Book Description
Help Your Daughter Resist Peer Pressure–
Even When You’re Not Around.
A national survey in 2001 indicated that in the U.S. one-fourth of the high school seniors have problems with drugs and alcohol, nearly two-thirds of teenagers experiment with drugs before finishing high school, and fifty-six percent of seventeen-year-olds know at least one drug dealer at school. Studies also indicate that when a girl chooses to use substances, peer pressure is the biggest reason why.
Many parents believe the best they can do is to teach their daughters right from wrong and hope for the best. But there is more that you can do. Because while peer pressure may be the biggest influence for girls who choose to use substances, parental involvement is the single most important factor for those who decide not to.
The dangers of substance abuse can actually bring you and your daughter closer.
Whether you want to help your daughter resist the overwhelming pressures to drink, smoke, and use drugs; have discovered or suspect that your daughter may be using substances; or want to help her develop a strong and positive identity in response to negative peer pressure, this book shows how the lure of today’s teen “party” culture puts you in your most powerful position ever to connect with and influence your daughter.
Book Description
This book combines New Vanguard 38: `American Civil War Artillery 1861-65 (1) Field Artillery' and New Vanguard 40: `American Civil War Artillery 1861-65 (2) Heavy Artillery'. Perhaps the most influential arm of either army in the prosecution of the American Civil War, the artillery of both sides grew to be highly professional organizations. Because of the length of the coastline of the United States, from the beginning American ordnance placed an emphasis on its `Heavy Artillery' mounted in coastal defenses, while their `Field Artillery' units were assigned across the fighting fronts. In battle, the introduction of both the 12-pdr. Napoleon and rifled cannon provided a range and power previously unknown on American soil. This book details the development and usage of this vital cog in the war-machine of both sides.
Customer Reviews:
Insufficiently detailed and somewhat confused, but inexpensive.......2006-11-17
A bargain for those who are already planning to buy Philip Katcher's "American Civil War Artillery" volume 1 or 2, this title contains both volumes within a single cover at a single volume price.
This is not a really bad work, and it has some useful information not found in some other titles, but there are better works available in the subject. This is particularly true of the first half of the book covering field artillery that is littered with errors that will mislead the reader. The second half about heavy artillery is more useful, particularly since few affordable works cover this subject in detail.
In the field artillery section Katcher discusses the structure of the batteries of the CSA Army of Tennessee. This should appeal to readers accustomed to eastern centric artillery. (The source for this information is Larry Daniel's work as noted in the bibliography.)
Katcher gets most things about the pieces themselves correct, but seems rather confused in details and nuances of this admittedly confusing subject. Examples of this confusion are many such as:
1. He mistakenly assumes that "6 pdr rifles" from Tredegar were smaller than 10 pdr Parrotts, or 3" rifles, when in fact the 3 pdr and 6 pdr entries early in Tredegar's production were an example of inconsistent nomenclature in describing the same pieces.
2. He confuses 3" Ordnance rifles with the generic "3 inch rifle" used to refer to all rifles of this approximate caliber (as shown by a misstatement in the Ordnance rifle section about some CSA batteries using CSA produced Ordnance rifles in addition to captures. The CSA never produced this piece.)
3. There is a lot of confusion in the description of carriages and weights of the same. The Napoleon used an adapted 24 pdr howitzer carriage primarily that was notably heavier than the 6 pdr carriage used for the 6 pdr gun, the 3" rifle types, and 12 pdr howitzer.
4. The author incorrectly states the 12 pdr howitzer was heavier than the 6 pdr gun. In fact its tube was lighter and it used the same carriage.
5. There are some obvious typos such as a range of 5,000 yards for a Mountain Howitzer at 2.30' elevation. The author mentions the mountain pack carriage but neglects to mention the special prairie carriage that was also used at times. The author also discussed post war Indian fighting with 12 pdr Napoleons, but fails to mention the mountain howitzers that were extensively used for this service.
6. There are several confusing statements about Whitworths, including one seeking to prove that they were costly by comparing the purchase price of a 70 pdr (5 inch?) Whitworth with a 3" rifle--heavy vs. field, apples to oranges.
Ammo types are not shown for field artillery and the discussion of them in the text is extremely short.
The bibliography in each of the combined works is short and omits some important books that should have been consulted for the author's work. This explains some apparent gaps in the author's presentation of ACW artillery and some potential errors in the text. Hazlett's work on Field Artillery certainly would have been of benefit to the author.
Tables are presented for weights and ranges of smoothbore field artillery, but rifled cannon info is omitted from the table. This is unfortunate as such information is available in period ordnance manuals and Coggins' work for example.
While the heavy artillery is covered more accurately, the discussion revolves mostly around actions in the east. Actions along the Mississippi and Gulf are largely ignored. This is unfortunate as there were a number of notable heavy artillery engagements in these theaters. Comparison tables of weights and ranges are not provided for heavy artillery
Customer Reviews:
Well-written history of mechanics.......2007-10-06
This is a good, solid, broad history of mechanics. Dijksterhuis offers subjective interpretations only occasionally, but when he does he is very dogmatic. Fortunately, it is easy to refute some of his whiggish ideas by his own words.
Consider the following conclusion on Kepler (pp. 321-322): "If the question was asked what are the new elements in Kepler's work, it has to be replied that these are not in the first place results which greatly deviate from the old system; the main achievement is a method that is very clearly different. The principal features of this method are:
(1) Rejection of all arguments which are solely based on tradition and authority.
(2) Independence of scientific inquiry of all philosophical and theological tenets.
(3) Constant application of the mathematical mode of thought in the formulation and elaboration of hypotheses.
(4) Rigorous verification of these results deduced from the latter by means of an empiricism raised to the highest degree of accuracy."
(1)-(4) is a very poor characterisation of science. No true scientist ever conformed to these principles, certainly not Kepler, of all people, whose Mysterium Cosmographicum and Harmonice Mundi (virtually ignored here) violate all of them from start to finish, nor Galileo, nor Newton, etc. Let me give a few illustrations.
(2). "[Kepler] passes without the slightest effort from the world-picture to the Trinity, and it is by no means inconceivable that the resemblance he sees between the two helped to inspire one of his most fruitful ideas, the conception of the sun as the causa efficiens of planetary motion." (pp. 305-306).
(4). Kepler's magnetic theory of planetary motion, which it "is, of course, not difficult to prove the untenability of" (p. 313), still gets a prominent place in the Astronomia Nova, "his greatest work" (p. 306).
(4). There is virtually no support for "the myth that Galileo was a great advocate of experiment" (p. 353). On the contrary, "in Galileo's work, verification by experiment sometimes appears to be of secondary importance because it may be regarded as somewhat superfluous if the preceding reasoning seems very convincing; thus only purely mental experiments remain or the experiments are only described without being performed. 'I made an experiment about it, but natural reason (il natural discorso) had very firmly convinced me that the phenomena was bound to take place as it actually did'." (p. 345).
(2) and (3). Although "the aim of the Cartesian method is indeed to cause all scientific thinking to take place in the manner of mathematics" (p. 405), thus in principle endorsing (3), "few marks of it are to be found in the work of Descartes himself" (p. 405). In fact, perhaps the main appeal of his work is his rejection of (2): "To a considerable extent ... men will no doubt ... have been impressed by the unity of the world-picture in which his powerful mind had blended natural science, philosophy, and religion" (p. 408).
(2). "The strong influence which Newton's religious ideas exercised on his scientific thought is revealed, among other things, in his belief in the existence of absolute space and absolute time. The former to him symbolizes God's omnipresence, the latter His eternity." (p. 487).
(2) and (4). It is conventional to praise Newton for trying to answer only "how" and not "why" objects fall, planets move, etc.; "Hypotheses non fingo", as he says in the general scholium of the Principia. However, "on the very same page he puts forward a supposition 'about a most subtle spirit which pervades and lies hid in all gross bodies ...' He recognizes, it is true, that the experiments available to him are insufficient for accurately establishing and proving the laws which the operation of this spirit obeys. However, the fact that he concludes his great work with the mention of this fantastic idea clearly proves that the occupation of framing hypotheses exercised a greater fascination upon him than might be expected after his blunt declaration of policy." (p. 484). In fact, "the great ingenuity he displays in this matter leads us to suppose that the saying Hypotheses non fingo is an expression of self-denial. Actually he dearly loved to frame hypotheses, but he forced himself to refrain from doing so" (p. 486), for religious reasons, but "however zealously Newton may attempt to safeguard religion against the dangers of threatening it from the side of mechanicism as a metaphysics, as a physicist he is ... greatly impressed by the successes it had achieved as a scientific method" (p. 488).
Indeed, the science of Kepler and Newton et al. conforms less to (1)-(4) than to the principle that "it is better to maintain the order of nature and be in conflict with the senses ... even though in doing so we fail to solve certain sophisms to which we are led by the senses" (p. 214; Roger Bacon, quoted with contempt by Dijksterhuis) or to Dijksterhuis' characterisation of Greek scientists as "too much concerned to satisfy the human craving for a picture of the universe that could be readily understood and seemed to obey simple laws of harmony" (p. 119). Similarly, Dijksterhuis' description of "the early scientific thought of the Greeks" could very fittingly be applied word-by-word to Kepler, namely that they were "indulged in fantastic speculations ... which took too little account of hard reality to lead to fruitful theories. It is not for nothing that the aged Egyptian priest in the Timaeus says to Solon that the Hellenes are always like children." (p. 72). Kepler's childishness allows him to go beyond (1)-(4), while, as Dijksterhuis is forced to admit, the most unchildish of the Greeks, Aristotle, got nowhere with his supposedly mature (1)-(4)-ish attitude: Aristotle replaced "the tendency ... of constructing an imaginary nature by reasoning from preconceived principles and forcing reality more or less to adapt itself to this construction" by "a purely empirical attitude, based on the recognition that the true knowledge of nature can only be gained from carefully collected observational data", but this "does not ... explain why the ... achievements of Aristotle in the department of physics are still so small" (p. 69).
An excellent example of Whig history of science.......2007-08-03
Dijksterhuis' The Mechanization of the World Picture is a perfect example of how history of science should not be written.
Being a good positivist,the author provides us with a rationalist reconstruction of how elements of mechanistic discourse and practice from the time of the ancient Greeks to the eighteenth century were incorporated into the canon of modern science.
Filled with anachronistic analysis, decontextualised theoretical accounts and erroneous and specious reasoning, Dijksterhuis' book provides students of the history of science with an excellent exemplar of internalist, Whig history of science according to the discredited (but still academically influential) canon of the history of ideas.
While the author's recounting of a vast swathe of historical development may be impressive to the novice, his picture of the history of science as a gradual accumulation of better and more inclusive and comprehensive scientific theories through the application of a single, universally applicable scientific method finds very little support amongst the majority of professional historians of science today.
It's simply The Bible -- And here are four related indispensables...........2006-02-20
Add my unreserved kudos to the initial 5-star review below, and then some! Dijksterhuis' "Science In The Middle Ages" section, based on the relatively extensive source material surviving from that period, may be the more comprehensive; but the preceding "Legacy Of Antiquity" section constitutes one of the two or three most detailed and incisive summaries available of the several lines of "Presocratic" philosophers who set the stage for Aristotle and Plato (who were in turn the two biggest influences on Medieval science, philosophy, and philosophy of science).
The book's subtitle names Pythagoras as the starting point, but the "Main Currents Of Greek Philosophical Thought About Nature" section quickly flashes all the way back, via Parmenides and his Eleatic "change and difference are total illusions" School, to early beginnings: Empedocles and Anaxagoras, as the founders of the "corpuscular/dynamic" tradition that would culminate in Leucippus' and Democritus' widely resisted "atomic" theory.
Those thinkers reacted to Parmenides' critique of the "primary substance" theory of Thales and his followers -- the Founding Founders of Western philosophy, mathematics and science -- and to their "Change Is All" nemesis, Heraclitus -- in various and distinctive ways. Dijksterhuis' analysis of the essence and variabilities of corpuscular ("tiny particles in the void") theory packs more insight into fewer paragraphs than any other work on the history of science that I know of.
Plato is handled well, and Aristotle is, deservedly, examined closely and at length. Islamic contributions, Renaissance and Enlightenment perspectives, and the influences of astronomy, chemistry, mechanics and more are interwoven in a masterly display of scholarly attainment and principled synthesis.
Hence, this title is engrossing reading in its own right, as well as being an essential reference for anyone interested in researching/writing about the origins of natural science and related philosophical matters (my own focus is partly on the evolution of the notion of "explanation", starting with the Age of Myth and transitioning into the Greek mode that would define Western science and, as the author rightfully claims, a good deal of general culture as well; hence the great value here for me.)
That transition from myth to methodology, by the way, isn't nearly as cut-and-dried as it is commonly presented in popular surveys and school texts. Hence, a highly recommended adjunct to the present title is a pair of complementary masterworks, "Before Philosophy" by Frankfort et. al. and John Burnet's "Early Greek Philosophy". The former is a superbly insightful study of the nature of the mythological modes that preceded a philosophy built upon what Frankfort so pithily calls "the autonomy of thought"; the latter provides a wealth of detail that Dijksterhuis largely omits in keeping with his narrower focus, along with a wealth of enlightening analysis and characterization (motives, foundational notions, cultural countercurrents, etc.).
Both are bargain aftermarket titles, and compulsive reads for anyone the least bit interested in the nature and history of reasoned thought.
In rereading this review, I find myself having to add two more key resources:
First is Schlegel's "From Myth To The Modern Mind", which manages to complement both Frankfurt and Dijksterhuis with its insightful introductory survey of the history of anthropological views on the "primitive" mind, and its focus on the evolution of cognitive processes underlying the culture of myth and the transition to early philosophy and science. This work is a real eye opener, and an invaluable reference for researchers in the field of the evolution of human thought.
Second is Bertrand Russell's "A History Of Western Philosophy", a cultural-context-themed and brilliantly original survey rightly described as an unparalleled achievement in this overcrowded field of exposition -- as well as being downright smileworthy in places, due to Russell's resolute lifelong determination to be flatly unimpressed by (practically) everybody.
Enjoy, enjoy! And do check my other reviews for some great leads, as I only take time to comment on exceptionally valuable and interesting titles....
Superb........2003-07-29
A leek as I am in the field of Math, physiscs & Chemistry I am very intetested in the historical progress of this fields, that eventually all come together in the great Isaack Newton, and in fact that is where this books is ending.
I read it cos I was interested in what there is exactly to be ment with a complete mechanical view on the world, this book gave me an idea of what that would mean. And while I never took exact science classes I have deep admiration for all the one who contributed to this field. My interests came purely from a philosophical perspective, and till about halfway the book, that what you read is not so much different than reading any regular philosophybook, but then its getting tougher, if you dont have any possession of exact science knowledge. Even while the writer of the book often points out that this book is ment for those who are as a tabula rassa (to speak with Lockes words) in this field. But I thought that it still was not easy. I cant say I understand all the theories that have passed bye, but I can now see a beter historical line from the classical days to Newton, that explains cleary how science have developed and who were responsible for what. especially the more social debates, influence on society an d how it changed peoples thoughts very slowly, I read with great interest. Unfortunatly there was to much abstract and to less social historical background.
Still I think a memorial achievement that everyone that is seriously interested in philosophy, history of science, scientific revolution, enlightenment or before you are going to read the works of the masters, should read.
Outstanding history.......2001-12-13
Very detailed and in-depth history of the early developments in physics leading up to Galileo and Newton's ideas. Because Galileo so overshadowed earlier scientists, their names are rarely heard, and many science students have the impression that Galileo came up with these ideas in a vacuum, since their historical antecedents never get discussed much. For example, how many students are aware of the contributions of earlier mathematicians and scientists such as Nicholas of Cusa or Nicole d'Oresme?
This book will rectify that impression. The discussion of the contributions of late Medieval and early Renaissance schools that made important contributions to the area of mechanics and physics, such as the School of Chartres (to mention just one example), I thought were especially good. This book is a must for anyone interested in the early history of science and mathematics. The book is out of print for some years now, but if you can find a used copy, it's well worth picking up.
Amazon.com
Unwise Passions traces the trajectory of aristocrat Nancy Randolph's tempestuous life, beginning with her privileged birth in 1774, continuing through a series of scandals that eventually sent her North, and concluding with her death in 1837. But this engaging, accessible biography also serves as group portrait of the Virginia aristocracy--and of its declining fortunes, as the colonial oligarchy was supplanted by an unrulier democracy. When she was only 18, Nancy was accused of having borne a child to her own sister's husband, Richard Randolph, who then allegedly murdered the newborn. Defended by Revolutionary legend Patrick Henry, Richard and Nancy were acquitted, and she returned to live with him and her sister. But the rumors persisted, and Richard's sudden death in 1796 only made them uglier. Many of the ugliest rumors were voiced by Richard's younger brother, Jack; Nancy's former suitor. Jack improved the debt-riddled family estates while he pursued a political career as a fiery states-rights congressman (a career that gets nearly as much of the author's attention as Nancy's life). Virginia-based journalist Alan Pell Crawford doesn't conclude definitively whether or not Jack actually believed Nancy had murdered his brother and had sexual relations with a slave, but the congressman certainly hated her enough to throw her off the family farm and repeat those stories later to her husband. At age 34, reduced to poverty and living in New York, the long-suffering Nancy married Gouverneur Morris, another wealthy veteran of the Revolutionary generation. Their happy union produced one child and endured until his death. Crawford, also the author of Thunder on the Right, pens a lively narrative that vividly evokes his characters: kindhearted, rather frivolous Nancy; urbane, unshockable Morris; irascible, overwrought Jack; and a host of cousins who are scattered throughout America's inbred, gossipy high society. Good fun and good history, to boot. --Wendy Smith
Book Description
In the spring of 1793, eighteen-year-old Nancy Randolph, the fetching daughter of one of the greatest of the great Virginia tobacco planters, was accused, along with her brother-in-law, of killing her newborn infant. Once one of the loveliest and most sought-after young women in Virginia society, she was immediately denounced as a ruined Jezebel, and the great orator Patrick Henry and future Supreme Court justice John Marshall were retained to defend her in her sensational trial.
In the tradition of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, Alan Pell Crawford brings to life this gripping account of murder, infanticide, and prostitution charges, and of unimaginable treachery, moral decline, and great heroism played out in the intimate lives of this nation's Founding Fathers. It is the true story of the privileged and pampered children of the new country's aristocratic families as they struggle to find their place in an increasingly democratic America, where their values and position in society are under siege. Above all, it is the story of the indomitable Nancy Randolph, who is hounded out of Virginia by a scandal that will haunt her and everyone she loves for the rest of their lives.
In the early 1790s, after Nancy goes to live with her sister Judith and handsome brother-in-law Richard at their remote plantation, called Bizarre, rumors fly throughout Virginia that Nancy has given birth and Richard, knowing the child to be his, has killed it. After an inquest, Nancy is ordered off the plantation by her cousin John Randolph and, reduced to poverty, she must find her way in a new and forbidding world.
Eventually she flees to New York where she forms an unlikely alliance with the immensely rich Gouverneur Morris, a signatory of the Declaration of Independence. Meanwhile John Randolph, a protégé of Thomas Jefferson who becomes a notorious wit and controversial member of Congress, a duelist and a drug addict, spends most of his life campaigning against her. After Morris's death, Nancy must fight for her honor once again -- Morris's relatives are eager to have a piece of his estate and to see her disinherited.
American history at its richest, with a cast of characters including not only the haughty Randolphs, but Jefferson, Henry, Morris, and Marshall, Unwise Passions is as riveting and revealing as any current scandal -- in or out of Washington.
Customer Reviews:
Pretty good.......2006-08-27
I read a lot of biography and historical fiction and I was intrigued by the reviews of this book so I bought it. The print is large, there are many reproductions of paintings, and it's a rather quick read, but it's "pretty good" as far as historical biography goes. It was interesting to read a thumbnail sketch of the rise and fall of the Virginia tobacco farmers, and it was also a fun task to try and keep track of all of the Randalph's as they inter-married! The main problem that keeps the book from being truly wonderful is that the scandal and the main characters aren't very compelling to begin with and the author doesn't do much to infuse the story with any urgency. There a few points where I found myself wondering what would happen next, but for the most part I was simply mildly entertained and when I was finished I felt I'd read a decent book that further illuminated a period in American history for a me and also educated me about Nancy Randolph and her kinsmen.
Less engaging than a history textbook...from high school........2006-01-15
I enjoy historical fiction and historical fact, but I found this book to be quite dull. The writing was not engaging, as the style seemed antiquated to me. I think I was expecting more of a modern interpretation of the story. Instead, this book reads like a Victorian gossip column. In short, neither the story nor the "scandal" was intriguing to me, not even as simple history. Apparently enjoyable by some, but it just wasn't what I expected.
Great Biography...Not So Much Scandal.......2006-01-02
The title is a little misleading, but this is still a great biography of Anne Cary Morris. The "scandal" is dealt with in several chapters and the remaining story tells of the disfunctional family of which she was a part of. It left me looking for more information about the remaining "cast of characters."
Historical Reality Check of early Americans.......2005-11-16
I got the book at my local library and just completed it. Mr. Crawford is good writer. I like that the chapters are short and the story line keeps moving.
I see that he has a new book coming out on Jefferson's last years. The research from this book probably helped on the new one since the Randolph and Jefferson familes were related (cousins married cousins) and Jefferson's son-in-laws were also politicians. I really appreciated the family tree even though the larger family lines aren't complete.
The main story line was not really resolved for me unless we are to believe Nancy's response to Jack in their later years. Did Nancy deliberately abort with her cousin's "medicine" or did she really miscarry? Was Nancy really pregnant by Theodorick who died before she delivered and not his brother Richard? How could Nancy go about in society as she "increased" without any censorship and why didn't any of her relatives, especially her sister who lived in the same house, know about the pregnancy?
Some characters appear for only a few paragraphs yet interest me to find out more about them in other biographies or histories. I was surprised to see that President Adams was not liked and Jefferson was extremely political. Crawford shows the political parties switched platforms over time so current parties cannot claim ownership of ideas. I will be interested in reading more books about the early founders, politicians and other Americans. This taste of early years in congress was very interesting.
Great book about my ancestors!!.......2005-06-25
This is a totally awesome book. With a twisted tale and a ton of history you can't beat it. Plus reading about Nancy who is a distant cousin of mine, is very exsiting. I think anyone of any age will love this book. If you like colonial history and excitment you will really enjoy this one! :o)
Customer Reviews:
A superb treatment for an often overlooked subject.......2000-02-05
This is a classic of Civil War history, superbly researched and well-crafted by an author who has complete command of this crucial aspect of the Southern war effort. Not only is it well-written, the excellent research is immediately available to the reader due to the footnotes being located at the bottom of the page, rather than the inferior lay-out method of placing footnotes at the end of the book. In order for anyone to gain a full understand the Confederate war effort, Vandiver's PLOUGHSHARES INTO SWORDS is a must.
Book Description
As Latino and African Americans increasingly live side by side in large urban centers, as well as in suburban clusters, the idealized concept of a "Rainbow Coalition" would suggest that these two disenfranchised groups are natural political allies. Indeed, as the number of Latinos has increased dramatically over the last ten years, competition over power and resources between these two groups has led to surprisingly antagonistic and uncooperative interactions. Many African Americans now view Latinos, because of their growth in numbers, as a threat to their social, economic, and political gains.
Vaca debunks the myth of "The Great Union" and offers the hope he believes each community could learn from, in order to achieve a mutually agreed upon agenda. More than simply unveiling the problem,
The Presumed Alliance offers optimistic solutions to the future relations between Latino and Black America.
Customer Reviews:
More Conflict than Alliance.......2006-04-14
This is the story behind the "other" civil rights struggle in modern America. The title comes from the presumption that many people have that blacks and latinos share much of the same history of segregation and civil rights suppression and that, therefore, they are "presumed" to be allies in the struggle for full citizenship. To the contrary, there are many differences in their historical struggles and currently blacks and hispanics see themselves engaged in a zero-sum conflict where any gains one group makes must be at a cost to the other. In fact, the message is loud and clear enough that it makes me wonder how much of the current immigration reform is being instigated by African-Americans.
Of course, hispanic occupation in this country existed before America even existed. For a couple hundred years whites were the aliens on the west coast, not the hispanics. There is a reason so much of California is named in Spanish terms. The hispanic people did not suddenly move south of the border after the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed February 2, 1848, ending the Mexican-American War. In fact hispanic residents of what is now western United States were given automatic American citizenship if they so desired. Later, labor for farms and the building of railroads was welcomed, encouraged, even recruited from Mexico. Although many workers returned home after the harvest or the completion of the railroad, even more stayed. They continue to cross the border in search of a job and a better life. Farmers and construction contractors plead with the U.S. government to turn a blind eye to the immigration problem as cheap labor is needed to stay competitive. Many Americans would rather take welfare than the jobs offered to the Chicanos. About every 10 years lately, we've offered amnesty to those already in the country and attempted to stem the flow. All it seems to do is encourage more illegal immigration by those who hope that 10 or 20 years down the road another amnesty will be approved.
Vaca describes the segregation that occured in the American Southwest in the early 1900's, segregation as bad as anything in the South against blacks, and the legal battles that set the stage for tearing down the "separate but equal" doctrine in segregated education. He also describes racial tension with blacks where the black population seems to be saying, "We fought long and hard for a place in society and we're not about to give it up." For example, although blacks make up about 10% of the Los Angeles population, they account for 37% of city and county employees. The numbers are almost exactly reversed for hispanics. And Vaca asks how we can balance this without there being some loss to the black community. He also points out that the hispanic population are not yet politically connected. Many, of course, are not citizens and can therefore not vote. Of those who could vote, registration and actual voting rates are even lower than whites. Vaca claims they do not generally vote as a bloc unless they feel disenfranchised.
Hispanics, even 2nd and 3rd generation American hispanics, have a cultural bond with current hispanic immigrants - both legal and illegal. Recent demonstrations throughout the country have made that clear. They don't have the attitude of "now that I'm here let's pull up the drawbridge and shut the gates". Part of it is political as they are certainly a population to be reckoned with but the other part is a desire to share the American dream. Presumed Alliance is an excellent book to provide a solid background for the current immigration debate as well as dicussions we will certainly be having in the future to cope with the growth of the hispanic American population.
Some valid points, but some Intellectual dishonesty.......2004-08-20
Nicolas Vaca is right for wanting the same attention and position as African Americans, all Americans deserve equal treatment. I have no disagreement about that. The problem I have with the book is that he misrepresents who Latino's are, and is simply wrong with equating Chicano history and experience as being the same to African American History.
Mr. Vaca never goes into relevant details about a sizable number of Mexicans here are not legal citizens and they can't vote, and also that Latina's have a high illegitimacy and teenage birth rate, that and the illegal aliens have contributed to the Latino population growth. Mr.Vaca is obviously excited and emboldened by this. But He shouldn't be, this is worsening the morality of the Chicano underclass and it's poverty.
Vaca wants to equate the levels of Chicano historical oppression to African Americans, now there's no doubt Chicanos have suffered racism and we should be sensitive to that, but Vaca is wrong on history. Chicano's were not slaves like African Americans were in the U.S., Chicanos have not had the same severe level of race stigmatism like African Americans have. For example, Latinos have the largest interracial/inter-ethnic marriage rates of 50%, African American's rate is 11%. Many Chicano's and Latinos are white.
Vaca mainly talks about Chicano's, and sometimes other Latino groups, but he wrongly speaks of all Latinos as if their homogeneous, this is simply dishonest. Latinos are racially and ethnically diverse, there a hodge-podge created on pan-ethnic similarities like Arabs are. There is racial divisions, and problems among different Latino groups. So far there is no significant Pan-Latino unity between his Mexican Americans and different races of other Latino groups.
What's very telling is since the release of his book, many Latino activist have criticized Mr.Vaca for being inflammatory and divisive. But there has been tensions between Latinos and Blacks, the worst is usually Chicanos and Cubans against African Americans, and on average Blacks get along better with Puerto Ricans and Dominicans, even though there's been some minor tension occasionally.
But lately, there have been meetings between Black and Latino organizations to create alliance. Not all Latinos feel minority groups should fight over government crumbs and be destructive and bigoted. There is hope for alliance's.
Nicolas Vaca's book has a positive quality. It is a blessing because it warns us how not to behave. We must respect each others equal rights and be mutually sensitive to each others pain. We must view each other as fellow human beings and Americans. Mutual respect and friendships based on morality can prevail with educated discourse, emphasizing similar social circumstances and similarities. If we don't, we will live in a even worst hellish racial future.
Important if not always focused..........2004-08-13
Mr. Vaca's book is best when it focuses directly on tensions between the Black and Latino communities. For example, focusing on the overwhelming support Latinos showed for a Latino Republican candidate in Houston when a Black Democrat also who ran who had ostensbily done more for the Latino community is a topic worth even further examination. Also, raising the question of a Latino monolith is extremely important, especially when one looks at past instances of Latino cooperation, such as that noted by Felix Padilla in "Latino Ethnic Consciousness." All of the research then plays into questions of how 'minorities' (a contentious term to say the least) will approach political power in the coming decades as the 'non-minority' population decreases as a percentage. It is an important question, one that is discussed at length in "The Miner's Canary," and will likely increase in importance in the coming decades.
Mr. Vaca does overstate the case for Mexican-Americans somewhat in relation to African-Americans, particularly in claiming parity for the racial oppresion experienced by each group. Without a doubt, Mexican-Americans did experience a great deal of oppression at the hands of White Americans. However, I, as well as others, are willing to concede that it does not quite equivocate with the centuries of slavery endured by the ancestors of African-Americans. This, however, does not mean that Mexican-Americans (and other Latinos, though Vaca focuses primarily on Mexican-Americans) are somehow exempted from achieving equal rights in the face of what was systematic discrimination. Just because one group did not suffer as much as another group doesn't mean that the group is suddenly part of the establishment or somehow undeserving.
Mr. Vaca also spends a bit too much time focusing on the Latino question explicitly, and, while I completely acknowledge the importance of the question of Latino numerical supremacy, I think the far more interesting questions come from the examinations of political alliance between Latinos and Blacks (or lack thereof). In a sense, Mr. Vaca is attempting to answer questions raised in "Bridge Over the Racial Divide," and "The Miner's Canary," while at the same time trying to examine the growth in the Latino population (which does absolutely lend weight to his argument, but doesn't need to consume as much of the book as it does). The two topics should be (and really are) two separate books that can then by synthesized in a third.
Ultimately, though, despite its shortcomings, I find the book to be of importance. The question of Black-Latino (and even Asian) political alliance is extremely important as we head closer and closer to a population in which 'White' is no longer the dominant category (and, believe me, I understand the race v. ethnicity argument, but we have to face the fact that for many Latinos, the very terms associated with them have become racialized). 'Minority Politics' has too often seeemed to be a monolithic term, when in fact tensions have always existed between the groups that comprise it. Mr. Vaca points to these tensions, and expounds upon them with examples. I wish I could say that I am absolutely satisfied with the conclusions of the book. I do agree that Latino numerical supremacy is something that is important, but I do believe that interests can align between various groups. The structure and eventual destruction of racial hierarchy is one area in which the groups should agree and make attempts to address it. There will not always be agreement, something that this book shows well, but we cannot leave it at let bygones be bygones and self-interest rules the day when put in situations where the question is conflict or cooperation. Groups must use common ground to assess what potential gains are to be made in the face of American Racial Hierarchy. If this can't be done, then racial hierarchy will continue to exist, and these groups will continue to fight for the scraps instead of working together to get more for everyone. Of course, the last statement comes from the optimist within. In the meantime, the struggles will continue and Mr. Vaca has just started with the tip of the iceberg regarding future tensions that may arise. By viewing the problem, we can hope to assess it and address it, and, for that reason, along with others of less importance, Mr. Vaca's book is timely and worth a look.
Lots of ethnic activists don't want you to read this book.......2004-06-26
California lawyer Nicolas C. Vaca got his start as an ethnic activist by listening to Malcolm X lecture at Berkeley in 1963.
But by the end of the 1960s, Vaca had discovered that, in the civil rights struggle, all minorities are equal, but one minority is more equal than others:
"Before arriving in Washington I expected to encounter other Mexican Americans at the [U.S. Commission on Civil Rights], but I discovered that I, a summer intern, was the highest ranking Mexican American there."
Eventually, more Latinos elbowed their way into the lucrative business of being professional minorities. But they found that the dominant blacks weren't willing to allow them places at the table in proportion to their burgeoning numbers.
Vaca became fascinated by how the black-Latino political conflicts that he saw all around him were swept under the rug in the media:
"For years I discussed these issues with close friends and fellow attorneys-Anglo, Latino, and Black-as I waited for a book to appear that would address the conflict or at least go beyond pat analyses like 'Interethnic conflict can exist, but it is believed that there is more of a basis for cooperation than there is for conflict'-and then drop the subject."
He eventually realized he would have to write the book himself. So he has: The Presumed Alliance: The Unspoken Conflict Between Latinos and Blacks and What It Means for America.
Vaca recounts some fairly well-known tales: for example, how in Los Angeles in 2001, South Central blacks teamed up with San Fernando Valley white conservatives to defeat Antonio Villaraigosa's bid to become the first Mexican mayor since LA was a dusty pueblo. He also gives the once-over to the convoluted story of how Fernando Ferrer's attempt to win the 2001 Democratic mayoral primary in New York City with a Latino-black coalition foundered upon his protracted and frustrating courtship of Al Sharpton.
More interesting are the fresher stories-about how baldly Hispanics in Miami disdain blacks; and how dismissively the black ruling class in Compton, just outside of L.A., treats that suburb's Chicano majority.
As the refuge for Batista Cuba's upper and middle class, Miami has the best-organized, wealthiest (and whitest) Latino community in the U.S. In contrast, it may have the most degraded African-Americans. In both 1982 and 1989, Latin American immigrant policemen shot African-American citizens under suspicious circumstances, triggering major black riots.
Florida blacks with anything on the ball quickly wise up and head for Atlanta, where the white business class is a lot easier to shake down. (Vaca, however, points out that even in Georgia there are expected to be more Hispanics than blacks by 2010.)
As white as Miami's Cuban powerbrokers are, they feel no white guilt whatsoever. After all, they hadn't oppressed American blacks (which is certainly true-before 1959 they had been busy back home oppressing Cuban blacks).
Compton, the spiritual home of West Coast gangsta rap, is notorious for its corrupt and dysfunctional black-run government. Still, a lot of people south of the Border have been down so long that even Compton looks like up to them.
By 2001, 59% of Compton's residents, but only 15% of its voters, were Latino. Chicano activists routinely demand that Compton's black elected officials share power with its voteless illegal aliens. But the African-American leadership responds with ringing endorsements of the sanctity of citizenship that would warm the hearts of VDARE readers.
Of course, in the long run, the American-born children of Compton's illegal immigrants will vote their own Latino hacks into the city job sinecures (as recently happened in nearby Lynwood). In the meantime, however, Compton's black political class is getting while the getting's still good.
Few of Vaca's stories are edifying. In some, it's as hard to figure out who morally deserves support as it was during the Iran-Iraq war.
Not surprisingly, most black and brown activists wish Vaca had never written the book. (One longtime ally in the Chicano movement stomped out of the bar when Vaca described the subject of his work, and hasn't talked to him since.) And in fact it wasn't very discreet of Vaca to document for us "gringos" that the modern civil rights movement is just another pork-snorting contest over who can shove the most snouts into the taxpayer-subsidized trough.
Occasionally, though, Vaca's narrative rises above war stories about the tawdry ethnic jostling for taxpayer-supported jobs and discusses legitimate issues. Unlike the economic illiterates at the Wall Street Journal Editorial Page, who proclaim that immigrants do the jobs Americans don't want, lawyer Vaca simply takes it as one of his seven axioms that "Immigrants Will Compete for Unskilled Jobs with African Americans."
In this dispute, Vaca's allegiance lies with his fellow co-ethnics. My loyalties, however, have to rest with my fellow American citizens. Nobody asked African-Americans if they wanted to come here. They got dragged here in chains. In contrast, immigrants chose America, presumably warts and all so it's hard to understand why they should get special privileges based on their ethnicity.
What "Latino" culture?.......2004-05-13
This book is flawed from the begining. Nicolas C. Vaca is wrong right off the bat when he says "latinos" are the largest minorty (oxymoron). "Latino" is not a race it is an ethnicity it can be of any race white, black, indian, etc. "Hispanic was not even put on the census until 1980! Before 1980 Mexicans were counted as white! Even now during the last census most people who marked "Hispanic" MARKED WHITE FOR RACE!!!
I have yet to run into someone who said that they were "hispanic, or latino" they always say Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican etc. Also what about Afro-Latinos according to the last census 1.7 million are Afro-Lations although you wouldn't know that watching Spanish language T.V. And why don't Afro-Cubans live in Miami with the white Cubans. The reality is Afro-Lation's are treated like second class citizens by thier white "Hispanic" counterparts. Much like white Americans treat black Americans. No wonder why Afro-Latinos have a higher intermarriage rate than even white "Hispanics" with white non-Hispanics.
Books:
- Monsters Under the Bed and Other Childhood Fears: Helping Your Child Overcome Anxieties, Fears, and Phobias
- Mother Opossum and Her Babies
- My Boyfriend's Back: True Stories Of Rediscovering Love With Long-Lost Sweethearts
- Natural Baby and Childcare: Practical Medical Advice and Holistic Wisdom for Raising Healthy Children
- Navel-Gazing: The Days and Nights of a Mother in the Making
- Nelly Custis Lewis's Housekeeping Book
- New Geographies of the American West: Land Use and the Changing Patterns of Place (Orton Family Foundation Innovation in Place Series)
- No More Bedwetting: How to Help Your Child Stay Dry
- Older the Fiddle, the Better the Tune, The : The Joys of Reaching a Certain Age
- Once upon a Family: Read Aloud Stories and Activities That Nurture Healthy Kids
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- The Day The Music Died: The Last Tour Of Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, And Richie Valens
- Space Wolf: The First Omnibus
- The Hundred Secret Senses
- Snipped in the Bud: A Flower Shop Mystery
- The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed
- Streams in the Desert
- Seize the Time: The Story of the Black Panther Party and Huey P. Newton
- Marital Blitz
- Superior Wilderness: Isle Royale National Park
- Big Board: Who's Who at the Zoo
Family Health
| Parenting & Families
| Subjects
| Books
Mom, sex is NO big deal!: Becoming your daughter's ally in developing a healthy sexual identity
"Mom, I Hate My Life!": Becoming Your Daughter's Ally Through the Emotional Ups and Downs of Adolescence (A Hand-in-Hand Book)
Mom, I Feel Fat: Becoming Your Daughter's Ally in Developing a Healthy Body Image
Bravehearts: Unlocking the Courage to Love with Abandon
Mothering Without Guilt: You and God, You and Others, You and Your Kids (Mom's Ordinary Day Bible Study Series, A)
Health o Meter HDC100-01 "Grow with Me" Teddy Bear Scale for Babies and Toddlers
Braun IRT 4020 ThermoScan Ear Thermometer
