All the Trouble in the World: The Lighter Side of Overpopulation, Famine, Ecological Disaster, Ethnic Hatred, Plague, and Poverty

O'Rourke, P. J.

ISBN 10: 0871135809 / ISBN 13: 9780871135803

Published by Atlantic Monthly Pr, 1994

About this Item

Shows moderate signs of wear and previous use. Can include notes/highlighting. A portion of your purchase benefits nonprofits! - Note: Edition & format may differ from what is shown in stock photo & item details. May not include supplementary material (toys, access code, dvds, etc).

Seller Inventory # 584ZSU0009HX_ns

Bibliographic Details

• Title: All the Trouble in the World: The Lighter Side of Overpopulation, Famine, Ecological Disaster, Ethnic Hatred, Plague, and Poverty
• Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Pr
• Publication Date: 1994
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0871135809
• ISBN 13: 9780871135803
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: Good

About this title

Synopsis

The author of Parliament of Whores offers a satirical and insightful view of the world's worries, comparing over-population in Bangladesh and in California, multiculturalism in higher education and in Yugoslavia, and other issues. 150,000 first printing. $150,000 ad/promo. Tour.

Reviews

Political humorist O'Rourke (Give War a Chance) takes a swipe at "fashionable worries," reminding us that "This is a moment of hope in history"-no more evil empire to threaten us. His contention that this is "the best moment of all time" and the U.S. is "the best place to be" is funny mostly in one-liners and anecdotes, but his larger arguments flag: while Miami's efforts at multiculturalism are worthy of parody, a field trip to "multiculturalism in practice"-the war in Bosnia-is no real contrast. After skewering environmentalists, whom he accuses of crying wolf too often, the author visits the polluted Czech Republic to proclaim sophistically that collectivist government can't solve ecological problems. As usual, O'Rourke has a good eye for self-righteousness, but his libertarian reach exceeds his wisecracking grasp.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

"I hear America whining," the dyspeptic O'Rourke moans; "moral buttinskis" grouch and fret about "fashionable worries" when all the world really needs is a healthy dose of "property rights, rule of law, responsible government, and universal education." The Rolling Stone columnist here explores overpopulation in Bangladesh (and Fremont, California); famine in Somalia; the environment along the Peruvian Amazon, in Eastern Europe, and at the 1992 Earth Summit; multiculturalism at his alma mater, Miami University of Ohio, and in the former Yugoslavia; plague in Haiti; and poverty in Vietnam. This self-described Republican Party reptile can still strike journalistic sparks and puncture self-serving pomposity; increasingly, however, his iconoclasm seems to be just a more entertaining version of the propaganda generated by the half-dozen market-loving Beltway think tanks listed in O'Rourke's acknowledgments. Though some passages here are as penetrating and funny as anything in O'Rourke's previous six books, the ax he has been grinding so long appears to be in danger of losing its edge. Mary Carroll