Connecticut Books

For those wishing to understand how the choice to secede came about in a state where elitist planters did not dominate the political process (as in South Carolina) this is an excellent book. Thornton clearly shows that secession was a product of populist Jacksonian democracy in Alabama, providing an alternative to the view that only slaveholders supported disunion. Alabama's politics were marked from the beginning by class conflict between the yeomanry and planter class, and politicians learned early to exploit these tensions for political gain. Parties fought to outdo each other in labeling the other side as "elitist" aristocrats who would subvert the rights of freemen for their own selfish interests. This line of argument set the stage for the development of state's rights theory in Alabama, as promoters of internal improvements, banks, and social reform were often portrayed as elitist cabals. However, state's rights arguments were often little more than sophisticated versions of the election demagoguery that characterized debate over all the state's political issues.

Lack of policy-making expertise and the necessity of courting public approval often led the state's legislators to enact laws that hurt Alabama's long-term development. Forged in the Jacksonian era however, the electorate did not accept the Jeffersonian ideal of deferring to their betters in matters of policy, and regularly removed legislators who did not hew to the voters' instructions. Prior to the 1850s, most Alabama voters were not directly involved with the market economy, and were thus less likely to be affected by national economic and political policies, as well as less aware of the character of Northern opinion regarding slavery. Secessionist fire-eaters therefore enjoyed little support during the nullification and secession of 1850 crises, but their arguments gained respect during the 1850s as phenomenal economic growth drew more people into the market and its attendent insecurities, as well as making them more aware of the power of the federal government and the strength of the abolitionists.

Prosperous times and the marginalization of the Whig Party decreased the number of significant issues of disagreement among Alabama's politicians, leaving them in search of an issue to demagogue for political gain. The fight over Kanasas allowed them to portray northerners as elitists who would deny southern men of their rights and reduce them to the status of slaves. Such an argument gained creedence even among non-slaveholders because of the state's long populistic rhetorical tradition, which had convinced the yeomanry that elitist villains seeking to reduce their rights were always afoot, and could be defeated only by political supermen fighting for the rights and values of the electorate.

The southern rights argument clearly resonated among the yeomanry, particularly among those most affected by new economic uncertainties. In both the Presidential election of 1860 and the subsequent election of delegates to the state's secession convention, voters overwhelmingly chose candidates who supported secession or who would do so as long as Alabama would be joined in secession by other states. While Thornton's argument could be more thoroughly reinforced by exploring social factors that led the yeomanry to support secession, his argument for a hyper-democratic political tradition abetted by demagoguery and voter ignorance as a cause of Alabama's decision to quit the Union is quite persuasive.

This book covers mainly the fifties and sixties of last century, when the author was an important CIA agent in Indonesia, the Philippines and Central and South America.
It clearly shows how the CIA (the author) tried to influence directly the political situation in those countries. It supported financially the political party, that it thought would best represent the anti-communist and /or business interests of the US / transnational companies, and it tried to intervene in the composition of govenments.
Contrary to other sources, the author denies vehemently that the CIA was behind or committed assassinations.

The author explains distinctly the real seasons behind the Vietnam War or the Bay of Pigs disaster and reveals some famous names as CIA creatures: Nasser (Egypt) and Frei (Chile).
We meet some very well known people at the beginning of their (in)famous career: Ferdinand Marcos, Sukarno, Lee Kuan Yew, Howard Hunt, Han Suyin.

At the end, disillusioned, Joseph Smith turns his back on the Agency; firstly, for personal reasons (people got promotion for their incompetence), and secondly, because of the Vietnam disaster, Watergate, the bureaucratisation of the CIA (at one point drifting to a Gestapo status) and its spying on US citizens (the CHAOS program).

This work contains also some comic scenes of how the CIA tried to lure KGB agents in their nets.
Fundamentally, it confirms the statement of an old Englishman in Malay:'There are struggles for money, for power, for lust, for greed, because of just plain meanness. But there is no such thing as the ideological struggle...'.

A must read in order to understand the ploys of a secret agency.

Colleen M. Grogan (Associate Professor in the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago) and Michael K. Gusmano (Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Management, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University) Healthy Voices, Unhealthy Silence: Advocacy and Health Policy for the Poor is a serious-minded scrutiny of state-level health care advocacy for the poor, particularly with regard to Medicaid, and how public silence can have a devastating effect. When advocates for a disadvantaged or a disempowered group do not speak out, the weight of their argument is lessened, and the consensus of the more powerful interests gains ground, a process that is ultimately harmful to deliberative democracy itself. Examining the principles of deliberative democracy, agenda setting, and nonprofit advocacy, Healthy Voices, Unhealthy Silence reveal instances where the silence threatens to become deafening, offers advice to restore balance to the participatory process, examines how capable nonprofit organizations are at influencing policy debate, and much more. Highly recommended.

Having been raised in Amston it was great reading about so many families I was familiar with and the great history of that area.

Like the book My wife and I like going to new places for a weekend .

This book without doubt settles the question of the validity of the Golden Hill Paugussetts! The author establishes that there was a valid tribe from first contact until the present.

The book is a history of South Western Connecticut along with an in depth look at Northern Fairfield County. It is also an exceptional piece of investigative writing debunking the politicians lies about the tribe. This book also demonstrates the continued bigotry and corruption that is occurring in Connecticut

This edition of the History of Connecticut is a reproduction of an 1857 historical treatis by G. H. Hollister. It is not only an interesting historical account of the colonization of Connecticut, but also an excellent window into the perceptions of 19th Century historians whose interpretations are of course quite different from that of today. Bravo to the University of Michigan University Library that created this, and other, reproductions of primary source historical material.

I own this 3 volume set, which was printed in 1900. The author is also the founder of the PA chapter of the 1620 Society, a group of Mayflower descendants. I have been all over the internet trying to find both a monetary and historical value for these volumes. My set has hand-written notes throughout, by the author I presume, and speaks of geneaology of the Mayflower descendants and Enfield, CT history. If anyone can help steer me in the right direction as to finding the value, please e-mail me. I have researched on ILAB's page, ABE Books, ebay etc. all to no avail. Thank you! K. Whitley

Law school histories run the gamut in quality. For example, those dealing with Columbia (by Goebel) and Harvard (Charles Warren) add a rich dimension to our understanding of legal education and the role of law schools in the bigger picture. Other histories can be mundane and so narrowly focused upon the school itself that they are of little general interest. This volume, edited by former Yale Law Dean Anthony Kronman, falls into the first category and employs a unique approach in doing so. This is because the book is not a chronological history of YLS, but rather consists of six essays by five different authors focusing upon differing facets of the School's history. However, each author also addresses a broader area of interest than just what was going on at YLS. For example, excellent essays by Robert Stevens and John Langbein place the founding of YLS within the larger context of legal education in 18th and 19th centuries. A second essay by Langbein discusses the unique approaches to legal education YLS developed. Perhaps the strongest essay is by Robert Gordon who focuses upon some of the Legal Realists at YLS during the 1930's (Arnold, Douglas, Frank and Hamilton) who gravitated to the larger stage of the New Deal and became national policymakers. Laura Kalman, who is writing a full-length history of YLS, contributes a perhaps too extensive essay on the so-called "Dark Ages" at YLS in the 1960's and 1970's when student unrest and faculty dissention became notable features of the YLS landscape. Each essays rests upon extensive footnotes, adding an invaluable dimension to the book's value. All told, this book should be of value to anyone interested in the development of legal education, the New Deal, the turbulent 1960's and 1970's, as well as those whose interests are limited to the Yale Law School itself.

I live in New York and found this guide to be a very useful resource