America's Old Social Network: the Bumper Sticker Dialogue

The U.S.A. is a society that reveals its soul with messages delivered by automobiles.
The cultural aspects of the United States that Americans transmit through their bumper stickers are clearer and more direct than the representation of this culture disseminated through the filter of the media. We see the raw instincts of the American psyche, a fresh and honest openness untrammeled by political correctness. They offer an insight into the diverse areas of a society that clings to the belief in a “freedom of expression” that many would consider far too absolute and even irresponsible. The stickers demonstrate one of the distinctive features of American culture: the almost total lack of discretion. Americans are not known for their subtlety or sensitivity, but rather for their directness, openness and often their naïveté. This can be attractive and seductive to foreigners, but is, at times, difficult to suffer. The bumper sticker conversation presents all of these aspects and the observer reacts alternatively by laughing and crying.
Car owners want everyone to know what they think. On occasion, this is interesting and concerns major political and social questions. Sometimes, it is of little interest and resembles some of the twitter and Facebook messages currently in vogue. One bumper sticker comment may provoke a response, which in turn encourages another statement, all of which creates a dialogue that is not always evident to those unfamiliar with American society. The dialogue stretches across 3000 miles from coast to coast, and concerns local, regional and national interests. The strength of this book is to focus on a rather unique American tradition that is little known abroad and which opens the reader to a new discussion of American values.
Much of the dialogue is political, and since political debate in the Unites States often revolves around the questions of religion, abortion, guns and patriotism, many of the more interesting bumper stickers mirror those concerns. There is also a comic undercurrent to the sticker dialogue, giving readers an insight into the lighter side of automobile conversation.
The book illustrates a very American phenomenon, but the author brings to that a varied international perspective. Alan Rose grew up in England, married a Frenchwoman and has spent the last 40 years in the United States. This positions him well to give the reader an interesting view of American society. He does this with comments that briefly situate the context and the social and political background behind the sticker picture, and he does this with a generous dose of British/cockney humor.
The book is divided into 12 chapters, each with a theme to which the photos of the bumper stickers speak.