Byzantine Women and Their World

Book Description

This beautiful book explores the representation of women in the Byzantine Empire. Featuring nearly two hundred works of art, the volume illustrates how women in Byzantium were represented in both material and literary culture and explores the continuities and changes in their lives throughout the era.

The featured artworks -- gathered from premier collections in North America -- date from the fourth through the fifteenth century and represent a full range of media and subject matter. They include luxury objects such as ivories, silver vessels, and precious jewelry; utilitarian objects such as toiletries and weaving tools; official objects such as coins and seals; and ritual objects such as icons and amulets. Organized in two broad categories -- women in the public sphere and women in the private sphere -- these works of art and objects of everyday life illustrate the diverse roles of women in Byzantine society and offer a view of their personal and public lives. Introductory essays by leading Byzantinists Ioli Kalavrezou and Angeliki Laiou offer further insights into these themes.

This book is the catalogue for the first exhibition ever devoted to the subject of women in Byzantium, on view at the Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Harvard University, from October 26, 2002 to March 23, 2003.

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Byzantine Women and Their World
Ioli; Laiou, Angeliki E.; Walker, Alicia; Gittings, Elizabeth A.; Heintz, Molly Fulghum; Pentcheva, Bissera V. Kalavrezou
Manufacturer: Huam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OSBFQ6

Book Description

In the 1960s and '70s, the fabulously versatile jewelry and fashion accessories from Sarah Coventry, Inc. were known as the "Finished Look of Fashion." These "simply chic" pieces were sold through in-home fashion shows, worn by stars and models, and advertised though TV, movies, and popular magazines coast to coast. With over 400 stunning color photos of jewelry and accessories, this exciting book rediscovers the still popular and highly collectible fine fashion lines from Sarah Coventry. Included are beautifully displayed bracelets, pierced and clip earrings, pins, pendants, necklaces, rings, belts, packaging and much more, along with company history, original catalog pages and advertisements, and both retail and current values. This essential guide to Sarah Coventry's "jewelry with know-how" will appeal to collectors, dealers, and all who admire costume jewelry.

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Great comic book!

Another Great Collection from Kirkman & Scott

Dad To The Bone, Baby Blues Scrapbook #16
Rick Kirkman , and Jerry Scott
Manufacturer: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Comic Strips | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books
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Baby Blues: Unplugged (Kirkman, Rick. Baby Blues Scrapbook, 15.)

Never A Dry Moment (Baby Blues Scrapbook, Book 17)

Two Plus One Is Enough: Baby Blues Scrapbook #18 (Baby Blues Scrapbook)

Lift and Separate

Playdate: Category 5: Baby Blues Scrapbook #19 (Baby Blues Scrapbook, 19)

ASIN: 0740726706

Book Description

If you read the job description in a want ad, you might think long and hard before responding. WANTED: A man willing to change diapers that could nuke the ozone, plop down on all fours and become a horsie at a moment's notice, arise from a deep sleep for an hour to calm nightmares, and part with a significant chunk of his hard-earned nest egg. There's only one explanation for why a man such as Baby Blues' Darryl MacPherson would accept such a challenge . . . because he's Dad to the Bone. "Now, when I coach your teams, I go out of my mind! Every holler and scream means I'm proud that you're mine!As the years go by, pretty baby, can't believe how much you've grown! I wanna' thank you for makin' me a Dad to the Bone!"Of course, Baby Blues isn't only about fatherhood. This is a well-rounded family, with mom Wanda becoming more well-rounded every day as she heads into her third pregnancy. This latest collection of strips from the wildly popular feature is the 16th for Baby Blues, which is enjoyed by 40 million parents and kids every day. Over the last 13 years, creators Jerry Scott and Rick Kirkman have perfected this family-centered strip that presents the joyful moments with the frustrating in a way that is hilarious and heartfelt without being syrupy sweet. Dad to the Bone is sure to add to the strip's side-splitting legacy.

Customer Reviews:

Great comic book!.......2006-06-25

I thought this was one of the best comic books I've ever read. This book is enriching, funny, and good! This Babyblues Scrapbook is full of Darryl, Wanda, Zoe, and Hammie cartoons. I definitely would recommed this to children and Adults of all ages.

Another Great Collection from Kirkman & Scott.......2003-04-08

Ever since I started reading the Baby Blues comic strip, ages ago, I have loved it. I truly think these two gentlemen sit under my kitchen window, listening to what goes on in my house and taking notes!

You'll laugh out loud when you see your own families' trials and tribulations drawn out in these strips -- and you WILL see yourself! That's the appeal of Baby Blues. Wanda and Daryl are typical American parents with typical American kids, and the typical American problems, joys, and laughter that we all have.

I highly recommend all of the books in the Baby Blues series!

Customer Reviews:

Lame.......2006-10-13

I bought this because it was on sale. Today is 10-13-06, so i have been through most of it. I have had 2 laughs and about 4 chuckles from the 280 or so days I have been reading it. This calendar is very dull and boring.

Book Description

This first full-length biography of a legendary and award-winning Hollywood writer, producer, and director (Duck Soup, My Favorite Wife, An Affair to Remember, Going My Way, and The Bells of St. Mary's) explores the director's life as filtered through his art. Gehring maintains that McCarey's films were often a reworking of his antiheroic self. In addition, the apparent diversity of his films actually represents an interrelated web of various comedy genres and a pattern of antiheroic characters and themes.

Product Description

The Robert Johnson iSong CD-ROM pack includes arrrangements ranging from simple riffs to note-accurate transcriptions. No matter what your skill level, whether you read music or not, iSong is a great way to learn!

Robert Johnson - iSong CD-ROM: iSong (9" x 12" Pack)

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Obsolete Technology with No Access

Robert Johnson - iSong CD-ROM: iSong (9" x 12" Pack)
Robert Johnson
Manufacturer: Hal Leonard Corporation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM
ASIN: 0634037501

Book Description

iSong is the only teaching tool that actually syncs to the original recordings of legendary musicians and today's top stars! Each iSong pack includes arrangements ranging from very simple to note-accurate transcriptions, a performance video, and a virtual fretboard. No matter what your skill level, iSong is a great way to learn songs. Each iSong CD-ROM features six innovative teaching tools in a state-of-the-art interactive environment: Animated score and TAB; synced instructor video; iLevel arrangements widely ranging in difficulty; virtual "live" fretboard or keyboard; tempo control; looping with exact cueing. The Johnson pack teaches six songs: Come on in My Kitchen * Cross Road Blues (Crossroads) * Hell Hound on My Trail * Kind Hearted Woman Blues * Last Fair Deal Gone Down * Terraplane Blue.

Customer Reviews:

Obsolete Technology with No Access.......2006-05-21

Although this is described as Mac compatible, this application requires OS9 which is not well supported by Apple anymore. Trying it on Windows produced mediocre results. Don't waste your money on this! Even when running, it is not effective.

Book Description

Paper doll enthusiasts can dress 2 dolls — bride and groom — in a total of 16 original costumes — 13 for the bride, 3 for the groom. Elegant contemporary wedding wear includes gowns inspired by the Italian Renaissance and the Gay Nineties; a dazzling confection in gold lamé, many more.

Book Description

Essential Principles for Fundraising Success is a single-source, easy-access guide that offers answers to the most commonly asked questions posed by professional fundraisers and volunteers. Organized in a clear, easy-to-use question and answer format, Essential Principles for Fundraising Success takes on the challenges that arise daily in the ongoing, high-pressured business of raising money. In this book, G. Douglass Alexander and Kristina Carlson (the founders of the successful Internet-based, fundraising consulting firm FundraisingINFO) offer insight from their combined forty-six years of experience working with thousands of nonprofit organizations. Based on the enduring principles of fundraising, this important resource shows how to master the three mainstays of fundraising—developing a case statement, creating a campaign strategy, and securing big gifts. Essential Principles for Fundraising Success also offers creative, out-of-the-box solutions for convincing reluctant board members and other stakeholders to follow proven, effective fundraising strategies

Customer Reviews:

Superbly thorough fundraising primer.......2006-03-08

The quest for funding is a high-pressure, never-ending process for nonprofit organizations large and small. Authors G. Douglass Alexander and Kristina J. Carlson break the process down into manageable pieces while covering each major avenue that fundraising professionals travel in the search for financial support. The authors use a question and answer format to explain and illustrate the premise outlined at the beginning of every chapter. Packed with useful, applicable information from cover to cover, this book deals with a range of topics including the basic principles of fundraising, annual and capital campaigns, special events, major gifts, foundation funding and stewardship. Such a comprehensive, well-organized analysis of any one subject is rare. We strongly recommend this book as a primer for any individual or group seeking guidance for a strategic approach to raising funds.

It's All There.......2005-11-24

I've served on the boards of a number of organizations that have developed very strong fundraising capabilities -- and some that have not. The latter group could catch up quickly by reading this book. Authors Carlson and Alexander have covered all the key topics in an easy to read and easily referenced format. Their depth of experience is evident throughout. Anyone involved in nonprofit fundraising should invest the time to read and appreciate these "essential principles."

A great PRIMER for any fundraiser . . . . .......2005-11-01

I just finished reading the book. After serving the non profit sector for over 20 years it is nice to have an easy to read, yet comprehensive publication for everyone to learn from. It will be required reading for all of our new hires at my organization. I cannot think of a better way to learn how to properly raise money in a variety of manners.

Jay

Book Description

In this brilliant, gracefully written, and important new book, former Secretary of the Interior and Governor of Arizona Bruce Babbitt brings fresh thought to questions of how we can build a future we want to live in.

WeÂ've all experienced AmericaÂ's changing natural landscape as the integrity of our forests, seacoasts, and river valleys succumbs to strip malls, new roads, and subdivisions. Too often, we assume that when land is developed it is forever lost to the natural world--or hope that a patchwork of local conservation strategies can somehow hold up against further large-scale development.

In Cities in the Wilderness, Bruce Babbitt makes the case for why we need a national vision of land use. We may have a space program, he points out, but here at home we donÂ't have an open-space policy that can balance the needs for human settlement and community with those for preservation of the natural world upon which life depends. Yet such a balance, the author demonstrates, is as remarkably achievable as it is necessary. This is no call for developing a new federal bureaucracy; Babbitt shows instead how much can be--and has been--done by making thoughtful and beneficial use of laws and institutions already in place.

Babbitt draws on his extensive experience to take us behind the scenes negotiating the Florida Everglades restoration project, the largest ever authorized by Congress. In California, we discover how the Endangered Species Act has been employed to restore regional habitat. In the Midwest, we see how new World Trade Organization regulations might be used to help restore IowaÂ's farmlands and rivers. As a key architect of many environmental success stories, Babbitt reveals how broad restoration projects have thrived through federal- state partnerships and how their principles can be extended to other parts of the country.

In this inspiring and informative book, Babbitt offers a vision of land use as grand as the countryÂ's natural heritage.

Customer Reviews:

babbitt always knows best.......2007-01-10

Bruce Babbitt continues to labor under the self deception that he know best in determining the future of the "common people" his ideas always consume like serfs found to be useless in the feifdom. Read it for the future it suggests of an end to private property and a beginning of the sort of Stalinism and federal tyranny that Babbitt favors. Don't think it was written by any true westerner who "grew up on a ranch." It was written by a political lackey and opportunist who was kicked off his grandfather's spread in Arizona and has always yearned for power--especially power over what he calls the "agricultural apparatchiks."

Rational Thoughts on a Typically Irrational Topic.......2006-06-23

Babbitt begins by telling us that relentless building of highways have spearheaded landscape destruction as land speculators and developers follow. Local governments generally have neither the political will, expertise, nor financial resources to stand up to well-financed developers and their political contributions. Babbitt then goes on to make the case for federal leadership in making land use regulation more effective, and uses examples from his experience involving the Everglades, Southern California, and the Chesapeake Bay to make the point.

The shrinking Everglades problem was caused by farms, canals, dikes, housing developments; its solution began during the early '90s, and moved forward despite Congress' tilting towards reduced spending. The first step occurred when then Interior Secretary Babbitt met with the Army Corps of Engineers, and reached agreement with them to develop a study and proposal on changing the drainage system. There was also a problem with excess fertilizer draining from sugar plantations into the Everglades - causing cattails to displace natural saw grass. They agreed to cut their fertilizer applications in half (were using too much - at the chemical companies behest), and to plant cattails at the draining end of their fields to soak up the rest of the excess. (Babbitt points out that the "ideal" solution would have been to simply end expensive sugar subsidies, allow foreign sugar into the U.S. at much lower price, and allow the sugar plantations to revert to the Everglades.) Another requirement was buying out landowners "suckered" into buying swampland that were clamoring for more levees so they could use their land. The happy outcome was a proposal backed by all sides that was enacted by Congress in 2000. (Side Note: Everglade bog land used for sugar growing has a limited life anyway - it had already dried out, was blowing away, and sunk 12 feet, and had not much further to sink before reaching limestone.)

Babbitt learned in other efforts that it was much simpler to work on a project limited to a single state, and the importance of using sound science in administering the Endangered Species Act.

Babbitt points out that the federal government has always been involved in land-use planning - improving river navigability, surveying, staking out, and subsidizing transcontinental railroad routes, flood control projects, dams, interstate highways. While these efforts were all aimed at land development, he believes that it now time to also boost land conservation as well.

A good prescription for a "realistic" 21st century environmentalism.......2006-04-11

I use "realistic" in scare quotes as an alternative to "idealistic" environmentalism without commenting on the moral value or desirability of either approach.

Babbitt, Clinton's sole Secretary of the Interior, and governor of Arizona before that, is a career politician with a non-extractive industries Westerner's love of nature of his native land.

Those two come together in his thoughts for how the Endangered Species Act and the 1906 Antiquities Act, used in new ways, can be two of the cornerstones of a 21st century environmentalism, primarily in the West, but indeed nationally.

The other cornerstones are state lead-taking in land-use planning, in conjunction with federal support, and a new day in federal-state environmental cooperation in general.

More obvious observations about the anti-environmentalism of people like President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and Congressman Richard Pombo aside, Babbitt offers a moderate amount, but not a great deal, of prescriptive specifics on how to do this.

His own success as Interior Secretary was constrained by the change of administrations.

Babbitt pushed Clinton into "new-style" national monuments remaining outside National Park Service control, such as Grand Staircase-Escalante NM in Utah and Giant Sequoia NM in California (not to be confused with Sequoia NP). The idea was that the landholding federal agency of record (the Bureau of Land Management in Utah and the National Forest Service in California) would develop a better conservationist ethic through being committed to national monument management of a monument that retained multi-use characteristics.

While this might be true to some degree of the BLM, it certainly isn't of the Forest Service, and likely won't be unless that agency sees a MAJOR shake-up. (My prescription: Move the Forest Service out of Agriculture and into Interior.)

That, and the book's relative slimness, keep it from a better rating, as it barely hits 4 stars.

Book Review.......2006-03-24

Cities in the Wilderness
By Bruce Babbitt

Book Review
By Dan Warren

In today's republican political arena with the Bush administrations compelling interest in land expansion the outlook for Environmental causes let along protection would appear to have a dark and gloomy cloud atop any progress. However, Bruce Babbitt the author of Cities in the Wilderness has some new innovative ideas about land use in America. As the U.S. Secretary of the Interior from 1993 to 2001, governor of Arizona from 1978 to 1987 and as Arizona's Attorney General for three years he brings with him experience and a most impressive track record of success in an effort that is largely opposed and unsuccessful; Environmental land preservation efforts and even restoration.
Within the pages of his book Babbitt gives illustrations of success and of failure. He provides detailed rational in each instance drawing on history, public opinion, media, legal requirements, county state and federal involvements, as well as a plethora of other mitigation factors that explain the success or failure. From these Babbitt pieces together an extraordinary working illustration of how we can be better stewards of our land in America.
Furthermore, whether directly or indirectly Babbitt addresses the political climate and gives examples of how to over come the counter movements that oppose his unique vision of land use. Within the confines of his five short easy to read straight forward chapters Babbitt is clear, concise, and well structured in order to piece his ideology together followed by appropriate explanation. His thesis is essentially a parallel, contrary to much of his opposition's belief, as will be detailed later in this review, that our country has historically viewed land development not as a local, county, or even State matter, but as a Federal matter. As such Babbitt will contend that we need to continue to have a Federal interest in land use and development while making a joining effort with more localities but still governed by Federal legislation and direction.
As a native Floridian the everglades are a state treasure. Anyone who has ever driven route one through this magnificent area will feel immersed in nature. For anyone who has not experienced this, all you have to do is watch CBS's hit show CSI: Miami and in most of the episodes as well as in the shows introduction can get a glimpse of what the everglades are from viewing it across their television sets. However, this schema that will be created by this in no way gives justice to the real thing. While either which way will introduce you to the Florida Everglades, it will not reveal its unique history.
In Babbitt's first chapter he uses his experience with the preservation of the Everglades as an introduction to his idea. The devastation caused by hurricane Andrew in the early 1990's also included the destruction of Homestead Air force base in Florida. In the aftermath the government came to the decision to not to rebuild this base, but rather to sell the property commercially for redevelopment. The proposed plan was initially to make the property into a jet port thus generating jobs and commerce. While at first glance this idea makes serves to help the many who became jobless with the closure of the Air force base, it was highly controversial because the proposed site was only miles from the entrance to the everglades.
The balancing of these two conflicting interests: land preservation and development for the sake of commerce is the first conflict that Babbitt faces. It is within these conflicts that are the heart of his book and subsequently in looking at each of these that the most benefit for policy and future decision can be justified on. In this particular issue Babbitt allied with the Army Core of Engineers, a most unexpected partnership. The Army Core who wants to build and Babbitt whose interests are to protect creates a uniquely original idea; the two can actually achieve preservation by essentially constructing preservation.
As pointed out by Babbitt, in earlier years it was the Army Core of Engineers who by direct engineering was in-directly causing devastating affects to the Everglades. As such the remedy was to undo that which was previously done by the efforts of the Army Core of Engineers. While this sounds simple in concept it was very costly and took great effort before it would be later approved for its application. So what exactly would this "undoing" so to speak entail? It would set a new precedent, we would actually spend money not to development but essentially to UN-develop already developed land and for what cause, to preserve the Everglades. This is essentially a step in a new direction in favor of environmental preservation. However, this did not come easily or without coincidence. It was a project that took over eight years, had an eight billion dollar price tag, and according to Babbitt, "the everglades success was an aberration, a case of being in the right place when in came to make a down payment on a presidential election" .
So what is there to be learned from this experience and success in the Everglades? Babbitt goes on to say,
"is there an urgent lesson to be derived from the Florida Everglades, it is that we must invent new federal-state partnerships for managing and restoring our lands, partnerships that have sufficient charisma and public support to withstand destructive efforts by later administrations. Which leads us back to the central question posed: could the Everglades effort mark the beginning of a national commitment to large-scale restoration of degraded ecosystems" ?
The answer to Babbitt's question is two fold. In law when a case is decided the decision is called stare decisis which essentially equates to a precedent that other cases can be decided upon. In the same this narrowly tailored example does in its most simplistic form create a sort of precedent that may act as a catalyst or at least a reference to which other matters related to land conservation can be decided upon.
As Babbitt moves on in his book he provides another success story in California however this is contrasted with a failure Mississippi. In a later chapter Babbitt faces a new conflict of interests. The issue at essence here is a legal one, it involves the interpretation of what constitutes an endangered species and how exactly the Endangered Species Act is used in conjuncture with the rights of landowners. The discussion centers on an endangered bird. What is truly interesting in this example drawn from Babbitt's personal experience is that it utilized a scientific research study in order to investigate the natural habitat of the endangered species so as to have an information base to which decisions can be based off rather then guestimating. Again Babbitt's efforts were successful; however he cited that this is due to good press and public support.
The Endangered Species Act was the legal key to success according to the author. It provided the legal authority to act and to protect in this case. What seems difficult about this is the actually application of the act itself. From the text it does not appear that there is a guideline as to how to implement the acts authority and for the most part serves as a guideline that is to be implemented on the local level and the only Federal participation is to create the act itself but does not provide any governing agency to enforce the act. Rather it relies on its compliance at the local level who it seems in most instances are the ones opposing the act as it in most cases reduces expansion and thus tax revenues for that city, county, or even state.
An interesting remark made by the author is that when it comes to The Endangered Species Act, it is not proactive in protecting but rather reactive in that it does not take affect until after the damage is done. What is gained from this is the ideology that perhaps we need to be proactive with our environment, land use, and species conservation. As with youth we try to teach intervention programs that seek to solve the problem of juvenile delinquency before it starts, in the same we need to solve environmental concerns before they start. Again with this parallel prevention programs cost far less and have much less damage when successful with juveniles as this applies to our environment. We spent 8 billion to undo land development that we had already paid to have developed. Here if we add the research and science base before we make a decision we can avoid these types of environmental concerns before they even exist.
In subsequent chapters Babbitt applies the concepts thus far discussed to the Midwest in regional restoration. He does a great job of finding money in already current budgets to use towards restoration efforts. For instance he mentions a fifteen million dollar account used for a farm program account. Babbitt also explains that all that needs to occur for this to work is to make it into the farmer's best interests to embrace this program and with the requirements of the global economy they will be more then willing.
One molecule of oxygen and two of hydrogen create the world's universal solvent and the substance that sustains life on earth: water. The tragedy is that we are wasting it. Again returning to the argument that we need not leave matters to a localized government, but rather we must make them a federal concern, water with all of its importance needs be a chief central concern. As brought up by Buttell, one avenue in promoting environmentalism is a global view point. Babbitt does a good job emphasizing the importance of making water a Federal matter in the U.S. (as his book's title contains the phrase "Land use in America", I feel that on a matter as internationally important as water it only makes sense to start at the top being Federally regulated and then enforced on each level. Again how we Federally regulate it is just as important but I think we can take this a step further and Internationally regulate water as it is more important then any petroleum based resource, everyone globally needs it to survive and I think more emphasis should be given to this concern, not specifically to this text as again it seeks to speak out about U.S. policy, but rather in other avenues.
While Babbitt's text has a feel good syntax to it, his conclusion brings reality back into play. He finishes up by giving an impressive history and emphasizes the importance of our land. He goes so far as to call it an "American Treasure". Despite this he ends his text with
"Today, however, our public land institutions are under unprecedented attack from both the president and the Congress. This is a season for all Americans to take renewed interest in defending their heritage- the freedom and glory of wide open public spaces."
This call to action that he ends with is a powerful one. However, I am doubtful that with the low voting rates of my generation and the ignorance we as a country have towards our Environment I am weary of our future. Will we use the powerful tools that Babbitt has empowered us with; will we be proactive and preventative rather then responsive after the fact before we have done irreversible harm to our Continent? These questions are serious and meaningful and will affect later generations of Americans.

Excellent Read About Land Use.......2006-03-18

I enjoyed reading about bruce Babbit's interpretation of where land use should focus in the years to come. He also laid the groundwork for the development process for several urban areas and national parks. I found it to be a very worthwhile read and I would recommend it to othere.

An antidote to sprawl.(Cities in the Wilderness: A New Vision of Land Use in America)(Book review) : An article from: Issues in Science and Technology

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An antidote to sprawl.(Cities in the Wilderness: A New Vision of Land Use in America)(Book review) : An article from: Issues in Science and Technology
Martin W. Lewis
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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Book Description

This digital document is an article from Issues in Science and Technology, published by Thomson Gale on March 22, 2006. The length of the article is 1710 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: An antidote to sprawl.(Cities in the Wilderness: A New Vision of Land Use in America)(Book review)
Author: Martin W. Lewis
Publication: Issues in Science and Technology (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 22, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 22 Issue: 3 Page: 87(3)

Article Type: Book review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Customer Reviews:

All color photos of WWII aviation.......1997-09-22

This book is a collection of narratives (first person comments) and 181 full color photos from WWII. Most people today whose fathers or grandfathers fought in WWII have a hard time visualizing the war in terms of anything other than the black and white photos and films that are all they've ever seen of it. While we consciously know the war happened, it just doesn't seem real to the subconscious when everything is in the B+W media of another era. The color pictures in this book make it seem like it was yesterday. The pictures have the same look and clarity to them that you see on the pictures of last week's picnic when you pick up the developed prints at the drugstore. It's a little jarring to look at a color picture you could have taken yesterday and see 20 year old pilots who barely need to shave leaning on their fighters, and realize the pilots now have grandchildren who shave and that it's been over 50 years since the last of those planes flew

Book Description

In this book John Zaller develops a comprehensive theory to explain how people acquire political information from the mass media and convert it into political preferences. Using numerous specific examples, Zaller applies this theory in order to explain the dynamics of public opinion on a broad range of subjects, including both domestic and foreign policy, trust in government, racial equality, and presidential approval, as well as voting behavior in U.S. House, Senate and Presidential elections. Particularly perplexing characteristics of public opinion are also examined, such as the high degree of random fluctuations in political attitudes observed in opinion surveys and the changes in attitudes due to minor changes in the wording of survey questions.

Customer Reviews:

A REVIEW I WROTE FOR SCHOOL . . ........2005-08-20

An interesting, and occasionally vexing, topic of study in political science is public opinion. In his book The American Democracy Thomas Patterson touches upon myriad issues that surround this topic: the difficulties in accurately measuring public opinion, the inconsistencies and fluidity of public opinion, and political socialization are just a few of the factors of interest to political scientists that Patterson examines. However, no introductory text can examine such a multifaceted topic in great depth, and as a result on page two-hundred eleven of his book Patterson recommends John R. Zaller's The Nature and Origins of Mass Opinion as a good source for more in-depth information about public opinion formation and measurement. Indeed, Patterson characterizes Zaller's work as "[a] superb analysis of the nature of public opinion" (211). Zaller examines many, if not all, of the factors that influence public opinion, spending a great deal of time examining the affect of information on political opinions and election choices, and the impact of "elite domination of public opinion" (310). But Zaller's work is perhaps best known for its thoughtful examination of public opinion instability, an examination that challenges traditional thinking on the topic. And, while not perfect, it is easily one of the most important and influential works written on this subject.

As Zaller highlights, variances in survey results has traditionally been attributed to "measurement error" which is built into a survey or the presence of "nonattitudes"
(i.e. respondents answer questions about which they have no strong opinion) (31). In the broadest sense, The Nature and Origins of Mass Opinion strives to refute these explanations; and instead posits that a combination of factors, including the degree of ambivalence an individual has related to a specific topic, the general level of interest a person has in a topic, and what information has been encountered and how recently, more accurately explain response instability. Zaller does an excellent job of building his case for this perspective; in particular the use of literature from disciplines other than political science is especially compelling. Supported by this literature, and compelling in its own right, are the axioms that comprise his "Receive-Accept-Sample (RAS) model" (58). The author painstakingly examines each of his axioms and examines each in relationship to real world data which serves to further strengthen his arguments. As a result it seems clear that his contentions that individuals who are more aware of the political process are also more likely to perceive political messages, while at the same time resisting messages that run counter to their own political biases, have great validity. Further, Zaller's argument that there is a high degree of ambivalence on many issues is well supported by the analysis of the findings from the 1987 pilot study that is cited (63). Finally, even though the author acknowledges the inherent challenges in proving the validity of axiom four, he makes a compelling case by utilizing literature from the field of psychology (62). The result is an intriguing model that, rather than assuming that "response error is simply so much noise . . . [or] signifies nothing of interest" instead argues that "response variation is rooted in an important substantive phenomena, namely the common existence of ambivalence in people's reactions to issues" (75). Of further importance and interest are the series of deductions that the author forms through the application of his model to real world circumstances.

While it is impractical to examine each of Zaller's deductions there are two that are especially significant. The author's third deduction is representative of the very essence of his RAS model and its implications: If people form conflicting considerations on most issues, and if they base their survey
responses on whichever of these considerations happen to be at the top of the head atthe moment of response, one should expect a fair amount of variability in people's responses to survey questions. (64).

This "top of the head" argument is fundamental to the author's perspective, and Zaller offers numerous citations in support of this deduction. The result is a sea change in the way that response instability is perceived. A second deduction that is quite compelling examines the relationship between political attitudes and the political messages of the powerful and elite:

[T]he population as a whole should be able to develop more stable attitudes for issues on which partisan elites divide sharply and clearly, thereby providing clearer message cues for everyone. Conversely, attitude stability should be weaker for issues on which partisan divisions are hazy or nonexistent, because in such cases the public gets few message cues. (67).

The validity of this deduction has been proven out over the past thirty years. On a whole series of issues, including reproductive health and immigration, the messages espoused by the major political parties have become increasingly polarized and that polarization has increasingly been reflected in attitudes amongst the electorate. The RAS model, and the deductions that flow from it, represent a significant addition to the body of literature in political science. However, though Nature and Origins of Mass Opinion is an invaluable work, it is not without its faults.

One small criticism that can be made is the relatively sparse discussion of the survey instrument from which much of the data used to test the RAS model. More to the point, it would be helpful to have the instrument included as an appendix to the book. Zaller does identify the pilot study used, and it is currently available online (after registering with the online host, and assuming that one has access to the statistical software necessary to open the documents), however, in order to test, and adequately assess, Zaller's conclusions the raw data must be readily accessible. A more significant criticism of the RAS model itself is an important assumption upon which it is built - that of the type of information individuals receive and process:

The Receive-Accept-Sample Model is . . . a set of claims about how citizens acquire "information" and convert it into attitude statements . . . [O]ne cannot test the model without making definite assumptions about the information environment that sustains citizens' attitudes on a given issue. For purposes of this chapter, I make the following simple assumption about this environment: that it consists of moderately intense,
temporally stable information flows favoring both the liberal and
conservative side of each issue. By moderately intense I refer to information flows that involve neither dominating headline stories . . . nor obscure or esoteric stories. (58)

The definition suffers from vagueness that is difficult to overstate, and ignores the fact that what a researcher might define as "esoteric" could be perceived as most significant to a member of the public. Given that the RAS model is what Zaller defines as an "information processing model" (58), the imprecise manner in which information environment and information flow are defied is a serious flaw.

For many decades there has been an assumption amongst political scientists that variations in survey responses stemmed from flaws inherent to the survey instrument itself. In The Nature and Origins of Mass Opinion, John Zaller exposes the flaws inherent in such thinking. Despite some non-fatal shortcomings the author builds a persuasive case that, where survey instruments are free of bias, response instability is the expression of the uncertainty that many people feel on a wide array of issues.

A must read for Political scientists.......2004-07-10

Zaller's argues public opinion on issues is unreliable, primarily because elite sources of information provide competing or multiple considerations causing public opinon polls to measure whatever recent elite message an individual has stored in thier short term memory. A classic and important text. Zaller is not a straightforeward read, but lays out an important theory. The theory lacks focus on the use of core values and partisanship on public opinion; two important variables. Other than that it has held up to criticism for over a decade

Useful but dense.......2004-06-09

Zaller's book presents an interesting elite-driven model of public opinion, which essentially concludes that opinion polls are less than reliable and we should be skeptical of attempts to measure the public's attitudes. However, it is very dense, is chock-full of advanced statistics above the head of most political science graduate students, and therefore at the end of the day is somewhat unsatisfying.

If you need a primer on public opinion research, this isn't it. But if you want to read cutting-edge work, and you have a good grasp of statistics, dive in.

Measuring the Unmeasurable.......2004-03-21

The effectiveness and accuracy of public opinion polls was always assumed, until this important and enlightening book. Zaller consolidates previous doubts about the very definitions of public opinion and how to measure it, and shows the shaky foundations of public opinion polls. In the fascinating early chapters of this book, we find that people's political opinions and poll responses are often distressingly inconsistent; with destabilizing effects from poll design, the ordering and language of questions, whether or not the person recently heard about the issues, and each person's level of ideology and receptiveness to ideas.

But this does not prove that people are uninformed, but that standard polling is woefully inadequate in measuring all of the idiosyncrasies of the human mind, and one's opinions on complicated political matters. This book gets off to a great start by illuminating such fallacies. The first few chapters are strong enough to earn this book accolades as a poli-sci landmark. But after proving that public opinion is perhaps unmeasurable (at least accurately), Zaller then spends the rest of the book measuring it himself anyway, with self-designed statistical models. However, it becomes difficult to tell whether he is using the results of his measurements to gain insight into actual public opinion, or merely to prove the viability of his own statistics.

By the middle of the book Zaller has embarked on a tedious and uninspiring academic exercise in statistical modeling that adds little to the points that were already made convincingly early on. Unnecessarily complex statistical equations are piled on mundanely, along with unenlightening charts and graphs. Like many other political science writers, Zaller has focused on pleasing his colleagues who are more likely to be impressed by repetitive evidence and windy statistics, while forgetting about the informed general reader who may just find the big-picture conclusions fascinating. That makes the majority of this book somewhat disappointing, rather like standing on a mountaintop on a cloudy day. You know the view (i.e. insights into the political knowledge of the masses) could be tremendous, if it wasn't obscured by clouds (i.e. academic tedium). True knowledge can be gained by disregarding the dusty science of this book and concentrating on the greater insights that lie beneath. [~doomsdayer520~]

A Modern PoliSci Classic.......2000-08-22

What would a comprehensive graduate exam in political science or political behavior be without a review of Zaller's now classic text? Elite discourse, Zaller informs us, shapes public opinion. That is, powerholders have the ability to mold both the agenda of the public -- the political issues that citizens feel to be most important -- as well as their beliefs about these issues. The topic raises important normative and ethical issues and the book offers a number of starting points for follow-up research. A decidedly good, important buy, this one.

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Endangered, Threatened & Rare Fauna of North Carolina PT. 3: A Re-Evaluation of the Birds (Occasional Papers of the North Carolina Biological Survey, 1)
James F. Parnell , and David S. Lee
Manufacturer: North Carolina State Museum of Natural Scienc
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Binding: Paperback

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