The Tyranny of Clichés

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“An indispensable and enduring field guide to the arguments the left makes—and the ones it tries to avoid.”
—The Claremont Review of Books
 
According to Jonah Goldberg, if the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist, the greatest trick liberals ever pulled was convincing themselves they’re not ideological.
 
Today, “objective” journalists, academics, and “moderate” politicians peddle some of the most radical arguments by hiding them in homespun apho­risms. Barack Obama casts himself as a disciple of reason: He’s a pragmatist, opposed to the ideology and drama of the Right, solely concerned with “what works.” And today’s liberals follow his lead, spouting countless clichés such as:

   •  One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter: Sure, if the other man is an idiot. Was Martin Luther King Jr. a terrorist? Was Bin Laden a freedom fighter?
   •  Violence never solves anything: Really? It solved our problems with King George III and ended slavery.
   •  We need complete separation of church and state: In other words, all expressions of faith should be barred from politics . . . except when they support liberal programs.
With humor and passion, Goldberg dismantles these and many other Trojan horses that liberals use to cheat in the war of ideas. He shows that the Pro­gressive tradition of denying an ideological agenda while pursuing it vigorously under the false flag of reasonableness is alive and well. And he reveals how this dangerous game may lead us further down the path of self-destruction.“Jonah Goldberg is the voice of the post-Reagan conservative generation.”

—John Podhoretz, editor, Commentary magazine

“Everyone says ‘think for yourself’ but very few people do. In The Tyranny of Clichés, Jonah Goldberg reveals how we’ve become trapped by ideas we think we understand but don’t. A must read.”

—Vince Vaughn, actor and producer

“Bold, brilliant, and bursting with humor, every page of The Tyranny of Clichés is right on the money. If you thought Liberal Fascism was good, wait till you read The Tyranny of Clichés—it is fantastic!”

—Brad Thor, bestselling author of Full Black

“It might be the best and most fun-to-read primer on the tenets of conservative politics since P. J. O’Rourke’s Parliament of Whores.”
—Mark Hemingway, senior writer, The Weekly Standard
                             
“Whether you love or hate what he has to say, you’ve got to love the way Jonah Goldberg says it.”
—SENATOR MARCO RUBIO (R–FLORIDA), AUTHOR OF AN AMERICAN SON
 
“The puncturing of pretentions and disruption of lazy thinking are extra base hits in journalism. Doing so with humor and originality on every page qualifies Goldberg’s work as a grand slam.”
—FORMER GOVERNOR MITCH DANIELS (R–INDIANA), AUTHOR OF KEEPING THE REPUBLICJONAH GOLDBERG’S first book, Liberal Fascism, was a numberone New York Times bestseller. Afellow at the American Enterpriseinstitute, he is the founding editorof National Review Online. He isalso a Los Angeles Times columnistand a member of the board ofcontributors at USA Today. He liveswith his family in Washington, DC.US

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