“All the Trouble in the World: The Lighter Side of Overpopulation, Famine, Ecological Disaster, Ethnic Hatred, Plague, and Poverty”, by P. J. O’Rourke

 

341 pages, Atlantic Monthly Press, ISBN-13: 978-0871135803

Okay, here we go: All the Trouble in the World: The Lighter Side of Overpopulation, Famine, Ecological Disaster, Ethnic Hatred, Plague, and Poverty by P. J. O’Rourke is guaranteed to get on the nerves of all of you left-wing dope-smoking woke intersectional snowflake mental pygmy always-on-the-lookout-to-be-offended types, so be warned. Written back in ’94, this, O’Rourke’s 7^th independently written book, takes on several topics that were hot way back when: overpopulation, famine, ecological apocalypse, multiculturalism and miserable third world regimes that hide their brutality and failure behind the facade of socialism and first world envy (come to think of it, some things never change). Interspersed behind the spot-on barbs and wise-guy cracks are the usual thoughtful analysis and intelligent criticism; for example, O’Rourke compares Bangladesh with Fresno, California: both have the same density, but find themselves in dramatically different conditions, for while Bangladesh has some problems not found in Fresno, O’Rourke argues it’s lack of free markets and a creaking bureaucracy overwhelm what had historically been a pretty productive population. Of course, his travels there set the stage for many like humorous observations and situations.

Some of the best chapters focus on our own living room liberals: those whose mission it is to save America from itself. Two chapters on multiculturalism and the world environmental movement show the length to which people who think of themselves as “liberal” have really become authoritarians who brook no dissent (nor inconvenient facts) in their quest to make the world right by their minds. The jokes just write themselves in these chapters – there is such a gulf between some of these people and the real world (not to mention freedom and the Constitution) – that one alternates between laughter and amazement when reading of what is being done for us by those who don’t trust us. Sometimes the humor wears thin, but a little time between chapters keeps the material more fresh and sharp. But O’Rourke undergirds all of his criticisms (this is a critical analysis) with facts and thoughtful arguments. He doesn’t necessarily have all the answers, but he does have a different and refreshing perspective on all the trouble in the world.