Bush Books

John Prados calls HOODWINKED "a case study in government dishonesty" (p. xii). Based on his meticulous research, he concludes that "deception was systematic and carried out purposefully" (p. xii). The topic, of course, is the propaganda campaign that culminated in the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq. Prados is now a Research Fellow with the National Security Archive, based at George Washington University. He has been researching U.S. national security issues since the early 1980s. One of his more well-known books is "The Presidents' Secret Wars: CIA and Pentagon Covert Operations from WWII Through the Persian Gulf." The Archive was created in 1985, and is the single largest user in the U.S. of the FOIA, Freedom of Information Act. The NSA makes available declassified documentation of U.S. foreign policy and national security policy (www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/).

You might think that a book on the topic of the intelligence used to go to war with Iraq would be outdated now that the Senate Intelligence Committee report has been issued (www.intelligence.senate.gov/iraqreport2.pdf). But if you recall, the Republicans prevented the Committee from releasing any findings about Executive Branch manipulation of the intelligence. The report, therefore, indicted the CIA for its faulty intelligence about Iraq's "weapons of mass destruction," but did not make any charges about the Bush Administration. That is where HOODWINKED is still VERY relevant. Because what the book consists of is a careful, line by line analysis of the key pieces of intelligence available to the Administration and a comparison of those documents to the public statements of Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice and Powell. Prados reaches the following conclusion:

"What the intelligence record shows, however, is that contrary to the reports it put out, what the Bush Administration knew indicated that Iraqi weapons programs were either nascent, moribund, or non-existent -- exactly the opposite of the President's repeated message to Americans. This book is an attempt to compile and share with the American public for the first time the actual intelligence available to the Bush Administration as it made its case for war. It then aims to show how this information was consistently distorted, manipulated, and ignored, as the president, vice president, secretaries of defense and state, and others, sought to persuade the country that facts about Iraq were other than what the intelligence indicated" (p. xi).

In other words, they were lying through their teeth! There was no imminent threat -- the war was an offensive war, a preventive war against a threat that did not exist.

HOODWINKED includes the entire text of several crucial declassified documents, including the October 2002 CIA White Paper, the October 2002 letter from DCI George Tenet to Senate Intelligence Committe Chair Bob Graham, the December 2002 State Department/CIA Fact Sheet, the May 2003 CIA/DIA paper on biological warware production plants, and the June 2003 Pentagon press briefing. Prados meticulously compares the information presented in these documents to Administration statements and documents the manipulations and distortions -- the lies. He focuses on four issues -- 1) the Iraqi nuclear program, 2) unmanned aerial vehicles, 3) uranium from Niger, and 4) Saddam Hussein's supposed links to Al Qaeda and 9/11.

I see it as interesting and suspicious that the Senate's report on Iraq intelligence has been buried by the press as it turned to the more recent release of the 9/11 Commission report. If the public knew how systematically Cheney & Rumsfeld twisted the intelligence in order to get the outcome they wanted, Bush wouldn't stand a snowball's chance in hell of reelection.

I would like to make a point about our government's propaganda that everyone seems to ignore. The very term and concept of WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION lumps together two very different things -- nuclear weapons on the one hand, and chemical & biological weapons on the other. If the public was clear that there was no way Iraq could have hidden a nuclear weapons program with the inspections regime in place, which is what all informed analysts knew, then the perceived threat would have been very different. The "mass destruction capability" of chemical & biological weapons is simply nowhere near as great as that of nuclear weapons. So even if there were stockpiles of chemical weapons, as most analysts suspected, this was not something to be terribly afraid of. How would Iraq deliver large amounts of chemical weapons, or even a primitive atomic bomb, to the U.S.? When you actually think about it, the prospect is ludicrous, but most people were easily scared by the idea of WMD as an umbrella category, not knowing exactly what was in it or how dangerous it was. Never mind that the U.S. government has plenty of WMD, including big anti-personnel bombs that are not ordinarily considered to be WMD at all.

There is a ton of junk information in the world these days, thanks to the internet. HOODWINKED is the prime stuff -- it is the crucial information that U.S. citizens need in order to make the right decision this November. That is if Bush avoids impeachment when people discover the truth.

I have urged my friends who share my vision of a just and prosperous USA to read this book carefully. Gans is essentially writing a manifesto of what should and should not be done, but this book reads more like a novel about three real and interesting people--future presidents of the USA--and not like a lecture on political phiilosophy. Strongly recommended.

If you are someone who knows that something is really amiss in contemporary American life, but you feel that you don't have the time to get an informed grip on the issues, IMPRISON GEORGE W. BUSH by Harvey Wasserman and Bob Fitrakis is a lean investment of money and time. It commands the kind of communication necessary in our limited lives.
It is 2007 and the majority of the American people are calling for the impeachment of the president according to a recent Zogby poll, but in 2004 Harvey Wasserman and Bob Fitrakis gave us what we need now to imprison George W. Bush in their book of the same name. They explain clearly and concisely while making case after case as to why Bush must go. While expansive and ambitious in its reach, the book, a compilation of articles, reaches its goal offering the facts we need to arm ourselves with intelligent discourse in a time when even chat by the water cooler can be an organizer's tool. Compact feature articles enhanced with masterful thematic cartoons are the format of this book. It is packed with well researched reasoning for not only the impeachment of George W. Bush, but his imprisonment as well.
As a lawyer, Fitrakis reacts with the passion of Atticus Finch toward the injustice perpetrated by Bush from the breaking of international law to the dismantling of financial settlements in cases won by American veterans of the Iraq war and their families. Together, Wasserman and Fitrakis deconstruct the machinations of the Diebolt voting machine fiasco. They warn of the disastrous consequences of our voting system, not because they prophesize, but because they themselves did the work from tireless investigation and research to hand counting in moldy storerooms.
While some intuitively suggest of the Nazi-like patterns of the Bush administration, especially those of Karl Rove and Dick Cheney, Fitrakis gives us reason to believe. He reminds that the faith-based initiatives of Bush are merely a replay of Hitler's plan to use Stat taxes for funding the church. Fitrakis points out that, like Hitler who proclaimed that he followed "...the path assigned to [him] by Providence...", Bush ascertains that he trusts "God speaks through [him]".
IMPRISON GEORGE W. BUSH: WHY THE PRESIDENT MUST BE INDICTED by Harvey Wasserman and Bob Fitrakis is brief, clear, relevant, and in these times, insanely honest.

Marko Ivan Rupnik is a Jesuit priest who combines visual arts and theology in his teaching at several of the Pontifical Institutes in Rome. According to Cardinal Tomas Spidlik in his Foreword, Rupnik is known best for mosaics and paintings. 'Artists know that they don't create new and strange things, but rather are called to reveal what is most real at the very heart of things.' This fire, according to Spidlik and confirmed throughout the text by Rupnik, is the love of God. This is the same kind of fire that burned but did not consume the bush at Sinai in Moses' presence; this is the same kind of fire that inspires people from deep within their souls.

This book is actually a collection of two essays that previously appeared in different compilations by Spidlik. It is by 'popular demand' that they have been brought together in this volume. The first essay is entitled 'The Spiritual Life', and in this Rupnik has three broad sections: Clarifications (or definitions), the Nature of Spirit and Spiritual Life, and finally Verification. As a careful theologian, Rupnik gives ample attention to definitions and clarification of terms and questions. Particularly when dealing with something as slippery as the spiritual, securing a good foundation is crucial.

The spiritual is not a material 'thing', any more than mind is a material thing. There are elements of the material/physical world that impact into the spiritual, but the spiritual is not composition of these. Rupnik develops a bit of the history of the distinction between 'theology' and 'spirituality' in academic and institutional senses, and a tendency toward a 'gnostic' idea of spirituality, as well as the oft-dominant psychological view of spirituality, that sees spiritual experiences mostly in terms of psychology and emotionalism.

In looking at the nature of spiritual life, he draws on the familiar, such as iconographic ideas and the relationship of the Trinity, as well as sacramental presence. He also looks toward a somewhat panentheistic context for finding God in all things, making the ordinary into something extraordinary - Rupnik uses the image of the burning bush for Moses here. But how does one verify that the burning bush is actually a sign from God, rather than something we must rush to extinguish? Rupnik looks at structures such as love, community, vocational discernment and spiritual friendship as ways in which the dynamic relationship with God can be tested, strengthened, pruned when necessary, and shared.

In his second essay, 'Spiritual Fatherhood', Rupnik states that we are living in the declining period of modernity. He states certain cultural elements, such as the increasing difficulty with objectivity, the problems with relationships and ideas such as consolation, and problems with the way our lifestyle changes have not purposefully included spiritual elements (preferring such things as psychoanalysis) as problematic to the way in which spiritual life has traditionally be proclaimed and supported. Rupnik in some ways sounds like a Pentecostal, as he emphasises the work of the Holy Spirit, prayer life, and knowing the inner heart as aspects of spiritual fatherhood; he also highlights the importance of discernment, tradition, and the work of the community in identifying the spiritual leader. 'A spiritual father is discovered following a path that is well-beaten because so many people have already traveled it to get to him.'

It is in the work of this spirituality that the true life becomes real. The spiritual father is called upon to be a witness to the truth of the mercy of God, full of compassion, a good mediator and trustworthy partner in relationships with others and with God. Rupnik also speaks of healing, not in a physical sense per se, but of healing the mind, divorcing oneself from bad memories and feelings that weigh upon the soul. 'The baggage of unassimilated, unreflected, unspiritualised experiences becomes heavy and weighs upon the conscience.'

Rupnik offers concrete examples and spiritual conditions that those who seek a more fulfilling and authentic spiritual life might adopt. His text is occasionally academic in tone, but generally accessible to the discerning and dedicated reader.

This is part of the Ressourcement Series (dedicated to Retrieval and Renewal in Catholic Thought) put out by Eerdmans press - it seeks to provide out-of-print or previously untranslated works to English-speaking audiences. This is a worthy volume in a worthy series.

Leuchtenburg, and esteemed historian of the Roosevelt era, examines the profound, lasting impact of Roosevelt's policies on America for many decades following his presidency and how future presidents have operated in Roosevelt's shadow. (The book will need to be revised again due to the Bush plan to privatize Social Security - although FDR's original plan was more modest than the current system, significantly expanded in years after FDR).

Roosevelt influence is still great - the greatest of any modern president.

I was looking for activities related to black bears. This book includes black bears, panda bears, grizzly bears, and many other bears. The activities target grades 2 - 5.

Timothy Bush is one of those rare authors who can both write and illustrate with equal expertise. This story weaves a delightful tale of a youngster's visit to his aunt's antiquated house, which transforms into a fairy-tale fantasy/adventure worthy of "The Nutcracker." The illustrations, though, are the gem of this book. Bush weaves together an assortment of artistic techniques and traditions to create the rich texture of his illustrations. His own style is distinct as he parodies traditional and classical arts in the furnishings and decorations of Aunt Prudence's house.

This commentary reads the texts of the High Holy Days. It provides many profound insights. It captures the spirit of these days and gives much to help deepen the reader's understanding of them.

My 8-year-old son has enjoyed this book series very much. The reading level is comfortably easy for him and he enjoys solving the mysteries. It keeps him reading and even teaches him some facts at the same time. I recommend this whole series.

En esta libro se analiza a la dinastia Bush en los ejos mas profundos del siglo XX estadounidense, y la historia mesianica de Estados Unidos desde su fundacion, rastreando sus bases varias decadas atras, desde que el abuelo y despues el padre del actual presidente coincidieron tanto en la politica como en los negocios con varios de los actores de la clase politica dirigente en diversas coyunturas historicas - la Segunda Gurerra Mundail, la Guerra Fria, la epoca posterior a esta (apuntalada por la caida del bloque socialista) y el 11 de septiembre - para determinar las estregias y el rumbo que el pais debia seguir para asegurar su hegemonia.
--- from book's back cover