Why Geography Matters: Three Challenges Facing America: Climate Change, the Rise of China, and Global Terrorism

Book Description

Over the next half century, the human population, divided by culture and economics and armed with weapons of mass destruction, will expand to nearly 9 billion people. Abrupt climate change may throw the global system into chaos; China will emerge as a superpower; and Islamic terrorism and insurgency will threaten vital American interests. How can we understand these and other global challenges? Harm de Blij has a simple answer: by improving our understanding of the world's geography. In Why Geography Matters, de Blij demonstrates how geography's perspectives yield unique and penetrating insights into the interconnections that mark our shrinking world. Preparing for climate change, averting a cold war with China, defeating terrorism: all of this requires geographic knowledge. De Blij also makes an urgent call to restore geography to America's educational curriculum. He shows how and why the U.S. has become the world's most geographically illiterate society of consequence, and demonstrates the great risk this poses to America's national security. Peppering his writing with anecdotes from his own professional travels, de Blij provides an original treatise that is as engaging as it is eye opening. Casual or professional readers in areas such as education, politics, or national security will find themselves with a stimulating new perspective on geography as it continues to affect our world.

Customer Reviews:

Occasionally insightful, but generally uninspired.......2007-08-29

I would describe this book as the rambling--but occasionally insightful--musings of a thoughtful scholar. Unfortunately, many, if not most, of Blij's arguments are not made from a geographic perspective. For instance, his chapter on the European Union rambles on for page after page about the history of the EU from the European Coal and Steel Community, to the European Economic Community, to the European Community, and, finally, to the European Union. That's not to say that's not and interesting and important history lesson for people who are unfamiliar with EU history, but its not geographic! I was hoping for a book of theories explaining human events using reasoning built on spatial orientations or location. Why Geography Matters had some of that, but Blij could have, in my view, omitted much of the voluminous background information. Doing some would have made his book more concise and allowing his genuine insights to be featured more prominently.

And for what its worth, the book could have used a better editor. For instance, on p.160 it refers to "South Ossetia" as a Russian Republic instead of North Ossetia. I noticed a couple errors like this.

Perhaps, I would be more positive about this book if its last chapter hadn't been the low point. The chapter on Africa had absolutely nothing original to say (AIDS is bad, we need to do more to stop it; colonization and slavery were bad too; Africa has been plagued by bad leadership; etc.).

Important book.......2007-08-28

This is an exceptional and needed introduction to Geography and how it relates to world problems.

What we should have learned in school about the world..........2007-05-27

This is essential reading for anyone who should have a sound foundation of knowledge to back up one's social commentary, but doesn't. Geography can be understood and used to understand our world with great clarity. Everyone who watched Al Gore's movie should read this book if only to know that Harm de Blij has been explaining geographic issues for decades better than nearly anyone.

The US Department of Education needs to buy and issue a copy of this book to every teacher in America.

Very informative reading.......2007-05-13

This is definitely a quality work in the field of Geography with an emphasis on Politics i.e. GeoPolitics. However, it is important to point out a couple of incorrect facts I found while reading this work.

1. On page 190 we have the statement, "On an aircraft carrier off the coast of California, President Bush declared "mission accomplished.", regarding the war in Iraq. If you read the speech that President Bush gave, you will find that he never uttered the words "mission accomplished." The author just regurgitated this line from the biased print media i.e. The NYTimes, Time, Newsweek, etc... Intuitively, if you think about it, George Bush, assigns the mission to the military and after assigning the mission to the military he is not going to turn around and say good "mission accomplished. That is what the military's response, will be, to the President, after they have completed the mission. This is reflected by the fact that the military hung a banner up on the aircraft carrier that said "Mission Accomplished."

2. On pages 193-194 The author states. "The American invasion severly damaged the city, which was for months afterward, and remains as of this writing, without a reliable water supply, power, medical facilities, or schools." It is very true that much of the infrastructure in Iraq is severly damaged, but the author has tried to blame this on American firepower and it is simply not true. The precision guided weapons our U.S. forces utilized were excellent at avoiding collateral damage. The truth is more damning for the Saddam regime. THE INFRASTUCTURE DAMAGE WAS CAUSED BY 30 PLUS YEARS OF NEGLECT ON THE PART OF THE BAATH PARTY AND NOT AMERICAN MILITARY MIGHT. Also, the military planners who provided for getting the infrastructure back online, after the war, grossly underestimated the level of the existing infrastructure of Iraq, before the U.S. military even set foot inside the country.

Overall I recommend this work, but it cannot be given five stars due to these errors.

Debunking the global warming myth!.......2007-03-08

This is an excellent book based on scientific fact debunking the "global warming" myth.

I highly recommend this book.

The Hidden History of 9-11-2001, Volume 23 (Research in Political Economy) (Research in Political Economy)

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There are better books on the subject
More Indictments Against the Bush Treason
New 9/11 Research from Prestigious Scholarly Press
5 Stars to Author, ZERO to Publisher
BUY THIS BOOK BEFORE THEY BAN IT....

The Hidden History of 9-11-2001, Volume 23 (Research in Political Economy) (Research in Political Economy)

Manufacturer: JAI Press
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ASIN: 0762313056

Book Description

This important volume brings together rigorous scholarship on the events of 9-11-2001, and assesses whether the truth has been told by the U.S. government. The lead chapter shows that eleven of FBI-named Arabic hijackers could not have been on the planes, while the Dulles airport videotape -- essentially being the case that hijackers boarded flights -- has very serious authentication problems. The next three chapters examine insider trading beforehand and the 9-11 flights themselves, then the evidence -- based partly upon newly-released reports of more than 500 firefighters -- permitting a conclusion that three buildings in the WTC complex were brought down by demolition, followed by discussion of scheduled military drills which confused standard operating procedures, and concluding with a surprising connection to the death of Senator Wellstone, leading critique of the Bush administration.
The third part opens with a chapter examining the connection between Al-Qaeda and Western covert operations, showing how Al-Qaeda is inseparably connected to the latter. The following chapter shows that Machiavellian state terrorism is rather common and not at all unlikely for 9-11, while the following examines how the 9-11 Commission wrote its own history, rather than reporting and analyzing true history. The rise of Islamophobia as an ideological force to sustain U.S. imperialism is then introduced. The final chapter, while not explicit, offers a possible connection to the process of undermining pensions in the U.K.
The volume can be seen as a definitive, scholarly explanation of 9-11 as a world-changing event.

Customer Reviews:

There are better books on the subject.......2007-07-05

Although I support the 9/11 Truth movement, this book is not going help spread the word for two very important reasons: 1) The price is beyond ridiculous and 2) The scholarship is shoddy and unfocused. The book contained nothing that wasn't already more clearly presented in THE NEW PEARL HARBOR by Professor David Ray Griffin - a book less than one-sixth the price of HIDDEN HISTORY. However, if you want a thorough, up-to-date exploration of the arguments and counter-arguments for 9/11 being an inside job, I highly recommend Griffin's DEBUNKING 9/11 DEBUNKING. Others books of note include 9/11 AND AMERICAN EMPIRE: INTELLECTUALS SPEAK OUT, VOL. 1, which among other things contains a highly detailed scientific discussion of the controlled demolitions hypothesis by physics professor Steven Jones. For it's history of Western state-sponsored terrorism, I also recommend VOL 2 of the same series. And finally, you might also want to check out the latest version of the acclaimed documentary, LOOSE CHANGE: FINAL CUT, which is due out on 11 September 2007. The film makers have no doubt benefited from criticism surrounding the first two editions while including a wealth of new information.

JWK

More Indictments Against the Bush Treason.......2007-03-09

Strong words, indeed. But this collection of essays would make an excellent starting point for a truly unbiased congressional investigation that must inevitably lead to Bush being impeached, if not for his direct responsibility for the tragedy of 9-11, then at the very least for his cover-up and lying. Forget about the 9-11 Congressional report; as this book describes, the Commission was hand picked to ignore embarrassing details and minimize very suspicious behavior on the part of the CIA, FBI, White House and Pentagon. They succeeded in publishing a document that would make the Warren Commission Report look like the Gospel.
Some interesting details: 1) Ten of the 19 suicide "hijackers" identified by the FBI are, according to our good ally Saudi Arabia, alive and well in their native land, 2) Mohammed Atta, so-called Islamic fundamentalist, drank like a fish, partied like Hefner and had a stripper girlfriend, 3) World Trade Center tower 7, adjacent to the Twin towers, collapsed that same day, without being hit by a plane and despite the relatively minor fires that mysteriously broke out on its upper floors, 3) Eyewitnesses who were in the Towers prior to their collapse heard multiple internal explosions, 4) the Pentagon had Atta under surveillance before 9-11, 5) the Minneapolis branch of the FBI was denied authorization by the Washington HQ to hack into Zacarias Moussouai's laptop before 9-11, 6) a military exercise conducted that day simulated a hijacked plane being tracked by the Pentagon (a remarkable coincidence??) 7) Bush had plans on the board to attack Iraq in early 2001, 8) In the 1990s, Cheney and the neo-cons drew up a plan for US world domination that required a new "Pearl Harbor" in order to get ther American public to get on board the necessary imperialist wars, 9) the head of the Pakistani ISI (secret police) sent Atta $100,000 just before 9-11, 10) the CIA and Malaysian police monitored an Al-Qaeda meeting in Malaysia in 2000 where the 9-11 plot was discussed but claim they didn't eavesdrop so they had no clue about 9-11 (just how stupid do they think we are? Oops. We elected Bush twice. Guess they knew what they were doing.)
All in all, this scholarly condemnation of the massive fraud should be just the start of an unending series of indictments and prosecutions against this gang of traitors sqautting illegally in the White House, yet the media blackout of these revelations continues. Heck, even the families of the 9-11 dead don't buy this cacophony of lies that the American public has swallowed whole. They have a website where they have 400 questions the White House has refused to answer and that the 9-11 Commission refused to address. No wonder. Just a few of these would damn Bush as the greatest traitor in world history.

New 9/11 Research from Prestigious Scholarly Press.......2006-12-10

I am a professional medical librarian with 25 years experience and must point out that Elsevier Science Press, and other publishers in the same league, including Karger, Oxford University Press, Academic Press, and Wiley Interscience, are ALL expensive because 1) the peer-reviewed research work which advances new knowledge is costly, and 2) they are not mass market publications and must depend upon cost per volume, rather than volume of sales, to survive. As original contributions they are published in durable hardbacks for libraries. When demand warrants they are published as paperbacks, and then, being somewhat less costly, they achieve wider distribution.

As original contributions to human knowledge, these publications are invariably, routinely reviewed. Of particular note is the fact that this volume has NEVER BEEN REVIEWED IN THE US. To fill this gap, I have submitted a review of this compendium to at least a dozen newspapers, but without success. The continuing absence of a review is enormously significant with regard to the psychological denial of scientifically-based 9/11 research.

Here, therefore, is my review:

*****************

On September 11, 2001 at 5:20 pm, World Trade Center Building No. 7, a 47-storey steel structure one block from the Twin Towers, suddenly collapsed at freefall speed into its own footprint. It had not been hit by an airplane, and its collapse was not reported in the national news.

The implosion of WTC-7 is just one of a host of strangely unreported events which have finally seen the light of day in the impeccably researched Hidden History of September-11-2001, from Elsevier Science Press, the first prestigious academic publisher to question the extraordinary coincidences and pervasive incompetence which the U.S. government blamed for the success of the attacks.

Having named the hijackers the following day, the Bush administration fought against an investigation, and only struck a Commission of Inquiry 451 days later, under pressure from impacted families. However, Jay Kolar, an expert in film analysis, offers detailed proof that 11 of the 19 FBI-named hijackers could not have been on the aeroplanes, and that the Dulles airport surveillance video which identified the men was undated, and showed evidence of tampering--through multiple camera locations, times of day, splicing, and panning.

Citing the recently released "Oral Histories" from the New York Fire Department, Professor emeritus Dr. David Ray Griffin challenges the official conclusion that fire destroyed the buildings. Historically, no steel skyscraper has ever collapsed from fire, yet all three buildings showed 11 features unique to controlled demolitions: sudden onset, straight-down descent, freefall speed, sliced steel, pulverized concrete, dust clouds, horizontal ejections, demolition rings, audible explosions, molten steel, and total collapse.

Six military drills conducted the morning of 9/11, described by Four Arrows (aka Don Jacobs) of Northern Arizona University, were so similar to the actual attacks that they confounded the response effort and raised serious questions about possible complicity by the U.S. command. The Commission's report barely dealt with this extraordinary coincidence, raising questions as to who was in charge and why the drills were covered up.

Flawed processes in the Commission's inquiry are exposed by Bryan Sacks of Drexel University, Philadelphia. Executive Director Philip Zelikow, who was closely tied, personally and professionally, to the Bush White House, structured the investigation to allow a trusted group of insiders to intervene between the Commissioners and the sensitive information which might have brought closure to the issues.

Though materials supporting the official story were readily available, information contradicting it was withheld, omitted, or distorted. In short, the Commission failed to present a rigorous set of findings to lay dark questions to rest.

Statistical analysis of insider trading before the attacks is presented by Elsevier's Series editor Paul Zarembka, Economics Professor, State University of New York. Based on a study in the Journal of Business, he demonstrates unusual market activity against American and United Air Lines shortly before September 11, suggesting advance investor knowledge of the attacks.

In Part III, Nafeez Mossadeq Ahmed's "Terrorism as Statecraft: Al-Qaeda and Western Covert Operations After the Cold War" exposes U.S. and British involvements with the Afghan mujahideen after the Soviet Union collapse. These "Afghan Arabs" were used in covert operations throughout the 1990s, while American agencies supported, manipulated, and infiltrated the Taliban and mujahideen to gain access to oil and gas. Ahmed concludes that al-Qaeda has been gradually transformed into a complex, covert instrument of Western imperialism.

Supporting this claim is Canadian Diana Ralph's (Carleton University) "Islamophobia and the "War On Terror": The Continuing Pretext for U.S. Imperial Conquest". Ralph argues that the Cheney-led Project for the New American Century developed the image of the radical Muslim terrorist to foster "Islamophobia" as a basis to pursue its American imperialistic agenda abroad, while diluting constitutional rights at home.

Though these alarming claims run contrary to our perception of a free and open society, Canadian David McGregor (University of Western Ontario) illustrates, through the history of "Machiavellian State Terror", how rulers have historically perpetrated violations on their own states to advance the goals of the ruling elite. While an outside threat is fashioned to gain public support for aggression, a masked agenda unfolds. McGregor, like Eisenhower before him in 1961, stresses the urgency of vigilant surveillance of the military-industrial complex by an alert and informed citizenry.

If 9/11 was a false-flag operation, both US foreign policy and the domestic withdrawal of civil rights since that day have been based on a massive deception. It is now long overdue for a truly independent investigation to probe the realities of 9/11, and if necessary, to begin the process of reversing the appalling damage that has been done in the name of an outside attack upon the United States.

E. Woodworth
Victoria, Canada

5 Stars to Author, ZERO to Publisher.......2006-11-25

At 344 pages, I can produce this book in hardcover, with a color jacket and flags, for $3.44 a copy. Amazon pays publishers 40% of the retail price, so I propose to publish this book for $34.40, should the author desire to actually have people buy the book.

I regard this over-pricing as both unnecessary and unprofessional. It is certainly NOT going to increase the chances of this important knowledge actually reaching all those who might wish to avail themselves of an honestly-priced book.

This kind of pricing directly invites copyright violation by incentivizing the placement of a copy of the book on the Internet, anonymously, never to be eradicated.

I have reviewed most of the books on 9-11 and its aftermaths, and if you visit my lists, you can find over ten books and some DVDs there that can all be bought for the outrageous and completely unjustifiable cost of this book. As I write this, the Senate is hearing testimony on the thermite found in the rubble pile. The Senate will probably hush this up. The is ample evidence to suggest that Dick Cheney "let it happen" and that Larry Silverman, owner of the complex, was tipped off in time to implant controlled demolitions and take care of his "unaffordable" asbestor problem--receiving $7 billion in insurance [one wonder how much he kicked back to the insurance companies to avoid their serious investigation, and to Guliani for scooping and dumping to destroy the crime scene).

BUY THIS BOOK BEFORE THEY BAN IT...........2006-09-03

This is the most complete and scientific rebuttal to the government conspiracy theory that 'terrorist hijackers' destroyed the three WTC buildings and part of the Pentagon with paltry aircraft.

It contains irrefutable eye-witness accounts and scientific evidence of what REALLY happened on 9-11-2001.

Anyone who reads this book will know more than 75% of other citizens, because they will finally know the TRUTH.

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Terrorism and statistics

The Political Economy of Terrorism
Walter Enders , and Todd Sandler
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0521616506

Book Description

Presenting a widely accessible approach to the study of terrorism, this volume combines economic methods with political analysis and realities. It applies economic methodology--theoretical and empirical--with political analysis to the study of domestic and transnational terrorism, to provide a qualitative and quantitative investigation of terrorism in a balanced up-to-date presentation for students, policymakers, researchers, and the general reader. Included are historical aspects of the phenomenon, a discussion of watershed events, the rise of modern-day terrorism, examination of current trends, the dilemma of liberal democracies, evaluation of counterterrorism, and analysis of hostage incidents.

Download Description

The Political Economy of Terrorism presents a widely accessible approach to the study of terrorism that combines economic methods with political analysis and realities. It applies economic methodology - theoretical and empirical - with political analysis to the study of domestic and transnational terrorism. Included in the treatment are historical aspects of the phenomenon, a discussion of watershed events, the rise of modern-day terrorism, examination of current trends, the dilemma of liberal democracies, evaluation of counterterrorism, and analysis of hostage incidents. Rational-actor models of terrorist and government behavior and game-theoretic analysis are presented for readers with no prior theoretical training. Where relevant, the authors display graphs using the data set International Terrorism: Attributes of Terrorist Events (ITERATE), and other data sets.

Customer Reviews:

Terrorism and statistics.......2007-01-14

An interesting book in which the best aspects are the use of the theory of games and economic behavior to analyze the behavior of terorism. The tools used are powerful but the conclusions are insufficient.

The Rebordering of North America: Integration and Exclusion in a New Security Context

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The Rebordering of North America: Integration and Exclusion in a New Security Context
Peter Andreas
Manufacturer: Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0415944678

Book Description

The U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada borders are the two busiest land crossings in the world. Canada and the United States are each other's largest trading partners and Mexico is America's second largest trading partner with trade between the two nations more than tripling since the start of NAFTA. The many immediate ripple effects of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon included a dramatic tightening of North American border controls and a hardening of the policy discourse about cross-border flows. This is the first book that explores the implications of September 11th and the new war on terrorism for border controls, cross-border relations, and economic integration in North America. The volume makes a unique contribution to important scholarly and policy discussions over the meaning and management of borders in an increasingly borderless (regional and global) economy, and adds fuel to broader debates over the changing nature of borders and territorial politics in a radically transformed security environment.

Military Inc.: Inside Pakistan's Military Economy

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Daring but substantive
Dr. Farrukh Shamim
Mouth watering
Excellent Effort
Military Business Exposed

Military Inc.: Inside Pakistan's Military Economy
Ayesha Siddiqa
Manufacturer: Pluto Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0745325467

Customer Reviews:

Daring but substantive.......2007-06-20

Writing about the military in Pakistan can be risky business and the author of this book has shown tremendous courage in publishing this important work. However, the merit of this book is not because it is daring but rather because of the intellectual rigor and empirical detail provided. Unlike anti-establishment provocateurs who can often claim courage of conviction but not much else, Dr. Siddiqa has provided us with a well-substantiated account of financial hegemony in the military that deserves applause. While recognizing the vital importance of the military itself, the book unravels how essential security can be easily manipulated to accumulate wealth for a powerful elite.

The author starts with a structural premise that defines the phenomenon of "milbus" as "military capital used for the personal benefit of the military fraternity, especially the officer cadre, which is not recorded as part of the defence budget." She then goes on to situate this concept within the larger literature on the military industrial complex. Her lucid prose is also augmented by clear, tables, organizational charts, graphs and Venn diagrams. Her findings are staggering: for example, the amount of land owned by military officers through subsidized schemes amounts to $4.6 billion. The military pensions being offered are five times the amount for civilian officers. The role of the Fauji Foundation and other military organizations in running commercial enterprises that range from cereal manufacturing to running schools is astounding.

The usual argument given by proponents of milbus is that the military is the most disciplined organization and can do everything more efficiently. Yet, this logic is defied by most of the world's leading economic powers where development has occurred through private enterprise by educated and responsible citizens. Perhaps the author could have spent more time in evaluating these arguments. Nevertheless, given the range and scope of the matter at hand, Dr. Siddiqa has done a marvelous job with this manuscript. One can only hope the military will not feel threatened by this constructive criticism and use the the book as a means for initiating reform.

Dr. Farrukh Shamim.......2007-06-01

Every army in the world is different. The one we have sure knows who to do things. "INC" I dont know but for sure they are the strongest army in the muslim nation. With economy and resources like Pakistan they are still the best in Arab nation.
With saying that I strongly believe that there should be some "checks" on everyone Judiciary or Forces.. nobody is above the law.

Mouth watering.......2007-06-01

I haven't read this book as yet. What are the 5 stars for? They are for taking the initiative where none have. At a point in time where Pakistani civil society has started to assert itself, this book is another small step toward emancipating 160 million people from the military junta.

Excellent Effort.......2007-06-01

Hinderance in releasing this book in Pakistan is a clear indication of the authenticity of this book. Lessons to be learned.

Military Business Exposed.......2007-05-28

The book is not only first of its kind on the secrets of Military Economics in Pakistan, it also contains the lessons a nation should learn on the limits of military engagements in civil insitutions.

Well written, and a brave effort.

5 stars

Thank You, President Bush: Reflections on the War on Terror, Defense of the Family, and Revival of the Economy

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This is a parody, right?
He's a winner.
This book fits right into what I believe
Hello everyone, I'm your modern day liberal.
Atleast read the book before posting a review

Thank You, President Bush: Reflections on the War on Terror, Defense of the Family, and Revival of the Economy
Rod D. Martin , Jeb Bush , James Dobson , and Phyllis Schlafly
Manufacturer: World Ahead Publishing, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Godless: The Church of Liberalism

ASIN: 0974670111

Book Description

In time for the most critical election in years, Thank You, President Bush is a collection of essays reflecting on George W. Bushs first four years as president. Through observations from some of the nations leading thinkers, this readable anthology explores the administrations accomplishments and future agenda. Contributors include Gov. Jeb Bush and former Sec. of State George Shultz.

Customer Reviews:

This is a parody, right?.......2007-04-28

I picked up this book because I was sure it was a parody. Imagine my surprise to find that it was actually a collection of hagiographic (Bush supporters may want to look up this word)"essays" commending our divinely-appointed president for his "achievements" in major policy areas. When the reader discerns that the contributors include folks like "Jeb" Bush and James Dobson, and William "the Gambler" Bennett, it becomes immediately evident that objectivity was not a major concern here. What, no contribution from a friendly Saudi prince, thanking Mr. Bush for his unflagging support for one of the world's most oppressive dictatorships? Nothing from Harriet Miers lauding her boss's judicial appointments? My only regret here is that this book, published in 2004, could not include additional paeans of praise from those who survived the Bush administration's "response" to Hurricane Katrina, the Abu Ghraib prison atrocities and four years of determined efforts to "democratize" Iraq that have reduced that nation to a "state of nature" that would have alarmed Thomas Hobbes. Maybe the next edition could include a piece by Paul Wolfowitz praising Mr. Bush's foresight in turning the conduct of US foreign policy over to a small group of neoconservative radicals whose greatest consistency has been in being absolutely wrong about everything. Face it, Bushies, the historical verdict on Mr. Bush has already been written. He will have the dubious distinction of supplanting (that's a fancy way of saying replacing) the erstwhile James Buchanan as the absolute worst president in US history. Save your money and watch Fox "News" instead.

He's a winner........2006-09-12

GWB has won two wars and he's winning two more.

He won in Afganistan and Iraq and he's winnint the war against terror.

He's also winning the war against the American Left.

You can tell by the posts here that the Communists, Socialists and Liberals know that they are losing.

It's hard to understand why they din't know by now that most Aericans who hear them call us Nazis and Fascists know that they are just naming themselves.

Thank God for George W. Bush.

Thank God for the American military.

This book fits right into what I believe.......2006-03-05

that we should never, ever question our president in anything he does, and we should just accept what he does because he is the most smartest man in the world. If we question him, then we are traitors, giving aid and comfort to the enemy. So thank you, President Bush, for making it OK for people like me, who don't like to think for themselves, to feel like I fit into America.

Hello everyone, I'm your modern day liberal........2006-01-03

I just want all of you people that voted for Bush last year to know: You're all a bunch of uneducated, misinformed, boorish, slopeheaded, misogynistic neanderthals who live in trailer parks, beat your wives and eat boogers. BTW, vote for my candidate in '08 because I really care about you and know what's best for you, you old-person-starving, cram-your-fairytale-religion-down-my-throat, wedding-party-bomber-supporting cretins. And I say that in a loving way. Really I do.
Don't you know that people wanting to say prayer in school and put Ten Commandments monuments in courthouses are trying to institute a theocracy would cause Middle Eastern Sharia law to pale by comparison? How stupid can you be? Never mind the fact that we had those things for almost 200 years and were no closer to a theocracy in the 1960's than we were in 1776. That was the truth then. There is a different truth now. Look at me! I'm talking to you!
Those 45,000,000 parasitic cellular masses that have been vacuumed out of wombs since Roe v. Wade? Those weren't human lives, they were Choices. I mean, they might have grown up without Nikes and Xboxes, so it was really in their best interests. Better to deprive them of life than have them growing up in hardship. Don't even get me started on how giving birth to them might have prevented their moms from attending raves and yoga classes. Have to think about the mental health of the mother, ya know?
We're living in a fascist state under Chimpy McCokespoon Bu$hitler! Every time I go to the corner Starbuck's for a Double Decaf Half-Skim Latte, I've got black helicopters buzzing all around my head. My phone's a-clickin' and my email's analyzed and logged and there's a cop a-jumpin' outta every bush along my street. Why aren't you listening to me?
You people, excuse me, sheeple, who went out and spent all that money this Chistmas, I know you went deeply into debt for it with your credit cards. How do I know? Stop asking me that, you brain-dead dictator-loving Bushista robots (and I say that in a loving, progressive way)! We're in the Worst Economy Ever. I know because I read it at DU. What? Why yes, I have more disposable income this year than last, but I read the other day that someone lost their job, so that's proof positive, isn't it? Nobody ever lost their job when the Democrat Party was in control. DEMOCRATIC! I mean DEMOCRATIC! Geez, they've even got me using proper English now. What was I saying? Nevermind.
Just let me wrap this up now. What have I covered so far! Umm, let's see...voters dumb, theocracy coming, abortion good, economy bad, police state...oh yeah! How could I forget?!

BUSH IS HITLER! BUSH IS HITLER! BUSH IS HITLER!

Atleast read the book before posting a review.......2006-01-03

There are a number of reviews that have been posted here from a certain democratic site that had told it's members to write NEGATIVE reviews even though they have NOT read this book.

A System in Crisis: The Dynamics of Free Market Capitalism

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The challenge to U.S. hegemony

A System in Crisis: The Dynamics of Free Market Capitalism
James Petras , and Henry Veltmeyer
Manufacturer: Zed Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Economic History | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1842773658

Book Description

Mounting hostility to the hegemony of the United States; tumbling stock markets; environmental destruction; sluggish economic growth, unprecedented income inequality, and growing poverty: something fundamental is wrong, argue Petras and Veltmayer. They assert that globalization is a mere euphemism for capitalism in its current global, imperialist projection. They show how resistance to capitalist globalization is being organized among very diverse social sectors, from rural peasants to the middle class in wealthy countries of the North. They conclude their analysis by assessing the possibilities for unifying the diverse forces of opposition to neoliberalism, capitalism and imperialism and the prospects for an alternative socialist form of development.

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The challenge to U.S. hegemony.......2004-05-15

"System in Crisis: The Dynamics of Free Market Capitalism" by James Petras and Henry Veltmeyer offers an intelligent and scathing critique of the capitalist state system and an extensive analysis of the myriad grassroots movements that oppose it. The authors posit that the Bush administration has resorted to imperialism as a means of reasserting U.S. control over the world economic system. But by detailing the social, economic and environmental problems that continue to challenge U.S. hegemony, Petras and Veltmeyer believe that U.S. imperialism may be unwittingly accelerating the collapse of capitalism and creating the conditions for a socialist alternative to emerge.

James Petras is a Professor at the State Univesity of New York and Henry Veltmeyer is a Professor at Sanit Mary's University. The collaboration works well in this book. It appears that Dr. Veltmeyer's presence may serve to take some of the sting out of Dr. Petras who is a well-known and prolific writer of sometimes blistering socio-political essays. However, the end result is a no less powerful and intriguing book that is at turns analytical, historical, passionate and persuasive.

The authors begin by challenging postmodern theories about the 'smooth space' of capitalism made popular in the book "Empire" by Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri by explaining how the war against terrorism has been used by President Bush to advanced U.S. interests in contested places around the world. But while the open-ended war against terror has been successful in transferring wealth to corporations and the wealthy and has served to intimidate many dissenters, the authors believe that the deficits associated with war combined with the ongoing decline in domestic manufacturing industries suggests that imperialism alone will not restore the U.S. to international preeminence.

We learn that the brand of neoliberalism championed by the U.S., Europe and Israel has caused political and economic instability in dozens of countries, especially in Central and South America. For example, one chapter in the book is dedicated to the massive worker and peasant mobilizations in Argentina that have sought to restore economic and social justice in the wake of that country's dramatic economic collapse. The authors go on to describe how the U.S. has returned to such Cold War shenanigans as military coups, economic blackmail, covert military actions and other tactics in order to repress similar popular uprisings in places such as Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Venzuela. The authors contend that these efforts have pushed most world governments to the political Right even as economic deprivation pushes many of their citizens to the Left, thereby "setting the stage for a classic confrontation between dictatorial reaction and revolution".

Other chapters are dedicated to the collapse of the cod industry in the Northern Atlantic, the uprisings of indigenous peoples in Ecuador and Mexico, the struggles of Latin American peasants against the state, the anti-globalization movement, and more. The authors convincingly argue that the state's defense of capital is central to class struggle but that popular "direct and collective action" can empower the people to create better lives for themselves. On the other hand, the authors admit that part of the challenge for the Left is to unite these diverse movements in a way that provides a credible socialist challenge to capitalism.

Book Description

Extremists are people whose ideas or tactics are viewed as outside the mainstream. Looked at this way, extremists are not necessarily twisted or evil. But they can be, especially when they are intolerant and violent. What makes extremists turn violent? This book assumes that extremists are rational: given their ends, they choose the best means to achieve them. The analysis explains why extremist leaders use the tactics they do, and why they are often insensitive to punishment and to loss of life. It also explains how rational people can be motivated to die for the cause. The book covers different aspects of extremism such as revolution, suicide terrorism, and global jihad. The arguments are illustrated with important episodes of extremism, including the French Revolution, the rise of nationalism in Yugoslavia under Milosevic, and the emergence of suicide terror and Al Qaeda today.

Behavioral and Quantitative Perspectives on Terrorism (Pollution and Water Resources, Columbia University Seminar S)

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Behavioral and Quantitative Perspectives on Terrorism (Pollution and Water Resources, Columbia University Seminar S)

Manufacturer: Pergamon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Violence in Society | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Terrorism | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0080259898

The Works And Correspondence Of David Ricardo: Notes On Malthus, Principles of Political Economy

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The Works And Correspondence Of David Ricardo: Notes On Malthus, Principles of Political Economy

Manufacturer: Liberty Fund
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Principles of Political Economy (Great Mind)

ASIN: 0865979669

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