Profiles in Ignorance: How America's Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber

He has many hilarious examples of amazing ignorance. But it is also a serious book, well researched and a terrible indictment of the ignorance of top politicians. It is bang up to date.

I have seen Andy in various places over many years. His satire never gets old. I just wonder how he keeps coming up with it! This book is a laugh a minute while providing a histroy lesson along the way. You will be thoroughly entertained and enlightened by the book.

This book is outstanding, and follows Borowitz's thesis of how American politics has gone through three stages regarding ignorance in our politics:1) Ridicule, where ignorance was mocked and ended political careers. Ignorant people had to pretend to be smart.2) Acceptance, where ignorance became more agreeable, something that made a politician seem more "authentic," normal. Dumb politicians could be openly dumb, and still get ahead.3) Celebration, when things devolved to our current state of affairs where dunces trump (pun intended) informed, smart, experts on policy and everything else. And the quest is for dunces to out-dunce other dunces, not just lowering the bar, but removing it completely. Enlightenment — being informed, insightul, deep-thinking, compassionate, and empathetic — becomes "woke," a seemingly bad thing. Well, being enlightened *is* a bad thing on the road to authoritarianism, so for many that's true.I found Borowitz's three-stage thesis a good framework in understanding things. But it could be expanded, of course, by four-, five-, or ten-stages, as there have been many shifts in our political landscape — some seismic, some more nuanced. I would add a another stage: between Acceptance and Celebration I would add Sarah Palin. Maybe call this the Trivialize stage.After she came on the national scene, I always that thought she was the primary reason where we’re at now, with grossly unqualified people holding public office. There are examples aplenty as Borowitz covers her extensively. He points a steady finger at her, which I think validates my theory:"Three years later [after the 2008 election], McCain's campaign manager, Steve Schmidt, expressed remorse about choosing the VP candidate he’d once called 'a star.' 'I think that she helped usher in an era of know-nothingness and mainstreamed it in the Republican Party to the detriment of the conservative movement,' he said. 'And I think her nomination trivialized American politics, and had a lot of results that I’m not particularly comfortable with. ... It was a mistake.'"Let that sink in: she helped usher in an era of know-nothingness and mainstreamed it in the Republican Party. That's pretty heavy, and is reinforced by the book and subsequent movie, "Game Change," by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin (2010). She belongs in a category all by herself.While the many examples that populate the book are outrageously funny, literally with LOL moments, in the end this is a deeply researched and serious book. (While there are no footnotes, there is a Notes second before the Table of Contents, with page numbers from each chapter followed br references.)The book concludes with "Democracy's Braking System," which has kicked in before and is desperately needed now. It's not an esoteric call for some unseen force, but a clearly-mapped way forward with deep involvement by us. — those who are alarmed and care that our democracy is systematically being smothered.One of my best reads in a long time.

This was wonderfully written, in Borowitz's voice of reason tinged with dark humor. My only problem is that he didn't go deeper into the fray. I would have liked to hear more about creatures like Bannon and Stone, and exploits of Manafort and Flynn. All in all, however, it is a good book, filled with horrifying examples of the stupidity we have come to know and love, and which keeps us awake til the wee hours of the morning.

took a chance on this book, but I' m glad I did. It's funny and smart.

An honest, eye-opening tour of some of the great minds and idiots who have been President of the United States. A trip worth taking. Very well written, sophisticated yet a great read. Substantive and entertaining.

I lived during the times Borowitz writes about in this book. The quotes are great. Made me reflect and bring back memories. We definitely need to be more active in getting the vote out for this election.

Not really, for I long suspected that I knew these facts, but had neither the staff or desire to check them. Now, Andy has done the work for me and confirmed my fears: Americans love to fall for hucksters and our politicians are very often the dumbest and most worthless among us.This is a great and enlightening read. It should be required in all high school History classes!

I finally started reading this treasure last night. Andy Borowitz has a weekly column that is pure satire, and something I enjoy. However this book isn't satire, but a look at how the US politics became dumber and dumber. He makes a lot of good points and I'm looking forward to reading more.

Entertaining yet sobering read about the history of our elected officials. Don't forget to vote! A book well worth reading.

Es ist müßig als Deutscher über die ungebildeten Amerikaner zu lächeln, wenn wir nicht verstehen, was die amerikanische Demokratie von unserer unterscheidet und warum.Unsere würde uns kluger Weise von den Aliierten (mit Hilfe von Carlo Schmid) vorgegeben, wodurch die Konstruktionsfehler der Weimarer Verfassung vermieden wurden. In den USA gilt noch heute eine seltsame Verfassung, die entworfen wurde, als in Europa noch ungebildete Könige und Fürsten herrschten.Wir sollten daher mit unserer Kritik und Überheblichkeit gegenüber den USA zurückhaltend sein und an Hand dieses Buches darüber staunen, dass die USA den Weg in die Demokratie von sich aus zurückfinden konnte, wenn auch knapp🤔

Enjoyed the premise that in Politics since the 1980's, journalists and the public have gone through 3 stages. The evolution Reagan, George W, and Trump... ridicule, acceptance, and celebration. VP Quayle and VP candidate Palin received many pages as well. Seems the author only focussed on the GOP. Seems to me that it would be only fair to include former President Clinton, who encompassed all 3. Certainly his former VP spouse Hilary, made a few missteps.

I don't understand how this smug partisan commentary got such good reviews in the UK.And if you are being snide about others' ignorance please get your facts checked. The Queen was technically commander of the British armed forces (even if those powers were delegated).