Uncovering the Dangers of Ignoring Democracy: The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis

YL: Very well written for such an unusual subject matter. Engaging nine the less. I enjoyed it a lot as always

United Kingdom on Oct 11, 2023

Peter: This book deals with the issue of when a new Government takes over after an election but the new people in charge miss doing certain essential things such as familarising themselves with the best people in each department in the Government.

The book is quite scathing on the Trump administration and, based on what the book says, for good reason. They did not send appropriate people to understand some of the departments they were taking over and appeared to have a scant regard for the normal processes of Government.

I did find the book veered away a bit after the first half when it got a bit tedious and dove too deeply into the minutiae of the departments they were covering. I had thought it would be a book focusing on Trump exclusively.

Overall, it is not a bad book at all, just not as good in the second half as the first.

Australia on Jun 25, 2023

Vincent Leal: Article conforme aux attentes, la commande s'étant visiblement perdue le vendeur a renvoyé un exemplaire rapidement.

France on Jul 15, 2022

limone: Michael Lewis is one of my fav authors because I’m a huge fan of data-based decisions and stories about the many brilliant and dedicated heroes that save our lives that we rarely hear about because they don’t seek fame or fortune. This book is, honestly, terrifying. There are departments in the federal government that save our lives now and in the future that many people don’t know about. The department of Energy, for example, is responsible for preventing nuclear disaster - not just from an attack but from an accident or radioactive waste making its way into a waterway (did you know that there is a plant in Washington with deadly radioactive waste that has a bin failure of 68% and still no plan on how to prevent the waste from continuing its slow and steady course towards the Colombia River?). Did you know that in the 60’s a nuclear bomb accidentally fell out of a transport plane over NC and didn’t explode because 1 of the 4 safety devices installed on it held - safety devices studied and implemented by the Dept. of Energy. There are so many threats to the U.S. that require constant vigilance (e.g. keeping track of the movement of uranium) that are managed by...

United States on Jul 13, 2021

G.C.: Michael Lewis’ The Fifth Risk is marketed as a Trump presidency book.

The Fifth Risk starts off by telling the story of Chris Christie. How he helped the future Trump administration organise a government in waiting. Christie and the team are let go. Trump was worried about spending money.

Given the revelations about Donald Trump’s finances in the New York Times; I can understand his desire to control cash flow. This goes some way to explaining the problems filling senior government places.

A second thing comes out in the first part of the book; Trump’s instinct to value personal loyalty. Which is fine; but doesn’t scale that well. That meant that people were often unsuitable for the jobs that they were given.

A final trait that came through was a massive root-and-branch concern against climate change.

So Lewis doesn’t say that much about the Trump administration that we didn’t already know. But that is only 30 percent of the book.

What the government does

The remaining 70 percent of the book tells the stories of different departments of the US government. The vital, complex roles that they play. He peels back the complex...

United Kingdom on Oct 06, 2020

Glenda: I find for this book, I was overwhelmed with what I was reading. With nearly 40 years of working in various positions, most of which were at a land-grant university in administration, I was appalled at what Michael Lewis was sharing. Working under at least three university presidents and many individual second in command of various parts of the institution, I am totally family with an organizational structure that works routinely to keep an organization running through any type of changes...

Having avidly watched what was happening under Trump, on national television and other media reports, I thought I had a fairly decent handle on what was really happening. The depth of what had happened, however, was so so much more...

Did you know that there is supposed to be a transition team put into place whenever a governmental administration leader is replaced? Chris Christie had brought this up during the campaign, noting that it was mandatory. Nobody had even considered this at that time. At that point, Christie volunteered to head up that transition team...moved forward and, in a very short time, had a thriving team of 100 or so getting ready for the new president's...

United States on Mar 07, 2019

Rule 62 Ken: Perhaps Michael Lewis's greatest strength as an author is his ability to tell the reader something he or she doesn't know and would never guess. He finds his gems of intellectual curiosities in the most unexpected places, whether it be in sabermetrics, high frequency trading or the most vulnerable spot in a football team's offensive line. In his most recent work, The Fifth Risk, Lewis looks at a number of underappreciated departments and agencies in the United States Federal Government, and the disastrous consequences that might flow from the current administration's inability to appreciate the value of these offices.

The issue Lewis explores is not an ideological one. It is not one of right vs. left, conservatives vs. liberals or Republicans vs. Democrats. Rather, the divergence is between those in government service who are there for some noble purpose that looks out for the greater good, and those in powerful economic positions whose primary concern is self-interest and making as much money as possible. As the author states more succinctly, the struggle is "between the people who are in it for the mission and the people who are in it for the money."

One might...

Canada on Oct 09, 2018