Reviews for Looking Forward

The average rating for Looking Forward based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2012-08-07 00:00:00 James Schweitzer This is the most valuable $3 clearance item I have yet stumbled upon. I engaged FDR's Looking Forward to accompany the news coverage of Obama's re-election campaign, intriguingly marked by the slogan "Forward." (Relax, that's the last mention of Obama in this review.) FDR's collection of speeches and writings is no mere New Deal manifesto, hardly historically isolated. Although tariffs and railroads may not be among the foremost concerns of Americans today, I was surprised to read about a variety of still-progressive issues, even after seventy years. I was surprised by FDR's support for reforesting agriculturally sub-marginal land, eradicating county government (today taboo here among Kentucky's 120 counties), reducing total federal costs by 25%, decentralizing the "economic oligarchy," and most importantly, a "reappraisal of values" akin to Bill McKibben's vision in Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future. However, I was not surprised by the call to "build toward the time when a major depression cannot occur again; and if this means sacrificing the easy profits of inflationist booms, then let them go - and good riddance." In seventy subsequent years, we have apparently missed that memo. Looking Forward becomes more relevant for each successive generation. Some say FDR was prophetic, but I say he simply spoke the truth, and, funny thing, truth is always true. In reading this book I learned the fundamental differences between policy and politics, between serving our neighbors and serving our government. I highly recommend Looking Forward to those aspiring to public office, to those who comment on people in public office, and to those with deep-felt hopes and fears - because, as FDR says, "all true culture comes down to an appreciation of just that."

Review # 2 was written on 2012-04-18 00:00:00 Valerie Livingston I absolutely loved this book and it is a surprisingly quick but informative read. It is a compilation of subjects that Franklin D. Roosevelt wrote upon that focused on government and economy during the beginning of the Great Depression. This is a great read because it allows readers to get inside the head of one of our most influential presidents. They get to read what he thought in his own words. This book is not just about the past. It is relevant today because of the deep recession that America and some parts of the world are in. I would recommend this to everyone but especially to people who are particularly interested in Franklin D. Roosevelt and what his opinions really were on various aspects of government and economy.