The Green Book

This is a very interesting little book. Muammar Gaddafi makes a lot of compelling points in places, and at other times seems like a naive and zealous utopian. He is very strong when he critiques representative democracy from the standpoint of direct democracy, and when he compares the differences between constitutional law and natural law and the deficiencies of constitutions. Gaddafi's system of councils and committees is a very interesting and inspiring model of a broadly participatory, horizontal structure to the governing of society. It is his claim that mankind will inevitably come to adopt this structure, and that the political states of the world will eventually wither away and with them all serious social problems, that he seems to veer off into the realm of religious dogma, and not cultural and political theory. Similarly, his discussion of families, tribes, and the sexes demonstrate a kind of unquestioned biological essentialism that could have used a healthy dose of cultural realism.

Caleb Maupin's introduction is a welcome addition to the text. He paints a sympathetic, but not inaccurate, portrait of the revolutionary Libyan leader, that includes a great deal of context one won't find from say, CNN or the New York Times. I don't think any of his crimes or abuses should be ignored, but Gaddafi should also be understood as a synthesizer of a unique kind of Islamic socialism, who fought against Imperialism in Africa and worked hard to improve his nation. Painted as little more than a raving monster in much of the Western press, reading this will definitely give one a fuller picture of the man and his vision.