, Common Dreams, and AlterNet.
“Jeffrey St. Clair and Joshua Frank have skillfully smoked out the real Barack Obama . . . the technofascist military strategist disguised as a Nobel Peace Laureate, but owned, operated, and controlled by Wall Street, Corporate America, and the Pentagon.”—Thomas H. Naylor, co-author of Affluenza, Downsizing the USA
“The writers assembled here hit hard, with accuracy, and do not pull punches."—Marcus Rediker, author of The Slave Ship: A Human History
The Barack Obama revolution was over before it started, guttered by the politician’s overweening desire to prove himself to the grandees of the establishment. From there on, other promises proved ever easier to break. Here's the book that dares not let Obama off the hook. It's all here: the compromises, the backstabbing, the same old imperial ambitions. Covering all major "Obummer" categories since he took office, this fast-paced collection will delight the critical and offer food for thought for those contemplating the 2012 electoral circus—and beyond.
Jeffrey St. Clair is co-editor of CounterPunch, author of Born Under a Bad Sky and Been Brown So Long it Looked Green to Me, and co-author of Whiteout: The CIA, Drugs, and the Press.
Joshua Frank is an environmental journalist and co-editor of Red State Rebels: Tales of Grassroots Resistance in the Heartland. His investigative reports and columns appear in CounterPunch, Chicago Sun-Times, Common Dreams, and AlterNet.
320 pages, Paperback
First published April 10, 2012
23 people are currently reading
324 people want to read
About the author
Jeffrey St. Clair
28 books79 followersJeffrey St. Clair is co-editor with Alexander Cockburn of the political magazine and website CounterPunch. Raised in Indiana, he attended American University in Washington, DC, majoring in Literature and History. He is the author of 13 books, including the best-sellers Whiteout: the CIA, Drugs and the Press and Al Gore: a User's Manual. He has written for the Washington Post, San Francisco Examiner, The Nation, the Village Voice, New Left Review, Anderson Valley Advertiser and The Progressive. HIs newest book, Born Under a Bad Sky: Notes from the Dark Side of the Earth, will be published in May by AK Press. He lives in Oregon with his wife Kimberly, a librarian, and their dog Boomer.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 7, 2013
A damning and wholly necessary critique that eschews the idiocy of the Right and the pandering platitudes of the Left. Investigative journalism and biting social/economic/political commentary at their best. Bottom line: only through a massive and sustained democratic movement of those left-behind in this era of austerity at home and imperialism abroad can true systemic change occur. Appealing to those within the halls of power through electoral politics is a fool's game.
August 16, 2022
AK Press publishes some dense books. This, however, is not one of them. It is an easily accessible read that should be picked up by everyone who has any kind of feeling on ex-President Barack Obama. Fair warning, for those not astute enough to pick up on the title, it's not a fawning love letter to a man who could do no wrong.
In just a little over 300 pages, author after author proves why Obama was not the leader everyone thought or wanted him to be. He was more of the same, and if not a little worse. He lied . . . a lot . . . even for a politician. And on those rare occasions when he told the truth, people still only heard what they wanted to hear. It's a form of mental illness, really.
Obama has not been the worst leader America has ever had, but he is an overvalued one. Don't take my word for it. Read the book and do your own research. If you don't come to the same conclusion, well, you may still be under an illusion of hope.
In just a little over 300 pages, author after author proves why Obama was not the leader everyone thought or wanted him to be. He was more of the same, and if not a little worse. He lied . . . a lot . . . even for a politician. And on those rare occasions when he told the truth, people still only heard what they wanted to hear. It's a form of mental illness, really.
Obama has not been the worst leader America has ever had, but he is an overvalued one. Don't take my word for it. Read the book and do your own research. If you don't come to the same conclusion, well, you may still be under an illusion of hope.
June 1, 2025
Damn, that Obama really was a piece of sh!t
October 25, 2012
A number of the essays, especially the early ones, are very light on facts, but overall the book is excellent.
Want to read
January 13, 2014I am really looming forward to getting a copy of this
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews