The rebel prince,: Or, Lessons from the career of the young man Absalom

The rebel prince,: Or, Lessons from the career of the young man Absalom
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The rebel prince,: Or, Lessons from the career of the young man Absalom
William M Blackburn
Manufacturer: Presbyterian board of publication
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) | Sacred Writings | Judaism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00087TJF2

William the Rebel Prince
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Excellent

William the Rebel Prince
Nicholas Davies
Manufacturer: Blake Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | Royalty | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 190340228X

Book Description

Drawing on interviews with palace insiders and William’s contemporaries at Eton, royal expert Nicholas Davies offers a revealing, sometimes surprising portrait of a young prince determined to seize control of his own life.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent.......2002-12-18

I read this book expecting to see the same information on Prince William that every other book has printed since that boy was born. But I was wrong. The thing that makes this one stand apart from the rest is its portrayal of him. This is the first book I've read (and I've read quite a few) to show him for what he is: a young man trying to not only figure out who he is but also trying to accept WHAT he is as well, and where he will fit in to the world. It also offers a more realistic picture of what his relationship with his mother was like. I never really bought that whole she was the center of his universe story, and now I see why....it was never that realistic. It had to be more complicated then that. Any teenager will tell you that their relationship with their parents is one that's constantly blowing hot and cold....especially at the age he was when Diana died. I was always worried about how this boy was going to break out of his mother's shadow...especially because he looks so much like her. And, all things considered, he seems to finally be coming into his own. It'll be interesting to see what happens next.

Carl Fogarty - The Complete Racer
Average customer rating:

Good pictures!

Cool

Carl Fogarty - The Complete Racer
Julian Ryder
Manufacturer: Haynes Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Motor Sports | Miscellaneous | Sports | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1859604080

Book Description

Motorcycle racing expert Julian Ryder profiles the extraordinary career of Carl Fogarty, from his early days in motocross and the Marlboro Clubmans Championship through his 750 Superbike, TT and World Superbike Championships. This updated, full-color edition delivers complete details of Fogarty's outstanding career, winning a record third World Superbike title in 1998, taking his fiftieth win early in 1999, plus a look into the future of this fiercely competitive racer.

Customer Reviews:

Good pictures!.......2001-05-01

This book is ok and is (thankfully) short and has great pictures, but I liked Carl's autobiography much more. This is basically a short summary of each year of his career with very little insight into Carl's personal life.

Cool.......1998-11-12

Carl Fogarty Is king. But in reality he is the prey. Cool Book For motorcycle fans.

Book Description

What did Kazimir Malevich (1878 - 1935), the proponent of pure abstraction in painting, have to do with film, that mechanical repository of everything that is banal and worthless? It was only in 1924 that Malevich described film as a system that fixed reality beyond the cultural idea. Nonetheless, between 1925 and 1929, he wrote several articles on film as well as a script.

These texts, by the man who created the 'black square', which are assembled in this volume and translated into English for the first time, lead us to the heart of the debate about movement and acceleration as central metaphors for modernity in the international avant-garde. His contradictory reflections on this new medium document the friction between the metaphysical program of Suprematist abstraction and the mediatic attributes of film.

Malevich arranges the melodramas of Mary Pickford, the comedies of Monty Banks, the films of Sergei Eisenstein, Dziga Vertov, Walter Ruttmann, and Yakov Protazanov within his historical model of the rise of Modernism from Cezanne through Cubism and Futurism, to Suprematism. In this process, almost all of his essays deal with the `missed encounter' between film and art, because Malevich perceives film as the perfected form, not of Naturalism but of the principles of the new painting - dynamism and abstraction.

Malevich and Film.(Book Review): An article from: Cineaste
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Malevich and Film.(Book Review): An article from: Cineaste
Stuart Liebman
Manufacturer: Cineaste Publishers, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00082RAEE
Release Date: 2005-07-31

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Cineaste, published by Cineaste Publishers, Inc. on June 22, 2004. The length of the article is 2923 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: Malevich and Film.(Book Review)
Author: Stuart Liebman
Publication: Cineaste (Magazine/Journal)
Date: June 22, 2004
Publisher: Cineaste Publishers, Inc.
Volume: 29 Issue: 3 Page: 60(4)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

A popular history of music; from Gregorian chant to electronic music
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A popular history of music; from Gregorian chant to electronic music
Carter Harman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00005WOAU

Customer Reviews:

Simple and clear.......2000-10-16

I got this book to use in addition to some dance classes my husband and I were taking. Though I wouldn't recommend learning to dance from this book (or from any book for that matter), this is the only book I could find that had the dance steps laid out clearly and simply. As a beginning dancer, I didn't want a complicated manual that showed fourteen different foxtrots. "Shall We Dance" was exactly the book we needed when we were having trouble remembering which step was which. I love that you can practice by holding the book between you, since it's laid out so that the leader's dance steps are opposite from the follower's dance steps.

Smaller is not better.......2000-07-24

This book is small and that's about the only thing going for it. I bought this book as a neophyte dancer interested in finding out more about this new activity/sport I was trying to get into.

This book is of no use to dancers or non-dancers. It is somewhat cute to look through, but serves no practical value related to improving your dancing technique, knowledge or style.

Thankfully, I bought this book to supplement the class I was taking. The classes are wonderful; no medium can come compare. Dance, as I'm finding out, is less about where to place your feet and more about your entire body and the interaction you have with your partner.

This book should not feel bad for itself. It has many companions at the poor book party.

Shall We Look Ridiculous?.......2000-07-21

I read this book as a result of a very unfortunate experience. I attended a fund raising event with my husband and 3 other couples. My husband and I have been avid social dancers (and competitors) for a few years. Two of the couples have also had some dance instruction and the third couple has always been `the non-dancing couple". The music started and we all headed for the dance floor.

I have never felt so badly for anyone as I did for the `non-dancing couple'. They were physically uncomfortable, looked like robots, and were totally off time. These are good friends of mine that I spend time with socially, so I tried to keep the shock out of my voice as I asked them "so, when did you start dancing?" They proceeded to tell me about the book they bought - Shall We Dance. Now I have played tennis and golf with this couple and I know they are physically agile and coordinated, so I asked if I could take a look at this "book" that turned them into such stiff, awkward specimens.

What a horror! It quickly becomes very clear that the author knows NOTHING about dancing or what it takes to look good while you are on the dance floor! Closed dance position is skimmed over, as are forward and backward walks with no mention of the geometric accuracy that is necessary when someone takes a good `dance step'. And the side steps - "are taken on the balls of the feet, then lowered to the heels as the feet come together" - that sentence explains why my friends were off time and lurched as they took their forward and back steps. No mention is made of the need to completely change weight when the feet are together in rise or the necessary release of the foot without weight as you lower to the flat foot with weight. How does someone swing his or her leg when both feet are planted on the floor without lurching or using their shoulders to generate movement? In the section on Waltz the author states about the side steps "Dancers should raise their bodies slightly using the ankles..." UGH! Rise with your ankles? Only if you want to look like my friends the "robots"!

The glaring errors contained in this book are too numerous to list. No wonder my friends started to dance a Swing to an obvious Foxtrot when this book states, "In the Foxtrot or Swing, the emphasized beats in a four-beat measure are the first and third beats." Add ignorance of music tempi to this author's ignorance of dance. In a Foxtrot the first beat is emphasized - the 1 is the `heaviest beat' with 2,3,4 becoming gradually `lighter' with crescendo to 5, with 6,7,8 getting `lighter'- in Swing the emphasis is on the second and fourth beat allowing a Swing music to actually be counted 1,2; 1,2 - the rhythm is like a heartbeat, that's why people tend to clap along to Swing music!

This book is definitely "pretty" in appearance, but unlike "Madison Avenue" I judge a book by its content not its cover! Don't bother.

Such a tiny book with so much to offer!.......1999-03-14

When I first received this tiny book, I was a little disappointed by its size. I couldn't imagine that it would have much to offer. How wrong I was!! Although it is by no means comprehensive, it provided me with many technique tips that other more apparently comprehensive sources did not. For the beginner social dancer, it is an indispensible read.

a short, artfully done book, a great engagement gift!.......1997-06-02

The best feature of this book: the men's and women's dance steps mirror each other on the pages. Dance partners can hold the book between them and go through the steps together without someone having to read backwards! This pocket-size book has several great vintage photographs of dancing, mostly from classic movies. Plus in the right corner there's a tiny dancing couple which goes through their moves if you flip the pages quickly. The way it's put together it's a pleasure to read

The Informed Investor: A Hype-Free Guide to Constructing a Sound Financial Portfolio
Average customer rating:

Informing Investors to read something else, maybe...

Good Solid Information on how the Markets Really Work

Assessing risk before one leaps

The best approach to stock market investment

Finally an investment book I can understand

The Informed Investor: A Hype-Free Guide to Constructing a Sound Financial Portfolio
Frank, III Armstrong
Manufacturer: AMACOM/American Management Association
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Introduction | Investing | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Management | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need

Unconventional Success: A Fundamental Approach to Personal Investment

A Random Walk Down Wall Street: Completely Revised and Updated Edition

The Only Guide to a Winning Investment Strategy You'll Ever Need: The Way Smart Money Preserves Wealth Today

The Coffeehouse Investor: How to Build Wealth, Ignore Wall Street, and Get On With Your Life

ASIN: 0814472508

Book Description

Most people are scared stiff by investment risk. But what most people don't know is that the biggest risk is simply investor behavior. Irrational and fearful, investors routinely chase after investment rainbows offering high returns with zero risk...or sell off stocks in a panic when the market is down...or horde their money in T-bills, which historically have just barely outpaced inflation.

The only way to eliminate such self-destructive behavior is to get hard facts on how the stock market really works. Fortunately, anyone can learn -- not just the analysts on Wall Street -- with The Informed Investor. Packed with eye-opening charts and graphs, this powerful book shows how to develop an investment strategy that yields the highest return with the lowest risk. The Informed Investor:

* Replaces "voodoo investing" methods with proven real-world strategies and groundbreaking academic research. * Provides a thorough education in financial economics. * Explains how to allocate assets to achieve specific goals. * Simplifies difficult subjects with clear language and straight-shooting advice.

Customer Reviews:

Informing Investors to read something else, maybe..........2006-05-17

This one is on many must-read lists, and I'm not exactly sure why. Not that it's a bad book...in fact it's pretty strongly OK.

There's a general discussion of virtually every intro-to-investing topic. If that's what you're looking for, it's a good choice. It seemed a little generic and dry to me, without any big ahas or new info, but maybe that's what you're looking for.

This guy Frank Armstrong III runs a company called Investor Solutions, Inc. That means he's probably a CFP, and makes money by telling people what to invest in. There are two kinds of financial advisors in the world...those with guns, and those with shovels. Actually, that's my favorite paraphrased quote from The Good, The Bad and the Ugly. There are two kinds of FPs though- good and bad.

The good ones are after your money. The bad ones are after a more unfair cut of your money and likely fees or kickbacks from fund companies. This guy seems to definitely be the former. This book is like sitting down for about 4 days with a good CFP that explains everything he knows about the market and sound investing planning to you for 12 hours a day. It's like reading a proprietary 300 page brochure from a reputable financial planning specialist. That's good, if that's what you're looking for.

So, I give this book thumbs up, with the caveats above. It's better than I could do, but there are more dynamic, hard hitting, aha books out there you may want to catch first. I'll get around to reviewing those soon.

Good Solid Information on how the Markets Really Work.......2006-04-16

There are an awful lot of investment books out there which say that they are going to give you absolute advice on how to make your fortune. Most of these wind up in some way of promising how to tell you how to beat the market. And then there the investment e-mails that I seem to get three or four times a day. The promote everything from stocks I never heard of to currencies, to metals.

Beating the market like this requires that you predict the future. And predicting the future is really quite easy -- it's being right that's hard.

This book lays out a philosophy that says that the maket is pretty smart. Basically everyone knows everything that anyone else does. If you really know something that other people don't know, that's typically insider information and the Feds say nasty things to you about using insider information -- ask Martha Stewart about this.

So here's a book with a solid explanation of how the market works, how to judge risk, how to balance investments to cover just about whatever happens in the economy. It's good solid advice, it's information about how the world really works, it's the inside scoop on what the author calls Mother Market.

Assessing risk before one leaps.......2004-05-15

The Informed Investor: A Hype-Free Guide To Constructing A Sound Financial Portfolio by Frank Armstrong III (Founder and Principal of Investor Solutions, Inc. and a frequent contributor to CNNfn.com) is a straightforward instructional guide to avoiding uncertainty and pitfalls in the world of modern investing. Of special interest is the presentation of the "Modern Portfolio Theory". From options specifically for the purpose of saving up for college, to expertly gathering intelligence and assessing risk before one leaps, and so much more, The Informed Investor is an expert "must-read" guide for nonspecialist general readers and aspiring investors from all financial backgrounds.

The best approach to stock market investment.......2004-02-25

I have read literally hundreds of books on investing and have been an invester since 1982. The approach described in this book (and also The Intelligent Asset Allocator, by William Bernstein) is the most practical, sensible, way of investing I have found. It shows why market timing doesn't work, stock picking doesn't work, but asset allocation does. One of the great things about this approach is that once you're invested, there's almost nothing to do! Stop worrying, relax and know you're ideally invested for the long haul. Also, see Armstrong's website at www.investorsolutions.com.

Finally an investment book I can understand.......2003-12-08

I bought this book because I wanted to learn the basics of investing so I could make informed decisions. All the other invetment books at the bookstore are either too boring or too complicated to make any sense of them. I feel that I have gained a wealth of knowlege with this book and I am no longer listening to friends, relatives or magazines for tips that never worked. They only confuse you more and end up making you loose your money or pay a large amount of taxes. Now I have a long term strategy that makes sense and is in line with my long term goals and needs. I highly recommend this book.

There Are No Shortcuts: How an inner-city teacher--winner of the American Teacher Award--inspires his students and challenges us to rethink the way we educate our children
Average customer rating:

Must read!

motivating?

Teacher Helps

Big on image, low on facts

Get Ron Clark's Essential 55 instead.

There Are No Shortcuts: How an inner-city teacher--winner of the American Teacher Award--inspires his students and challenges us to rethink the way we educate our children
Rafe Esquith
Manufacturer: Pantheon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Educators | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Experimental | Contemporary Methods | Education Theory | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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Philosophy & Social Aspects | Education Theory | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Policy | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire: The Methods and Madness Inside Room 56

The Hobart Shakespeareans

Teaching Outside the Box: How to Grab Your Students By Their Brains

Reluctant Disciplinarian: Advice on Classroom Management From a Softy who Became (Eventually) a Successful Teacher

No Excuses: Closing the Racial Gap in Learning

ASIN: 0375422021
Release Date: 2003-04-22

Book Description

The banner in Rafe Esquith’s classroom at Hobart Elementary School reads: “There are no shortcuts.” And his students are a testament to the power of that philosophy. These are kids who speak English as a second language, fourth--and fifth--graders who go to school in a part of Los Angeles where violence and despair are the norms of the neighborhood.

But the statistics are not what you’d expect: Esquith’s students score in the country’s top 10 percent on standardized tests and go on to colleges such as Harvard, Princeton, University of Chicago, Swarthmore, Stanford, and UCLA. How do they do it?

Esquith’s view—that learning isn’t easy and that it shouldn’t be—is an increasingly unusual take among educators. Success, he believes, comes from a strong work ethic and from dedication and perseverance on the part of children, teachers, and parents alike. But such ideas prove to be a hard sell to those who believe that hard work and fun must be mutually exclusive. On the other hand, visitors from all over the world have made a pilgrimage to this astonishing classroom.

Esquith’s students work hard. They are in the classroom at 6:30 a.m. and stay until 5:00 p.m. They come to school during their vacations. Each year the Hobart Shakespeareans, as Esquith’s students are known, perform one of the Bard’s plays—Sir Ian McKellen and Hal Holbrook are passionate patrons. These Renaissance children are outstanding mathematicians and scientists; they read Steinbeck and Malcolm X; they are artists; they play classical music and blistering rock 'n' roll. Above all, they are recognized for their impeccable manners, which serve them well as Esquith accompanies them all over the United States. They are, as many observers have commented, the gold standard in American education.

His former students in middle and high school return on Saturdays, where they read Ibsen, Chekhov, and eight Shakespeare plays a year. In their “Wake Up with Will” program, these eager youngsters travel the world with Esquith and his wife, from London to Paris to colleges all over the country. It’s a classroom where the American Dream really does come true.

There have been no shortcuts for Rafe Esquith, either. He had to learn the hard way: dealing with bureaucratic administrators, antagonistic colleagues, and his own impetuous and occasionally tactless, even confrontational, nature. But his history, peppered with funny and painful incidents, and a gallery of incisive portraits--Miss Mothball, Miss Busy-As-a-Bee, Mr. Incompetent--explains his extraordinary success as a teacher.

His scathing yet loving view from the front lines is the most trenchant look at American education to appear
in many years. It’s a full-alert warning signal, an inspiration, and a guide for teachers, parents, and all the rest of us who care about our country’s children.

Customer Reviews:

Must read!.......2007-08-27

Anyone who has children, cares about how we educate them, proposes to teach, MUST meet Rafe Esquith. Achieving his level of dedication may be impossible for most, hut he can inspire us all to greater performance. His imaginative insights to helping fifth graders to new levels of self-esteem and real accomplishment is astonishing. Unafraid of bureaucracy, indeed scornful of it, he has managed to do things most classroom teachers only dream of. In addition to breaking old molds, he offers considerable hope, as he clearly tells us that the fault is not in the children, but in ourselves.

motivating?.......2007-08-15

I wasn't as motivated as I thought I would be after reading this book. This book left me empty and feeling sorry for Rafe's wife and family.

Teacher Helps.......2007-08-13

This is a must read for any classroom teacher. Mr. Esquith has many insights and ideas that help the classroom teacher. Some of it you may have heard before but it is a good reminder of what great teachers do or can do for their students.

Big on image, low on facts.......2007-08-03

Yes, this man is a dedicated teacher. No, his methods are not the wave of the future for educational reform or methods that would often work elsewhere. The writer skews the perspective of this book (which is very self-serving and slanted towards his own ego) by describing his inner-city school as "The Jungle" (ooh, scary) and his students as underprivileged inner city kids. Actually they are mostly Asian and Latino immigrant students. As a successful teacher of underprivileged children myself, I can tell you that it is relatively easy to teach students from immigrant families, even those just barely learning English, because their families came to this country for more opportunity and are usually highly motivated to succeed. The true underprivileged and most challenging students are those whose impoverished families have lived in American housing projects for generations, have little faith left in the system and are often unmotivated as students and parents. Families from this demographic are conspicuously absent from this model teacher's class. This is an important distinction to make, because when when the author touts himself as a "hero" and portrays himself as an expert on inner-city education, all too often people with less knowledge about the educational system will be awestruck and believe everything he says. There are many dedicated teachers in this country who use more sustainable methods of instruction and who are valiantly struggling with much more challenging students than the ones in this book.

Get Ron Clark's Essential 55 instead........2007-07-08

I felt that from the moment i started reading this book, it should have been named "All About Rafe". He makes mention at the beginning of this book how he wanted to be known as the best teacher whenever he walks down the street. His wife-to-be lets him know eventually that it's really moronic to think that way. Although he says this changed him, from the cover to the end of the book, it's obvious that his original mission never really changed.

As a new teacher, that disgusts me. In the 3 years I have taught, I have cultivated very successful readers and outstanding citizens in my own "jungle"(Newark, NJ). I have had my share of losses as well, that's life. However, whenever teachers/administrators compliment me on my classroom management or test scores, I give all the credit to my kids(they WANT to do well, and behave well, I just steer them the proper way by giving a consistent, caring adult to believe in.) All I've ever asked of them in return is to focus on becoming the best they can be.

All teachers should be selfless. We are cultivating the next generation of this Earth, not attempting to break into Hollywood. I'm disappointed that a teacher the caliber of Mr. Esquith is such a narcissist.

Book Description

The only full-scale account of the liberation of the island of Guam in 1944.

Customer Reviews:

The fight for our bastion in the Central Pacific.......2001-08-22

The US acquired Guam in 1899 by peace treaty with Spain at the end of the Spanish-American War. The desirability of having a large, secure naval base west of Hawaii was recommended to Congress in 1938 but, by the fall of 1941, the decision was made to write off Guam. It was too late to defend it. At the time of Pearl Harbor, less than 200 Marines were there available for it's defense and only 271 members of the naval complement for the few ships in the harbor. The island fell to the Japanese on 12/10/42 after brief fighting.

The III Amphibious Corp, under Marine Maj. Gen. Roy Geiger, landed on Guam on 7/21/45. After twenty days of fighting and 7,714 casualties, the island was retaken. The Corp was comprised of the 3rd Marine Division, the 1st Provisional Brigade (Marine) and the 77th Infantry Division (Army) in reserve. Two separate landings, utilizing a total of 358 LVTs, were made on the west coast of the island, north and south of the important Orote Peninsula. Once these beachheads were secured, elements of the 3rd Marines in the north would turn south while the 22nd Marines of the brigade in the south made a similar swing to the north. This turning was necessary to seal off the peninsula, reduce the Japanese forces now isolated and defending the serviceable airfield located there. After this linkup, there would be a combined drive eastward cutting through the remaining defenders, dividing their forces.

Losses on W-Day (so designated due to the multiple invasions taking place in the Marianas) were much higher than anticipated and the Marine position was far from secure on the shallow beachheads. Unpredictably, General Takashina did not even contemplate any massive counterattacks against the beaches during the day. Rather than formulate a rational plan, he acquiesced in a futile night attack by three battalions which were annihilated. Originally defended by a force of 18,000 men, Gailey makes a strong case that Takashina could still inflict a heavy cost for the island. In stead, his men and resources were pointlessly destroyed in a large-scale banzai attack. In a few hours of fighting on the night of July 25-26 the enemy lost over 3,500 men, 95% of their officers and 90% of their weapons. The fighting would continue for months, but from a strategic point of view, the outcome was fixed.

While the US lost 1,700 men and over 6,000 wounded, the strategic importance of the Marianas has never been questioned. From the five airfields constructed on Guam, Saipan and Tinian, B-29s were continuously launched against the Japanese home islands and major cities. By early 1945 Guam had become the center of the complex command network in the Pacific. Gailey tells us most of the destruction wrought on Japan during the last months of the war had its origin on Guam. Not included in this observation was the fact that the Enola Gay took off from Tinian

Book Description

Argues that while the ideology of nonviolent political action promises that the harsh realities of state power can be transcended through good feelings and purity of purpose, it is in fact a counter-revolutionary movement that defends and reinforces the same status-quo it claims to oppose. Churchill debunks the claims of historical pacifist victories, and proposes ways to diminish much of the delusion, aroma of racism, and sense of privilege which mark the covert self-defeatism of mainstream dissident politics. An important intervention, intended to generate badly-needed debate about the issue in the progressive community.

Customer Reviews:

A Review of Churchill's, "Pacifism and Pathology".......2007-06-27

Over the last few years, I have published articles about issues of US Imperialism and the social struggle movement. I came upon Ward Churchill's book "Pacifism and Pathology," as almost last minute. I had never read or taking seriously Ward Churchill's view, though I have affiliated myself as a member of the anarcho-syndicalist movement. But after reading his book, I realized my deep personnel connections with Dr. Churchill's frustrations and agony with the American social struggle movement. For some time, I affiliated myself with a social struggle movement in the University I am attending, and after almost a month I left. My reasons for leaving, where the same reasons Dr. Churchill explained in his book as the growing disorganization of these movements, and also the misunderstanding that state and private tyrannies; which have amassed great ideological confusion towards vast social and economic control, cannot be countered with the basic techniques used by the social struggle movement in the past. Indeed, Dr. Churchill warns the reader that there has been a tremendous misunderstanding with how non-violent resistance was actually used in the past. That it was a actually a mixture of both the practice of violence and non-violence, for which, if the use of non-violence was so much more tantamount, then the rewards of almost a decade and a half of resistance could not have been achieved.
Though I can connect with the social struggle movement on this university campus, it is deeply polarizing. Such polarization; I felt, was the reasons why on a number occasions they were unsuccessful in reaching out to others, and at the same time, form a coherent bases of action and influence on this campus i.e., they're not taking very seriously.
The tactics used by leaders of the social struggle movement in the United States, and even around the world, vary. I agree with Churchill on the realization that non-violent resistance can only work on a marginal basis. Indeed other countries, which implement vast terror and intimidation towards their own population, cannot rely on peaceful means to take down and tear the authoritarian political and economic system, without resorting to actual self-defense through violent means.
As the world witnesses the tearing apart of the Palestinians states, and perhaps even the fall of Palestine itself in the coming months, it is important to realize that the Palestinians; who have long tolerated state and military terror by Israel and the IDF, cannot be heard by the world through the same methodology used by American peace activists. It just does not work, and to do so, would mean the quick destruction of the Palestinian state.
But what I have to say, in a slight disagreement with Dr. Churchill, is that though the methodology of resistance to state and private terror has to change. The US cannot be won by the means of violence. Our cultural and political system is far more advance and ready for change, without the use of arm resistance and violence. Though in the media it may depict the sense of polarization and a deep divide, consensus by national polls indicate quite strikingly that the vast majority of the population is far to the left than the political and intellectual establishment wants to believe.
The means for political and social change in the US--for which, I agree with Churchill, cannot be won by the same tactics that inhibit a pathological tolerance towards the abuses that private and state systems implement on other populations and even their own. Even the possibility that these groups may be motivated for other reasons besides social change; political power, vanguard social party, all these are plausible reasons as to why Americans are stigmatized by the social struggle movement (as is the rise of the Bolshevik Party in the Russian Revolution and the Chinese Communist Party in China).
The goal of the intellectual is the most profound insight that Churchill explains. It has been a realization among many left-wing intellectuals, that the intellectual must be motivated as the tool maker and as the teacher, for which, he could impart the capacity for others to defend themselves and to act accordingly in such self-defense. His leadership is marginal at best, but his capacity to impart to others the lessons of the past and the understanding of the rich knowledge of the praxis of social change; starting with Hegel, then Marx, and many others, can be seen as the best weapon to revitalize the movement in the US. Also to realize the essential need to understand that other nations; other struggling groups, must partake their own way of defending themselves, and thus earn their capacity for a revolutionary change towards freedom and liberty.

Thank you!

Small but indispensable book.......2005-08-22

One of the previous reviewers sums it up very well: In this book, and pulling no punches, Churchill lays out his case against white progressives-to be precise the liberal/social democratic complacent legions of mostly well-educated midlle and upper middle class activists-who are delusional not only in the ineffectual tactics and strategies they pursue (which the ruling elites are only too happy to accommodate as per a well-scripted minuet), but in the belief that they are actually performing revolutionary acts...So, like it or not, Churchill is correct in pointing out that these liberals will do everything except assume actual risk in opposing the system..and that, being mostly interested in practicing "comfort zone" politics, they will almost invariably indulge in essentially worthless "cathartic" posturizing instead of solid opposition. By the way, the same writer is NOT correct in saying that nonviolence has achieved huge transformations. The Iranian revolution (1979) was far from a nonviolent process: the Shah had been opposed for decades by above ground and underground groups, several of which practiced armed struggle and paid a horrific price for it, while the last month of his rule saw masses of people in most Iranian cities, but especially Tehran, literally storming strong points and tanks in the streets with their bare chests and being mowed down...until more and more soldiers simply gave up and melted away or switched sides. As for the collapse of the USSR (1991), that came about as a result of complex processes that did not involve invested CLASS PRIVILEGES, as we have here and in other corporate-dominated nations. As for South Africa, the end of apartheid did not issue from a nonviolent process. Decades-long protests against the fascist legislation escalated until 1958 when the tragedy of Sharpeville occurred. Soon thereafter the government tried to suppress opposition through the sledgehammer approach of bannings and systematic "targeted repression". The first to be hit were the ANC and the PAC, but such bannings merely caused the organisations to go underground and become even more militant. The "armed struggle" therefore began in earnest in 1958 and by 1970 was beginning to affect the South African economy as greater and greater manpower was required to maintain an ever increasing army. Thus, Mandela's organization, the ANC had both a civil and a military arm, even if the latter developed after all roads to a peaceful elimination of Apartheid had proved futile, and long after the beneficiaries of the status quo had demonstrated through their unrelenting savagery that only armed struggle would move history forward. As for the much revered Arundhati Roy I do not think for a minute that she got it right in her speech in New York, where she argued "that there is no way to defeat the Empire by force and that its component parts must be isolated and paralyzed one by one." Sounds terrific and we only wish it were true, but Ms. Roy is also, like her liberal counterparts, utterly delusional. Furthermore, all the acclamation in the chi-chi salons and media precincts she's accustomed to will not change that simple fact. How does she propose to paralyze these component parts of the most heavily armed, cynical, and ruthless class privilege system in history without some form of REAL confrontation? With 2-hour candlelight vigils and some symbolic arrests which, by the way, may or may not be reported by the corporate-owned media? If THAT was all that was required to get rid of an immoral, deeply rooted capitalist system, a Nazi terror regime, a vicious landowning oligarchy as in Salvador, and so on, humanity would have moved past these filthy horrors decades if not centuries ago. As Churchill points out in his book, Nazi Germany was defeated by the massive application of force; the racist American South was similarly juridically defeated in the 1860s by massive military force, by organized all-out violence, (I say juridically because in practice it took 100 more years of struggle that saw innumerable crimes before African Americans could begin to take their rightful place among their fellow citizens)...There is not a single case in history where a deeply entrenched system of class or racial exploitation was overthrown by moral suasion and symbolic protests...If real change came about it was because force was being applied somewhere else alongside the nonviolent tracks...That's the point that Churchill is making in this book. It's a discomfiting point, but I'm afraid it is a true fact. Social change does not come cheap. Well, I could go on, but if you're a liberal I'm sure that facts will matter far less than attachment to convenient fantasies.

comfort zone politics.......2005-07-24

I loved this book. I think it teaches the reality of our current situation. The "progressive left" in North America are practicing "comfort zone politics". The protests that the progressive left organizes (with permission) hardly cause the state any harm. As mentioned in the essay by Mike Ryan, "They(the protests) reinforce the popular myth of American democracy." You have to wonder how effective these practices of soley using nonviolence really are. In my opinion, I think that you can't have one without the other. Yes, nonviolence can be effective, but so can violence (or rather self-defense). We should never completely throw out the use of violence in our constant struggle for justice. The comfort zone politics of the progressive left have only slowed down the emergence of any real revolution that we hope to achieve. There is a quote in the book by The Last Poets that says, "Don't speak to me of revolution until you're ready to eat rats to survive..." This keeps playing over and over in my head. Stop being so delusional...we will never achieve our goal as long as our movement consists of only pacifist ideologies. That is what I got out of this extremely informative book. It is important to note (which Churchill states in the conclusion) that the purpose of the essay was to critque pacifist thinking and practice, not to give alternatives.

A sobering assessment of white illusions.......2005-04-16

In this book Churchill lays out his case against white progressives, who he feels are oblivious to the ineffectiveness of their efforts. He indicts them for a phony pacifism that seeks not to embrace risk in a confrontation with state power, but rather, to avoid risk entirely in an effort to substitute feel good symbolism for real change. He suggests most white progressives are kidding themselves about favoring revolutionary change. Their simplistic ideas are delusional and their "comfort-zone" politics self-serving.
Churchill's frustration with the rituals of marching in circles, "demanding" change by carrying signs, and lighting candles for peace is certainly understandable. And he is right that such tactics are impotent without force being exercised somewhere else. His prescription for white progressives to become intimately acquainted with this fact through a kind of "revolutionary therapy" strips away many layers of pseudo-pacifist illusion in very short order. Churchill does not call for the abandonment of nonviolent action, merely for the recognition that without force being part of the equation other tactics are doomed to failure. I can't dispute the essence of what he says, but think he overplays the violence angle. While not due to pacifist action per se we do nevertheless have examples of sweeping social change occurring without violent revolution . . . . . the Iranian revolution (1979), the collapse of the USSR (1991), the end of apartheid . . . I think Arundhati Roy got it right in her speech in New York just after the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. She said there is no way to defeat the Empire by force and that its component parts must be isolated and paralyzed one by one.

The reality of revolution.......2003-12-27

This little book has changed the way I think about nonviolence as a be all end all strategy for social change. Churchill makes it very clear that the oppressed cannot expect the oppressor to some how take his moral position of nonviolence just because the oppressed practice it as a strategy for social change.

Another important point I picked up from this book is that proponents of nonviolence CANNOT excommunicate those who want to use violence as a strategy to bring about social change. And usually the be all end all strategy of nonviolence is common among a white progressive elite, not among the colonized, the victims of violence and most citizens of third world countries.
As churchill points out, if we truly want social change in the United States, and beyond our borders, we can't expect to get it from a strategy of pacifism only. History has proven him correct.

This book is definately a must read for anyone who wants to bring about social change.

Listening to the Land: Conversations About Nature, Culture and Eros
Average customer rating:

Thought-provoking, inspirational, life-affirming, erotic and profound!

Magnificent, Inspiring and Moving, Top notch!

Excellent and Enlightening Reading

A good book...

Wide variety of great thinking in this book.

Listening to the Land: Conversations About Nature, Culture and Eros
Derrick Jensen
Manufacturer: Chelsea Green
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Human Geography | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Conservation | Environment | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Nature Writing | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1931498563

Book Description

In this far-ranging and heartening collection, Derrick Jensen gathers conversations with environmentalists, theologians, Native Americans, psychologists, and feminists, engaging some of our best minds in an exploration of more peaceful ways to live on Earth. Included here is Dave Foreman on biodiversity, Matthew Fox on Christianity and nature, Jerry Mander on technology, and Terry Tempest Williams on an erotic connection to the land. With intelligence and compassion, Listening to the Land moves from a look at the condition of the environment and the health of our spirit to a beautiful evocation of eros and a life based on love.

Customer Reviews:

Thought-provoking, inspirational, life-affirming, erotic and profound! .......2007-05-08

In "Listening to the Land", environmental activist Derrick Jensen converses with Terry Tempest Williams, Ward Churchill, Starhawk, and other visionary ecological thinkers on a broad range of vital issues, like: ecofeminism, wilderness preservation, resource depletion, bioregionalism, and Native American liberation. For activists working to stop the corporate plunder of our planet, defend indigenous peoples, and protect endangered species, this book is an inspirational read. It will encourage you not only to resist the destructive forces of industrial patriarchy, but to live in deep relationship with one's landbase. The coho salmon, the panda bears, the monarch butterflies, the tropical rainforests, and the coral reefs depend on our love (just as we, in turn, depend on the living earth).

Magnificent, Inspiring and Moving, Top notch!.......2006-09-04

This book by Derrick Jensen was moving and inspiring. It presented a wide variety of viewpoints on environmental topics in a very personal dialogue format. This approach worked to reach the heart as well as the head. I found every section interesting and had a difficult time putting the book down.

This title is also informative and presents a full spectrum of opinions in original form from the mouths of the speakers who represent -- environmentalists, theologians, Native Americans, psychologists and feminists. In addition to reaching the heart, the material stimulates deep inquiry on the part of the reader. It is not in anyway superficial, quite the contrary!

The organizing principle of the book is the theme of loving the land and living in harmony with it. A thread that pervades every section is finding peaceful ways to live in harmony with the environment. It does not look to assign blame, but rather to seek peaceful solutions to the increasingly complex environmental problems that are plaguing all of us on the planet.

In my opinion, this is a must read for anyone interested in the environment or in reestablishing a deep connection to the land. If I could rate it a six I would. I got more from this book than I ever expected and have shared it with many people. I wish every voter and person having anything to do with making public policy read it, preferably on a camping trip.

Excellent and Enlightening Reading.......2006-01-13

This book is very well written and a wonderful collection of essays. For anyone that enjoys a well written essay with regards to the future of our planet, the environment or the total disregard that so many humans currently have to the planet - this is an excellent read.

A good book..........2005-01-17

I like this book and re-read it occasionally. The reviews with individuals are helpful in gettin a semi-diverse opinion of the troubles of our world. Some interviews are definately better than others so do not expect all interviews to blow you away. I have marked 10 or so and come back to these occasionally in order to re-inspire myself.

Wide variety of great thinking in this book........2004-06-25

If your a fan of Derrick Jensen's work you will definately see where he has gotten a lot of the foundations in his thinking.

This book is centered on the question if we we're not happy destroying the landbase that keeps us alive, and gives our inner world substance, than why are we doing it? Jensen than goes on to interview thinkers from many different fields to discuss this phenomenon.

This book is interesting and full of a lot of useful information. I find myself constantly going back through it and referencing interviews that I have found profoundly important.

Definately worth reading!

Listening to the Land. Conversations About Nature, Culture, and Eros.
Average customer rating:
Listening to the Land. Conversations About Nature, Culture, and Eros.
Derrick. Editor. Jensen
Manufacturer: Sierra Club Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000I32WS2

Average customer rating:
Listening to the Land. Conversations About Nature, Culture, and Eros.
Derrick Jensen
Manufacturer: Sierra Club Books.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000I37192

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