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92nd out of 134 books
—
13 voters
A Nation of Wusses: How America's Leaders Lost the Guts to Make Us Great
by
Ed Rendell
Governor Ed Rendell explains why America's leaders rarely call for sacrifice for the greater good--to avoid making any sacrifices themselves!
Rendell has seen job security become the primary consideration of any person with power in America--their own job security! Most politicians and bureaucrats can see no further ahead than the next election, sometimes no further than th...more
Rendell has seen job security become the primary consideration of any person with power in America--their own job security! Most politicians and bureaucrats can see no further ahead than the next election, sometimes no further than th...more
Hardcover, 256 pages
Published
June 1st 2012
by Wiley
(first published May 24th 2012)
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Ed Rendell is my favorite Democrat, so it's no wonder I very much enjoyed "A Nation of Wusses: How America's Leaders Lost the Guts to Make Us Great."
As a former Philadelphia mayor and former Pennsylvania governor, Ed Rendell has enough political anecdotes to keep one reading for days. As a current Philadelphian, I was an easy sell, and I devoured this book in about five days. He was a good governor, practical and smart with a sense of humor, and his writing is much the same.
The thesis of this b...more
As a former Philadelphia mayor and former Pennsylvania governor, Ed Rendell has enough political anecdotes to keep one reading for days. As a current Philadelphian, I was an easy sell, and I devoured this book in about five days. He was a good governor, practical and smart with a sense of humor, and his writing is much the same.
The thesis of this b...more
Ed Rendell is one of the few politicians that I truly admire. I like the fact that he says what's on his mind - even if it means that sometimes that includes his foot. (As he freely admits.) I've seen him as a political pundit. He's a solid Democrat, but more pragmatic. He's progressive, but recognizes that not everyone has the same views. His goal was always to get things done. He was able to turn Philadelphia around from being practically bankrupt to being a vibrant place that been listed by A...more
I am originally from the Tri-State area, and I have always respected Rendell's candor and honesty. I purchased this book to learn "How America's Leaders Lost the Guts to Make Us Great." Instead, I learned how "great" Ed Rendell is and how he is just so smart (said tongue-in-cheek). When I finally got to the section of the book that actually addressed the "nation of wusses," I was already past the halfway mark. This is what I learned: Politicians care about votes and not about progress. Shocking....more
Had it not been for the title--too interesting to ignore--I may have passed on reading this one having, quite honestly, lost my appetite for politics. But I wanted to know how in the world wuss would be defined. Am I a wuss?
Didn't take long. Aside from the policies; some I agreed with, others I questioned, and those I didn't understand...just the inference behind the first chapter, `The Wussification of America,' (humorous as it was), not only summed up how he defined a wuss, but kept my laughin...more
Didn't take long. Aside from the policies; some I agreed with, others I questioned, and those I didn't understand...just the inference behind the first chapter, `The Wussification of America,' (humorous as it was), not only summed up how he defined a wuss, but kept my laughin...more
Despite some slight revisionist history, an enlightening and entertaining read. Rendell was my Governor for 8 years and was quite effective, despite dealing with a Republican legislature. His accounts of his career in politics, especially the 2000 Presidential election, were quite frank and humorous. The book is poorly edited and seemed a bit rushed, not to mention overly wonkish in parts. It was published before the 2012 election and I would love to read an addendum.
If you like Ed Rendell, you should read this book. This should also be required reading in some political science courses. There are a great deal of insights which make the book fun and interesting to read. I especially enjoyed reading about the relationship he had with the Clintons. Rendell would make a great president and had he not got tied up with running the DNC he may have been.
If you don't necessarily like Rendell, you should read it anyway and learn something.
very interesting and current book. Talks about Obama's healthcare program that was just judged constitutional. He makes some very valid arguments on improving the nation's infrastructure and how it will put people to work and save money in the long run. Glad I decided to take a chance and read this.
Finished! Outstanding - if you care about our country and the workings of the political machine - I highly recommend this book.
Finished! Outstanding - if you care about our country and the workings of the political machine - I highly recommend this book.
I did enjoy reading about Rendell's political career, but it was mostly about promoting himself and a little bit about how other politicians are wusses! I would not call this another Profiles in Courage! However, it made for enjoyable reading and gave me a slightly different perspective to his years as our governor. It was our book club book for November... I'm not too late getting it read!
This was a good, breezy read from Ed Rendell, former Mayor of Philly and former Governor of Pennsylvania. I don't always agree with him, but you have to admire the guy. The book to read on Rendell is the great Buzz Bissinger's A Prayer for the City. Bissinger had unprecedented access to Rendell and his administration during his first three years as mayor of Philly. The result is a great book about turning around the city.
I probably would not have picked up this book to read without Book Club involvement. Ed Rendell did a lot of patting himself on the back for his accomplishments but he also had so very pertinent observations on the motivations of politicians and how to fix the system. After reading this book I got out Kennedy's Profiles in Courage.
A brilliant call for political courage from a servant of the people. Gov. Rendell had written an excellent blend of wisdom, predictions for the future, and his own influential colorful past. He holds back no punches, but retains civility always. A must read for all people politically inclined or seeking to be politically informed.
Ed Rendell is a Philadelphia folk hero; DA, mayor, governor. All the while he told it like it was. Rendell spins story from his political career, and adds color to the current political cast of characters. He gets a little wonkish towards the end but his honest evaluations of the current scene are well worth while.
I really like Ed Rendell and I wanted to like this book. Had it been written as a biography instead of autobiography, it may have been more tolerable, but this was basically Ed's pre-emptive attempt to stay relevant in the 2016 Hillary VP discussions. I would have rather read Rendell write about the Eagles.
The title is completely misleading.
What I hoped would shed some light on the things we know are wrong in politics and address the quagmires that are political and bureaucratic processes was, in fact, a look-at-me self aggrandizing jaw wag. He stumped for Hillary in '16 and generally bored me to tears.
Don't waist your time on this one.
What I hoped would shed some light on the things we know are wrong in politics and address the quagmires that are political and bureaucratic processes was, in fact, a look-at-me self aggrandizing jaw wag. He stumped for Hillary in '16 and generally bored me to tears.
Don't waist your time on this one.
What crap. The title insinuates this is a book about idea generation on how to fix political systems. Or at least how things went wrong. Oh no, it is about telling non tangential stories, using the word wuss at the end of every chapter then at the end of 200 pages of chest thumping he briefly discusses ideas to improve presidential elections. I guess this book deal probably made him lots of money and unfortunately will cost a lot of people time.
The worst was the chapter about Hillary where he s...more
The worst was the chapter about Hillary where he s...more
This book should have been titled "Look at me i served 33 years in politics and rubbed elbows with every person i possibly could" No doubt the book was funny and true Rendell seems like a good guy but seriously, dude get over yourself.
I'm a big fan of Ed's, but I was disappointed in this book. I thought it was going to be a rant on what is wrong with society, but it was a memoir and a fairly uninteresting one. I didn't actually finish the book.
Aug 06, 2012
Jeanne Farrell
added it
Loved this book. I have always like Ed and this book hits the mark on today's politicians under estimating the public understanding of what's really going on in politics. Ed should run for president.
Jun 12, 2012
Tom Cannon
added it
Excellent! The former mayor of Phila and governor of Penna has very interesting insights on many issues. Although a Democrat, he is very blunt and honest and his opinions get him in trouble often with his own party.
1 like · like · see review
An entertaining journey through Ed Rendell's time in office as Philadelphia District Attorney, Mayor of Philadelphia, and Governor of Pennsylvania. He details examples of his bold steps, some of his mistakes, thoughts on many contemporary politicians, his love of Philadelphia sports, and the process of getting things done in the political world. Upcoming discussion book for our book club.
An interesting look into the life of an interesting man.
Entertaining look at Rendell's political history.
My husband enjoyed it. I didn't manage to finish it before it was due back at the library because I couldn't read it without hearing Ed Rendell's voice in my head. It's hard to deal with that earworm.
Interesting political autobiography.
Three stars for the humor (which is undeniable), but the book is more about self-praise for Rendell's accomplishments than about how to fix our government.
I love Ed Rendell, and I really wanted to like this book. It read too much like a campaign speech, though.
May 16, 2013
Michelle
marked it as to-read
May 16, 2013
Os
marked it as to-read
May 08, 2013
Anne
marked it as to-read
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Oct 30, 2012 03:14pm