If you could require congressmen to read one book, what would it be?

I have been thinking about this recently. Debate on issues doesn’t often get very far, because people come to the table with vastly different backgrounds, experiences, and set of data. If the party that was in power, in a house of congress could require that everyone in that house read a particular book that year, it would result in everyone at least being on the same page. They would have a minimum set of background information. They would still disagree about how to interpret the book…

I have been thinking about this a lot recently. I wonder what book atheist would want religious people to read. I have been listening to “Reading Lolita in Tehran.” I think it would be cool if everyone in Iran read that. What would they like me to read? Perhaps the Koran…

The whole “require” thing would never work, but that might be a good idea for a website. You enter in what groups you belong to, and promise to read whatever book the users of that website vote that you should read.

The overall website users could have a wikipedia site were they explain what they hoped you would learn from it, and your subgroup has a wikipedia type site were you can explain your reaction to it.

This would get into what a lot of people assume that subgroups think, and we could find out what reality is…
-- myclob, May 27 2006

I say make them read "Mr Greedy" by Roger Hargreaves. Repeat process with all the other Misters until the set is complete.
-- calum, May 27 2006


Advocacy? I think it is a great idea for a new website that could make a lot of money, and further debate by making it more intelligent. That is why I think it is not "advocacy". Tell me WHY you think that it is. You have to do better than call names or accuse. You have to explain yourself. You can't just say someone is a communist, like McCarther. You have to prove they are. You can't say it is advocacy, and not say why!
-- myclob, May 27 2006


sp: McCarthy

For all we know - McCarther might be a communist.
-- Jinbish, May 27 2006



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