THE POLITICS OF PARANOIA

A collection of short columns of the past four years from the Washington Star arranged in loose topical sequence. The columns are not remarkably quotable or memorable. The title derives from the introduction, which imputes paranoia to Nixon, the Wallace movement, the New Left, anti-Communists and Communists. Getlein's pieces offer further dabblings in ""psychopolitics"" (the public's alleged preference for unsafe cars, the immaturity of students and ""client nations"") plus recurrent comments on Freud. The columns have the merit of remembering that there was a World War II; the habit of relying on shallow twists (Johnson represents anti-Machiavellianism, Reagan the rejection of showmanship); and the defect of propagating major cliches without really enlarging or qualifying them (Vietnam a case of self-deception, anti-poverty doles as harmful, Nasser untrustworthy, the American empire a ""non-profit empire""). No real Washington scuttlebutt. . . not much permanent interest.