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Buried Alive
Buried Alive assembles the best of Walter Karp's essays on American politics; on the lessons and responsibilities of liberty. Karp's writing is characterized by a fierce love of democracy and incisive commentary on government. These essays scrutinize American political and social issues with force, eloquence, and independent thinking.
279 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
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October 31, 2019esp. liked essay Two Americas. written in , i think, 1992-people should read now--helps understand the mess we are in now--and what it means to be a republic vs. a nation.
December 24, 2016
This book, probably in part because of its larger scope, isn't as good as Politics of War, my introduction to Karp.
While he is still, in many cases, spot on about how presidents and Congresses have gone wrong in defending republican ideals, he's not always right on the why, nor on the solution, and I have MUCH more about that in Indispensable Enemies.
He seems to fetishize the Constitution too much in a quasi-originalist way, for example. He almost violently dislikes class-based or sociological-based explanations of history. Yes, Walter, "great men" (as well as common men and women) are actors in history, but they're still motivated, sometimes driven, by certain elements and factors, some of which are economic, or sociological.
Related? Karp ignores issues of "othering" that were going on before the Civil War, like blacks, American Indians, and the Irish Catholics who were the first major non-WASP immigrants. He also seems to believe, or pretend, that America didn't have classes back in its early days.
I was originally thinking possibly still giving this four stars, but can't quite do it.
While he is still, in many cases, spot on about how presidents and Congresses have gone wrong in defending republican ideals, he's not always right on the why, nor on the solution, and I have MUCH more about that in Indispensable Enemies.
He seems to fetishize the Constitution too much in a quasi-originalist way, for example. He almost violently dislikes class-based or sociological-based explanations of history. Yes, Walter, "great men" (as well as common men and women) are actors in history, but they're still motivated, sometimes driven, by certain elements and factors, some of which are economic, or sociological.
Related? Karp ignores issues of "othering" that were going on before the Civil War, like blacks, American Indians, and the Irish Catholics who were the first major non-WASP immigrants. He also seems to believe, or pretend, that America didn't have classes back in its early days.
I was originally thinking possibly still giving this four stars, but can't quite do it.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews