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Summary: I hope world leaders have read this book, especially the liberal ones.
Comment: Facts have a way of enlightening how we examine the past, and this book is written in a fascinating manner that weaves facts in between some very humorous passages, yet does not miss the point of warning the West and free market democracies everywhere that culture matters; population momentum is shifting in ways that will and are shrinking the world's centers of positive improvement for humans on this planet, and all you need to prove this point is to look at who is breeding and who isn't.
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Summary: My first read of Mark Steyn's work
Comment: Mr. Steyn's view points concerning the dangers of Islam are shared by a large number of my Indian national colleagues. India is a secular religious-tolerant country with a rising Muslim poplulation of over 130 million.
It appears many in the educated Hindu, Jain and Sikh populations share Mr. Steyn's views of Islam as a 7th century religious and political system bent on enforcing its archaic dictums upon democratic societies. Two major concerns here are the birth rate of Muslim families substanially exceeding the birth rate of other groups, and the silent moderate Muslim majority's failure to publically denounce Islamic extremist atrocities. These are also Mr. Steyn's concerns on a global basis.
Mr. Steyn provides compelling arguements concerning the exportation of Western Popular Culture being ineffective in combating the Islamic menance, but rather the exportation of the benefits of American culture concerning self-reliance and independence from what Mr. Steyn calls "Nanny Governments," as effective means to defeat Islamic radicals.
From a literary point of view, Mr. Steyn is second to none in his ability to turn a phase. I found myself laughing out loud reading his verbiage about this serious and dark subject. Whether or not a reader agrees with Mr. Steyn's opinions, this book provides splendid and entertaining arguements which make an interesting and provocative read for all.
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Summary: Unlike statistics, hard numbers don't lie
Comment: I don't recommend reading this book as a night time reader - it is too scary! Unlike most books that use statistics to justify their point, Mr. Steyn presents numbers from various nations and demographic subsets that are revealing for the future of Western Europe and America. When in brief conversations on airplanes, airports, restaurants, etc. (all anecdotal) the stories are backed up by real people's real experiences. Don't believe what the media tell you, backup your arguments with the facts. I would recommend a companion book to read by Thomas Sowell, Advanced Economics - Thinking Beyond Stage one.
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Summary: The most disturbing book I've read this year
Comment: Mark Steyn is witty, snarky, rarely acidic, and always entertaining to read. However, America Alone is not entertainment. It's quite disturbing. From his description of Europe's swift demographic decline to his predictions of the rise of EUrabia due to the influx of Muslims to replace the dying cultures, he paints a pretty bleak picture of the future. Francis Fukuyama's "End of History" where liberal-democratic welfare states would be the Future of the World doesn't look like it's going to pan out as predicted.
As Steyn notes near the end, the book isn't about Islam, or the decline of the West, or terrorism, or any of the simple, trite soundbites that have been attributed to it. It's an argument for WILL, for the West to grow a spine, to reacquire our civilizational confidence. Lord Kenneth Clark in his BBC series "Civilization: A Personal View" said (and I paraphrase) that one of the most important feature of a civilization, if not the most, was confidence. Confidence that it will still be around next year, that it is worthwhile planting crops now, so they could be harvested next season. Confidence that soldiers won't suddenly appear on the horizon and destroy your farm. Confidence that an apple seed planted in your backyard will provide fruit for your grandchildren. That if you paint a fresco, the wall its on will still be standing in a century. That if you write a book, the language you use will still be understood half a millennia in the future. And that if you hauled stone for the great cathedral which had been building since before your father was born, and which your baby son might live to see completed if, the good Lord willing, he lived to be an old man; your efforts would be valued by subsequent generations stretching forward toward some unimaginably distant futurity. And above all, the self-confidence that you are part of something grander than yourself, something with roots in the past, and a glorious future of achievement ahead of it.
When the Romans lost that self confidence, when they began doubting their own purpose, they began to die.
Europe is, as Steyn illustrates, dying now from the lack of confidence, leaving only the U.S. to stand against an ideology that wants all the world to live under its crushing weight.
It's a book everyone should read.
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Summary: America Alone - A must read
Comment: I purchased two additional copies of the book to give to friends. It is a very timely, well-written book. Get one before it's banned! Canada is trying to prevent it's sale there. It is enlightening and frightening at the same time. Regardless of where you stand on the issues, this book will get a reaction from you.
It's a time of change, take time to review Mark Steyn's perspective.
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