WEBVTT - O'Rourke on New Book

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<v Speaker 1>This is Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Masser and Jason

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<v Speaker 1>Kelly on Bloomberg Radio. This is my gift to you,

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<v Speaker 1>Jason Kelly. Oh my gosh, I'm so excited to connect

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<v Speaker 1>with our next guest. I've been reading his stuff for years.

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<v Speaker 1>Huge fan, totally unabashed. I'm just gonna say it. P

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<v Speaker 1>J O'Rourke. He's got a new book. It's called A

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<v Speaker 1>Cry from the Far Middle. It is out. You got

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<v Speaker 1>to pick it up because it captures so much, as

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<v Speaker 1>he tends to do, of the absurdity of our time,

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<v Speaker 1>but with such a rapier wit, as they used to say.

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<v Speaker 1>He joins us on the phone from New Hampshire. P J,

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<v Speaker 1>what a pleasure to have you here on Bloomberg Business

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<v Speaker 1>What a pleasure to be here, A pleasure to be

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<v Speaker 1>here Otherwise unpleasant times so unpleasant. It's so unpleasant. So

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<v Speaker 1>how do you even I mean, listen, if nothing else,

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<v Speaker 1>there's a whole lot of material for you. How do

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<v Speaker 1>you even go about attacking this right now? Yeah, it's

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<v Speaker 1>tough because everybody is so angry, and anger is not

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<v Speaker 1>the friend of the happy humorist m So you know,

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<v Speaker 1>it makes it really tough. It's not so much that

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<v Speaker 1>I'm worried about offending people. It's just that I'm I'm

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<v Speaker 1>worried about people being in any kind of mood to receive,

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<v Speaker 1>receive any kind of lightning up um about anything. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, that's such a good point, you know, PJ.

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<v Speaker 1>Because people it's like, you know, I try to have

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<v Speaker 1>conversations with people, and it gets so heated and angry

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<v Speaker 1>so quickly. I'm like, lighten up. We're discussing things, and

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<v Speaker 1>you're gonna have maybe a different opinion. I'm gonna have

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<v Speaker 1>a different opinion, but let's let's discuss it is. We've

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<v Speaker 1>got the whole nation involved in that kind of fight

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<v Speaker 1>that those of us have been married for a long

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<v Speaker 1>time cannot help but be familiar with this kind of fight.

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<v Speaker 1>It starts out over like whether we should slip cover

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<v Speaker 1>the couch, and by the end of the fight, it's like, uh,

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<v Speaker 1>And not only that, I remember when you flirted with

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<v Speaker 1>that girl at that party in nineteen and you leave

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<v Speaker 1>wet towels all over the bed and your socks are

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<v Speaker 1>all over the floor, and it's it's the kitchen sink.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, we're throwing the kitchen sink at each other

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<v Speaker 1>and uh, we we we we better stop that. The

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<v Speaker 1>other thing for it is, I don't get what the

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<v Speaker 1>causes really, I mean, in a way I do. I

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<v Speaker 1>Trump is shall we say that he's a somewhat divisive president?

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<v Speaker 1>I could probably go that far. I get that. And

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<v Speaker 1>then the pandemic has got everybody cooped inside, like seething

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<v Speaker 1>with grievances, you know, and like letting their minds run

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<v Speaker 1>on all the things that make them angry and stuff.

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<v Speaker 1>But you know, really we're not facing a huge external

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<v Speaker 1>threat at the moment where you know, wors overseas were

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<v Speaker 1>winding down. China is a worry, you know, but it's uh,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, it's just a word. It's not you know,

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<v Speaker 1>it's not an imminent throughout I don't think. Uh. The

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<v Speaker 1>economy was perking along pretty well, and it shows some

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<v Speaker 1>signs of being able to reperk um uh And you

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<v Speaker 1>know why are we so mad? So you take to

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<v Speaker 1>this on directly in your book, And the essay that

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<v Speaker 1>I love the most is whose bright idea was it

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<v Speaker 1>to make sure that every idiot in the world was

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<v Speaker 1>in touch with every other idiot? Social Media, I have

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<v Speaker 1>to think is responsible for part of this right, social

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<v Speaker 1>media has got lots and lots to blame. You know,

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<v Speaker 1>I grew up. I'm I'm I'm old. You know, I'm

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<v Speaker 1>seventy two years old. So I grew up in like,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, the fifties and sixties, and there was this

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<v Speaker 1>wonderful idea that we would all get along better if

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<v Speaker 1>we could just communicate, you know, if the generation gap

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<v Speaker 1>could be closed with communication, if we could just talk

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<v Speaker 1>to the Soviet Union, you know, if if if if races,

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<v Speaker 1>if people from different races would just communicate with each other.

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<v Speaker 1>And there was this big star, Malcolm mclowin, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>who had the whole idea that that that television would

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<v Speaker 1>create a global village. And we all thought, oh, this

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<v Speaker 1>is just genius. This is just wonderful, and it gives

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<v Speaker 1>me excuse to sit around and watch TV. And what

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<v Speaker 1>thing is is that we were We knew about Marshall mcgloon,

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<v Speaker 1>but we hadn't read him, because if you read him,

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<v Speaker 1>Marshall McLellan, he was. I found a radio interview with

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<v Speaker 1>him actually where a Canadian radio broadcaster says, I thought,

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<v Speaker 1>you said, we're gonna have a global village, and there's

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<v Speaker 1>almost like war and Hadrian rioting and stuff. You said

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<v Speaker 1>we're gonna have a global village, and mcglellan goes, I

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<v Speaker 1>said we were going to have a global village. I

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<v Speaker 1>didn't say the villagers would like each other. Right. Um,

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<v Speaker 1>there's one essay. It's the inaugural address. I'd like to

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<v Speaker 1>hear the president, whoever it may be, deliver. Um. PJ.

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<v Speaker 1>You do write a lot about politics, and you know,

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<v Speaker 1>there's so much in here that I love, But there's

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<v Speaker 1>also one that I'm just trying to find. I had

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<v Speaker 1>a line highlighted just this reminder of the government is

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<v Speaker 1>more than just one individual, even though that's who we elect.

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<v Speaker 1>And you know, just tell us about kind of how

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<v Speaker 1>you look at politics right now and what you kind

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<v Speaker 1>of want to get across to Americans with your writings. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of the things about the presidency is we've

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<v Speaker 1>just allowed it to grow into some sort of cult.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, it's almost like a shi Jing king or

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<v Speaker 1>or or Vladimir Putin, where the President of the United

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<v Speaker 1>States becomes like this sort of sacred king who is

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<v Speaker 1>responsible for our well being of our entire country. And

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<v Speaker 1>and of course if anything goes wrong, we we we

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<v Speaker 1>take that sacred king, and we sacrifice him. Um uh,

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<v Speaker 1>actually what we We don't kill him the way that

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<v Speaker 1>primitive societies do. We just give him a giant book

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<v Speaker 1>contract for a really really boring book. But you know

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<v Speaker 1>what I mean. And the thing is that that's not

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<v Speaker 1>how it works. If you read the Constitution, it's you

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<v Speaker 1>get you get about five pages into the Constitution before

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<v Speaker 1>the president is even mentioned. You know, you know, he's

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<v Speaker 1>a chief executive. He's not the chairman of the board.

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<v Speaker 1>We're the chairman of the board. He's he's just the

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<v Speaker 1>chief executive. And he's supposed to make the laws that

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<v Speaker 1>we make in Congress. He's supposed to make sure that

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<v Speaker 1>they're put into force. Yes, he's the commander of chief

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<v Speaker 1>during wartime, but it's Congress that has the power to

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<v Speaker 1>to declare war, not the president. They should remember that

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<v Speaker 1>every now and then when they're they're when they're griping

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<v Speaker 1>at the president for the wars that he's had, that

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<v Speaker 1>they've got the power. And uh, yeah, this was never

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<v Speaker 1>meant to be some sort of of of of weird

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<v Speaker 1>kingship or or or our cult of personality for good

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<v Speaker 1>or for real. You know, we're not supposed to worship

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<v Speaker 1>the president and we're certain and we're not supposed to

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<v Speaker 1>revile him. Um, he's he's he's just he's got a

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<v Speaker 1>corner office. But you know, he depends on us for

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<v Speaker 1>for to do all the work. And yet p J.

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<v Speaker 1>As I think about it, and and I am conscious

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<v Speaker 1>of the fact that I and Carol make our living

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<v Speaker 1>in the in the media, and you make your living,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, in and around the media. And I listened

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<v Speaker 1>to you and wait, wait, don't tell me, and I

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<v Speaker 1>love those appearances. But you know, from McLuhan to Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>to Twitter, like the media broadly defined is certainly, if

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<v Speaker 1>not complicit in all of that, or is complicit maybe

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<v Speaker 1>and and and maybe responsible for the way that this

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<v Speaker 1>has been a little bit warped. We probably should all

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<v Speaker 1>be grounded without TV for at least a month, right,

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<v Speaker 1>and take away our phones. Right. I'll take my share

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<v Speaker 1>of the blame here. I'm not I'm not not picking

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<v Speaker 1>on you guys, but the um, yeah, we we get

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<v Speaker 1>obsessed with trivia and then you know, of course, there's

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<v Speaker 1>always been that thing in the media where if it bleeds,

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<v Speaker 1>it leads Naturally we love a disaster. But then there's

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<v Speaker 1>also this thing that has emerged more recently. If it

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<v Speaker 1>sleas it leads, and um, yeah, I don't think that

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<v Speaker 1>uh many members of the media could could could say

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<v Speaker 1>of the media as a whole. I mean, I think

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<v Speaker 1>we each try and do our own job as well

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<v Speaker 1>as we can. But overall, the media gets is easily distracted.

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<v Speaker 1>It's getting sort of Facebook brain, you know where it's

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<v Speaker 1>so easily defind Twitter or Twitter brain worse than Facebook brain.

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<v Speaker 1>Facebook at least has some pictures of grandchildren. Uh so

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<v Speaker 1>it's the it's the last thing anybody said, it's the

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<v Speaker 1>last thing anybody heard, and uh, you know, end depth

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<v Speaker 1>reporting is is is hard to find, and impartial reporting

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<v Speaker 1>is hard to find. Um, journalists, I'm old enough to

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<v Speaker 1>remember when journalists like really looked down on partisan politics,

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<v Speaker 1>and the idea of a journal having partisan politics would

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<v Speaker 1>be really like the I don't even know what to

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<v Speaker 1>compare to exactly, would be like, uh, a journalist having

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<v Speaker 1>like a favorite European soccer team. We have a few

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<v Speaker 1>of those. Actually, yeah, well, listen, one thing I want

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<v Speaker 1>to ask you, and you you know, you end up

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<v Speaker 1>this new book, um that's out with a bunch of

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<v Speaker 1>your essays, and you end with and I'm an optimist,

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<v Speaker 1>and I know, Jason is to what I like about

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<v Speaker 1>you USA, and you say three things I like about

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<v Speaker 1>America fast food, suburban sprawl, and traffic jams. Um. We

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<v Speaker 1>haven't seen a lot of traffic jams because of the virus.

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<v Speaker 1>Um suburban sprawl, though we're thinking we might see a

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<v Speaker 1>little bit more of because of the virus. As people

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<v Speaker 1>he's moving out in the gundry, even if the country

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<v Speaker 1>is only as far as Levittown, best get out of town. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, and it's interesting, and you write, you do

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<v Speaker 1>a pre preface if you will, in your book, because

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<v Speaker 1>you say you wrote these essays in nineteen and then happened.

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<v Speaker 1>As we know, it's been a year of just one

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<v Speaker 1>you know, explicative and one an unbelievable story after another,

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<v Speaker 1>and a lot of heartache, if you will. And I

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<v Speaker 1>think we're all wondering what happens on the other side.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, what are your thoughts about this year? Well,

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<v Speaker 1>it rights itself, you know, I mean, people say, oh,

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<v Speaker 1>America is so divided. America has never been this divided,

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<v Speaker 1>And I go eighteen sixty one, I'm not sure America

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<v Speaker 1>has ever been Having survived the sixties in the early seventies.

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<v Speaker 1>America is a ship that's got a lot of keel

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<v Speaker 1>to it, and we may take on water from the right,

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<v Speaker 1>take on water from the left. We have a tendency

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<v Speaker 1>to right ourselves. It's very important to remember America is

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<v Speaker 1>not some country that once all where everybody all got along.

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<v Speaker 1>That that ever ever happened from the moment that the

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<v Speaker 1>colonists landed here and started to to fight with the

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<v Speaker 1>people who were already here, who were defeated not in

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<v Speaker 1>battle but by disease and demography. And then think about

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<v Speaker 1>all the people in America. I mean, some came here

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<v Speaker 1>a scam artist, some came here as religious nuts. Some

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<v Speaker 1>came here uh totally unwillingly. We're dragged here as slaves. Uh.

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<v Speaker 1>Some of us here were forced. My family was forced

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<v Speaker 1>by poverty, the Irish Potato family, um. Some people forced

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<v Speaker 1>by bigotry, oppression at home, or pure lack of opportunity.

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<v Speaker 1>Were completely random bunch of people turned loose into huge place.

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<v Speaker 1>We hate each other. I mean, you know, in a

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<v Speaker 1>nice and most of the time in a pretty nice

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<v Speaker 1>and civil way, but every now and then it bursts out.

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<v Speaker 1>We've never been there, We've never had this like golden

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<v Speaker 1>age where we all got along, and I just think

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<v Speaker 1>we should go back to arguing in a civil you know,

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<v Speaker 1>see each other in a civilized manner. Yeah, well, here's

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<v Speaker 1>hoping and we just discuss exactly, let's just have a conversation. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>really really great to catch up with you. What a

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<v Speaker 1>treat for us. Thank you so much. The book is

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<v Speaker 1>called A Cry from the Far Middle Dispatches from a

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<v Speaker 1>Divided Land p. G. O. Rourke. Um, you know I

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<v Speaker 1>should have said this at the top. I read Parliament

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<v Speaker 1>of who made me want to be a writer? You know?

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<v Speaker 1>I was going to study politics in Washington and listen,

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<v Speaker 1>I still have it. It's a it's a gem, and

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<v Speaker 1>it's about the government and how it works or doesn't work.

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<v Speaker 1>I gotta love a guy who says America is a

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<v Speaker 1>ship that has a lot of keel to it. Jason,

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<v Speaker 1>that is going on our T shirt list. There you go,

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<v Speaker 1>it's on the T shirt list, p Ark. He's the

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<v Speaker 1>best