“Spencer Critchley is one of our wisest and most original thinkers about politics and society. Patriots of Two Nations is an indispensable guide to understanding how we got where we are and what might be coming next. It’s packed with crucial insights you won’t find anywhere else.” — US Congressman Sam Farr (Ret.)
From Amazon.com (Readers’ Rating: 4.5/5)
“This is one of the most insightful, intelligent commentaries I’ve ever read about the communications divide between left and right in the United States. Spencer Critchley dives into the historic sources of the two very different ways of seeing the world underlying our present condition and offers a solution, though unfortunately only for Democrats, on how to communicate and reach out to the other side. Without a complete ban on politics in social media, however, I fear his is a vain hope.”
— Amazon reviewer DesignInCA
“This is a deep dive into the origins and current manifestations of a nation divided not only by race, religious beliefs, moral principles, political ideology and economic inequality, but more by two fundamentally different worldviews and belief systems, which have been on a collision course ever since the original colonies broke away from the British Crown and became a free nation almost two and a half centuries ago.
“These two different worldviews, as described by Critchley, have their origins in the Enlightenment and Counter-Enlightenment about which the author observes: “…our failure to recognize the ongoing conflict between the Enlightenment and the Counter-Enlightenment has prevented us from fulfilling the union’s founding promise—and it is now tearing it apart.”
“Critchley, a communications expert, emphasizes that although rational arguments based on logic and scientific fact often have little relative value from the point of view of Trump supporters who are engaged in, whether they know it or not, the Counter-Enlightenment, it is important to make the effort, for the sake of the nation, to communicate in a way that promotes an understanding of our most common basic needs and values.
“Critchley also provides a lot of insight into the differences between Counter-Enlightenment and Enlightenment language and symbolism. He gives a lot of excellent examples and suggestions of how progressives could make better use of language to promote its causes, despite whatever approach its ideological opponents choose, by looking for common ground and making personal appeals, as opposed to an in-your-face approach where cold, hard facts are the only things that matter.
“I believe this book has helped me to better understand what motivates Trump supporters in general and, as long as an appropriate degree of civility and respect can be maintained, how to better engage in a discussion with them, if I ever choose to do so.”
— Amazon reviewer Deeveedee
“Spencer Critchley’s Patriots of Two Nations provides needed clarity and enlightenment to our dark,worrisome, and partisan present-day America. He discusses how facts and rational thinking are often subservient to feelings, faith, and beliefs in the creation of and commitment to political opinions. The book is very well referenced often with interesting juxtaposition of America’s past and present. It successfully ends with the overall feeling that there is hope for our future if both sides of our tribal-like divide agree on our common values, listen to each other concerns, and reinstate the necessity of compromise.”
— Amazon reviewer Steve Serlin
Read more at Amazon.com.
