In Chapter 1 of Blowing Smoke, author Michael Wolraich (Genghis) introduces what he terms “Persecution Politics,” or the way in which the right wing has employed a trinity of unreality-based ideas to instill fear in the populace. 

Those three things are: 1) the slippery slope; 2) the secret plot; and 3) persecution of you and people like you. 

In Chapter 2, Wolraich lays out starkly the history of the birth of Persecution Politics. 

…in a crucible of racism and piety, baked red-hot by the fear of corrupted youth, a movement was born.  [Read more]

I am very excited to be hosting Dagblog’s very first book group for various reasons, not the least of which is that we get to discuss a book written by our very own Genghis (Michael Wolraich, for those of you who are new to Dag). We’ll get to the meat of the discussion in just a moment. But first, some ground rules:

1. The plan is to take the book chapter by chapter, discussing the salient points of each chapter as we work our way through. However, this is meant to be a free-flowing discussion so jumping ahead is fine if you feel it helps you make your point. [Read more]

I’ve been reading a terrific new book. Perhaps you’ve heard of it? It’s called Blowing Smoke: Why the Right Keeps Serving Up Whack-Job Fantasies About the Plot to Euthanize Grandma, Outlaw Christmas, and Turn Junior into a Raging Homosexual, by Dagblog’s very own Michael Wolraich!

I’ve been reading even more than usual since I moved to Indonesia. I suspect it’s because I can’t understand the programs on my television but it also might be because I bought a Kindle before moving overseas and I surely want to get my money’s worth.  [Read more]