Book Description
Visually rich and conceptually layered, Peace: 100 Ideas is an innovative pairing of text and 200 pages of original, full-color illustrations and photographic imagery. This ambitious volume provides 100 simple solutions for promoting peace that will challenge readers to rethink previous perceptions and reexamine their roles as members of an extended community.
Printed on 100% post-consumer recycled, elemental chlorine free, oxygen bleached paper.
Customer Reviews:
Pure Inspiration.......2005-04-09
No longer do we have to view peace as a cliche or just something we talk about and never really do. This book is so wonderful. Each spread is a different take on each idea of how to make peace truely happen. I highly recommend this book to not only designers or other creatives, but it should be given as birthday gifts, graduation gifts, or even "just because gifts".
Design Masturbation ?.......2004-08-10
Each page of this book is beautiful. Aside from that it's basically meaningless, the 'illustrations' have either a very obvious or no connection to the peace ideas. It's great that 10% of the proceeds to wagingpeace.org's mission for a more peaceful world... but why would anyone want to spend so much money on a self-promo disguised as a socially relevant book.
Stunning and inspirational.......2004-04-12
In the design community, we often talk about socially-responsible design, but remain stunted at this stage. The causes are certainly out there, and Peace: 100 Ideas shows how everyone can take matters into their own hands. This book is stunning in numerous ways: a well-designed Chicken Soup for the Soul, a righteous design exercise, a multi-functional portfolio of work, and an inspirational resource for designers and non-designers alike. It's one of my favorite books of the year for so many reasons, and if you're giving the gift of peace and/or want a rousing source of modern design, this book is highly recommended.
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Comprehensive Illustrated Catalog of Chinese Paintings: Japanese Collections
Manufacturer: University of Tokyo Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 086008311X |
Customer Reviews:
Very interesting!.......2007-09-29
I love the artwork and the story behind the art! This book was super interesting to me. Sue Lewin was a beautiful model and whether or not she really was Maxfield's lover really doesn't matter to me, although I really do believe that she was! Too bad that they never made it official.
His model and muse.......2004-08-27
Sue Lewin was the model for a huge number of Parrish's lovely, romantic paintings. She sat for the innumerable photographs that he used for his paintings, she tended his children, she lived with him for decades in his `studio' (a fair-sized house by any standard). He often painted her with a wedding band on her finger. He just never married her.
Another woman, Lydia, was his wife. For many years, she lived in the other house on the property, almost a mansion. This peculiar split life, wife and mistress on the same estate, just a few yards a way from each other, was a permanent feature of the Parrish household.
It seems to have started innocently enough, when Lewin was hired as nanny and maid to the Parrish household. Parrish had great financial success during his life, enough to build the two grand houses at `The Oaks.' Over time, Lewin became more involved with his art, posing and making costumes, cooking for him and fending off threats to his privacy. At the same time, Parrish became cordially estranged from his wife. There was a curtain of silence around the arrangements, but that is the story told in this remarkable book.
It is clear that Lewin had enormous importance in Parrish's work, far more than hard evidence may ever tell. If you like Parrish's work - and it's easy to like - this brief book will give real insight into the art, the man who made it, and the woman who inspired it. The only disappointment in this book is that it doesn't show more of Parrish's famous illustration.
//wiredweird
Beautiful Pictures, But Weak Text.......2000-01-11
Any book containing attractive reproductions of Maxfield Parrish's work is bound to be visually stunning. But the text is loaded with partially informed speculation about the relationship between Parrish and Sue Lewin, his favorite model. The author is an art dealer, not a historian, and her lack of analytical training is a serious problem. Maybe Lewin was Parrish's lover. But where's the concrete evidence? Everything that the author presents to support her contentions is either hearsay or capable of more than one interpretion. The fact that they shared a house for several decades is a VERY persuasive fact, but Gilbert damages her credibility -- and her case -- by tossing in too much pointless guessing.
A Fascinating Look into the Life of an Artist & his Subject.......1999-02-20
Being an admirer of Parrish's work since childhood, I had always wondered how he worked since his paintings had a sort of surreal realism to them. I was surprised to find that he utilized photographs instead of live models and that Sue Lewin was the model for the majority of his most famous works. The art is not only beautiful in the book, but the photos are just as incredible as the paintings themselves. A must have book for anyone who has admired Maxfield Parrish's work.
This book is a fun, light, easy read........1999-01-09
This book is full of conjecture about Maxfield Parrish's private life and his relationship with his model, Sue Lewin. Their relationship was kept very private (due to his married state), yet they lived together most of their lives. Despite the guessing (most of which is probably correct) on the author's part, it is a fun, easy book to read and gives a sense of the times.
Book Description
"This book is lewd, rude and superb! Frank and Stein have written the first guide to grad school from a student's point of view; and the result is an irreverent, humorous and USEFUL book of advice. These foul-mouthed sages will help you get through a master's or doctoral program more quickly, with fewer blunders and less angst. I plan to recommend this book to all the graduate students I coach and teach."
—
Mary McKinney, Ph.D.
Clinical Psychologist and Dissertation Coach
http://www.successfulacademic.com
Yes,
sports fans!, er, grad school fans…Bad boys Fred and Karl are back with an updated version of their best selling self-help guide for grad students. This New and/or Improved Version is stocked with additional content, more lame attempts at humor, and a lower price (Karl threatened to moon the publisher unless his demands were met).
Written with the attitude of a couple ill-mannered schoolboys who exhibit the insight and genius of the Ph.D.'s who wrote it, Playing the Game simplifies even the most complex aspects of grad school.
Authors Frank and Stein have broken down Playing The Game into three hilarious and straightforward sections: Getting In, Getting Through, and Getting the Hell Out. In whatever stage of graduate school you find yourself, rest assured that you will never again grumble, “If only I had known! If only someone had explained this @%#! to me sooner!”
Playing the Game simplifies the entire graduate school experience while imparting comically relevant stories and translating complicated graduate school jargon. This self-help guide helps grad students to comprehensively navigate their graduate school journey from application to matriculation. Unlike most of the material you'll be reading in grad school, Playing the Game is actually intelligible.
www.playing-the-game.com
Customer Reviews:
PLaying the Game : The Street Smart Guide to Graduate School.......2007-02-24
This is a must read for anyone considering, entering, or attending graduate school. As a graduate student in Anthropology, I can attest to how useful this guide is. Unlike similar books, this guide is both humorous and practical. Drs Frank and Stein will have you rolling in the halls of your current or future program, drinking non-alcoholic beer in class and taking tests in crayon. In sum, you need this book!
My Grad students seemed to like it.......2007-02-24
I haven't had time to read it myself but provided it to an office full of about 8 grad students. Even though they are in engineering and the book is written more for non-engineering grad students, they found much to be amused by and reviewed the book as being worth a read.
Captain Underpants Does Grad School.......2007-02-09
An alternate title for this book would be "Captain Underpants Aces Graduate School (Extra Bonus: 'Frickin' Gratuitous Pseudo-Swearwords on Every Page !)". I purchased this book based on positive reviews that confused the distinction between lewd and stupid - lewd I can handle. This book will be relished by life members of the fart & burp club who wish to obtain a graduate degree with the least effort. It largely ignores the concept or utility of graduate education. Perhaps the book relfects the biases of the social sciences, but my grad students in the natural sciences would skin me alive if I assigned a book that squandered so many pages on the excessive trappings of extended adolescence while instructing them carefully in the art of dodging. Its key redeaming features are a collection of excellent quotes and written caricatures of professors in the social sciences and humanities - the authors must know my dean.
Fab-u-lous.......2006-10-08
This book is great. While the language in the book temporarily increased my personal level of profanity, the ideas the authors present have stayed with me. As a first semester doctoral student, the most valuable lesson I've learned is that the smart kids do research projects linked to their dissertation topic along the way. I definatly recommend this book. Unlike many of the articles I am assigned to read, this one isn't boring. And while I wondered how I'd find the time to fit in reading something "for fun," it was an easy read when I only had 15 or so minutes free, not enough time to get into the "heavy, boring" reading, or when I got tired of reading big words in sentences that seemed to never end.
This poorly written trash is the best thing ever. (Really).......2006-03-08
The cover of this book looks like a third grader made it. Inside the book, the text is poorly edited. The jokes are inane. Some of the content is worthless.
So why should you buy this book?
This book gives you a very clear idea of what graduate school is like. It will save you countless hours by showing you how to keep on task and stay organized. The book gives you the authors' opinions on what's important and what's not. After reading the book, I feel much better prepared for graduate school.
I've purchased several other books for graduate school, and their main weakness is that they tell you the advantages of everything, but offer no guidance. In other books, the authors state axioms such as "Grades are Important" without giving you a clear idea of how they might fit into your future plans or how important they are compared to other things you need to do. The Streetsmart Guide explains how grades fit into the authors' plans, and from there, intelligent readers can determine the value of grades to them.
One thing to note, though, is that this book is written for people who do NOT plan on a career in academia. I do plan to be an academic, but I still found this book to be the best thing since sliced bread (inside joke if you read the book) because it gave me a nice picture of how things actually work.
Seriously, buy this book.
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David Newmans Movie Quiz Book
David Newman
Manufacturer: Raptor Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1881892018 |
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Guitar Stories Vol. 2: The Histories of Cool Guitars (Guitar Stories)
Michael Wright
Manufacturer: Vintage Guitar Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Guitar
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ASIN: 1884883087 |
Book Description
Author Michael Wright builds on the success of his Guitar Stories, Volume One in this series of histories of cool guitars. Volume Two continues Wright's incredible research and painstaking attention to detail, covering brands that had a heavy impact in the world of the guitar, including companies such as Kay, Alamo, Veleno, Martin Electrics, Maccaferri, and Guild Solidbodies. As with Volume One, over 800 rare and fascinating photos (including sumptuous full-color spreads) help to tell the tale of these innovative instruments. Includes a helpful index. Also available: Guitar Stories, Volume One 00330018 $29.95.
Customer Reviews:
A mixed bag........2001-09-01
Its pretty obvious that this book is mostly stuff "from the cutting room floor" that didn't make it into the excellent Volume 1. I'm sure a hell of a lot of work went into the very, very, very detailed chaper on Kay--but does anyone really care? At best, this will drive up the price of some (mostly) lousy guitars.
I'm interested in the stories behind the companies and products but pages of serial number variations are like the tax code to me.
OTOH, some of this stuff--like Guild guitars--is not terribly obscure and probably already known to you, if you're over 30.
If the information on Guild could have been incorporated into the first volume I think the second would have been unneccessary. There are a few nice color photos but if you're interested in cheesy guitars the author has contributed to a much more interesting & thorough book, the Japanese published Bizzarre Guitars. Though considerably more expensive, Bizarre Guitars is nothing but pictures and even in Japanese, mostly self-explanatory.
BTW, the introduction to Volume 2 is pretty funny; almost Shakespearean in its language. I can just imagine a guy in a pawn shop, shaking his head....
Book Description
In the fifth volume of crosswords from New York magazine, Maura Jacobson serves up 50 clever and fun puzzles. Mingling gentle wit with groan-out-loud puns, these mini-works-of-art have entertained New Yorkers for over 20 years.
Will Shortz, the crossword editor of The New York Times, calls Ms. Jacobson and her puzzles "a national treasure."
Customer Reviews:
Good puzzles hurt by amazing number of errors.......2004-04-17
I enjoyed the puzzles. Every one has a theme and Ms Jacobson handles them cleverly. I would have given it a five if not for the amazing number of typos. As many as half of the puzzles have clues missing, duplicate clue numbers, and typos in the clues that you (obviously) need to figure out before you can complete the puzzle. Not really acceptable.
I can't wait for the next book!.......2002-01-03
Maura Jacobson constructs the weekly crosswords in New York Magazine and has several crossword collections available. The spiral binding makes the book easy to write on. While I was surprised at the number of typographical errors I found they did not detract from my enjoyment of Ms. Jacobson's puzzles. The themes are clever, the puzzles are challenging but not impossible to complete and I look forward to the next book in the series. In the meantime I grab New York Magazine and complete a weekly puzzle longing for more.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from National Underwriter Property & Casualty-Risk & Benefits Management, published by The National Underwriter Company on May 25, 1992. The length of the article is 771 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
From the supplier: Efforts at achieving product liability tort reform in the Senate have been tabled but have gained momentum. The Product Liability Fairness Act, sponsored by Senator Bob Kasten, was attached to the motor voter bill, and removed only by strong efforts from democratic Senate leadership and trial lawyers. It was tabled by a 53-45 vote and efforts to revive the legislation are promised. The insurance industry desire for the bill may have been dampened by threats from trial lawyer organizations to introduce an insurance industry data reporting amendment. The National Federation of Independent Businesses has joined organizations supporting the bill.
Citation Details
Title: Behind the scenes at the debate over product liability. (attempts to pass the Product Liability Fairness Act in the Senate)
Author: Mary Jane Fisher
Publication:
National Underwriter Property & Casualty-Risk & Benefits Management (Magazine/Journal)
Date: May 25, 1992
Publisher: The National Underwriter Company
Issue: n21
Page: p42(2)
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
This digital document is an article from National Underwriter Property & Casualty-Risk & Benefits Management, published by The National Underwriter Company on September 6, 2004. The length of the article is 1124 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Re softer than it appears?(Behind The Scenes)(Column)
Author: Susanne Sclafane
Publication:
National Underwriter Property & Casualty-Risk & Benefits Management (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 6, 2004
Publisher: The National Underwriter Company
Volume: 108
Issue: 33
Page: 36(2)
Article Type: Column
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Amazon.com
We've all got our idiosyncrasies when it comes to writing--a special chair we have to sit in, a certain kind of yellow paper we absolutely must use. To create this tremendously affecting memoir, Jean-Dominique Bauby used the only tool available to him--his left eye--with which he blinked out its short chapters, letter by letter. Two years ago, Bauby, then the 43-year-old editor-in-chief of Elle France, suffered a rare stroke to the brain stem; only his left eye and brain escaped damage. Rather than accept his "locked in" situation as a kind of death, Bauby ignited a fire of the imagination under himself and lived his last days--he died two days after the French publication of this slim volume--spiritually unfettered. In these pages Bauby journeys to exotic places he has and has not been, serving himself delectable gourmet meals along the way (surprise: everything's ripe and nothing burns). In the simplest of terms he describes how it feels to see reflected in a window "the head of a man who seemed to have emerged from a vat of formaldehyde."
Book Description
In 1995, Jean-Dominique Bauby was the editor-in-chief of French
Elle, the father of two young childen, a 44-year-old man known and loved for his wit, his style, and his impassioned approach to life. By the end of the year he was also the victim of a rare kind of stroke to the brainstem. After 20 days in a coma, Bauby awoke into a body which had all but stopped working: only his left eye functioned, allowing him to see and, by blinking it, to make clear that his mind was unimpaired. Almost miraculously, he was soon able to express himself in the richest detail: dictating a word at a time, blinking to select each letter as the alphabet was recited to him slowly, over and over again. In the same way, he was able eventually to compose this extraordinary book.
By turns wistful, mischievous, angry, and witty, Bauby bears witness to his determination to live as fully in his mind as he had been able to do in his body. He explains the joy, and deep sadness, of seeing his children and of hearing his aged father's voice on the phone. In magical sequences, he imagines traveling to other places and times and of lying next to the woman he loves. Fed only intravenously, he imagines preparing and tasting the full flavor of delectable dishes. Again and again he returns to an "inexhaustible reservoir of sensations," keeping in touch with himself and the life around him.
Jean-Dominique Bauby died two days after the French publication of
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.
This book is a lasting testament to his life.
Customer Reviews:
Meaning of life.......2007-09-24
Reading this book made a deep impact in me. Learning how Jean Dominique gives meaning to his life coming from such a desfavorable experience inspires me to continue the quest in searching for my own purpose in life.
Really makes you appreciate how little you're doing.......2007-07-30
After reading this, it helps put in perspective just how much time you waste. A person who can only blink one eye wrote a book in a matter of a couple of months. I've been working on mine for a matter of years. Almost makes me ashamed to be able-bodied. Great read to put your life in perspective. No matter HOW bad you think you have it, somebody has it worse.
A must-read.......2007-07-17
You will read this in one sitting. It is moving, inspirational and beautifully composed. My heart ached for Jean-Dominique and the situation he found himself in, but what courage he displayed, showing that the human spirit is indeed indomitable.
Inspirational and beautifully written.......2007-07-12
I bought this book after it had been recommended to me. It was inspirational and beautifully written. Astonishing when you consider the physical condition of the author that he was able to maintain a wonderful attitude. It's a testament to the human spirit and a lesson on what's truly important in life.
Powerful! Beautifully written!.......2007-06-10
As it is translated into English from French, I am curious as to how beautifully the French version was written. Translations do such an injustice to original works but I don't think anything was lost here.
I had the privilege of seeing the film based on the story of Jean-Dominique Bauby. It is from his point of view. The film moved me so much I HAD to read his book. Beautiful and powerful!
Average customer rating:
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Sexuality and War: Literary Masks of the Middle East (Feminist Crosscurrents)
Evelyne Accad
Manufacturer: NYU Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Middle Eastern
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ASIN: 0814706150
Release Date: 1992-05-01 |
Book Description
"A courageous analysis of Arab writers, addressing the connections between masculinity, violence, and nationalism."
—Robin Morgan, Ms..
"Rarely have sexuality and war been treated with such poignancy and historical concreteness .... The force of these often intertwined phenomena endemic to the human condition are considered with incisive and wrenching specificity from within one of the most baneful convergences of sexuality and war in recent history."
—Djelal Kadir, editor, World Literature Today.
"Personal, powerful, passionate, uncensored."
—Fedwa Malti-Douglas, The Journal of Women's History.
A welcome departure from stereotypical nationalist conceptions from which no solutions to the current impasse can possibly emerge."
—Joel Benin, The Middle East Report.
Accad's extraordinary pacifism is deeply compelling to women as it is deeply challenging to men."
—Andrea Dworkin.
A splendid book. Drawing on interviews with Lebanon's village women and her close readings of Lebanon's contemporary novelists, Accad manages to pull back the veil that has shrouded so many conventional nationalisms, revealing their roots in men's effort to control women's sexuality."
—Cynthia Enloe, author of Does Khaki Become You?
"Extraordinary in weaving together literature, feminist theory, and theories of war and violence. Her analysis of the relationships between sexuality, war, and nationalism is stunning in its frankness and importance."
—Berenice A. Carroll, Purdue University.
"It is in the women's writings on the Lebanese civil war that Accad discerns alternative visions that could shape a non- violent reality."
—Miriam Cooke, The Middle East Studies.
This book should remind us how patriarchies can operate similarly in societies we most often define through difference .... [Accad's] forthright, critically respectful, caring treatment of Lebanese lives and worlds resonates as we engage with the longterm repercussions of the Gulf War.
—Marilyn Booth, Women's Review of Books.
This compelling book offers an exploration of the indissoluble link between war and sexuality based on over twelve years of interviews by the well-known Lebanese expatriate teacher, critic, and writer.
Evelyne Accad explores what she calls the indissoluble link between war and sexualtiy. She refers to sexuality as the physical and psychological relations of men and women, and examines Middle Eastern customs involved in defining such relationships. She argues that many of the problems faced by societies at war stem from the way male sexuality is viewed and imposed and from the oppression of women within cultural parameters.
For twelve years Professor Accad interviewed women throughout the Middle East about their sexuality and relationships with men. On the basis of these interviews and a close study of six novels written by both men and women on the subject of the Lebanese war, she explores the connection between sexualtity and war and contrasts the reactions of male authors with those of their female counterparts. Each author views war as having roots in sexuality.
Evelyne Accad concludes that "there is a need for a new rapport between men and women, women and women, and men and men: there is a ned for relationshops based on trust, recognition of the other, tenderness, equal sharing, and love devoid of jealousy and possession. Since the personal is the political, changes in relationshops traditionally based on domination, oppression, and power games will inevitably rebound in other spheres of life.
Book Description
In Boiling Point, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ross Gelbspan argues that, unchecked, climate change will swamp every other issue facing us today. Indeed, what began as an initial response of many institutions-denial and delay-has now grown into a crime against humanity. Gelbspan's previous book, The Heat Is On, exposed the financing of climate-change skeptics by the oil and coal companies. In Boiling Point, he reveals exactly how the fossil fuel industry is directing the Bush administration's energy and climate policies -payback for helping Bush get elected. Even more surprisingly, Gelbspan points a finger at both the media and environmental activists for unwittingly worsening the crisis. Finally, he offers a concrete plan for averting a full-blown climate catastrophe.
According to Gelbspan, a proper approach to climate change could solve many other problems in our social, political, and economic lives. It would dramatically reduce our reliance on oil, and with it our exposure to instability in the Middle East. It would create millions of jobs and raise living standards in poor countries whose populations are affected by climate-driven disease epidemics and whose borders are overrun by environmental refugees. It would also expand the global economy and lead to a far wealthier and more peaceful world. A passionate call-to-arms and a thoughtful roadmap for change, Boiling Point reveals what's at stake for our fragile planet
Customer Reviews:
Enviro-skeptics are barbarians at the gate!.......2006-10-24
Better than your usual global warming book..and there a lot of good ones..(this is one of my favorite genres so to speak). Yes..this is a little more interesting. While it speaks about the science, there is more needed analysis of the "debate" and politics of this pressing and vast subject as well a very much needed scathing indictment of the American press' approach to the subject. The author offers some breathtaking solutions to this problem that could really make for a great new world. If only. If only. I'll mail a copy to the next president. Now..if only someone would write a whole book about how science is too dangerous (biotechnology excepted of course) for America as it threatens to make Americans think and challenge the status quo. Espcially at this point in our history. The Vatican once had America's attitude about science.
The Cusp of a Change.......2006-02-12
Gelbspan argues convincingly that we are all aparticipants in our environmental well-being and that the changes wrought are just beginning to be felt. Climate change, he asserts, has come from our relentless production of greenhouse gases and it seems the weight of scientific opinion is lining up behind him.
The effcts are multi-dimensional including changes in weather patterns with resultant decrements in crop production and distressing increments in disease distribution as insect vectors find the warmer climate more to their liking.
His logic is, unfortunately, hard to refute, his prose easily comprehended and his tone earnest, if alarmist. This book should be read by everybody in congress.
Hot stuff!.......2006-02-06
Gelbspan is angry. His wrath is prominent on nearly every page of this stimulating work. He's irate because he's convinced climate change looms as a threat to our planet. Certain that today's nearly runaway "global warming" is at least accelerated by our society, if not basically initiated by our industrialised lifestyle, he vigorously censures the perpetrators. Living in the USA, and aware of how much his nation contributes to the worsening condition of our biosphere, he addresses his treatise directly at his fellow countrymen. Resource and energy industries have combined to blind North Americans to the results of their high profit commercial ventures. "Wake up!", Gelbspan admonishes. "You've been led into a bad situation! Fix it!"
The author's unsparing in his condemnation of lax standards and half-hearted solutions. No segment of contemporary US society, whether energy producer, consumer, politician is exempted from condemnation. Even environmental activists don't escape his lash. His primary target is the fossil fuel and coal industries. With their long-standing role as the foundation of US economic growth, they've grown nearly omnipotent. That power has been applied to guiding political figures in their development, or dearth, of policies regarding environmental issues. As the planet's largest producer of polluting agents, Gelbspan wants the US to start countering the prowess of industrial lobbyists in his nation. The time for action is overdue. And the solutions are available to be implemented. The first step is for the current adminstration to recognise that climate change is happening and much of it is human-induced. The time for obfuscation and delaying tactics is past.
Knowing how difficult it is for most citizens to cut through the propaganda they've been inundated with, Gelbspan provides a wealth of references to studies justifying his ire. The mass of evidence should convince the "enviro-sceptics" dominating the Bush administration and guiding journalists. Gelbspan recognises the "equal time" philosophy dominating most issues in the US, but charges that "equal time" is a fallacy when "the other side" is producing false or misleading information. Publishing "selective results" is anathema to any researcher worth the name, but it's rich fare for subservient politicians and lobbyists.
The solutions are available, says Gelbspan. He lists and examines several proposed plans of action. Most are found wanting for a variety of reasons. He's clear in why he considers them inadequate, noting that most are good, but cannot provide effective action in the needed time span or geographic scope required. The US may be the planet's worse polluter, but the problem is global, not confined by two oceans, a river and the "world's longest undefended border". His endorsement goes to The World Energy Modernization Plan put together in 1998 by a consortium of executives and experts in various fields. "The World" aspect in the group's title represents the need to gain firm support from many nations to implement the plan. The Montreal Protocol of 1987 diminishing atmospheric flourocarbons is an example the Plan could follow. It drastically reduced a serious threat to the upper atmosphere without impinging on the chemical's manufacturers to continue profitable operation. Where changing to new, safer chemicals worked there, changing to carbon-free energy can have the same effect now. To find out how it works, read Gelbspan's case and proposed solution. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
Important Topic, but Boring and Lacking Credibility!.......2006-01-10
"It is an excruciating experience to watch the planet fall apart piece by piece in the face of persistent and pathological denial." So begins "Boiling Point," a book filled with early symptoms of earth's warming - melting icecaps and glaciers, species moving northward, increasing temperatures, storms, and the severity of those storms. Gelbspan then goes on to place the blame for the U.S. not taking positive corrective action on oil and coal company lobbying, a weak press, and morally corrupt politicians. (President Bush is not the only politician to disappoint Gelbspan - President Putin also rejected the Kyoto treaty, though Gelbspan missed the most obvious reason - warming would benefit Russian agriculture.)
Clearly global warming is a very important topic, as is declining sources of carbon-based fuels. The "good news" is that both issues can be addressed through the same actions, and there are many very good books out there on the coming energy shortage. The "bad news" is that "Boiling Point" is boring and way too long, and that Gelbspan lacks the credibility that a respected scientist would have on this topic.
Re: Boiling Point.......2006-01-08
It's always good to come across some whole truth on this topic, considering how much misinformation and half-truth we see on the web and even in the media. Many people are quick to accept, without further research, things like petitions on climate change, claims that the Arctic (or the globe) is actually cooling, or that we shouldn't be concerned because climate change has happened in the past (which ignores the nature of the current trend - something unseen since a highly volcanic prehistory). Books like this, along with sites like GlobalWarmingTruth.org and RealClimate.org, provide the "rest of the story" and help people understand they're being bamboozled.
Although the book is a little strong on rhetoric in places, I like it's discussion of potential solutions, and the way it encourages people to consider the source of contrarian claims. If it's not firmly rooted in peer-reviewed science, get out the salt.
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Full of hot air: a climate alarmist takes on "criminals against humanity".(Boiling Point: How Politicians, Big oil and Coal, Journalists and Activists ... Review): An article from: Reason
Sallie Baliunas
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
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Binding: Digital
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ASIN: B000BKHNE0
Release Date: 2006-06-27 |
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This digital document is an article from Reason, published by Thomson Gale on October 1, 2005. The length of the article is 3363 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Full of hot air: a climate alarmist takes on "criminals against humanity".(Boiling Point: How Politicians, Big oil and Coal, Journalists and Activists Are Fueling the Climate Crisis - And What We Can Do to Avert the Disaster)(Book Review)
Author: Sallie Baliunas
Publication:
Reason (Magazine/Journal)
Date: October 1, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 37
Issue: 5
Page: 64(6)
Article Type: Book Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
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