Bushwhacked: Life in George W. Bush's America

Published in 2005 and written before the 2004 election but uncannily apt now. The legacy of the Bush years and the various and colossal messes are all laid out in their full horror. Brilliant, witty, acerbic, funny, all at once and much too accurate. I felt a particular pang at the mention of ACORN and wished even more that Molly was still with us.

Molly Ivins writes that her first choice for this book title should have been "If Y'all Had've Read the First Book, We Wouldn't've Had to Write This One", referring to her earlier "Shrub - the Short but Happy Political Life of George W. Bush". This is a look at what two years of Bush's administration has done to real Americans. Much of the book is anecdotal, but she backs it up with extensive references and data. Also, the final chapter is dedicated to solutions for the problems exacerbated by the Bush administration. Of the administration, Ivins (my favorite columnist) writes "They believe the free market can solve all problems, that government is generally bad, that we should privatize everything we possibly can, that there is no such show more thing as global warming, that the environment is unimportant, and that worker safety will be protected by benign employers". This book should be punitive reading for anybody who was clueless enough to vote for Bush in the first place. In 1990 my Mom asked me a question from a self-awareness game: "Is there anything too serious to joke about?" I replied yes, George Bush (the elder). His son is clearly a greater danger, as this book so clearly attests. (Postscript February 1, 2007: I just read in the paper of Molly Ivins' death from breast cancer at 62. I'll miss her. She was tough, gutsy, articulate, compassionate and wickedly funny.) show less

Book on CD read by Molly Ivins

The subtitle really says it all. Oh, how I miss Molly Ivins!

Ivins was a political commentator / journalist based in Texas. In an earlier book, she and Dubose examined the George W Bush’s flawed policies and abysmal record as governor of Texas. In this second book on “Dubya” they look at his presidency and how he has used many of those same strategies in running the nation.

It’s a somewhat dated book, today, and yet frighteningly appropriate in this “primary” season. Ivins doesn’t pull any punches and gives many examples of the effects of his ideology and policies on mainstream Americans struggling to make it – heck, forget “succeeding,” they’re struggling to survive.

Molly Ivins does show more a great job reading the audio. I feel like my best friend is just telling it like it is over a morning coffee (or a scotch at the bar)…. show less

This is a partisan book, and it has every right to exist. A Texas Democrat, Ms. Ivins has been on the case of the Bush Family for some decades, and I very strongly agree with most of her points. This is a book to weep over, if you are lamenting the death of the more liberal America. And with the right to bury the opposition with simple piles of money, the average American has every right to weep for the USA from now on!

I got this because I wanted a good political chuckle. After Molly passed away, I heard so many funny things she'd said, and expected that here. Really, there were funny bits, but it was just so damn sad. As a life-long Texan, I've known Bush was bad, most of the information was old, and this book was frequently just a chance to hang my head and weep for the country (though sometimes those tears were from laughing so hard). Excellent book with great anecdotes and some great Southern Wit.

This is the second Ivins and Dubose book I've read, after devouring Shrub early in Bush's presidency. This book examines real people and how their lives have been affected by policy decisions made in the United States. In particular Ivins and Dubose examine George W. Bush and the people who work for him, and the decisions they have made.

Ivins and Dubose cover a wide range of areas, from campaign financing to education, the environment to food regulation. The people they talk to tend to be interesting and compelling, some of them with very sad stories. They range from the poor in the east who can't afford heating costs, to ranchers whose land is being destroyed by methane mining.

I knew some of the issues before reading the book - show more particularly issues related to the No Child Left Behind policy. But other issues shocked me - especially the regulations over food processing (which made me feel physically ill) and some of the judges being appointed by Bush and his people. Despite the name of the book, the probalems do not all stem from Bush, but rather from a culture of influence from big business and their big campaign donations.

The book is well written and mostly easy to read (although the finance stuff bogs you down a bit). It's funny, and interesting, and pretty shocking. There are no sources quoted during the book, but there is a long list at the back. There's always the worry with political books of how much bias is going into it, and how many errors are slipping through (Missing Australia on a list of supporters for action in Afghanistan was annoying). From time to time I worried that I wasn't getting the full story, and I'd like to do some follow up reading. The foreign policy section was a little short - but then the focus was on living in America. Overall, it was a good and compelling read. show less

What's not to like about Molly Ivins writing, especially when your political leanings are such that you don't find it objectionable to read a humorous critique of a man who never should have been president and created most of the mess the nation finds itself in today.