cover image False Hope: The Politics of Illusion in the Clinton Era

False Hope: The Politics of Illusion in the Clinton Era

Norman Solomon. Common Courage Press, $12.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-1-56751-024-9

Solomon, coauthor of two critiques of the media ( Adventures in Medialand and Unreliable Sources ), here offers an impassioned if somewhat meandering essay warning that progressives should not expect President Clinton and his cohorts to deliver the fundamental change the country needs. A product of 1960s activism, Solomon reflects on both the symbolic and political links between Clinton and JFK (to the detriment of both), and he recounts the failure of presidents over the past 30 years to deliver concrete change. He assails the narrow focus of the news media, including public broadcasting, and points out trenchantly that the current political emphasis on the middle class obscures the wide gap between rich and poor. Discounting rhetorical defenses of Clinton--such as ``we have to be realistic''--Solomon refuses to join the bandwagon, noting the administration's support for nuclear weapons and continuing aid forhuman-rights-abusing governments such as Turkey's. Our country, he suggests, is in denial, and activists must attack corporate power by organizing into both political and community coalitions. (Jan.)