![[By Andrew Yang ] The War on Normal People: The Truth About America's Disappearing Jobs and Why Universal Basic Income Is Our](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41NX8Vnk8-L._AC_UL165_SR165,165_.jpg)
I'm not inclined to review things, so I'm not exaggerating when I say this book is so important to America right now that it's making me get off my butt and write this review.
Recently I watched Joe Rogan's now-famous YouTube interview with Andrew Yang, and was struck by the stellar quality of Yang's answers to Rogan's often difficult questions. Yang consistently backed up his assertions with facts and data and generally came off as someone who really knows what he's talking about.
It turns out (to me) that Yang essentially prepared for the interview, and his presidential candidacy, by writing this book. Those who watched the interview (I recommend it as a high-quality debate/discussion about American issues, virtually unheard of today) will recognize that Yang's talking points all come from this book.
Which is fine. In fact, it's a positive sign for his candidacy. Yang is clearly not running for President just to be President. He has zeroed in on the great challenges facing America now - income inequality, increasing joblessness, the opioid epidemic, the healthcare mess - and identified real, practical solutions. Yang is running for President because he wants to get things done.
This is in line with his history as a serial entrepreneur. And while that history is a connecting thread providing the insight here, one doesn't get the sense that this book is about Yang. In other words, this doesn't feel like just another "my story" book published in advance of a presidential campaign. At its most personal, this book is about the future that Yang's children, and all American children, will inherit.
One powerful takeaway from this book is how not conventionally left/right-wing Yang is. As he says in the Rogan interview, "It's not left or right, it's forward." His idea of a Universal Basic Income may seem leftist - except that no less than Richard Nixon championed the idea in the 1970s, and Alaska, a red state, has successfully had its own version for over 40 years. Yang is also an unabashed capitalist - yet he spends a good chunk of the book talking about how capitalism needs to support the human good, not pure profit.
What this says to me as a political independent is that Yang currently seems to be the best presidential candidate, in that (a) by not positioning himself as left or right, he is better positioned to work in a bipartisan manner and break the terrible gridlock that afflicts Congress; and (b) he actually knows what he is talking about. He is not saying things to win political points - in fact, this book is almost nothing but uncomfortable facts and forecasts - and he has said that he is OK with not getting elected if his ideas get implemented by someone else.
Not adopting hard left/right stances makes Yang not conventionally attractive to the media. This book is essentially a longform journalism piece on the state of America today, the type of thoughtful, un-slanted journalism so rare today. I don't think "red" or "blue" when I read this book.
If I could, I would buy a copy of this book for every American citizen. If you have a vague feeling that America is not heading down the right path, this book illuminates that path with sober and specific detail. But this book also offers potential light at the end of the tunnel. I am not telling you to vote for Yang - heck, I may not even do so myself - but I am telling you to consider carefully what he says.
The campaign season is full of soundbites, most without substance and many just plain false. In contrast, this book is a deep look inside the mind of a presidential candidate. I doubt Yang will say much more on the campaign trail what he's said in this book - which is fine. This book already proves he has more substance than most candidates out there.
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About the author
Real solution to America's social and economic issues
This book describes a systematic, wholistic, sensible and logical solution to America's social and economic issues: e.g. young people struggling, middle class family fading away, tax money abuse, accessibility to medical/health care, inequality of social wealth distribution, mindset of scarcity, racism and discrimination, minority marginalization, aggressive foreign interference, etc. Please give it a read.
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on June 2, 2019
- Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2019
Top reviews from other countries
- ChillyfingerReviewed in Canada on June 23, 2018
... even more disturbing portrait of what America will look like in 10 years
- Peter MonienReviewed in Germany on September 7, 2019
Great book from a presidential candidate about the true options of our future
- JTReviewed in the United Kingdom on August 27, 2018
Insightful and brilliantly written.
