Performance and Evolution in the Age of Darwin: Out of the Natural Order

Book Description

Performance and Evolution in the Age of Darwin reveals the ways in which the major themes of evolution wre taken up in the performing arts during Darwin's adult lifetime and in the generation after his death.
The period 1830-1900 was the formative period for evolutionary ideas. While scientists and theorists investigated the law and order of nature, show business was more concerned with what was out of the natural order. Missing links and throwbacks, freak taxonomies and exotic races were favorite subject matter for the burgeoning variety theatre movement. Focusing on popular theatre forms in London, New York and Paris, Jane Goodall shows how they were interwoven with the developing debate about human evolution.
With this book, Goodall contributes an important new angle to the debates surrounding the history of evolution. She reveals that, far from creating widespread culture shock, Darwinian theory tapped into some of the long-standing themes of popular performance and was a source for diverse and sometimes hilarious explorations.

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A thorough study of the history of quantum physics and an exhaustive description of how order emerges from chaos
A classic on self-organization
Dissipative structures what? Chaos
A popularization of chaos and its philosophical implications

Order Out of Chaos
Ilya Prigogine
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Chaos & Systems | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books

General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The End of Certainty
Exploring Complexity: An Introduction
Is Future Given?
At Home in the Universe: The Search for the Laws of Self-Organization and Complexity
Complexity: The Emerging Science at the Edge of Order and Chaos

ASIN: 0553343637
Release Date: 1984-03-01

Customer Reviews:

A thorough study of the history of quantum physics and an exhaustive description of how order emerges from chaos .......2006-12-01

Prigogine describes his ideas of how order emerged from a ground of chaos and how the processes of entropy can lead a system open to its environment to evolve greater complexity. He also gives an exposition of the relevance of science to society. Prigogine's Nobel prize-winning models of dissipative structures are difficult to understand but persistent effort will reward the reader. His theories are as applicable to the evolution and expansion of consciousness as to the emergence of life on earth from a relatively simple environment.

A classic on self-organization.......2004-05-09

This work is one of the classics of the breakthrough period of chaos theory, complex systems, and self-organization theories. Mixing two modes and two cultures it stretches its bow between the nitty-gritty details of dissipative systems, and the history of the relations of the human and natural sciences, from the age of the emergence of thermodynamics to the present. The book has something now routinely filtered from discussion, the early critiques of the Newtonian mindset as it was starting to become dominant. The material on the history of the two cultures would seem to fall on deaf ears these days, and gives the book at depth not often seen in works of this type. Very much worth reading.

Dissipative structures what? Chaos.......1997-11-20

The whole problem with writing about a book, and especially this one, is that one has to cut a long story short. A story long enough to encompass a fair amount of scientific history - elaborated, if not referenced exhaustively. Not that it is meant to be. Prigogine's journey does not offer to take you by the hand for a guided tour of order, complexity and self-organisation. Rather, it keeps to the spirit of Toffler's introduction, (Was it coincidental that it was the other way round?!) where he talks about the wonderful art of scientific dissection. Order out of chaos, however, is a difficult read for the anyone who has been initiated into the scientific non-fiction. For those who expect the book to be a popular account of concepts in complexity and self-organisation, the intense style and the depth of detail can be exhausting. Like Penrose in the Emperor's New Mind, Prigogine's style is uncompromising. Toffler's introduction is fitting, if only in parts. The book does not offer explanations. Rather, Prigogine prefers to illumate his readers with his keen philosophical bent. It is here that the book triumphs. The effort that has gone into integrating the ideas in the book, the subtle nuances reflecting Prigogine's own views is truly commendable. But then, one should be fairly conversant with the loopholes that science finds itself in. The description of the behaviour of complex systems warrants some mention. The idea of switching between reality and mathematical description does not gel with the rest of the narrative in parts - specially when chemistry is the running example. Well, Prigogine wasn't writing the book with the intention of it being self-contained - and he makes no bones about it. That is the seed of inspiration, I suppose, for any writer, be it for the cause of science or for the sheer love for the written word. Prigogine has shown that philosophy is in some way inseparable from what many consider the scientist's playground. And we are glad that he has shared his views with us.

A popularization of chaos and its philosophical implications.......1996-12-24

Prigogine argues persuasively that he has reconciled classical dynamics with the human conviction that the future cannot be predicted from a knowledge of initial conditions and differential equations alone. He draws the reader through his own intellectual odyssey from classical thermodynamics, through linear nonequilibrium thermodynamics, and finally to his holy grail of nonlinear nonequilibrium thermodynamics. I suspect he has identified the quantitative tools that will connect the Human Genome Project to a functional understanding of cell biology and physiology. Tools capable of dealing with complexity.
If you are a scientist who has followed these disciplines from afar, and who has wished for a succinct summary that does not shrink from rigor, then acquire this book. You will chuckle at the constant barbs directed across the English Channel, and you will learn wonderful things about thermodynamics and thermokinetics. So few scientific books reveal the authors' insights. Instead, they teem with facts and formulas. Prigogine and Stengers have bedded physics with philosophy as if they were matchmakers for an illicit tryst. You will find yourself whispering, "Aha!" And you will, as I have, wear out your pen with underlining. I loved Carl Sagan's "Demon Haunted World", but Sagan was speaking to everyman. Prigogine and Stengers are speaking to scientists in fields outside their own. They believe they have seen the light, and they want you to see it too. Give them the chance to convince you. You will not be disappointed.

The Order Has Been Carried Out: History, Memory, and Meaning of a Nazi Massacre in Rome

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innovative research
A Masterpiece of Scholarship, a Masterpiece of Literature

The Order Has Been Carried Out: History, Memory, and Meaning of a Nazi Massacre in Rome
Alessandro Portelli
Manufacturer: Palgrave Macmillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

Oral History | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

Terrorism | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

The Death of Luigi Trastulli and Other Stories: Form and Meaning in Oral History (Suny Series in Oral and Public History)
The Oral History Reader
The Oral History Reader
The Voice of the Past: Oral History (Opus Books)
Reflections on Gender and Science: Tenth Anniversary Paperback Edition

ASIN: 1403962081

Book Description

n March 24, 1944, Nazi occupation forces in Rome killed 335 unarmed civilians in retaliation for a partisan attack the day before. Alessandro Portelli has crafted an eloquent, multi-voiced oral history of the massacre, of its background and its aftermath. The moving stories of the victims, the women and children who survived and carried on, the partisans who fought the Nazis, and the common people who lived through the tragedies of the war together paint a many-hued portrait of one of the world's most richly historical cities. The Order Has Been Carried Out powerfully relates the struggles for freedom under fascism and Nazism, the battles for memory in postwar democracy, and the meanings of death and grief in modern society.

Customer Reviews:

innovative research.......2006-02-01

This path-breaking book written by a well know oral historian shows again the masterly skills of the italian historian Portelli. The book is an essay in oral history and a piece on how societies deal with a traumatized past. In a sense it is a book on the creation of historical consciousness that is constructed by the individual and by collective agencies. I recommend it to all interested in (social) memory, narratives of the past, and the cultural transformation of memory. Besides its academic skill the book is also well written and reads like a novel. The voices of survivors and witnesses become audible.

Selma Leydesdorff
professor of oral history and culture
University of Amsterdam
editor of Memory and Narratives

A Masterpiece of Scholarship, a Masterpiece of Literature.......2004-02-11

This oral history, justly awarded Italy's prestigious Premio Viareggio, is one of the finest books ever written on this subject. Whoever desires something more than a skin-deep understanding of contemporary Rome, should read Professor Portelli's landmark study of the impact of the Ardeatine Caves massacre on three generations of Romans of every social class and consequently on the very character of the Eternal City.

The Spiral Staircase: My Climb Out of Darkness

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Inside the Mind of a Religious
An Engrossing Spiritual Autbiography
An honest revelation
Facile and Dishonest
A rewarding read; parts worth reading again

The Spiral Staircase: My Climb Out of Darkness
Karen Armstrong
Manufacturer: Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Authors | Arts & Literature | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Religious | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Women | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Women | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam
Through the Narrow Gate: A Memoir of Spiritual Discovery
The Great Transformation: The Beginning of Our Religious Traditions
The Battle for God
Buddha

ASIN: 0375413189
Release Date: 2004-03-02

Amazon.com

Karen Armstrong speaks to the troubling years following her decision to leave the life of a Roman Catholic nun and join the secular world in 1969. What makes this memoir especially fascinating is that Armstrong already wrote about this era once---only it was a disastrous book. It was too soon for her to understand how these dark, struggling years influenced her spiritual development, and she was too immature to protect herself from being be bullied by the publishing world. As a result, she agreed to portray herself only in as "positive and lively a light as possible"---a mandate that gave her permission to deny the truth of her pain and falsify her inner experience. The inspiration for this new approach comes from T. S. Eliot's Ash Wednesday, a series of six poems that speak to the process of spiritual recovery. Eliot metaphorically climbs a spiral staircase in these poems---turning again and again to what he does not want to see as he slowly makes progress toward the light. In revisiting her spiral climb out of her dark night of the soul, Armstrong gives readers a stunningly poignant account about the nature of spiritual growth. Upon leaving the convent, Armstrong grapples with the grief of her abandoned path and the uncertainty of her place in the world. On top of this angst, Armstrong spent years suffering from undiagnosed temporal lobe epilepsy, causing her to have frequent blackout lapses in memory and disturbing hallucinations---crippling symptoms that her psychiatrist adamantly attributed to Armstrong's denial of her femininity and sexuality. The details of this narrative may be specific to Armstrong's life, but the meanin! g she makes of her spiral ascent makes this a universally relevant story. All readers can glean inspiration from her insights into the nature of surrender and the possibilities of finding solace in the absence of hope. Armstrong shows us why spiritual wisdom is often a seasoned gift---no matter how much we strive for understanding, we can't force profound insights to occur simply because our publisher is waiting for them. With her elegant, humble and brave voice, she inspires readers to willingly turn our attention toward our false identities and vigilantly defended beliefs in order to better see the truth and vulnerability of our existence. Herein lies the staircase we can climb to enlightenment. --Gail Hudson

Book Description

Karen Armstrong begins this spellbinding story of her spiritual journey with her departure in 1969 from the Roman Catholic convent she had entered seven years before—hoping, but ultimately failing, to find God. She knew almost nothing of the changed world to which she was returning, and she was tormented by panic attacks and inexplicable seizures.

Armstrong’s struggle against despair was further fueled by a string of discouragements—failed spirituality, doctorate, and jobs; fruitless dealings with psychiatrists. Finally, in 1976, she was diagnosed with epilepsy, given proper treatment, and released from her “private hell.” She then began the writing career that would become her true calling, and as she focused on the sacred texts of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, her own inner story began to emerge. Without realizing it, she had embarked on a spiritual quest, and through it she would eventually experience moments of transcendence—the profound fulfillment that she had not found in long hours of prayer as a young nun.

Powerfully engaging, often heartbreaking, but lit with bursts of humor, The Spiral Staircase is an extraordinary history of self.

Customer Reviews:

Inside the Mind of a Religious.......2007-08-25

I read the other reviews on this book, not because I wasn't going to buy it, but to see what others thought. Of course, I was going to buy it, after all this is Karen Armstrong we are talking about here. I am interested in what ever she thinks. I loved the book. I am always interested in stories about people overcoming difficulties. Karen Armstrong had to overcome a lot. It is interesting, to say the least, to know what the religous view of this writer actually is now after she's been through everything she's been through.

The book takes us with her on her spiritual and vocational journey. It answers the question of "Why did she write all those diverse books about God Anyway" I would recommend this book to anyone who in their own spiritual search is looking to see how someone else came through it and ended up apparently whole. This is a book I will keep. I find the last chapter especially captivating and I will need to review it until I can internalize what she is saying so beautifully.

An Engrossing Spiritual Autbiography.......2007-07-20

For those of us that have loved Karen Armstrong through her marvelous scholarly works, a glimpse into the experiences that shaped the scholar can be wonderful. In this book, Armstrong explores the experiences that brought her out of her religious disenchantment to become the fascinating, God-enamored woman that she is today. The pages are by turns heartbreaking, heartwarming and deeply profound. I strongly recommend this magnificent autobiography.

An honest revelation.......2007-06-02

Having read almost all of Karen Armstong's profoundly meaningfull studies I wondered how it all came about. This book provides a very honest insight into the sufferings of a young woman and the origin of her enduring search for the truth about so-called "revealed" religions

Facile and Dishonest.......2007-04-28

Ms. Armstrong has published a brace of well-edited, post-Christian titles. The Spiral Staircase is a sadly biased and one-sided slash against her Catholic roots. Those that have stood between Armstrong and her revisionist goals are poorly presented, while all who supported her are glorified--then are jettisoned in typical cameo fashion. Take, for example, Rebecca, the anorectic nun who stayed (long enough to provide Armstrong a nifty plot device, at least!). Poor emaciated Rebecca is used as a foil to revisit all that was horrific about that beastly convent. Then, when that part of Ms. Armstrong's life is no longer needed, Rebecca is entirely abandoned.

Given that this is the author's second version of the same post-convent events of an earlier book, how much of this text can be considered authentic? Will there be a definitive third title? Who will be the goat this time around? Be careful, it might well be you!! Ms. Armstrong is seemingly not responsible for her life, but many others are. Take care, all.

Ms. Armstrong has seemingly appeared in every other soft, non-offensive Unitarian project around, and she maintains an evangelical adherence to Catholic guilt trips for all moderate-to-orthodox Christians. Read her last dozen pages of this text, and witness her simplistic and absurd analysis for 9/11. She has abandoned her past, yet she claims absolute privaledge to speak for Christianity and monotheism. We are all one, and we should all think like Ms. Armstrong. Fundamentalist much?

A rewarding read; parts worth reading again.......2007-04-07

I have never read any of Karen Armstrong's books, but I have seen many references to her writings and have perused her books at the bookstore and found them interesting. I thought this might be a good book to begin with and I was not disappointed. She is an interesting woman who has opened herself and has shown all the darkest corners of her being in what I found to be a very matter-of-fact way. She certainly has enough baggage from a rather strange past, but I felt she was honest in dealing with her frustrations, her weaknesses, her mistakes, and her achievements. I do find her bitterness at the Catholic Church a bit much at times; surely there was someone in the convent or in her early Catholic life that was a positive influence. She can be a harsh judge of others, but I think she also judges herself harshly at times.
The last chapters of Spiral Staircase are especially interesting and worthy of going back to reread. I find her explanation of the paradox of the absent God and as she says "a presence in my life" insightful. Her analogy of ascending a spiral staircase and her spiritual journey is so apt. Ms. Armstrong has done for me something that I do not have the time, skill, or intellect to do and that is to step back from the boundaries of a very traditional religious upbringing and take a much larger view of this unnameable force in our lives that we so innocently and ineffectually call God.
I would also recommend The Seven Storey Mountain by the Trappist monk Thomas Merton (who is referred to in the last pages of Spiral Staircase). Thomas Merton's faith journey leads to the Catholic Church rather than away from it, but I believe the ultimate destination of both Merton and Armstrong are not that far from each other.

Order out of Chaos (Order out of Chaos - Elite Sponsored Terrorism & the NEW World Order)

Average customer rating:

Great starter
The truth hurts
Overview of the global elites' methods and agendas
I DEMAND THE TRUTH!
everyone must have

Order out of Chaos (Order out of Chaos - Elite Sponsored Terrorism & the NEW World Order)

Manufacturer: Alex Jones Productions
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Terrorism | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0974338109

Customer Reviews:

Great starter.......2007-04-13

Excellent way to start learning the history of state sponsored terrorism. A real pocket history book for the uninformed masses. History class didn't cover this, unless you were lucky & had a brave teacher.

The truth hurts.......2004-12-09

Don't you think it's strange how those who benefit the most from terror attacks are governments and big business? It's time to ask yourself some serious questions. Who benefits from these "attacks"? The answers are simple, just watch how events unfold after the attacks take place. Governments are empowered and grow tremendously, new laws get passed. Big business, especially the oil industry, suddenly reap huge profits when the "evil doer's" oil fields get confiscated and are then controlled by American and international conglomerates. I find it very interesting that when "cavemen" hijack planes and crash them into buildings, major corporations and their henchmen in the various nation's capitols suddenly get even more rich and powerful. Buy the book and learn the truths that you aren't supposd to know.

Overview of the global elites' methods and agendas.......2004-09-14

Watson, creator of the propagandamatrix.com website, has compiled his research into a book. His ideas parallel those of Texas radio host Alex Jones, and you would basically get the same facts and theories presented to you watching some of Jones' videos. Watson examines the history of the Hegelian dialectic applied to social manipulation and the use of problem-reaction-solution schemes to move the "New World Order" agenda forward. There isn't much new here for those already familiar with these topics, while Watson does a solid job of laying out the evidence for his views.

I DEMAND THE TRUTH!.......2004-07-16

I haven't read this book, but I desperately want to. I want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth of the so-called "terrorist attacks" of September 11,2001 in America.

All that is coming from the American media - be it in the form of television, newspapers, magazines, or radio - concerning 9/11 is garbage. The powers that be are shoving heaps of lies, ramming it down our throats, and numbing our brains. My fellow concerned citizens, it is up to each one of us to demand the truth not only about 9/11 but also about this "war" in Iraq.

Ask yourselves this: Do you really want to live under the "New World Order"? Do you really think it would be a safe, peaceful, happy place? Educate yourselves; decipher truth from lies from every source available. I'd like to be able to do that once I read this book - if I can get a copy of it.

Notice how it's out of stock. (A convenient way of banning a book.) That in and of itself tells you something.

everyone must have.......2004-06-20

Forget all other 911 books. go to infowars.com or propagandamatrix.com for best price

Book Description

This chronicle of espionage, drug smuggling, and elitism in Yale University's Skull & Bones society offers rare glimpses into this secret world with previously unpublished documents, photographs, and articles that delve into issues such as racism, financial ties to the Nazi party, and illegal corporate dealings. Contributors include Anthony Sutton, author of America's Secret Establishment; Dr. Ralph Bunch, professor emeritus of political science at Portland State University; Webster Griffin Tarpley and Anton Chaitkin, authors and historians. A complete list of members, including George Bush, George W. Bush, and John F. Kerry, and reprints of rare magazine articles are included.

Customer Reviews:

Best Bones Book on America's Most Secret Society.......2007-10-05

This is the most interesting of the modern books about secret deals arrainged by America's most secretive club,the Skull and Bones of Yale College.The most extensive research book about the history of the 'Bones'.Many credible ideas are brought forward for public examination and debate.What i don't understand is why the bones of Geronimo are so important to this undercover christian Yale club? Geronimo was a pagan,not a christian.The Wolf's Head club has a wolf on top of an upside-down egyptian pagan 'Anke'.And the various Greek fraternities are a parody of true Greek pagan socities.The author portrays the Skull and Bones as a dangerous Nazi cult that completely controls tragic events,such as assassinations and global terrorist attacks.These Ivy League schools are really nothing more then sophicated breeding colonies controlled by the powerful hebrew-jewish elite.What intrigued me was the christian fondness for dark Satanic rituals,such as the coffin ceremony for indoctrination.This book paints best the overall historical portrait of what this secretive club has done through the years.The club was formed to bond an American kinship among the new colonists,away from England and far away from Rome.Yet,the Bones became as corrupt and as elitist as any of the established lodges of Europe.Many interesting ideas are proposed here,yet some ideas are speculative.Remember what is bred in the bone,will out in the flesh.Evil deeds will always come full circle back,to haunt,three fold.And what deeds are done by the Power Elite,may be in the best overall interest of America.

Thank God for Third Party Sellers on Amazon!.......2007-08-24

Steven Hager wrote in his review:

"Skull and Bones runs the White House, tv news, major newspapers, Yale University, legal drugs, illegal drugs, and much of the prison industrial complex, which is turning into a gulag with 10 million people currently in jail, on probation or awaiting sentencing."

Oh, my God. Now I am starting to understand. This review gave me chills up and down my arms, and now all over my body down to my legs and feet... I think this qualifies as "believing it!"

I guess if one can't buy and sell slaves now, one CAN run the prison system and "buy and sell prisoners" and all that is required to catch them and keep them locked up. Just like the slaves in days of old... I never thought about this before, but "packing them in tightly" into overcrowded jails is not much different than "packing them in tightly" into the slave ships crossing the ocean a few hundred years ago. (from Wikipedia on the Cabot family earning it's fortune.)

What a devastating thought. I could never understand why our country would spend the same money it takes to send a kid to an upper class school by sending him to prison - $25,000 p/yr and up here in NC for a year in jail same as what it costs to send a student to Duke University!

Now I'm getting an inkling. Scary but "knowledge is power" and I am on a real "need to know" basis.

I'll buy it. Thanks to the author of the book, Kris Millegan, and to the author of this review, Steven Hager. Yours, CT

2nd note: The other reviewer made an excellent point about the book not being available via [...] directly. How can this be? Thank God for used books by third parties on Amazon.

I really need to see what this book has to say. I am so distressed over reports of our country's "founding fathers" and richest fammilies great fortunes being made by importing opium and selling slaves and rum. I just can't believe it. How did I study history and never learned this when I was in school?

Stands to reason why our country is so rich, powerful and corrupt, and why the rest of the world calls us "The Barbarians" but can't wait to get here themselves to taste "the spoils of war and riches." Just like the CIA popped Noriega when he no longer wanted to share the spoils of the cocaine drug trade (if I am remembering this right), is this the same thing as "the war on Terror" that is enslaving this country right now?

And this could all be emanating from ONE COLLEGE CLUB that our state senators and presidents come from? What is going on here? How could we all be fooled for so long?

But who cares, as long as we have our TV, video games and iPods, right?
, criminals

'ENTERTAINMENT' is all that seems to matter anymore. What has happened to us all? Thank God for the few that still speak out about what truly matters. God Save us all.

You can't survive being a moralist. They will break your rice bowl........2006-10-29

This book is a compilation of book excerpts, historical analyses (Nazi financing), energy prospects (cold fusion, free energy), memories and comments, all more or less related to the secret lodge `Skull & Bones'.

It tries to prove that the secret lodge is a den for high level conspiracy: `a shadow government that controls political decision-making, not only for their own profit, but also to the detriment of the rest of the society'.
However, one gets the impression that the lodge is more a meeting place than an anti-democratic network. One can understand that some ideas are discussed during the meetings, but the eventual implementation of those ideas is decided at another and higher level. As one commentator says:
`Washington means the FBI, the CIA and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.'
One should not confound `Skull & Bones' with the misuse of political and economic power by `an undemocratic wealthy elitist clique of materialist ideologues in secret cabals at the highest level of society.'
On the other hand, one should also not underestimate the influence of the lodge network all over the world, e.g. `Puppet Masters - The political Use of Terrorism in Italy' by Philip Willan.

This book contains valuable information on the origin of wealth of some Western families (opium trade), the CIA budget, the financing of political parties before and during World War II and the history and memberships of `Skull & Bones.'
The best parts of the book are the excerpts of `The Unauthorized Biography' of G.W. Bush, by W.G. Tarpley and A. Chaitkin.

A very mixed bag.

Skull & Bones.......2006-04-14

This book is a huge (well over 700 pages) collection of essays and articles by various authors on Yales Skull & Bones society. This book runs the gamut from the wildly conspiratorial to reprints of mainstream historical type articles on the fraternity system and elitist secret societies at Yale. Some of the topics discussed in this are Bonesmen being involved in the drug trade, from the Chinese opium wars in the 1800's to CIA planes smuggling cocaine in the 1980's, the Bush family and other S&B members being involved with bankrolling both the Nazis and the Bolsheviks, the various shenanigans that can be attributed to Bonesmen involved with the CIA, Skull & Bones and 9-11, the disproportionate amount of world elites that came out of this very small group, 15 members of every senior class at Yale, even both candidates for the US presidency in the last elections were Bonesmen. Also among LOTS of other stuff it goes into the what is known of the weird occultic rituals and initiations that members go through.

This is a great book for anybody into conspiracy stuff, wants to know more about various shady CIA deeds or anybody interested in some of the foul things the Bush family have been involved with.

My take on Skull & Bones is its like a minor league team where they are picked out of the pile and groomed for bigger things. Depending on how they "perform" they get strings pulled and doors opened for them. Not all S&B people become Presidents, Senators, supreme court judges, members of the CFR, or Bilderburgers, high ranking CIA officials, or Presidential cabinet members, but an awful lot of them do and when you consider the track record of many former Bonesmen I have to say there is obviously "rotten in Denmark" going on with these people.

A testament to the evil forces running this country.......2005-11-08

Conspiracy has become a sensitive word, and to those who never read this book, it's meaning may continue to be unclear. But not so for those who are willing to honestly assess the past and present of Yale University and the power struggles behind it by reading this book. The breadth and variety of the articles is at times overwhelming and sometimes overreaching its boundaries(ie a brief history of college fraternities), but there is more than enough to make even the most hardened fan of the US administration scratch their heads.

Regardless of the conclusions one makes from this book, Skull and Bones is a very real organisation that clearly has a malicious intent. What I respect most about this work is does not stop at scratching the surface of Skull and Bones, but goes to great lengths to suggest that it is in many ways an organisation founded on the human misconception of elitism. From the puritanical sect of Calvinism that broke off from Protestant England in the 17th century, Yale itself was formed on the idea that Jesus died not for everyone, but for the few 'pre-ordained'.

In instances such as the Opium wars, to the rise of bolshevism and naziism, skull and bones, or some variation of its constituents, has been involved. There is a great article contained therein which gives a precise analysis of the secret society based on the scientific method. Other articles explaining the varying societies that exist within Yale and their struggle for hegemony, shed light on just how deeply the need for seperatism is ingrained into the human psyche. Just about the only major flaw that can be attributed to this amass of insights is the lack of a comprehensive index, relegating the book to less respectable in the eyes of serious analysts.

Seeing as the 'dumbing down' of America is taking place right before our eyes, it seems appropriate to end with a quote from a man who the history books have chosen a prestigious, almost matryical role for, Abraham Lincoln: "Wise statesman....established these great self-evident truths, that when in the distant future some man, some faction, some interest, should set up the doctrine that none but rich men, or none but white men, were entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, their posterity should look up again at the Declaration of Independence and take courage to renew the battle which their fathers began..."

Average customer rating:

A Devastating Critique of Media Coverage of Presidential Races
A Must Read
Not bad
A must have
Especially relevant this year

Out Of Order
Thomas E. Patterson
Manufacturer: Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

State & Local Government | Government | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Breaking The News: How the Media Undermine American Democracy
The Press Effect: Politicians, Journalists, and the Stories that Shape the Political World
Mass Media And American Politics (Mass Media and American Politics)
News That Matters: Television and American Opinion (American Politics and Political Economy Series)
Air Wars: Television Advertising In Election Campaigns 1952-2004

ASIN: 0679419292
Release Date: 1993-10-19

Amazon.com

Thomas E. Patterson, a professor of political science at Syracuse University, argues that the process of electing presidents to office is "out of order." The culprits include poorly planned performances by the news media in which newscasters speak more than candidates and the numerous primaries that only weaken the parties and create a vacuum of political leadership. Patterson calls for a shortened nominating primary season--just six weeks--and an institutionalized televised forum in which candidates could speak, debate and be questioned. Until this is done, he maintains, American will suffer from a lack of communication of the issues and an incomplete translation of voter feedback, things that smack of the demise of democracy.

Customer Reviews:

A Devastating Critique of Media Coverage of Presidential Races.......2007-07-21

If you are unhappy about press coverage for a Presidential candidate you are supporting, you will love this book. The author offers detailed examples from both daily press coverage and scholarly articles and books as to how the media is harming American democracy by trivializing the campaigns and obscuring the messages the candidates are trying to get out. He thinks all major party candidates are poorly covered, and he unhappily blames the media for Ross Perot's strong 1992 showing.

The author blames the McGovern-Fraser Commission of 1969-1970 for empowering the press to play a major political role under the guise of opening up the system to the voters and taking control away from party bosses. He believes the party bosses produced far better candidates and Presidents--Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John Kennedy, and Lyndon Johnson--than did the voters. This reviewer certainly agrees that the boldness of Presidential leadership has become greatly attenuated in the modern era.

The author blames the media for relentless negative coverage which demeans government and the Presidency in the eyes of the people, and thus makes governing effectively extremely difficult. The greater the exposure to media coverage, the more negative toward the candidates the voters feel.

The media, he says, is a "miscast institution" in the Presidential primary process. They are concerned with what is new and newsworthy, and not what is significant over the long run. The voters are much more concerned with issues of long-range significance than the media is, he argues. A position paper on a major issue will perhaps get a day's worth of coverage, while a gaffe by the candidate can last for a week or two or more.

The media, he finds, is more about game than governing. The initiatives of candidates to build a broad coalition capable of leading our country is reduced to game elements. We learn of day by day strategical considerations, but do not learn of consistently pursued goals over the length of the candidate's career. The candidate is left with having who he or she is personified by strategical campaign decisions, since the candidate's record and plans for the future are essentially only on the table on those rare occasions--often in new media--where the candidate can get his or her message across without having it distorted by media interpretation.

The images of the campaign are all important. Media coverage can create a bandwagon effect, where candidates are backed by voters largely because other voters are backing them. He quotes the Markle Commission analysis of the 1988 Presidential campaign: "Viewers and readers are implicitly invited to assume that the strategic political game is a worthy and possibly a sufficent test of suitablity for office, and that the shrewdest candidate with the most effective campaign both wins and deserves the Presidency for that reason alone."

The author's conclusion about campaign imagery states that "The voters, as V.O. Key noted, 'are not fools.' But their decisions can be foolish when they are forced to choice without adequate guidance. They depend on the press for information about the candidates. Much of the information they receive is useful, but much of it consists of fanciful imagery."

There is a major difference, the author writes, between reporter' issues and voters' issues. Reporters want to know what a candidate thinks about what a rival did last night, while voters want to know what the candidate will do that affects their lives if he or she is elected President. The voter issues are gnerally far more relevant to the actual conduct of the Presidency than are the media issues.

The author quotes Walter Lippman, a keen Washington observer from the administration of Woodrow Wilson to that of Lyndon Johnson, many times, including the Lippman quote that "News and truth are not the same thing, and must be clearly distinguished." News, Lippman says, is found in particular events rather than in the underlying forces that create them. News is a small and unrepresentative manifestation of a vastly more intricate reality. It is what is new and out of the ordinary and thus atypical and a weak base for judging trends that are powerful and lasting.

The author further blames the media for its fascination with early winners and electability, and says that these foci "fails to distribute power evenly across the electorate." He sees the media as especially strong in primaries, where "Voters are not anchored by party loyalties, and most of them are feebly motivated and poorly informed. In these circumstances, the press' interpretations of wht is happening in the race, and the glare of its spotlight, can significantly influence the vote."

He calls the voter's process of decision the "whimsical vote" and says it is analagous to Herbert Krugman's "learning without involvement" in which "attitudes and motiavations are weak, but people do absorb some information. People 'learn ' the message, and since they are 'uninvolved' do not resist it." This contrasts with a "situation where people have strong attitudes" and "information is tested against existing beliefs, and affected by these beliefs....In this case, the individual is largely in control. Wheras, in the case of 'learning without involvement,' power rests primarily with the communicator."

The way to fix the campaign, the author concludes, is to shorten it. He envisions primaries right before the national conventions. What is actually happening, of course, is that the nomination process is being shortened to end in February, but the campaign is being lengthened, with a long period of two virtual nominees facing each other.

It is difficult for any review to do this book justice. The arguments the author makes are so filled with facts and cogent analysis that they are not easy to adequately summarize. Few sentences are wasted. Few references to scholarly texts can be dismissed as being pedantic, and few references to actual media coverage can be dismissed as anecdotal irrelevance.

With a scope of coverage from the election of John Kennedy in 1960 to the election of Bill Clinton in 1992, as well as prior historical references, this book may well be the most thorough and analytical treatment of the modern Presidential nominating process ever written. No reporter should attempt to cover a Presidential campaign without it. No candidate or campaign manager should attempt to win the Presidency without studying it closely.

A Must Read.......2005-02-22

This book is a must-read for any student of the media or politics. Thomas Patterson writes a terrific critique of the role the media has played in corrupting politics - particularly the political election process - arguing persuasively that things are now "out of order." Patterson provides numerous examples of how the media has negatively impacted elections. Some of these are:

1. Articles about campaigns focus on the "horse race," or the constant jockeying between candidates and their campaigns, rather than on the actual platforms of the candidates or the important issues being discussed.

2. Great emphasis is placed on poll results, and on candidates' rise and fall in the polls, rather than on their stated goals or positions on various issues.

3. Reporters travel around with a candidate for months on end (as the candidate travels around the country or state to meet with voters) and as a result start focusing more on internal problems within the campaign (campaign staffers disagreeing with each other, for example) than on the substance of the candidates' speeches. Minor gaffes, such as a candidate tripping, or a candidate's spouse saying something odd, take on much greater importance in the media than they should.

4. Media "talking heads" become celebrities in their own right and dominate news casts. They may show 30 seconds of a candidate's speech and then spend 5 minutes talking about their spin on the speech. This hardly gives the candidate much opportunity to communicate directly with the voter.

We've gotten to the point now where a substantial portion of articles about campaigns tell you everything about the campaigns *except* for the candidates' stances on actual issues. Patterson proposes a number of remedies for this: shorten the nominating primary season to 6 weeks, and make it so that candidates all have the opportunity to communicate with the electorate in some sort of national broadcast. Patterson believes that this will help reduce the impact of the media on the election and give the candidates a more direct communication vehicle with voters.

This is a fascinating read, and it has greatly influenced my understanding of the media and how it affects politics. I highly recommend it.

Not bad.......2001-11-01

My jerk, hippy, liberally biased professor made Out of Order a required reading. So I went into it expecting to cringe with disagreement. A nice surprise to me, what Patterson had to say was well thought out and really made a lot of good points about the media and its role in elections. It was a bit repetitive at times but I don't even care because it was the only book that I didn't loathe reading in my government class.

A must have.......2000-11-15

This book was required reading for a seminar and I found it very beneficial in understanding the strained relationship between two groups with conflicting goals: the media and elected officials.

I especially enjoyed his analysis on reporters making news with their interpretation of the facts.

I'm very excited to add that I will be meeting Tom Patterson and hope he will expand upon his books results as they relate to our current political situation. I welcome any questions you would like me to submit.

Especially relevant this year.......2000-10-11

Thomas Patterson's sweeping indictment of the media is especially relevant this election year. The press is once again fulfilling Patterson's worst predictions of its behavior and making it easy to agree with his thesis that the media is failing its duties and harming our political process.

Patterson makes many points, but his central ones are below, and it's easy to find supporting examples from the 2000 campaign cycle:

1. The press sees the election as a game, not a democratic process. Its news stories are focused on the candidates' strategy, not their views, and makes the candidates look shallow and pandering as a result.

2. The tone of the news is generally negative. Candidates are relentlessly criticized and negative stories are much more frequent than positive ones.

3. The press focuses far too much on gaffes and trivialities. In the 2000 campaign, Bush's RATS ad and Gore's simple misstatements have resulted in feeding frenzies portraying both candidates as untrustworthy.

4. Journalists have become the center of the news. Much of the news has reporters' own interpretations as the main story (In an attempt to bolster his support among elderly voters, Bush/Gore ...), instead of quoting the candidates at length.

Amazon.com

Max Boot, who wrote the excellent "Rule of Law" editorial column in the Wall Street Journal for several years, has written what he admits to be a polemic. Polemic; need not be a derogatory word when the book is informative and entertaining. Out of Order is aimed at the evils of judges. Some of those evils--corruption and drug dealing--are obvious. Others--such as broad constitutional interpretations, desegregation of Virgina Military Institute, and application of the Miranda doctrine--are debatable, though Boot mostly sidesteps those debates.

Having foresworn objective analysis, Boot also admits to a lack of solutions to the problems he identifies. While he proposes a handful of reforms that do little to address what he criticizes, he rejects a wide variety of radical proposals with a few sentences each. Boot suggests more scrutiny of judges through lawyers' reports and public debate. Left unspoken is the fact that the most prominent public debate of judicial decision-making in the last 12 years involved the author of his introduction, Judge Robert Bork, and came to a result Boot disliked. And Boot's endorsement of rating judges by lawyers ignores that such ratings have as often resulted in unfair criticism of judges (including one Boot singles out as a good egg) for holding lawyers to strict standards as it has to expose incompetence that remains unaddressed.

So what's left is a long list of anecdotes, loosely organized by them, tied together only by their common desire to criticize. Thus, Judge Ito should not have let the Simpson trial be overrun by publicity, but a Chicago judge is hit for earthily barring attorneys from talking to the press.

In one chapter, judges have too much power and abuse it; in another, incompetents fill the judiciary because smart lawyers can have more influence by refusing appointments. The reader is to assume that the mere fact Boot has held these judges up to criticism should be enough.

For a more reasoned analysis of the judicial system, see Richard Posner's The Federal Courts (1996). Those wishing for the polemic can read either Robert Bork's The Tempting Of America (1991) or Ralph Nader's No Contest (1996), depending on your preconceived political bent. --Ted Frank

Book Description

A book that has sparked controversy on both sides of the political fence. Investigative reporter Max Boot blows the whistle on what he sees as the most destructive branch of government-the judiciary.

Customer Reviews:

Well-written, but superficial polemic.......2000-08-31

Whether you are liberal or conservative, Max Boot's "Out of Order" is likely to get you mad. Mad because the judicial system is painted as so-out-of-control, or mad because you think Boot is a conservative hack (who writes for the Wall Street Journal's editorial pages).

What Boot has done, and done effectively, is gather horrible anecdote after horrible anecdote, organize them in general categories like corrupt judges, incompetent judges, and so on. The picture that he paints is pretty grim: if a judge isn't on the take, he or she might be plain weak, stupid, arrogant, or deluded.

But how seriously are we to take Boot's thesis? While the individual cases that he discusses are (to varying degrees) disturbing, the central problem with this book lies in the fact that the reader is supposed to evaluate a judge based on one case, out of thousands or more that the judge might see in his or her career.

At the same time, Boot strangely ignores some obvious targets for those who would like to criticize the judiciary. For example, Judge Stephen Reinhardt (a federal appeals judge in California) is usually the posterchild for judicial activism: he is one of the judges most-often reversed by the Supreme Court. Yet, Judge Reinhardt rates only one mention, and it is actually praise from Boot. Now, I'm not suggesting necessarily that Boot would think that Reinhardt is worthy of criticism (though I think it fairly obvious, given their respective ideologies), but there is a history and pattern of judicial opinions from which one could draw definite conclusions.

As other reviewers have noted, this is a critical weakness of "Out of Order." It's a collection of anecdotes, almost a survey of judges across the country, but not very deep in its scope.

Amateurish First Effort.......1998-10-30

Although Mr. Boot's objective is admirable, he fails to deliver a cogent and thoughtful critique of the American judicial system. Perhaps, if Mr. Boot had an educational and professional background in this area, his book would have provided more inciteful analysis rather than being packed full of bromides and anecdotes.

Sensationalizing the shortcomings of the judiciary does not further the debate or help us toward the ultimate solution. Obviously, this approach reflects Mr. Boot's journalistic background which generally entails glitz over substance.

Thoughtful, entertaining, not bad for a nonlawyer.......1998-06-07

Max Boot has shown himself to be a thoughtful writer and deputy features editor for the Wall Street Journal. I have enjoyed his work in that paper for several years. His book is a thoughtful, entertaining and at times enraging look at the judiciary in this country. It falls prey to what I consider to be a congenital shortcoming which is the fact that the author is a journalist and not a lawyer or even a law school graduate. Hence, this is essentially someone who is intelligent and well informed but is still "on the outside looking in." Like all top-notch journalists, he is adept at "getting up to speed" and doing the research necessary to speak effectively on the subjects he writes about. I've had several dealings with Wall Street and NY Times journalists and editors and I have to say that Max Boot is perhaps the least insufferable, smug and self-impressed of the bunch. (Take this for the compliment it is. If you knew these folks you'd realize just how self-impressed they are when it comes to hawking their own books and to "playing up" their purported expertise on various substantive subjects like the American legal system.) Max Boot is an intelligent, workmanlike writer who has done his homework on an important subject.

Anecdotal but interesting.......1998-06-03

Those interested in the role of the judiciary in America will find three types of books available on the subject: "Anecdotal", such as Max Boots's series of essays on various court decisions; The second category is, "Detailed", such as Walkowski/Connolly's "From Trial Court to the United States Supreme Court" which covers a major case from the lowest to the highest level and shows how the system works; and third, there are those categorized as "Biolgraphical", such as Ed Lazarus' book "Closed Chambers" which gives us an insight into the workings of the court from the inside. Max Boot's book, is informative and, like a Wall Street op-ed piece, interesting for what it does. It stimulates our imagination and compels those interested in the subject to look deeper, hence the other categories. All in all, I read it and enjoyed it, but found myself wanting more detail than was available. Still, I recommend it, as well as a peek into the other areas as well for a more complete perspective of the problem.

Average customer rating:

Many people can relate to this book
"If you're the youngest, can you get even younger?"

Out of Order
Betty Hicks
Manufacturer: Roaring Brook Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Ages 9-12 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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Adam Canfield of the Slash (The Slash)

ASIN: 1596430613
Release Date: 2005-08-11

Book Description

One million American children become part of blended family every year. What happens to stepsiblings when the oldest child suddenly becomes the middle child, and the youngest even younger? Out of Order delivers four electric points of view from stepsiblings, ages nine to fifteen, in a super-unsettled, scrambled-up family. An unforgettable Rock, Paper, Scissors tournament, plus 120 hazardous bug snacks, equals humor, insight, and serious indigestion. Betty Hicks gives us her most entertaining and complex novel yet.

Customer Reviews:

Many people can relate to this book.......2007-01-15

I think that many people could relate to this book, including me. All the characters were different, which I thought made the story more interesting. Betty Hicks did a good job tieing in all of the characters into one story plot.

"If you're the youngest, can you get even younger?".......2006-05-27

For years, Lily was the oldest in her family; then, as soon as her mom married Frank and their two families blended together, Lily became a middle child. "Out of Order" looks at what it means to suddenly have a whole new family and a new place in the birth order. In this book, 4 kids, ages 9 to 15, have to learn how to adjust in order to get along and still keep their personalities (and their sanity!). The chapters alternate the point of view of the kids, so readers have a lot more insight into motivations and history than the characters themselves. This is a fun, fairly realistic portrait of a common situation in many families today. A quick read (chapters are very short) for grades 4-6.

Journey Out of the Garden: St. Francis of Assisi and the Process of Individuation

Average customer rating:

A fine book on the life of Francis of Assisi
A really moving picture of St. Francis

Journey Out of the Garden: St. Francis of Assisi and the Process of Individuation
Susan W. McMichaels
Manufacturer: Paulist Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Religious | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Psychology & Christianity | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

The Long Loneliness

ASIN: 0809137267

Book Description

Shows that the 13th-century life of St. Francis of Assisi is a heroic example of the process of individuation described by Carl Jung.

Customer Reviews:

A fine book on the life of Francis of Assisi.......2001-11-21

For serious Jungian types this book is a remarkable study of individuation. For the rest of us it is absolutely entertaining and engaging. Thank you Susan for this book.

A really moving picture of St. Francis.......1998-04-13

Susan McMichaels has created a very moving and very readable Jungian view of St. Francis. I felt like I know the man and his struggle as I have known few biographical characters. For anyone who wants a really relevant twentieth century view of a great saint, this is the book to read.

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