Contrary Notions: The Michael Parenti Reader Paperback – 13 Sept. 2007

The Parneti Reader speaks truth to power from a left wing and alternative perspective. Each chapter of the eclectic Parenti Reader questions the established truths and norms that underpin popular understanding in a direct, fresh and accessible style. Parneti's Italian American heritage is especially useful in his deconstruction of the portrayal of Italian Americans in popular cinema. So be prepared for a provocative read and a telling alternative from the mainstream press and prose.

Michael Parenti, as captivating as always. His examples are clear cut, his dissection and analysis of the bias, errors and sometimes completely fraudulent mainstream majority views is a must for any critical thinker.

Maybe the first thing I noticed was that whenever I heard the word "democracy" used, and considered its context and meaning, that what was really meant was "capitalism." A typical example might be "we must defend democracy..." where what was really meant is "we must defend capitalism..." Anyone who disagrees should consider all the democratically elected leftist governments the United States has deposed (esp. South and Central America) through secret (i.e. illegal) economic and military attacks, to be replaced by violent, right-wing dictatorships, sympathetic to capitalist business interests.I noticed that most news stories of importance to the government or big business are obviously one-sided. I noticed that one rarely hears both sides of many stories, and when one does, it is usually one short, page 14 contrarian bit, against many more front page articles supporting the big business or State Department view.I began noticing that the language used in these stories is always biased, e.g. when there is a dispute between a company and labor, it is always reported as "labor trouble," or "a strike by labor, causing..." all kinds of problems. It is never "Management refuses to pay fair wages and eliminate hazardous working conditions, forcing labor to strike."I began noticing other loaded language, like calling every potential enemy (of the state) a "terrorist." Of course American troops bombing private homes, killing innocent (usually foreign) civilians are not terrorists! NO! They are "peace keepers." No doubt about it, Double Speak is now official American policy, and far too many people buy it (lock, stock and Tomahawk missile).I noticed George Bush spewing propaganda during the early days of his war in Iraq. He came "on the air" at least 4-5 times a day (that I heard; probably much more) saying, with very little variation in wording, "we are right to be in Iraq." It was the same, simplified message, repeated over and over, with virtually no alternative opinions offered. It was classic, textbook propaganda, exactly as Joseph Goebbels (Minister for Public Enlightenment & Propaganda in Nazi Germany) described it.I also noticed that government programs frequently fail to fully benefit the people they are supposed to benefit, but usually do produce millions or billions of dollars worth of profit for some industry. Do we suppose that is an accident? Really?I noticed that at first Bush attacked Iraq to eliminate WMDs, then later it was to free Iraqis from the tyranny of Saddam Hussein, then finally it is to prevent civil war. What do we know about a suspect when he keeps changing his story? That he's a liar, of course.The list of inequities, injustices, inconsistencies and outright scams, larceny and lies, "not to mention" the occasional slaughter of tens of thousands of innocent people, is endless. I name those cases which I recognized, even before reading Parenti, just to show that it's not that hard to recognize. And it's just not that hard to recognize the truth in what Parenti tells us.Parenti's words ring absolutely true. The deck IS in fact stacked against the average American. The government (and especially the State) DOES IN FACT represent big money and big power, and most emphatically DOES NOT represent the average American citizen, though it certainly pretends to. Democracy exists only as a shell, to distract and divert the People, and convince us that everything is OK, or at least as well as possible.I am not a "conspiracy theorist." That phrase is an example of what Parenti gently describes as "name calling," used by establishment media to discredit legitimate arguments which might threaten power. I knew that. But of course there ARE conspiracies. And there IS in fact a Big Conspiracy of capitalists against the people.No, capitalists and people who work within and for that system do not necessarily meet with representatives of the government and state, in seedy motel rooms, wearing trenchcoats, after midnight, to plan their attacks. They don't need to. They all know their roles perfectly well, as they've been handed down to them, or which they've been indoctrinated for, and know that they must play them, if they want to STAY rich and in power. Money is in fact the root of all evil, with simple power not far behind.Michael Parenti describes these cases and hundreds, perhaps thousands of similar ones, and explains them in the context of state, military, big business and big money power. He tells us the true story, unaltered by political and economic pressure, censorship and self-censorship, and the politics of exclusion (when is the last time YOUR leftist voice was heard in the major media?). It should be no surprise that power almost always wins, at the expense of everyone else, their claims to the contrary not withstanding. And all issues of justice and morality fall by the wayside, victims of capitalist money and state power.I could go on, practically forever in fact, because the injustices, large and small, are practically infinite. But Parenti tells it much better than I, in fact most of us, ever could. The fact is, what Parenti tells us in Contrary Notions (and in his other books) is perfectly consistent with what can be observed every day, if we would just open our eyes. He tells the absolute, ugly truth, which every citizen should know if our society is EVER to change for the better.Contrary Notions should be required reading for every American citizen who cares about Democracy and Justice (fat chance!). There is not a man (or woman) in America who tells the unvarnished truth about American politics, money and power more clearly and honestly than does Michael Parenti.

This book is a brilliant taste of modern socialist thought, and the writing is eloquent beyond belief. Parenti is truly a literary genius. For a more complete explanation of Parenti's socialist beliefs, I suggest reading his masterpiece, Democracy for the Few.

I can give this book 5 stars because I like Michael Parenti's political philosophy. You should watch the tons of YouTube videos he's in in order to get an idea of where he's coming from. If you agree with him after that, then you should definitely get this book, which, although a bit sketchy because it's a "reader", at least lets you get his view of different issues and appreciate the breadth, if not the depth, of his work.Parenti has a wry way of looking at things which alternates with genuine and strident outrage. He is an old core leftist, not afraid of saying things very unpopular with even the so-called (identity issues) leftists. For example, he explains why the Soviet Union DID work and why the United States attack on Yugoslavia was a war crime.If you can't deal with those kinds of opinions, maybe you should read someone tamer.

Michael Parenti is a national treasure. This world would be a much better place if his works were required readings.

Parenti excels here at boiling down geopolitical and socioeconomic matters to relatable working class basics and really shines the further back in history he goes.