Profiles in Ignorance: How America’s Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber Book Review

No one expects a politician to be perfect. But we do expect that they will have the emotional and intellectual intelligence to govern as the voters need them to. Unfortunately, those expectations are not always met.

Profiles in Ignorance: How America’s Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber, by Andy Borowitz, was published last month. Examining American politics and politicians over the last five decades, Borowitz exposes how some politicians are not what they seem to be. He starts the book with Ronald Reagan‘s 1966 Gubenationatorial election in California and ends with you know who. As the decades pass, it becomes clear that the lights are on, but no one is home.

Calling out well-known political figures such as Bill Clinton, Sarah Palin, and Dan Quayle, he reveals how their egos, stupidity, and mistakes have caused Americans to see politicians in a not-so-positive light.

In pointing out the imperfections of the subjects, Borowitz provides the reader with the release we all need. While making us laugh and cry, he is sending the message that we don’t have to take it lying down. We can use our voices and our votes to enact the change that we want and need to see.

Do I recommend it? Absolutely.

Profiles in Ignorance: How America’s Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber is available wherever books are sold.

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Lucy Worsley Investigates Review

History is more than a dry set of facts in a book. It is a lesson from previous generations and can be a mystery with clues that are yet to be revealed.

The four-part PBS series, Lucy Worsley Investigates, takes a second look at some of the most dramatic and well-known events in British history. Using first-hand sources from the era and speaking to historians, she takes a deep dive to understand what is a myth and what is a fact.

I enjoyed this program. With her usual intelligence and easy-to-follow narrative, Worsley takes viewers into the nitty-gritty of the subject. With a detective’s nose for the details, she uses a modern perspective to understand why it happened and what we can perhaps learn from it so it is not repeated.

Do I recommend it? Yes.

Lucy Worsley Investigates can be viewed on the PBS app or the PBS website.