Amazing Book: The Republican Brain

Book review, posted by John Denker

        The Republican Brain
        The Science of Why They Deny Science … and Reality
        by Chris Mooney

This is an awesome book.  While reading it, I was repeatedly tempted to say to myself:

  "I knew it! I knew it! Well, not 'knew it' in the sense of having the
  slightest idea, but I knew there was something I didn't know."
  — Joss Whedon

In other words, this book identifies some important questions that we should have been asking all along, and then answers them.  It connects the dots.  Lots of dots.

In terms of structure, it manages to put together a lot of things that aren't usually seen  together:

• It is quick and easy to read … yet highly informative and  thought-provoking.
• It appeals to a general audience … yet upholds the highest  standards of scientific scholarship.
• It tackles a controversial, emotion-laden subject …  yet is remarkably calm, even-handed, logical, and non-polemical.  (The  title is somewhat provocative, but the rest of the book isn't.)

Daniel Patrick Moynihan was fond of saying: "Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not their own facts."  Let's be clear:  Republicans have stood that idea on its head.  They make a habit of using utterly false "facts" to support whatever argument they feel like making.

This leaves us with a huge question: How can they possibly get away with this?  Normally, you would think that people who habitually believe things that aren't true would be at a tremendous competitive disadvantage.  If you're playing poker against somebody who thinks you're always bluffing, just wait until you have a strong hand and then take all his money.

Mooney has a partial answer: It turns out that the traits that lead to closed-mindedness, hatred, and wanton disregard for the truth are only a half-step removed from the traits that lead to discipline and effective teamwork.

We are talking about multiple traits, not just one, and everybody posesses these traits to one degree or another.

Liberals need to learn a few things from conservatives, such as how to be more effective team players.  Supporting a good but imperfect leader and winning is better than bickering and dithering and letting the selfish crazy creeps win.

Liberals also need to learn that a scientific, logical argument is great for persuading scientists, but not good for persuading the other 98% of the population.  An argument needs to be emotionally satisfying, not just logically rigorous.  Good guys are allowed to use persuasion in support of the true facts, especially when the bad guys are using persuation in support of bogus facts.

Liberals need to learn to call the conservatives' bluff.

Of course, conservatives need to learn a few things, too.  It's one thing to respect authority … but when you choose to rally around Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck, that's just nuts.

There's a lot more I could say about this, but I'll stop here.

Bottom line:  This book is really, really worth reading.