SRB Picks of the Week

Based on the reading habits of Amazon shoppers, John McCain has the presidential election in the bag. The giant on-line retailer is tracking the book buying habits of Americans across the country and so far the only States where books it classifies as blue (as in sympathetic to the Democratic Party – not Tory blue) are ahead of those it classifies as red, are: New York (56%), Vermont (59%), Massachusetts (58%), Maine (53%), and, although not a State, the District of Columbia (65%).

The most popular book in the Blue States is Angler: The Cheney Vice Presidency by journalist Barton Gellman. Naomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine comes in at number two, and Barack Obama’s The Audacity of Hope sneaks in at number three.

Obama takes out the fourth spot as well with Dreams from my Father.

And Howard Zinn’s masterpiece A People’s History of the United States is number five. The last I heard Zinn was giving his vote to Ralph Nader – arguing that in a safe Democrat State such as Massachusetts it was the responsible thing to do.

The US’s leading radical historian recently told Al Jazeera that the US empire’s days were numbered. “I think the American empire will go the way of other empires and I think it is on its way now.” The interview is worth a read.

Anti Obama book, The Case Against Barack Obama: The Unlikely Rise and Unexamined Agenda of the Media’s Favorite Candidate tops the most bought books in the Red States, and what must be one of the speediest political biographies ever written – Sarah: How a Hockey Mom Turned the Political Establishment Upside Down by Kaylene Johnson is number two.

Number three is taken up by yet another anti-Obama book. And on it goes…

Amazon’s Election 08 Map is being updated daily – it makes for interesting reading.

They did the same thing in 84 and the map for Sept – Oct looks remarkably similar to the one this time around. Strangely if you go back to May – June of 04 the map turns completely blue… no doubt there’s an explanation but I definitely can’t think what it could be.

Any ideas?