I Used to Like You Until…
(How Binary Thinking Divides Us)
Kat Timpf
Simon & Schuster / Threshold Editions
Referred to frequently as the “Reigning Queen of Late Night,” best-selling author, staunch (small l) libertarian, and free speech poster girl Kat Timpf just might be the much-needed cooling agent required to extinguish today’s super-charged sociopolitical dumpster fire.
“I’ve never voted for a Republican — never voted for a Democrat,” Timpf declared during our 2021 phone interview. “I’ve voted third party always.” And it’s her unfiltered, nonpartisan perspectives that make I Used to Like You Until…, such an important book.
Possessing the whip-smart sass and sensibility of that really cool chick copping a smoke between band sets out behind the local “Brew & Cue,” Timpf lays out her bold message straight away, pointing out how Americans are becoming increasingly (and alarmingly) “divided and tribal” — pitted against each other, dismissing each other “on behalf of a partisan-political-power scheme that cares nothing for you, other than as a pawn for its own ends.”
Timpf delivers the same type of razor-sharp insights that have made her a vital component of the top-rated nightly Gutfeld! show — stating that “things have gone bananas” and how “Binary thinking is the enemy of critical thinking.” She further suggests, “We’ve largely limited ourselves to just two options on so many crucial, complex issues,” and “Once you pick a side or lens, you no longer have to think, because all the thinking has been done for you.”
While Timpf’s arguably spot-on commentary is certainly compelling, her signature-style tingle factor can become compromised as a result of the (likely) publisher-required statistic tsunami (43% of 16% of the right-handed, left-leaning people questioned agree 29% of the time with the left-handed, right-leaning people on 73% of the issues). Wait! What?
However, the book delivers its biggest and best payoffs when Timpf is just being Timpf — making her case and providing encouragement based simply on her personal stories and unique observations on an array of timely topics, from the military and taxes, to drag queens and beer cans, to Jason Aldean and Bill Maher.
Irreverent and entertaining, Timpf confesses how it’s often easier to tell people, “I work in porn,” than deal with the frequent awkward reactions she faces when revealing that she actually works at FOX News. Recounting her own professional struggles and personal insecurities with tremendous transparency, Timpf writes, “You can’t dick-suck your way out of incompetence.” Doggonit, that’s good!
Another of her bullet points is religion. As a laser-focused fella who holds a degree in Bible studies, I’m not much of a fan of religion. Newsflash: Jesus isn’t either. And although Timpf identifies as agnostic, I’m qualified to recognize that she’s probably a lot closer to “believing” than she might think. So, the hyper-critical zealots should probably back off and chill out.
Timpf beams brightest when spotlighting the people who have come through her life: romantic “nightmares” and personal friendships. And it was through her heart-warming and heart-breaking story of her loving, yet oft-conflicted relationship with her now dead mother that I discovered my new favorite phrase: “what’s her tits.”
Calling for kindness and compassion, Kat Timpf’s voice rings honest and pure. Her message is important and relevant. As a result, she commands one’s attention while never demanding one’s agreement, making I Used to Like You Until… a passkey for unlocking free-thinking. And personally, anyone who quotes the great American philosopher Shaun Brumder from the movie Orange County in their message is someone with whom I’m likely to agree, more often than not.
