Book Description
In this, his first major book, Mark Steyn--probably the most widely read, and wittiest, columnist in the English-speaking world--takes on the great poison of the twenty-first century: the anti-Americanism that fuels both Old Europe and radical Islam. America, Steyn argues, will have to stand alone. The world will be divided between America and the rest; and for our sake America had better win.
Customer Reviews:
What a sad worldview.......2007-10-01
I can't even begin to describe the serious flaws in this book...
But I gave it one star instead of zero because, if you want to study logic and how to detect subtly and not so subtly flawed arguments, buy this book.
What's sad is he's done actual research (but distorts everything to fit his way of thinking), and some muslims, like some christians, some jews, some whatever, really are dangerous and want to hurt America, but he makes his side of the controversy look like a bunch of, what's a nice word... 'baffoons'.
I think he seriously believes the things he writes in his book, which means he's stressing himselfand others out for nothing, and ultimately, pushing away the moderates that might listen to a more logical argument against religious extremism
Excellent.......2007-09-21
With the many positive reviews already posted, there isn't much more for me to say, so I will just say, "Read a few of the reviews, then, most definitely, read this book."
great wake up!!!!!!!.......2007-09-20
This a wake up to the world. Got to hang in through the beginning, but after that try to get all the details.
An interesting, powerful book.......2007-09-18
I found the book to be well written, even light enough in spots to be humorous. It presents a point of view for
Americans to consider
"FEED ME!" says the Federal Beast..........2007-09-18
Directed by the mainstream media and the assault on the senses known as political punditry, it is particularly daunting to find a voice of reason in this chaos. There are a few that I believe are capable of striking the nail with a truthful hammer who are still left among us: Coulter, Buchanan, Schlafly, Farah, and Congressman Ron Paul, to name a few. I know of no other commentator that can condense weighty issues of national, or indeed global, importance into a joyous, witty manner better than P.J. O'Rourke, but I think I can direct columnist Mark Steyn onto the stage and have both men stand side by side as equal titans. "America Alone" is a small book, but pierces like a sword of many truths. It brought to me topics of concern that I didn't bother to even imagine could be beaten back into the American electorate, with much humor; it gave me more insight into modern Europe than any formal, leftist class managed to do. Finally, in an age that Steyn chides and ridicules for letting its willpower contract and shrink like a scared puppy from his owner, it gave me my own willpower, reinforced what I suspected was the truth, and encouraged me to stay strong facing the "opiate of the masses", meaning the book in fact actually gave me some hope for the Western World, because of people like Steyn, and for those readers who will take this work as a rallying cry to save the West not from radical Islam, but from itself.
What is the gist of this book (I listened on CD with a brilliant narration from Brian Emerson)? Well, to put it mildly, we in the West are killing ourselves through forced extermination and utter laziness, and as our guts get larger and our treasure dwindles to rudimentary amounts, there are youthful and strong-willed members of an inherently intolerant, crazed sect of the religion Islam who are multiplying and seizing our civilization right from under our collectively fat butts. If there is one thing you cannot do against Islamic radicals, it is that you cannot blame them, at least for their audacity. You actually should admire it. Radical Islam, more notoriously observed in the Saudi Kingdom under the guise called Wahabism, has much more ideological strength than Western civilization will ever hope to return to, not counting of course the small number of patriotic individuals who do have willpower of a similar strength (they're all reading this book!). But they're too much a minority to be any help, and because of our nationally-enforced doctrines of rabid multiculturalism (all cultures are equal), low birth rates (through abortion), and abandonment from moral absolutes and personal responsibility (philosophies ushered in by the government schools and the welfare bureaucracy), we are losing our blood in a slowly pronounced way, while the Islamic radicals are both out-birthing us and gaining significant political power around the globe.
The flag in the distance, which Steyn barely sees because it is clouded by dust and smoke and fog, belongs to the United States, the only country in the West with at least SOME shred of ideological and military strength, and with few noticeable flirtations with unsustainable statism (although the end of that era draws ever nearer to 2009). In essence, it truly is America Alone, the last to fight for its life against both the European social-democratic state and radical Islam.
Steyn popularizes these fundamental concerns in a format that is just as clever as Coulter and O'Rourke, while maintaining intellectual heft on the scale of Thomas Sowell. His insights about Europe, which is a topic that most ordinary Americans do not give particular thought to, are the most important of the book. We already know about radical Islamists and the threats that they pose to the country. It's a frightening portrait of unchecked fundamentalist Islam which Steyn paints, no doubt, but what is scarier to this American is his description of the modern European social-democratic state, and how the United States of America is creeping towards this kind of vast socialist utopia. As Americans, we can see the modern European model of government and quickly and easily (compared to Europeans) discern why things go so astoundingly wrong: government benefits that decrease productivity and innovation with increased laziness and lack of initiative, high taxation to fund these benefits which in the end will turn out to be completely unsustainable, and a universal socialist health care system that allows recipients to receive an MRI after a six month wait and provides a total of zero available beds in a maternity ward to those who urgently require them. So then, how about a little game? Now, with all those points in your mind, go to one of the many Democrat presidential candidate web sites and play some "Spot the Dog." Try skimming through their various `promises' and 'pledges' to constituents, which they claim they plan to fulfill if elected to the presidency. See how many matches you get, and tally your score, because I guarantee that the number will be high.
Of course, this doesn't let Republicans off the hook, either. We only need to discover that former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney enacted a universal health care system by working hand-in-glove with the liberal state legislature and Senators John Kerry and Ted Kennedy. It's really a terrific little system that will completely and effortlessly cripple small businesses, seeing as though the state government requires under threat of a severe monetary penalty that these businesses provide health insurance to their workers. How long will it take for these places to necessarily have to "lay off" a few people in order to pay for each worker's insurance? The consumer's choice is also severely threatened, because the Massachusetts government is actually mandating a certain policy to be purchased when you sign up for the program starting in 2007. Yes, smaller government is what the Republican Party truly stands for, just don't count the ones in Congress or the candidates running for the presidency (besides Ron Paul).
Radical Islam, on the other hand, is a threat to America too, but as Steyn points out, there are millions upon millions of moderate Muslims, and the fact that these radical imams and crazy Wahabists who have nowhere near, nor will they ever, a military power to rival the U.S., seems to me a point in America's favor. What'll really finish us of is when (and said `when,' not `if') the U.S. descends into the wasteland of European statism, with monstrous but unsustainable welfare and government benefits that are taken out from your paycheck to fund, after Hillary Clinton is elected in 2008 (save your breath, conservatives! Only a fool cannot see the inevitable). The doctrines of far leftism, from multiculturalism to abortion-on-demand to socialist health care to beastly federal power, will ensure our destruction more than any IED or suicide bomber will, regardless of how many we have to deal with. After that, it won't be America Alone, but One World Alone.
Amazon.com
Buffett, the Bard of Omaha, is a genuine American folk hero, if folk heroes are allowed to build fortunes worth upward of $15 billion. He's great at homespun metaphor, but behind those catchy phrases is a reservoir of financial acumen that's generally considered the best of his generation. For example, in an essay on CEO stock options, he writes, "Negotiating with one's self seldom produces a barroom brawl." This is his way of saying that an executive who can give himself compensation totally disproportionate to his performance surely will. There are uncountable gems of financial wisdom to be harvested from these essays, taken from the annual reports he writes for Berkshire Hathaway, his holding company. Just to pick one more, here's a now-famous line about those he competes with when making stock-market investments: "What could be more advantageous in an intellectual contest--whether it be chess, bridge, or stock selection--than to have opponents who have been taught that thinking is a waste of energy?"
While Buffett has a policy of seldom commenting on stocks he owns--he feels public pronouncements will only lead to the public's expectation of more public pronouncements, and he likes to keep his cards close to his vest--he loves to discuss the principles behind his investments. These come primarily from Ben Graham, under whom Buffett studied at Columbia University and for whom he worked in the 1950s. First among them is the idea that price is what you pay and value is what you get--and if you're a smart investor, the first will always be less than the second. In that sense, the value of the lessons learned from Buffett's Essays could be far greater than the book's price. --Lou Schuler
Book Description
The definitive work concerning Warren Buffett and intelligent investment philosophy, this is a collection of Buffett's letters to the shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway written over the past few decades that together furnish an enormously valuable informal education. The letters distill in plain words all the basic principles of sound business practices. They are arranged and introduced by a leading apostle of the "value" school and noted author, Lawrence Cunningham. Here in one place are the priceless pearls of business and investment wisdom, woven into a delightful narrative on the major topics concerning both managers and investors. These timeless lessons are ever-more important in the current environment.
Customer Reviews:
Perfect.......2007-08-14
Lucid and brilliant, a clear lesson on capital allocation. The only objection would be the repeated content, but truthfully it helped the ideas sink in a bit.
Thank you for editing this collection Professor Cunningham.
Real Wisdom at a Good Price.......2007-08-05
I work for a financial services company, and I'm subjected to corporate gobbledegook on a daily basis. Warren Buffett gets to the point. His explanations of financial transactions seem so effortless, I can't imagine how others get so confused and obtuse. Here's a mind worth delving in to, and this book lets you sit on the shoulder of a modern genius to see how he thinks. Good stuff.
excellent.......2007-07-09
These are the actual words penned by Buiffett. Not as dry as one would think, he's actually a wonderful writer. The Oracle of Omaha can turn a phrase and while parts of this are slow going, I enjoyed it throughly.
I heartily recommend this book for those desiring wealth. I also strongly recommend The Millionaire Mind by Tom Stanley. The Millionaire Mind
Buffett's Favorite book about him.......2007-06-06
In the CNBC Liz Clayman interview with Buffett, he stated that of all the books written about him, this one is his favorite...it is an excellent read.
Lessons for Corporate America.......2007-05-14
This is a great book for people to understand the relationship between Corporate governance and business wellness. a must read for a long term investor.
Book Description
The history of America's political, military, and intellectual involvement in the Middle East from George Washington to George W. Bush.
From the first cannonballs fired by American warships at North African pirates to the conquest of Falluja by the Marines—from the early American explorers who probed the sources of the Nile to the diplomats who strove for Arab-Israeli peace—the United States has been dramatically involved in the Middle East. For well over two centuries, American statesmen, merchants, and missionaries, both men and women, have had a profound impact on the shaping of this crucial region. Yet their story has never been told until now. Drawing on thousands of government documents and personal letters, featuring original maps and over sixty photographs, this book reconstructs the diverse and remarkable ways in which Americans have interacted with this alluring yet often hostile land stretching from Morocco to Iran, from the Persian Gulf to the Bosporus. Covering over 230 years of history, Power, Faith, and Fantasy is an indispensable work for anyone interested in understanding the roots of America's Middle East involvement today. 68 illustrations; 4 maps.
Customer Reviews:
A Bumpy Magic Carpet Ride.......2007-09-29
Michael B. Oren makes history come to life in this saga that begins and ends with Dartmouth.
John Ledyard fled Dartmouth to escape a life in the ministry and circuitously sailed and debarked ships until Eurpoean connections landed him in Egypt, where he explored the Nile. Nathaniel Fick graduated from Dartmouth and became a Marine Corps Captain, where he also landed in Egypt as a stopover before being stationed in Kuwait and fighting in Iraq.
Covering the two centuries between, Oren leads us through a parade of U.S. Presidents, beginning with those faced with Barbary State piracy, imprisonment and ransom demands made on a spanking new nation with no navy. The transformation to a vital young power with its own "sea legs" is neither slick nor linear, with a few tragi-comic hiccoughs along the way.
Oren takes us through the stages of fascination with the exotic Middle East, brought to us with an admixture of horror from the likes of Herman Melville and Mark Twain; and Oren holds the mirror up to our eyes to behold tourists in parasols vandalising ruins for souvenirs, a parade of mutual shock and awe working both was between the visitors and the host natives.
We sit in on the plans of Christian restorationists, zealously dedicated to hastening the re-settlement of Jews in a Palestinian homeland of their own; and we are invited to explore the reactions of Palestines existing populations. Missionaries abound in a geographical setting were proselytizing might cost one his head. We also meet the likes of Samuel Marinus Zwemer and Hannibal Hamlin, who prefer reaching out to young Middle Eastern minds rather than capturing their souls, with marvelous, lasting effects and long-term economic benefits to the United States.
Oren weaves a tapestry of the real and the imgined, and the enhanced: Lawrence of Arabia, "A Thousand and One Arabian Nights," Little Egypt, "Innocents Abroad," and Sol Bloom's Cairo recreation at the Chicago Columbian Exposition of 1893.
Oren gives us a slide show, a side show and living history, ever taking care to counterbalance each perceptable bias with a counterweight, exploring both [all] sides of this sometime blinding prism.
The book is a must for one who wants a sound, vibrant social history of human relations in the Middle East, replete with promising and failed strategies. For those deeply academic history purists who like their history "straight," that's fine - this gives you some mahogany, a place to rest your glass.
I loved this book.......2007-09-25
I loved this book. There was so much to learn.
One thing is clear.... the Muslims can never be trusted, should never be trusted.
The disaster that is our Arabist State Department is testiment to what happens when money is put before what is right.
Understanding the depth and length of American Mideast involvement.......2007-09-09
The first remarkable thing about this very remarkable book is that it traces an over two- hundred year involvement of the U.S. with the Middle East which most people, including myself, did not really know very much about. It shows that in the early days of the U.S. it was involved in dealing with a threat of blackmail and terror from the Barbary Pirates, not unlike those faced today. President Jefferson quite heroically at that time refused to give in to the blackmail, and pay protection money to the pirates as he saw there would be no end to it. Instead he took the action to create a U.S. Naval Force which would operate far from home, and which eventually did lift this threat to America's trade and commerce.
Oren looks at the power relations between the U.S. and the Middle East, but also looks at the part 'faith' has played. Here he reveals just how long the American involvement in working toward a Jewish restoration in the Holy Land was. It preceded that of the modern Zionist movement. He also shows how Faith led to American involvement in other areas of the Middle East, for instance in building the American Universities in Beirut and Egypt. One irony of this story is that the generation of founding Zionist Christians often had descendants who would become opponents of the cause of Jewish restoration.
Oren also looks at the role of Myth, the often romanticized and unrealistic way in which Americans have seen the Middle East.
He is a wonderful storyteller, and a very judicious and careful scholar. While he certainly reveals sympathy to the role of the Americans in helping establish a Jewish state, he by no means paints the relations as uniform and simple. He indicates numerous instances where American leaders have worked against the policies Israel considered to be in its best interest. He tells in a fascinating way of how President Truman against the advice of all his most powerful advisors, made the decision to support the founding of the Jewish state.
Oren provides a tremendous amount of interesting information which will be new to most readers. His account of the Melville and Twain visits to the Holy Land are a prime example of this.
This is a wonderful, highly readable and informative book which should be in the library of everyone who wishes to understand the role of America in the Middle East.
A Very Good Read.......2007-09-05
I bought this book expecting an insightful book, and the content filled my expectations. The author does a sufficient job in providing information without being dry and most importantly, with little detectable bias. With a topic like this, it would be prudent to be a little reserved regardless of the authors background but there was no propaganda involved. Overall it is a good read, smooth flow, continuity and can make you feel a little more knowledgeable apart from what you hear on the news every day.
Nothing New Under the Desert Sun.......2007-08-28
Bewitched, bothered and bewildered because most Muslims in the Middle East seem to hate Americans? Take comfort from the fact that most of them have hated most of us for at least the two hundred years we have sought to engage them. We have preached, pleaded, prodded, provoked and punished, and nothing has worked for any length of time. As this and many other works on relations between Muslims and the "Infidels" have demonstrated beyond doubt, we persist in believing not only that we can convert them to our religious views, but that there is a good chance that we can all "get along", you know, "live and let live".
The main reason is our refusal to acknowledge that Islam is as much a political as a religious regimen. Politcally and religiously, it has always provided for the accommodation of Christians and Jews: they must pay a tax for living in a Muslim hegemony and acknowledge its supremacy. What could be simpler?
Further, "democracy" is as foreign to the Middle Eastern Muslim mind as the concept of religious tolerance. It is no accident that in the Middle East the only democracy worthy of the name is that of Israel nor that the price Israel and the rest of the world have paid for the novelty is the seemingly perpetual unrest that literally surrounds the country.
The principal value of this wonderfully well-written book is to demonstrate and explain America's long history of involvement in the Middle East which dates back a lot longer than most, even well-informed, readers will have guessed. Its principal-if implicit-message is that there's much of that history yet to be written and, by extension, that out inevitable further exertions are not likely to be any more consistent or consistently fruitful than have our previous endeavors. While some readers (including me) might weary a bit of the extended discussion of our early, mostly military and missionary, involvement, dating back to the turn of the 19th Century, it proves central not only to Oren's wide-screen view of that involvement over the intevening period, but also crucial to his examination of our motives and missteps. The aptness of the title, "Power, Faith, and Fantasy", may be demonstrated in our current situation in Iraq: we had the power to oust Saddam and his army in short order; the Administration's faith in the rightness of our cause was sincere and well-intended; and the chimera of a democratic government in Iraq serving to light and lead the benighted Middle East will turn out to be pure fantasy. I would venture that neither we nor our children will live to see a peaceful Middle East at harmony with the world. But this book makes a very valuable contribution to understanding why that is true. Fell better now?
Book Description
What’s the secret to wowing your customers while maintaining a loyal and dedicated workforce? No one knows better than Enterprise, the nation’s #1 car rental company. Drawing upon the time-tested strategies that have propelled Enterprise from a single location in St. Louis into a $9 billion global powerhouse, EXCEEDING CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS reveals how to:
• Actively seek out unsatisfied customers and quickly turn them into loyal fans
• Hire smart people and train them from the ground up
•Develop methods to reduce costs and add value for your customers in every interaction.
• Grow your business by rewarding employees with financial incentives, forming strong partnerships, and focusing on the long-term
• Thrive during tough economic times by bringing new advantages to the market
• Cultivate a fun and friendly workplace where teamwork rules
In EXCEEDING CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS, noted business author Kirk Kazanjian reveals how your company can consistently outperform and outsmart the competition by following a simple philosophy espoused by Enterprise founder Jack Taylor: “Take care of your customers and employees first, and the profits will follow.” Winning customer loyalty is like running a marathon–not a 100-yard dash. By mastering this principle, Enterprise has earned not only record profits, but also received numerous awards for customer service and earned an enviable reputation as one of the world’s best companies to work for.
EXCEEDING CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS imparts timeless lessons on satisfying both customers and employees that you can put to use right away, no matter what your business or industry.
Customer Reviews:
"Pick Up" Your Customer Service!!!.......2007-03-10
This book is AWESOME! Although Enterprise is a car rental company, many of their methods can be successfully applied to other businesses. Another great companion book to this is The Ultimate Question by Fred Reicheld. They both make the assertion that you have to turn first time customers into "promoters" who will return AND bring others with them. When I need to rent a car I will Pick Enterprise...They Pick Me Up!!!
Great book about a great company.......2007-03-08
Enterprise is the best, and this book tells us exactly why. Take care of your customers and employees first, then the profits will follow. Well written, easily understood, this is a book that anyone having anything to do with customer service should read. Learn the secret that makes Enterprise Rent-a-Car so succussful. Well worth the read.
PROVIDES IMPORTANT GUIDELINES FOR SUCCESS IN A HIGHLY COMPETITIVE MARKET........2007-03-02
The author uses Enterprise to uncover critical insights that he distills into clearly stated key points. The essential focus of the book is on people...employees.
This is an first-rate analysis of a winning company, giving the reading important guidelines for success in any highly competitive market. Human resource professionals (yes, HR folks) should read this book, along with those who are concerned with business planning and marketing.
Good Book. Wrong Title........2007-03-02
EXCEEDING CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS by Kirk Kazanjian may be viewed in a variety of ways. Many will consider this book nothing more than a marketing campaign, and in large part, they would be correct. However, I find no fault in that. If that were the intention of the people at Enterprise, it is ingenious. They certainly won my loyalty, not that I ever have much need to rent a vehicle, but if I ever do,....
Others might view this book just as the title opines, an instructional treatise on customer service. They too would be correct, but only to a certain degree. I say that because I found the book to be more of a business model. In fact, I would say this book is broken down thusly; 50% business model, 30% Enterprise company history and 20% customer service. Therefore, my only big knock on this book is the title, which leads the reader to believe customer service is the primary focus here. It is not. That is not to say, however, that readers will not glean valuable information on customer service, just not as much as this reader would have liked.
The book reads well and Kazanjian is to be commended for his work, but I do not believe the story paints quite the intended picture. I found in large part, the Enterprise Company bumbled its way into prosperity because a few headstrong employees refused to follow company policy! A good example is the Enterprise "we'll pick you up" mantra. I won't give too much of the book away, but this and other business innovations within the company happened by chance. Please do not mistake this as ridicule of the company. Enterprise is certainly a gem in today's marketplace, just understand that according to this book, much of the company's success wasn't planned that way. Perhaps that in and of itself is what has made them successful; their ability to adapt.
I would like to make one other observation about the title of the book. My fear is that many will miss out on this book because of the title. This is an excellent resource for constructing a business model and is, at best, a mediocre source on customer service. If you are on a quest for knowledge on "exceeding customer expectations" you will likely be disappointed here as there are certainly more informative volumes available.
Great for your business.......2007-02-17
If you are looking for a book to give your employees for customer service skills this is the only one.
Amazon.com's Best of 2001
Essayist and cultural critic Barbara Ehrenreich has always specialized in turning received wisdom on its head with intelligence, clarity, and verve. With some 12 million women being pushed into the labor market by welfare reform, she decided to do some good old-fashioned journalism and find out just how they were going to survive on the wages of the unskilled--at $6 to $7 an hour, only half of what is considered a living wage. So she did what millions of Americans do, she looked for a job and a place to live, worked that job, and tried to make ends meet.
As a waitress in Florida, where her name is suddenly transposed to "girl," trailer trash becomes a demographic category to aspire to with rent at $675 per month. In Maine, where she ends up working as both a cleaning woman and a nursing home assistant, she must first fill out endless pre-employment tests with trick questions such as "Some people work better when they're a little bit high." In Minnesota, she works at Wal-Mart under the repressive surveillance of men and women whose job it is to monitor her behavior for signs of sloth, theft, drug abuse, or worse. She even gets to experience the humiliation of the urine test.
So, do the poor have survival strategies unknown to the middle class? And did Ehrenreich feel the "bracing psychological effects of getting out of the house, as promised by the wonks who brought us welfare reform?" Nah. Even in her best-case scenario, with all the advantages of education, health, a car, and money for first month's rent, she has to work two jobs, seven days a week, and still almost winds up in a shelter. As Ehrenreich points out with her potent combination of humor and outrage, the laws of supply and demand have been reversed. Rental prices skyrocket, but wages never rise. Rather, jobs are so cheap as measured by the pay that workers are encouraged to take as many as they can. Behind those trademark Wal-Mart vests, it turns out, are the borderline homeless. With her characteristic wry wit and her unabashedly liberal bent, Ehrenreich brings the invisible poor out of hiding and, in the process, the world they inhabit--where civil liberties are often ignored and hard work fails to live up to its reputation as the ticket out of poverty. --Lesley Reed
Book Description
Millions of Americans work for poverty-level wages, and one day Barbara Ehrenreich decided to join them. She was inspired in part by the rhetoric surrounding welfare reform, which promised that any job equals a better life. But how can anyone survive, let alone prosper, on $6 to $7 an hour? To find out, Ehrenreich moved from Florida to Maine to Minnesota, taking the cheapest lodgings available and accepting work as a waitress, hotel maid, house cleaner, nursing-home aide, and Wal-Mart salesperson. She soon discovered that even the lowliest occupations require exhausting mental and physical efforts. And one job is not enough; you need at least two if you intend to live indoors.Nickel and Dimed reveals low-wage America in all its tenacity, anxiety, and surprising generositya land of Big Boxes, fast food, and a thousand desperate strategies for survival. Instantly acclaimed for its insight, humor, and passion, this book is changing the way America perceives its working poor.
Customer Reviews:
Thank you.......2007-09-30
I got it in time for class, actually ahead of time. Fast delivery, great price, item was exact.
Absolutely honest and real.......2007-09-29
As I read this book, I found myself nodding my head repeatedly. Barbara Ehrenreich's words are true. I know because I LIVED THEM. Her experiences were my own over the past five years when I found myself unable to continue the professional career I had chosen and moved to a new city to start over. Big mistake. Although interviewers were thrilled to hear that I had a college degree, I couldn't find a job that would pay me more than $9.00 an hour--and don't think I didn't try.
Basically, I thought it wouldn't be too bad, because like she says repeatedly, poor people find a way to get by, don't they? I must also admit that I had a bit of snobbishness going in, thinking that with my skills I would rise to a manager's rank in no time. Boy, was I mistaken. I wound up working next to people who had worked in the same jobs for five years before they got a promotion (and whose wage was within a dollar of where it had been when they started). I also found that there was a sort of layer of management, that a promotion may only be in name only, like shift manager, but that those are the first jobs cut in lean times because that pay rate is slightly higher than others.
I too learned from my coworkers not to work too hard, not just because management will expect more from me but that they'll expect more from everybody; that good behavior is so rarely rewarded; and that employers will outright put your health in jeapordy without a thought to consequences. Insisting on something like a breathing mask when working with noxious fumes or kneepads when doing lots of floorwork will label you a troublemaker and an outcast.
Most surprising of all, however--and something BE does not discover--is that people quit these jobs because THERE ARE A MILLION OTHER JOBS OUT THERE THAT WILL DO THE SAME THING. That was probably the biggest surprise. There is no reason to stay at one job when another will give you the same money and treat you just as badly. These are not employers who care about resumes and work history (indeed, resumes are considered superfluous and if you bring one, it will be shifted off to the side in favor of applications which often say DO NOT WRITE SEE RESUME). In fact, sometimes it works better for people to shift from job to job as life circumstances change. A woman might quit her day shift at CVS in favor of the graveyard shift at the supermarket during the summer while her kids are out of school because the babysitting arrangements work better, then at summer's end go to work for Arby's during the day again. Of course, that only happens with the flexibility of transportation. If you are counting on public transit or someone else to give you a ride, there's little recourse but to make do with what you've got.
While a few of Ehrenreich's conclusions seem farfetched--I did the pee test several times and think it's wise, especially for those who use machinery, handle kitchen knives, and are driving company vehicles--she hit the nail on the head when she explained that companies OWN their employees for the time that they're there. Things like scheduled breaks, limits on conversation even if the work is getting done, and video orientations are demeaning and dehumanizing. And that doesn't even mention things like hour cuts or schedule changes. Imagine what it's like to travel an hour by bus to find out that your schedule was changed, and that you're now working TOMORROW--even though the bus fare you just used and the fare to get back is the last money you have until your paycheck comes in four days. That happened to me twice--I borrowed money from my boss to manage it.
The wage itself is a problem. I was okay on the basics, but only bought two pairs of shoes each year (about $25.00 each) and bought discount everything--soap, shampoo, toothpaste. You don't really know it until you're there, but a little piece of you cries inside when you have to say no to a pack of gum or a cup of diner coffee because all the money you have is exactly enough to pay the gas bill.
I won't get into great detail about my housing situations, except to say that I ended up staying in an abusive relationship for a while because I had nowhere to go, then lived with a guy who spent four months on the Internet after he lost his job because his name was on the lease too and I couldn't take him off without his permission. Are there ways around these situations? Sure...and in fact lived in a shelter for a little while. However, in the first situation I was obligated to three months of the rent, and in the second could not afford court fees to evict him, which is what my building manager said I would have to do. When I was insensitive enough to mention offhandedly to other women at the shelter that I didn't really want to live in substandard housing, they all gave me a look of stiff disbelief and resentment. Substandard housing was a way of life for them, even WITH abusive spouses. So housing is absolutely is a concern, especially where there are children involved.
At any rate, this is a book to buy that conservative you love dearly and wish would understand how the rest of the world lives. Take it from me--it's the God's honest truth.
The Awful Truth about the Movers and Shakers and Those they Move and Shake.......2007-09-28
At times I could not put NICKEL AND DIMED down. Although Barbara Ehrenreich has a sense of humor (and anger), she can't hide the sadness she witnesses. I am certainly going to look upon waitresses, maids, and hotel and house cleaners differently from now on--they'll get that tip or the full 20 percent, even if the service is not great (because I know why).
Here are some examples of her graphic and to-the-point style:
"Let's talk about s..t, for example. It happens, as the bumper sticker says, and it happens to a cleaning person every day. The first time I ecountered the s..t-stained toilet as a maid, I was shocked by the sense of unwanted intimacy. A few hours ago, some well-fed [...] was straining away on this toilet seat, and now here I am wiping up after it. ... I should explain that there are three kinds of s..t stains. There are remnants of landslides running down the inside.... (p. 92).
"...A coworker once advised me that, although I had a lot to learn, it was also important not to 'know too much,' or at least never reveal one's full abilities to management, because 'the more they think you can do, the more they'll use you and abuse you.' (p. 195)
"When someone works for less pay than she can live on--when, for example, she goes hungry so that you can eat more cheaply and conveniently--then she has made a great sacrifice for you, she has made you a gift of some part of her abilities, her health, and her life. The 'working poor,' as they are approvingly termed, are in fact the major philanthropists of our society. They neglect their own children so that the children of others will be cared for; they live in substandard housing so that other homes will be shiny and perfect. ... To be a member of the working poor is to be an anonymous donor, a nameless benefactor, to everyone else." (p. 221)
The only negative I found in NICKEL AND DIMED is Ehrenreich's short ranting (or so it seemed) against unionizing big powerful merchants which pay dirt-poor wages. Yep, to join you have to pay dues, but "united" members can get more of the benefits and pay they deserve than a person alone can. Just imagine shutting down such a national or international chain so the workers can be paid more than $6.00 to $7.00 an hour, and have to work two or three jobs to just get by!
Should be required reading in every high school in America!.......2007-09-22
Barbara Ehrenreich did impeccable research into the lives of people who bag our groceries, serve our food in restaurants, and work in those giant discount stores that happily take our money.
This was an exhausting walk in the shoes of people we assume must be living better lives, because, after all -- This Is America!
Read the book and ask yourself, why are there Americans working two or three jobs and still can't live an "American" lifestyle? Buy some extra copies and send them to your Senator and Congressman. It's time to create a way out of working poverty.
very readable and thought-provoking.......2007-09-16
This book grabbed me from the first page and I couldn't put it down. It was laugh-out-loud funny in parts, tears-to-your-eyes sad in others, touching and thought-provoking all the way through. It is a glimpse of the lives of people who are truly struggling just to live. I hope that it is being used as a text in business, economics, sociology and political science classes!
Book Description
Brigitte Gabriel lost her childhood to militant Islam. In 1975 she was ten years old and living in Southern Lebanon when militant Muslims from throughout the Middle East poured into her country and declared jihad against the Lebanese Christians. Lebanon was the only Christian influenced country in the Middle East, and the Lebanese Civil War was the first front in what has become the worldwide jihad of fundamentalist Islam against non-Muslim peoples. For seven years, Brigitte and her parents lived in an underground bomb shelter. They had no running water or electricity and very little food; at times they were reduced to boiling grass to survive.
Because They Hate is a political wake-up call told through a very personal memoir frame. Brigitte warns that the US is threatened by fundamentalist Islamic theology in the same way Lebanon was— radical Islam will stop at nothing short of domination of all non-Muslim countries. Gabriel saw this mission start in Lebanon, and she refuses to stand silently by while it happens here. Gabriel sees in the West a lack of understanding and a blatant ignorance of the ways and thinking of the Middle East. She also points out mistakes the West has made in consistently underestimating the single-mindedness with which fundamentalist Islam has pursued its goals over the past thirty years.
Fiercely articulate and passionately committed, Gabriel tells her own story as well as outlines the history, social movements, and religious divisions that have led to this critical historical conflict.
Customer Reviews:
A wonderful book that shows how radicals work........2007-10-03
This book is a wonderful account by Brigitte Gabriel, of what happened to her beloved homeland. She shows the way she remembered Lebanon before it became a bed of turmoil and death. She allows the reader to not only understand how radical Muslims and groups like the PLO, Islamic Brotherhood and Hamas operate but why they do so. She explains the tactics used by Muslims groups to use the freedoms of a society to begin a take over. She shows how they used the political system and the horrific tactics used to cause distrust and dislike among the Christians in Lebanon and the Jewish people. This is a wonderful book and a wise word of warning about the deception and lies that some will tell in order to gain control. All to force Islamic laws, and their way of life on a once free people. I think everyone should read this woman's story of courage, and understand why she fears that one day the same thing could happen here in America. This is one book that will teach you, entertain you, and even show you how the Muslims work through lies and murder and even a nations own legal system to gain sole power and control. I wish every American would read this book, there is some very useful knowledge that can be gained from this book.
An important perspective.......2007-10-03
I knew nothing of the destruction of Lebanon before I read Ms. Gabriel's book, after years of seeing news reports that were so "balanced" that they glossed over the widespread Arab (and Palestinian, and perhaps Persian) desire for the eradication of Israel. Call me an ignoramus, but mainstream media was the cause, not the cure, of my ignorance.
The so very human scenes in the hospital I think point to the core of the issue with radical Islam: compassion and cultural evolution, versus centuries-old resentment and inferiority and hate.
An important book, if a bit strident for well-fed suburban Americans (a category in which I include myself). That said, a truly moving and informative read.
Real, clear and without fear analysis of the historical, current and future directions of the effect of the Islamic religion .......2007-09-29
It is a "Must to read" book for everyone (all religions). This books not only tells the story of a young Christian girl that survived Lebanon civil war, but also layout a real, clear and without fear analysis of the historical, current and future directions of the effect of the Islamic religion on the world.
Further more, Brigitte Gabriel (the author) lists preventive and recovery actions that we, the western world can take and start doing to stand against this madness.
I personally share many of the ideas in the book and I see how some western courtiers in Europe, as France, already all into the Islamic spin and I hope that USA will take the right actions to stand against the Islamic evil and tactics and win this war.
Furthermore, it become clear to me that the current foundations of every democracy must be based on one religion (which can be separated from the state), but a democratic state must characterize itself by one religion by law.
It will prevent situations of takeover of France or England by the Muslims and set the expectations of new immigrants that do not share the major fate.
A Must Read!.......2007-09-26
A disturbing, but well documented, personal account of the danger facing Americans. It was well worth taking the time to read.
Every American should read this book.......2007-09-24
I had seen a video where Brigette Gabriel did a short interview. I could tell from the brief story she told, I needed to read this book. It only took me a few days to read this. I couldn't put the book down. It is so captivating and riveting. You feel as though you, too, spent those lonely days in a bomb shelter with Brigette. Her writing style is to be commended.
I now tell everyone I love and know that they, too, should read this book. This not just the story of Brigette Gabriel and her native Lebanon, this is a story foretelling what will happen to the United States of America if the people of this country don't wake up and pull the Political Correctness out of our bums. We are under attack by people who HATE us. To better understand where this HATE comes from, you must read this book. You will get a grasp on how deeply rooted this HATE is and you will have a deeper understanding of the danger we are all in, if we don't stop them. I thank Brigette Gabriel for giving me insight into this world of terror we are now living in. I have taken that knowledge and will now use it to spread the word of how Islmofasicism will destroy our country if we don't do something NOW!
Book Description
Twenty-five years ago, when Pat Robertson and other radio and televangelists first spoke of the United States becoming a Christian nation that would build a global Christian empire, it was hard to take such hyperbolic rhetoric seriously. Today, such language no longer sounds like hyperbole but poses, instead, a very real threat to our freedom and our way of life. In American Fascists, Chris Hedges, veteran journalist and author of the National Book Award finalist War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning, challenges the Christian Right's religious legitimacy and argues that at its core it is a mass movement fueled by unbridled nationalism and a hatred for the open society.
Hedges, who grew up in rural parishes in upstate New York where his father was a Presbyterian pastor, attacks the movement as someone steeped in the Bible and Christian tradition. He points to the hundreds of senators and members of Congress who have earned between 80 and 100 percent approval ratings from the three most influential Christian Right advocacy groups as one of many signs that the movement is burrowing deep inside the American government to subvert it. The movement's call to dismantle the wall between church and state and the intolerance it preaches against all who do not conform to its warped vision of a Christian America are pumped into tens of millions of American homes through Christian television and radio stations, as well as reinforced through the curriculum in Christian schools. The movement's yearning for apocalyptic violence and its assault on dispassionate, intellectual inquiry are laying the foundation for a new, frightening America.
American Fascists, which includes interviews and coverage of events such as pro-life rallies and weeklong classes on conversion techniques, examines the movement's origins, its driving motivations and its dark ideological underpinnings. Hedges argues that the movement currently resembles the young fascist movements in Italy and Germany in the 1920s and '30s, movements that often masked the full extent of their drive for totalitarianism and were willing to make concessions until they achieved unrivaled power. The Christian Right, like these early fascist movements, does not openly call for dictatorship, nor does it use
physical violence to suppress opposition. In short, the movement is not yet revolutionary. But the ideological architecture of a Christian fascism is being cemented in place. The movement has roused its followers to a fever pitch of despair and fury. All it will take, Hedges writes, is one more national crisis on the order of September 11 for the Christian Right to make a concerted drive to destroy American democracy. The movement awaits a crisis. At that moment they will reveal themselves for what they truly are -- the American heirs to fascism. Hedges issues a potent, impassioned warning. We face an imminent threat. His book reminds us of the dangers liberal, democratic societies face when they tolerate the intolerant.
Customer Reviews:
TEST QUESTIONS.......2007-10-03
What created the Fundamentalist Movement, and from where did it derive it followers?
What created the NRA, and to what Christian sects do its members belong?
Why did a government "by the people and for the people" give itself a Constitutional Right to Bear Arms"? And who will decide when and where those arms will be used?
Can now extinct religious strife be incited among the American Christian sects, or will they turn on those who are inciting them to religious strife?
To what ideological categories do those who have progressively secularlized the laws and schools belong?
Did the Christian God ever give His followers the right to practice Human sacrifice?
Why do authors sometime confuse fantasies with realities?
Why is the Human the only species that is religious?
Who is afraid of Christian cultures?
Why do scary books sell more copies?
What turns cultural wars into violent wars?
Corporate Christo-Fascism's minds (and able-bodies) snatching.......2007-10-02
Upon finishing authoritative Chris Hedges's book (it's true: his credentials are impeccable), I think of a vision: arson fire set to a huge cinema theatre crowded with people distraught with sitcoms and "American Idol" and the like. Someone cries "Fire! Get out of here! but nobody seem to move, or grasp the full significance of the words, or the menace that now is full real. I sincerely hope the audience wakes up in time, that they render this a mere fantasy of the WASP Fundamentalists, and the American Christian right is not snatching minds and wills to such an alarming extent through false prophets and a false warrior Christ.
I knew W. Bush was their born-again Christian. I didn't know he had created by decree... (well, you'll see in the notes). From the innards Hedges exposes the connivance between corporate America and the powerful Dominionist leaders who in turn have their people's hands into the US Constitution to accommodate it to their own ends. For decades they've had the Economic and Political means. Now they're bent on really winning the hearts and minds of an intellectually challenged population so they'll be useful in the war against nonbelievers, who are us all who do not, and will not, share their distorted views or approve their robbing reality from under the feet of so many unwitting people.
Among the impressive images there is the gathering in a desert resort of the New Class, the rich who will be raptured into Heaven (the poor are condemned, they're nonbelievers), and how they consort with the Catholic right and especially with Israeli representatives. Of course they have a racist hatred of Arabs, who they count as the main nonbelievers to righteously destroy. Really, if they read their Bibles literally, they would see that Arabs are descended from Ishmael, son of Abraham and Hagar, both of them thrown into the desert by Sarah's hurt pride so Isaac will be the heir. They will read also that God talks to Hagar, pledges protection for them and Ishmael's descendants. Therefore per the Bible and other sources, both peoples -Jews and Arabs- are semitic, having Abraham as their ultimate father, and anyone hating Arabs is also being anti-semitic. It woudl seem that Jews -who've had their huge portion of suffering themselves, especially poor Jews- have appropriated the name "semite" for themselves. Especially in "The New Class" is evident the upside down reality the American Fascists have created for their followers to live in, as compared to what the authentic Jesus Christ really taught as His doctrine. Never mind that the true Jesus, though a rabbi by right, made Himself one of the poorest in his homeland, and never had the refinement to pronounce "thou" or "thine", surely speaking in Aramaic as the language of the fishermen and peasants in Judea. Never mind that what Jesus taught in Judea was "A new commandment I give unto thee, that thou lovest..." (aw shucks). Again: "A new commandment I give unto you, that you love your neighbor just as you love yourselves." Christ never qualified what kind of neighbor, whether they should be white Anglo-Saxon Protestant, Black, yellow, brown, whatever. He just said the word translated into Latin and Spanish as "the one right next to you", i.e., "próximo" or "prójimo".
Using the tactics of a refined Scientology (I know, I lost a friend to that greedy "church" here in Mexico), only now taking advantage of deeper religious roots, the American Christian Right aspire to resurrect Lord God of Hosts in the mind of anyone having the disgrace to be approached in a moment of despair, and aspire to prepare them to aide in the ultimate Apocalypse, which they will have one way or the other. Unlike Scientology, darker and more evil goals are at play. They masterly bide their time in accordance to US's rulers' bellicous schemes, say an attack on the Middle East, and uncannily coordinate it with the race toward nuclear war. For this purpose they use every resource, even "museums" that, lacking sound scientific bases, are more like childish theme parks so that followers can feel they've had a spiritual "coming-of-age".
As for Mr. D. James Kenndy totally false notion (which I doubt even he believes) that Catholicism is no more than a "cult", please note that the true Christ taught first to the Jews to fulfill the prophecies, then to the Gentiles so that salvation could reach the most hidden corners of the Earth. Upon the creation of Christianity the Catholic church became its visible representative, it is from Catholicism's mother lode that Protestantism was born, and it is both faiths' teachings that now Messrs. Kennedy, Dobson, Robertson and the like take unashamed advantage of to create their lying, lucrative dogmas. Then they seek total war on unbelievers to boot. Having never witnessed war, I think how stupidly glib must be comments on war from people who've never been in a battlefield or a massacre, never have seen or touched dead bodies, felt or smelled fresh blood, or witnessed the authentic despair of the survivors, who for the rest of their lives will be encroached by the most extreme post-traumatic stress which will go untreated for as long as Empire-minded Christian right persists in their dreams of Rapture and Political and Religious supremacy. Has anyone reader even have a war nightmare? Being under sniper fire in Oaxaca? Being in the middle of the nastiest massacre in a hospital-school in a field in a Central-American impoverished country? May God wake up decent Americans that they may join forces of reason to revive the true prestige of the United States of America, that is, not being the Ultimate Imperialist Force, but the Philosophical and Ethical Beacon the US was once considered to be. Keep in mind that the authentic Christ came as a watershed separating Israeli primitive tribes' Lord God of Hosts from the Authentic Superior God of Love; love to your neighbor: the one right next to you, anyplace, anytime.
What's my vested interest in this as a Mexican and an American (as I live in the American continent)? With Benedict XVI as Pope, Catholicism is grossly regressing into the right with all the resulting injustice. The American Christian Right use Catholics as allies and despise them. As a semi-preserved Catholic who read her Bible since she was ten, I knew of the massacres that the people of Israel justified as mandated by the God Lord of Hosts, I witnessed how Christ sent His Apostles to go and teach; he didn't specify who to teach or not. He just said Go and Teach. Poor (nonbelievers) in my country are poorer than ever in large part due to US-advocated policies; foreign priests are sent our way to urge the poor to accept their plight and wait for Heaven. I'm sure they'll go right into Heaven as they have lived for so long in Hell. Even the richer classes should see the convenience of not letting the lower classes (in their own country or otherwise) fall lower. The former slave Frederick Douglass once said, " Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe." I doubt Bush know who Douglass was, but any USAmerican who dares go out of his/her bubble will see this is a reality wherever the American supremacists have trodden on justice on this Earth.
I for one would argue that religions divide; if the true Christ is one with God, then only the authentic God unites. And that is precisely what Fascists do not want.
Very interesting reading........2007-09-27
I heard Mr. Hedges on C-Span the first time I ever heard of him. I cannot remember if it was a review or reading of the book. But what he said made me interested enough to read the book. I found it was very interesting and solid writing.
STORM WARNING RED.......2007-09-22
Everyone concerned with the rising tide of fascism in America under the guise of Christian religious fervor should read this book. People who kill in the name of Jesus Christ are beyond the pale -- devoid of truth and reason. Hedges nails them to the cross they burden others with. The only caveat is that Hedges seems to be as befuddled about Christianity as the ersatz Christians he excoriates. Perhaps he spent too much time in theological cemeteries. Nonetheless, his warning is timely and should be well heeded.
Scary.......2007-09-12
The connection between the far religious right and the spector of authoritarian rule is made very clear in this book. The possibility of a "Christian" takeover in the name of God should be on everyone's list of worries, and yet it seems hard to imagine. At least before you read this book.
Mr. Hedges paints a picture of congregations that are well meaning, but manipulated politically by preachers and pastors who have a very strong committment to destroying any plurality of culture in America. By using their own words and appearances, the author presents us with the very real possibility that these people could take over the government and, by extention, our lives. Many of his examples of calls for a more authoratarian, Christian rule are from direct contacts at meetings and rallies.
Strident and seemingly angry, Hedges can be repetitive in places. But the theme of the book is too important to worry about these minor stylistic issues. They certainly didn't get in the way of my reading of the book.
If you believe the conservative movement could be taken over by the religious right or not, this is an important book to read. It presents a truely scary image of what might be and what we might do to protect our liberties, Christian or otherwise.
Amazon.com
IDEO, the world's leading design firm, is the brain trust that's behind some of the more brilliant innovations of the past 20 years--from the Apple mouse, the Polaroid i-Zone instant camera, and the Palm V to the "fat" toothbrush for kids and a self-sealing water bottle for dirt bikers. Not surprisingly, companies all over the world have long wondered what they could learn from IDEO, to come up with better ideas for their own products, services, and operations. In this terrific book from IDEO general manager Tom Kelley (brother of founder David Kelley), IDEO finally delivers--but thankfully not in the step-by-step, flow-chart-filled "process speak" of most how-you-can-do-what-we-do business books. Sure, there are some good bulleted lists to be found here--such as the secrets of successful brainstorming, the qualities of "hot teams," and, toward the end, 10 key ingredients for "How to Create Great Products and Services," including "One Click Is Better Than Two" (the simpler, the better) and "Goof Proof" (no bugs).
But The Art of Innovation really teaches indirectly (not to mention enlightens and entertains) by telling great stories--mainly, of how the best ideas for creating or improving products or processes come not from laboriously organized focus groups, but from keen observations of how regular people work and play on a daily basis. On nearly every page, we learn the backstories of some now-well-established consumer goods, from recent inventions like the Palm Pilot and the in-car beverage holder to things we nearly take for granted--like Ivory soap (created when a P&G worker went to lunch without turning off his soap mixer, and returned to discover his batch overwhipped into 99.44 percent buoyancy) and Kleenex, which transcended its original purpose as a cosmetics remover when people started using the soft paper to wipe and blow their noses. Best of all, Kelley opens wide the doors to IDEO's vibrant, sometimes wacky office environment, and takes us on a vivid tour of how staffers tackle a design challenge: they start not with their ideas of what a new product should offer, but with the existing gaps of need, convenience, and pleasure with which people live on a daily basis, and that IDEO should fill. (Hence, a one-piece children's fishing rod that spares fathers the embarrassment of not knowing how to teach their kids to fish, or Crest toothpaste tubes that don't "gunk up" at the mouth.)
Granted, some of their ideas--like the crucial process of "prototyping," or incorporating dummy drafts of the actual product into the planning, to work out bugs as you go--lend themselves more easily to the making of actual things than to the more common organizational challenge of streamlining services or operations. But, if this big book of bright ideas doesn't get you thinking of how to build a better mousetrap for everything from your whole business process to your personal filing system, you probably deserve to be stuck with the mousetrap you already have. --Timothy Murphy
Book Description
IDEO, the widely admired, award-winning design and development firm that brought the world the Apple mouse, Polaroid's I-Zone instant camera, the Palm V, and hundreds of other cutting-edge products and services, reveals its secrets for fostering a culture and process of continuous innovation.
There isn't a business in America that doesn't want to be more creative in its thinking, products, and processes. At many companies, being first with a concept and first to market are critical just to survive. In
The Art of Innovation, Tom Kelley, general manager of the Silicon Valley based design firm IDEO, takes readers behind the scenes of this wildly imaginative and energized company to reveal the strategies and secrets it uses to turn out hit after hit.
IDEO doesn't buy into the myth of the lone genius working away in isolation, waiting for great ideas to strike. Kelley believes everyone can be creative, and the goal at his firm is to tap into that wellspring of creativity in order to make innovation a way of life. How does it do that? IDEO fosters an atmosphere conducive to freely expressing ideas, breaking the rules, and freeing people to design their own work environments. IDEO's focus on teamwork generates countless breakthroughs, fueled by the constant give-and-take among people ready to share ideas and reap the benefits of the group process. IDEO has created an intense, quick-turnaround, brainstorm-and-build process dubbed "the Deep Dive."
In entertaining anecdotes, Kelley illustrates some of his firm's own successes (and joyful failures), as well as pioneering efforts at other leading companies. The book reveals how teams research and immerse themselves in every possible aspect of a new product or service, examining it from the perspective of clients, consumers, and other critical audiences.
Kelley takes the reader through the IDEO problem-solving method:
>Carefully observing the behavior or "anthropology" of the people who will be using a product or service
>Brainstorming with high-energy sessions focused on tangible results
>Quickly prototyping ideas and designs at every step of the way
>Cross-pollinating to find solutions from other fields
>Taking risks, and failing your way to success
>Building a "Greenhouse" for innovation
IDEO has won more awards in the last ten years than any other firm of its kind, and a full half-hour Nightline presentation of its creative process received one of the show's highest ratings.
The Art of Innovation will provide business leaders with the insights and tools they need to make their companies the leading-edge, top-rated stars of their industries.
Customer Reviews:
Kudos to Ideos.......2007-08-28
Excellent book with good insights. If you are in the business of innovation, this is one book that you shouldn't miss. I also recommend EIGHTSTORM: 8-Step Brainstorming for Innovative Managers.
Innovation for All.......2007-06-29
Through anecdotes, Kelley demonstrates how stumbling blocks to innovation can be overcome. He shows an appreciation for experimentation, momentum, and embraces failure as a true path to knowing. Failed prototypes are wonderful learning tools. Kelley's perspective keeps spirits high. He leaves much of the innovative process open ended - nearly encouraging innovation on innovating.
Interestingly, Kelley notes how medicine is becoming personalized and that the future can not be perfectly predicted. Still, he says we must aim at it. This was an important nugget of wisdom for me, a research coordinator at a think-tank-like public health research group, the Healthcare Innovation and Technology lab at Columbia University. On a daily basis we deal with innovation to improve healthcare and need to effectively innovate. Given that we tread a very specific territory - health and technology - and that Kelley's book could be so useful to us, it is obvious that he really has something to offer to everyone.
Innovation and creativity "how-to" guide.......2007-06-07
The Art of Innovation explains many of IDEO's creative techniques and in so doing paints a picture of the physical context in which all that creativity occurs, namely IDEO's office, your average geek's idea of paradise brimming with high-tech prototypes, foam cubes, "tech box" caddies with giant Post-Its and coloring pens ... and yes, it does look more like a playschool than Dilbertesque gray cubicle-land. Teamwork, friendship and a shared passion for helping clients innovate is clearly what binds people together and stimulates their creativity, while a supportive and forgiving management structure doesn't just tolerate weirdness, it actively encourages it. IDEO seems to have taken Tom Peters' advice "If you want to do weird, hire weird people" to the next level. In IDEO-land, "normal" people would probably stand out a mile.
Two creative techniques - brainstorming and prototyping - are particularly well described, in a way that encourages the reader to try something different. I've learnt some new tricks and even started applying them since reading the book.
El arte de innovar estilo IDEO.......2007-06-01
IDEO ha hecho de la innovación un arte, el cual es un proceso sistematizado, con pasos muy definidos, congruentes y faciles de llevar por las personas que conforman dentro sus empresas los equipos de innovacion y diseño.
Skip it and go right to 10 Faces.......2007-03-19
I recently read both this book and the Ten Faces of Innovation. My recomendation is to skip this book. It is written more like an advertisement for IDEO and was left feeling like Tom has crossed the line into arrogance. If you read it as a stand alone book there is a lot of useful information. However most of the concepts are covered in Ten Faces. If you have time read both books but if time is of the essence then jump right into the Ten Faces, you won't be disappointed.
Book Description
Drawing from the collection of the world-renowned Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Bird Songs presents the most notable North American birds including the rediscovered Ivory-billed Woodpecker in a stunning new format. Renowned bird biologist Les Beletsky provides a succinct description of each of the 250 birds profiled, with an emphasis on their distinctive songs. Lavish full-color illustrations accompany each account, while a sleek, built-in digital audio player holds 250 corresponding songs and calls. In his foreword, North American bird expert and distinguished natural historian Jon L. Dunn shares insights gained from a lifetime of passionate study. Complete with the most up-to-date and scientifically accurate information, Bird Songs is the first book to capture the enchantment of these beautiful birds in words, pictures, and song. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, located in Ithaca, New York, is a nonprofit institution focused on birds and whose mission is to interpret and conserve the earth's biological diversity through research. The Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab is the major source of sound recordings of birds for research, education, conservation, the media, and commercial products.
Listen here
Trumpeter Swan
Laughing Gull
Eastern Bluebird
Customer Reviews:
Reading level: Ages 9-12 - I don't think so!?!.......2007-10-01
Great book for my coffee table for people to press the bird numbers. My favorite is the Northern Mockingbird, and my cats never fail to perk up their ears at it.
I've seen birds in my back yard react to different bird songs I played, so I can imagine that a lighter weight book would be great to take on field trips for attracting certain birds.
Some of the owls are eerie sounding, but I love owls (they eat mice, right?), so I play them often. There are others I haven't even heard of, not being a birder. But I'm handling the learning curve, and it's certainly fun!
Great for beginning birders.......2007-09-27
This is now our favorite coffee table book-- although we have to tear it out of the hands of guests in order to have conversation about something else. The sound is excellent. Gave a copy to my sister who also loves it.
Great book.......2007-09-27
Great book. The pictures and writeups for each bird are good and the sound is pretty good. I wish there were even more calls included for each bird. Great gift for any bird lover.
Cool Book!.......2007-09-26
It is true, the birds will respond if you play the songs outdoors-It caught the attention of many of the woodpeckers In my backyard..I know the birds by sight but needed help with the songs and calls and this is perfect! Great Idea for a book and a must for beginning birdwatchers or just birdlovers....
Very authentic birdsounds!.......2007-09-26
Chickadees respond to the bird calls in this book! What fun! It is encouraging my 4-year old grandson's growing interesting in birding. The only flaw is the index. Not only is the font so small it is nearly unreadable, but the birds are not called by their common names. For example, the "Cardinal" is listed under "American Cardinal".
Book Description
"A serious reference for serious cooks."
-Thomas Keller, Chef and owner, The French Laundry
Named one of the five favorite culinary books of this decade by Food Arts magazine, The Professional Chef® is the classic resource that many of America's top chefs have relied on to help learn their cooking skills. Now this comprehensive "bible for all chefs" (Paul Bocuse) has been thoroughly revised and expanded to reflect the way people cook and eat today.
The book includes essential information on nutrition, food and kitchen safety, and tools and ingredients, as well as more than 640 classic and contemporary recipes plus variations. One hundred and thirty-one basic recipe formulas illustrate fundamental techniques and guide cooks clearly through every step, from mise en place to finished dishes.
This edition features nearly 650 all-new four-color photographs of fresh food products, step-by-step techniques, and plated dishes taken by award-winning photographer Ben Fink. It explores culinary traditions of the Americas, Asia, and Europe, and includes four-color photographs of commonly used ingredients and maps of all regions. Written "with extreme vigor and precision" (Eric Ripert, Chef and co-owner, Le Bernardin), The Professional Chef® is an unrivaled reference and source of inspiration for the serious cook.
The Culinary Institute of America (Hyde Park, NY, and St. Helena, CA) was founded in 1946. Known as the Harvard of cooking schools and credited with having "changed the way Americans eat" by The James Beard Foundation, the CIA has trained nearly 50,000 foodservice professionals.
Customer Reviews:
Basic kitchen reference book.......2007-08-24
Every cook should have this available. No recipe will be too difficult with this book to decipher it.
Excellent reference, good assortment of recipes........2007-07-05
As a self-taught amateur "chef", I have been very pleased with this useful reference volume from CIA. While professionals may find this a bit rudimentary in its coverage, there is much of value for "the rest of us" who would love to go to culinary school but can't.
The first portion of the book is strictly for food-service professionals, with information on how to operate a restaurant kitchen. There is also a brief segment on the basic science of food preparation. The next portion discusses major cultural influences and cuisines from all areas of the world, including charts that summarize the key ingredients to be found in each culinary "dialect." The third portion, which I found extremely helpful as one without form
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The Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World's Most Intolerant Religion
Unstoppable Global Warming: Every 1,500 Years
While Europe Slept: How Radical Islam is Destroying the West from Within
The Politically Incorrect Guide(tm) to Islam (and the Crusades) (Politically Incorrect Guides)
Because They Hate: A Survivor of Islamic Terror Warns America
