30-second Politics

by Steven L Taylor (Icon Books UK)

In the internet age, we are told, there is plenty to learn for free by pressing a few keys and going through the ubiquitous likes of Google and Wikipedia. In a jiffy, you can find out how to bake a cake, fix your car or even build a bomb.

Taylor, a professor of political science at Troy University in Alabama, must have been fully aware of this when putting together his 150-page book, but apparently he wanted to offer the subject matter in concise form and on paper, which happens to be a kind of low-gloss, “environmental” type.

The author says the publication seeks to be an “aid in sorting out the complexity of the political world and the language associated with it”.

South Africans might be able to use the book to understand what political belief system some of their leaders are coming from, what with the “rebels” in the ANC Youth League preaching one thing, the mother body another and the official opposition yet another.

All the usual political terms/theories are covered in what the author claims is a no-frill, no-spin, tell-it-like-it-is way, but some that you may not know include anarcho-syndicalism and praetorianism.

Taylor would like people to be more informed when engaging in political debates, and this “textbook” will aid their education before being passed down to future generations or donated to the local library. – Carl Peters