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One of "our most insightful social observers"* cracks the great political mystery of our time: how conservatism, once a marker of class privilege, became the creed of millions of ordinary Americans
With his acclaimed wit and acuity, Thomas Frank turns his eye on what he calls the "thirty-year backlash"—the populist revolt against a supposedly liberal establishment. The high point of that backlash is the Republican Party's success in building the most unnatural of alliances: between blue-collar Midwesterners and Wall Street business interests, workers and bosses, populists and right-wingers.
In asking "what 's the matter with Kansas?"—how a place famous for its radicalism became one of the most conservative states in the union—Frank, a native Kansan and onetime Republican, seeks to answer some broader American riddles: Why do so many of us vote against our economic interests? Where's the outrage at corporate manipulators? And whatever happened to middle-American progressivism? The questions are urgent as well as provocative. Frank answers them by examining pop conservatism—the bestsellers, the radio talk shows, the vicious political combat—and showing how our long culture wars have left us with an electorate far more concerned with their leaders' "values" and down-home qualities than with their stands on hard questions of policy.
A brilliant analysis—and funny to boot—What's the Matter with Kansas? presents a critical assessment of who we are, while telling a remarkable story of how a group of frat boys, lawyers, and CEOs came to convince a nation that they spoke on behalf of the People.
*Los Angeles Times
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What's the matter with Kansas?: how conservatives won the heart of America
2005, Henry Holt
in English
- 1st Owl Books ed.
080507774X 9780805077742
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What's the matter with Kansas?: how conservatives won the heart of America
2004, Metropolitan Books
in English
- 1st ed.
0805073396 9780805073393
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What's the Matter With Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America
2004, Metropolitan Books
in English
- 1st ed.
0805073396 9780805073393
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New York
Edition Notes
Includes bibliographical references (p. 253-294) and index.
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- Created May 29, 2009
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July 31, 2018 | Edited by iandoughty | Added a description and an excerpt. |
August 12, 2011 | Edited by ImportBot | add ia_box_id to scanned books |
November 10, 2010 | Edited by ImportBot | Found a matching record from Library of Congress . |
September 4, 2010 | Edited by ImportBot | Added new cover |
May 29, 2009 | Created by ImportBot | Imported from Collingswood Public Library MARC record. |