I haven’t read this yet, and in the past find myself in a love-hate relationship with the guy, but this one looks fun and interesting. It comes out officially May 9, and we’ll for sure get him for Tammy Radio. Click on the book pic and it’ll take you to the Amazon page, and in the meantme, here’s the Booklist review:
Investigative reporter for ABC’s 20/20, Stossel is well known for his impatient “Give Me a Break” reports uncovering wrongdoing. With a writing style that is similar to his television personality–lots of questions and exclamatory statements–Stossel debunks several popular misconceptions from media bias to world overpopulation. In separate chapters, he turns an investigative eye toward the media, business, government, education, the sexes, consumers, law, experts on everything, religion, health, parenting, and the pursuit of happiness. In the business section, he takes a generally pro-business position, attacking myths regarding the notion that big business is anti-consumer and exploits workers. He counterbalances by examining the myth that American business believes in free markets. The Truth: most businesspeople don’t care about free markets, and will stifle competition if it serves their interest. Regarding government, Stossel attempts to strike a similar balance, attacking the myths that Republicans shrink government and that government helps the needy. Stossel tackles more mundane subjects in the health section, exploding myths that being cold gives you a cold and chocolate is bad for you. Each debunking is backed up with research and interviews. He concludes with a chapter that acknowledges readers’ natural curiosity about where he stands politically with a myth-buster about himself: Myth: John Stossel is a conservative. Truth: he’s a classical liberal. For fans of Stossel and readers who appreciate pokes at conventional wisdom.
He may be a liberal, but gained my respect for his expose on the education union, NEA and it’s devastating impact on American education. He’s ok in my book and I look forward to hearing him on your show.
If he’s a liberal, other Networks should force their ‘journalists’ to take lessons from him, for he surely presents “the other side of the story” convincingly. Were other reporters doing as well at presenting both sides of the story, I’d have far fewer gripes about the leftist media monopoly.
In his last book, Stossel debunked a very common liberal myth…about guns. He noted that despite the MSM’s characterization, America is not even close to the top of violent nations. He notes that countries like Brazil that have comprehensive gun control are so violent that private citizens of modest means hire bodyguards. Britain doesn’t have gun control…they have banned ALL guns outright…and their violent crime rate is soaring at an astronomical rate…a crowbar is a darned effective weapon if nobody in a society has anything more substantial. Look also at Switzerland. They actually issue a military-style, selective-fire assault rifle to every household…a weapon that we in America are prohibited from owning…and they have almost no gun crime.
Stossel may not have given these examples but he is right on in noting that there is no direct correlation between gun laws, gun ownership, and crime.
Downside, America is not an altogether non-violent culture, and sure, guns make it easier for drug dealers to kill one another. They also make it possible for honest people to defend themselves. On balance, as Stossel points out, America is a pretty darned good place to live, largely free of violence in most areas, and statistically, none the worse off for allowing its citizens the right to keep and bear arms.
Who says Stossel is liberal? I’m not sure what he is, but I regard him with favor. He’s not an objective reporter; he goes in with an agenda. He generates an aura of wide-eyed small-town polite innocence, asking simple, basic questions that leave his erudite opponents sputtering. (“Gosh, so you guys spent such-and-such billion of our money on such-and-such a project over such-and-such years, so how come you have nothing to show for it?”; that sort of thing.) If memory serves, as part of his TV show, he once somehow finagled an interview with Clinton’s Secretary of the Interior, Bruce Babbitt. After a couple of such questions, Babbitt abruptly terminated the interview with the words, “I’m going to fire whoever set this up.” Of course Stossel happily broadcast the debacle with a shrug, explaining how he tried to ask the questions but they just don’t get answered.
A classical liberal is a much different animal than the Authoritarian Leftists that infect much of the MSM and Academia. A classical liberal is, like James Madison or Thomas Jefferson, one who believes that freedom requires each person to respect, or at least tolerate, the freedom of all others.
“Britain doesn’t have gun control…they have banned ALL guns outright…”
I agree with the larger point you were making, but to be accurate, that’s all handguns, not rifles or shotguns.