Bag Man: The Wild Crimes, Audacious Cover-Up, and Spectacular Downfall of a Brazen Crook in the White House Book Review

Anyone with a basic knowledge of American political history knows something of Watergate. It is one of the few events that is known by a singular name.

But Richard Nixon was not the only one doing the country dirty while in office. His Vice President, Spiro Agnew was also taking advantage of his position and his power. Angew’s rise and fall is chronicled in the new book, Bag Man: The Wild Crimes, Audacious Cover-Up, and Spectacular Downfall of a Brazen Crook in the White House. Written by MSNBC headliner Rachel Maddow and TV Producer Michael Yarvitz, it was published last December.

The book tells the story of how the Vice President was able to execute a bribery and extortion ring before and during his time in the White House. When it became obvious that Nixon’s time as President was growing short, three young lawyers took it upon themselves to stop Agnew before he could ascend to the Oval Office.

Based on the podcast of the same name, this book is brilliant. It was both a throwback to the past and a light shining on our current political situation. I knew about Watergate, but I had no idea that Agnew had his own political baggage. It reads like a fictional thriller, even though the events that take place are certainly non-fiction.

Do I recommend it? Absolutely.

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Firing Gina Carano was Necessary

What we say and do has consequences. Further, what we say on the Internet sometimes comes back to bite us in the literal behind.

This morning, The Mandalorian star Gina Carano (Cara Dune) was fired due to an Instagram post that is without a doubt, offensive.

“Jews were beaten in the streets, not by Nazi soldiers but by their neighbors…even by children. Because history is edited, most people today don’t realize that to get to the point where Nazi soldiers could easily round up thousands of Jews, the government first made their own neighbors hate them simply for being Jews. How is that any different from hating someone for their political views,” 

Her right leaning politics is not the issue here. The issue is the correlation between being a Republican in America in 2021 and being Jewish in Nazi Germany.

Being Jewish in Europe during World War II was a death sentence. Belonging to the Republican party is not a death sentence.

I take offense to her statement for two reasons. The first is that the entire narrative of Star Wars is about the importance of protecting democracy and human rights from autocracy and hate. The second is that I am a Jewish woman who lost family in The Holocaust. Comments like these make it seem like the six million have been killed all over again.

Only time will tell if Cara will be written out completely or if Carano will be replaced. But there is one thing that is certain, firing her was the right decision.

Throwback Thursday: Container Homes (2016-Present)

When solving a problem, a little creativity never hurts.

Trends are just that. Some come and go quickly, others last and create change in the process. For the last few years, homeowners have been getting around the issues of climate change and rising home prices in the United States. One of the ways they have been doing so is via container homes.

Naturally, the idea was picked up by television executives. Container Homes has been on HGTV’s schedule since 2016. The show is also available on Hulu. Every week, the audience is introduced to a new family as their new home is built by converting shipping containers into a livable space.

This show is interesting. What I find compelling is the process of creating a house using unorthodox materials and the surprise when it is all said and done.

Do I recommend it? Yes.