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First Sentence
What is this oozing behemoth, this fibrous tumor, this monster of power and expense hatched from the simple human desire for civic order? Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
What is this oozing behemoth, this fibrous tumor, this monster of power and expense hatched from the simple human desire for civic order? Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
PJ O'Rourke's examination of how the US government works(or doesn't,) might be over a decade old, but seems as fresh and funny as if it were written yesterday. The fact that it was written during the early years of the adminstration of Bush snr adds much to the up to date feel. Though focusing on the US, much of what O'Rourke says is relevant to governments everywhere.
The truth about how government works is almost as shocking as it is hilarious. An excellent antidote to those who feel that everything in life would be better if we just threw more government at it.
The truth about how government works is almost as shocking as it is hilarious. An excellent antidote to those who feel that everything in life would be better if we just threw more government at it.
Format:Paperback
I first heard about this book from an eccentric English teacher at school and ever since then it has been sitting on my bookshelf as one of those 'classics' that begs to be read but never is.
After 10 years, it seemed about time to read it. Although some aspects of a now 20 year old publication seem dated (e.g. President George Bush. Snr.), Andrew Ferguson still gets it right in his, now 10 year old introduction in saying that the book is timeless.
In fact, surprisingly many of the problems the USA has now (e.g. Debt and an aging population) weren't just embryonic back then but apparently just as big problems as they are now. And all that has changed in the meantime is the scale of the issues. Where the author talks about how closely watched the President is (to the point that his every word is dissected for hidden meaning), you can see that this is undoubtedly just as true now.
There is also the federal budget, which back then was notoriously unreadable and consisted of one, and only one, copy. It also had a feature called 'off budget' spending, meaning trillions of dollars weren't even counted, let alone analysed. Has this changed? Unlikely.
On top of this, there are a number of other eerily reminiscent features, such as the $500bn bailouts of the Savings & Loans companies, which are echoed by our $700bn bailouts of George W Bush. Then there is pork barrel and special interest spending, which has only increased with time.
In fact, it is fair to say that many of our current trends (e.g. excess spending, lax bank regulations and the failure of 'war on drugs') were obvious even back then.
So although the Cold war and both Bush presidents are now (thankfully) behind us, greed, self interest and the "perenially indignant" still remain. Furthermore, few American commentators have succeeded in replicating O'Rourke's famed Gonzo wit (he is officially the most quoted humourous author in history). Literally every page contained something new, funny or insightful and usually all three.
If, like me, you have this book gathering dust on a shelf, then I recommend you pick it up and read it. It is still as vivid as the day it was written containing valuable insights and essential reading into how little things change with time.
Incidentally, for those that think P.J. O'Rourke is a has-been, do a search for some of his videos as he still makes many valuable contributions to politics, even in his 60's...
After 10 years, it seemed about time to read it. Although some aspects of a now 20 year old publication seem dated (e.g. President George Bush. Snr.), Andrew Ferguson still gets it right in his, now 10 year old introduction in saying that the book is timeless.
In fact, surprisingly many of the problems the USA has now (e.g. Debt and an aging population) weren't just embryonic back then but apparently just as big problems as they are now. And all that has changed in the meantime is the scale of the issues. Where the author talks about how closely watched the President is (to the point that his every word is dissected for hidden meaning), you can see that this is undoubtedly just as true now.
There is also the federal budget, which back then was notoriously unreadable and consisted of one, and only one, copy. It also had a feature called 'off budget' spending, meaning trillions of dollars weren't even counted, let alone analysed. Has this changed? Unlikely.
On top of this, there are a number of other eerily reminiscent features, such as the $500bn bailouts of the Savings & Loans companies, which are echoed by our $700bn bailouts of George W Bush. Then there is pork barrel and special interest spending, which has only increased with time.
In fact, it is fair to say that many of our current trends (e.g. excess spending, lax bank regulations and the failure of 'war on drugs') were obvious even back then.
So although the Cold war and both Bush presidents are now (thankfully) behind us, greed, self interest and the "perenially indignant" still remain. Furthermore, few American commentators have succeeded in replicating O'Rourke's famed Gonzo wit (he is officially the most quoted humourous author in history). Literally every page contained something new, funny or insightful and usually all three.
If, like me, you have this book gathering dust on a shelf, then I recommend you pick it up and read it. It is still as vivid as the day it was written containing valuable insights and essential reading into how little things change with time.
Incidentally, for those that think P.J. O'Rourke is a has-been, do a search for some of his videos as he still makes many valuable contributions to politics, even in his 60's...
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a book about government - making it a simple as possible and so showing up the absurdities.
O'Rourke isn't a politician (although he has political views) or an economist (although he has the basics)so he ends up doing the simple things - like take the total US Agriculture Budget and divide it by the number of (real) farmers and get such a big number you think the decimal place must be in the wrong place!
It's a exaggerated(?) view of what happens to our money when we take our eyes off politicians.
It's also very very very funny!!!
O'Rourke isn't a politician (although he has political views) or an economist (although he has the basics)so he ends up doing the simple things - like take the total US Agriculture Budget and divide it by the number of (real) farmers and get such a big number you think the decimal place must be in the wrong place!
It's a exaggerated(?) view of what happens to our money when we take our eyes off politicians.
It's also very very very funny!!!
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