Reviewed by: BigAl
Genre: Non-Fiction/Politics/Religion
Approximate word count: 70-75,000 words
Availability
Kindle US: YES UK: YES Nook:
NO Smashwords:
NO Paper:
YES
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on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or
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Author:
Although
the author has written a few other books, for our purposes his qualifications are
covered in the description and appraisal sections.
Description:
“The year
is 2012, and we Americans are once again faced with a choice of Presidential
leadership.
Nationally
and globally, we are at a threshold . . . and we face an ever-threatening
dilemma . . . politically, economically, and environmentally. The realities of
our dramatically changing world demand that we act decisively and with courage.
The role of
religion and ideology is unquestionably a key factor in both the cause and the
resolution of our dilemma. We have a choice. We can take rational action, with
responsibility, maturity, wisdom, and courage . . . or we can continue to pay
blind homage to doctrines and dogmas that are irrelevant to our current issues,
and which do not offer corrective insight or guidance.
With this
upcoming election the resolution of our dilemma should be a major priority. The
stakes are high. On one hand we have a candidate who can hopefully use a second
term to put common sense and rational action to play.
On the
other we have a candidate who is a devout member of a religion which fosters a
life-style and system of belief that is much more a part of the problem than
the solution, and, in particular, champions prophesies that threaten both our
political system and our very survival.
The author
uses his knowledge and experience from growing up in the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints to warn us that we do not want a Mormon President.”
Appraisal:
By way of
disclaimer, I have much the same background as the author. I was raised in a
Mormon family, began asking questions and getting answers that didn’t make
sense in my teens, and stopped practicing the religion in early adulthood.
Although I’m not a believer, I also take exception when those who object to
Mormon beliefs use half-truths and outright lies to make their case, a common
occurrence. The author put it best:
It can at times be difficult to
determine the authenticity and credibility of critical arguments directed
against Mormon history and teachings because the critics are often just as
zealous and biased as the LDS believer, and a good deal of unethical journalism
is evident on both sides.
Last, to
complete the disclaimer, odds of my voting for any of the Republican candidates
who were vying for the 2012 nomination were slim. I’d already thought about one
of the major points Bateman raises in Do
We Really … as an issue, which was a concern for multiple candidates, not
just the “presumptive nominee.”
The issue
mentioned isn’t just a concern with
Mormon candidates. I’d had this same concern with Ronald Reagan and would with
any candidate whose religious beliefs were that the earth is in its last days, and believe we’re on the
verge of The Rapture, apocalypse, or whatever their religion calls it. If they
are true believers and a crisis happens I feel like they’ll be much less
inclined to hold back on pushing the button to start a nuclear war or the
equivalent, because they believe it is going to happen anyway. They’re only
fulfilling the prophecy.
Bateman
covers a lot of ground. Some of this might not seem necessary to make his
ultimate point, that Mitt Romney (or any other Mormon) as President of the
United States has the potential (I would say likelihood) of being extremely
detrimental to the US and the world. However, to truly understand the Mormon
mindset and how that is likely to be reflected in a Romney presidency, as well
as to make the case that Romney is a true believer, not just someone going
through the motions for appearance’s sake, requires an understanding of the
history Bateman outlines.
Given the
nature of the subjects covered, many readers may find this a tough read. An
exception would be for readers who are interested in studying religion or
history. However, two sections were actually entertaining. One is a section
that relates an experience the author had while working on a ship in the
Philippines. The other is the first chapter, which is a fictionalized story,
used to set the stage for the rest of the book. That chapter does a good job of
laying out the issues and should convince the reader as to why finishing the
less entertaining parts is worthwhile.
Although
the book has a very specific goal and several points to be made, Bateman
doesn’t paint an unrealistic picture. There are areas discussed where the
Mormon religion has some positives. He doesn’t hesitate to admit that, even
though doing so doesn’t help bolster his case. The majority of his personal
experience, what he was taught, and the attitudes he observed, agree with my
own. The few instances where our experiences were different, his observations
were still credible to me. They didn’t seem unreasonable or unlikely. However,
Bateman doesn’t make his case based purely on experience. He provides plenty of
facts that are easily verifiable. In the few instances where something was
presented as fact that I wasn’t aware of that seemed questionable, I was easily
able to find other supporing sources.
The few
negatives I found were the inherent dryness of some of the subject matter and
some minor issues with historical quotes. I didn’t question the accuracy of
what was being quoted (all too many of them were things I’d read or heard years
before), but in some instances they are attributed to a person and title of
“prophet,” when the person being quoted didn’t hold that position at the time
they said it. (This might sound like it is insignificant, but to a Mormon, it
wouldn’t be, because of the difference in how the words of the prophet are
viewed in relation to everyone else.) I also thought there were some instances
of using too many quotes, overkill, to demonstrate the official Mormon position
on some subjects.
I’m
concerned that in many ways this book will “be preaching to the choir.” It will
be read by voters who weren’t going to vote for Romney anyway. It really needs
to be read by anyone who is on the fence or thinks Romney is their candidate.
If you’ve chosen Romney due to a feeling that he is the lesser of the two
evils, after reading Do We Really Want a
Mormon President, you might start looking for a third evil to mark on your
ballot.
Format/Typo Issues:
A small
number of typos and copy editing errors.
Rating: **** Four stars
