A Decision about Decision Points

"They Misunderestimate me" - George W. Bush

    As an aspiring 'Pitbull on the pant-leg of opportunity' I have claimed the calf of my first victim. Kinda lost the plot with this metaphor, but you get what I'm saying. I having finished Decision Points. Now here are my reflections.

    It seemed many of his difficult decisions he had made up his mind up about long ago. The difficult part, I felt was justifying them. For example, Iraq. To me it seemed like he mostly just wanted to finish what his Father started--and worked to find a reason to invade. However, often with his decisions he struggled with inaction. In Katrina he felt like he should have Federalized troops and sent in the army earlier, but he waited because he was concerned about the optics. After 9/11, he finished reading the book to the children. 

    Now his book is decently well-written, but it also has some flaws. Particularly focus. He kind of jumps around a lot, one decision leads to the next and they all somehow circle back to the middle-east. I mean more than half of the book is about it. 

    However, Bush is just a kind person. Generally, throughout the book, he lifts people up. Even his political opponents he views with respect. That is not something that can be said about every President ever. Being from Texas, and from the storied Bush family, in his writing I felt a sense of pride and honor. Essentially, it felt like Bush has a basic code that he tried to stick to when making decisions. He deviated from it at points, but he succeeded more than he failed. 

    Now something about me. Through this read I learned to respect George W. Bush much more. I still disagree with him on many issues, namely the war in Iran, but it seemed that he tried to do what is best for America, and at the end of the day I can applaud him for trying. Trying to make something better for everyone--not just himself.  

    Overall, not a terrible read, my other posts touch on the beginning and middle, the end is pretty basic. My next read will be Buchanan's autobiography. Decent book, but slightly too long.