AllenSmithee
Stripling
Compulsive Pedant
dead men don't have dog days
Posts: 92
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Books.
Aug 2, 2011 2:48:10 GMT -5
Post by AllenSmithee on Aug 2, 2011 2:48:10 GMT -5
I mostly read comic books -- I don't have the attention span or peace and quiet to read text-based books.
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Books.
Aug 2, 2011 3:50:48 GMT -5
Post by Justin on Aug 2, 2011 3:50:48 GMT -5
I've been all over Streets of Gotham lately. Too bad that series is ending with the big "back to one" thing DC has planed.
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Books.
Aug 2, 2011 3:59:24 GMT -5
Post by runinruder on Aug 2, 2011 3:59:24 GMT -5
I'm with Count of Montecristo right now, again, one of those books i left halfway and never came back...until now. That's one of my favorite books. It definitely isn't the deepest thing in the world, but it's hard for me to envision a revenge-based page-turner cleverer or more exciting than Monte Cristo, and the underlying message really does shine through in the end. Whenever I sit down with it, the 1100 or so pages just fly by. Dantes is a super-cool protagonist, and it's interesting how the text is almost all dialogue-based, but Dumas opportunely found spots to slip in some great descriptive writing. I also like Three Musketeers and Man in the Iron Mask, but not nearly as much as I like Count.
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Books.
Aug 3, 2011 2:01:46 GMT -5
Post by feilong80 on Aug 3, 2011 2:01:46 GMT -5
Some thoughts on Roots Of Obama's Rage, so far:
The first few chapters sees Dinesh trying to make the case that anti-colonialism, as transmitted through Obama's absent father, is the dominant force in his political ideology, instead of straight dope socialism or the left wing style "civil rights" movement under the Jesse Jackson/Sharpton mold.
The latter is where he makes his most hay, as Obama has indeed been at times distant with that particular political community; and the feeling has been mutual (see: Jackson's critiques of Obama during the 2008 campaign, and even Bill Clinton's).
Still, I'm hoping that Dinesh makes a case for the following question I have in my mind: If anti-colonialism is the main driving force, why should we care? Especially if the policy decisions are just coming from the left anyway? This book may end up being a case of Dinesh being too clever by half (which is probably true about another one of this political tomes from recent years, "The Enemy at Home.").
If it is indeed a case of just being too clever, I hope to at least learn a little bit more about anti-colonial sentiment and its main practitioners, so I guess that would be a plus.
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Books.
Aug 7, 2011 12:40:34 GMT -5
Post by ECM on Aug 7, 2011 12:40:34 GMT -5
Done and dusted: Ground Zero and Fatal Error, both fiction but both by F. Paul Wilson so they get a pass. The Tyranny of Guilt which is an absolute must-read for, well, pretty much everyone. (But especially those of you that think Western civ isn't worth fighting for, tooth and nail.)
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Books.
Aug 15, 2011 18:01:07 GMT -5
Post by Justin on Aug 15, 2011 18:01:07 GMT -5
ToG looks pretty cool. I threw it in my cart.
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Aug 20, 2011 13:36:28 GMT -5
Post by ECM on Aug 20, 2011 13:36:28 GMT -5
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Books.
Aug 20, 2011 15:20:09 GMT -5
Post by elchevalier on Aug 20, 2011 15:20:09 GMT -5
I have a bunch of history books in my house waiting for me to be read, everything from ancient egypt to medieval times and the renassaince.
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Books.
Aug 30, 2011 19:00:17 GMT -5
Post by ECM on Aug 30, 2011 19:00:17 GMT -5
Latest: After America: Mark Steyn's latest and, as you might expect, it's fantastic...and disheartening. 1491: this is an interesting book that kinda takes a completely new look at how the Americas were before the arrival of Europe, though I have to admit a lot of it seems a bit 'out there', at least in regards to what previous scholarship would have you believe. Still, interesting if nothing else. Books of Blood 1-3: re-reading the series after having not looked at them in ~20 years. (Man, I feel KoG, err, old.) The Tipping Point: yes, just now getting around to this and my primary observation is that it's more entertaining than it is, in any way, useful. It kinda reminds me of the non-science (read nonsense) used in books like Freakonomics (also entertaining and also almost totally bereft of anything anyone could reasonably describe as academically rigorous).
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Books.
Aug 31, 2011 13:15:43 GMT -5
Post by Justin on Aug 31, 2011 13:15:43 GMT -5
Malcolm Gladwell writes some cool stuff. I have "What the Dog Saw" sitting here in my pile. I just finished blowing through Leadership Made Simple and Sun Tsu's The Art of War. The Leadership book serves as a great reference tool for conflict resolution and how to kick start a project with the right questions. I'd pick it up if you were in a leadership type position and wanted a quick read to see if you were on track. The Art of War was just plain awesome. You can blow through it sitting on the john after plowing through a hefty plate of Mexican food. The version I picked up is pretty accurate, short of footnotes (this is a personal preference. If you need to write more than 3 on a page, you should rethink your writing strategy on reaching the reader) and includes short summaries on each part. The 13 parts are really fun to read, especially when enticed by stories of beheaded maidens used to motivate command structure, philosophies of defense/offense strategy, the use of spies and (this is the most important and relevant part) how to psychologically destroy your opponent without lifting a sword. It is a penny on Amazon, so be sure to throw it in your cart with a slew of other purchases. Up next: The Prince, Computer Security: Principals and Practices and Modern Operating Systems. <--- Written by Andrew S. Tanenbaum otherwise known as the author of MINIX /nerd.
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Aug 31, 2011 13:22:31 GMT -5
Post by ECM on Aug 31, 2011 13:22:31 GMT -5
I've read The Art of War at least four times and love it every time.
THe Prince is good, too, if you have plans for world domination.
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Books.
Sept 10, 2011 2:33:16 GMT -5
Post by elchevalier on Sept 10, 2011 2:33:16 GMT -5
So, i've never read Harlan Ellison, i've seen stuff based on his work in movies and tv. I know the guy is a massive egomaniac and what not, but his books seem to be regarded pretty highly regarding science fiction.
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Books.
Sept 10, 2011 2:35:29 GMT -5
Post by ECM on Sept 10, 2011 2:35:29 GMT -5
Yeah, I'd recommend Ellison--ego or not, he writes good sci-fi.
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Sept 17, 2011 19:06:20 GMT -5
Post by ECM on Sept 17, 2011 19:06:20 GMT -5
This week(s) we have (had): * Asolutely Elementary Mathematics: this sorta defies description (and if I did describe it, there's no chance you'd read it), but please do take a look if you have even the tiniest, not crushed by grade school math, interest left on the topic. * Books of Blood 4-6: as noted above about 1-3. And...that's it!
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Books.
Sept 17, 2011 22:18:33 GMT -5
Post by elchevalier on Sept 17, 2011 22:18:33 GMT -5
A teacher in high school used to say i had arithmofobia. Which is fear of numbers.
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