War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us to Death

Two quotes near the end of Norman Solomon's book, War Made Easy, explain well the situation the United States currently finds itself in. The first is by Voltaire, and reads: "Anyone who has the power to make you believe absurdities has the power to make you commit atrocities." The second, by infamous Nazi field marshal, Hermann Goering, reads: "...the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country." The content of this exceptional book exposes both presidents and media outlets as having a virtually incestuous relationship in perpetrating the incarnation of these two quotes. Solomon lets no one off the hook--not either political party, not so-called "liberal media," not the US American public. If, by the title, you are tempted to think this is a book written in blind rage against the current administration, you would be incorrect. Though Solomon is clearly not a fan of the current president, he shows in a very sober way the historical continuity between President Bush's practices, and those of previous presidents. Additionally, he documents clearly the striking similarities between media coverage of the invasions and occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq and those of Vietnam, Grenada, Panama, the Gulf War, and others. What makes this book somewhat unique, is that each chapter deals with a truism or myth that is pulled out of a virtual propaganda toolbox, used by the White House and amplified by the media, that creates a palatable picture of war, and why the U.S. must "stay the course." You will immediately recognize the title of every chapter, and I believe you will be impressed by how Solomon critiques each one. The only thing that pains me about this book is that there may be some who won't bother reading it. That would be a real tragedy.

This book opens with a disturbing prologue. The U.S. media has refused to give serious coverage to the Downing Street Memos on the grounds that they are "old news." In the initial pages of his book, and supplemented by the rest, Solomon makes a case that both outdoes and undoes that claim. Solomon outdoes the "old news" claim by providing evidence that the Bush Administration's campaign to take the country to war in Iraq on the basis of lies was remarkably similar to President Lyndon Johnson's use of the media when he wanted to attack the Dominican Republic and Reagan's when he was inclined to invade Grenada, not to mention Bush the First's when Panama was his chosen victim. In fact, Solomon draws disturbing parallels to Johnson and Nixon's lies about Vietnam, Reagan's about Libya and Lebanon, Bush the First's about the First Gulf War and about Haiti, Clinton's about Haiti, Yugoslavia, the Sudan, Afghanistan, and Somalia, and Bush Jr.'s all too recent lies about Afghanistan. There just doesn't seem to be anything new about a president taking this country to war on the basis of laughably bad lies that anyone who was paying attention never fell for. Solomon undoes the "old news" claim by documenting how hard the media has always made it for people to be paying proper attention. Not only are the Downing Street Memos not old news to most American media consumers, who've never been told what's in them, but the facts about many past wars are still not known to much of the country. The Washington Post has never apologized for or retracted the Jessica Lynch fictionalization, but that itself is nothing new. Solomon writes: "In July 1998 I asked a number of Washington Post staffers whether the newspaper ever retracted its Gulf of Tonkin reporting. Finally, the trail led to someone with a definitive answer. 'I can assure you that there was never any retraction,' said Murrey Marder, a reporter who wrote much of the Washington Post's political coverage of Tonkin Gulf events in August 1964. He added: 'If you were making a retraction, you'd have to make a retraction of virtually everyone's entire coverage of the Vietnam War.'" The Washington Post further distinguishes itself in Solomon's account of past media coverage of wars with this opinion it published when Martin Luther King Jr. spoke out against the Vietnam War: "King has diminished his usefulness to his cause, his country, his people." Damn liberal media! Of course, many of the facts that Solomon employs in his critique of the media's role as megaphone for presidential warmongering falsehoods come from the media. But they come from passing stories in lower paragraphs on back pages, not from endlessly repeated headlines and sound bites. Solomon does not present a lot of new information in his book, but by gathering together key facts from extensive research he performs the reporting that he criticizes the media for failing to have done. A good analogy for much of the U.S. media's cov

Norman Soloman has made spent his career analyzing the media, and how the media frequently misrepresents facts and fails to report on important stories. In War Made Easy, he turns his attention to the War on Terror, and fully dissects current US policies. He conclusively demonstrates how the government spin has been the key to enabling our leaders to sell us a never-ending war and how they have used this to boost their popularity. The media has played along, I hope the sales of this book will be large enough to open many eyes around America.

Over the years, Norman Solomon has distinguished himself as one of the pre-eminent analysts of the American media and political "culture." An everyman's scholar whose knowledge derives from both exhaustive research and first-hand experience, his insights are always cogent and honest. In "War Made Easy," Solomon dissects the time-proven slogans and propaganda techniques that have been used by Administration after Administration to--in effect--motivate the American people against themselves and their own best interests--not to mention those of citizens in many other nations. And Solomon "calls out" president after president for their "dupes" and backs up his castigations with cold, hard history. His analysis of the conjunction/collusion of the media and the body politic in this process is especially enlightening...and frightening. In short, this is a book that every American who cares about kin and country should read; and every citizen who sees beyond our borders simply must. At times scathing but never preachy, "War Made Easy" is a set of tough truths for tough times. And better still, it is written for us all: One doesn't need a master's degree in politics to understand Solomon's words. A fine book by a fine human being.

The media must take a longer and more informed look at itself. We the reader need to do the same. The facts are clearly presented and documented/verified. Solomon has provided us with facts; can we conscientiously make use of them? "War Made Easy" and many other volumes and articles which are noted in the book supply us with the information we need to become fair and objective about what is printed for others to read. The text opens us to an awareness that helps to serve the objectivity which is required from all, in all walks of life, given the disastrous situations which exist today. I encourage others to read this book and put our understanding to work in whatever field of activity we find ourselves. Norman Solomon's closing insight about conscience, yours and mine, needs to become a collective conscience.