Pacific University Books

As someone who was closely connected to the events detailed in Adoption Politics: Bastard Nation & Ballot Initiative 58, I was very happy to see that Professor Carp has changed his position on open records for adult adoptees since his Family Matters, in which he advocated mutual consent registries as the most equitable solution to the contentious issue of adoptee access to adoption and birth records. Here he clearly comes out for open records for those to whom they pertain, the adult adoptee.

In his introduction to Adoption Politics, Carp says: "In blending adopted adults' access to their original birth certificates with a protection for the birth mothers' right to privacy through a contact preference form (without legal penalties for violation), Measure 58 should be viewed as a model piece of legislation for other states to emulate." (p. 3-4)

And in the conclusion: "It [a coalition of adoption activists, adoption agencies and social workers] would not only confirm that a new age is dawning, but also that this new age makes it imperative to give adult adoptees access to their original birth certificates. It would be a clarion call that in the world of adoption it is time to look with fresh eyes at an old institution." (p. 169)

I do have to disagree with several points, though, such as the following in the conclusion: "But to achieve this goal nationwide, Bastard Nation and its supporters must free themselves of ideological blinders and recognize that adoption agencies do not constitute a single, monolithic 'adoption industry.' They must recognize that, either out of altruism or self-interest, the majority of adoption agencies support openness in adoption, including open records. ... The NCFA [National Council for Adoption]...will become increasingly isolated." (p.168)

I think BN does recognize that. The "adoption industry" usage was appropriate political rhetoric for our ballot initiative campaign in Oregon. On the other hand, in California, for example, many adoption agencies joined the CA Open Coalition in its legislative push for open records for adult adoptees, at BN's urging. One has to recognize that the neutrality of Oregon's Right to Life and Catholic Charities was extremely fortunate and unusual, and not something BN can count on elsewhere. In many states Catholic Charities is one of our biggest foes.

I was dismayed by the imputation of anti-birth mother sentiment to BN as a whole on p. 109 ("BN's dislike of birth mothers"), explained by the fact that "some adopted adults harbored resentment toward their birth mothers, whom they viewed as having callously abandoned them." I can't argue that some adoptees didn't/don't feel that way, but it was unjust to tar the organization as a whole with that sentiment. Nothing in Bastard Nation's policy, strategy or tactics reflects such a bias.

In regard to his discussion of the controversial use of the term "birth whore": the book states that "e-mail messages from Bastard Nation members ... that frequently referred to birth mothers as 'birth whores'" were found on the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup, alt.adoption, by members of the Boys and Girls Aid Society of Oregon, which opposed Measure 58. (p. 86) Carp does say in a footnote that this term wasn't used on BEST (BN's internal e-mail listserv) or in BN publications or in public during the campaign (can you imagine?!), and that the organization wasn't a home for "virulent anti-birth mother beliefs," having several respected birth mothers as members, but he doesn't put those many messages on alt.adoption into any kind of context. (p. 194-195) Only one person used that term seriously, and she wasn't a Bastard Nation member for long. The vast majority of posts were from BN members and others who objected to her use of that term, and several were posts in which BN birth mothers themselves used the term as a joke, as in someone's calling herself the leader of Birth Whore Nation. It is really too bad that this kind of misinterpretation has found its way into this book since one of the points we've always tried to make is that the struggle for open records isn't one of adoptees vs. birth mothers, but of all of us (enlightened adoptive parents as well) against the dinosaur faction of the industry as represented most strongly by the NCFA.

On the whole, though, very well done! The roller coaster excitement of those days was vividly brought back to me, the feeling of making history in adoption reform. The case on both sides is fairly presented, and the legal explanations are exceptionally lucid. (...)

Along about 1990 the Soviet Union was able to buy equipment from Toshiba of Japan and Konigsberg Vaopenfabrikk of Norway that enabled it to produce extremely quiet submarine propellers. In 1990 a hearing was held by the Armed Services Committee of the House of Representatives to discuss advances in submarine technology and the associated changes nedessary to U.S. antisubmarine warfare technology.

This book is the unclassified portion of this hearing. The nature of the questions being asked of the Navy by the committee are wide ranging over several areas including the advanced technologies being developed and otehr things such as the death of a sailor in a battery accident.

All in all, this is an opportunity to see how our Government works. It's quite fascinating.

An excellent first hand narrative with lively and descriptive writing by one of the first pioneers to help settle the untamed Northwest. Alexander Ross joined Astor's Pacific Fur Company expedition in 1810 and this is his story of the day to day struggles which he and the other men had to overcome. He left New York on the soon to be ill-fated, doomed ship the Tonquin, with a pompous and overbearing Captain Thorn. They sailed around the tip of South America, then to Hawaii and finally to the mouth of the Columbia River, all the while prevailing over many hardships during this voyage. Upon landing and without delay, the men began to construct the trading post Astoria. Ross' detailed descriptions of their adventures amidst the forces of Mother Nature, Indian relations, the Northwest Fur Company, geography, etc. makes this book a real page turner. They all had many obstacles to overcome, and as I said, his writing skills are exemplary. He devotes the last few chapters to the culture and customs of one of the local Indian tribes. The man was a keen and acute observer of all his surroundings and this is an energetic effort on his part to put it in writing.

Author Eduard Mark has done a superb job of recounting the strengths and weaknesses of aerial interdiction efforts in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. Starting with the Allied invasion of North Africa, Mark examines how the three-tiered system of Allied air operations was developed (primarily through British influence) and how that system remained in effect throughout the succeeding wars. As the author discusses the various operations in World War II, he is not afraid to state that things did not always go well regarding interdiction efforts and on more than one occasion, airmen could not deliver their promised results. At times, this was crucial, as in Sicily when controversial command decisions coupled with non-effective employment of air and naval assets allowed nearly 40,000 Germans to escape to Italy. At other times, as in preparation for D-Day, aerial interdiction played a key role in preventing or delaying German troops and supplies from reaching the Normandy beachhead. As World War II gave way to Korea and later, Vietnam, Mark does an excellent job of providing insight into how those wars differed from World War II, how political constraints hampered the effectiveness of interdiction efforts, and how the Air Force's own single-mindedness of pursuing the strategic mission overshadowed equipment and training needed to successfully prosecute interdiction missions. Also, the limited effectiveness of interdiction due to sophisticated antiaircraft defenses and topographical features is examined. In sum, Mark presents a very well-balanced account of aerial interdiction from its development in North Africa through Vietnam. His frankness in stating when things went well and when they didn't go well, along with his analysis, add to the credibility of his writing. Lastly, his use of maps at the beginning of each chapter, coupled with photos throughout the book make it easy for the reader to visualize where things are happening and how they are unfolding.

Dr. J. Bruce Amstutz was the U.S. charge d'affaires in Kabul from 1977 to 1980. He begins with an historical overview of the years of Russian meddling and then follows with a first-hand report of the 1979 invasion. He also discusses the numerous Afghan political factions.

Um, well, frankly, the air farce has been trying WAY TOO HARD, since at least the 1920s, to ingratiate itself with the sort of dim mammals who tend to agree with their sort of propaganda. You know the sort, Billy Mitchell, Curtis "Nuke 'em All" Lemay," and so on.

While it is true that your top-flight air farce pilots are nowhere near as talented as the sort of intrepid junior officers who can land tactical aircraft on the pitching decks of aircraft carriers, at least air farce pilots are....mediocre.

That's something, innit? Mediocrity is WAAAY better than...whatever else is below that.

A case study of one air-ground team's experience with the theory & practice of tactical air power employed during WW2 campaigns against Germany. By the fall of 1944, the Allies had 5 fighter-bomber tactical air commands (TAC) supporting field armies in NW Europe. Of these the U.S. 3rd Army commanded by Lt. Gen. George Patton & the XIX TAC led by Brig. Gen. Otto Weyland were perhaps the most spectacular air-ground team of the war on the Allied side. The great success of Patton's drive across France & South Germany, owed a great deal to Weyland's airmen. This cooperation paved the way for allied victory in Western Europe & today remains a classic example of air-ground effective. Maps, photos, drawings.

As World War II unfolded in Europe during the late 1930s and early 1940s, U.S. military planners realized the nation's airlift and airborne combat capability was underdeveloped and out of date. The U.S. Army Air Forces relied largely on civil airline equipment and personnel to launch the Air Transport Command's intercontinental routes to overseas combat zones. A separate Troop Carrier Command and newly formed airborne divisions hammered out doctrinal concepts and tactical requirements for paratroop engagements. Despite operational shortcomings, subsequent airborne assaults in North Africa and Italy generated a base of knowledge from which to plan such massive aerial formations and paratroop drops as those for the Normandy invasion and Operation MARKET-GARDEN, and strategic efforts in the China-Burma-India theater. Airlift routes over the Himalayas demonstrated one of the war's most effective uses of air transport. The Air Transport Command emerged as a remarkably successful organization with thousands of aircraft and a global network of communications centers, weather forecasting offices, airfields, and maintenance depots, and air-age realities influenced a postwar generation of dedicated military air transports operating around the world.

One of a series of monographs of the role of the Air Force in Vietnam, this one relates the events of May 12, 1968 when USAF C-130s and USA and USMC helicopter crews pulled off the most heroic action of the entire Vietnam War. When the presence of superior enemy forces prompted General William C. Westmoreland to order the evacuation of the special forces and CIDG camp at Kham Duc, a position on the Laotian border, he ordered the Seventh Air Force to stand-by to participate. Intense enemy fire ruled out a helicopter evacuation and thus began a dramatic day that saw the most air participation of any event in the entire Vietnam War. Though Kham Duc is best known for the Medal of Honor given to C-123 pilot Lt. Col. Joe M. Jackson, his action of landing to pick up members of a stranded airlift control team was but a footnote to the day's events. No less than two C-130s were shot down in the evacuation, one with more than 200 occupants, as well as eight other airplanes and helicopters. The C-130 crew commanded by Lt. Col. Daryl Cole earned the prestigous MacKay Trophy, while two C-130 pilots were awarded the Air Force Cross. This little monograph is the best account of the events of that day to be published so far. Every Vietnam veteran should read it...

The book itself is a classic from the 1930s, but the afterword by Dr. Starchild did a good job of convincing me that this old form of transportation could still have a wonderful potential.