Customer Reviews

Crimes Against Nature: How George W. Bush and His Corporate Pals Are Plundering the Country and Hijacking Our Democracy

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1 star:		(10)

 

 

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. carries on the passionate yet caring politics of his father, who was a one time Attorney General. The son, an environmental lawyer, makes a compelling case for the ways in which corporate interests have sought to deconstruct environmental protections over the last twenty five years. James Watt, Christine Todd Whitman, and Gale Norton--among others--all recieve deservedly harsh criticism, as these supposed stewards of nature continue to manipulate laws, rhetoric, and the truth in order to enrich corporate interests at the expense of the U.S. environment, the health of the American people, and the future of all of us. Many things in Kennedy's book were news to me (who's really behind the deceptively named "wise use" movement, for example). Although Kennedy mostly eschews partisan rhetoric, he compellingly demonstrates what a disaster the Bush administration's policy of "self-policing" has been, and how it has withheld funding in order to strip regulatory agencies of any effective power. Even more frightening, although frighteningly consistent with its policies, is the manner in which the Bush administration has pressured empolyees and scientists, and promoted bogus science in order to distort public debate so that its destructive policies can continue. If you have any concern at all for the environment, for your children, or for truth, you ought to read this book.

When friends and acquaintances ask me why I am so adamantly opposed to the current administration, I seldom mention either the flagrant harm or the danger The Bush White House has visited on both us and the general international scene, nor do I reference the horrifying effects of the ill-conceived and poorly executed "war on terror" so often cited as their worst policy blunder. Instead, I routinely cite the extreme anti-democratic moves that Bush and company have made domestically, most specifically against the environment and in squandering our national heritage by way of natural resources and wildlife in the national forests and heretofore carefully managed and protected wilderness areas. In this regard, this well-written and skillfully argued new book by Robert Kennedy carefully articulates the many ways in which the crony capitalism practiced by the current administration is endangering our environment by entrusting its precious resources and fragile ecosystems to the crony capitalists who support him.

Indeed, Mr. Bush appointed several lawyers representing prominent oil and timber lobbying firms as the top echelon at the Bureau of the Interior, which has the crucial responsibility of overseeing the well-being of our vast federal land holdings domestically. Thus we have wolves in the sheep-house, and they are being encouraged by their former employers to assist in a wholesale ravaging of the national park landscape in the pursuit of profit, so much so that even traditionally conservative groups have turned against this Republican administration in sheer disbelieving horror of what is being done to the nation's wilderness areas in the name of conservation.

In pursuing this course, the Bush administration uses Orwellian doublespeak, referring to clear-cutting of old forest as a necessary safety measure to prevent wild fires, or as if doing so will engender long-term gain by encouraging more healthy tree growth. Through his cynical actions he effectively stiff-arms the environmental groups, regularly characterizing them as being mere radical tree-huggers, even though a growing chorus within the scientific community warn of the potentially catastrophic consequences posed by such radical environmental gdegradations being allowed and even encouraged on federal land. Moreoever, by neutering the bulwark of the carefully constructed environmental protection laws through federal regulation, the Bush administration has stripped away the laws that bar such unbridled commercialism, and now acts as the de-facto house ally of big timber,oil, gas and coal firms in stripping the precious non-renewable resources in formerly prohibited areas without either meaningful restraints or any effective federal oversight being placed on their activities. Instead, crude crony capitalism seems to rule the roost.

Of course, this is part of the much wider course of deliberate crony capitalism the administration has systematically instituted since taking office nearly four years ago, and the author carefully maps out the many ways in which this myriad of craven commercial activities act against the interests of the many for the benefit of the few. The book centers on the negative impact that such special interest-oriented federal government means for us as a nation, both in terms of who benefits and who pays, as well as in terms of what our core national values as well as our way of life will come to be in the coming decades. This is an important book, and one I encourage anyone interested in current events to read. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. makes a powerful argument against the excesses of the current administration, and issues a clarion call to arms for all concerned citizens to help stop it. Enjoy!

When I was a kid there was trash on every roadside and tires floating in detergent foam damns on the Potomac River. In Cleveland, the Cuyahoga River actually caught fire. Young people might not appreciate what thirty years of environmental regulation has done to save our country. Unfortunately, many of these young Americans may soon experience a far worse scenario for themselves as Bush and his corporate polluters ransack our country for fun and profit while distracting us with irrelevant talk about swiftboats and flip flops. As this book concisely explains, George W. Bush hasn't flip flopped at all on environmental issues. He has done his best since inauguration day so treat our country like a toilet while his backers bask in tax breaks, subsidies and de-regulation.

This is not a fun read. Turning the pages of this book will reveal horrors in the halls of power that many will find unimaginable. It will also stir the souls of many sleeping patriots who care about our democracy and want to re-establish the rights of our grandchildren to lead healthy lives in this country.

It's time for good Americans to rise up and reclaim our government. I've lived inside the Beltway all of my life (but have traveled to all 48 of the lower states) and I've never seen such a diabolical and destructive regime. As a Washingtonian, I read about these horrific government actions on a daily basis but fear that much of the information contained in this book has been ignored or overlooked by many of my countrymen. Surrounding us with invisible poisons for the singular purpose of maximizing profit is a central component of neo-conservative theory. So is keeping it very quiet. This book will give you a glimpse into the dark world view of Dick Cheney and the other compassionate conservative who have no compassion and are entirely uninterested in conserving anything, especially trees, money and human lives.

If you don't read a lot and want to know how this administration works behind the scenes to trash our country at our expense, this is the book for you. Please read it before the election. God Bless America!

This is one of the most important books I have ever read. I believe this work has the potential to be the modern equivalent of Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle". It captivated, educated and alarmed me.

From beginning to end, the book meticulously documents the devastating U.S environmental policies proposed and executed between January 2001 and May 2004. Though the book focuses primarily on the current administration, its message absolutely transcends party politics. Most books criticizing the George W. Bush administration are long on conjecture and rhetoric, but short on solid facts. I found the opposite with "Crimes Against Nature". RFK Jr. does not resort to weak hyperbolic invectives, but substantiates each charge with specific compelling evidence. Mr. Kennedy documents [in detail] the Bush administration's history of staffing government agencies with lobbyists and shills from the nations most egregious industrial polluters. He chronicles how these polluters have subsequently become the authors of the Bush administration's environmental and energy policies; not only driving, but actually writing policy (verbatim in some cases) to protect themselves, rather than the health and safety of the public or environment. Tracing the extensive unprecedented power large corporations have gained through political cronyism, Kennedy asserts that our very constitutional democracy is perilously close to becoming [in effect] a facade for an oligarchy of self-serving multinational corporations.

Kennedy says the top environmental issue confronting America today is campaign finance reform. Political cronyism underpinned by corporate money is destroying our democratic process, and consequently our environment. Polluters currently avoid internalizing their true cost of doing business through government subsidies, and by shifting their environmental destruction costs onto the backs of tax payers. He proposes genuine "free trade" as the solution to our environmental issues, "Show me a polluter, and I'll show you a subsidy."

Kennedy has been criticized for quoting Hermann Goehring to describe the Bush administration's tactics. Do not be deterred by such criticism. This book consists of solid research. Whether one agrees or disagrees with Robert Kennedy's opinion of President Bush's motivations, he documents concisely his administration's public record of corruption, environmental destruction, and willful disregard for law.

"Crimes Against Nature" reads easily with a natural flow, despite approximately half or more of the text being comprised of quotes and references. The last 39 of the 244 total pages are dedicated to footnotes alone.

Sometimes the truth can hit you like "A TON OF BRICKS"! I was very astounded and fascinated by the horrific details of environmental destruction that has been encouraged by the REPUBLICAN government leaders during the past twenty five years. If you care about clean AIR & WATER in America, then this book will make an impression upon you. I am so glad that Mr. Kennedy took the time to write such an informative book. His words have led me to believe that there is no acceptable reason for Americans to continue further support for President Bush. He has shown that he couldn't care less about the damage his administration has caused to the environment. A Good and Just leader would NEVER take deliberate actions that would cause further DAMAGE to the American lands or its environmental welfare. It is TIME to change our ways, so that our children will have a better and safer country to live in tomorrow. My sincere thanks to RFK JR. for a great book. After-note: This review was written long before President Obama was elected to office. Let us hope that his Democratic administration can correct many of the bad decisions made during the eight years of ignorance led by George W. Bush. I sincerely want America to clean up its act, and protect all of the vital natural resources. Thank you.

As a liberal republican who feels more and more disenchanted by this party, Robert Kennedy Jr. writes a very compelling book that has sent me over the edge. It really opened my eyes to see how many appointees to key positions controlling environmental affairs were former lobbyists or employees for the big polluters. It's been interesting to hear others remark that Kennedy acts like some sort of conspiracy theory nut but what other conclusion do you come to when the big players in Washington were all corporate lapdogs? How do you argue the fact that Cheney was highly secretative when drafting the energy policy allowing only corporate interests to put forth their opinions. That was well documented in the newspapers.

I guess this book just really rings true with my own personal observations over the years. When I was a child nobody's parents were suddenly dying of cancer. I didn't know one person who had asthma or allergies. Now in my 30s it seems like I can name a dozen seemingly healthy people who have died prematurely and I know scores who complain of respiratory issues. Are we just becoming unhealthier as a people? After reading this book, I think not!

In this insightful book, Kennedy exposes the White House plundering of our natural resources. Bush has filled the adminstration with people that come from the top corporate polluters in this country. So now these polluting individuals are in positions to regulate our environmental laws-disgustingly scary. Any president who would lie to New Yorkers about the dangerous levels of asbestos and debris in the air following the tragedy of 9/11 deserves to be removed from office.
That said, this book is filled with eye opening fact after fact about the decimation of our enivronment. It is apparent that these acts will only lead to the degredation of our health and standards of living in America.

Kennedy writes extremely well and refrains from opinionated attacks(aside from a few here and there) while focusing on facts and realities. He captivates the reader-you will not be able to put this book down.

Read and pass it on.

The "pros" for this book far outnumber the "cons". None of the reviewers who rated this book poorly presented any data to the contrary. As best I can tell they're quilty of precisely what they're accusing the author of. This book has 542 references. Admittedly I only checked (so far) 6 of them. Only one had a % that I felt was incorrect (ref. #3, chapter 10). The rest were accurately quoted. In fact, the references were generally more appalling then RFK's text. The problem with the book is that it contains so many environmental transgressions, it's almost depressing to read. But if you care about the environment, it's a must read; then check the questionable references yourself. Even if only 1/2 of what's written is true, it's more than enough to be thoroughly outraged.
I only fault the author for not having an abbreviation listing and an index.

I bought this book after being told it was a “pack of lies,” but with no specifics to back that claim. Not far into the first chapter I found myself frequently going back to the end notes, following the research trail provided. I still haven’t found the alleged lies, and those who made the claim have yet to “get back to me with details” as promised. But I have come to realize how much this country needs an honest and open dialogue on the environment â€" not threats or bullying and certainly not secret meetings or backroom deals. “Crimes Against Nature” is a very good start.

The majority of Americans, whatever their political stripe, profess a concern about the environment. There is a general recognition among Americans (including members of both major parties) that the Democrats advocate tightening environmental legislation while the Republicans seek to be responsible to the economic needs of our country while dealing with environmental issues. Both viewpoints sound reasonable to the average American and in truth, few of them base their voting choices on environmental positions taken by the major political parties.

Any potential voter wavering in his choice for president needs to read this book. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. blows the lid off the extent in which George Bush has sacrificed environmental concerns for the short-term gains of his corporate contributors.

Jeremy W. Forstadt