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Sunday Morning Book Thread 05-25-2014: Memorial Day Edition [OregonMuse]


memorial-day-cartoon-how-much-did-it-cost-the-lives-of-soldiers.jpg

"We sleep safely in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would harm us."

--misattributed to George Orwell.
(interesting discussion of the misattribution here)


Good morning morons and moronettes and welcome to AoSHQ's stately and prestigious Sunday Morning Book Thread.


To Those Who Served

I thought this poem particularly appropriate for Memorial Day, for the veterans who have served and returned and are never again quite the same.

"Back"
by Wilfred Gibson (1878-1962)

They ask me where I've been,
And what I've done and seen.
But what can I reply
Who know it wasn't I,
But someone just like me,
Who went across the sea
And with my head and hands
Killed men in foreign lands...
Though I must bear the blame,
Because he bore my name.


Another Military History Book

This one came recommended by BookBub earlier this week, This Kind of War: The Classic Military History of the Korean War by T. R, Fehrenbach. I thought it was interesting that a number of Amazon reviews were by military men who were ordered to read it as part of their training. I am going to quote one of the reviews that notes that this book was originally subtitled "A Study in Unpreparedness":

T.R. Fehrenbach argues that the American armed forces were psychologically unprepared for the type of limited war that took place in Korea ("this kind of war"). The author questions whether the citizen-soldier and the society from which it breeds were willing to fight and die for an intangible foreign policy in Asia. Originally published two years before a full American commitment in Vietnam (1963), the author warns that this type of conflict will become the rule rather than the exception and America had better train a professional force both physically and mentally to deal with such future conflicts.

Sounds rather prophetic. So this book is not just a recitation of history, but also goes on to draw conclusions based on this history as to how it impacts U.S. foreign policy:

The author is adamant in his conclusion: "A nation that does not prepare for all the forms of war should then renounce the use of war in national policy." He adds: "A people [America] that does not prepare to fight should then be morally prepared to surrender. To fail to prepare soldiers and citizens for limited, bloody ground action, and then to engage in it, is folly verging on the criminal."

This is the question I've been asking myself for the past several years: Do we really want to fight a war on terror? Do we want to commit the lives of our young men and women for this purpose? I'm sure it was true just after 9/11, I'm not so sure now. If we're not committed to this purpose, then it is, in the author's words "criminal" to have our soldiers in harm's way. If most of us don't know what the hell they're doing there, we need to bring them home until such time as we can figure out what their purpose should be.

Note: Fehrenbach served as an officer during the Korean War, and wrote a number of other books, particularly on the subject of Texas history. He passed away not too long ago, at the end of 2013.


sad-memorial-day-pictures.jpg
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

From For the Fallen by Robert Laurence Binyon (1869-1943)


Garbage In, Garbage Out

The boss already covered this on Friday, but it's book news, so I'm doing a repeat. It's look like Thomas Piketty's book,, that has had everyone on the religious progressive left shouting loud hosannas and singing praises to heaven ever since its publication, has used data that smells a bit off:

The data underpinning Professor Piketty's 577-page tome, which has dominated best-seller lists in recent weeks, contain a series of errors that skew his findings. The FT found mistakes and unexplained entries in his spreadsheets...there is little evidence in Prof Piketty's original sources to bear out the thesis that an increasing share of total wealth is held by the richest few.

We'll see how this develops. I remember the jubilation on the left when Michael Bellesiles' book Arming America came out, and then researchers started examining his supporting data, and the more that problems were found, the more his explanations grew increasingly lame, eventually descending to "the dog ate my homework" levels of inanity. Whereupon all of his left wing supporters, when they realized that the book could no longer be defended, admitted their mistake and vowed that they would be more careful with such ideologically-laced research in the future pretended the book never existed and moved on to the next progressive cause du jour. I don't know if Piketty's research is going to turn out to be as slipshod, but given the left's track record of latching on to dubious science (Carson, Erlich, Kinsey, Mead, etc.) I wouldn't be surprised if his data doesn't withstand close inspection, either.

But, I could be wrong.


Trigger Happy

The British probably love running headlines like this: US students request 'trigger warnings' on literature. It probably just confirms their already-low opinions of Americans:

The request was formally made by the student government at the University of California in Santa Barbara, according to the New York Times, which yesterday also cited similar requests from students at Oberlin College, Rutgers University, the University of Michigan, George Washington University and other places.

The British don't think much of it:

"What do you decide is upsetting, and what actions does it leave you open to [if you get it wrong]? It's treating people as if they are babies, and studying literature is for grownups at university. You might as well put a label on English literature saying: warning - bad stuff happens here. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm late for my mandatory Islamophobia sensitivity training."

Hey wait, how did that last sentence get in there? The point is, I think the Brits are far ahead of us on the politically correct BS, in particular, they've lately shown themselves to be world class pushovers in the face of aggressive Islamic cultural incursion, so I'm not sure their condemnation of American PC crap means much.

But, in America, the PC crap does have its defenders:

Meredith Raimondo, Oberlin's associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, said that providing warnings was "responsible pedagogical practice", and that she objected to "the argument of 'Kids today need to toughen up'". "That absolutely misses the reality that we're dealing with. We have students coming to us with serious issues, and we need to deal with that respectfully and seriously," Raimondo told the US paper.

How about this: if it's too traumatic for some students to have to read grown-up literature written by grown-up authors for grown-ups audiences, they probably shouldn't be attending college. If they need assistance dealing with their life issues, they need to be at some place other than inside the American university system.

And then it gets silly:

A draft trigger warning policy from Oberlin, quoted in Inside Higher Education, used Achebe's acclaimed text [Things Fall Apart] as an example of a work which might require a warning, saying the novel was "a triumph of literature that everyone in the world should read. However, it may trigger readers who have experienced racism, colonialism, religious persecution, violence, suicide, and more."

Colonialism? Really? How does that work? 99% of the human race would describe 'colonialism' as 'pretty much normal life that happens all of the time'. That's the second problem with 'trigger' warnings: there's virtually an endless number of them that could be extracted, kind of like those fast-spoken warnings at the end of pharmaceutical commercials: 'use of this product might cause dizziness-sore-throat-coughing-vomiting-diarrhea-blood-loss-hallucinations-depression-psychotic-episodes-uncontrollable-fapping-blindness-deafness-loss-of-human-speech-drowsiness-aches-pains-mental-retardation-sprains-heartbreak-of-psoriasis-and-methodists'.

Bunch of crybabies.


British Library Online

Also from the UK Guardian:

From the earliest known writing of Charlotte Brontë, a charmingly illustrated short story the Villette author penned for her little sister Anne, to Jane Austen's wry recording of an acquaintance's dismissal of Pride and Prejudice as "downright nonsense", the British Library has put 1,200 of its "greatest literary treasures" online in what is expected to become the biggest digital English literature resource.

You can find all these things on the British Library's Discovering Literature: Romantics and Victorians web page.


Gray's Anatomy

No, not the long-running TV show, I mean the classic medical textbook 'The Anatomy of the Human Body' by Henry Gray. This book, published in 1918, is known for its gorgeous engraved illustrations, over 1200 of them. It is now available online.


The Worst Book In The World

OK, so this reviewer claims to have found it. But he's not going to tell you what it is, or anything much about it. The reason?

And thus, while professional duty compels me to deliver judgment on the work at hand, I cannot in good conscience reveal the title, author, or any identifying details about its plot for fear that some perverse soul might be tempted to go out and buy it.

Alright, so the invitation here, I guess, is for the reader to play detective and try to figure out from the meager clues what book he's talking about.

Either that or it's simply a parody of a book review, and there is no actual book. You decide.


Books By Morons

Moron commenter 'CTinDenver' wants everybody to know that his new science fiction novel, Kali's Children, has just been published. This weekend, it's going to be available for 99 cents on Amazon.

A ship crash-lands on an alien world. The few survivors discover that all of the indigenous forms of life hate them and want to kill them:

From the red reeds that cover the land to the ferocious predators that fear nothing, every living thing on this world is highly intelligent... and utterly hostile. Violence is a normal part of life. Murder and war are nothing more than a means to acquire food. Kindness is unimaginably alien.

They must also keep their technology out of the hands of the barbaric monsters around them. For the planet’s natives have learned that it is possible to leave their world, and out there among the stars is the most prolific source of food they have ever known: humans.

Sound like Harry Harrison's 'Deathworld' -- only more violent.

'CTinDenver' is also the author of other books, among them Beyond the Sky and Seasons of Bliss.


Books of Note

I picked this one up for later: a humorous "noir" detective novel, This Doesn't Happen In The Movies, now available for FREE on Amazon. From Kirkus Reviews:

The promising kickoff to Pawlish's comic mystery series, starring far-from-perfect PI Reed Ferguson. Pawlish earns high marks for plot construction, with twists and turns naturally unfolding as Ferguson, inexperienced but not incapable, feels his way through the case. A good-humored mystery series worth following.

I can't resist books when they give 'em away for free.

Via BookBub.

___________

So that's all for this week. As always, book thread tips, suggestions, rumors, threats, and insults may be sent to OregonMuse, Proprietor, AoSHQ Book Thread, at aoshqbookthread, followed by the 'at' sign, and then 'G' mail, and then dot cee oh emm.

What have you all been reading this week? Hopefully something good, because, as I keep saying, life is too short to be reading lousy books.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 11:23 AM




Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 yeah!

Posted by: jade sea at May 25, 2014 11:22 AM (QpkQP)

2 Plenty of lessons in This Kind of War. In addition, it's a bangup history of the Korean War.

Posted by: Richard Aubrey at May 25, 2014 11:24 AM (sEWAz)

3 Re-reading Shirer's Rise and Fall of the Third Reich because I read his pre-war Berlin Diaries and found them interesting. A lot of parallels to our times . . . unfortunately

Posted by: jade sea at May 25, 2014 11:25 AM (QpkQP)

4 I finished "This Kind of War" just last week. Fehrenbach doesn't have much use for what the US Army had become in response to civilian demands between 1945 and 1950. He liked the USMC where an officer was still an officer and a sergeant was still a sergeant in 1950 and 51.

He does repeat Rommel's observation that American soldiers are among the world's least prepared for battle--but are also the world's fastest learners after their initial engagements.

But if you think Fehrenbach's analysis through--a military needs to be of the "legionnaire type" with officers as officers and sergeants as sergeants commanding respect, you also realize that you need a commander in chief who is more than a SCOAMF.

In combat the sergeants are actually the people who send men out to die. But it's the higher command which decides whether or not to spend those men's lives. And our current fool in chief does not have a frickin' clue about how to make that kind of decision. He doesn't even know how to play with lead soldiers. Barbie Dolls are more his speed.

Posted by: Comanche Voter at May 25, 2014 11:30 AM (wdHk6)

5 Terrific "comic" strip.

Posted by: Y-not at May 25, 2014 11:30 AM (zDsvJ)

6 Just some recommendations

Not A Good a Day to Die- Operation Anaconda

Joker Platoon- Ramadi 2004

House to House- Operation Phantom Fury

Lions of Kandahar- Operation Medusa 2006

The Outpost- Battle of Wanat 2009.

Posted by: Adam at May 25, 2014 11:30 AM (Aif/5)

7 And thus, while professional duty compels me to deliver judgment on the work at hand, I cannot in good conscience reveal the title, author, or any identifying details about its plot for fear that some perverse soul might be tempted to go out and buy it.
-----


Rush's book obviously.

Posted by: RWC at May 25, 2014 11:31 AM (kHDGZ)

8 Deathworld on Gutenberg for free, on Amazon in anthologies for a few pennies.

I've been reading the old stuff trying to escape the new stuff and the news.

Posted by: Pleasant Summer at May 25, 2014 11:32 AM (s1Lht)

9 Deathworld on Gutenberg for free

Harrison's in the public domain now? Wow, how did that happen, somebody forget to renew a copyright?

Posted by: OregonMuse at May 25, 2014 11:34 AM (fTJ5O)

10 Hey OM

Thanks as always for the Book Thread. Just went and snagged the freebie mystery. Thanks!!

Posted by: speedster1 on the iPad at May 25, 2014 11:35 AM (noB3y)

11 In light of the current VA scandals, this poem by Kipling is also appropriate:

The Last of the Light Brigade
1891There were thirty million English who talked of England's might,
There were twenty broken troopers who lacked a bed for the night.
They had neither food nor money, they had neither service nor trade;
They were only shiftless soldiers, the last of the Light Brigade.

They felt that life was fleeting; they kuew not that art was long,
That though they were dying of famine, they lived in deathless song.
They asked for a little money to keep the wolf from the door;
And the thirty million English sent twenty pounds and four!

They laid their heads together that were scarred and lined and grey;
Keen were the Russian sabres, but want was keener than they;
And an old Troop-Sergeant muttered, "Let us go to the man who writes
The things on Balaclava the kiddies at school recites."

They went without bands or colours, a regiment ten-file strong,
To look for the Master-singer who had crowned them all in his song;
And, waiting his servant's order, by the garden gate they stayed,
A desolate little cluster, the last of the Light Brigade.

They strove to stand to attention, to straighen the toil-bowed back;
They drilled on an empty stomach, the loose-knit files fell slack;
With stooping of weary shoulders, in garments tattered and frayed,
They shambled into his presence, the last of the Light Brigade.

The old Troop-Sergeant was spokesman, and "Beggin' your pardon," he said,
"You wrote o' the Light Brigade, sir. Here's all that isn't dead.
An' it's all come true what you wrote, sir, regardin' the mouth of hell;
For we're all of us nigh to the workhouse, an' we thought we'd call an' tell.

"No, thank you, we don't want food, sir; but couldn't you take an' write
A sort of 'to be conbnued' and 'see next page' o'the fight?
We think that someone has blundered, an' couldn't you tell'em how?
You wrote we were heroes once, sir. Please, write we are starving now."

The poor little army departed, limping and lean and forlorn.
And the heart of the Master-singer grew hot with "the sconrn of scorn."
And he wrote for them wonderful verses that swept the land like flame,
Till the fatted souls of the English were scourged with the thing called Shamme.

O thirty million English that babble of England's might,
Behold there are twenty heroes who lack their food to-night;
Our children's children are lisping to "honour the charge they made --"
And we leave to the streets and the workhouse the charge of the Light Brigade!


Posted by: SDN at May 25, 2014 11:36 AM (PD9tR)

12 We have students coming to us with serious issues, and we need to deal with that respectfully and seriously," Raimondo told the US paper.

-
If they can't take the possible offense of literature, they have a snowflakes chance in hell of succeeding in life.

Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 11:37 AM (4vWbH)

13 3 Re-reading Shirer's Rise and Fall of the Third Reich because I read his pre-war Berlin Diaries and found them interesting. A lot of parallels to our times . . . unfortunately
Posted by: jade sea at May 25, 2014 11:25 AM (QpkQP)

Absolutely. I'm reading a couple of books on the Warsaw Uprising-Rising 44 by Norman Davies, and B.H. Liddell's History of the Second World War. Both confirm that we are repeating history.

I guess ignoring Santayana's maxim is true.

Posted by: moki at May 25, 2014 11:37 AM (EvHC8)

14 You know what they should put trigger warnings on? Math text books and such. That shit can make you feel stupid.

Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 11:38 AM (4vWbH)

15 The photo of the grieving young woman and her beautiful little boy is heartbreaking.

Posted by: Tuna at May 25, 2014 11:39 AM (7KPIw)

16 There should be a trigger warning for A Tale of Two Cities - "Warning: If you have had friends or family die via a guillotine, do not read this book."

In all seriousness, if you're in a college literature course, you should assume that every book will have some kind of traumatic event in it. Soon we'll see these warnings for Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham because it condones bullying.

Posted by: Mary at May 25, 2014 11:42 AM (2wZs/)

17 Also, are these kids taking history classes? Or has history been so scrubbed clean of anything that could be sensitive to people that it isn't a concern?

Posted by: Mary at May 25, 2014 11:45 AM (2wZs/)

18 Gave up on Ann Scott Tyson's "American Spartan," a biography of Maj. Jim Grant. Despite glowing reviews by Steven Pressfield and Gen Petraeous, I found it to be one of the least interesting military books I've ever read. However innovative Grant's tactics, his character flaws prevented him from being truly effective. One danger of his methods was the likelihood of "going native," which tends to impede working within the command structure. His apparent PTSD as well as drug and alcohol dependency didn't help. If you're thinking of reading it, check out the Kirkus review for a quick overview. I'd highly recommend the blackfive dot net and militarytimes reviews before wasting time on this book.

On a brighter note, I'm really enjoying Daniel Suarez's "Kill Decision". Not as polished as "Influx," but very worthwhile. I also enjoyed "Daemon." His site is thedaemon dot com.

Posted by: doug at May 25, 2014 11:46 AM (jTuSt)

19 Finished "Tender is the Night" by F Scott Fitzgerald and, even though it got much better in the second and third parts, it was only a "meh" to me (two stars on Goodreads) and it certainly fell far short of the masterpiece he thought he was creating. In fact it reads very much like a book that was almost impossible for the author to complete which in fact it was. Chock full of very unlikeable people portrayed in overwrought prose. It did lead to some good book group discussions of what horrible characters all of them were but other than that I would not recommend it at all. FWIW I'm not a big fan of Great Gatsby either.


Made some progress in The First Crusade by Thomas Asbridge to the point where Pope Urban has made his Clermont speech and there was such a massive reaction to it that he quickly thought "WTF, this sucker is getting out of control". Am also reading Zoe Oldenbourg's book on the whole Crusades which makes mostly the same points but narrates it in a different way so that I find myself having to put it down to get through a bunch of Asbridge stuff before I can get to a concurrent narrative. Of course Gibbon starts out by talking about Peter the Hermit so it'll be a while before he is joined again.

Posted by: Captain Hate at May 25, 2014 11:50 AM (f8CQY)

20 Harrison's in the public domain now?

I don't know, google has always been um, erh ah, aggressive. Some of the one hundred year old writings they have are interesting.

Thus we now have 'Intellectual Property Rights' to protect Intellectuals of course. Extreme by any measure. (Life of author plus fifty years).

Anything fifty years old or older should be in the public domain.

Posted by: Pleasant Summer at May 25, 2014 11:52 AM (s1Lht)

21 I picked this one up for later: a humorous "noir" detective novel, This Doesn't Happen In The Movies, now available for FREE on Amazon. From Kirkus Reviews:

The promising kickoff to Pawlish's comic mystery series, starring far-from-perfect PI Reed Ferguson. Pawlish earns high marks for plot construction, with twists and turns naturally unfolding as Ferguson, inexperienced but not incapable, feels his way through the case. A good-humored mystery series worth following.I can't resist books when they give 'em away for free.




Thank you for this book recommendation Oregon Muse. I am still in the hospital and just finished my last book. I was waiting for this thread to get another one. Its just what I need. Something entertaining and fun.Thank you.



Posted by: grammie winger at May 25, 2014 11:52 AM (ceHIs)

22 To call it "The War on Terror" is bullshit.

Call it what it is: Islam's War against Western Civilization.


Posted by: Grampa Jimbo at May 25, 2014 11:52 AM (V70Uh)

23 I have to make a comment about not fighting wars that we are all (as a society) ready to deal with.

If we did have a policy like that, we would have already given up to evil a long time ago.

There's a high portion of the country that would surrender immediately to china, russia, or any islamic country in order to experience the glory of communism and equality right here on earth.

Of course my wet dream would be to use a force for actual good. Those muzzies that captured the girls ... tell the host country that they have 30 days until the good guys show up. during that 30 days, they can solve the problem ... help isolate the problem so that damage is in limited areas ... or throw up their hands and say it's too tough for local conditions and do nothing. Then, we swoop in with a decent set of rules of engagement (kill it ... double dead) .. and solve the problem. Then leave. Do not re-build. Do not send aid.

But for god's sake, don't limit our abilities and match them to the most weenie peacenik in the world.

Posted by: Mephitis at May 25, 2014 11:52 AM (GLwVs)

24 TRIGGER WARNING: The following content may contain material that is upsetting to those with pork allergies or religious prohibitions against pork products, communists, stock analysts, agoraphobics, homeless persons, vegans, food desert activists and those with urinary tract infections:


This little piggy went to market,
This little piggy stayed home.
This little piggy had roast beef,
This little piggy had none.
And this little piggy went wee, wee, wee, all the way home.

Posted by: S. Muldoon at May 25, 2014 11:53 AM (mvenn)

25 I just finished "Greek Warfare: Myths and Realities" by Van Wees. An interesting book that takes a different view on Ancient Greek conflicts than VDH and others. Next up is Candide and then probably something quick and pulpy before I dive into The Thirty-Years War: Europe's Tragedy.

Posted by: Colorado Alex at May 25, 2014 11:54 AM (lr3d7)

26 In practical terms, I support the USO, and would encourage everyone here support the USO, Wounded Warrior Project, or a similar organization.

Regarding those who served and are serving, I just don't think we can ever understand the depth of their sacrifice and that of their families unless we have lived it ourselves. I have read books and seen movies about every conflict since the Civil War. I've even talked to some who served in WWII, Vietnam, and Iraq. All this may give some insight, but I don't think it can ever give real understanding. But what I can do is say, "Thank you for your service" to every person I see in military uniform and to every vet I have the opportunity to meet.

And so, to all of them, and to all of their families, "Thank You" from the bottom of my heart.

Posted by: OCBill at May 25, 2014 11:54 AM (VCCXE)

27 "The Lion's Gate"-- Stephen Pressfield-- excellent first hand account of the six-day war-- as told by the boys and men who fought it (at least on the Israeli side)-- best war history I've read in quite some time

Posted by: tomc at May 25, 2014 11:54 AM (avEuh)

28 Call it what it is: Islam's War against Western Civilization.

-
With an assist by Barack Obama.

Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 11:54 AM (4vWbH)

29 Greetings:

I would also recommend T.R. Fehrenbach's "Comanches: The History of a People" as it remains my favorite book about the Amerindian conflict.

Posted by: 11B40 at May 25, 2014 11:57 AM (evgyj)

30 We request that you put a trigger warning on "Green Eggs and Ham". While the thought of eating any product produced from animals is highly offensive to us, the glee with which Sam I Am tries to force his loathsome choice on another person is even more offensive. He could have been more tolerant to those people who choose to practice the more ethical lifestyle of veganism. The ending of the book in which the other character actually chose get their protein source from EGGS! and HAM! disgustingly colored in part by artificial food coloring, no doubt, could trigger nausea and vomited in sensitive Vegan parents reading the book to the children and gives support to the idea that it's for other to be carnivores.

Posted by: Leftist vegans of America at May 25, 2014 11:59 AM (XyM/Y)

31 Grammie! Thank our Lord you're able to post!

Mrs. Muse and I prayed for you last week for your surgery.

How did it go?

Posted by: OregonMuse at May 25, 2014 12:01 PM (fTJ5O)

32 "This Kind of War" is a great book on military history. A retired Army Colonel recommended it to me. The level of unpreparedness was infuriating -- and just five years after the end of WWII.

The book shows how close North Korea came to pushing the US completely out of Korea.

Posted by: Smilin' Jack at May 25, 2014 12:01 PM (Xzj0B)

33 I have just started Calculating God by Robert Sawyer.
It is a sy fy novel about an alien who comes to Earth with scientific proof of God's existence and tries to persuade an Atheist Paleontologist. I just started it last night but it is so far surprisingly funny.

Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 12:01 PM (4vWbH)

34 Ok that picture of the mom and child made me cry. And cry. And cry.

Posted by: ParanoidGirlinSeattle at May 25, 2014 12:02 PM (+0txR)

35 ok, sorry, previous cite is World Trade Org, i.e. international copyright.

US Copyright duration (from the wiki)
70 years after the death of the author. If the work was a work for hire (e.g., those created by a corporation) then copyright persists for 120 years after creation or 95 years after publication, whichever is shorter.

Interesting that Hollywood gets more protection (if work for hire) than the author. Named 'the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act' 1978, should be named the Walt Disney Corp and other Hollywood VIPs monopoly protection act.

Anything before 1923 published in US is now public Domain (unless republished and the copyright extended ((I think, don't ask me, I am not a copyright lawyer)))

Posted by: Pleasant Summer at May 25, 2014 12:03 PM (s1Lht)

36 Hi Oregon Muse!. The surgery itself went well but now i have pneumonia and an infection. Thanks for your prayers. I appreciate that so much.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 25, 2014 12:03 PM (ceHIs)

37 Grammie, so sorry to hear about the pneumonia and infection i will continue to pray for your recovery. Glad the surgery went well though.

Posted by: ParanoidGirlinSeattle at May 25, 2014 12:04 PM (+0txR)

38 Fehrenbach wrote the classic history book on Texas

It will always be the classic

Posted by: TexasJew at May 25, 2014 12:05 PM (tjOtY)

39 On the off chance that anyone on this thread is interested in learning about the Linux computer operating system, I highly recommend the new version of the "Debian Administrator's Handbook," available free to read online or download as .pdf, .mobi, or .epub. Up-to-date for Debian 7, aka "Wheezy." http://bit.ly/1mb6KEv

Thnaks, OregonMuse, for the link to the noir freebie. Looks like fun.

Posted by: doug at May 25, 2014 12:06 PM (jTuSt)

40 Thank you Paranoid Girl. This getting old stuff stinks.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 25, 2014 12:07 PM (ceHIs)

41 Hi Oregon Muse!. The surgery itself went well but now i have pneumonia and an infection. Thanks for your prayers. I appreciate that so much.

Oh, my, I'm sorry to hear that. Our prayers will continue.

Posted by: OregonMuse at May 25, 2014 12:08 PM (fTJ5O)

42 Grammie Winger-
I hope you get well soon! You posted last week that you had picked up Francis Chan's "Crazy Love"; did you like it? I read it several months ago, and found it very challenging. Chan is a very dynamic pastor. Let me recommend another, similar book for you: "Stop Asking Jesus into Your Heart" by J.D. Greear. Believe me, it will change your life. The title is a bit misleading, but the message is superb.


I,too, was in the hospital for a while with kidney failure. I want to thank all the morons, and most especially Ace and the cobloggers for helping to keep me sane throughout that ordeal. I am home now, no more dialysis, but still have a ways to go yet.

Posted by: DaveinNC at May 25, 2014 12:08 PM (/NgNT)

43 Ok that picture of the mom and child made me cry. And cry. And cry.

-
Shoulda had a trigger warning.

Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 12:08 PM (4vWbH)

44 Reading Mark Steyn's "Passing Parade", a collection of Steyn-written obituaries that I'm really enjoying. Some are sarcastic, some are poignant, and some are just funny as hell. I love his wit.

Posted by: Bookaday at May 25, 2014 12:08 PM (j3vws)

45 I have a rather long list of "worst books," some that are so bad I can't remember the titles.

I had to look this one up, was sure it was a Doctorow book, but they don't list it among the books when you do a Google search: "Welcome to Hard Times."

Absolutely hated that book. No redeeming qualities. From what I understand the man is a leftist prick, but this book appears to have been written as if he started by saying "let me tell a story where nobody is worth a damn, and there are no heroes, and nothing good happens, and nobody will be happy they picked the thing up in the first place."

Great. You succeeded.

Posted by: BurtTC at May 25, 2014 12:09 PM (PEb5B)

46 Psalm 41:3

The LORD sustains them on their sickbed and restores them from their bed of illness. (NIV)

Continuing prayers for your entire healing and restoration, sister. It must be so frustrating to go in for one thing and have other things develop.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at May 25, 2014 12:12 PM (XyM/Y)

47 One of the worst books I've read is Eating Soup with a Knife. It was a terrible mil history book on counter insurgency. Not all officers are good at writing books. I recommend With the Old Breed as a great Memorial Day read.

Posted by: Draki at May 25, 2014 12:13 PM (1hmJZ)

48 Reading "The Circle," after I saw Kevin Williamson make a ref to it. A novel set in the near future, set in Silicon Valley.

Imagine what Google or Facebook would do if they could.

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss, only worse.

Posted by: the littl shyning man at May 25, 2014 12:13 PM (tmFlQ)

49 God bless you and give you healing Dave in nc. I didnt pack the Chan book because I wasn't anticipating being in here so long. I am grateful for your other recommendation too. I will certainly check it out, soon hopefully. I will.add.you to.my prayer list.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 25, 2014 12:14 PM (ceHIs)

50 Anyone read the reviews on Tim geitner's book? They're hilarious.

Posted by: Draki at May 25, 2014 12:14 PM (1hmJZ)

51 I have some nominations for worst book. I don't want to mention the name or author but let's just say they are ghost written autobiographies of a man who has accomplished nothing but went on to be elected to high government office.

Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 12:15 PM (4vWbH)

52 If they can't take the possible offense of literature, they have a snowflakes chance in hell of succeeding in life.
Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 11:37 AM (4vWbH)

I fear they will succeed in life all too well, once they get a really good "civil rights" lawyer suing the rest of us on their behalf.

Posted by: Hrothgar at May 25, 2014 12:17 PM (o3MSL)

53 Posted by: FenelonSpoke at May 25, 2014 12:12 PM (XyM/Y)

Fenelon, thank you for the 2nd Timothy 4:7 the other day. It felt so right!
Regards
~H

Posted by: Hrothgar at May 25, 2014 12:19 PM (o3MSL)

54 So i should read today? Well I'd better make a drink...you'll actually hear that sattement for most things I do

Posted by: Guido at May 25, 2014 12:20 PM (GYg/s)

55 51 -

Ooh, I know! JFK?

Posted by: BurtTC at May 25, 2014 12:21 PM (PEb5B)

56 My Kindle book is "Fatal Purity" about Robespierre. It's more readable than I expected but I would like a little more background on what is going on with France in general while Robespierre is writing papers for the Academy of Arras. Anyway, the Estates General just started so the shit is fixing to hit the fan in a big, big way.

I have read some books about borderline personality disorder but I have always had a hard time picturing what it looks like. In the car, I am listening to a book about Jodi Arias and her crimes and I now get it: (as it was described briefly on L&O: SVU) a pathological fear, an utter terror of abandonment. Arias is a textbook picture of it. It also seems that Travis Alexander was a big-time douche but that's not an excuse for Arias, just an observation.

Also slowly getting in to "Beyond Good Intentions" which is about NGO aid - so far, so observant and not stupid.

Posted by: Tonestaple at May 25, 2014 12:21 PM (B7YN4)

57 I have some nominations for worst book. I don't want to mention the name or author but let's just say they are ghost written autobiographies of a man who has accomplished nothing but went on to be elected to high government office

Wait, are you saying that this guy wrote not one, but TWO autobiographies and he hasn't actually done or accomplished anything? Get out of here!

You're just messing with me, I know it!

Posted by: OregonMuse at May 25, 2014 12:23 PM (fTJ5O)

58 You're welcome, dear brother Hrothgar. It seemed right to me too. :^) You and your family and friends of Barbara continue to be in my thoughts and prayers.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at May 25, 2014 12:23 PM (XyM/Y)

59 @45 For a better Doctorow than E. L., let me recommend Cory Doctorow's YA book "Little Brother." Check out the Wikipedia article on the book. Great dystopian book about the surveillance society for the YA audience and paranoid adults alike. NYT bestseller and finalist for Best Novel Hugo.

I just got the "Little Brother" follow-up "Homeland" from the library and it looks very promising.

Is Cory a libertarian or a lefty? Yes. Whatever, he is anti-statist and anti-surveillance. Recommended.

Posted by: doug at May 25, 2014 12:24 PM (jTuSt)

60 Hrothgar (from the travel thread),

I hope you don't mind me asking, but who did you lose? I seem to remember your wife was very ill. Whoever it was, thoughts and prayers for you.

Posted by: ExSnipe at May 25, 2014 12:28 PM (baVVE)

61 59 -

I assume YA means young adult?

Only book I would be interested in for that topic would be how to kill them and make it look like an accident/suicide.

Posted by: BurtTC at May 25, 2014 12:29 PM (PEb5B)

62 Worst book I ever read was Samuel R. Delany's "Stars in my Pocket Like Grains of Sand".

It was so bad I ripped the book in half rather than inflict it upon someone else.

Posted by: Blanco Basura at May 25, 2014 12:31 PM (0AKks)

63 T.H. Fehrenbach's The Comanches, and Lone Star are absolutely fabulous - he was a grand old man of letters here in San Antonio, and had a weekly column in the newspaper since forever. I never had a chance to meet him, although my business partner did know him - being of the same vintage.

I just got my three Vine picks from Amazon this morning - who knew that Fed-Ex will do Sunday morning deliveries. The best of the lot looks to be The Iron Road-an Illustrated History of the Railroad, by Christian Wolman ... which is as promised, lavishly illustrated with pictures of 19th century trains and railways. My last book touched on the railways in Texas, and probably at least one of the planned books will as well ... so I asked for it because of the pictures. I need to see pictures of places and people, when I'm plotting out scenes and events.

Speaking of books - my own books, that is; there are a couple of websites that I was notified of by google-alert that are providing free PDF downloads of my books. Probably cribbed them from the kindle or nook versions - but this is being done without my permission, and certainly without compensating me. I know times are tough all over, but please, 'rons and 'ronettes, my books are inexpensive enough as it is, and these sites are ripping me off. I've already notified them that they are abusing copyright and requested that the links and files be taken down AT ONCE. I depend on the trickle of sales of my books, which are priced about the same as a gourmet cup of coffee ... heck, if you are that bad off and want to read one of my books, send me an email and I'll provide a PDF myself, if your tale of woe is sufficiently heart-rending. But don't be going around, downloading books from these s**m-bag websites.

Posted by: Sgt. Mom at May 25, 2014 12:31 PM (Asjr7)

64 12
If they can't take the possible offense of literature, they have a snowflakes chance in hell of succeeding in life.

Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 11:37 AM (4vWbH)


Once upon a time, wasn't literature supposed to illuminate and teach about life and the human condition?

A society that is offended by words written in books is in real trouble.

Posted by: rickl at May 25, 2014 12:33 PM (sdi6R)

65 grammie winger, does the hospital you are in have a book cart manned by volunteers? Perhaps you could snag a few decent books.

Posted by: NCKate at May 25, 2014 12:33 PM (WzEM8)

66 Another recommendation for "This Kind Of War". One of the nicest things a former commander of mine ever did for me was introducing me to it in '99 when I was in Korea. I somehow got through Ole Miss without finding it, but in those days I was a little too preoccupied with studying Vietnam.

I haven't picked up "American Spartan" yet, but I will, and I will find Jim and get that damn thing signed. We served together briefly many years ago.

Posted by: SGT Dan's Cat at May 25, 2014 12:35 PM (qkWKQ)

67 Lately I seem to be going back to books I have already read that give me comfort and joy, peace and strength. For one thing I have too many books in my house, and for another while I could get things at the library some of the rather obscure religious texts I sometimes read are not available from the library. Right now I am re-reading "He Leadeth me" by Fr. Walter Ciszek an American priest who spent years in a Soviet Prison and in the gulags. He was continually turning over his situation over to God and the book is a powerful witness to his trust in God whatever happened. The reviews on Amazon are mostly very positive and one guy writes about how he thinks this book is a very important one to Christians in the US whom he feels will face increasing persecution.

http://tinyurl.com/n8jcncy

I did of a book study of this at one church-none of the folks were RC, and they all got a lot from it.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at May 25, 2014 12:35 PM (XyM/Y)

68 T. R. Fehrenbach painted the Korean War vets with a broad brush. Especially the POWs. He and other historians implied the POWs were easily brainwashed, cowardly, collaborators with the enemy. This was reenforced by the media and hollywood.

For a good counter to Fehrenbach and others like him about Korean War Vets, especially the POWs, read "Remembered Prisoners of a Forgotten War" by Lewis H. Carlson.

Posted by: ExSnipe at May 25, 2014 12:35 PM (baVVE)

69 Read Connie Willis' All Clear this week. A long book, and really just a continuation of Blackout, which was also a long book, but I really like it. Honestly, I don't know how the British survived the long years of WWII.

Posted by: biancaneve at May 25, 2014 12:36 PM (2sR50)

70
"Act of War" by Jack Cheevers is a telling of the Pueblo incident filled with bravery, courage, and bureaucratic governmental stupidity. Incredibilly exciting and well written. A generation has now passed without knowing this story which needs to be repeated. This one ranks with "Unbroken" and is not to be missed, morons.

Posted by: Libra at May 25, 2014 12:39 PM (GblmV)

71 #33

I'm nearly done with the concluding volume of Sawyer's WWW Trilogy but it has tested my patience with the amount of lefty bullshit it contains. Although it has nothing whatsoever to do with the plot of the books, the reader to subjected to multiple harangues on the need for gay marriage, slams against an unnamed but obvious Sarah Palin, and general Obama worship.

Also, his premise for how an AI might spontaneously emerge from the Web is incredibly flawed in that he confuses the map for the territory.

Posted by: Epobirs at May 25, 2014 12:42 PM (Icq+V)

72 A society that is offended by words written in books is in real trouble.

-
Tell me about it.

Posted by: Adolph Hitler at May 25, 2014 12:51 PM (4vWbH)

73 I read "the young carpenters of Freiberg: a Tale of the 30 years war" author anonymous, old book that was scanned and put into ebook format. Decent tale.

I don't believe I ever mentioned Roman Games by Bruce Macbain which I read weeks ago. I chose it as historical fiction with Domitian as Roman Emperor. Says it is from the Plinius Secundus series. It fell flat for me and I enjoy mysteries and fiction about that period of the Roman empire so I won't be buying more Macbain novels.

Posted by: PaleRider at May 25, 2014 12:54 PM (Zo60C)

74 #71

To elaborate, Sawyer has a consciousness composed entirely of data with no processing. On that basis, the Encyclopedia Britannica should have long since sprung to life.

Posted by: Epobirs at May 25, 2014 12:55 PM (Icq+V)

75 Not a book, but in keeping with Memorial Day, I just saw the previews for this. I WILL be watching it.

http://www.history.com/shows/the-world-wars

Posted by: Niedermeyer's Dead Horse at May 25, 2014 01:01 PM (DmNpO)

76 Fenelon, 67, thank you - that book sounds awesome. I don't "get" anything when I pray - it's like talking to air. I hope this book will help.

Posted by: Tonestaple at May 25, 2014 01:03 PM (B7YN4)

77 At this point the only question regarding Piketty's data is whether he WILLFULLY misrepresented data to support his conclusions (ala Paul Krugman), or simply found math too doggone hard and didn't bother to use proper averaging or statistics for ANYTHING.

Posted by: Shawn at May 25, 2014 01:07 PM (/lltO)

78 Still working on Fred Siegel's "The Revolt Against the Masses", which is highly recommended, BUT, it's the weekend and I don't want to die of a ragestroke, so...

Morons and 'ettes, I'm diving into my recently acquired stash of vintage sci-fi, and YOU get to decide what I'll read next. Will it be
1) The Mixed Men: an Interstellar Adventure, by A.E. VanVogt, or
2) The Infinite Brain, by Charles Long, or
3) Invaders From Rigel, by Fletcher Pratt

Choose my adventure!

Posted by: All Hail Eris at May 25, 2014 01:13 PM (QBm1P)

79 This getting old stuff stinks.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 25, 2014 12:07

Grammie, glad surgery went well and will keep you in my prayers. Sorry to hear about the complications, though.

My MIL once told me the only thing golden about the 'golden years' was the color of her urine. I LOL'd.

Posted by: olddog in mo at May 25, 2014 01:14 PM (k/B2R)

80 Trigger warning: You will realize that you are fallen and need a personal savior.

Posted by: The Bible at May 25, 2014 01:15 PM (QpkQP)

81 Thanks for the poem.

Posted by: digitalbrownshirt at May 25, 2014 01:19 PM (Yx4EH)

82 77 -

I really have little interest for digging into this, but is this work the basis for the movie, "Inequality for All?"

I've seen the film, and seem to recall a graph, but don't know the basis for it. I always figured somewhere in the back of my mind that somebody needed to check the math, but since that's not the point of the film, it would not likely get done. Those who are predisposed to believe are not going to question the math, and it's obviously a film for believers.

Posted by: BurtTC at May 25, 2014 01:21 PM (PEb5B)

83 I started "Fortress Rabaul" by Bruce Gamble but haven't gotten very far. (Cursed internet!)

The book started with some background history. Rabaul is a town situated on the island of New Britain, located east of New Guinea. About 1400 years ago a massive volcano eruption created the modern harbor, which is a caldera, ringed on three sides by active volcanoes.

The island was discovered by an Englishman in 1700 and named New Britain, but remained largely unexplored as the natives had a reputation for cannibalism. Gradually, missionaries arrived, and by the mid-19th century coconuts were being harvested for coconut oil. The Germans led in this industry, and by 1890 the archipelago was a German protectorate. After World War I Australia took possession.

By the time World War II broke out, the Australian military was woefully unprepared to defend its surrounding islands, which Japan coveted to serve as military bases. There were tiny military garrisons, and Australia's leading "fighter" plane was the CA-1 Wirraway, a converted trainer. Unfortunately it was slower than Japanese bombers and reconnaissance planes.

I'm up to January 1942, when Japan softened up Rabaul with a few aerial bombing raids in preparation for the invasion.

Posted by: rickl at May 25, 2014 01:22 PM (sdi6R)

84 "The surgery itself went well but now i have pneumonia and an infection."

Take it very easy and carefully with that stuff, grammie. And rattle their cages if you don't feel as though you're getting better soon.

I keep thinking of Carol's stories of her brother being crippled by hospital-acquired infection which the hospital staff missed.

Are you well set up with family/friend support?

Posted by: torquewrench at May 25, 2014 01:27 PM (noWW6)

85 I finished-

"Breakfast of Champions" by Kurt Vonnegut.

About two weeks ago, I gave a "half-way point review". At the time, I was surprised by Vonnegut's trollish, pages long, anti-American screed at the beginning of his book. A screed that seemed to have nothing to do with the story at all.

Having finished the book, I now see that this screed was of a piece with the novel.

Not that Vonnegut's screed had anything to do with the story of the novel per se,

but it was part and parcel of of his intent that "Breakfast of Champions" be a big FU to his readership.

The only comparable flipping off of his devoted audience by an artist that I can think of would be Woody Allen's movie "Stardust Memories".

And like "Stardust Memories" and Woody Allen, after "Breakfast of Champions" Vonnegut's audience began to decline. (i.e.. Attention Artists! Your audience isn't stupid.)

In BoC, humans are presented as no more than machines randomly affected by by random stimuli and their programming. What action there is is provided by a character whose brain contains bad chemicals that make him do bad things.

Vonnegut breaks the "fourth wall" to insert himself into the novel to let you know that plots are artificial and stupid and that you are kind of stupid for wanting a plot, so you won't be getting a plot in this book but you will get a series of meaningless random events as is life itself.

He also explicitly draws the connection between himself within the world of BoC and God. To present himself (humorously, because KV is a good prose smith)to his character Kilgore Trout as his creator. And to give KT everything that he ever desired, plus complete freedom to him and KV's other fiction characters, however-

the book ends with KT only wanting to be back under KV's control again and given back his youth.

The final page is a drawing of KV crying because he either can't or won't give KT his youth back now that he is free.

What structure there is to the book is mostly in the form of ironic callbacks (if a white person makes a black person listen to them doing birdcalls and black person will make a white person listen to them doing birdcall- that kind of thing).

In the end, the book attempts to destroy the idea of America and the American idea and spirit. You are not free. Your actions and life are meaningless. Even if you were free, you really don't want to be free. It is the cynicism of the totalitarian. And so on. Hi Ho.

Vonnegut is a good enough writer to keep you reading and laughing but in the end it's all kind of like reading the humorous prose of Shecky Stalin.

If this is the kind of thing you like, you will like this kind of thing.



Posted by: naturalfake at May 25, 2014 01:31 PM (KBvAm)

86 L.A. Times headline: 7 dead in drive-by shootings near UC Santa Barbara

How many in L.A.? Just asking. ...for a racist friend.

Posted by: t-bird at May 25, 2014 01:32 PM (FcR7P)

87 83 I started "Fortress Rabaul" by Bruce Gamble ...
Posted by: rickl at May 25, 2014 01:22 PM (sdi6R)
--------------
"Never Call Retreat" by J. Lee Thompson showed how woefully unprepared we were on the eve of and during WWI. TR called for preparedness years earlier but it fell on deaf ears. I guess being unprepared makes us "nice"? How many times do we have to downshift, then hit "unexpected" turbulence, before the cycle of military boom and bust is broken?

Posted by: All Hail Eris at May 25, 2014 01:33 PM (QBm1P)

88 Aw dog gone it grammie.
{{{{grammie}}}}
That's the best I have for ya.
I'd offer up prayer but it would be sure to mess up those from others who at least get a yes every once in a while.

Need to get showered and fix some food.
Love each other fellow babies.
kinda, sorta the second great commandment

Posted by: teej at May 25, 2014 01:35 PM (zDIeR)

89 humorous prose of Shecky Stalin.

-
What do you call a million deaths? A statistic!

Posted by: Shecky Stalin at May 25, 2014 01:51 PM (Mogjf)

90 I visited Kranji War Memorial in Singapore years ago. On one headstone I read something that choked me up then, and every time that I have thought of it over the years:

A little spot in a foreign land
that will be, forever, England.

Posted by: MathMom at May 25, 2014 01:56 PM (p68km)

91 Posted by: naturalfake at May 25, 2014 01:31 PM (KBvAm)

Kilgore Trout appeared in several KV novels and was inspired by sy fy writer Theodore Sturgeon.

Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 01:57 PM (Mogjf)

92 I have the perfect routine!

No matter what I say, the applause never stops!

Posted by: Shecky Stalin at May 25, 2014 02:01 PM (oFCZn)

93

"We Our masters sleep safely in our their beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would harm us."


FIFY

Posted by: Joel at May 25, 2014 02:01 PM (2GiKw)

94 Name one time before Korea, that an American army did - or even wanted to - fight a limited war. Not destroying your enemies utterly simply led to later problems - as the US dealings with Native Americans showed. Who in Washington's idea was it not to blast the Red Chinese back to the stone age. In both Korea and Vietnam our enemies were allowed advantages that no enemy of this country should ever be allowed. The Red Chinese send 2 million troops into the war and Manchuria isn't bombed into a howling wilderness; but is left as a sanctuary? I guess McCarthy was right about our government being chock full of communist agents and sympathizers.

Posted by: Mike Giles at May 25, 2014 02:03 PM (QM4YC)

95 Made some progress in The First Crusade by Thomas
Asbridge to the point where Pope Urban has made his Clermont speech and
there was such a massive reaction to it that he quickly thought "WTF,
this sucker is getting out of control". Am also reading Zoe
Oldenbourg's book on the whole Crusades which makes mostly the same
points but narrates it in a different way so that I find myself having
to put it down to get through a bunch of Asbridge stuff before I can get
to a concurrent narrative. Of course Gibbon starts out by talking
about Peter the Hermit so it'll be a while before he is joined again.

Posted by: Captain Hate at May 25, 2014 11:50 AM (f8CQY)

I'll be interested in how you think the two books compare. I've read Oldenbourg's book and thought it was very good. I hadn't heard of Asbridge's. If they differ significantly, I'd like to know if either or both of them have a political ax to grind.

Posted by: pep at May 25, 2014 02:04 PM (4nR9/)

96 85 -

About the great big F.U. to fans, another example would be Fiona Apple. She pretty much came right out and said it in her songs. And the left praised her for the album "The Extraordinary Machine," so she came out and did another album, whose title is like 30 words long, and not worth remembering. That album is so bad, I swear she's just saying "let's see if anybody can praise.... this!"

I don't know if they did. It's absolutely unlistenable.

Posted by: BurtTC at May 25, 2014 02:05 PM (PEb5B)

97 That unnamed book review sounds suspiciously similar to the one linked here at the 'Q a few weeks ago about Meghan 'Mac and Cheese Is My Friend' McCain's brain dribblings in book form.

Posted by: GnuBreed at May 25, 2014 02:06 PM (cHZB7)

98 Virtually all Donk politicians say a big FU to their audience by writing lies in their books and speeches.

Posted by: WalrusRex at May 25, 2014 02:10 PM (Mogjf)

99 By the time Vonnegut died he was such a bitter crank my reaction was "good riddance". I could see getting hectored by Solzhenitsyn (thank you autocorrect) but taking it from some kraut fuck just ain't happening.

Posted by: Captain Hate on an iPad at May 25, 2014 02:16 PM (f8CQY)

100 The book Poetry of the First World War : an anthology edited by Tim Kendall, published by
Oxford University Press, 2013 is especially poignant this weekend.

The collection isv ery well edited, with excellent explanations and context.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at May 25, 2014 02:23 PM (u82oZ)

101 Started the latest Brad Thor. Book needs many trigger warnings. And that's a good thing.

Posted by: richard mcenroe at May 25, 2014 03:08 PM (XO6WW)

102 #94, the loss of the American nuclear monopoly and not knowing whether or not the USSR would come in if we nuked Manchuria played heavily in Truman's thinking. Truman was not ready to risk WWIII partly because he knew the US population hadn't recovered mentally from WWII yet and wouldn't back the play.

We didn't have the right sort of intel to know that the Soviets were using the Chinese to bleed in Korea to keep that ancient rival in their "place", not treating them as an ally in a war the Soviets started.

Posted by: SGT Dan's Cat at May 25, 2014 03:29 PM (qkWKQ)

103 About halfway through "New Deal or Raw Deal?: How FDR's Economic Legacy Has Damaged America." You can replace FDR with BHO on almost every page. Man elected president who had failed economics in college then went and hired ivory tower teachers who had never run a business; use of the IRS to penalize his enemies; telling stories then denying he'd ever said anything even remotely like it; implementing govt programs because they felt good; and on and on.

the book was published in 2008 so it could have served as a blueprint for Obama.

Posted by: johnr@jackgordon.org at May 25, 2014 03:40 PM (3rc1H)

104 "I guess McCarthy was right about our government being chock full of communist agents and sympathizers."

Darn tooting! Just finish a batch of books on Stalinist infiltration and spying of the US government and of Hollywood. These claims are backed up by the Venona cables and the Russian archives.

"The Hollywood Party" shows that show people are the dumbest people in the world. Once you make the CPUSA the "in crowd," all else follows.

Posted by: Whitehall at May 25, 2014 04:04 PM (k876Y)

105 I've read a number of Fehrenbach's other books and they were all without exception excellent. A history on FDR's admin leading up to Pearl Harbor, histories of both Mexico and Texas, and a history of the Comanche. Each one a gem of scholarship and writing.

Posted by: jwpaine at May 25, 2014 04:29 PM (68O4K)

106 Oh, and I forgot Fehrenbach's history of Custer, which is what got me reading his other stuff in the first place.

Posted by: jwpaine at May 25, 2014 04:32 PM (68O4K)

107 90
I visited Kranji War Memorial in Singapore years ago. On one headstone I
read something that choked me up then, and every time that I have
thought of it over the years:



A little spot in a foreign land

that will be, forever, England.

That makes me want to go visit when I go to Singapore

Posted by: Charlotte at May 25, 2014 10:09 PM (euQHa)

108 Oops, my bad. Connell wrote Son of the Morning Star, the excellent history of Custer. It was Comanche by Fehrenbach that hooked me on his stuff.

Posted by: jwpaine at May 25, 2014 10:34 PM (68O4K)

109
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
John McCrae

Posted by: Speller at May 26, 2014 05:07 AM (J74Py)

110 A day late, but if anyone is still looking at this thread, I always thought Fehrenbach's greatest insight in This Kind of War goes something like this: There is nothing in life that prepares a man for the awful shrieking moment when he realizes he is all alone on a hill ten thousand miles away from home and he may be killed in the next second. So true.

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