This book is a must for any parent who has experienced the death of a child. This man's true story is an inspiration for all bereaved parents. Once I began reading it I could not put it down. I tearfully read and re-read the heart wrenching and touching experience of Brad and Nina. Brad speaks candidly from his heart and one can not help but feel his pain and sorrow. This is a story of a young couple given a situation which tries the soul. Yet, they persevere in the name of the Lord. This is truly a story of love.

This is a deeply personal story that moved me far more than I expected. I'm a dad that went through fears of my soon-to-be-born child's health, but never the pain that Brad and Nina went through. Very, very well written. Brad's first person point of view really grabs you into the story. I found myself getting up and giving my kids an extra special hug after I finished each session of reading.

A word of note -- be close to a box of tissues when you are reading - male or female; it's that powerful! But realize that the story ends showing the Stetson's strength and hope. Amazingly, you'll feel stronger yourself.

Bravo, and thank you for sharing your story with the rest of us!

All the post-riot stories about South Central have been filtered through a screen of what might be termed, "black political correctness." Facts, ideas, and research don't coincide with the so-called "official story" of the "causes" of the riots. What ever happened to the real story? Were commentators and journalists afraid to be tagged, "racially insensitive?" Did they collaborate in this "official story" with the civil rights establishment? Did they want to avoid the fall out from the explosive truth or capitalize on the political deception? What truth? The truth about the vicious character of the blacks, hispanics, and whites that looted and burned South Central Los Angeles. Who am I to say these things? I lived there. I was there when the smoke was so thick and heavy, it hung only a few feet above the ground. The heroes and heroines of the black conservative movement, however, were not deceived. Even before the Fairmont Conference when black conservatism became a forceful movment, these lions and lionesses had shaken off the deceiving and terrifying grip of the civil rights establishment. Long before the black community began to find courage to join together and move against their false prophets, the new black vanguard had individually crossed over the Jordan river. Who are these heroes and heroines? Phyllis Berry-Myers, Joseph Broadus, Ezola Foster, Alan Keyes, Glenn Loury, Thomas Sowell, Shelby Steele, Lee Walker, Walter Williams, Robert Woodson, Anne Wortham, and Elizabeth Wright among others. These are many of the same people who have now come together to voice their insight and vision in their own words within the drama of "Black and Right: The Bold New Voice of Black Conservatives in America" (Praeger Trade, 1997)! In "Challenging the Civil Rights Establishment: Profiles of a New Black Vanguard" (Praeger Trade, 1993) Joseph G. Conti and Brad Stetson (assisted by Stan Faryna) thoughtfully describe the thought, experience, and contribution of many of these lions and lionesses. Wrote Conti and Stetson of the black conservative message: "It is a message of self-reliance, in the context of a dignified community, trusting its own ability to exercise freedom with responsbility and thereby provide for itself the moral and social resources that breed and sustain independence."

The flaws of this book are numerous. I wanted to like it, and I found that I agreed with some of the opinions, but this book failed on many fronts.

The antagonistic tone of many of the essays was, to say the least, unsettling. One author complained that a Democrat once said that those against Affirmative Action were racist or ignorant. Ironically enough, many other authors whose works appear in B&R take the same stance when it comes to individuals who disagree with their conservative ideology. Many essays include phrases like, "...intelligent people realize...", "...logical thought dictates...", "...any reasonable person can see...", "..empirical data proves...". It seems the essayists refuse to consider any ideas but their own, and denigrate anyone who disagrees.

Another flaw was the repeated use of flawed logic. Often, an essay would open with a listing of facts, problems, and ambiguous solutions. However, invariably, the author would make some obtuse leap of faith to an erronious conclusion. For instance: the increase of fatherless families is bad, and welfare helps single destitute women provide for their children; therefore, end welfare immediately and the problem of fatherless families will be eradicated. Say what?!?!?

This book has some good things to say, but the positives are mired in a sea of flawed thinking and confrontational rhetoric. Is there no middle ground for an open-minded, clear thinking, middle-of-the-road minority?

It has always struck me as odd that blacks would drift in such large numbers to the Democratic Party, the party which has simply bought their votes through government favors while undermining their efforts through centralized and destructive liberal policies.

Traditionally, blacks voted Republican, after that party's founder, Abraham Lincoln, whom they considered the great emancipator. Over the years, the socialist promises of Wilson, FDR, and Johnson lured many of them away, but the virtues cherished by blacks have always been more in line with conservatism: localism, community, diversity, independence, education, character, continuity, tradition and family.

The editors have divided the anthology loosely into five parts: Experience, Politics, Racism, Morals, and a final section of interviews with writer Shelby Steele, Pat Buchanan's running mate Ezola Foster, and radio-host Larry Elder.

There are a few problems. Most of the essays are too brief to give much insight into the contributors' world views. The prose is methodical and uninspired. I would have liked to see the eloquence of Alan Keyes or the optimism of Colin Powell. There are many other black conservatives who could have been included: Thomas Sowell, Walter Williams, Armstrong Williams, Glenn Loury, J. A. Parker, Star Parker, Robert Woodson, Ward Connerly, William Allen, J. C. Watts, Condoleeza Rice, Eloise Anderson, and Janice Brown. Wynton Marsalis and Stanley Crouch have spoken about jazz the way T. S. Eliot wrote about poetry-as an art form with tradition and individual talent. Their cultural conservatism has been neglected by the right and ridiculed by the left. I would also mention the cultural contributions of Ralph Ellison and Albert Murray.

This is not the say that the current volume has little to offer. Robert George provides an alternative to the existential duality of the black American that was raised by W. E. B. Dubois and Ralph Ellison. Lee Walker, Brian Jones, and Stan Faryna resurrect the ideas of Booker T. Washington, often in contrast to DuBois. Shelby Steele is among the most thoughtful and original of the contributors. Justice Clarence Thomas gives a brief history of the black conservative's uneasy relationship with the two major parties. He reminds conservatives that they must assert their principles rather than merely criticize. Thomas also recommends a revival of the American tradition of natural law, which he locates in the work of Thomas Aquinas, Abraham Lincoln, and Martin Luther King, among others.

This book proves that blacks are much more varied in their views than is assumed by the Democratic Party, which treats them as a monolithic interest group, and which has nothing to show for it but broken promises and failed policies. With its emphasis on federal power, conformity through law, and personal license, liberalism has little to offer American blacks. I hope that future volumes by black conservatives will be forthcoming.

One of the most insightful, daring, challenging book wriiten on how the Democratic party has dimantled the Black American Family.

We learn the truths of how Al Gore and Democrats fought vigorously to find their place in the black community and how LBJ's new society pumped billions of dollars and despair into one time stable communities.

It tears away at the stereotypes of republicans, conservatives, religious leaders and takes a clear look at the problems and what solutions are needed in the Black Communities!

It exposes the negative side of governments programs and what effects Great Society economics, abortion, drugs, alcohol have had on the black community.

These Black writers are to be applauded for standing up for their beliefs and challenging the liberal power structure!

The cover describes the author as a "Black Conservative," so you probably already know what's coming. Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson pulls no punches in calling on the African-American community (especially the men) to provide the impetus in reversing the trend toward social dysfunction. "From Rage to Responsibility" is one man's tough prescription for overcoming the "victimhood" that permeates the mindset of minorities in America today.

This book is organized very simply in seven chapters. The first is a brief historical account dealing with the path Rev. Peterson took to get where he is today. The middle five chapters expound on the "Problems With ...," in order: Race, Men and Women, Abortion, Immigration, and Education. The final chapter tells us what to do to defeat these problems. Each chapter is chock full of statistics (most of which I found rather eye-opening) and anecdotes supporting the author's contention that society (especially black America) is heading in the wrong direction faster than what the media are reporting. He backs up his numbers and quotes with an exhaustive list of reference notes. The overall message: morality has been cast aside, life is being dehumanized, God is forgotten, and no one seems to take responsibility for anything. The tone and viewpoint are decidedly very conservative (Peterson admits as much), and if you lean too far to the [political] left, you might be taken aback if you're sensitive to proselytizing. Still, the topics are worth the consideration, and I have no problem with someone expressing himself this way.

The only shortcoming of this book is the last chapter, which should have had more to say toward altering perspectives, changing attitudes, and re-thinking the way we relate to different generations and ethnicities. Instead of generalities ("focus on the family," "recover the knowledge we once had"), I think a point/counterpoint type of discussion might have been more informative. Still, this book is a good effort from a man who's pretty good at expressing a strong, sincere point of view.

This book really hit home for me. Peterson provides some fundamental reasons as to why the black community has not reached it's full potential. We are the only race that has completely politicized our culture. In return we have recieved promises and rhetoric, and yet the chasm that seperates the black community grows wider.
His assessment of our so-called leadership is also dead on. Unfortunately, many people will call him an "Uncle Tom" or self-hating black. However, one only has to honestly read the book, not from the perspective of politics, i.e. Democrats or Republicans, but from the perspective of honest self evaluation.
An excellent read.

What an exceptional book! Jesse Lee Peterson stresses personal responsibility not just for the black individual but for everyone in the human race. This book may be viewed by many as an attack on blacks but I didn't feel that way. As a black man Mr. Peterson sees the problems his race is experiencing from the inside out. He examines many controversial issues including, but not limited to, racism (both black and white) the welfare problem, the immigration problem, the education problem and the problems that are created by the fact that over 70% of black children are born out of wedlock.

In his no-holds barred observations he holds up the idea that black leaders are exploiting the family problems of black people for review. he quotes many interesting facts about black families and middle class workers that you normally do not hear on the liberal news or from black leaders themselves.

Overall a very interesting read for anyone who would like to analyze the perceptions of blacks and whites about each other in this country. To review some of the reasons behind it and to ponder some potential solutions.