The Age of Anxiety

This is a book review of "The Age of Anxiety" by Haynes Johnson.

I didn't "read" this book but listened to it on CD.  It is a careful look at Joe McCarthy and how his red-baiting history of anti-Communism created countless problems in the 1950's as he tried to find a Communist under every rug.  For some five years his crusade (which was picked up politically by many people) found most people (including journalists and senators) reluctant to check the facts or confront this demagogue.

Some politicians cynically used McCarthy for their own purposes.  Most would agree that Edward R. Murrow's famous interview of McCarthy was the "beginning of the end" for this man who drove himself into alcoholism and extreme health problems.

Haynes Johnson did a pretty good job with the historical narratives but was downright offensive in the final 1/3 of his "book" as he shamelessly and arrogantly attacks George W. Bush and finds desperate comparisons with him and McCarthy.  President Bush had his problems, to be sure, but the comparisons to McCarthy are strained and contrived.

I bought this book at the "Dollar Store" and I think I know why.  The last part of this book was the downfall of this publication and probably the reason why it was relegated to the bargain bin.

Hey...read the first 2/3 or the book or listen to the CD but then turn it off before he starts his ranting and raving.  It gets mean-spirited and arrogant.  I suspect that even Bush detractors would find themselves cringing.