Panic Attack

Young Radicals in the Age of Trump

By: Robby Soave

Narrated by: Robby Soave

Length: 10 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's summary

Since the 2016 election, college campuses have erupted in violent protests, demands for safe spaces, and the silencing of views that activist groups find disagreeable. Who are the leaders behind these protests, and what do they want? In Panic Attack, libertarian journalist Robby Soave answers these questions by profiling young radicals from across the political spectrum.

Millennial activism has risen to new heights in the age of Trump. Although Soave may not personally agree with their motivations and goals, he takes their ideas seriously, approaching his interviews with a mixture of respect and healthy skepticism. The result is a faithful cross-section of today's radical youth, which will appeal to libertarians, conservatives, centrist liberals, and anyone who is alarmed by the trampling of free speech and due process in the name of social justice.

©2019 Robert Emil Soave, Jr. (P)2019 Macmillan Audio

The Story of Two Extremes

The author sums it up best.

"This book has been the story of two extremes, woke intersectional safe-space progressivism and red-pilled identitarian right-wing populism—where they come from, what happens when they clash, and why they ultimately depend upon each other."

It's about the never-ending, spiraling cycle of polarity and insanity from these two antitheses, and their symbiotic relationship of dependence on the other.

This book can appeal to any political person across the spectrum that is concerned with free speech and due process, and how extremists from both the Right and Left trample on these values. Unless you're already an alt-right Nazi or sociopath woke intersectionalist of the specific variety described within, there's probably not a lot here that will offend you, even if you don't agree with the author's specific viewpoint.

It's made clear throughout, and by the title alone, that the focus is on the most radical examples of Left and Right politics gone wrong. But these matters can and have affected factional dialogue for years now, shaping minds and activism in the process. They've had an untold and possibly unknowable effect on political discourse across the country.

The author does a tremendous amount of research. He visited a plethora of college campuses, along with conferences, rallies, and speeches, in order to engage the various activists in conversation. Whenever possible, he used their own words to describe the movements, ideas, and forces at play. This is intermingled with a healthy dose of objectively factual information about the different topics, rooted in history, from recent news at the time of publication, to the foundations of various organizational beliefs.

Perhaps one of my complaints about the book is that the tagline "in the age of Trump" is a little misleading. While that's the timeframe the author collected most of his research and factors extensively into this work, many of the ideas and histories start well before Donald Trump's presidential inauguration, and the pages examine those time periods as well.

It was difficult giving this book a 5* rating when most sections made me angry. The sheer amount of bigotry, hypocrisy, and downright insanity that formulates certain other worldviews boggles my mind. It's important to constantly remember, especially in this currently polarized political climate, that the newsworthy actions of a relatively limited group does not necessarily reflect politics as a whole, and that most people believe in their causes. That their causes are ultimately the most beneficial for society.

Like anyone moderately engaged in politics, I'm at least marginally fearful of what the future could bring. All of us have vastly different visions of America and what's best for the country. For those of us not trapped in divisive, hateful echo chambers, hopefully we can start working across aisles again to find the common ground that unites us as citizens and fellow human beings.

Loved the Book

I liked the book and have followed Soave for years at reason. It is well structured. I appreciate audio books where the author reads his or her own work. Some authors are better than others. This appears to be Soave's first long format vocal recording, so a bit of "green" is natural. If you are looking for the man's words in his own voice, you will get a treat; if you are looking for the impeccably smooth delivery of a professional voice actor on top of brilliant content, you will be less satisfied. Regardless, you will enjoy this book in any format!

Fascinating and Eye Opening

Really enjoyed it! Learned so much I didn't know about and broaden my views on others. Great book with so much time and energy put into it! Totally unexpected but after seeing him on "Tucker" I had to check it out.

This should be a required read in schools!

This is an objective, fact oriented, first hand account from a journalist perspective that excludes 99.9% of bias (which is extremely refreshing nowadays). He takes a libertarian point of view and openly acknowledges his opinions, while thoroughly explaining the perspectives from far left, far right, and everyone in between. He uses examples, quotes, and factual evidence to explain and educate on all subjects discussed. It was a very well written academic work and I loved every word.

Personally, I find myself in the middle, a libertarian, much like the author. I search for the objective truth and can see fault in both sides of the spectrum. I extremely appreciated a well rounded account of the current political climate without interruption or arguments from an opposing and disagreeing party. I feel as though I am more educated and enlightened on both sides of the spectrum as a result of reading this book.

Highly recommend! Bravo Mr. Soave! Well done!

Great perspective from young author

This topic has been touched on by other authors like Stephen Pinker and Jonathan Haidt. It’s nice to get a neutral, libertarians perspective on the madness on both sides.

head scratching

There were times I had trouble continuing through this book. it almost makes you angry how deluded people are but I was glad to finish it.

Skews slightly left, mostly fair...

The author skews slightly left (and libertarian; and, as is appropriate, essentially admits as much) but offers a mostly fair description of radical, primarily young, players on the modern political and social playing fields.

Perfect explainer of how we got to where we are

Robby Soave offers an indispensable examination of the circumstances that have led to our current "cancel culture." This is essential reading/listening.

The balanced analysis of both ends of the political spectrum.

The backlash from Trump and the inability of the Biden administration to curb the worst of leftist activism seem to have only emboldened the anti-free speech types. Would like to know the author's read on events since the 2019 pubication.

Big disappointment

Maybe I am slightly harsh but after reading Michael Malice’s The New Right and being somewhat informed about the topic I cannot give more than two stars. It’s sad day that a Reason Magazine contributors book contains this much errors.