The One with Greatness

177. Title & Author: Greatness: Reagan, Churchill & The Making of Extraordinary Leaders by Steven F. Hayward (194 pages)

Genre: Nonfiction—Biography, History, & Politics

Completed: 6 February 2011

Summary & Review:

Steven F. Hayward, while writing his two volume biography on Reagan, began noticing what he saw as striking similarities in the lives, both personal and political, of Winston Churchill and Ronald Reagan. In this short book he explores those in chapters covering the mens' faiths, paths to conservatism, biographical details, and governing policies.

I must say, first of all, that I enjoyed this book. Like many others on the political Right, I have always admired both of these men, i.e. Reagan and Churchill, so I found some of the details Hayward included to be quite interesting. But, as far as the premise that these men lead “parallel lives” separated by a few decades was not that convincing to me. Many of the similarities were tenuous at best. This only hurt the book, however, if the reader was truly set on being convinced that these two great statesmen were twins separated by time and space. If the reader was more interested in learning about the lives of two of the last century’s most important leaders, then this book serves that purpose just fine.

There is, of course, one incredibly important similarity in the lives of Reagan and Churchill. They lived during extraordinary times when the world faced grave dangers, and both men rose to the challenge. Serendipitously, I finished this book on the 100th anniversary of Ronald Reagan’s birth. America could use another leader with his integrity, principles, and courage. R.I.P. Dutch.

Thank you to my lovely wife who gave me this book as a Christmas 2010 present.

Rating: 7.0

The One with God and Man at Yale

176. Title & Author: God and Man at Yale by William F. Buckley Jr. (218 pages)

Genre: Nonfiction—Politics

Completed: 28 January 2011

Summary & Review:

As a recent graduate of Yale, the now legendary Conservative, William F. Buckley Jr., made his case that the academic program and emphasis of the university needed serious attention. Rather than encouraging the principles of Christianity and what Buckley terms “Individualism,” i.e. free-market capitalism, Yale faculty and the texts they used were at best apathetic to these ideals, and at worst openly critical and disparaging of them. Buckley encouraged the alumni of Yale to encourage the university they attended and financially contribute to to stop its attack of their values.

This book is part of the canon of modern American Conservatism, and that is largely the reason I read it. As far as it’s applicability to me or even to 2011, that is up for debate. The book is a very specific look at Yale’s education in 1950, and Buckley admits that readily. However, what I did find interesting was how little has changed in the liberal argument arsenal in the days since God and Man at Yale was written. Throughout the book were cited quotes of liberals, or “collectivists” in Buckley’s vernacular, using terms like “income redistribution,” “Keynesian economics,” “progressivism,” etc. It makes perfect sense, though, that today's liberals would use these same arguments because these were the years when today’s leaders…no, that’s not the right word for them…today’s politicians were at these Ivy League schools being indoctrinated in all forms of agnosticism, moral relativity, and Marxism.

My dad was at Yale about 20 years after Buckley in the late sixties. I’ll bet he could make Buckley’s complaints seem like trivial worries with the climate of Yale he experienced while he was there.

Rating: 6.5