Takedown: From Communists to Progressives, How the Left Has Sabotaged Family and Marriage - Softcover

Paul Kengor

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1942475101 ISBN 13: 9781942475101

Publisher: WND Books, 2015

Synopsis

We are witnessing a watershed moment in American cultural history: the sabotaging of family and marriage. Extreme-left radicals have made their arguments and tried different tactics, from the early nineteenth century to the sexual revolution of the 1960s, but at long last they have the vehicle to make it happen: gay marriage. Now, as the legal definition of marriage rapidly changes, the floodgates are open, and the fundamental transformation of the American family will take on new speed and new dimensions. Efforts to redefine the family structure have been long at work, and there have been some influential forces on the far left and communist left that cannot and should not be ignored in that process. In  T akedown  Paul Kengor exposes these origins, starting with Karl Marx, and traces them through the sordid history of people like Margaret Sanger, Wilhelm Reich, Herbert Marcuse, and assorted '60s radicals. What were once fringe concepts have become accepted by mainstream thought and are today welcomed by many legislators and judges. Kengor notes how in the not-so-distant past, today's leftists who are attacking traditional marriage would have loudly raised their voices but not caused any real damage. They would have been dismissed with no serious concern as left-wing cranks, crackpot German and Austrian atheistic philosophers and campus agitators. But now, with formal legalization of same-sex marriage afoot, they are getting what they've wanted for generations: the literal redefinition of the family. Takedown  exposes how gay marriage is serving as a Trojan horse for the far left to secure the final takedown of marriage that it has long wanted, and countless everyday Americans are oblivious to the deeper forces at work. Takedown takes no prisoners and bluntly shows the reader that even Karl Marx and his more anti-marriage comrade Engels would be dumbfounded at the mere thought that modern Americans would gladly join them in their rejection of God's design for natural marriage and the family.

About this title

Review:

"America has been waiting for this book. History has been waiting for it. Takedown irrefutably documents that today's leftist war against the traditional American family is rooted in Karl Marx's Communist Manifesto, which preaches the abolition [Aufhebung] of family. . . . I am glad Paul Kenkgor is not politically correct. I hope his Takedown will hammer another nail in the coffin of Marxism." -- Lt. Gen (r) Ion Mihai Pacepa, author of Disinformation

"Kengor's depth of scholarship combined with a light style make Takedown a "must read." He shows what Marx only dreamt of but Lenin planned and set in motion with the Frankfurt School, their academic allies (Margaret Mead, Wilhelm Reich, Herbert Marcuse), activists (Margaret Sanger, '60's feminists, The Weathermen) and finally the President of the United States. These all worked to change the West's view of sexuality. Already they have achieved more than Marx ever dreamed of or any ordinary American thought possible--the destruction of the American family. The fall of the Berlin Wall may have seemed like the end of Marx but he is having the last laugh as his progeny tears down the our nation, law by law and family by family. Every parent, pastor, teacher and professor needs to be given a copy of this book." -- Pat Fagan, Director of the Marriage and Religion Research Institute, a division of Family Research Council

"Classic Kengor: researched; readable; and rivoting. This time, Paul Kengor connects the dots showing that the current push to redefine marriage is not some isolated end, but rather a coordinated means used for a larger ideological end: undermining the family and related mediating authorities so as to unleash an increasingly Leviathan State. Following the footnotes leads to one unmistakable conclusion: the Left and their Progressive friends focus on the family . . . in order to destroy it. Learn the truth; refute the error." -- Jeffery J. Ventrella, J.D., Ph.D., senior counsel, senior vice-president Alliance Defending Freedom

"Everyone should read this book, especially those conservatives who think they can support genderless marriage and other alternative family forms. Paul Kengor makes very clear the Leftist and Statist, big-government roots of these ideas." -- Jennifer Roback Morse, Ph.D. Founder and President, The Ruth Institute

"Paul Kengor offers a lively, yet sober, analysis of the most controversial social issue of our day, gay marriage. He traces the intellectual origins of the movement to redefine marriage, and how it has unfolded in recent times. His analysis of how the contributions of left-wing thinkers and political operatives found their way into mainstream American thought is masterful. Importantly, Kengor examines the way leading Catholic figures, such as Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, saw how the destabilization of marriage and the family was aided by, and served the interests of, Communism. This is one of the book's greatest strengths: Kengor's weaving of the political with the cultural. Takedown deserves a major place in all future discussions on this subject." -- Bill Donohue, Ph.D., President Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights

"Paul Kengor does an excellent job of tying historic events and personalities together to make a coherent tale of what happened to America in the 20th century, from John Dewey and his effect on public education, to Herbert Marcuse and the Communist influence, to Betty Friedan and the feminists' attack on marriage and motherhood, and to the voices of sanity from Dr. Fred Schwarz and Bishop Fulton J. Sheen." -- Phyllis Schlafly, president, Eagle Forum and author of 24 books

"Takedown is an explosive and significant book. While I respectfully disagree with some of Professor Kengor's conclusions, his work shows that the dark dream of an all-powerful government with officially enforced equality is both a cause and effect of the weakening of the family. In the process, he exposes aspects of the international left that may shock even careful students of recent history." -- Michael Medved, nationally syndicated talk radio host

"Very few people know how many generations the war against the family has been being fought, how intensely, how seriously. Paul Kengor, in short taut chapters, brings the outline up to date. Kengor includes many colorful first-person passages from enemies of marriage, and he pushes back with a certain brio of his own." -- Michael Novak, 1994 Templeton Prize winner, editor of The New Consensus on Family and Welfare (1987) and author of many essays on the family

"Americans will be astounded to learn the history of the movement to undo the institution and definition of marriage, and its ultimate purposes. Takedown is a powerful documentary in an accessible book, and the one most critical to engage in our time, to face what comes next." -- Sarah Liaugminas, host of A Closer Look and author of Non-Negotiable

"Takedown by Paul Kengor switches on the krieg lights to expose the shadowy theoreticians and practicioners who have undermined marriage for over a century. Kengor's careful research shows that the hammer used to smash the House of Marriage has been invariably accompanied by the sickle used to cut the power cables. If you want to understand the ideology behind the "sudden" juggernaut against the millennia-old definitions of marriage and family, get this book." -- Patrick Coffin, host of Catholic Answers Live and author of Sex Au Naturel: What It Is and Why It's Good For Your Marriage

About the Author:

Paul Kengor is a bestselling author whose works include "11 Principles of a Reagan Conservative," "The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism" and "The Communist: Frank Marshall Davis: the Untold Story of Barack Obama's Mentor." His articles regularly appear in publications ranging from USA Today to The New York Times, plus numerous academic journals. A frequent commentator on television and radio, Kengor earned his bachelor's degree and Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh and his master's from American University.

About this edition

• Publisher: WND Books
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1942475101
• ISBN 13: 9781942475101
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 256