Aristotle and an Aardvark Go to Washington: Understanding Political Doublespeak through Philosophy and Jokes

My favorite of the various books by these authors. Having worked in a Federal Agency which will remain anonymous (HHS) for 25 years, I can attest there is a world of difference between the dedicated frontline workers in, say, Lodgepole Nebraska, and the leadership in downtown D.C. The authors capture the elusiveness and stupidity of D.C.'s finest, while leading the reader through "Logic 101." The book is heavy on humor (or maybe it's that the humor provided resonates with me), yet manages to instruct on logical reasoning and common fallacies. You'll come away better prepared to spot the illogical reasoning in others' arguments, and maybe in yours too. A truly excellent and entertaining book.

Philosophy through jokes. What a fabulous concept. The trio of books make philosophical concepts, easier to understand, quite interesting, and fun at the same time. These guys are geniuses.

Really good book, easy to understand, full of jokes

A hilarious collection of political quotes, exposing logical fallacies (better known as bulls**t) of the quoters - by the authors of the best seller "Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar" - a similar treatise on philosophy. Some are just white lies: President Reagan's aide Michael Deaver was asked how the President had reacted to Congress's authorization of the sale of planes to Saudi Arabia. Deaver quickly said, "The President said, "Thank God." Actually, the President had said, "I feel like I've just crapped a pineapple." But some are blatantly transparent: "It's a success that hasn't occurred yet. I don't know that I'd call that a failure." - Homeland Security Advisor Townsend on why bin Laden had not yet been captured. Some involve shooting the arrow at a barn, then drawing the bulls-eye around wherever the arrow landed: The wednesday after 9/11, Rumsfeld complained there were no decent targets for bombing in Afganistan and we should consider bombing Iraq, which had better targets. Special sections for all occasions, such as how a politician can avoid apologizing: "Mistakes were made" - Nixon about Watergate, Alberto Gonzales about his attorney-generalship. For those who can't resist puzzles, a pop quiz is provided at the end - you get to match various quotes with their corresponding logical fallacies. Text is quick to read, hard to put down, and completely entertaining - the book leaves you wanting more. There are 22 excellent all-purpose political cartoons, mostly from "New Yorker" magazine. The authors mix in some great jokes when needed to further illustrate a point. As Will Rogers said, "There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government working for you."

A great companion to my copy of Plato & A Platypus, and the observations and comments are especially good in today's Leftist Dystopian DC World.

Definitely not as good as Plato and a Platypus.

All Klein's books are outstanding: engaging, witty, informative, thought provoking, readable, accessible. Let no effete philosophers and others in any way denigrate these absolute gems. I want many more -- Kant and a Kangeroo..., Sartre and Seinfeld..., Socrates and a Neuroscientist..., Schopenhauer and Estragon..., Please write several more! Also love the Great Barrington-based novels. Wonderful all. Keep them coming. Don't ever die!

I used to teach a senior-level university course in propaganda. If I had known about this book, I would have assigned it. It is funny and instructive while giving relatively recent examples of logical errors in political thought.

This is an awesome book from the series. Not as funny as the original one from the authors

Ja, hauptsächlich geht es um das "political doublespeak", um Rhetorik in der Politik also. Und ja, etwas sehr konzentriert ist das Ganze schon auf "Washington", auf die amerikanischen Verhältnisse also. Obwohl der Titel in diesem Sinne jedoch ein eher enges Thema andeutet, ist das Buch weit mehr als ein lockerer Kommentar zur hintersinnigen Phrasendrescherei amerikanischer Politiker. Geboten wird vielmehr ein ebensowohl komischer wie lehrreicher Überblick über Möglichkeiten und Fallstricke der Rhetorik im Allgmeinen und der politischen Rhetorik (auch der deutschen) im Besonderen. Das Buch erschien fast zeitgleich mit dem auch auf deutsch erschienen Klassiker "Platon und das Schnabeltier" Platon und Schnabeltier gehen in eine Bar...: Philosophie verstehen durch Witze , in dem dieselben Autoren im Medium kluger Witze in Kernprobleme der Philosophie einführen. Hier nun also ein ähnliches Programm für die Rhetorik. Wie "Platon und das Schnabeltier" bietet auch dieses Buch eine Vielzahl von witzigen Pointen, über die der eine Leser gut schmunzeln kann, die die andere Leserin aber auch gut in der Lehre einsetzen kann, wann immer es in Unterricht oder Seminar um rhetorische Fallstricke und Tricks geht. Wobei der Begriff der Rhetorik so weit reicht, dass auch der naturalistische Fehlschluss und ähnliche philosophische Probleme noch mit versorgt werden. Glänzend gemacht und äußerst unterhaltsam. Man wundert sich, dass es noch keine deutsche Übersetzung gibt.

Very entertaining

Great and funny book, just like their previous ones.

ICH BIN SEHR ZUFRIEDEN ABER WAS SOLL ICH MEHR SAGEN FÜR DIE ACHT ZEHN WÖRTER HABEN SIE RECHT VIELEN DANK