War Is a Force that Gives Us Meaning

Book Description

As a veteran war correspondent, Chris Hedges has survived ambushes in Central America, imprisonment in Sudan, and a beating by Saudi military police. He has seen children murdered for sport in Gaza and petty thugs elevated into war heroes in the Balkans. Hedges, who is also a former divinity student, has seen war at its worst and knows too well that to those who pass through it, war can be exhilarating and even addictive: “It gives us purpose, meaning, a reason for living.”

Drawing on his own experience and on the literature of combat from Homer to Michael Herr, Hedges shows how war seduces not just those on the front lines but entire societies, corrupting politics, destroying culture, and perverting the most basic human desires. Mixing hard-nosed realism with profound moral and philosophical insight, War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning is a work of terrible power and redemptive clarity whose truths have never been more necessary.

Customer Reviews:

Busting the Myth of Redemptive Violence.......2007-09-01

This book and its message is NOT an assertion that all war is inherently wrong and that there is no distinction between the administration of justice and the return of evil for evil. It is an assertion that aggressive militarism, the glorification of warfare, the failure to recognize that it is born of sin and human failure and the pimping of it by religious and political institutions is misguided at best and possibly disastrous when not discerned and/or allowed to go unchecked by Godly, moral reflection.

Very often, pacifism is equated with passiveness, even though there is no linguistic link between the two words. Therefore, the application of pacifism, or anything approaching pacifism, is regarded as disastrous.
In a certain sense perhaps pacifism and passiveness are similar. To be passive means to receive or be subject to an action without responding or initiating an action in return. But passiveness also implies that one is not participating, that one is inert. In this sense nothing could be farther from the truth.

At any rate, Hedges does not profess to be a pacifist- although I believe in a certain sense of the word that he is. Nowadays I consider myself a pacifist or peacemaker with regards to warfare. What that means to me is not a belief that all violence is always wrong no matter what. It does mean that I judge any given situation with a spiritual discernement. It means that I choose violence as a solution last... not first. It means that I do not hate my enemies, but rather love them and consider my ultimate enemy not my fellow man... but the spiritual forces of darkness in the celestial realm as the Bible teaches. It means that I know that the power to give life is far greater than the power to kill and destroy. It means that I think eternally and act spiritually inasmuch as I am able as a weak and pitiful sinner and carnal man. It means that I leave room for God's plan and God's sovereign right to vengeance before my own. It means that I do not fear death... and am thus not controlled by fear in my actions or reactions... inasmuch as I am able. I believe that this book ul;timately reveals that Mr. Hedges feels essentially the same way.

Chris Hedges is the son of a Presbyterian minister, the Rev. Thomas Hedges. He has a B.A. in English Literature from Colgate University and a Master of Divinity from Harvard Divinity School, where he studied under James Luther Adams. Thus, Mr. Hedges' view of the world and of warfare are undoubtedly colored by theology. Hedges is currently a senior fellow at The Nation Institute in New York City and a Lecturer in the Council of the Humanities and the Anschutz Distinguished Fellow at Princeton University. He spent nearly two decades as a foreign correspondent in Central America, the Middle East, Africa and the Balkans. He has reported from more than fifty countries, and has worked for The Christian Science Monitor, National Public Radio, The Dallas Morning News and The New York Times, where he spent fifteen years.

Hedges' has a stinging, no punches pulled, no holds barred style of writing that I personally find very strong and inspiring. This book "War Is A Force That Gives Us Meaning", is one of the few books that so deeply inspired me that I read it straight through as quickly as possible. The book left me a bit disenchanted and in a brooding mood in the end. The realization of the validity of Hedges' perspective and cultural commentary is a bitter pill to swallow for anyone who values true freedom and moral truth. This is heavy material for a moral, freethinking person to reflect on.

Here are two excerpts from the book that I discovered when skimming through it at the bookstore that made me buy this book:

1. "We make our heroes out of clay. We laud their gallant deeds and give them uniforms and put colored ribbons on their chests for acts of violence they commit or endure. They are our repositories of glory and honor- of power, self righteousness, patriotism and self worship - all that we want to believe about ourselves. They are our plaster saints of war- the icons we cheer to defend us and make us and our nation great. But they are part of our civic religion- our love of power and force. Our belief in our right as a chosen nation to wield this force against the weak and rule. This is our nation's idolatry of itself- and it has corrupted our religious institutions just as it has corrupted religious institutions in other nations- fusing the will of God with the will of the State to create a potent and deadly form of idolatry."

2. "War from a distance seems noble. It gives us a feeling of belonging, of comradeship, of power, a chance to play a small bit in the great drama of human history. It promises to give us an identity as a warrior, a patriot, a believer- as long as we go along with the myth- the one the war makers need to wage war. But, up close, war is a soulless void. The world of war descends to barbarity, perversion, pain and an unchecked orgy of death. It is a state where human decency and tenderness is crushed- where those who make war work overtime to reduce all love and sensitivity to smut and filth.
In war the moral order is turned upside down. All that is repulsive and feared in peacetime is lauded and cheered in war. The noise, the stench, the cries of pain, the eviscerated bodies, the bloated stinking corpses spin us into another universe. And in this moral void, often blessed by the church or the mosque or the synagogue- the hypocrisy of our social conventions, our strict adherence to religious edicts and virtues and utter refusal to honor others comes unglued. War, for all its horror, has the power to strip away the trivial and the banal, the empty chatter and self righteous obsessions that fill our days. It lets us see."

Whether you agreee with Mr. Hedges' take or not... his offering is/should be an important part of the dialog on these topics. I give the book my highest endorsement.

Prescient.......2007-08-12

A well argued work, the most amazing thing about it in hindsight is how while written before the Iraq invasion, and without once referring to its immenence, Hedges predicted so much of what has occurred in Iraq--how the 9/11 victims would become martyr fodder, the destruction of Iraqi culture, the connection between torture and pornography, the inciting of latent and rather benign ethnic differences into endless blood feuding by those who wish to perpetuate the fighting. Utilizing classic literature, an in depth understanding of conflict throughout history, and his own first hand experience as a war correspondent for decades, Hedges makes his argument that war is hell not a video game, and, while no, it's not a new one, we shouldn't as a result be going to war every time a kid who is well known for lying cries "wolf."

Thoughtful meditation on the wages of war.......2007-06-14

This book is basically a philosophical, psychological essay/meditation on war and its role in human life. At times it reads like a whirlwind tour of the atrocities and cruelties that humans have visited on one another. Hedges was a war correspondent for over a decade and traveled to many of the world's war zones, including Central America during the 1980's, the Balkans, and the Middle East. Hedges' experiences in these places obviously had a profound impact on him, and this book is essentially a collection of his impressions. Hedges seeks to situate war within the human consciousness. Using literature and actual political proclamations, he demonstrates that war is often depicted as the highest human calling, in which young men and women gain the opportunity to achieve heroism and fight (and often die) for lofty ideals. This is contrasted with the humdrum and monotony of everyday life in which many people struggle vainly to find some meaning in their lives. One of Hedges' goals is to shatter this romantic myth of war by exposing the carnage and emotional and physical destruction that it unleashes and the lies, foisted by political leaders, that undergird it. A good portion of the book follows a particular pattern. Hedges will make a general observation about "war," such as, "In times of war, such and such thing tends to happen." He then provides specific examples to back up his generalization. Probably my favorite aspect of this book was Hedges' savage indictment of nationalism. I have studied nationalism and its origins from an academic point of view (Gellner, Benedict Anderson), but Hedges here provides a compelling and damning depiction of the ways in which nationalist sentiments serve to mobilize people to commit the most barbaric acts. He provides numerous examples of how political leaders have exploited nationalist rhetoric to stir up animosities among communities for their own political gain, and how these communities far too gullibly often fall for this tactic. While fundamentalist religion in recent years has justifiably gained attention as a source of conflict, nationalism, which also creates artificial us versus them distinctions, has not garnered as much criticism.

This book is not a policy manual. Hedges concedes early on that, despite the cruely and barbarism of war, he is not a pacifist and that military action is often necessary. However, he is infuriatingly vague about what those conditions are under which war should be regarded as justified. He also takes pains to argue that he is not a moral relativist; in most conflicts, one can justifiably identify one particular side as being morally superior (or, at least, less immoral) than the other, but he doesn't clarify what criteria to use to make that distinction. In sum, this isn't the book to read if you are looking for any sort of moral guidance on when war is justified. But alas, this is probably an unfair criticism, since Hedges seeks here to write a more meditative reflection on the costs of war. Overall, I would recommend this short book (I read it in a couple of sittings) to anyone seeking such a philosophical reflection.

war is a force that gives us meaning.......2007-06-04

Chris Hedges uses past experiences to describe the reality of war. He uses what he calls "sensory reality", where people look at war in terms of what it really is as opposed to trying to justify it, making it a heroic movement. In one of his chapters he also describes "mythic reality" which he says is unfortunately used throughout the majority. Mythic reality is where people sugar coat the war in order to turn it into a success for their people. Hedges describes how the people of today try to use our constant need to fight as something to enlighten our country, they use this mythic reality in order to make themselves either the victim of the war or the heroic figure which textbooks constantly portray. As he's experienced a lot through war, he uses facts from what he himself has witnessed in order to prove that war is not a heroic event, it's rather just a brutal fight that our modern day justifies in order to be proud.
As the media today is trying to recruit, Hedges also discusses how the war is taught to the youth as something exciting, heroic and worst of all something to look forward to in order to find yourself.
Hedges is a magnificent author, ready to back up all of his points with facts from his past experience. I have nothing negative to say towards any of his theories as he has proven reality and is the one person who has let the world read the truth rather than what the textbooks say.

A Book for the Times.......2007-05-30

Prompted by reading Mr. Hedges' article on the same topic in The Nation, I wanted to read more. His book should be a 'must' reading in today's world; I have yet to read a better treatment of this timely and emotional subject.

Practicing the Presence: The Inspirational Guide to Regaining Meaning and a Sense of Purpose in Your Life

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The Secret to life
YAWN
An Inspiration beyond time
Thy Grace Is My Sufficiency...
The way back to God.

Practicing the Presence: The Inspirational Guide to Regaining Meaning and a Sense of Purpose in Your Life
Joel S. Goldsmith
Manufacturer: HarperOne
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Infinite Way
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ASIN: 0062503995

Book Description

The celebrated guide to the awareness of the devine and transcedental in our daily lives. This modern spiritual classic is one of the three books. Goldsmith felt contained the essence of all his teachings.

Customer Reviews:

The Secret to life.......2007-09-09

I felt the book showed the secret to the spiritual life we all wont to live in this time frame we have. Great Book it will change your life

YAWN.......2007-05-29

I have studied metaphysics for years and I am increasingly careful about becoming too engulfed in theory and not enough practice. This book is not for those new to new thought its way too heavy. Bottom line practicing the Prescene starts with awarness of the Presence right where you are, your conscious mind being the Spirit of God within you. This book just beats around the bush and comes from a standpoint of supplicaton rather than inductive. I would recommend any Ernest Holmes book as an alternative.

An Inspiration beyond time.......2007-03-10

Anyone who has been on the spiritual path and has dedicated there lives to finding the truth about God should read this book. If you are serious and want to accomplish true Self Realization this book should be in your library.

Thy Grace Is My Sufficiency..........2006-10-03

I know a lot of sincere people who are very religious and yet they seem to be so unhappy and so unfulfilled. One even "confessed" to me, "Y'know, John, I believe in God, but I often wish that God was right here to help me go through with what I'm going through..."

I was completely shocked but then I remembered what it was like to believe in God and yet feeling like God was not around when I needed God. It wasn't because God wasn't there, it was because I had this belief that God's Life and my Life were two completely different things. It really blew my mind the first time I walked into a metaphysical church and heard this New Thought practitioner say with complete sincerity and yet with complete humility, "There is One Life and that Life is God and that Life is my life now..."

That simple statement brought tears to my eyes. I had been so brainwashed to think and feel and even act as though I was this completely unworthy, undeserving, sinner; that God the Living Spirit wanted nothing at all to do with my life, but all of the sudden I came face to face (or was it soul to soul?)with the beautiful Truth that my life was/is/and will always be the Life of God. It is what animates me, it is what heals me, restores me, renews me, and blesses me in every moment. To get to this point of knowing and feeling that God is Present as Presence, one must learn to sense this Presence, to feel it within every fiber of their being, and the only way we can learn to know that this presence is Present is to get still and when we get still enough to know and feel that this life is all around us and within us, we can be like the Psalmist and say from the depths of our soul, "Be still and know that I am God..."

Our "I AM" is God Itself. Our "I AM" guides us, directs us, leads us out of the wilderness of being alone and afraid and into the green valley of plenty and abundance. This plenty and abundance is already present within us. we do not ask to become rich, we ask God to see the riches that are already within us. we do not ask God to heal us, we ask God to show us how we are already whole and holy beings living in a Whole and Holy universe. Truly, God's Grace is our sufficiency and that everything we could possibly want, need, or desire is already present and we just have to be willing to let it flow through us, as us.

This book makes you realize that our purpose here is be that place/that space of Love, of Peace, of Goodness. We must not allow our vision to become clouded with thoughts of war, hatred, poverty and lack. We must put our attention and our focus on Heaven rather than hell...on God rather than sin...on Peace rather than war. This book will help you to remember that in each and every moment, God is and it is through this simple yet powerful awareness that God is always present where miracles take place. Miracles are supposed to happen. Miracles are our birthright.

If you are new to this way of thinking, welcome! Welcome to Life! Welcome to a new way of thinking, a new way of feeling, a new way of being in the world but not of the world. And if you have been in New Thought for awhile and haven't yet read this book, do your heart, your mind, your soul a true gift and allow yourself to remember why you are really here -- to Live and to abundantly well.

Peace and Blessings...

The way back to God........2006-07-22

After Years of orthodox Christian teaching, Joel Goldsmith opens up the new teachings of the prophets and Jesus, showing us the way back to God and how we can live it!
John 6 v35 - 41
John 5 v19 - 47
Matthew 11 v25 - 30
For those who wish to start a study along these lines Joel's book 'Practicing the Presence' gives a good insight to his teachings.
See also 'The Journey back to the Fathers House'.... by the same author.

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Very thought-provoking and explanatory
Awesome
Refreshing Perspective
Pretty brilliant
Remarkable.

The Meaning of Hitler
Sebastian Haffner
Manufacturer: Harvard University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Defying Hitler: A Memoir
War Without End: Israelis, Palestinians, and the Struggle for a Promised Land
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The Third Reich in Power

ASIN: 0674557751

Book Description

This is a remarkable historical and psychological examination of the enigma of Adolf Hitler-who he was, how he wielded power, and why he was destined to fail.

Beginning with Hitler's early life, Haffner probes the historical, political, and emotional forces that molded his character. In examining the inhumanity of a man for whom politics became a substitute for life, he discusses Hitler's bizarre relationships with women, his arrested psychological development, his ideological misconceptions, his growing obsession with racial extermination, and the murderous rages of his distorted mind. Finally, Haffner confronts the most disturbing question of all: Could another Hitler rise to power in modern German?

Customer Reviews:

Very thought-provoking and explanatory.......2007-03-21

As one who has read more than my share on the 3rd Reich and WW II in general, I didn't expect to be too surprised or enlightened by this book. I was wrong; it shows well how Hitler came to the point of being a demigod to many Germans and thus was able to eventually lead them (and Europe) to a destruction beyond their worst nightmares.

The one thing in this book that struck me as an idea that was totally novel to me was the thought that with the near miss to capture Moscow in 1941 Hitler knew that the war could never be won in the manner which he wanted. Basically, Haffner contends Hitler now knew that World Domination could never be attained in his lifetime and he turned to his other goal (mass murder of Jews) as his leading motive in his decision-making process. It is a very interesting theory, especially how it helped lead to his mysterious decision to declare war on America. I wish I could read historians response to his conclusions, but I don't totally buy it (although it is a fascinating view). I think it gives Hitler too much credit.

It may explain some of his strategic inertia but if he truly was resigned to defeat and wanted to kill as many Jews as possible before the end there is no reason for him to commit so many obvious strategic blunders that mounted on top of each other more and more. I think Haffner underestimates the effect of Hitler's drug use, sleeping habits, and his unshaken belief (maybe more than any other German!!!) in the "Hitler Myth".

I hope someone else with more expertise can comment. Also, Hitler's decision to declare war on America had to be madness more than anyhting else.

Awesome.......2006-02-10

I know so many people have complimented this book, but I have too also. The insights that Haffner puts forth explain much of the confusion of Hitler's moves during World War II.

The book is powerful in its clear ascersions. It is also highly readable, though there are passages that must be read more than once to probe their depths.

Refreshing Perspective.......2005-12-22

Haffner offers a fresh perspective on Hitler, about whom most of us WWII buffs think we know a great deal. His major point--that Hitler was, in effect, a self-hating guy who turned his hatred in the end against the country he professed to love--is a very interesting viewpoint and one that can be argued and discussed forever. I'm encouraged to read more by this insightful writer!

Pretty brilliant.......2005-09-23

It's really odd how Haffner has managed to cram so many valuable and unique insights into such a small book. Others have done a good job of reviewing this book already, so I'll just mention that I was particularly impressed with how Haffner explained, without excusing anything, how *rationally* one could have come to support Hitler.

His treatment is devastating precisely because he is able to recognize what appeared to be the (early) Nazi successes, and is able to highlight just where National Socialist ideology really did seem to many Germans, even those who loathed anti-semitism, to connect with reality, and ultimately, become synonymous with reality. I find discussions like this a lot more plausible, and therefore enlightening, than those which portray the whole thing as a full-tilt collective freak-out from day one which never did many any sense whatsoever.

Another discussion I thought was particularly enlightening revolved around Haffner's suggestion that Hitler in effect declared war on Germany itself; that he came to regard it as unworthy of him and the ideals he claimed to embody, and thus was worthy only of death in the end. In other words, his decisions near the end of the war, so disastrous to Germany and the German people, weren't so much the result of incompetence as of deliberate intention. If Germany couldn't, or wouldn't, be what Hitler wanted it to be, then it itself had to be totally annihilated.

Anyway, this book has a lot of bang for the buck. (By the way, Haffner apparently was an early anti-Nazi dissident and was expelled from Germany [moving to England] some years after they came to power).

Good luck.

Remarkable........2005-09-17

This is the best book on Hitler I've read. Clearly written and articulated, and certainly not the sort of lumbering mess one comes to expect from a Hitler book, Haffner's volume is something that can be finished in an afternoon, but of course, will be thought about for much longer. Haffner is surprisingly even-handed to Hitler, he grants that the man managed a few surprises and triumphs; in fact, he had more-or-less an entire decade in which he went from success to success. Yet, Hitler was unambiguously a failure, and, as Haffner points out, no other major world leader has ever failed as totally as Hitler. Hitler's "miraculous" economic miracles were largely vaporous, his "brilliant" military victories came against much weaker opponents. Never once was Hitler able to leverage his military victories into diplomatic ones: indeed, Hitler saw war not as something that serves a peace, but rather, an eternal action, in which the strong subjugate and destroy the weak. Hitler's only real strength was in his uncanny ability to sense weakness in a system or an opponent, and push them over at the right time. The only thing that drove him was his ridiculous sense of his own indespensibility (Haffner ably demolishes the old idea that Hitler was the greatest statesman of the century before unleashing war onto the world--Hitler had no plans on a permanent state, or even a permanent ideology of Hitlerism, rather, the Greater German Reich existed through Hitler, not beyond him) and his raging, raving anti-semitism. When word leaked out of the crimes of the Nazi regime, a dignified peace was out of the question for Germany. Hitler, in his final days, decided, like the spoilt little brat he was, that his toy-Germany-had failed him, and he made sure that the entire nation would pay for that failure. Hitler essentially delivered the death blow to Western Civilization; he was the worst thing imaginable for Germany and Europe, and yet some people still idolize the man. They should all read this book, and give thanks that someone like Haffner existed to write it.

The Missouri Compromise and Its Aftermath: Slavery and the Meaning of America

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Importance of the Aftermath in History

The Missouri Compromise and Its Aftermath: Slavery and the Meaning of America
Robert Pierce Forbes
Manufacturer: The University of North Carolina Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0807831050

Book Description

Robert Pierce Forbes goes behind the scenes of the crucial Missouri Compromise, the most important sectional crisis before the Civil War, to reveal the high-level deal-making, diplomacy, and deception that defused the crisis.

Customer Reviews:

Importance of the Aftermath in History.......2007-05-18

Dr. Robert P. Forbes is no stranger to students of the antebellum era. His previous articles have been noted for their clear readable style and scholarship. Dr. Forbes states the book took a long time to come into being as a finished work. The result shows a well thought out examination and interpretation which makes the wait worthwhile. His colleagues, experts in the field of antebellum history, state they "learned a great deal from the work." The real value of this work is in its examination not only of the well known history of the Missouri Compromise itself --the formulation and passage of the legislation--but the even more important aspects of the effect of this compromise and the devastating result of its being revoked. The book has enough meat in it to satisfy the most discerning scholar and a facile style to satisfy the general reader. This is a volume that belongs in the library of every student of history, of politics, social movement, and ultimtely the disolution of the Union. Congratulations to Robert Forbes for a great gift to us.

Original Meanings: Politics and Ideas in the Making of the Constitution

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An excellent explication of the political thought behind the U.S. Constitution
Misreading the Intent of the Founders
A Book for the thinking person
A wealth of information, presented badly, bound by a poisonous idea
Excellent book but not for everyone

Original Meanings: Politics and Ideas in the Making of the Constitution
Jack N. Rakove
Manufacturer: Vintage
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Constitutions | Government | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0679781218
Release Date: 1997-05-27

Amazon.com

Imagine, for a preposterous moment, that 55 national leaders convened to write a document to guide the country for hundreds of years. It seems unlikely--given that our current contingent of so-called leaders can't agree on how to balance a checkbook--that they could reach consensus on such issues as the allotment of congressional seats. The political and ideological issues that faced the creators of the Constitution were similar in some ways to those at play today. And in some ways they were vastly different ones. Jack Rakove, a history professor at Stanford University, has in this book framed the process that led to the drafting of the constitution in its historical and political context to offer insight into the difficulty of interpreting that most influential of documents.

Book Description

From abortion to same-sex marriage, today's most urgent political debates will hinge on this two-part question: What did the United States Constitution originally mean and who now understands its meaning best? Rakove chronicles the Constitution from inception to ratification and, in doing so, traces its complex weave of ideology and interest, showing how this document has meant different things at different times to different groups of Americans.

Customer Reviews:

An excellent explication of the political thought behind the U.S. Constitution.......2007-09-13

I just finished reading this book for a class in U.S. Constitutional History and my Professor has aptly noted that this book really attempts to do two things: first, it makes this point about Originalism, demonstrating that any attempt to divine original meaning, intention, or understanding is perilous because of the diverse thought, political motivations, and interests present in the drafting and ratification of the Constitution. Second, it attempts to show the difficulties of Constitution-making, and how the framers attempted to reconcile a revolutionary republican ideology with the practical problems of governance.

While the conclusion of the first objective has been criticized and debated by various reviewers (and appropriately so), I believe that this book is extremely valuable in its accomplishment of this second purpose. With dense yet incredibly readable prose, Rakove demonstrates that the Constitution was an attempt to combine republican principles with the practical experiences of the States during the Revolution and under the Articles of Confederation.

Using a few topical discussions such as a discussion of views on Representation, the Presidency, and Rights, Rakove illuminates the thinking embraced by the Framers (such as that of Locke, Montesquieu, and others) and compares and relates such principles with the real experience and concerns of the Framers (such as Madison's view that the States were becoming destructive of property rights under the Confederation). Such descriptions go a long way in describing how and why the Framers crafted the systems of government found in the Constitution and why these systems drew some criticism from both inside and outside the Convention.

While this book is (as others have pointed out) aimed more towards scholars than the layman, I highly recommend this book to any serious student of the Constitution. Prior knowledge of the events of the Revolutionary period is a must, and having read Bailyn's "Ideological Origins of the American Revolution" or Wood's "Creation of the American Republic" will be helpful.

While the Originalism issue comes up here, this book will illuminate your understanding of the Framing of the Constitution generally, and it allows the reader to make up his/her own mind about the author's thesis (or really perhaps better here called an admonition) about the Constitution's original meaning.

Misreading the Intent of the Founders.......2007-07-23

Our Constitution has been misconceived by the so called "progressive" Left for over half a century - at least since the days of the New Deal. It is not a list of suggestions passed on by the founders to be modified in each succeeding generation according to the prevailing mood of that generation.
The Constitution is a compact between the people and their government establishing the basic framework by which a free people are to be governed, and the the limits of the power to be wielded over them by that government. As such, it was meant to be a permanent framework for the government of the American people - not to be altered at the whim of Congress or the Courts.
The founders provided a method for amending the original compact. They did not leave it to Congress alone, nor did they conceive that the Courts would usurp the authority to rewrite the Constitution by judicial fiat.
They deliberately made the amendment process cumbersome and difficult in order to insure that any future modification of our fundamental compact of government could be achieved only with an overwhelming consensus of the electorate and of the states. This was done in order to preserve the institutions of a self-governing Republic, and to protect the rights of the people against the momentary and transient whims of public opinion, or the machinations of any faction which might achieve a temporary moment of dominance over the government.

A Book for the thinking person.......2007-06-09

A previous reviewer said it best already: this book is not for the average reader. If the person picking up this volume has a basic understanding of 18th century American thought, an open mind--critical not gullible, an understanding that America was not a unified nation until the Civil War, this very informative, thought provoking book will prove a treasure. You may not agree with the author in everything, but make sure you know enough to know why you disagree.

A wealth of information, presented badly, bound by a poisonous idea.......2006-10-19

Jack Rakove certainly knows a lot of history about the founding fathers. Perhaps he knows too much. For the wealth of information in his brain has left him confused. It has left him confused about the meaning of the constitution. And it has led him to believe, since the meaning of the constitution is so hard to divine, that it actually has no meaning, and therefore we must be at the mercy of judges to mete out justice.

This is poppycock. No, worse, it is dangerous.

I am not claiming that explication of original intent is easy. But just because something is hard is not sufficient reason to abandon the project. We owe it to ourselves to be governed by laws as they were understood at the time they were written. If those laws are insufficient for today's needs, then they need to be amended by legislative processes, not tailored by a particular judge's sense of justice.

I wonder if Jack Rakove is actually persuaded by his own ideas, or whether a better description would be simply that he is complicit in the theft of our constitution by today's legal theorists. I think that if you could really burrow into the depths of a persons soul, you'd find the answer is the latter. Because I think Jack Rakove is actually a smart guy.

Excellent book but not for everyone.......2006-05-16

This is an excellent book if you really want to understand the Constitution in extreme detail. I did and I enjoyed the book although the writing style is very wordy and long winded at times. This is not a good book for the general public but it was never intended as such.

Communities and Law: Politics and Cultures of Legal Identities (Law, Meaning, and Violence)

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Communities and Law: Politics and Cultures of Legal Identities (Law, Meaning, and Violence)
Gad Barzilai
Manufacturer: University of Michigan Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0472030795

Book Description

Offers an alternative approach to liberalism and to communitarianism, with an empirical focus on Israel

Media Diversity and Localism: Meaning and Metrics (LEA's Communication Series)

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Media Diversity and Localism: Meaning and Metrics (LEA's Communication Series)

Manufacturer: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0805855483

Book Description

Questions concerning the quality of media performance and the effectiveness of media policymaking often revolve around the extent to which the media system fulfills the values inherent in diversity and localism principles. This edited volume addresses challenges and issues relating to diversity in local media markets from a media law and policy perspective. Editor Philip M. Napoli provides a conceptual and empirical framework for assessing the success/failure of media markets and media outlets in fulfilling diversity and localism objectives.

Featuring well-known contributors from a variety of disciplines, including media, law, political science, and economics, Media Diversity and Localism explores the following topics:
*media ownership and media diversity and localism;
*conceptual and methodological issues in assessing media diversity and localism;
*minorities, media, and diversity; and
*contextualizing media diversity and localism: audience behavior and new technologies.

This substantive and timely volume speaks to scholars and researchers in the areas of media law and policy, political science, and all others interested in media regulation. It can also be used in a graduate seminar on media policy topics.

Toms and Dees: Transgender Identity and Female Same-Sex Relationships in Thailand (Southeast Asia: Politics, Meaning, Memory.)

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Amazing!: Thai Butch-Femme

Toms and Dees: Transgender Identity and Female Same-Sex Relationships in Thailand (Southeast Asia: Politics, Meaning, Memory.)
Megan Sinnott
Manufacturer: University of Hawaii Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Politics of Passion: Women's Sexual Culture in the Afro- Surinamese Diaspora (Between Men--Between Women)
Female Desires
The Transgender Reader
The Gay Archipelago: Sexuality and Nation in Indonesia
Global Divas: Filipino Gay Men in the Diaspora (Perverse Modernities)

ASIN: 0824828526

Book Description

A vibrant, growing, and highly visible set of female identities has emerged in Thailand known as tom and dee. A "tom" (from "tomboy") refers to a masculine woman who is sexually involved with a feminine partner, or "dee" (from "lady"). The patterning of female same-sex relationships into masculine and feminine pairs, coupled with the use of English-derived terms to refer to them, is found throughout East and Southeast Asia. Have the forces of capitalism facilitated the dissemination of Western-style gay and lesbian identities throughout the developing world as some theories of transnationalism suggest? Is the emergence of toms and dees over the past twenty-five years a sign that this has occurred in Thailand? Megan Sinnott engages these issues by examining the local culture and historical context of female same-sex eroticism and female masculinity in Thailand.

Drawing on a broad spectrum of anthropological literature, Sinnott situates Thai tom and dee subculture within the global trend of increasingly hybridized sexual and gender identities. Based on seven years of fieldwork, this empirically rich study explores this growing community in Thailand, tacking between the lives of individual toms and dees and the larger context of social norms and political events and discourses within Thailand. Thai toms and dees speak in their own voices about their identities, their relationships, and their struggles over the meanings of masculinity and femininity. A growing number of organizations and social clubs, web sites, and discussion groups provide a forum for contesting and transforming understandings of tom and dee.

Toms and Dees is a highly accessible work that should be of interest to the fields of Asian studies, gender studies, and the anthropology of sexuality.

Customer Reviews:

Amazing!: Thai Butch-Femme.......2005-12-06

Dennis Altman asked whether gays in developing countries are adopting Western gay rights, nomenclature, and culture or do they view it as imperial. Sinnott notes that his focus is upon gay men, rather than women-loving women. She looks at Thailand to investigate these matters. For those that don't understand the essentialism-constructivism debates, this book will help to explain everything. Sinnott discusses "toms" and "dees" and doesn't even bring up the Western term "butch-femme" until the latter half of the book.

According to Sinnott, gay and homophobic Thais both embrace and reject the West. Homophobes will say homosexuality is a sign of Western decadence but then also say, "Let's hide Thai gays so that our Western heroes don't look down upon us." Lesbian Thai activists strive to show others that Thai lesbians have existed for centuries, but gay rights is also seen as modern and glamorous given its Western origins.

Again, both activism and bigotry are different over there. It's considered impolite to be confrontational and "in your face" a la Queen Nation in the 1990s in Thailand, especially for women of any sexuality. Thus, this book includes several examples of Thai lesbians letting comments slide that Western lesbians would not. However, the author continually repeats that Thai parents would rather see their daughters involved romantically with women than "losing face" by being with unmarried men.

As much as the author makes Thailand look greener than the America has been to lesbians, there are instances when Thailand seems dare I say "primitive" for lack of a better word. The author states that Thais only see hyperfeminine gay men and butch lesbians as liking their own sex. They have no knowledge or recognition of manly clones or "lipstick" lesbians. Anybody who has taken a women's studies or gay studies class will find it hard to understand how Thais fail to differentiate between sexual object choice, gender identity, and biological sex. In the US, the division between gays and transsexuals is very clear. One doesn't need the Empire State Building or Disneyland to see that. So it's hard not to look at this blind spot as kind old-school.

Further, Thai tolerance of lesbians doesn't seem to erase self-loathing. Many of the toms here say they are being punished for bad deeds in a past life. Many of these butches see themselves as second-rate men, so different from the proud American butches that Judith Halberstam analyzed. Sinnott stated that heterosexually-active sex workers are more politicized and unapologetic than Thai lesbians are.

I thought of two topics this book fails to bring up. The author repeats that dees have no identity and community outside of their tom lovers. Why aren't they influenced by the bisexual rights movement in the West? Don't they see bi-curious acts and statements by Madonna, Christina Aguilera, Pink, or Janet Jackson? Female bisexuality is BIG in the US, it hasn't floated over to Thailand?! Second, lesbians in the US have said, "If you don't come out or wear things that are coded as lesbians, straight men will hit on you until you're blue in the face!" In this book, though dees are pressured by their parents to marry men, no interviewee states that she is out or acts tom in order to deflect attention from straight males.

Finally, I wish the author had said more about herself. In my high school, there was a Thai-American guy named Joe who was really named Sinat. I wonder if the author's last name is just another spelling of that. Is the author Thai-American? I hear Thai is incredibly difficult for Westerners to learn. When studying gay men in developing countries, writers like Joseph Carrier and Manuel Fernandez-Alemany had to have sex to get into circles where gay men would open up to them. Did this female anthropologist have to do the same thing? Is the author butch- or femme-identified? I think that would sway how toms and dees related to her. Does the author not practice butch-femme? What would Thai lesbians say of Western counterparts that do not "take a role"?

Racist Culture: Philosophy and the Politics of Meaning

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Racist Culture: Philosophy and the Politics of Meaning
David Theo Goldberg
Manufacturer: Blackwell Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

The Racial State
Anatomy of Racism
On Lynchings (Classics in Black Studies)
Culture and Imperialism
Tensions of Empire: Colonial Cultures in a Bourgeois World

ASIN: 0631180788

Book Description

Racist Culture offers an anti-essentialist and non-reductionist account of racialized discourse and racist expression. Goldberg demonstrates that racial thinking is a function of the transforming categories and conceptions of social subjectivity throughout modernity. He shows that racisms are often not aberrant or irrational but consistent with prevailing social conceptions, particularly of the reasonable and the normal. He shows too how this process is being extended and renewed by categories dominant in present day social sciences: "the West"; "the underclass"; and "the primitive". This normalization of racism reflected in the West mirrors South Africa an its use and conception of space. Goldberg concludes with an extended argument for a pragmatic, antiracist practice.

Genocide in the Age of the Nation State: Volume 1: The Meaning of Genocide

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Genocide in the Age of the Nation State: Volume 1: The Meaning of Genocide
Mark Levene
Manufacturer: I. B. Tauris
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Genocide in the Age of the Nation State: Volume 2: The Rise of the West and Coming Genocide (Genocide in Age Nation State 2)
Terrible Fate: Ethnic Cleansing in the Making of Modern Europe
The History and Sociology of Genocide: Analyses and Case Studies
The Dark Side of Democracy: Explaining Ethnic Cleansing
A Shameful Act: The Armenian Genocide and the Question of Turkish Responsibility

ASIN: 1850437521
Release Date: 2005-10-20

Book Description

How should we understand genocide in the modern world? As an aberration from the norms of a dominant liberal international society? Or rather as a guide to the very dysfunctional nature of the international system itself? This is the first book to consider the phenomenon within a broad context of world historical development. In this first volume of a major four-volume survey, Mark Levene sets out the conceptual issues in the study of genocide and the historical linkage between the rise of the West, in both its modern and early modern domestic and colonial settings, and increasing tendencies to physically annihilate native peoples or religiously heterodox communal groups who stood as obstacles in its path.

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