The Bush Tragedy by Jacob Weisberg
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Book Reviews of The Bush Tragedy
Book Review: Douba
Summary: 5 Stars
So much promise and so much disappointment. So it goes as Kurt Vonnegutt would have said. A mistake that we are still paying for.Book Review: I understand Bush Better and excuse him less.
Summary: 4 Stars
I had often wondered how a man like George W. Bush could have become the governor of Texas (where I live) and then President of the United States. Well, this book showed me how it could happen.
This book was a real eye-opener into the life of George W. Bush and the pressures he faced as the oldest child in a wealthy and extremely politically active family. Particularly interesting was the dynamic between the Bush/Walker sides of the family. When the author stated that Bush was more like the Walker side of the family, I thought, "Yes, for SURE!" In fact, that's one of the things that helped me to understand our now ex-President a bit better.
AS you might guess, the book was filled with a lot of political details and showed a lot of the inner workings of the who, what, when, where, why and how of the Bush presidency. Some of the events were just as I thought, many of them I didn't realize but was not surprised when I learned them, and some information was a BIG surprise.
For me, one of the biggest surprises was Bush's "real" relation to the religious right. Now I did know right from the get-go that Karl Rove was not part of it, but that he orchestrated the hook-up with the Bush election to it. I get the impression that Bush, while his views of Christ were Biblical, his real religious affiliation was not with the religious right at all -- and in fact, his father didn't approve of their antics, either.
To me, it's a story of a presidency which never should have happened in the first place. I have often wondered how Bush managed to get re-elected, although I have a private opinion that if Hurricane Katrina had happened in 2003 instead of 2005, the re-election of Bush wouldn't have happened, either.
I could empathize with Bush's mixed feelings towards his famous father, whom he had helped a lot, but to whom he often felt inferior. I can empathize -- but it doesn't excuse Bush's performance in the White House, either. The book gives some good psychological insights into Bush's behavior, but like some of the other reviewers, I think the author sometimes draws conclusions about Bush's motives which may or may not be accurate.
However, I would recommend reading the book; it's a real eye-opener.
Like many people of my generation (I'm two months and six days younger that the former President himself) I've been watching the Republican party change into something I don't know any more. In retrospect, I think I could see it coming even when I was in high school, although I didn't recognize it at the time. I think it's time for both parties in general and the Republicans in particular to do some serious self-examination and make a lot of internal repair.
Book Review: George W Bush: the man, the son, the politician
Summary: 4 Stars
The Bush Tragedy is a book which immerses the reader into the personal and political life of the 43rd president of the United States: George W Bush. By immersing the reader into the politician's family life/history, politics, and convictions, the author allows him/her to understand "why" the Bush Administration has enacted laws which have caused national and international galvanizing.
The book's first two chapters are an examination of the Bush/Walker history, and how it has molded George W Bush's persona. This compendium of Bush's family history sheds light onto aspects such as Bush non-intellectualism, social ties/awkwardness, and unwillingness to correct his mistakes. In other words, these chapters are the foundation of Bush's political life, since his in/ability to function as a president stem from his life as a child, the son of George H W Bush, and a Yale and Harvard student.
The rest of the chapters provide the reader with a scrutinizing of Bush's political life. Specifically, the author provides a diagram of Bush's religious affiliation, his association with certain political figures, and his father's political "legacy," and how they affect Bush's political decision-making. Most importantly, these sections serve as a confirmer or corrector of one's ideas of George W Bush, since one can examine how the president's environment affects him and vice-versa. It is during this time that the concept of politics turns into a consequential and building process: Bush's policies are amendments, (failed) emulations, and extensions of past American and European presidents.
I strongly recommend this book to anybody who wants to learn more about the United States' current political turmoil. Likewise, this book allows readers to better understand the complexities of political rhetoric, and how it can present specious images that confuse and mislead audiences.
Book Review: Taking a Stab at Bush's Brain
Summary: 4 Stars
Mr. Weisberg makes a very credible attempt at deciphering our 43rd President plus some of the key movers and shakers in his administration. Viewing President Bush as similar to Shakespeare's "Henry V" play is an insightful and unique take on the nature of power in search of identity and validation. The Bard reminds us that the human condition doesn't change all that much through the ages. I believe Mr. Weisberg's assessment about this Chief Executive man-child is certainly plausible. The author's book is not as much a hatchet job as a serious attempt to understand why Bush is Bush. It is a thoughtful and wonderfully written analysis about an intellectually lazy gentleman that personifies the Peter Principle.Book Review: The Bush Tragedy
Summary: 4 Stars
Everyone who has any interest in politics should read this very educational book. You will learn what actually made the Bush administration do what it did and who the principal characters were doing the forced leadership.