Liberty Books

"Words of Our Nation", was the book I wish I had while going to School.Everything that is needed to know more about this great country I found in this book. I must now buy it again for my two sisters. What does the Constitution say? I found out in this book. What are the Bill of Rights? Found them also. So many times I looked at books and posters of the Constitution and wondered whats it all about? The writings were very fancy, but I could not read all the beautiful words."Words of our Nation" lets me have them all in one place. I purchased this book at a discount bin and am sad to say I only bought one. Now I must pay a little exra, however It IS Worth every penny.Patriotism is alive and well within these pages.

This is a great book. I'm using this book to give a lesson plan on the Liberty Bell. This is a story version of how the Liberty Bell was saved so that children will gain a better perspective without the information being dry. There is even an explanation in the back of the book explaining how the story is true and exactly how the characters fit into the storyline.

Great book... especially if you are interested in using it as a teaching tool.

This is a wonderful book. I think anyone raising children should own and read this. Boy, did I find out how overindulged my children are! The book is helping me turn this around, and is making life easier and more pleasant for us all.

Edited and with an introduction by Morton J. Frisch (Professor Emeritus of Political Science, Northern Illinois University), The Pacificus-Helvidius Debates of 1793-1794 collects the landmark debates between founding American figures Alexander Hamilton (a.k.a. Pacificus) and James Madison (a.k.a. Helvidius) about the proper roles of America's executive and legislative branches in the area of foreign policy. Hamilton was a proponent of strong executive control over foreign policy, while Madison countered with the charge that Washington's Neutrality Proclamation of 1793 would impede the Senate's ability to make war. The Pacificus-Helvidius Debates of 1793-1794 collects all of the pertinent original documents involved in these landmark debates, including Washington's Neutrality Proclamation, the full text of the Pacificus and Helvidius letters, Jefferson's letter to Madison requesting him to respond to Hamilton, and Hamilton's Americanus letters, written as a final response to Madison's rebuttal. A scholarly presentation of a classic primary source of American history, worthy of the highest recommendation for college and public library reference collections.

Never have I seen such a wonderful collection of so many of Patrick Henry's writings! This should be on the bookshelf of every freedom-loving American!

I actually picked this book up from an employee of mine who had it as a required text for class. To be honest having worked in the field for years, I am very weary about any book that is written by any academic on Criminal Justice. To my surprise this book was the opposite of every apprehension I had. The authors together have taken a serious look at the criminal justice system from a theory prospectus. Yes a theory lens, the one area in which half the field lacks any knowledge of. As a result of this I can honestly recommend the book on this alone. However, for those less concerned with the lens of this text, what I can also mention is how much this really relates to actual work in the justice fields. I have worked in almost every capacity in the criminal justice world and this text just fits. It explains the reasons why we do what we do, and how they DO NOT work. Therefore it is with almost one hundred percent certainty that I say this text is one that should be on every college reading list, and the beginnings of anyone who is even remotely interested in criminal justice (not just the cop shop like the cover suggests, ~ I guess my only compliant is that, the cover gives a false image of what the book is about)

You might no think it, but the concept of the perfectibility of man has been widely held by philosophers. Of course, what they meant by perfectibility hasn't always been the same. This topic is the subject of the very enjoyable work by John Passmore. He discusses the attitude of philosophers and theologians from antiquity to the present, as well as touching on writers such as Orwell, Shaw and Zamiatin. Needless to say, many have opposed human perfectibility and Passmore devotes sections of the work to opponents such as Augustine, Luther and Calvin. For example, Calvin writes: "He who comes nearest to perfection has not yet advanced half-way." [p. 162.]

This book is lengthy, but you can use it as a reference work on thinkers. For example, there is a fascinating discussion of Teilhard de Chardin, who as Passmore points out, combines almost all the diverse themes found in perfectabilist literature. [p. 410.] Even many who have read a fair amount about Teilhard might be surprised to see his almost grudging support for totalitarian regimes of Europe in the 40s.

This book is out of print and I left mine on the train. Best concise information I have ever read concerning tax laws.

Sidney Hook was the epitome of what I feel a philosopher should be. He spoke to real issues that affected real people in real ways. Also, he was not a partisan to ideology. Like Hannah Arendt and his mentor John Dewey, Hook came to conclusions after thinking them out, often shokcing people who expected him to come to conclusions along a 'party line'. Even today, nobody knows where to put him: was he a neoconservative or a socialist. Well...Hook was neither.

Enough about the man for now. This is a book of essays spanning from the 50's to the late 70's. The subjects, of course, sre those areas where philosophy and public policy mix, though far from being abstract and obtuse (as most attempts at political philosophy end up) Hook is always speaking to concrete concerns and to actual people.

The first section deals with the general relationship between political areas and philosophy (specifically, ethics). The second section is on issues of rights. The third explores different "heroes" and particularly "anti-heroes" in history: Bertrand Russell (anti-hero), John Dewey (hero), Alger Hiss (anti-hero), etc. (That section is great fun!). The fourth section is on religion and culture and by in large contains a thrilling exchange between secular democrat Hook and Christian socialist Jacques Maritain. Wheewww, do sparks ever fly!

My favorite essays are: "Philosophy and Public Policy" which discusses the philosopher's proper role in public policy - anylizing practice, not creating bizarre theories (if only Rawls had read this). Next, there is "Reflection's on Human Rights" which has become one of Hook's most contreversial essays as Hook believed that rights are not natural, but are ethical conventions that never existed in a 'state of nature' (and why would they have?). In the third section, there is "The Relevance of John Dewey's Thought", which explores Dewey's non-theory theory of government: that is, that one should not look for all-encompassing theories resting on some bedrock first principles in order to deal with the here-and-now of political life. As commonplace as that sounds, most philosophers still have yet to grasp that simple concept. Last there is "A Talk with Vanoba Bhabe", which is Hook's talk with an indian pacifist in the tradition of Ghandi. Hook, consistent with his Deweyan pragmatism, comes to the conclusion that pacifism tends to lose touch with reality and the hard choices it demands. For my money, I agree.

Not to say that there are only three essays that grabbed me; they all did. Rather, I am going to stop here at the risk of boring the reader; really I could go on and on. While some of the essays speak of events that are now dated (and before my '77 birth), these are still must read essays for anyone into public policy. Wow! Philosophy can actually be important (someone should've told the academy this)!

Philosophy Of The United States: Life, Liberty And The Pursuit Of Happiness is the latest of the Paragon Issues in Philosophy series, a critical set of scholarly texts that examines serious issues and ideas that shape human experience. Author Gordon L. Anderson, who holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy of Religion and who serves as the Secretary-General of Professors World Peace Academy, examines the historical origin and the incredible experiment that was the formation of the United States, as well as the critical necessity of such things as checks and balances on political power, regulations of financial power, universal education, social welfare, and more. An absorbing, informative discussion of fundamental ideals, intended for intermediate students but accessible to any lay reader who wants to do some thinking about the basic principles of the American nation.