Scott McMurrey

"In other words, an asshole is a jerk with a belligerent, aggressive, offensive attitude about his or her jerkiness.

Under this definition, Trump is - absolutely and objectively- a total asshole".

Asshole Nation: Trump and the Rise of Scum America by Scott McMurrey

OK. Well.

You are not going to want to read this book unless you:

Are a political Junkie

Do not like Trump

Do like Trump but are intellectually curious about what the other side has to say.

Interested in any kind of book that has asshole in the title.

I love Political reads as I am a complete Political animal but when reading them, I do have to be careful as it is easy to like a particular writer and agree with SOME..but not ALL..of what they say.

In the case of Asshole Nation, there is much to agree with. But also some things I am not sold on and do not agree with.

First off, Scott McMurray hates Trump. That is pretty obvious. In this book, he attempts to explain to the reader, how the birth of Trumpism became possible. He traces its roots back far, so you get a History lesson as well. And for me, that was good because there was much I did not know.

What I like here is the wit and the intensity with which this book is written. I like the "take no prisoner" approach and I like Scott McMurrey. I like him alot. I wish he was advising the Biden campaign because something tells me they are going to need alot of advising, as "Hunter Biden" becomes the new "Hillary's emails".

He articulates so much that is true including the fact that the Democrats..for whatever reason..do not know how to fight,. I liked how he goes all the way back to the times of the Civil War in explaining the roles of each party..as they were then and as they are now.

And I agree with what he says about the working class. In Asshole Nation, McMurray argues that Dems are to apologetic. He destroys the whole notion of "Trump won because the Democrats forgot about the "common working class man and woman". He presents much evidence for that, including the fact that many Trump voters are actually not Working Class but Upper Class. He backs that up with real numbers too.

I like this author. I am going to read more of his books. I had a field day reading this one .

BUT:

I do not agree with all of it. In particular, I do not agree with the notion that all Republicans are jerks. (He does not label all Repubs as Assholes..that is saved for the "Roy Moore's and Lindsay Grahms's of politics.

I don't hate or even dislike all Republican s. I like many of them. I like John Kascich. I liked John Mccain..very much so.

And I will freely admit I have many Republican friends (although a few of them are now saying they are going to vote for Biden). I have no friends that are obsessed with Trump rallies None of my friends are racist or cruel. But those types ARE out there. One of those assholes was a person I attempted to engage with politely who then proceeded to wish cancer on me. So yes, they exist.

But I am not into the us versus them mentality. Everyone has different reasons for voting the way they do and not all Trump voters v ted for him because they're jerks. I know people who do not follow politics and don't even know about half this stuff. They just always vote Republican because they are fiscally conservative or whatever.

Now the rise of Scum America..the Roy Moore's like I said..that is explained in great detail and I agree with all of it.

In summary, this is a book that I am glad I read and that anyone who fits into any of the above mentioned categories would maybe like too. There is much to agree with and some that I do not agree with at all. That is good though as that's what being part of a free society is all about. Happy reading.… (meer)