The Big Hug: Al and Tipper Gore's new book is full of gushy smarminess

Opinion Journal ^ | 12/05/2002 | ERICH EICHMAN

[Pokey78]

When the New York Sun published a mockingly critical review of Al and Tipper Gore's "Joined at the Heart," Martin Peretz, editor in chief of The New Republic, shot off a letter to the editor defending the book and the couple who wrote it. He noted the seriousness of the book's theme--the survival of the American family--and the academic studies that supported its claims.

[TaRaRaBoomDeAyGoreLostToday!]

OMG I can't read past the title. I truly got sick in my stomache with this one.

[Balding_Eagle]

Joined at the Heart..........currently #2872 at Amazon.

[RippleFire]

"... by God, one longs for Ann Coulter!"

[lsee]

The Gores come across as artificial and superficial, somehow more nauseating than Bill and Hill together. At least when you observe THOSE two, you know they have few illusions that their relationship is a real marriage. With Al and Tipper, they seem to want to believe in the facade they are promoting, but don't even seem to be "with each other" even when they're sitting side by side. Platitudes don't equal intimacy. And being married to someone doesn't mean you love them, value them, or like them...Tipper wears a look of impatience when Al is talking...but don't we all?

[friendly]

CHUNKY BARF HURL ALERT!

[Slyfox]

Well, it was a better read than Tom and Hillary's

JOINED at the HEAD

[mcenedo]

read it was stories of 12 families (that, amazingly, embodified each and every study cited). One interracial, how many single moms? dads? two dads? two moms? normal? how many kids? any sick ones?

anyone actually read this homily?

[goldstategop]

We all agree with the importance of the family. Its been long a staple of conservative thought and its news only to liberals that Algore has finally discovered its existence. Good for him and Tipper. Where we conservatives part company with Algore is his smarminess and the arrogant pretension he brings to his insight on the state of the American family by telling the rest of us that he's THE EXPERT on the subject and we had all better follow him on what he says if we know what's good for us. No one's born an expert on the family and they're all composed of unique individuals dealing with different situations, often managing to succeed with the benevolent intervention of government. The upshot of Joined At the Heart is it would been more successful if Algore had done more listening than lecturing but the point seems lost on him. No wonder people have made up their minds when it comes to Algore and his latest attempt to reinvent himself as a future presidential prospect.

[Mind-numbed Robot]

anyone actually read this homily?

I think the total sales have been to editors and reviewers, perhaps a few libraries.

[WaterDragon]

The book is a same-old, same-old loony left condescending to America. Like, we didn't know how important affection and time spent together are for a family? Yoo-hoo, AlGore. We learned that a few hundred years ago.

The article is right....smarmy is the word for ol' Al. Talking slowly so that we dullards can read his lips.

[packrat35]

yea me too

[Nateman]

With the exception of the 8 or 9 people that actually read this book, who cares what it says?

[friendly]

With the exception of the 8 or 9 people that actually read this book, who cares what it says?

That would be 8 or 9 more actually than will read the Clintons' 2 books, for which they got an astonishing total of $18 in money laundered bribe money, oops I meant book advances.

[friendly]

With the exception of the 8 or 9 people that actually read this book, who cares what it says?

That would be 8 or 9 more actually than will read the Clintons' 2 books, for which they got an astonishing total of $18 million dollars in money laundered bribe money, oops I meant book advances.

[leadpenny]

How'd you re-do that so fast?

[t4texas]

Mark Twain he ain't

[packrat35]

I know I won't be reading any book by Gore or clinton (assuming it ever gets writen and/or published).

[friendly]

Just used the back up key, corrected my stupidity/fatigue, and reposted.

[friendly]

I know I won't be reading any book by Gore or clinton (assuming it ever gets writen and/or published).

No one else will be reading Hillary, Bill, or Al either. Its all a sick little joke since these will be ghost written anyway, paid for with the $18 million bribe money. The perfect way to diss the American people.