Voltaire's bastards Book

Probably the most prophetic thinker on politics, economics, literature, and modern culture in general that we have in the English-speaking world. I read this when it came out in 1992 and it made me rethink a lot of what I had learned as an economics undergrad. It contains an accurate account of the dotcom crash that would come ten years after publication as well as one of the best essays that I have ever read about the modern novel. His chapter on the status of celebrities in our society should be required reading for all who consider themselves to be citizens.

Saul is often difficult to read, and not because of his style or even because of the complicated subjects. He is difficult to read because he directly challenges so many things that you thought you knew or things you may have taken for granted. It is very hard when someone points out to you that a lot of what makes up your intellectual foundation needs to be rebuilt. I have never been a conservative, but I studied economics at a big state university in the Midwest where only a very conservative variety of that subject is offered. I can't remember any of my Indiana University professors who had anything good to say about the government providing services for citizens. The private sector and free markets were talked about with almost religious deference. In the 16 years since the publication of Voltaire's Bastards we have seen the triumph of European socialism over American free market economics. While we in America have been listening to conservatives preach about the evils of all taxation, Europeans have been building a far more equitable society that provides better for all citizens.

I owe it to this book that I have been able to completely deconstruct the childish neo-con arguments about the role government should play in the making of societies. I can't understand why John Ralston Saul isn't a household name in America. He is the most prescient thinker I have ever read. We continue to give voice to some of the most myopic pundits who haven't had a single forward-thinking idea yet we ignore someone who has had it all right from before the beginning. When this book came out it was almost completely ignored in the USA. I remember that it was only reviewed in a single American publication (Playboy magazine). We need more clear thinkers like Saul and fewer gasbags.