Less confrontational perhaps than his PIG book, or his Things You Ain't 'Sposed to Ask, it still is a blend of politics and history. This book leans a tad more towards history. Woods gives an excellent history of the ideas of nullification in U.S. history and the compact theory of government. I was glad to see a sober review of nullification as a theory, and surprised to see it was used for more than the Alien and Sedition Acts and the Tariff of Abominations. I didn't know of New England states using interposition, just another word for nullification, during the War of 1812; or the use of nullification by Yankee states to declare the Fugitive Slave Act null and void. It is well argued. I would have liked some more solid stuff on present-day "nullification" of federal drug laws, but it serves as a decent introduction and call to action. Can nullification make a comeback? I'd like to see it tried. Kudos too on the hard to find primary sources at the back. ( )

Woods delivers a blue-print in which change in the way things are done in our name by the invoking of the Constitution is necessary not just change for its own sake but because we are at a crossroads. He whets our appetites for a better, more free world, he reminds us of the precepts of the Framers of the Constitution and points at what time and our own complacency have wrought. I'm left breathless at Woods's insightful presentation of the astuteness and anticipation of the Framers and with the thought that, if we must have a Constitution, then let's have the one we've got as it was meant to be!

Just like a blue-print, however, this is no self-help manual - there is no "how to get there from here" route planner, no pre-formatted letter to your congressman or senator. Maybe, however, you owe it to the prescient Framers to do more than just finish reading the book, sighing wistfully and switching back to your favorite soap. ( )

Most people think a contested law makes its way through our court system, then, if necessary, goes to the Supreme Court for a final decision regarding the law's legality. But that's not the end of the process as envisioned by our Founders. Each individual state may declare a particular law unconstitutional and then refuse to adhere to that law. Read this fascinating book about the process known as nullification. You probably won't learn any of this in school because, as the author points out, it isn't taught! ( )