I'm tired. It's late. But I have to make this diary entry as I'm just about half way through Molly Ivins' and Lou Dubose's
Bushwhacked.
I've read the recent books by Joe Conason and Al Franken -- books that were good reads, angering, and insightful. But they don't compare in my mind to
Bushwhacked. Ivins and Dubose have, in wonderful prose and acid wit, put a touching and human face on the mess of a country Bush has made of ours.
I think too many Americans have forgotten what a meaningful and important role government has and should play in our lives. We forget, that is, until something goes wrong, something from which we believed our government was supposed to protect us. Bush wants us to forget. That's the only way he can win. He must hate the government. He has run ours with the darkest cynicism, the greatest fear, and the deepest mistrust of Americans.
Bush pretends that big business will think of us before it thinks of itself; that the profit motive and public interest go hand-in-hand. They don't. There's a balance between the two, and Bush is placing the full weight of his leadership to tip the scale immovably to the corporate side.
Time and time again, with stories about real people who are struggling hard to make do with sometimes overwhelming problems that should never have occurred, had our goverment been protecting us (what I always thought it was supposed to do) instead of corporate interests, Bushwhacked goes straight to the heart of Bush's misdeeds -- to the singular effects of the Bush presidency. We are reminded that people have been gravely affected by what Bush has done, that there's more to Bush's reign than dismaying facts and figures -- abstractions reflecting our nation's illness. Bush has placed money and politics above people.
It's hard to imagine anyone with a soul could possibly like Bush or find him the least bit credible as leader of the world's current superpower after reading Ivins' and Dubose's heartwrenching book. These fine writers have managed to fill their book with humor -- it's the only way one could manage to get through the stories. Their wit can't mask the human suffering.
The past "liberal" books I've read (What Liberal Media?, Wealth and Democracy, etc.) were intellectually stimulating, entertaining and valuable. Bushwhacked is much, much more. A smart Democrat vying for the presidency would be wise to read this book, take notes and use what they learn to help craft a winning campaign -- a campaign that results in a presidency primed to truly bring Americans' hope and restore faith in our government. We need a leader that appeals not to "liberals" or "moderates," but rather all Americans. Remembering what Bushwhacked teaches us about the last three years will surely convince people that Bush is not human enough.