Dinesh D’Souza
Earlier today, I posted a self-promotional link to an interview I had given about my forthcoming book, Home Products. But, less selfishly, may I instead present to you another book which has the word “Home” in its title? I refer, of course, to The Enemy At Home by Dinesh D’Souza. Mr D’Souza is my compatriot, and the cousin of a close friend of mine, and, most important of all, he is a right-wing “thinker” certified nutcase. In her excellent review of D’Souza’s latest, Michiko Kakutani tries bravely to describe, as objectively as she can, the book’s contents. But Kakutani is often powerless against her honesty. Here are a few excerpts:
His new book, “The Enemy at Home,” is filled with willfully incendiary — and preposterous — assertions…
[T]his embarrassing volume is an out-and-out partisan screed made up of illogical arguments, distorted and cherry-picked information, ridiculous generalizations and nutty asides. It’s a nasty stewpot of intellectually untenable premises and irresponsible speculation that frequently reads like a “Saturday Night Live” parody of the crackpot right.
D’Souza’s central thesis is an absurd one…
To flesh out his theories, Mr. D’Souza tosses out lots of assertions based on false information, partial truths and unrepresentative anecdotes.
In this shrill, slipshod book, Mr. D’Souza often sounds as if he has a lot in common with those radical Middle Eastern mullahs who are eager to subject daily life to religious strictures and want to curtail individuals’ freedoms and civil liberties…
