Victims Books

Poems to make you cry and feel and think and shiver and clasp the hands of your loved ones, never to let them go. At once both thought-provoking and profoundly emotional. I doff my cap to the editor.

In the introduction to this 1980 book, newspaper columnist Jack Anderson explains that after WWII, a vast peacetime atomic bureaucracy formed with the intention of using a massive public relations campaign to promote the idea of a nuclear utopia. Government bureaucrats used their fiefdoms to shroud everything in secrecy in order to hide nuclear wastes, radioactive seepages, reactor malfunctions and any other problems that might spoil the official ideal of a nuclear utopia.
The central theme of this book is about the use of public relations, and suppression of dissenting scientific views, to diffuse growing fears about radioactivity and achieve a favorable public attitude toward atomic energy. Several hundred thousand military personnel were ordered by the Pentagon to participate in atomic bomb tests in the Marshall Islands and Nevada from 1946 to 1963 and to help clean up rubble in the bombed Japanese cities. Working with the AEC, the Pentagon's mission for the soldiers was to serve as indoctrination subjects in the effects of atomic warfare - to condition the troops not to fear radiation so that pentomic infantry divisions could safely attack through an area ravaged by an atomic weapon immediately after the blast. Pentagon literature was carefully designed to assure soldiers that there was no justification for concern about witnessing atomic bomb blasts at close range, that exposure to bomb radiation was no different from getting medical x-rays, that plain soap and water washes away all contamination, and to use normal first aid care for any skin burns. At Camp Desert Rock (also called Camp Mercury) in Nevada, following each indoctrination session, a team of the Pentagon's HumRRO psychologists and sociologists used questionnaires to determine the effectiveness of the indoctrinations. The soldiers' responses served as feedback for improving the effectiveness of the indoctrinations and Army training courses. Many years later, a statistically large number of these veterans developed various types of cancer. By 1956, survivors of Nagasaki and Hiroshima were showing a marked excess of leukemia, and Dr. Linus Pauling predicted a rash of cancers and genetic injuries among Americans exposed to ionizing radiation from the fallout from hundreds of nuclear weapons tests. Several hundred "atomic veterans" have filed claims for entitlements from the VA, and some of their claims were approved for various reasons, but the VA never acknowledged that the veterans' illnesses are related to radiation exposure even though some soldiers` military health records showed evidence of service-related radiation-induced disease. Some atomic veterans have said that their military health records, or important portions of the records indicating service-related radiation exposure, mysteriously disappeared. The author notes that "the Feres Doctrine prohibits servicemen or their survivors from suing the government on grounds of negligence for injuries sustained while in the Armed Forces. Soldiers also are limited to spending $10 in legal fees for the preparation of their claims to the Veterans Administration. The agency is the final arbiter of those claims; decisions by the Veterans Administration cannot be appealed in civil court."
The atomic energy public relations campaign continues today, promoting atomic energy as the safest and best power source for the utilities industry.

North Carolina police officer Jay Anderson knew he was doing wrong, but could not stop himself from beating up his wife Carrie. To help him with his anger management, Jay was seeing police psychiatrist Frank Hawkins, but in the middle of their sessions, he tells the shrink that he, his wife, and his ten year old daughter Emily were taking a vacation in Missouri over the concern of Frank.

On the trip Jay learns that Carrie plans to leave him for fear he will start abusing their child. They stop at Long Horn Caverns near St. Louis where Emily who can hear thoughts notices two evil people. Her father is preoccupied and ignores her warning. When the leave the caverns, Crow, who just escaped from Leavenworth and his girlfriend Heddy who abetted his escape, carjack the Anderson vehicle with the family taken as hostages. On the murderous trek to Mexico, relationships change as double crossings occur. None of the five seem like they will walk away and if by some miracle if one does he or she will be haunted by this deadly road trip forever.

Though a crime thriller, BAD TRIP SOUTH is also a deep character study through Emily's adult like perspective. The story line is action-packed, but will feel strange as readers hear what Emily hears inside the heads of the other four people. Fans will be shocked by what happens, yet believe what happens could have occurred (just not expecting it), but will also appreciate this well written protagonist driven dark suspense thriller that never slows down until the final confrontation.

Harriet Klausner

Badge of Love by Jane McBride Choate was a different kind of romance novel. I like that in a book. I think you will too.

Un aspecto poco estudiado de la operacion Barbarossa, esta ultima, quizas, el momento crucial del siglo XX, por otro lado no seria menos interesante una obra dedicada a las bajas de la luftwaffe en el mismo periodo.

Book was new and arrived in excellent condition in a timely fashion. Very pleased with results.

The Beast of God grabbed me from the first chapter and wouldn't let go. Richard Wood's description of the main character's quest for his son was so real that I felt I was right there with him. His use of evil characters and mysterious angels was powerful. I can almost believe it could really be like that. Well done!

Beyond Closed Doors tells the story of a violently sexually and emotionally abused man. However, unlike many autobiographies, that was not its aim. The book is a collection of letters written by Little John to Big John during his therapy and healing process. They tell of the hurting child inside the adult man, and the fears that the man still carries because the hurting child was not protected. As a window into the therapy process, this book is without parallel. For any child abuse victim, these letters express the pain of the child within, and the adult's struggle to let the child be heard.

I READ THIS BOOK SOME YEARS AGO, WHEN I WAS STUDYING FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY IN COLLEGE. I WAS AND AM INTERESTED IN THE SUB- SPECIALIZATION OF VICTIMOLOGY. YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO FORGET THIS BOOK, OR MS. SALDANA'S STORY OF HOW A DERANGED STALKER CHANGED HER LIFE FOREVER. HOWEVER IT IS NOT NEGATIVE IN CONTENT. MS. SALDANA ALSO DESCRIBES THE VICTIMIZATION OF OTHER PEOPLE.

AS SOMEONE WHO WORKS IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM, THIS IS DEFINITELY A BOOK THAT I RECOMMEND.

A "victimhood" epidemic rages for many people who are survivors. These survivors may have been physically or emotionally abused. They have survived extreme cases of conditional "love" which require them to "earn" dignity and love by meeting abusive or unrealistic expectations.

The problem occurs when survivors label themselves "victims" long after a healing process has begun. This victim mentality can prevent people from attaining complete wholeness and true peace of mind.

In Beyond Victimhood, Tom Fitzgerald recognizes that surface or behavioral changes are not enough - that "we make a real difference in our own lives when we strive to make a real difference in the lives of others." Not just a "feel good" book, Beyond Victimhood is a practical resource, containing a hands-on process to embrace the future, an annotated reading list to enrich self-understanding, and a litany of daily reminders to help maintain focus.
--- from book's back cover.