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P. J. O'Rourke

Parliament of Whores: A Lone Humorist Attempts to Explain the Entire U.S. Government Paperback – January 7, 2003

by P. J. O'Rourke (Author), Andrew Ferguson (Foreword)

4.4 592 ratings

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Called "an everyman's guide to Washington" (The New York Times), P. J. O'Rourke's savagely funny and national best-seller Parliament of Whores has become a classic in understanding the workings of the American political system. Originally written at the end of the Reagan era, this new edition includes an extensive foreword by the renowned political writer Andrew Ferguson -- showing us that although the names and the players have changed, the game is still the same. Parliament of Whores is an exuberant, broken-field run through the ethical foibles, pork-barrel flimflam, and bureaucratic bullrorfle inside the Beltway that leaves no sacred cow unskewered and no politically correct sensitivities unscorched. "Highly pungent and wickedly accurate observations ... [from a] boisterous, pedal-to-the-floor humorist." -- The New York Times Book Review "Outrageous ... It is insulting, inflammatory, profane, and absolutely great reading." -- The Washington Post Book World "A gonzo civics book ... O'Rourke is like a trophy hunter let loose in an unguarded zoo." -- Chicago Tribune

Print length

240 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Grove Press
Publication date

January 7, 2003
Dimensions

5 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches
ISBN-10

0802139701
ISBN-13

978-0802139702
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Publisher ‏ : ‎ Grove Press (January 7, 2003)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0802139701
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0802139702
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #305,116 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #151 in Political Humor (Books)
- #406 in United States National Government
- #2,230 in Fiction Satire

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4.4 592 ratings

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P. J. O'Rourke

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P. J. O’Rourke was born and raised in Toledo, Ohio, and attended Miami University and Johns Hopkins. He began writing funny things in 1960s “underground” newspapers, became editor-in-chief of National Lampoon, then spent 20 years reporting for Rolling Stone and The Atlantic Monthly as the world’s only trouble-spot humorist, going to wars, riots, rebellions, and other “Holidays in Hell” in more than 40 countries. He’s written 16 books on subjects as diverse as politics and cars and etiquette and economics. His book about Washington, Parliament of Whores, and his book about international conflict and crisis, Give War a Chance, both reached #1 on the New York Times best-seller list. He is a contributing editor at The Weekly Standard, H. L. Mencken fellow at the Cato Institute, a member of the editorial board of World Affairs and a regular panelist on NPR’s Wait… Wait… Don’t Tell Me. He lives with his family in rural New England, as far away from the things he writes about as he can get.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5

592 global ratings

5 star		66%
4 star		19%
3 star		10%
2 star		3%
1 star		2%

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Problem was not with shipping or the source.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 18, 2023

Verified Purchase

Nothing wrong with what anything either the shipper or the provider did; they each provided a timely service, with no damage within the time specified. I simply did not like the subject matter after all. As careful as I try to be on books I order based on short synopses, I did not like this one. (My personal preference is a softer touch on the frailties of man or man's constructs.) On to the next one!

Helpful

LA in Dallas

A book to be thrown with great force.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 26, 2023

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I read this book twelve years ago, so it gets only a brief review of distant impressions. I remember my reaction to the book better than I remember the book itself.

It was described to me as the only book of conservative political humor that was actually funny. Well, I'm here to tell you that it IS, slightly, in places, funny. But mostly not.

It is perhaps unfair to evaluate PoW as political philosophy, which would be a convenient excuse for O'Rourke, since the political philosophy is puerile. He hates government and is turned on by the idea of big weapons. The verb is chosen intentionally, O'Rourke's lust for big guns has a distinctly sexual feel. If that makes your last meal want to come back out the way it went in, may I respectfully suggest that PoW may not be the book for you.

In case anyone is unfamiliar with the quote:

“This is not a novel to be tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force.”
--Sid Ziff

One person found this helpful

Helpful

GDJ

Comic Relief for Those Who are Sick of Both Sides of the Political Aisle

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 15, 2022

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This is not only an intelligent, laugh-out-loud funny book, it is informative and well researched. Written decades ago, it sadly is as relevant today as it was when originally published in 1991. I highly recommend it if you want a bit of entertainment that educates you on what really goes on behind the scenes in politics. It was an international best seller, and it will help you understand why Washington, D.C. is in such a mess today.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

G.E.Goodwin, Jr.

Suspicions Confirmed.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 5, 2005

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If you have ever thought to yourself, "Is Washington DC full of nothing but posturing idiots?", along comes P.J. O'Rourke to say "Well, Duh....". Armed with a factual knowledge of how DC dysfunctions and leavened with keen wit, O'Rourke takes us on a tour of the institutions of our Government, from the Congress to the the White House, through the Bureaucracies and various sinkholes of incompetence, hypocrisy, venality and just plain stupidity, and provides delicious humor while dissecting this "Confederacy of Dunces".

He also makes it abundantly clear that the fault, dear Brutus, lies not in the stars (or our leaders) but in ourselves. We want it all, but we don't want to pay for it.

Using the apt phrase, the arch observation, the deadly accurate thrust of wit to puncture the balloons of buffoonery he finds built into our system and the people who bungle and abuse it, he actually presents a factually serious account of what goes wrong and why it continues to go wrong. He just can't help doing so without a large dose of insightful and wicked humor. Written back in the days of Bush Senior, before 9/11, it really would be overwhelmingly depressing how little things have changed and how the DC Band Plays On no matter what, if you didn't find the horse laugh in it all.

You will never listen to a budget battle, or the justification for a farm bill, or just about any other pose or posture taken by our fearless leaders again without a smile on your face. Of course we, the public, continue to fund and support this nonsense so we have no one but ourselves to blame.

The Republic has been beset by fools, incompetents, liars, cheats, morons and pompous asses from its inception. Luckily for us, it has also always had its cynical observers, ready with the stilleto of reason and common sense to jab, torment, mock and debunk the participants in this carnival of clowns. P.J. O'Rourke takes his place in that long pantheon of wits from Henry Adams and Mark Twain, to H.L. Mencken, Will Rogers, Mort Sahl and the rest, who took great joy in pulling down Washington DC's collective pants while sounding a loud Bronx cheer. And that razzberry may be the clarion call that says, yes, we just might survive it all, one more time.

26 people found this helpful

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Mark R. Dick

Required reading for politicians

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 1, 2022

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Having read many other books by this author but somehow I missed this one…his best. I’m saddened that PJ passed earlier this year. We have lost a giant. There is an old African saying, “ When an old man dies a library is burnt to the ground”. PJ was much more than a library…and he was not that old. He has left an incredible legacy and I find myself wishing he would have had another 20 years to add to his legacy. At least younger generations will have the opportunity to access his prolific writings he generated for the past 40 plus years. For that I am thankful.

5 people found this helpful

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M. L. Graham

P. J. O'Toole is one of my favorite humorist / commentators

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 10, 2022

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This book contains many of his well known aphorisms and also many of his less well know ones.

One of the well known ones is:
"When buying and selling are controlled by legislation, the first things to be bought and sold are legislators."

This humor is less dense that i had hoped else I would have given the book FIVE stars.

Helpful

Mark Hodgins

It’s still true….but worse

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 16, 2022

Verified Purchase

Switch the names of idiots, then multiply budgets by a nonlinear (greater than 1) factor and we got today. And even more alarmists alarmed about the lack of alarm for an impending doom that was supposed to doom us yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

This is hilarious and a great way to spread the word of how our system actually works. I wish I read this while PJ orourke was alive and got to meet him. Brilliant writing.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

P.Ilesner

Great

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 8, 2022

Verified Purchase

How did PJ O'Rouke learn all those GRE level words? A close reading of this one book would likely improve most people's college entrance exam scores by 300 points.

It's variously hilarious and terrifying - especially since it was written in the early 1990's and not much has changed.

One person found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Mr. Robert Kelly

A funny and savage look at government

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on June 22, 2003

Verified Purchase

PJ O'Rourke's examination of how the US government works(or doesn't,) might be over a decade old, but seems as fresh and funny as if it were written yesterday. The fact that it was written during the early years of the adminstration of Bush snr adds much to the up to date feel. Though focusing on the US, much of what O'Rourke says is relevant to governments everywhere.
The truth about how government works is almost as shocking as it is hilarious. An excellent antidote to those who feel that everything in life would be better if we just threw more government at it.

14 people found this helpful

Chris Myers

P. J. O'Rourke, where are you when we need you?

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 20, 2018

Verified Purchase

God, the man could write. Imagine the sort of stuff the P. J. of old would write with today's subject matter. Venezuela, Sanders, Trump, Clintons...

pat proctor

condition of book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 5, 2018

Verified Purchase

The book was in very poor condition. It smelt fusty,was yellowed and spotted, with damp possibly. I had to bin it due to the smell.
I am very sorry to be doing this I have always had good service. I didn't bother returning it since it was very cheap and so not worth the bother.
Regards.

george wrey

Must read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on March 29, 2017

Verified Purchase

O'R always fun

patrick jean hoare

Excellent

Reviewed in Germany 🇩🇪 on April 2, 2021

Verified Purchase

Took some time to arrive, but I was notified. Product as depicted.

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