White Rural Rage

The Threat to American Democracy

De: Tom Schaller, Paul Waldman

Narrado por: Ray Porter

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A searing portrait and damning takedown of America’s proudest citizens—who are also the least likely to defend its core principles

“This is an important book that ought to be read by anyone who wants to understand politics in the perilous Age of Trump.”—David Corn, New York Times bestselling author of American Psychosis

White rural voters hold the greatest electoral sway of any demographic group in the United States, yet rural communities suffer from poor healthcare access, failing infrastructure, and severe manufacturing and farming job losses. Rural voters believe our nation has betrayed them, and to some degree, they’re right. In White Rural Rage, Tom Schaller and Paul Waldman explore why rural Whites have failed to reap the benefits from their outsize political power and why, as a result, they are the most likely group to abandon democratic norms and traditions. Their rage—stoked daily by Republican politicians and the conservative media—now poses an existential threat to the United States.

Schaller and Waldman show how vulnerable U.S. democracy has become to rural Whites who, despite legitimate grievances, are increasingly inclined to hold racist and xenophobic beliefs, to believe in conspiracy theories, to accept violence as a legitimate course of political action, and to exhibit antidemocratic tendencies. Rural White Americans’ attitude might best be described as “I love my country, but not our country,” Schaller and Waldman argue. This phenomenon is the patriot paradox of rural America: The citizens who take such pride in their patriotism are also the least likely to defend core American principles. And by stoking rural Whites’ anger rather than addressing the hard problems they face, conservative politicians and talking heads create a feedback loop of resentments that are undermining American democracy.

Schaller and Waldman provocatively critique both the structures that permit rural Whites’ disproportionate influence over American governance and the prospects for creating a pluralist, inclusive democracy that delivers policy solutions that benefit rural communities. They conclude with a political reimagining that offers a better future for both rural people and the rest of America.

©2024 Tom Schaller and Paul Waldman (P)2024 Random House Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

“Someone write a new elegy for the bilious hillbilly, because these authors went for his jugular . . . Next to their characterizations, ‘basket of deplorables’ sounds almost quaint, and many readers may find guilty satisfaction in that.”—The Washington Post

“[Tom Schaller and Paul Waldman] persuasively argue that most of the negative stereotypes liberals hold about rural Americans are actually true. They do not mince words about what this means for the future of democracy in America. . . . And Schaller and Waldman bring receipts.”—The Daily Beast

“America’s seemingly most patriotic citizens—rural Americans—are losing their faith in democracy because both the Democratic and Republican parties have long ignored their needs. This important book argues that the survival of our democracy depends on our willingness to strengthen the heartland economically, rather than exploit its fears.”—Barbara F. Walter, New York Times bestselling author of How Civil Wars Start

finally some reality

they don't go far enough. it seems they are willing to give a benefit of a doubt about the behavior they spend the book discribing.

Insightful!

A must read if you want to better understand the current state of affairs dividing our country.

Solid and persuasive content, but the condescending tone of the narrator detracted from the message.

I should have read it rather than listening to this book. The narrator was professional, but spoke in a tone that seemed very condescending. I found the content interesting and persuasive, but the delivery made me uncomfortable. I worry that the content will be less persuasive to someone who is otherwise open to consideration of the content.

Gets down to the nitty gritty

I was blown away by the accuracy and completeness of this analysis. It destroys the notion that Republicans capture the hearts and minds of rural white Americans by understanding their real problems, Instead, it paints a picture of race- and rage-baiting tactics that isolate rural whites from their fellow inhabitants of rural America.

Accurate, if we’re being honest.

I grew up in the rural Deep South and was fortunate enough to escape it. This book details hard truths but truths that, nonetheless, must be confronted by our consistently offended rural neighbors if they are to advance. Not everybody living in rural areas is an affront to intellectual progress, civilized culture and democracy, but I can attest that there are a majority that are.

The changing of eras

During the pandemic of 1917 the horse and buggy lobby was decimated, and it was easier for the automobile industry to take over.

The 2020 Pandemic disrupted the industrial and corporate work structure, it was decimated.
Add in the exponential skyrocketing growth of the Robotic and AI industries and you have a perfect
Storm brewing for militias.

A population with no hope, especially in the rural areas is a danger.
The next 8 years will tell how this plays out.

Pretty good

I liked the book it was engaging and pretty brutally honest. I might’ve liked more statistics but those are hard on audio. Wish there were better solutions to the problem…

Informative

So much information. This book should be read by all regardless of where you live

Eye opening on what going on in rural America

Live in and around FL rural communities I see what’s happening around me. Shocking how there are close similarities on what described in the book and the reals facts.

eye opening

explains alot of how America got here and the MAGA movement. Rural America was left vulnerable and MAGA took advantage.