Banned in Britain: Beating the Liberal Elite by Michael Savage (2009; Savage Productions, Inc., ISBN 978-4276-3401-6)
Even an unabashed Liberal shouldn’t be afraid to learn something new. That’s why, when a Republican colleague of mine on the bench in Duluth gave me a copy of conservative talk show host Mike Savage’s Banned in Britain for Christmas as a gag gift (signed copy, no less!), I put it in my stack of “to do’s” and eventually got around to reading it.
Ostensibly, the book is a chronicle of Savage’s battle to redeem his “good name” in Great Britain after being placed on the “undesirables” list by the Home Secretary of Great Britain, Jacqui Smith. This distinction means that Savage is unwelcome in jolly old England. The reasons given for Savage’s dishonor include his penchant for politically dangerous diatribe and fostering violence amongst his listeners in the United States against various groups, including followers of Islam. While there is no doubt that; 1. Savage is a smart man (he has a Phd); 2. He shouldn’t be banned from traveling to Great Britain simply because his ideas might be unpopular with Liberals; and; 3. He has never been charged (at least he asserts that he hasn’t) with any crime in the United States; those points are made in the first few chapters of this overblown letter to the editor. This poorly written rant should have been submitted as an op-ed piece to the New York Times or the Washington Post, where, despite Savage’s paranoia about “mainstream media” it would have generated significant sympathy amongst true Liberals. Sadly, Savage chose to self-publish this poorly edited and poorly written volume instead.
Beyond repeating his mantra, that conservatives need to protect America’s borders, culture, and language (that line must appear at least twenty times in the book), Savage’s prose is more or less a political scream against Barack Hussein Obama (yes, he always uses President Obama’s Islamic middle name to drive home his distaste for the man); an expression of disdain for the Republicants; and a mixed bag of Xenophobia, disguised prejudice, and poorly written sentences and paragraphs. There is precious little here for anyone trying to really understand Savage’s anger and rage against all things Liberal beyond, “We are the true Americans and they are not.”
Dr. Savage urges his loyal listeners and readers to buy his books to support his fight against his being banned in Britain. I think the ban should be upheld, though on humanitarian grounds: No one in England, Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland should have access to this over-extended, badly executed (entire paragraphs and sections are repeated, as if Savage’s audience isn’t smart enough to figure out a cut and paste job when they see it) vitriolic sermon.
I’ll concede that the main premise of the book (and some of Savage’s observations about both major political parties) are spot on. The other fifty thousand words, however, are a complete waste of time. 1 star out of 5.
