Amazon.com
In 1984, Ron and Dan Lafferty murdered the wife and infant daughter of their younger brother Allen. The crimes were noteworthy not merely for their brutality but for the brothers' claim that they were acting on direct orders from God. In Under the Banner of Heaven, Jon Krakauer tells the story of the killers and their crime but also explores the shadowy world of Mormon fundamentalism from which the two emerged. The Mormon Church was founded, in part, on the idea that true believers could speak directly with God. But while the mainstream church attempted to be more palatable to the general public by rejecting the controversial tenet of polygamy, fundamentalist splinter groups saw this as apostasy and took to the hills to live what they believed to be a righteous life. When their beliefs are challenged or their patriarchal, cult-like order defied, these still-active groups, according to Krakauer, are capable of fighting back with tremendous violence. While Krakauer's research into the history of the church is admirably extensive, the real power of the book comes from present-day information, notably jailhouse interviews with Dan Lafferty. Far from being the brooding maniac one might expect, Lafferty is chillingly coherent, still insisting that his motive was merely to obey God's command. Krakauer's accounts of the actual murders are graphic and disturbing, but such detail makes the brothers' claim of divine instruction all the more horrifying. In an age where Westerners have trouble comprehending what drives Islamic fundamentalists to kill, Jon Krakauer advises us to look within America's own borders. --John Moe
Book Description
Jon Krakauer’s literary reputation rests on insightful chronicles of lives conducted at the outer limits. He now shifts his focus from extremes of physical adventure to extremes of religious belief within our own borders, taking readers inside isolated American communities where some 40,000 Mormon Fundamentalists still practice polygamy. Defying both civil authorities and the Mormon establishment in Salt Lake City, the renegade leaders of these Taliban-like theocracies are zealots who answer only to God.
At the core of Krakauer’s book are brothers Ron and Dan Lafferty, who insist they received a commandment from God to kill a blameless woman and her baby girl. Beginning with a meticulously researched account of this appalling double murder, Krakauer constructs a multi-layered, bone-chilling narrative of messianic delusion, polygamy, savage violence, and unyielding faith. Along the way he uncovers a shadowy offshoot of America’s fastest growing religion, and raises provocative questions about the nature of religious belief.
Download Description
JON KRAKAUER is the author of Eiger Dreams, Into the Wild, and Into Thin Air, and is editor of the Modern Library Exploration series.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent book, I couldn't put it down!.......2007-10-06
A friend gave me this book and I finally got around to reading it a year or so later and was quickly consumed by it. It is an amazing book; it is thoroughly researched and factual yet will keep you entertained and yearning for more. Highly recommended!
Scary, horrifying, True Crime being lived out every day!.......2007-10-03
I was sickened by what I learned in this book.
Interesting that these groups of FLDS take so much money from the government that they destest. That is tax money we pay in that is given to them to let them live that illegal and immoral lifestyle.
I have seen religious fundamentalism first hand and I think there is a note of mental illness attached to it in most every case.
Book was very informative. (Couldn't put it down.)
Prepare to be shocked.......2007-10-02
If you are unfamiliar with fundamentalist Mormonism, this book will take you on a journey to places that you will doubt could even exist in 21st-century America. In the style of Jon Krakauer's other writings, the book is engaging, addicting, and disturbing. Of course, the book's outrageous subject matter certainly helps that along.
While the book centers on the true-crime story of the Lafferty murders, Krakauer indulges in some substantial subplots: a detailed history of the Mormon church in the 19th century, as well as an expose of fundamentalist Mormonism. Although Krakauer jumps among these three threads frequently, the book manages to hold together well.
Some Mormons might object to the way Krakauer treats the mainline Mormon church's beginnings, but I think his presentation is balanced. Also, I tremendously respect Krakauer for closing his book with a short, but honest, statement of his own worldview.
Another Fine Work by Jon Krakauer.......2007-09-22
Highly recommended! Another excellent work by Krakauer. I imagine most of those who rate this work poorly, one or two stars, are more than likely Mormons or fundementalists. Just as any church, religion, corporation, government entity etc. doesn't like it's dirty laundry aired for all to see or have it's hypocrisy revealed, neither does the Church of Latter Day Saints & it's adherents. Unfortunately, you can never get to the truth of the matter if you deny that anything is wrong or that there is a problem. The Catholic Church hid it's problems with homosexuality & pedophilia for decades & forcefully denied there existence, Sadly, we now know it was & is all true. Well written, insightful, informative & a hell of a good read. If you enjoyed Everest Dreams, Into The Wild or Into Thin Air, then you should enjoy this excellent work!
Fascinating review of Mormonism.......2007-09-21
Extremely well written and especially relevant since Mr. Romney is running for President - not that he is a fundamentalist. The history of the Mormon church is most interesting and the current beliefs and practices of the fundamentalists are frightening.
Average customer rating:
- This book was a "gift!"
- A Gift of Fear
- Trust Your Instincts!
- Recommended reading
- A Book for the Gullible and Fearful.
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The Gift of Fear
Gavin De Becker
Manufacturer: Dell
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Amazon.com
Each hour, 75 women are raped in the United States, and every few seconds, a woman is beaten. Each day, 400 Americans suffer shooting injuries, and another 1,100 face criminals armed with guns. Author Gavin de Becker says victims of violent behavior usually feel a sense of fear before any threat or violence takes place. They may distrust the fear, or it may impel them to some action that saves their lives. A leading expert on predicting violent behavior, de Becker believes we can all learn to recognize these signals of the "universal code of violence," and use them as tools to help us survive. The book teaches how to identify the warning signals of a potential attacker and recommends strategies for dealing with the problem before it becomes life threatening. The case studies are gripping and suspenseful, and include tactics for dealing with similar situations.
People don't just "snap" and become violent, says de Becker, whose clients include federal government agencies, celebrities, police departments, and shelters for battered women. "There is a process as observable, and often as predictable, as water coming to a boil." Learning to predict violence is the cornerstone to preventing it. De Becker is a master of the psychology of violence, and his advice may save your life. --Joan Price
Book Description
True fear is often a signal that can save your life. Are you listening?
The baby-sitter you've just hired makes you uneasy--what should you do?
You sense you are being followed --do you confront the stranger...or run?
A fired employee says "You'll be sorry"--should you take him seriously?
A person in the elevator you are about to enter just doesn't look right--do you wait for the next car?
A date won't take "no" for an answer. The new nanny gives a mother an uneasy feeling. A stranger in a deserted parking lot offers unsolicited help. The threat of violence surrounds us every day. But we can protect ourselves, by learning to trust--and act on--our gut instincts.
In this empowering book, Gavin de Becker, the man Oprah Winfrey calls the nation's leading expert on violent behavior, shows you how to spot even subtle signs of danger--before it's too late. Shattering the myth that most violent acts are unpredictable, de Becker, whose clients include top Hollywood stars and government agencies, offers specific ways to protect yourself and those you love, including...how to act when approached by a stranger...when you should fear someone close to you...what to do if you are being stalked...how to uncover the source of anonymous threats or phone calls...the biggest mistake you can make with a threatening person...and more. Learn to spot the danger signals others miss. It might just save your life.
Customer Reviews:
This book was a "gift!".......2007-10-04
I've read this book three times now, and each time I read it I uncover more and more incredibly helpful advice and wisdom.
I think it's a mistake to focus on the author's alleged "anti-gun" bias - out of a 400+ page book, that's discussed for perhaps 5 or 6 pages, at most. I don't really think the author sounded "anti" gun at all, either - it seemed to me he was advocating caution rather than an outright ban on the use of guns for personal safety. Considering that most women don't have the time or financial resources to learn how to use and purchase a gun, who cares, anyway? The point seems irrelevant to me.
I frankly don't care whether or not his crime statistics can be backed up by research, either - what difference does it make to know exactly how many people were assaulted or murdered in a given year? One is too many, and if this book can help save one person from harm, or even death, what does it matter whether the person was one of 1,000 or one of 10,000?
Finally, someone mentioned that reading this book would cause people to become more fearful. For me, the opposite was true. I'd been having some trouble with an individual I tried "to let down easy." He just can't seem to let go, and I used to worry a lot about what was going on. I often felt afraid - afraid because I never knew when he might try to contact me again, afraid because I never knew what he might do next. I recently reread the book, though, and now, instead of worrying about the situation, I find that I can relax. I trust that my intuition will let me know if there's something that I really do need to be afraid of - and I now know I will be able to take action to protect myself accordingly.
I haven't felt this good in quite awhile, and I'm truly grateful to Gavin DeCker for this "gift" - the gift of the ability to live my life now without fear.
A Gift of Fear.......2007-10-01
This book was recommended by a presenter at a statewide safety conference in Missouri. I purchased and read the book. I believe that it will be very beneficial to our staff with regard to keeping their intuitive senses sharp. School violence is a topic of critical importance. Our district purchased enough copies to provide every staff person with their own copy. Mr. de Becker uses his experiences to tell us how to keep our senses sharp. I recently conducted a professional development session using his book as background information.
Trust Your Instincts!.......2007-09-25
Gavin de Becker has written an excellent book on intuition and how it can help you stay safe. This is simply the best book on this topic. This book describes ways to listen to those small messages. The author uses numerous real incidents to illustrate the principles he discusses. If you are looking for a comprehensive self-defense book, this is not it, but if you are looking for a definitive study of intuition and how it can help keep you safe - then this is the book!!
Recommended reading.......2007-09-25
This book is 400 pages full of informations about you and how others perceive the world around you.
Good that the author goes deep into the issue, quoting also Robert Hare's precious work:
"The ability to act in spite of conscience or empathy is one characteristic associated with psychopaths. Robert D. Hare's insightful book 'Without Conscience' identifies several other features. Such people are: - Glib and superficial - Egocentric and grandiose - Lacking remorse or guilt - Deceitful and manipulative - Impulsive - In the need of excitement - Lacking responsibility - Emotionally shallow. Many errors in predicting behavior come from the belief that others will perceive things as we do. The psychopath described above will not."
And there are so many examples out there, from burglars to politicians and right into your TV set, every day.
A Book for the Gullible and Fearful. .......2007-09-02
I am a law enforcement officer and have worked the streets in the Southern California area for almost 20 years. I read this book and would NOT recommend it to anyone. I have the 1997 edition and it was given to my by a friend to read and review.
First, the book promotes an anti-gun bias and the author wastes no time in alleged gun violence statistics he provides but interestingly never cites his sources to support them. Here's an example, "In the last two years alone, more Americans died from gunshot wounds than were killed during the entire Vietnam War."
De Becker never cited which last two years so I assumed it was the years 1995 and 1996. Per Wikipedia, 58,209 brave American soldiers were killed in the Vietnam War, 153,303 wounded and 1,948 missing. I checked FBI crime statistics under the combined category of murder/non-negligent manslaughter rates for the years of 1995 and 1996. In 1995, there were 21,665 murders and in 1996 there were 19,645 murders for a total of 41,310 well short of 58,209 soldiers killed in the Vietnam War.
He further compares United States crime rate to Japan's crime rate. A nation of over 260 million (1995 statistics) versus a nation of 126 million(1995 statistics)is not a fair comparison. Is Japan a safe country? Not really, as you are more likely to commit suicide in Japan. Japan's murder rate average 0.9 per 100,000, but its suicide rate is 20.3, for a combined rate of 21.1 per 100,000. The U.S. murder rate average 7.4 per 100,000, and the suicide rate is 12.0, for a combined total of 19.4 per 100,000. Thus, the combined murder and suicide rates in Japan and the U.S. are nearly equal even though firearms are virtually non-existent in Japan.
He then claims, "By this time tomorrow, 400 more Americans will suffer a shooting injury and another 1,100 will face a criminal with a gun as Kelly did. Within the hour, another 75 women will be raped as Kelly was."
I tried finding statistics for the above quote but could not find any data that supported his claim. What I did find was that Prof. Gary Kleck from the School of Criminology, Florida State University, discovered Americans use firearms to prevent crimes approximately 1 to 1.5 million times per year. These are the very cases De Becker ignored. Had De Becker considered these facts, he would have had to conclude a firearm in the home makes a family and a person safer.
Prof. Kleck also discovered that robbery victims who defended themselves with a gun suffered lower rates of injury than did those who resisted without a gun, or even those who did not resist at all and instead complied with the violent criminal's demands. In short, Prof. Kleck concluded the private ownership of firearms deters criminal behavior. (Source: "Crime Control Through the Private Use of Armed Force" by Gary Kleck
Here's another fabulous claim by De Becker." In (sad) fact, if a full jumbo jet crashed into a mountain killing everyone on board and that happened every month, month in and month out, the number of people killed still wouldn't equal the number of women murdered by their husbands and boyfriends each year.
Per Wikipedia, the Boeing 747 is commonly nicknamed the "Jumbo Jet and depending on layout can hold between 417 and 524 passengers. I did not include the flight crew. Let us do some math. 417 x 12=5004 and 524 x12=6288. Now according to De Becker 417 to 524 plus women are murdered each month by their intimates.
In 1996, approximately 1,800 murders in the US were attributed to intimates; nearly three out of four of these (1,326) had a female victim the rest were male victims! (Bureau of Justice Statistics) Now 1326 divided in 12 is 110.5. Not the 417 to 524 plus murders De Becker claims to occur monthly.
De Becker is alleged to be a security expert but I could not find anything on his training and experience as a 'security expert." What makes him a security expert? I found his bio on the Internet and it cites his awards but nothing on his background, training or expertise. I could only find that he now resides in Fiji with seven adopted children. I guess he's so scared that he left the United States. I would like to know how many hardened criminals the author has arrested,confronted or fought in his lifetime.
I was very disappointed that a highly regarded author and "security expert" distorted facts and failed miserably in citing any sources for his alleged facts in his book. What else did he distort in his book? He sets the reader up(especially women) to be in fear then offers his solution to the reader to rely on your "gift of fear" or your inner self or gut feelings. This book provides the reader with a false sense of security. If you want to protect yourself you better learn how to fight with and without a weapon.
In my opinion, this book is for the gullible and the fearful. It provides the reader with no alternative but to rely on the alleged gift of fear or intuition to protect you. Fear is not a gift and will get you killed. If you are in a state of fear, your body will shutdown and you will not be able to fight back. You should always know your surroundings and rely on common sense. You should also train your body and mind for physical combat. Seek out experts in firearms instruction and in the combat arts. Always fight back and never give up! Which martial art should you study? For the beginner, I would suggest the Israeli martial art of Krav Maga as it provides the student with a combat mindset.
Here's a true life story. In the early 1990's, I took a criminal report for a young female school teacher in which her former boyfriend threatened to kill her. She had obtained a restraining order against him but it did little to stop his ongoing verbal threats. Her boyfriend was arrested several times but was released within a few hours. This kept him away for a time but did not stop the verbal threats. She was very concerned that he was going to kill her and that nothing was going to stop him. She lived alone in a rural area and asked me if she should buy a handgun. I told her yes but only if she obtained firearms training. I introduced her to a fellow officer that worked weekends as a certified firearms instructor at a private range. She immediately received firearms training that weekend from that officer, purchased a handgun, and became very proficient with her handgun (women tend to be excellent shooters). About two months later, her boyfriend was back at her home armed with a knife, she grabbed her 9mm handgun and escaped through the rear door of her home. He broke into her home and went after her. He was about 50 yards away threatening to kill her when she took a defensive posture, pointed her handgun at him and told him to stop. He refused and ran towards her with the knife in his hand. In self defense, she fired about four shots at him and killed him. This was an unfortunate incident that the young lady had to go through but she used common sense and training to protect herself. She was not arrested and the local prosecutor determined that she acted in self-defense. She trained her body and mind for combat and it saved her life. I am glad that I had a very small part in saving that young lady's life. Remember: The Gift of FEAR=False Evidence Appears Real.
For those of us that believe in the Almighty God, here's a scripture to remember. "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.) 2 Timothy 1:7
Book Description
Slicing through the emotional--but factually wrong--arguments of gun control advocates this book busts a number of myths, demonstrating with hard statistical data and riveting anecdotes.
Customer Reviews:
Very dry reading.......2007-09-01
If you can get past the numbers research then you'll benefit from this book. And, you'll never understand the evidence behind the truth about the benefits of gun possession versus the costs until you read it. The Bias Against Guns easily discredits those opposed to gun possession. Anti-gun folks don't tell the truth about the benefits of owning guns - John Lott does and proves it with advanced statistical analysis and research.
The proof that proves the benefits of gun possession is in this book.
Note the publisher of this book.......2007-08-26
Right wing, non-scholarly press. Then look at where Lott's critics publish--in scholarly journals and with academic presses.
Enough said.
Who should read this..........2007-04-01
Most of the news we see every day is favored toward showing the use of guns as bad. Whether this is because of a media plot to condition the public against guns, or because, in general, the people who work for the mainstream media are horrified by guns is not the point. What this book does is give us the other side of the debate, a side that needs to be heard.
Anyone who is caught by the day to day onslaught of the media bias against guns, but has an open mind and thinks they should have both sides of the story, should read this book. Anyone who instinctively knows that guns are the basis of all the freedoms we enjoy as Americans and would like a better understanding of that, should read this book.
Anyone else, it will be a waste of your money.
The Stephen Glass of econometricsisisis?.......2006-12-30
Fans of this 'scholarly work' (if computerized number crunching and anecdotal evidence can be called scholarly) by a 'much-published academician' (if that is meaningful to you) would no doubt be disappointed to learn Lott has based crucial evidence upon a survey he conducted himself and then 'unfortunately lost all trace of' the data; that he & his family have taken it upon themselves in the past to write stellar reviews for his books on Amazon.com; that Lott has found it necessary to defend his work by using pseudonyms and fake personas ('Mary Rosh')--but why, when the numbers speak for themselves??
Certainly not in order to profit from the audacious frenzy a claim like 'unregistered assault weapons reduce crime' would inevitably create...
Please, read 'How to Lie With Statistics' instead. Heck, read Wikipedia's article on John Lott, which cites the New England Journal of Medicine's statement:
[Lott] finds, for example, that both increasing the rate of unemployment and reducing income reduces the rate of violent crimes and that reducing the number of black women 40 years old or older (who are rarely either perpetrators or victims of murder) substantially reduces murder rates. Indeed, according to Lott's results, getting rid of older black women will lead to a more dramatic reduction in homicide rates than increasing arrest rates or enacting shall-issue laws.'
Controversy is indeed delicious, and who can fault some guy for trying to drum up a little press--but clouding such a serious issue in which lives are at stake with fuzzy math is undoubtedly reprehensible.
You can either be persuaded about this author's ethos by a few dazzling blurbs by 'Nobel Prize winners of Economics' (a solid science to be sure), or by his own behavior in response to scepticism. As Jon Weiner's Op-Ed in the LA Times states concerning the Lott v. Levitt lawsuit:
Lott is not suing those who have said some of his pro-gun research was "invented," "faked" or "cooked." The lawsuit turns on the definition of "replicate," from the "Freakonomics" sentence about how other scholars have tried and failed to "replicate his results." Lott maintains "replicate" means "analyze the identical data in the way Lott did." Because nobody tried to do that, he argues, "Freakonomics" is wrong. Most people, however, understand "replicate" to mean something like "confirm." Lott's reputation has indeed been "seriously damaged" by critics, but only because they have described many apparent holes in his dubious research and misleading citations. Blocking the sale of a book based on a literal interpretation of a single word [is] outrageous.'
Eye-opening from the first page.......2006-11-04
John R. Lott is a modern-day genius. His writing should earn him both the Nobel Prize for Peace AND the one for literature.
It's about time someone gave us the real story on gun crimes instead of the liberal slant we get from all the liberal news outlets. Obviously the previous reviewer who was in the military and speaks in favor of background checks has been misguided his own experience and these liberal media outlets.
Waiting periods make no sense at all, and I don't know who this Ronald Reagan guy is, but he sounds like a garden-variety lilly-livered liberal to me. Think about it. If you try to buy a handgun and you are forced to wait a week, there could be, by Mr. Lott's statistics, hundreds of crimes that you could have stopped by brandishing your piece. But those crimes happen, because you're stuck waiting because some liberal panzy named Reagan needed a background check law.
It's obvious, even to the most gun-scared leftist out there, everyone, even those who have not developed their full motor skills, should own a gun. Otherwise, how can you protect yourself!? It's NUMBERS people. If everyone has a gun, no one will get shot. Since gun owners are all expert marksmen, none of them would ever try to shoot a criminal and miss, thereby shooting an innocent bystander. After all, it's really easy to hit a moving target with a handgun. Heck, even you're a bad shot and you run out of bullets, you can easily peg your assailant on the head with the butt of your Magnum. If an innocent person gets shot, the statistics pale in comparison to how many would get shot it all of them didn't have guns.
Book Description
In 1998, William Queen was a veteran law enforcement agent with a lifelong love of motorcycles and a lack of patience with paperwork. When a “confidential informant” made contact with his boss at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, offering to take an agent inside the San Fernando chapter of the Mongols (the scourge of Southern California, and one of the most dangerous gangs in America), Queen jumped at the chance, not realizing that he was kicking-starting the most extensive undercover operation inside an outlaw motorcycle gang in the history of American law enforcement.
Nor did Queen suspect that he would penetrate the gang so successfully that he would become a fully “patched-in” member, eventually rising through their ranks to the office of treasurer, where he had unprecedented access to evidence of their criminal activity. After Queen spent twenty-eight months as “Billy St. John,” the bearded, beer-swilling, Harley-riding gang-banger, the truth of his identity became blurry, even to himself.
During his initial “prospecting” phase, Queen was at the mercy of crank-fueled criminal psychopaths who sought to have him test his mettle and prove his fealty by any means necessary, from selling (and doing) drugs, to arms trafficking, stealing motorcycles, driving getaway cars, and, in one shocking instance, stitching up the face of a Mongol “ol’ lady” after a particularly brutal beating at the hands of her boyfriend.
Yet despite the constant criminality of the gang, for whom planning cop killings and gang rapes were business as usual, Queen also came to see the genuine camaraderie they shared. When his lengthy undercover work totally isolated Queen from family, his friends, and ATF colleagues, the Mongols felt like the only family he had left. “I had no doubt these guys genuinely loved Billy St. John and would have laid down their lives for him. But they wouldn’t hesitate to murder Billy Queen.”
From Queen’s first sleight of hand with a line of methamphetamine in front of him and a knife at his throat, to the fearsome face-off with their decades-old enemy, the Hell’s Angels (a brawl that left three bikers dead), to the heartbreaking scene of a father ostracized at Parents’ Night because his deranged-outlaw appearance precluded any interaction with regular citizens, Under and Alone is a breathless, adrenaline-charged read that puts you on the street with some of the most dangerous men in America and with the law enforcement agents who risk everything to bring them in.
From the Hardcover edition.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent Book.......2007-10-07
I never knew the details about the Mongols. It was fascinating to learn about this motorcycle gang. The book is so well written that I finished it in 1 day. Recommended.
Revealing.......2007-10-06
William Queen presents a straightforward and compelling look at life within the most violent outlaw motorcycle gang in the United States. I found the most disturbing thing to be the movement of the gang across the United States, establishing locations in areas where local police have no experience dealing with them. Seeing the gang from the inside is a revealing and eye-opening story.
Awesome book.......2007-10-03
This was a great read. I do not read as much as I use to but was fascinated with the title at an airport bookstore so I purchased it. Needless to say, I completed it roundtrip from East Coast to West Coast and the time flew by.
A good, quick, entertaining read. .......2007-10-01
William Queen was an ATF agent who spent two and a half years living under cover as Billy St. John, a member of the San Fernando Valley Chapter of the Mongols, an international motorcycle gang. In his two years working the case, he "patched in" (became an official member of the gang) and worked his way up the ranks to an executive position, gaining unprecedented access to the inner workings of the gang, including its finances and official records. His case eventually led to the indictment of 53 Mongols on counts ranging from illegal possession of firearms to drug trafficking and murder.
While it's interesting to see how Queen worked himself out of predicament after predicament, weaving lies together to cover himself, you know he's going to make it out alright simply by the fact that he lived to write the book. So there's not a much tension in those moments in retrospect. To me, the interest of the book is in learning about the outlaw biker culture, and in the moral dilemma Queen faces when he has to testify against his "brothers." While he knows he's doing the right thing, he's also grown close to many of his fellow gang members, and he can sense that they really care for him too.
The writing sometimes lapses into the sort of gun-ho speak you find in war novels, but the story tears along at a ferocious pace and is in the end a quick, easy, fun read. And Queen should be commended for the sacrifices he made and the danger he repeatedly put himself in to serve his country.
Under and Alone.......2007-09-17
I saw a friend reading this book in Sturgis at the 2005 bike rally. When he put it down for a break, I picked it up and read the preface. I was drawn in from that point on. I started reading and could not put the book down. Managed to get through the first chapter before my friend took it back. How the government was able to infiltrate a bike club and climb their ranks for two years being undercover really fascinated me. I highly recommend this book to bikers and others who are fascinated by this lifestyle.
Book Description
The
Third Edition of this bestseller is a thorough revision. New chapters cover criminal behavior theories and psychological profiling; autoerotic deaths, and occult crimes, plus two new chapters detailing infamous unsolved crimes/criminals: Jack the Ripper and the Jon Benet Ramsey case. The authors' continuing research and activities in the field result in a multitude of new case studies for this book, often included as boxed inserts.
This is a textbook that is a vital resource for students in criminology and criminal justice, or as a tool for criminal justice professionals and researchers.
Profiling Violent Crimes, Third Edition contributes significantly to the knowledge about violent personalities and behaviors.
Customer Reviews:
You have to be kidding!! This is total garbage!!.......2007-02-06
Holmes and Holmes make a feeble attempt to discredit the FBI in chapter one. What is ironic is the fact that 95% of the quality profiling theory contained in this "book" is cited from FBI authored sources. Mr. Holmes can't have it both ways. Mr. Holmes bashes the FBI and discredits their methods of profiling and at the same time almost his entire text is referencing the FBI journals on profiling written by Douglas, Ressler, Hazelwood and others. He constantly references the Crime Classification Manual, Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives, and the early 1980's articles written on profiling by the FBI.
This book is written at junior high school level. The mistakes are numerous and the wording is awkward and choppy. There is no depth at all to anything presented in this book. Anyone who actually finds value in this garbage should read "Profilers: Leading investigators take you inside the criminal mind," and "Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives." The first of these contains a compilation of the ACTUAL articles that Mr. Holmes's entire book is based on.
I will never read another book by Ronald Holmes again.
Profiling Violent Crimes is a Great Tool.......2005-09-10
This has been a great help for my wife. She is gone back to school and this book has greatly helped her in her classes. Amazon's prices was much less about 40% cheaper than the book store and other websites.
Interesting but poorly written.......2005-09-07
I was assigned this book for a criminial justice course on profiling, and while I find the content interesting, the book itself is hard to read because the writing is bad. I *think* the authors are trying to state veiled opinions about the 'hotshots' of the FBI and what they would call 'proper' use of criminal profiling, but the language is stilted and I just end up confused as to their intent. That coupled with the misuse of the word 'affect' (instead of 'effect') within the first ten pages! Therefore, if you're looking for a well-written, thought-provoking text, this isn't it, but it can provide some interesting commentary on the state of profiling today.
Ugh.......2005-05-19
I agree completely with Dr. Chorbajian. I purchased this book in preparation for a graduate level criminal profiling class and have been thoroughly disappointed with both the quality of the writing and the depth (or lack thereof) of discussion. The authors may be experts in their field, but you wouldn't know it from this book. Unless you're forced to buy this book for school, opt for something else.
Couldn't put this down.......2005-04-19
I am a college student majoring in Political Science and minoring in Criminal Justice. This book was used as a supplement for a Criminology course I took in the spring of 2004 and I have to say it is one of the best texts I have read for any of my classes. While it can be used as a text book it can also stand alone. I learned so much from this one book and would suggest reading it if you are interest in criminology.
Book Description
A collection of supplementary readings on violence and violent crime, this book brings together a wide array of writings on various manifestations of violence in American life. It is broad based, not only in the kinds of violence covered (from street crime to family violence and political and corporate malfeasance), but also in the way it describes and explains implications for public policy.
Amazon.com
What makes people kill? Specifically, what are the motivations behind serial, mass, and spree killings? Drawing from cases such as the mass murder in Dunblane, Scotland, in which a lone gunman mowed down 16 children and their teacher, the still-unsolved Tylenol poisonings, and the Unabomber, former FBI profiler John Douglas and coauthor Mark Olshaker try to explain the unthinkable. What sets The Anatomy of Motive apart from so many of the theories about these horrific acts of violence is that Douglas and Olshaker have no obvious political agenda. They don't look for easy answers and they don't provide easy solutions. They do, however, offer some insight into the twisted kind of thinking that can lead a person to believe that the solution to his problems lies in bloodshed. They also provide some danger signs that may help to identify the potentially violent criminal before he has a chance to act out his morbid fantasies. While The Anatomy of Motive is undeniably horrifying, it is also illuminating, and Douglas and Olshaker approach their topic with grace and insight. --Lisa Higgins
Book Description
From legendary FBI profiler John Douglas and Mark Olshaker -- authors of the nonfiction international bestsellers Mindhunter, Journey into Darkness, and Obsession -- comes an unprecedented, insightful look at the root of all crime.
Every crime is a mystery story with a motive at its heart. With the brilliant insight he brought to his renowned work inside the FBI's elite serial-crime unit, John Douglas pieces together motives behind violent sociopathic behavior. He not only takes us into the darkest recesses of the minds of arsonists, hijackers, bombers, poisoners, assassins, serial killers, and mass murderers, but also the seemingly ordinary people who suddenly kill their families or go on a rampage in the workplace.
Douglas identifies the antisocial personality, showing surprising similarities and differences among various types of deadly offenders. He also tracks the progressive escalation of those criminals' sociopathic behavior. His analysis of such diverse killers as Lee Harvey Oswald, Theodore Kaczynski, and Timothy McVeigh is gripping, but more importantly, helps us learn how to anticipate potential violent behavior before it's too late.
Download Description
In this eagerly anticipated paperback release from the international bestselling authors of Mindhunter, legendary crime fighter John Douglas explores the root of all crime -- motive. Every crime is a mystery story with a motive at its heart. Understand the motive and you can solve the mystery. Here, Douglas offers a dramatic, insightful look at the development and evolution of the criminal mind.
Customer Reviews:
Inside Smoldering Minds.......2006-09-04
This is an engrossing book that was ahead of its time in presenting the often seamy, often searching field of forensic science. Douglas brings us onto the crime scene, and gives us a view through the eyes of profilers, pathologists, analyzers, and detectives.
The only fault I find with the book is its general contention that criminals choose their behavior. Without rehashing the nature vs. nurture controversy too much, a consideration of some of the possible physiological factors influencing criminals might have led to a more three-dimensional view of the criminal mind.
Douglas uses the fact that an offender can almost always restrain himself from committing a crime while a policeman is watching him as proof that virtually all criminal behavior is under the individual's control. I can't help but think though of the somewhat parallel condition of people with disorders such as Tourette's Syndrome. Tourette's sufferers can at times reduce or even eliminate their ticcing behavior when they are briefly in public. But their tics will return all the more insistently when they are alone again. So a criminal's ability to briefly control himself isn't necessarily an indication that he can always control himself.
A compulsive element seems to be especially apparent in crimes such as arson, which Douglas is often at his best discussing. He links this crime to a desire to command and manipulate. The arsonist gets the satisfaction of watching a whole slew of people, firemen and victims alike, scurrying around as a result of the problem he has created.
However, as Douglas himself reveals, there is also often some physically-rooted obsession that goads pyromaniacs. Douglas presents the case of Peter George Dinsdale in England for instance. This man was an epileptic who would set fires after he experienced a tingling in his fingers followed by some triggering, often trivial, altercation with his victims. This description also left me wondering if the flickering of flames might produce a more markedly pleasurable, fixating trance-like state in some people than in others.
A variety of criminal acts that Douglas describes center around fetishes and fanaticisms that might similarly have some neurological quirk as their basis.
Overall though, Douglas does a fine job of putting his readers on the trail of the criminal. He brings Sherlock Holmes onto current crime scenes by illustrating how a forensic scientist's work boils down to details - attention to details. He cites the case of arson in which a Torah was purposefully burned from right to left - cluing the detectives into the fact that the perpetrator must have been someone with a knowledge of Hebrew.
And like Holmes' classic clue of the dog that didn't bark, Douglas alerts us to the importance of details that are not there. Such observations are often important in insurance cases. When someone burns his own property for money, he will often remove items of special sentimental value first. If there are no family photo albums left in the ashes - that's a clue.
This book reminds us that no detail is trivial or uninteresting. Any mote might have a story to tell. If we could approach life from the viewpoint of the forensic scientists in these pages - we would never be bored.
A trip to a very dark place.......2006-03-17
When it comes to bringing serial crime psychology and profiling to a level that a layperson can understand, Douglas is peerless. He identifies several different types of serial killers and includes true-life stories of a few he's dealt with in his decades with the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit. It's an engrossing, easily understandable and fascinating read.
Not as riveting as I expected.......2006-02-03
When I saw this book in a used book store, I thought the title was "Anatomy of Murder". Only later did I see that it was "Motive". Based on Douglas' other books about serial killers, I expected this book to deal strictly with serial killers. And it did not.
Douglas' book described a range of killers; and his chapters are broken down accordingly. There are chapters on the anatomy of arsonists; people who use guns to commit crimes; those who poison and why; and other chapters ranging from guys who simply snap to those who commit random violence.
I wasn't really interested in serial arsonists so I skipped that chapter. The rest of the book was interesting but I think the chapters would have been much better if Douglas had focused on one or two specific cases rather than telling us snippets of several cases.
Would I read this book again? Probably not. Several of his other books are better.
The Best in the Series.......2005-09-18
Real info and facts on serial killers. The behind the scenes look at the killers that we don't get from the news. An excellent and well-written book. Also check out Robert Ressler's books.
An intregueing read.......2005-03-30
The criminal mind is a mysterious thing. The anatomy of a motive is a look the mind of criminals. It goes thru cases in the career of John Douglass. This book explores the mind of everything from your serial arsonists to your serial killer.
John Douglas was a criminal profiler for the FBI for over 20 years. He's one of the greatest criminal profilers in history. He's also been able to write many books on what he knows about the profiling of criminals. The work he's done in his career has led to the arrest of many of the worlds most dangerous criminals.
The anatomy of a motive starts out when John talks about a period during his time in the FBI where he went around interviewing criminals. Many criminals would try to talk themselves up and show off who they were. Many of them would lie and talk about things they may or may not have done. It took John much effort to get past this to get what he wanted from the people he interviewed. He said that criminals I (p. 22)"main goals in life are to kill and to hurt- or as I've stated many times in my career, to manipulate, dominate, and control."
We then come to the issue of fire in chapter two "Playing with Fire." He explore's the mind of your arsonists. He goes into the idea that many criminals early in life will play with fire. They will also have other traits in common with each other. They usually have (p.47) "violent, antisocial tendencies often mistreat animals or smaller children. This chapter goes into the arsonists as sort of a "ticking time bomb." They will set fire after fire and if they don't get caught they will become more daring. They will take more risks and eventually evolve into a killer if not stopped. He also states how many of these arsonists will start out in a place they are comfortable in only. They won't go out of their "comfort zone" until they believe they are comfortable doing so. This was a major thing in the world of tracking criminals. That means they can look around the area where the fire starting began (or other crimes as it turns out) and get an idea who they might be looking for.
"Magnum Force" explores the idea of guns used in crimes. Many criminals get there ideas from other things such as kojack In one case two air force enlisted men tied up and tried to poison some people in a Hi-Fi shop. They tried using poison and it didn't work like it did in the movies. They eventually had to some of them because the poison didn't work fast enough.
In "Name your Poison" the book goes into poisoning by tampering. It goes into adding poisonous pills to a Tylenol bottle. This led all drugs to be covered with a safety seal. In this chapter John talks about the Tylenol poisoner as someone who was proud of what they were doing. John figured this UNSUB was a passive person who would be afraid of confrontation. He was also able to figure that this offender wasn't that organized or methodical about his poisonings. He would just introduce a cyanide capsule to a bottle and put it back on the shelf. John eventually came up with an accurate profile of the Tylenol UNSUB. John was able to get the UNSUB out by getting him to write letters into a newspaper about his opinions and what he hated about society.
"Guys Who Snap", "On the Run" and "Shadow of a Gunman" all run along the same area and are about people who one day just can't take it anymore and snap. They snap for a number of reasons. They may have lost their job. Maybe their wife/husband left them. Or maybe they just realized there life is at a dead end. They see they aren't really going anywhere. Once they can no longer deal with the idea they won't achieve the great things they have always wanted to receive they decide to either relinquish their current situation and move on or go out in a blaze of glory. One UNSUB in this section for example, kills his whole family and quietly sneaks away to start life anew. Another UNSUB realizes that life is doomed for him and decides to go out in a blaze of glory by getting on top of a building and trying to take out as many people as he can with him. He had no plans to escape this situation. He just wanted to not go out alone. In a story of Brad Bishop who kills and burns the bodies of his family, he wants to start a new life somewhere else. He goes onto do so and is eventually caught. He never wanted to kill his family, but felt that he had to.
"Shadow of a Gunman" also goes into killers who have obsessions with weapons. Many usually have large collections. At some point they just snap and decide to go out in the blaze of glory and kill whatever they can, using what they have and know about they're weapons.
In "Random Acts of Violence" John goes into the idea of random violence. A mail bomber mails bombs to random members of the academic community. Many of his devices will either kill or extremely mangle his victims. As he progress's in his killings his bomb style becomes his "calling card." The UNSUB also likes to show how he's evolved as he goes on in his bombings. His bombs get a little better every time. This offender is a well educated person who knows a great deal. This person is also patient and willing to put in a great amount of time in constructing his weapons. This chapter also goes into the Unabomber. It talks about Timothy Mcveigh and about how he's always been a loner who liked doing things alone. He was a quiet and passive person who couldn't confront someone face to face.
The book ends with a summary type chapter called "You Make the Call." This chapter has a few examples of cases talked about in earlier chapters and asks that you make the call and eventually tells you the answers on whether your assessment was right or not.
The Anatomy of a Motive was an intriguing look into the way killers think. It will give you multiple examples of how criminals work. It explores the development of a criminal. It can give you an idea of how to profile a criminal. After reading this book I believe I could accurately profile many people. If you know the way someone was killed or the way the crime was committed you can learn everything you need to know about the person who did it. You can get a personality profile just by looking at the case. In many cases you can tell if the UNSUB was associated in any way with the victims. You can tell if this person was passive and afraid of confrontation. You can also see if the UNSUB will be around the crime scene and will want to witness his/her work. This book can benefit criminal profilers and even someone who enjoys things such as "America's Most Wanted." This book is quite strong in areas such as arson and murder. It falls short to me in areas such as rape, and burglary. This book is a great look into how FBI profilers think and a look at some of the cases that they can see everyday. It explains how many criminals think and where they get they're start. If we listen to the people in our lives who appear to be on edge and befriend those who look like they're all alone, criminals will eventually cease to exists and the world will be a better place for the future generations.
Book Description
Profiler Roy Hazelwood is one of the world's leading experts on the strangest and most dangerous of all aberrant offenders-the sexual criminal.In Dark Dreams he reveals the twisted motives and thinking that go into the most reprehensible crimes.He also catalogs the innovative and remarkably effective techniques-investigative approaches that he helped pioneer at the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit--that allow law enforcement agents to construct psychological profiles of the offenders who commit them. Hazelwood has helped track down some of the most violent and well known criminals in modern history; in Dark Dreams he takes readers into his world--a sinister world inhabited by scores of dangerous offenders for every Roy Hazelwood who would put them behind bars:* A young woman disappears from the convenience store where she works.Her skeletonized remains are found in a field, near a torture device.Who committed this heinous crime?And why? * A teenager's body is found hanging in a storm sewer.His clothes are neatly folded by the entrance and a stopwatch is found in his mouth.Is he the victim of a bizarre, ritualistic murder . . . or an elaborate masturbatory fantasy gone awry? * A married couple, driving with their toddler in the back seat, pick up a female hitchhiker.They kidnap her and for seven years keep her as a sexual slave.The wife agreed to this inhuman arrangement in exchange for a second child.Who was to blame?As gruesome as the crimes are and as unsettling as the odds seem, Hazelwood proves that the right amount of determination and logic can bring even the most cunning and devious criminals to justice.AUTHORBIO: Roy Hazelwood spent twenty-two years in the FBI, sixteen of them as a member of the Bureau's Behavioral Science Unit.He is now associated with the Academy Group, Inc., a forensic consulting firm with clients in government, industry, and the criminal justice system.Hazelwood lives in Virginia with his wife, Peggy.Stephen G. Michaud has written extensively on criminal justice topics.His previous books include Lethal Shadow, a study in sexual sadism, and The Only Living Witness, an acclaimed portrait of serial killer Ted Bundy that the New York Daily News listed as one of the ten best true crime books ever.
Customer Reviews:
Disturbing and insightful.......2007-03-12
This book is not for those with a weak constitution. The cases reviewed and discussed are disturbing, but the insight is great. This book allowed me to understand a bit more about the process used to understand the mind of the criminal.
I highly recommend this work to anyone in law enforcement, private investigations, or for those who want to understand the art of investigations... Just make sure you have not eaten lunch just before you start reading.
Graphic-Not a book for the easily horrified.......2005-08-19
This book was very informative. I was fascinated by all the things that Hazelwood has encountered in his career. This book is very graphic.
A True-Crime Book.......2005-05-29
For some reason I thought this was a book about the science behind criminal profiling. I was mostly wrong. It's a book about some mildly interesting crimes, much like you would see on A&E's crime shows.
There is a page or two about the science of criminal profiling, but that's all.
I'm not into true-crime stories, so it wasn't that interesting to me.
Again, if you're looking for the methods of profiling, this is not the book.
Dark Dreams english review.......2005-01-14
Dark Dreams is a book that is absolutely for mature readers its content is not child friendly. Roy Hazelwood spent sixteen years as a member of the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit. During this time he worked on many shocking cases but that's not all, he also did research on deviant behaviors this book shows some of what he discovered. Throughout the book Hazelwood gives many examples of horrifying real life crimes that he examined. The twenty-one year old woman with no history of arrest or psychiatric problems who while working at a funeral home developed a romantic interest with a corpse. Crime knows no age, thee boys of the ages seven, nine, and ten took a female playmate and forced her to perform oral on them and they took found objects and penetrated her vaginally and anally. The book went into some detail about the crimes and the explanation of some of the reasons for the crimes and what types of behaviors that lead a person to commit them. When I finish the book I still had some unanswered questions. Don't get me wrong the book was great and I would recommend it to anyone who is mature enough to handle its contents but I wish Hazelwood had gone into greater detail.
Depth & Perception.......2004-08-05
An excellent book that offers depth and perception into the criminal mind, Dark Dreams is a harsh, disturbing but ultimately mesmerizing book. The author's unquestioned authority in this area lends breadth to his analyses, certainly, but it his is writing style that gives the work a horrifying immediacy.
Although excellent for libraries, it should be noted that this is not a book for young readers. The material is candid and at times grotesque. Recommended reference for mature students.
Book Description
James Daniel Nelson first hit the streets as a teenager in 1992. He joined a clutch of runaways and misfits who camped out together in a squat under a Portland bridge. Within a few months the group-they called themselves a "family"-was arrested for a string of violent murders.
While Nelson sat in prison, the society he had helped form grew into a national phenomenon. Street families spread to every city from New York to San Francisco, and to many small towns in between, bringing violence with them. In 2003, almost eleven years after his original murder, Nelson, now called "Thantos", got out of prison, returned to Portland, created a new street family, and killed once more. Twelve family members were arrested along with him.
Rene Denfeld spent over a decade following the evolution of street family culture. She discovered that, contrary to popular belief, the majority of these teenagers hail from loving middle-class homes. Yet they have left those homes to form insular communities with cultish hierarchies, codes of behavior, languages, quasi-religions, and harsh rules. She reveals the extremes to which desperate teenagers will go in their search for a sense of community, and builds a persuasive and troubling case that street families have grown among us into a dark reversal of the American ideal.
Customer Reviews:
Dangerously inacurate .......2007-10-06
Having many years experience working with youth on the streets I have yet to come across ONE who has chosen a life of homelessness. While Denfeld writes of one horrifying situation she unfortunately connects this violence to all street youth. However, this is dangerously wrong, and paints a demonizing picture of youth who are surviving on the streets against all odds. There is already a stigma regarding homeless youth, and I fear Denfeld is perpetuating a damaging myth that these youth are from loving homes and choosing a life of homelessness...All she is doing is harming an already vulnerable population, and swaying the public from supporting their own children. Most of the youth I work with on the streets are there because their life at home was shockingly abusive, and the streets were safer. They are survivors in every sense of the word, they are nonviolent, often working, intelligent and engaging individuals who daily fight against a society who finds it easier to judge them than to realize the alarming rate of family trauma that is forcing children to leave their homes to search for safety on the streets. As a society we need to come together to allow these children to reach their amazing potential, not blame them for having been born to unsafe families. Yes, the story Denfeld wrote of is tragic, but it is so far from what happens on the street she was wrong to imply this violence as the norm. The streets are not fun, simply surviving day to day is no life, it is not a glamorous existence, it is often frightening, frustrating and painful. Anyone who asserts that youth chose a life on the streets is sadly misinformed, and I believe choosing to remain ignorant because they are simply not strong enough to realize how many thousands of children have been thrown in this country.
Lost teenagers, living under the bridge........2007-05-28
Portland, Oregon and street kids.....gone wrong. The sadness of what can occur when parents do not accept the reasonability of parenthood and think more of themselves..... and our youth end up under the bridge,gone astray. Following the "parents" of the street, all the while longing for a home life. Reality at its best. A great in site to today's street kids.
Brave and Honest.......2007-04-02
Denfeld is brave and honest in bringing to light a sad truth that none of us want to believe, nor except, about any of the kid's on the streets of Portland , or anywhere in America. She is clear that it is not all that go down this dark road,that many are truly homeless, with no other choice, and makes the point that the organizations that are there to help, need to have more knowlege of the culture. Chilling, brutal, yet hopeful, because it gave information about how to be aware and get on the road to solve this problem.
An excellent, disturbing and profound look at violent street families.......2007-03-28
As a Portland native, I highly recommend this book. It is written from an investigative reporter view with info from all sides involved: homeless youth in Portland, the kids and adults inside the street family that the book deals with, the historical and present day violence within street families, the loving family of Jessica the murder victim as well as Jessica herself, the police officers and detectives involved in the grisly investigation and how some of the social service agencies in downtown Portland turned a blind eye to some serious issues. It also provides a great overview and history of street youth and street family culture and how wide spread and connected it really is. This book challenges us to really look at what is going with some of the young teens and adults that live on the streets in violent street families and why we as a society have chosen to ignore the violence and murder. It is grim and disturbing but honest and thought provoking, something many journalists and authors have forgotten how to do, but Denfeld has not.
All God's Children.......2007-03-28
She really hit the nail on the head. Very informative without being overly sensational.
Book Description
This book is written in the form of stories that individually and collectively describe violence and violent crime in America in the twentieth century. Because violence means different things to different people, this book attempts to show the many ways in which we as a society think about violence and how these perceptions have developed in our society during the twentieth century. Weaving a personal narrative style together with official statistics, media reports, research findings, and first-hand accounts, the author illustrates the American experience and the social construction of various forms of violence. Since the language of social constructionism is often difficult to understand, this book utilizes simple explanations of how violence and violent crime are socially constructed. This book succeeds in making an abstract but important theory accessible by grounding these explanations in specific historical and biographical experiences of American society. For anyone interested in understanding violence.
Books:
- Understanding and Applying Medical Anthropology
- Urban Economics and Real Estate Markets
- West's Legal Environment of Business (with Online Business Guide)
- What to Do When You Don't Want to Call the Cops: or A Non-Adversarial Approach to Sexual Harassment (A Cato Institute Book)
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- Win Your Child Custody War: Child Custody Help Source Book--A How-To System for People Serious About the Welfare of Their Child (11th Edition)
- Administration of Wills, Trusts, and Estates, 3E (The West Legal Studies Series)
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- Architectural Graphic Standards for Residential Construction: The Architect's and Builder's Guide to Design, Planning, and Construction Details (Ramsey/Sleeper Architectural Graphic Standards Series)
- Are Women Human?: And Other International Dialogues
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