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jaymbryan's review
5.0
This excellent book explains the current shambolic state of UK politics, and how liar Johnson has turned it against itself. What a dangerous road the UK is on.
outofthemouth's review against another edition
5.0
I was only able to get through this book by reading a chapter every few days. The reporting of the duplicitous way that the two leaders of the "free world" live their lives, made me so upset and angry that I needed time to recover between instalments. Yes, of course it tended to feed some of my biases, but I am judging on behaviour not just politics. Where does the UK go from here for leaders? It's going to be a long struggle back from the behavioural 4th division they find themselves in at the moment. Well done Peter Oborne for a compact volume to question those who would have us believe you can fool all of the people all of the time - and get away with it.
colinlusk's review
4.0
I tend to think Johnson, although a cavalier, lazy idiot who gives not one shit about accuracy, is not really the same kind of liar as Trump, simply because he lacks the toddler-like ego and the willingness to burn the whole world merely to score a point off an opponent.
It's fair to say Peter Osborne does not agree with my on that diagnosis and he makes his point very, very forcefully here.
It's fair to say Peter Osborne does not agree with my on that diagnosis and he makes his point very, very forcefully here.
doctoraction's review
4.0
Very good analysis on BJ and why the current situation is so serious. The closeness of the government and the media is the most worrying of all, imo. Oborne is clearly very cross but this doesn't affect his clarity one bit.
drmilesdavis's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
5.0
This is an excellent book by Oborne. No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, he provides a blistering portrayal of Johnson’s deceitful government in a concise way. Written by an honest man about a dishonest individual.
ccoral's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.5
I read this book for my EPQ. Appreciated how it was very informative, yet simple enough to read and understand. It has given me many places to go for further research. Though it was mainly about Boris Johnson and the British Government, many helpful comparisons were made to Trump and Merkel (though my research is focussed on comparisons to Trump and the USA, so that is more useful to me). I also liked that any accusations were supported with facts and sources were given at the end of each page to give context, as well as to assure the reader that the upmost care and accuracy was taken when writing this book (in contrast to some of the politicians' words and actions being discussed).
buddhafish's review against another edition
3.0
15th book of 2024.
Oborne has certainly been keeping receipts. The second chapter alone outlines a number of Johnson lies* with relevant footnotes to backup his claims. Several of them, he writes, he researched himself to get to the truth (which, at every count, was the opposite to what Johnson had said). Of course, Oborne also attacks Tony Blair and the lies he and the Labour party told to drag Britain into a war with Iraq. He, Oborne writes, began the path that led to Johnson and his lies. He does compare Johnson as Prime Minister to the Johnson he knew writing for The Spectator decades ago and wonders what changed. It’s no secret to anyone that Johnson was fired from two journalist posts for lying, and yet, he made it into No. 10 regardless. Oborne compares Johnson to Trump (both liars, though he points out Johnson’s aloofness compared to Trump’s outright revelling in it), and to Merkel on the pandemic front, just to prove how competent she was in steering Germany through that period. Oborne does show his arrogance and self-importance in the conclusion when he starts talking about how he is sending the manuscript of this book to the House of Commons and that people have to call out lies they hear as soon as they do. And if they are accused of lying by anyone in politics, to immediately sue them, even if it’s Boris Johnson himself. Clearly written but slightly outdated in that we know much of the content already. Now we have Rishi to talk about, Johnson is almost forgotten in the media. For now.
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*Here are some: that Johnson’s government was building forty new hospitals: untrue; that Corbyn had a £1,2 trillion spending plan: untrue, that Corbyn ‘thinks home ownership is a bad idea and is opposed to it’: untrue, and that Corbyn wanted to abolish the British armed forces: very untrue; Johnson once claimed on a hospital visit he had given up drink: untrue (he had been photographed drinking the day before and the day after); ‘‘There was a [baby boom] after the Olympics, as I prophesied in a speech in 2012’’: untrue (Oborne checked this himself); Johnson told activists he was building a new hospital ‘in the marginal seat of Canterbury’: untrue; ‘‘we will certainly make sure that the A&E in Telford is kept open’’: untrue; he claimed NHS funding would go up to £34 billion: untrue: ‘Adjusted for inflation, the £34 million comes down to £20.5 billion. Not even close to the £24 billion a year spent on average by the Labour government up to 2009’; on the Andrew Marr show Johnson said Corbyn wanted to ‘‘disband MI5’’: untrue; he also claimed Corybn had a ‘plan for unlimited and uncontrolled immigration’: untrue; he also said Corbyn would ‘‘whack corporation tax up to the highest in Europe’’: untrue, Labour said they would up to 26 per cent (France was 31 per cent at this time and Belgium was 29 per cent); he claimed Britain corporation tax was ‘‘already the lowest in Europe’’: untrue; Johnson likened Corbyn to Stalin: obviously untrue and, as Oborne says, this comment was to ‘trash history and language, and insult all of Stalin’s victims’; he continually promised there would be no customs checks or controls for good moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland: untrue; he claimed that Britain’s membership in the EU cost ‘an extra £1 billion a month’: untrue; the Tory social media altered a video of Sir Keir Starmer (then shadow Brexit secretary) replying to Piers Morgan about Labour’s Brexit position: they cut Starmer’s silence as he listened to the question and moved it to after Morgan had asked the question so he appeared to be flummoxed when in actuality, he answered ‘immediately, confidently and fluently’; the lies he told throughout the pandemic, causing Britain to be one of the worst sufferers, despite being one of the most capable.
Oborne has certainly been keeping receipts. The second chapter alone outlines a number of Johnson lies* with relevant footnotes to backup his claims. Several of them, he writes, he researched himself to get to the truth (which, at every count, was the opposite to what Johnson had said). Of course, Oborne also attacks Tony Blair and the lies he and the Labour party told to drag Britain into a war with Iraq. He, Oborne writes, began the path that led to Johnson and his lies. He does compare Johnson as Prime Minister to the Johnson he knew writing for The Spectator decades ago and wonders what changed. It’s no secret to anyone that Johnson was fired from two journalist posts for lying, and yet, he made it into No. 10 regardless. Oborne compares Johnson to Trump (both liars, though he points out Johnson’s aloofness compared to Trump’s outright revelling in it), and to Merkel on the pandemic front, just to prove how competent she was in steering Germany through that period. Oborne does show his arrogance and self-importance in the conclusion when he starts talking about how he is sending the manuscript of this book to the House of Commons and that people have to call out lies they hear as soon as they do. And if they are accused of lying by anyone in politics, to immediately sue them, even if it’s Boris Johnson himself. Clearly written but slightly outdated in that we know much of the content already. Now we have Rishi to talk about, Johnson is almost forgotten in the media. For now.
_______________________
*Here are some: that Johnson’s government was building forty new hospitals: untrue; that Corbyn had a £1,2 trillion spending plan: untrue, that Corbyn ‘thinks home ownership is a bad idea and is opposed to it’: untrue, and that Corbyn wanted to abolish the British armed forces: very untrue; Johnson once claimed on a hospital visit he had given up drink: untrue (he had been photographed drinking the day before and the day after); ‘‘There was a [baby boom] after the Olympics, as I prophesied in a speech in 2012’’: untrue (Oborne checked this himself); Johnson told activists he was building a new hospital ‘in the marginal seat of Canterbury’: untrue; ‘‘we will certainly make sure that the A&E in Telford is kept open’’: untrue; he claimed NHS funding would go up to £34 billion: untrue: ‘Adjusted for inflation, the £34 million comes down to £20.5 billion. Not even close to the £24 billion a year spent on average by the Labour government up to 2009’; on the Andrew Marr show Johnson said Corbyn wanted to ‘‘disband MI5’’: untrue; he also claimed Corybn had a ‘plan for unlimited and uncontrolled immigration’: untrue; he also said Corbyn would ‘‘whack corporation tax up to the highest in Europe’’: untrue, Labour said they would up to 26 per cent (France was 31 per cent at this time and Belgium was 29 per cent); he claimed Britain corporation tax was ‘‘already the lowest in Europe’’: untrue; Johnson likened Corbyn to Stalin: obviously untrue and, as Oborne says, this comment was to ‘trash history and language, and insult all of Stalin’s victims’; he continually promised there would be no customs checks or controls for good moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland: untrue; he claimed that Britain’s membership in the EU cost ‘an extra £1 billion a month’: untrue; the Tory social media altered a video of Sir Keir Starmer (then shadow Brexit secretary) replying to Piers Morgan about Labour’s Brexit position: they cut Starmer’s silence as he listened to the question and moved it to after Morgan had asked the question so he appeared to be flummoxed when in actuality, he answered ‘immediately, confidently and fluently’; the lies he told throughout the pandemic, causing Britain to be one of the worst sufferers, despite being one of the most capable.