The O’Reilly FactorI choose the OReilly Factor because its about the only book that appealed to me. As well as the one the few narrators I could listen to for 5 hours.
Besides the only other television shows I watch are reruns of the Simpsons and Senfied. So the OReilly factor seemed like a logical choice for me. The book is basically Bill OReillys viewpoint on just about everything such as politics, raising children, and taken responsibility for your own actions. Personally I really liked the book but thats just me I would not recommend to anyone who doesnt like Fox News Channel. The book incorporates a lot of his television show.
In a lot of ways it was long a really long episode of the Factor. In the book Bill talks a lot of about his childhood and how he was raised in working class family in New York. The friendships he has maintained since his childhood as well as what it takes to be a good friend in his mind. The book starts out with him talking about being a high school teacher and when he was in college at Boston University looking across the river at MIT and Harvard and then given a chance to go back to get his masters at Harvard and then studying his now new counterparts. Growing up in a working class family his was not accustom to the Harvard way of life or thinking. What he means by that is since he did not come from a wealthy family when he graduated college he didnt have his fathers friends lining up to interview him.
Basically he has always had to work to get where he is today. And that holds true today if you are born into any class besides the wealthy upper class you have to work for everything and speak up for yourself if necessary. Which in the book Bill mentions how his mouth has gotten him into some trouble; for insistence when he first became a journalist he had four jobs in five years mainly because he would speak up when something was done that wasnt right. Trying to make right wrongs. The first part of the book is a lot about the classes that exist in America.
Why they exist for example the rich upper class usually the politicians in America dont seat around at the country club wondering how to get drugs out of the ghetto. They (politicians) are concerned with keeping people paying taxes in order for them to have a job. Within this section Bill talks about the classes among the whites and blacks. He used the statistic that the average white family in the United States makes $39,000 a year as oppose to $25,000 a year for the average black family.
Quite a gap if you ask me. Then Bill gets into a rant about television today and how there is nothing on TV. Bill gets on his high horse on how he is responsible for News Magazines on TV. Saying that Inside Edition was investigated reporting and was the first and then Dateline and all the others followed his lead. Somehow Bill goes from TV to drugs and how parents need to educate their children about drugs.
This leads Bill into what is wrong with the legal system in the US. The wasteful spending that the government does on the war against drugs or does not. For example the government sends millions of dollars a year to Mexico and other South American countries to help these foreign governments at the source of the drug problem only to be sending the money to corrupt officials in these countries and have it back fire. Next Mr. OReilly talks about how parents raise their children today as oppose to when he grew up. Bill thinks that parents today are soft and just let their children run there life.
He uses and example where this mother was trying to get her son to stop kicking the back of Bills chair on an airplane and couldnt do it because the child either did not fear the mother and or the consequences if he keep kicking. To make a long story short the woman ended up switching seats with her son before Bill had his with the boy. Then Bill gets into dating and says how men and women have different agendas. For insistence women in general are looking for one Mr. Right of their dreams and guys want to find all girls from their dreams.
Bill mentions in this section how he used his fame and television exposure to get dates. He also claims that he is a dancing machine but I just cant picture I white guy with rhythm. Then he gets into first sign indicators that a woman you dating isnt the one. Now comes etiquette this is where Bill speaks directly to everyone and says no matter whom you are teach your children table manners. He claims that this will get you further in life then anything. Straight teeth are essential and children should be taken to the dentist every six months and to a dermatologist if necessary.
Proper English should be taught as well the use of the double negative between you and I is a bad thing in OReillys mind. And as a parent dont copy your teenager in using slang words like cool and awesome. Finally politeness teaches your children to open doors for people how to share and how to say thank you. And if you child is not courtesies then send them of to courtesy school immediately. Mr. OReilly wraps up his book with a list of dislikes and likes, which I found to be the most interesting part of the book and also the part I disagreed with him the most.
Bill starts out by disliking stuff like South Park, Viagra, and Jerry Springer. Which in my mind individuals are smart and able to separate the good from the bad, but people on a whole are dumb and irresponsible. These things just reinforce that statement. The one statement I will always remember from the book is nobody ever gave me anything because of who my dad was.
This quote I feel speaks very loudly to me and I can relate to it more than anything that Bill said in the entire book. That statement is the kind of statement that just about anyone who has worked hard to get where they are at today can relate to. That is why I feel that quote sums up the book and quite possible the life of Bill OReilly. Words/ Pages : 1,155 / 24
