Via Crooks and Liars: I hadn’t realized that Bertrand Russell, the mathematician, philosopher, and general trouble-maker, had written a children’s book:
In these political times, so polarized with heated rhetoric, I was pleasantly surprised to stumble across a copy of Bertrand Russell’s The Good Citizen’s Alphabet. A important philosopher, Russell had the wisdom to realize that certain words require proper definition to be used correctly in political and social discourse; words such as, “asinine,” “erroneous,” even “nincompoop.” Of course, there are also words that inspire: “liberty,” “sacrifice,” even “zeal.” Russell aspired to educational enlightenment, believing “the ABC, that gateway to all wisdom, is not made sufficiently attractive to immature minds.” In his research with this teaching tool, respondents found his explication of the alphabet both “wise” and “foolish,” “right-minded” and “subversive.”
Well, it’s not really a children’s book. Like the Pat Bagley books, it uses the form of a children’s book to comment on grown-up concerns. “Asinine” is defined as “What you think,” and “Bolshevik” as “Anyone whose opinions I disagree with.” “Liberty” is “The right to obey the police” — I see that Bush, Cheney and Gonzales aren’t breaking new ground after all.
You can see the entire book by viewing the slideshow.
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