State of Confusion: Political Manipulation and the Assault on the American Mind
"This is one of those few books that is a virtual Rosetta stone to understanding how so many Americans are living in an alternative reality." --BuzzFlash“Bryant Welch makes a fascinating and compelling case that right-wing politics has subverted our democracy by infecting us with a form of national political neurosis. This book unmasks the politics of fear---the deeper chords touched by campaigns that appeal to the dark side.” --Robert Shrum, senior strategist of the Gore and Kerry presidential campaigns and author ofNo Excuses: Concessions of a Serial Campaigner“Bryant Welch was born to write this vitally important and highly readable investigation of how a cadre of ethically challenged political operatives and their religious and journalistic allies have gradually distorted and disabled the minds of ordinary Americans—and have all but crippled the once-extraordinary mind of America. It is not too late for us to reclaim our identity, but we will succeed only if we take to heart the lessons so lucidly laid bare by the remarkable work of this insightful psychologist and experienced political activist.” --Laurence H. Tribe, Carl M. Loeb University Professor, Harvard Law School   “State of Confusionis intense, clear, logical, and striking in its message. It will grab you emotionally and intellectually…the message cannot be missed.…Bryant Welch sees through the smoke and mirrors and offers the only remedy that will place democracy firmly in the grip of the people from whom it is being stolen: the truth.” --Dr. Harold I. Eist, M.D., clinical professor of psychiatry, George Washington University, and former president of the American Psychiatric Association“Dr. Welch is a master of making complex psychological concepts understandable and using them to explain the disturbing political climate of our time. This beautifully written, urgently relevant work should be on the bookshelf of everyone who cares about the survival of American democracy.” --Nancy McWilliams, Ph.D., president of the Division of Psychoanalysis, American Psychological Association, and professor, Rutgers Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology“[State of Confusion] is a unique and successful effort to understand the machinations of politicians and others who have significant influence on others.…With professional credentials in both law and psychology, Dr. Bryant Welch is ideally suited to raise the issues…fascinating reading.” --Lewis P. Lipsitt, Ph.D., professor of psychology, emeritus, Brown University