Events Books

This is the fascinating true story of a little boy who through no fault of his own is incarcerated in one of the appalling Irish industrial schools in existence in Ireland until 1970. He suffered physical, emotional and sexual abuse and as if this were not enough, he was then taken by the nuns of the industrial school and left to spend years of his precious life in different hospitals where he appears to have been no more than a guinea pig and was left with a permanent disability. Up to this day, no-one within the system has accounted for the brain operations, his eventual disability or any reason why he was in the different hospitals.
The book is very well written and although it describes the horrors inflicted on a small child, the sadistic treatment he received in the hands of the nuns, one can sense a healthy resignation which comes across every page thus making the unbearably sad story a little easier to read.
I found the book an inspiration, an ode to life, for after the total deprivation of affection, protection, a simple toy even, and having had his life taken away from him and practicaly destroyed, he not only survives with sanity but he wins in a superhuman way as he tells with such dignity about the perverse system under which he and so many other children were detained.
It must have been very difficult to relive the horrors whilst writing this very informative book. And for such an effort, I am indebted.

When The God Squad was first published in Ireland in 1988, the Irish public were confronted with the reality of life behind the walls of religious-run orphanages and industrial schools. However, perhaps because it was seen as just one unfortunate boy's story, there was no general sense of outrage directed at the perpetrators or at the system which allowed supposedly 'religious' men and women to ill-treat children entrusted to their care. That had to wait until another expose by the journalist Mary Raftery eight years later.

But Paddy Doyle broke the silence and for that we must all be grateful. This book is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the real Ireland of the recent past. Paddy tells his story eloquently and without self-pity. The God Squad will break your heart. Read it.

I know this book is not out of print because I ordered it and read it in one day. Any intelligent reader knows that the mark of a good writer is the ability to write masterful, engaging narrative, and Paddy Doyle tells the story of his young life honestly and directly. It is this straightforward essential truthfulness which will keep your attention from page 1 through the epilogue. Of particular import in this literary journey is the challenge to see that the beauty of life is not there because of or in spite of what one survives, but because the human spirit, so brilliantly demonstrated in the Irish spirit of Paddy Doyle, is a fire that cannot be damped down. It's also a fine example of what happens when the church and state relationship gets too cozy; something we Yanks take for granted won't happen. Point and click your way to owning this book, it *is* available!

Excellent and a very good read. I have read a few books about Ireland's Industrial Schools and saw the movie "The Magdeline (sp?)Sisters." All are helpful in understanding what the children Of Ireland's Industrial Schools went thru. Although Paddy only wrote about his experiences in "The God Squad," I feel great love and compassion and sadness for these children as well as a sense of great strength coming from them as adults to have the courage to tell their tales. God Bless every one of them and hope that they can find a sense of release and closure from the pain by letting the rest of the world know their stories.

"The God Squad" by: Paddy Doyle is an extremely well written book that took me through the whole range of human emotion. I laughed, cryed, was angry and happy as the author led me through his life from 4 1/2 years old through the epilogue. It is a book that I could not cast aside to finish later.....the 236 pages were rapidly devoured in a few hours. I recommend it very highly to everyone. The education, alone, is very well worth the price that one would pay for ANY book!....No wonder that it was a best seller in the United Kingdom. It will hit the USA in a big storm too!

This is a good book. Not intented for those who are looking for an easy 6 step guide for negative campaigns. It is written in more historic case-centered way. International buyers please note all the examples are based on american politics. Mark analyses different sorts of negative strategies and by the end of the book the author gives a brief forecast of what might come.

Great book. It provides a great overview of campaigning from Washington to 2006. We tend to think of politics today as being negative and dirty. The facts are that politics in the 1800's was so much more negative and dirty.

David Mark writes in an engaging style and does not go into more detail than needed. Almost everything is sourced (unique for political books) and you can get into the weeds if you wish.

Highly highly recommended.

This is a compelling, well written guide to negative campaigning. it provides some strong underpinning theories to negative campaigning from an accute observer of campaign methodology. Very useful and well worth purchasing.

Going Dirty is an excellent book covering the recent history of negative campaigning in the US. The book gives an insightful and balanced look into a topic most people wish wasn't there.

Most of the book is filled with case studies of where negative ads were used, and while primarily contemporary (starting in the 1950's), it also goes back a century helping show how it all evolved. The book only considers campaigns in the US but the author does a good job of looking at campaigns across the country (and political spectrum), critiquing those who might think that any set strategy could work without taking into account the people and area.

While most of the book feels like more of a history of negative campaigning near the end it goes into more analysis. (Ironically the author's analysis starts in a chapter talking about negative campaigns that failed). Though I found the book intriguing I would have liked it to have focused more specific tactics of negative campaigns, and less of a history of them. Too much of the book just reads like a history lesson rather than a real analysis. I still had some questions floating in my head about negative campaigning (how it wears on the public, it's ebbs and flows, possibilities for the future, etc) that I wish had been answered by the book, but perhaps I'll just need to read the authors follow up work.

Written by David Mark (editor-in-chief of Campaigns & Elections magazine), Going Dirty: The Art of Negative Campaigning is a no-nonsense history of negative campaigning in American politics, with especial attention paid to case studies of notable races during the modern era of television. In particular, Going Dirty notes campaign negativity has increased sharply since September 11, 2001, with commercials routinely suggesting that political opponents are irresolute in pursuing the war on terror. Going Dirty explores incidents when negative campaigning has backfired, most often due to non-credible charges or the attackers failure to correctly gauge the sentiments of the electorate, and incidents when negative campaigning has been remarkably successful, which are common enough to explain its persistence as an electoral tactic. Accessible to lay readers and political scientists alike, Going Dirty is a nonjudgmental, thorough, insider's history of an undeniably strong aspect of the American political institution, and highly recommended.

The first thing that strikes you about "Growing the Distance" is its unique format and layout. Unlike many books written strictly for business, this publication is alive with style, relevant quotations, humorous quips and interesting fonts. Whereas beauty is only skin deep, this book has helpful and attractive information from cover to cover. Author Jim Clemmer is the founder and president of The CLEMMER Group, a strategic consulting firm. Jim is a best selling author, workshop/retreat leader, and keynote speaker on organization improvement, leadership development, and personal effectiveness. Clemmer presents the values and philosophy he models to others in this fine book.

One of the main messages that clearly jumps out at the reader is this powerful theme...leadership and change is a living philosophy that must permeate every aspect of life including family, career, personal responsibility and self-fulfillment. Many business books on leadership put the various life roles of a leader in separate boxes. Business is one box, family life is another box, personal goals and self-actualization in yet another box. It is often assumed that these various roles have little to do with each other and for this reason family life and spirituality are typically ignored. "Growing the Distance" is not afraid to challenge this misconception by boldly discussing a leader's various interconnected roles!

"Growing the Distance" is a book about creating positive change within yourself rather than being the victim of change. Its powerful premise is that we can begin from where we are today, and choose where we want to be tomorrow. By making these choices we can grow the distance. Clemmer believes that each of us can develop the qualities of leadership that reside inside us no matter what our position in life. This publication discusses what leadership is, why change is essential, and the importance of vision, values and purpose. Clemmer encourages personal accountability for our choices and writes how we can learn and grow from disappointments. He encourages us to find commitment and passion in our workplace, as well as in spirit, and meaning within our lives. He proceeds to discuss growth and personal development while reminding us that great leaders are able to energize others to motivate themselves.

If you want to read a book and be enthusiastic about your leadership potential, "Growing the Distance" is a must. It will inspire you and help to mesh together the various roles and activities of your life. This book is truly different and will find a happy home on your bookshelf!

Jim starts the book with the point that too many development books are "like a pair of steer horns--a point here and a point there, with a whole lot of bull in between." When you are finished with this book, you won't be asking "Where's the beef?" I liked his philosophy of using quotes throughout the text, "If I couldn't have said it better myself, I won't make you wade through pages of text to prove it." And he didn't!

I picked up this book as I was thinking of my professional growth, but found the principles even more applicable at home in my role as father. I learned along side my children how to keep our rate of internal growth faster than external change so we won't be victims. Now my kids use Jim's comments of not getting "The Victimitis Virus" and staying out of "Pity City".

If this were a novel, reviewers would be saying things like "fast-paced," "exciting," and "inspirational."

This book connects leadership, personal growth and success in life in a format designed for easy reading and high impact. Although I actually read the books I'm asked to review, not just scan for content, I've found some books can't be read straight through because they aren't designed for it. "Growing The Distance" is one of those. It is in digest format, a collection of short, short articles that follow a common theme, each building on the prior articles to form a coherent book. Each article also is able to stand alone without reference to the others. Thus, you can explore the ideas in the book at random, sampling here and there according to your attraction to a title.

And, it is preferable to read this book by scanning and sampling. Each "article" has so much condensed meaning that you need to stop and think about the ideas, anecdotes and quotations within. Like eating peanuts, you keep going back and nibbling some more.

I've grown tired of business books that have good lessons but don't inspire me.

Jim's book IS NOT one of those.
It is fresh and inspiring. I really like the writing style.

I can truely say this is my favourite book!I have read it at least 3 times already and I'll probably read again and again!

This book captures - visually and through the written word - the untold story of so many of our nation's workers without whom our greatest institutions would exist on much weaker foundations. Greg Halpern - through the lens of his camera and the words of the workers he met and befriended - poignantly illustrates the unfortunate plight of so many workers who give so much to their jobs but whose jobs and employers give so little to them. This is a must-read, must-view book for anyone who cares about the state of our nation's workforce. This book is a wonderful way to pay homage to the amazing people who are the true, yet tragically invisible, backbone of Ivy League institutions like Harvard.

This is a poignant look at the people who are invisible (up until now), who are the backbone of the infrastructure of Harvard. The picture on the cover tells it all: proud, yet ignored by those who she serves. This is an important work of art and protest.

For those of you who thought that documentary photography was boring, think again. Greg Halpern brings stunning inner life to the portraits in this book. The early rave reviews in the New York Times and the Boston Globe are dead on -- this kid has serious talent and it translates into one of the most memorable photo books that I have seen in years. I bought several copies of this first edition for friends and family and I have no doubt that these books will one day be collectors' items. For those of you who are photo buffs, and even for those of you who are not, this book is a must have!

This book is long overdue. Listening to the NPR show "The Connection" I became aware that the forces that resulted in this book have actually brought about some change at Harvard...why did it take a public humiliation of Harvard to do what they should have done all along...In any case the book has beautiful and sensitive photographs coupled with startling interviews that everyone should read....

I've been waiting for this book to come out ever since I read a review in the New York Times book review. It was worth the wait. I found it to be thought provoking, informative as well as a glimpse into the lives of service workers. Regardless of your political persuasion, this book deserves to be read. I thought that the author did a remarkable job presenting the facts behind the Living Wage Campaign. I could not put the book down once I started reading it and the people profiled in the book stayed with me. Read this book!

What a wonderful book! I actually finished this in one sitting, because I didn't want to stop reading once I had started.

What's great about HEROES is that it profiles all sorts of people who were impacted by 9/11, not just those who were at the World Trade Center. There are also interviews with those who were at the Pentagon, and with the surviving family members of those who perished on United Flight 93.

Overall, the tone of the book is hopeful and uplifting, and proves that anyone can be a hero, anytime.

Definitely recommended for those who are interested in the subject of 9/11.

A great read. Very moving and inspirational. I highly recommend.

this is an inspiration book....a collection of heroes--big and small...stories that we need in our daily lives to show that people do care...

Heroes is a wonderful collection of stories of very real people (and in some cases animals) who did their level best to help others during an unprecedented tragedy. The stories range from ones about those who gave their lives to save others to those who did all they could and wish they could've done more. The author describes unlikely heroes - like those who help a wheelchair bound officemate out of the Twin Towers - as well as professionals who did their jobs with total selflessness - like the group of nurses who happened to be in DC for a conference and ended up working the triage unit at the Pentagon. If you only read one book about the events of September 11, it should be Heroes. It is a wonderful testimony to the human spirit.

Execellent!! This book is truly a gem full of the stuff that courage under fire brings out of the human spirit. I could not put it down; each story brought me to the scene, living the amazing journeys that this courages everyday people went throught. As a witness of Sept 11 from my office window reading this book brought me a healing and an awareness that 911 can happen to anyone at any time and that the human spirit is truly undefeatable even if the body moves on.
It's a must read book for anyone who is alive!*****

This is an excellent collection of interviews on the subject of the neoconservative counterrevolution in Washington, and the strategies surrounding 9/11 and the war in Iraq. Behind the public statements of the administration lie the deeper motives of the operation: control of dwindling resources, intimidation with a display of military strength, and a neoconservative philosophy promoting an explicit imperialism. Exploiting the anxieties of the 9/11 catastrophe is the crux of the propaganda game. The text includes interviews with Tariq Ali, Chomsky, Benjamin Barber, Chalmers Johnson, and Shadia Drury who provides an interesting commentary on the hidden Straussianism of the neoconservative clique.

You might consider buying this one and giving it to everyone you can think of. It's preaching to the choir of course: most of us who see it understand that the NeoCon group's approach to foreign policy is horrifyingly similar to that of Gary Cooper in HIGH NOON (the quintessential go-it-alone guy.) It's amazing to watch this film and realize how long the propaganda has been coming at us, manipulating us through our fears. If you're worried about the Wolfowitz/Rumsfeld/Bush triumverate and their quest for empire, this will only make you worry more. It's a very unsettling movie. At times, you might find yourself wishing you could turn off the background music, which is a bit melodramatic. But all told, this is an urgently important film - I only wish we could figure out how to get the Bush supporters to watch it. Any suggestions?

Nothing new here. Anyone with the lights on knows what has been going on since the rise of the Bushies. This film, however, patches together much of the key information that helps blow away the smokescreen hoo-ha that the neo-cons have invented to sell their agenda. These cats (Bush, "Wolf"owitz, Cheney et. al.) make the Romans seem like schoolyard pranksters. There is only one problem with this film: it promotes the very thing it is trying to dispell ---- fear. All in all a great counterpunch but I suspect it will be another example of preaching to the choir.

"Hijacking Catastrophe" is a well-researched educational documentary of the 9/11 attacks, the context that gave birth to them, and the way the US government has used them to promote its preconceived plan to solidify American empire through a global War on Terrorism. Unlike many other 9/11 films, like "Loose Change" and "Improbable Collapse" (both worth seeing), this film does not speculate about government complicity, it merely explains the roots of the neoconservative philosophy--a philosophy that does not shirk at deceiving the public to advance its selfish economic and political goals. Note, however, that this is not the DVD. This is the book version. Unfortunately, as of this writing, the DVD is not available on Amazon. If possible, you'll definitely want to get your hands on a copy. Along with "Hijacking Catastrophe," I would also recommend the DVD "9/11 Mysteries: Demolitions" and David Griffin's incisive, and well-argued book, "The New Pearl Harbor". Both are invaluable for understanding the inherent contradictions and scientific absurdities of the official 9/11 story.

j.w.k.

First, I saw this as a documentary on a DVD of the same name, and that is how I plan to review this item. Produced by the Media Education Foundation, it most effectively presents the argument that the Bush administration "sold" the war via the most popular conduit of news - television. Using video news clips from mainstream media such as FoxNews, CNN, ABC, NBC and CBS, as well as interviews with extraordinarily credible officials and experts, Hijacking Catastrophe describes in chilling visual format how the NeoCons used 9/11 to push the country to accepting a military solution in fighting terrorism. Awful in its implications, this documentary should be seen by everyone who feels violated and mislead by our leaders. And some way should be found to show this to friends and family who still prefer the sleep of the deluded. I certainly wish I had the funds to buy thousands and leave them in every mailbox in the county.

If you are interested in the history of the American Left or are a militant trying to understand some of the past lessons of our history concerning the communist response to various social and labor questions this book is for you. This book is part of a continuing series of volumes of the writings of James P. Cannon that were published by the organization he founded, the Socialist Workers Party (SWP), in the 1970's and 1980's. Cannon died in 1974. Look in this space for other related reviews of this series of documents on and by an important American Communist.

In their introduction the editors motivate the purpose for the publication of the book by stating the Cannon was the finest Communist leader that America had ever produced. This an intriguing question that has underlined this reviewer's approach to these volumes. The editors trace their political lineage back to Cannon's leadership of the early Communist Party and later after his expulsion to the Trotskyist Socialist Workers Party so their perspective is obvious. What does the documentation provided here show? This certainly is the period of Cannon's political maturation, and the beginning of a long political collaboration working with Trotsky. The period under discussion- from the late 1920's when he was expelled as leader of the American Communist Party through the early 1930's with the start of the great labor upsurge which would bring wide spread unionization to the working class to 1938 and the formation of the SWP. Cannon won his spurs in this struggle to orient those organizations toward a revolutionary path. One thing is sure- in his prime, which includes this period- Cannon had the instincts to want to lead a revolution and had the evident capacity to do so. That he never had an opportunity to lead a revolution is his personal tragedy and ours as well.

This book is based on a series of lectures that Cannon gave in New York in 1943 before he, along with 17 other party leaders, went to prison for revolutionary opposition to World War II. Volumes of his writings, as noted above, published later have dealt much more fully with some of the subjects of these lectures. I note The History of American Communism on the origins of the Communist party; The Left Opposition, 1928-31 on the early "dog days" after his expulsion from the Communist Party; The Communist League of America, 1932-1934 on the fight to go to the masses with an upsurge in labor struggles; and, the separately published James P. Cannon and the Early American Communist Movement on the internal struggle in the early period. Thus, I want to take up for review and analysis here the last part of the present book the period and policies which have come down in the history of the international Trotskyist movement as the `French turn'. In America this policy meant that the Workers Party, predecessor of the SWP formed in 1934, dissolved and entered the Socialist Party (SP) as part of an international tactic of revolutionary regroupment in the process of forming a vanguard party.

This writer has long been interested in and a little uneasy about the implementation of the policy of the `French turn'. Since it is not immediately apparent why one political organization would enter another organization for such a purpose and because many of today's militants may not be familiar with the period a little pre-history is in order. After the rise of Hitler in Germany in 1933 and after the defeat of the heroic Austrian working class in 1934 there was great turmoil and leftward motion in the international labor movement. That movement, in reaction and disgust at the erroneous policies of the Communist International and its `third period' catastrophic theory of capitalist collapse, gravitated toward the international social democracy.

Trotsky, after declaring the Communist International and its parties dead as revolutionary organizations in the wake of Hitler's rise in Germany maintained that new parties internationally and a new International was on the political agenda. Thus, the question for the mainly small and somewhat poorly organized pro-Trotskyist propaganda groupings was to move away from acting as a faction of the Comintern in order to take advantage of this movement to break out of their isolation and create at least small vanguard parties. Trotsky responded by strongly suggesting that his followers, at first in France then later elsewhere, enter social democratic and labor organizations in order to take advantage of this leftward movement.

In America, under Cannon's leadership, the Communist League of America (CLA) after successfully leading labor strikes in Minneapolis and elsewhere, fused with other radical labor activists in 1934 into the American Workers Party headed by A.J. Muste to form the Workers Party (WP) in 1934. While the cadre of the CLA were politically well educated and theoretically grounded that was not as true of Muste's forces. In a sense this fusion represented on the American terrain an application of the Trotsky-inspired international entry policy. Nevertheless, Cannon led the drive for what amounted to a second use of the entry tactic into the Socialist Party in order to intersect the growing left wing there.

The implementation of this policy was the subject of two internal fights in the WP before the policy was finally approved. The first fight was led those who were opposed to such an entry on the principle that revolutionaries could not enter a party affiliated with the betrayers of the Second International (the Oehlerites). That policy leads to sectarianism and isolation. The second fight, led by Muste himself, was concerned with the separate organizational integrity of the WP. That policy leads to organizational fetishism and isolation. At the time, and in hindsight, no militant could or should have argued on either of these grounds. Nevertheless, this writer believes an argument could be made on tactical grounds against entry in the Socialist Party. Why? Because of the untested nature of the newly-formed and politically undereducated WP. A sophisicated maneuver such as entry against a hardened, opportunist Socialist left wing with such forces would cause later problems. As indeed they did. The reviewer's alternative. United front, that is march separately but fight together, the Socialist Party to death whenever and whenever common issues came up, especially on trade union policy in the rising CIO, the role of their Socialist Pary comrades in the Spanish Civil War and their response to the frame-up Moscow Trials.

Cannon, in defending the policy at the time mentions that, despite the onerous conditions of entry set by the left-wing leadership, he believed, and with him Trotsky also, that the results of entry were justified by the organizational wreckage of the Socialist Party after the expulsion of the Trotskyist forces. Additional factors included the accrual of new forces, the freezing out of the Stalinists from influence in the Socialist Party and the work of the Trotsky Defense Committee. Those results may be credit able but this writer believes that such results could have been obtained more easily from the outside.

The reviewer's position has always been colored by looking at the policy from the hindsight of the divisive and fundamental faction fight of the 1939-40 period which basically split the party in two over the question of defense of the Soviet Union when it became really operative. Not an inconsiderable section of the opposition to defense of the Soviet Union came from the forces, especially from the socialist youth group, recruited during the entry. Thus, I still remain troubled by the policy. In the future militants will once again have to face this problem of regroupment of revolutionary forces, if under different conditions. Read this section of the book and make up your own mind.

cCannon never explains numbers here. Yet, this is the history of a group of revolutionists who went from two or three leaders of the Communist party who learned of Trotsky's critique of Stalin, to a group of a few dozens--The Generals without an Army they were call. They went from only a few ideas to merging and mixing with new currents of workers who came forward as the CIO Upsurge came forward. Their principles helped spark the organization of revolutionary workers in the great strikes in Minneapolis in 1934 and aftewrwards, then to influence workers in the sit down strikes in Flint and Dearborn and Detroit. Then to find thousands of young workers, intellectuals, and student youth in the Socialist party and battle the reformists there, to build Found the Socialist Workers party, found with thousands of members before World War II. But this is not about those numbers. Through most of history, real revolutionists real communists have been forced to fight in small organizations like the movement Cannon built. What this is about is the principles, the ideas, the lessons, the history, how to do things theoretically, how to do them practically, and how to do them right.

For those who wonder whether the American working class is capable of revolution -- read this book and be convinced by an engaging scrapper and committed working class hero who was there at the very beginning. Millions placed their hopes for a new dawn on the young Russian revolution, only to be betrayed by Stalin. Cannon tells the story of how he found his way out of the impasse, stumbling on a document by Leon Trotsky at a Moscow convention in 1928. He smuggled it out (in the days before photocopies and computer discs, no mean feat) and spent the next ten years involved in political faction fights, world-changing strikes, mobilizations against fascism...all leading up to the founding of the Socialist Workers Party in the US in 1938. Descriptions of building a fledgeling revolutionary party without funds for a telephone or office rent, are woven in with discourse on the implications of international debate on whether to defend the USSR in the looming world war. He explains the tactical manoevres, gives acerbic thumbnail sketches of various characters -- and makes hard work and fighting for what's right look like a very realistic option.

Sufrimos una época de guerras y revolución porque el sistema actual, fundado en la avaricia individual, padece cada vez más de sus trastornos mortales. Ya que año con año se avecina la Tercera Guerra Mundial, la editorial Pathfinder nos aconseja aprender de las otras dos ocasiones en que nos llevó al borde de la barbarie.

Los libros de Cannon no son sobre el pasado, sino cómo sacar mayor ventaja de las aperturas y oportunidades que necesariamente se van a presentar en el camino para forjar partidos de los trabajadores de común acuerdo en aprender de las luchas de los explotados donde sea que surgen y unidos en la trayectoria de construir un mundo libre del capitalismo.

Cannon era miembro fundador del movimiento del Obrero Mundial (IWW), los antecedentes del Partido Comunista y el Partido mismo. En los 20 era dirigente de la Defensa Internacional del Obrero (ILD) y fue representante norteamericano en el presidio del Internacional Comunista con Lenin y Trotsky.

Dado que el estalinismo ya no trompea el camino para que los luchadores se reúnen, hoy en día el movimiento comunista no necesita valerse del nombre "trotskista" para diferenciarse de los estalinistas; con este simple cambio de nomenclatura el contenido de La historia del trotskismo estadounidense sigue en pie de lucha. Traza la continuidad ideológica y marca la pauta para que detengamos la marcha de los explotadores hacia su tercera guerra mundial, que ellos mismos no pueden parar debido a su permanente caída en la taza de ganancias.

This book relates an important chapter of American history. However, this book speaks so well to real problems real people face every day, that despite the title, I don't think of it as history, but as a guide about how to fight to win. . . I read and discussed this book with a handful of Young Socialists in Washington, DC in 1967 when I wasn't sure about what to do about my life. After I read this I was sure, and I am still sure. . . This book tells the story and mines the experiences of a small band of revolutionary workers who wouldn't succumb to Stalin, to Roosevelt, to anyone, but continued the fight for principled communist politics and built the Socialist Workers Party. I am not surprised that out of the four of five of us who studied this book then, most are still fighting to change the world, and several became nationally known figures in the antiwar, Black rights, and women's movements. . . . There are so many lessons of practical life, of political organization, and of how to wage struggles in the labor movement, against persecution, against fascism, and about internationalism and true solidarity here. Someday, when the struggles of working people will be more pronounced and the fight to build a movement against capitalism more massive, this will be a handbook that millions of fighters will cherish. Know it now!

While this book is not always available on Amazon, it is always available from BooksfromPathfinder, an Amazon Z store that you can get to by clicking on New and Used further up this page!

WHAT?fS THE NEWS? WHAT?fS THE NEWS? This distinctly human obsession apparently dates all the way back to our original acquisition of the use of language itself. But the Who? What? Where? When? How? Why? presentation of that news that we are so used to today took us a bit longer to develop -- say, not till the middle of the nineteenth century -- as Stephens shows in this highly readable book.

Taking on the task of relating the entire history of news telling from its very beginnings lost in the prehistoric past all the way up to the cable television and Internet of today seems impossible; yet Stephens certainly makes a good try. He recreates the prehistoric period with sociological accounts of the vocal exchange of news in illiterate societies by the constant pestering of visitors from outside the village with ?gWhat?fs the news??h He uses the letters of Cicero, among others, to demonstrate the spread of news during the Roman Empire. He then goes on to the show the slow spread of the printing press, the development of, first, weekly newspapers, then dailies, and so on up to the instantaneous reporting of the Gulf War via CNN.

As he tells his tale, he leaps us from ancient Rome to ancient China and right back again so smoothly we hardly notice. Along the way he points out the vast changes that have taken place from the days our ancestors bemoaned the almost total lack of reliable news up to the present state in which we are constantly deluged with so much, we can?ft begin to keep up.

Still, I would have liked to see a more thorough description of the impact the instantaneousness of the telegraph had on news reporting, particularly as Stephens himself points out that it was the great cost of sending a single word over those erratic wires that led to the very precise reporting of news as every word now literally counted?DThough the description of the development of the news reporter as a profession he gives us instead (including the origin of the term ?gbeat?h reporter) is quite enlightening, it is also a bit longwinded. And contrary to the worldwide scope he gives us for the ancient period, for all practical purposes, from the middle of the nineteenth century onwards the title should read A History of AMERICAN News. Yet, these are only minor complaints about what is otherwise a very fine read.

. . . . and that being said about the read itself and so rated . . . .

Why did this great read set me back a whopping $53.95 when the physical book it?fs been incarcerated in LITERALLY flops??? Hold it in one hand; FLOP!?@Grab it with both hands; FLOP! FLOP! Slam it to the floor in disgust; FLOP! FLOP! FLOP! Compared to this flopping flounder masquerading as a trade paperback, comic books are printed on vellum and bound in leather! And (FLOP!) believe (FLOP!) me (FLOP!) all (FLOP!) this (FLOP!) FLOP!ing (FLOP!) makes (FLOP!) it (FLOP!) very (FLOP!) difficult (FLOP!) to (FLOP!) con(FLOP!)cen(FLOP!)trate (FLOP!) on (FLOP!) the (FLOP!) read! FLOP! FLOP! FLOP!

If all this flopping were priced a reasonable ten to possibly twenty dollars, I could still have spent my hours reading it contentedly thinking, ?gYeah, this is just about the read I wanted, all right!?h But $53.95????@I angrily spent those hours fuming instead, ?gI paid THAT much for THIS????

So, to whoever decided on the flimsy packaging and ridiculous price of this fine read, I just want to say . . . (alas, all Ma Amazon?fs rules allow me is) . . . SHAME ON YOU!!!

Once you read this book, everything that the news media do will become clear to you. It turns out that, other than minor differences in grammar and presentation, the actual writing and distribution of news hasn't changed since the earliest days of news.

Telling example, from the book: arguably, the very first newspaper dates back to ancient Rome, where scribes copied it onto the back of the minutes of Senate meetings that were going to the various officals outside the city. Other than the mandatory government notices, what were the three "departments" of "Annals of the City of Rome"? Crime, sports, and celebrities.

Stephens gives example after example from over two thousand years of journalism to demonstrate what we mean when we call something "news," and why journalists write it up the way they do. The writing is a bit dry, and there were times when I was ready to concede his point but he kept hammering us with more examples, but it is seriously worth it to read this book.

If you want to understand the news that you read, and understand why and how it got to you looking like it does, you must read _A History of News_. (And then, while you're at it, go on to Noam Chomsky's _Manufacturing Consent_.)

Once you read this book, everything that the news media do will become clear to you. It turns out that, other than minor differences in grammar and presentation, the actual writing and distribution of news hasn't changed since the earliest days of news.

Telling example, from the book: arguably, the very first newspaper dates back to ancient Rome, where scribes copied it onto the back of the minutes of Senate meetings that were going to the various officals outside the city. Other than the mandatory government notices, what were the three "departments" of "Annals of the City of Rome"? Crime, sports, and celebrities.

Stephens gives example after example from over two thousand years of journalism to demonstrate what we mean when we call something "news," and why journalists write it up the way they do. The writing is a bit dry, and there were times when I was ready to concede his point but he kept hammering us with more examples, but it is seriously worth it to read this book.

If you want to understand the news that you read, and understand why and how it got to you looking like it does, you must read _A History of News_. (And then, while you're at it, go on to Noam Chomsky's _Manufacturing Consent_.)

But not in this case. This book is a fabulous journalistic quamire of slow witted old English types wondering why the news has been covering nothing but Joe Dimaggio and nothing about Stanley Kubrick's recent death.

My dog is named Coco. He likes to run away from home all the time. I keep a journal of his behavior. It is filled with instances of when I have given him dog biscuits and he ate them on my bed leaving crumbs all over the sheets.

Hunting the American Terrorist: The FBI's War on Homegrown Terror

An amazing journey through a top FBI case. Can't wait until the next book by these authors comes out--HOMELAND INSECURITY!

As a retired FBI agent, I am finally impressed with a realistic presentation of a multiagency task force investigation. Hunting the American Terrorist captures the array of human emotions that motivate and complicate big cases. Readers will be able to enter the bull pen and proceed through the complex world of colorful personalities and bewildering puzzles that make up the daily successes and failures of an actual investigation. HAT should be required reading for anyone considering a career in law enforcement.

As a forensic psychiatrist, I believe this is an extremely important book, which works on many levels. First of all, it is the ultimate page-turner true life crime story, told by the ultimate insiders. Turchie and Puckett let their tale of hunting the Unabomber and other domestic terrorists unfold as they experienced it, allowing us a rare view of the politics and personalities that presented assistance and obstacles along the way. Told in a matter-of-fact voice, and absent the rigid and self-congratulatory tone that rightly diminishes lesser "insider" true crime books, the authors reveal their methods to us: pain-staking attention to detail, thinking outside the ultimate bureaucratic box, and, in the Unabomb case, the careful maintenance of an inquisitive and open mind in the face of FBI profilers unwilling to adapt to new evidence.

The first half of the book concentrates on the successful search for and arrest of Theodore Kaczynski, with a fascinating look at the relationship developed by Agent Puckett and Kaczynski's brother, which has evidently remained intact as David Kaczynski provides a back cover review. Puckett served as the Behavioral Analyst on the Unabomb task force, and provides unique insights into Kaczynski's personality, decision-making, and motives.

The second half of the book discusses Puckett's study of American Lone Wolf Domestic Terrorists. The reader learns the value and method of taking a multi-disciplinary approach to understanding these offenders, as Puckett takes us on an investigative "road trip," visiting law enforecment officers, forensic scientists, and mental health experts who worked on the cases. It is rare that these disciplines reach out to each other, but each could benefit from the others knowledge and expertise. Puckett's study is the template for this type of collaboration. This is the heart of the book, and is an invaluable manual for those who hunt terrorists, domestic and foreign.

The FBI's head agent in charge of the Unabomber Task Force and one of the FBI's top behavioral analyst combine to write a fascinating book on the homegrown terrorists that have plagued our country in recent memory.
The criminal cases of Theodore Kaczynski, Timothy McVeigh and Eric Rudolph are the primary focus of the book. I can only imagine the monotony that might come from spending thousands of man hours tracking down false leads and suspects; but you won't find any of that here. Author Terry Turchie keeps the events fast paced and interesting.
My favorite part of the book is the telling of David and Linda Kaczynski's heroic role in the Unabomber case. They are the brother and sister-in-law of Theodore Kaczynski and their sense of duty born of a most difficult situation are very inspiring.
I came away with a new found respect for Louis Freeh and Janet Reno. In an age of a centralized FBI, this book credits their leadership that allowed agent Turchie to put in place new ideas and procedures that led to solving these cases. His methods were sometimes extremely controversial but ultimately lead to the capture and conviction of the Unabomber and drove Eric Rudolph deeply underground.
Agent Kathleen Puckett wrote Part II of the book. In it she details her work in providing a monumental psychological study of ten homegrown American terrorists. She established a set of criteria and conclusions that looked at the behavioral aspects of these ten criminals and labeled it the `Lone Wolf' mindset.
Hunting The American Terrorist is a book that is hard to put down. Although I knew the outcome and fate of the Unabomber, reading the story of how these two key FBI agents finally `get their man' is compelling.

Fascinating story, read it in one sitting. Finally the true story of the Unabom investigation and the dedicated group of people who worked tirelessly to solve the case. The book also demonstrates that the lessons learned from that investigation assisted in the identification of Eric Rudolph . Recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn the true story of the Unabom investigation.

This book is an invaluable source for a wide range of progressive ideas. The writting is very clear and lucid, never getting bogged down in semantics or pomp. It was as if you are listening to a teacher who is genuinely interested in giving you all the theoretical tools you might need to get up and take action. A lot of topics are covered dealing with capitalism, racism, sexism, environmentalism, alternative economic/politcal systems, and role of the media, just to name a few. In the process, a variety of writers and thinkers from different epochs and regions are quoted and discussed. Overall, I think that this is an excellent introductory text for those seeking to conceive what a better society should look like.

This text arrived to me as described, in new condition with no markings. Shipping was fast.

Cynthia Kaufman's IDEAS FOR ACTION is a sophisticated but highly readable analyis of key political issues and ideas. Drawing on a wide range of historical sources, Ms. Kaufman cuts through theoretical abstractions with intelligence and grace. Her real-life examples make complex issues concrete. Far more valuable than the superficial, ahistorical commentary of most television and print journalism, this book is a delight to read and an inspiration for social action.

What a book! Ideas for Action is probably the best book I've read this decade; it's a precious instrument of serious activists. As an activist, I see myself as a practitioner more than an academian. And usually I find no time, no interest and no pleasure reading theoretical books. I usually find them to be too much at a distance from the real world, from reality. It's the famous between the position on a podium and the people down there in the room to whom one is giving a lecture; this book is not imposing that distance. This book is purposely written in solidarity for a better society. It is the work of an academian who also happens to be a practitioner. Ms. Kaufman released Ideas with the " . . . hopes that you will find some way to use it in your work. I wrote the book to help people new to radical politics to gain some orientations to radical thought and history, and to encourage a deepening to reflection on the part of experienced social justice activists." And let me tell you, her hopes are bearing fruit.

I definitely recommend Cynthia Kaufman's Ideas for Action : Relevant Theory for Radical Change.

I'd particularly recommend it to anyone interested in activism or progressive politics. The book is designed as a way for activists to get a grasp of a broad range of progressive topics quickly and coherently, and it's a clear description of globalization, capitalism, racism, sexism, Gramsci, activism. But in the process, she writing the clearest statement of left activists beliefs I've seen. More experienced activists and intellectuals are likely to get a nice "aha" moment as they recognize ideas they use, but hadn't related to each other, presented concisely and convincingly. She also does a great job of presenting the diversity of progressive positions and beliefs without partisanship that would prevent a reader from taking their own sides. Useful in a bunch of ways.