Catastrophe Book Review

July 19th, 2009

by John R. Sedivy

“Catastrophe” is the first book I have read by Dick Morris and Eileen McGann – the full title “How Obama, Congress, and the Special Interests Are Transforming a Slump Into a Crash, Freedom Into Socialism, and a Disaster Into a Catastrophe” gives you a fair idea of the theme of this book. “Catastrophe” is more than the ranting and raving one would expect from a typical political book, actually it is much more.

Similar in delivery as “Liberty and Tyranny” by Mark Levin, Dick Morris and Eileen McGann have a unique style. They provide plenty of accusations, but also have appeared to have done their homework by providing data to back it up. The book’s tone is logical, more academic than some of their fiery counterparts on the political scene. What’s more, “Catastrophe” goes a large step further than most – an “action agenda” is provided after each section – basically a call to action which instructs readers how to make a difference concerning a given subject.

A Call To Action
The “action agenda” aspect of this book is unique in that I had not come across this in other political books. Most political writers generally complain about a given situation in order to evoke emotions from their readers – but that is generally the end of things. Dick Morris and Eileen McGann go a step further and invoke a call to action – providing information such as e-mail addresses, physical addresses, and phone numbers of individuals that should be contacted in order to make a change.

Another aspect of this book that really made it stand out was the material is time relevant and hits close to home. Unparalleled government spending, special interest lobbying, insider corruption, the collapse of the mortgage and credit industries, taxes – he pretty much covers it all. I really enjoyed the authors’ style and method of delivery. A wide range of topics were covered without shortcut and the book was interesting from beginning to end.

PTSD Action Agenda
One “action agenda” item that struck a chord with me concerned the treatment of our returning soldiers from Afghanistan and Iraq. It appears that many are returning home with PTSD – or Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD is an anxiety disorder which is caused by one or several traumatic experiences. The stressors of war (multiple deployments, death, destruction, etc.) seem to be affecting our soldiers in a variety of ways such as extreme depression, unemployment, breakup of families, and even death.

In “Catastrophe” the author states that in January 2009 more soldiers killed themselves than were killed by enemy combatants – 24 had committed suicide – six times the amount from the previous January. According to the authors, the military does not know the direct cause – but suspect “multiple deployments, the stigma associated with seeking treatment, and the excessive use of anti-depressant medication as possible reasons for the problem.” Also, CNN reported that “the military suicide total for 2008 was the highest annual level of suicides among soldiers since the Pentagon began tracking the rate 28 years ago.”

Let’s consider this for a moment. Our young men and women who willingly volunteer to risk their lives are surviving combat – only to become the victim of a self-inflicted death. Furthermore, as our technology and military capabilities improve – the mental wellness of our military has not as reflected by record suicide rates. To me this is unacceptable – these young men and women deserve a much better fate.

Although President Obama has allocated large sums of money for the treatment of these soldiers by greatly increasing the budget of the Veteran’s Administration (VA), the VA does not see PTSD as a priority and is allocating the funding elsewhere. According to the authors of “Catastrophe” it is mainly due to a “macho” culture prevalent in the military which has carried over to the VA. The military and associated organizations are well equipped for treating physical ailments, but not so much for injuries of the mind.

Fortunately Dick Morris and Eileen McGann provide instructions on how to improve this situation. The authors provide the following names and contact information:

Eric K. Shinseki
Secretary of Veteran’s Affairs
Department of Veteran’s Affairs
1.800.827.1000

Daniel K. Akaka
Chairman of The Senate Committee On Veterans
P.O. Box 50144
Honolulu, HI 96850
202.224.9126

Bob Filner
Chairman of the House Committee On Veterans
House Committee On Veterans Affairs
335 Canon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

Should you wish to see funding be allocated to treating PTSD the authors recommend contacting the above offices and voicing your concern. At the time of this writing I have mailed letters to the Chairman of the the Senate Committee on Veterans and the Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans. I also plan on placing a phone call to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

Although “Catastrophe” is geared towards a conservative audience I feel a wider audience may find it of interest. The authors address issues that affect us all (such as the PTSD issue outlined above). If nothing else after reading this book you will walk away informed – which is not a bad thing.

-John R. Sedivy of Cape Cod Branding