The Three Branches of Government: Money, Television and Bullshit, pp. 49-65 Summary and Analysis

Beginning the section "National Busybodies" O'Rourke reiterates his poor opinion of the American government, describing it as an organism whose sole purpose is to aggrandize those in power. To truly know the function of government, O'Rourke suggests, requires watching what it does when it isn't doing anything at all.

O'Rourke tells of his visit to the House of Representatives, describing the underpopulated House chamber in mocking detail. He details the House practice of "one minute" speeches, where representatives take turns giving a speech of sixty second duration. O'Rourke presents an unflattering picture of House Democratic efforts to talk environmentalism in advance of Earth Day. He pans all the representatives, on both sides of the aisle, as bad public speakers.

The one...