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Thank You, President Bush
by Steven D. Laib, J.D., M.S.
8 September 2004
Thank You, President Bush covers in significant detail the President's actions
in foreign, economic, and social policy, as well as his view of the role
of the law in government and society.
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According to their web site,
World
Ahead Publishing is a privately held company based in California dedicated
to publishing high quality books, articles, and other content focusing on
the major economic, political, and security issues of the 21st century.
World
Ahead Publishing believes that freedom is the inalienable right of all human
beings and that the free market can be a powerful catalyst for spreading
liberty in the 21st century. But this outcome is by no means a foregone conclusion-individual
freedom and the institutions that make it possible face risks from powerful
and reactionary interests.
In pursuit of this philosophy, World Ahead decided, in the words of its President Eric M. Jackson, that Thank You, President Bush
was too important not to publish, regardless of profit and loss models.
It is unabashedly a promotional work, praising President George W. Bush for
the successes of his first term, and projecting what he should and hopefully
will do in a successful second term. It contains a total of 24 chapters,
with essays contributed by notables such as Stephen Moore and Phyllis Schlafly,
and includes speeches by George Schultz, Richard Cheney and Bill Bennett.
They cover, in some significant detail, President Bush personally, his actions
in foreign, economic, and social policy, as well as his view of the role
of the law in government and society.
While detractors will argue that this is just another piece of propaganda,
the overall tone of the book is scholarly in virtually all respects.
The facts and figures are well documented, with source material cited, hard
numbers provided where necessary, and it is conceivable that this book could
serve as an excellent reference on events and accomplishments of the years
2000–2004. In fact, it may actually become too high-brow in the section
on economics, when Arthur Laffer and Aman Verjee spend a significant amount
of time on number crunching, with accompanying charts and graphs. Still,
one of the major bones of contention about the first Bush term has been economic
performance. Laffer and Verjee take this situation well in hand.
Also providing excellent material are Star Parker on welfare reform, Marvin
Olasky on faith-based public charities, and Candice Jackson on George Bush
as a feminist. But in this reviewer’s opinion, where this compilation
really shines the brightest is in the piece written by Dr. Jack Wheeler,
entitled “Aeschylus and America.” Dr. Wheeler, who holds a PhD in Philosophy,
cuts an Indiana Jones style figure in real life, having traveled world wide,
studying primitive tribes and working with underground groups bent on promoting
freedom and individual rights in regions dominated by authoritarian systems.
This article traces the history of democracy back to its roots in ancient
Greece, which faced numerous challenges, including two invasions by Persia,
which had a significant effect on the Greek psyche. Walker compares
America’s moon landing of 1969 with the Greek victories at Marathon and Salamis,
which led to self-doubt when it should have led to confidence. He asserts
that America today must overcome self-doubt and the need for the approval
of others in the same way that Greece did, paving the way for the Athens
of Pericles.
In short, Thank You, President Bush is a testimonial to this President’s
first term, a reference to his accomplishments, and also, as its editors
likely intended, a tool for showing exactly why Mr. Bush should be re-elected,
which is a recurring theme through most of the chapters.
Thank You, President Bush is available from Amazon.com.
Steven Laib is a practicing attorney.
Email Steven Laib
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