I'm not necessarily a fan of Dick Morris, but he does know how to write a book. At nearly 360 pages, Catastrophe is an interesting read and certainly thought provoking. If only half of what he and Eileen McGann say is true, then the middle class really is in danger of losing the country. As someone who has been on the right side of center on the political continuum, I've become leery of both the left and the right in recent years. As an American I'm distrustful of the government, whether red or blue and believe that the less government we have the better off we are. Don't misunderstand what I'm saying. I love this country and I'm a devoted citizen.
As Morris and McGann point out, the United States' economy is sliding (slipping might be a better term) into socialism, something, by the way, that is fairly obvious to anyone who learned and retained anything from their freshmen Economics in college. That the government is taking over the banking, insurance, and auto industries is pretty obvious. The next target is the healthcare system and no one seems to be able to stop what seems to be inevitable. All of this, by the way, is unconstitutional but no one, outside a few conservative voices, and I mean no one, is pointing that out.
Chris Dodd, Teddy Kennedy (senior and Jr.) Charley Rangel, and Bill Clinton are all singled out for attention by Morris and McGann. But others are mentioned as well, such as Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid.
One disturbing surprise for me in Catastrophe is the idea that American courts may become influenced by Shariah Law. This phenomenon has been reported in various sources as already happening in several European countries, but the idea that the American justice system would make this mistake is mind boggling, and unacceptable. Certainly Constitutional Law will continue to be the only law practiced in the courts in the United States. Shariah law is fine in Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, etc. but, respectfully, that's where it should stay.
Perhaps the most serious mention in Catastrophe is the fact that ACORN will be involved in collecting data for the 2010 census. If this doesn't scare you, nothing will. ACORN has already been called to task about questionable voter registrations in several cities and also have refused to let auditors look at their books. Why would we let them count the population? Scary!
There are some claims made by Morris that I have a hard time understanding. For example, that Obama wants the current banking system to fail so that he can nationalize banking entirely. I have a hard time understanding how anyone will benefit from this, liberals or conservatives. Further, Morris makes the claim Obama wants to dismantle the war on terror. Again, I can't see how anyone benefits from this, other than our enemies.
Dick Morris knows how to stir the pot. He's certainly stirred up a hornets nest with Catastrophe. Like him or not, he does raise some thought provoking ideas, some of which are quite alarming. However you view the world you should enjoy the book.
