The 9/11 Report: The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States Review

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The 9/11 Report: The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States ReviewYou might be wondering what this printing of the book includes versus the others, so I've decided to make up a little grocery list.
1. This book isn't "authorized". That doesn't mean anything to me, but it might to you.
2. This book is cheaper than the authorized paperback version by a few dollars (at MSRP at least).
3. The book is physically smaller.
4. The book includes about 70 pages of reporting and analysis by the New York Times, which the authorized version DOES NOT have.
5. The book DOES NOT include the endnotes, whereas the authorized edition does. However, the superscript endnote references are still included in the text, and correspond to the endnotes section available on-line on the 9/11 Commission website.
6. This version includes the Executive Summary. I am not certain whether the authorized edition includes this or not, but I believe not.
You should be aware before buying either version of this report that the entire authorized edition of the text (including the executive summary and endnotes) is available for FREE on-line at the website for the 9/11 Commission. The only thing in this text that is not available on-line is the 70 pages of New York Times articles, which are (as far as I know) only available in this edition of the book.
The report is generally very interesting to read. It's not as boring as you might be expecting it to be. Any American concerned at all with his government and the fate of his country would do well to read this.The 9/11 Report: The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States Overview

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The Flight of the Creative Class: The New Global Competition for Talent Review

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The Flight of the Creative Class: The New Global Competition for Talent ReviewRF has written an excellent followup to his first book. His concept that the U.S. is suffering a "brain drain" has been discussed pretty thoroughly by other reviewers, so I won't rehash it, other than to say that I think he's right on the button. The title, in fact, reflects only part of the story: what I found most stimulating about the book is his suggestions for the future.
I think that his recommendations about education are excellent. He does NOT say that a college education is a necessary prerequisite for prosperity; rather, he points out that the present U.S. educational system doesn't foster (and indeed squelches) the creativity, flexibility, and initiative that students need to succeed in today's volatile economy. While training a nation of workplace drones and mindless consumers might have been expedient in the age of large factories, it's counterproductive today and represents an immense waste of human abilities, especially if we're losing the influx of immigrant talent and ambition that has fueled our economy up to now. (Current educational reforms, e.g., No Student Left Behind, are a step backwards in their focus on rote memorization and standardized tests; the aim appears to be to create easily measurable results to make a political point.)
It's noteworthy that RF doesn't take sides politically: while he bewails the political climate that has led to the "flight of the creative class," he also deplores the increased polarization of the major parties, which has more to do with Washington power politics than with voters' actual beliefs. (He's right about that: it's a pity that the "purple America" map from the 2004 election reproduced so poorly in the book, because it makes the important point that we're not nearly as divided a nation as we're made out to be.) He faults the Republicans for being wedded to old-money industries such as oil, but faults the Democrats equally for buying into the nineteenth-century business model by catering to unions. And both parties have failed equally in recognizing what truly drives the U.S. economy (hint to some previous reviewers: it's not just money).
As for the commonly expressed criticism that RF is glorifying an effete, self-centered "creative class" while ignoring the unwashed masses, do the math: these people prospered economically not because they inherited money, but because they WORKED FOR IT. Regional success stories such as Silicon Valley and Seattle were built, not by trust-fund babies (or, for that matter, on Enron-style accounting), but by people who committed themselves passionately to a project, took financial risks, and worked long hours. His suggestions in the later sections of the book have to do, not with keeping the "creative class" exclusive, but with improving both the work environment and the educational system so that the rest of society can draw upon their own creativity to achieve the same personal and financial success.The Flight of the Creative Class: The New Global Competition for Talent Overview

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Europe's Promise: Why the European Way Is the Best Hope in an Insecure Age Review

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Europe's Promise: Why the European Way Is the Best Hope in an Insecure Age ReviewAs we watch the Obama adminstration having such a hard time reforming the broken health care system in the US, and with our unemployment more than twice what it was in 2008 (and yes, even higher now than in "old Europe"), it was refreshing to read about Europe, where people actually have health care. And a lot more too, as I learned by reading this wonderful book. I had heard previously about how much support families and workers have in Europe, but I had no idea about the full extent of it -- more generous retirement pension, affordable housing, paid leave after having a child, child care, more vacations and holidays and much more. Some countries even give you money right before you go on vacation! Incredible. Talk about "family values": Europe does far more to support their families than the US ever thought of doing.
As the book points out, the US has nearly 14 percent of Americans in poverty (compared to 6% in France and 5% or less in Germany, Belgium and Sweden), 20% child poverty and 23% elderly poverty (the highest in the developed western world except Russia and Mexico). I can't believe we Americans are so ignorant about the rest of the world, and how much we have fallen behind a place like Europe. And yet, as the book shows, several of the "myths" we learn about Europe as conventional wisdom are untrue. Their businesses are profitable and competitive, they have more Fortune 500 companies than the US and China COMBINED. But they also have more small businesses than the US that create 2/3 of the jobs there, while small businesses in US only create about half the jobs in our country. Overturning the stereotypes, that's what this book does. It really opened my eyes.
Europe's economy is at least as strong as "let's cause a global collapse" America's economy, and yet it also is better at distributing that wealth to its people. The author, Steven Hill, calls that "social capitalism" as opposed to US-style "Wall Street capitalism". And they also have figured out how to do that in a more environmentally sustainable way. Europe's "economic footprint" is HALF that of the US, their carbon emissions is HALF that of the US, and their energy use is HALF that of the US -- even though they have a standard of living that is at least as good as ours, and in many ways better.
I don't know how long my fellow Americans are going to keep our collective heads in the sand. It's clear that one of the negative reviewers here, Rene Gerald, hasn't even bothered to actually read the book. He talks about Europe's problems of immigration and declining population (though that's only occuring in a few countries), but Europe's Promise addresses both of those head on over the course of three different chapters. Certainly Europe has some challenges to meet there, but after reading Steven Hill's discussion of those problems, and getting more of the bigger picture, it seems to me that Europe is dealing with them. Though obviously time will tell how all those pressures play out. But the US is certainly no country to be lecturing others about immigration!
In short, I highly recommend this book. It really opened my eyes to both a truer picture of Europe, getting past the myths and stereotypes, as well as a truer picture of my own country, the United States of America, and its relative standing in the world. And it gave me hope that there is an example that we in the US could learn about how a modern society can develop, and take care of its people, and do all that in as environmentally sustainable a way as possible.Europe's Promise: Why the European Way Is the Best Hope in an Insecure Age Overview

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Shock of Gray: The Aging of the World's Population and How it Pits Young Against Old, Child Against Parent, Worker Against Boss, Company Against Rival, and Nation Against Nation Review

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Shock of Gray: The Aging of the World's Population and How it Pits Young Against Old, Child Against Parent, Worker Against Boss, Company Against Rival, and Nation Against Nation ReviewThe book does not present a lot that is new unless you are new to the subject. I thought to myself as I read that it was a Cliff's notes version of year's worth university study in gerontology. The book is good for a beginner, or as a refresher, but does not have a lot to offer to someone already familiar with the discipline.
The book is strongest in its examination of the economics and sociology of an aging world population. It looks at Spain and Japan, because the problems of an aging population have already arrived there. The problems in those country foreshadow our own. Fishman looks at China because that country is a powerful economic engine, and looks at the United States because we live here.
The discussion of the physiology of aging is shorter but interesting. The chart of normal physical decline by decade accurately summarizes current thought and makes for entertaining reading. No discussion of the physical side of aging is complete without looking at what lets us live longer. The book delivers again the message that most of the decisions which determine how long we live are made at the societal level (pure water, uncontaminated food, decent sewers, and literacy). Some were made by our parents, but for those of us who don't smoke or go to war, there isn't much we can, as individuals, do about our longevity.
Fishman writes well about the social and economic aspects of aging. I think he gave the short end of the stick to the psychological aspects. He talks a lot about dementia and loss of cognitive capacity, but doesn't address any of the theories of adult development. He talks about the physical declines we see in our thirties, forties, fifties, but does not talk about the psychological responses and defenses that we use to adapt to the physical decline. I think that the book would have been better with more discussion of current thought in that area.
Fishman is a reporter, not an academic. Attempting to make the facts and statistics palatable he uses case studies--beginning with a person, or a family, or country--thereafter expanding from the specific to the general. After a few chapters of that, I found the technique tedious. I didn't want to meet another fascinating elder, or interesting town, or developing country. I wanted to get to the facts and figures.
I was generally pleased with the book. The subtitle is inflammatory--to sell books I suppose--but the text is not. We are facing problems as our population ages, but they are problems that arise from our self-interested decisions to quit living in poverty and seek fulfilling lives. The problems will require solutions that will change the societies we live in, but in many respects those changes will be for the better.Shock of Gray: The Aging of the World's Population and How it Pits Young Against Old, Child Against Parent, Worker Against Boss, Company Against Rival, and Nation Against Nation Overview

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America for Sale: Fighting the New World Order, Surviving a Global Depression, and Preserving USA Sovereignty Review

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America for Sale: Fighting the New World Order, Surviving a Global Depression, and Preserving USA Sovereignty ReviewThis book is packed full of solid research. It's timely. It's tragic. Yes, the nation has problems...plenty of them...which will not be easily resolved but the book is somewhat a victim of its own success. Unlike most books that harp endlessly on one or two main points, this book is packed full of hard=hitting statistics, examples, historical and future trends. Page after page is packed solid...the author did an excellent job keeping it readable so you won't get bored nor overwhelmed. It doesn't insult the intelligence of the reader nor does it cater to "entry level" only...good blend of valuable information, solid research and a somewhat wide/expansive coverage.
Likewise, Crosi does a good job "bashing" both left and right equally so those inclined toward one view or another will either not be insulted or will find themselves equally insulted depending upon how personally they take criticism of each party. I'm not a "conspiracy theorist" and tend to avoid authors that lean in that direction however, unlike many authors that rely upon 'hype', Corsi presents an abundance of information to support his premise and position. Whether one agrees with the conclusions is entirely optional - the information itself is what makes this book well worth the time and effort to read.
Equally optional is the suggested means of protecting both self and nation...depending upon your personal situation, politics and other beliefs you may agree or disagree. Most is solid advice that would do little harm and has the potential to help the average citizen much more than most suggestions.
Bottom line...excellent research, extensive footnotes/references, minimal hype/hysteria enjoyable to read whether you "buy into" conspiracy theories or not.America for Sale: Fighting the New World Order, Surviving a Global Depression, and Preserving USA Sovereignty Overview

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The Declining World Order: America's Imperial Geopolitics (Global Horizons) Review

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The Declining World Order: America's Imperial Geopolitics (Global Horizons) ReviewThere is a movement among reviewers on Amazon to give one-star reviews to any book that dares to criticize Israel or veers slightly from the official American position on its policies. Sometimes the reviewer seems to not even have read the book, they just "know" that the book is somehow "pro-Palestinian" and therefore the entire book is invalidated. This is an excellent, fair and insightful book with a wealth of opinions on many issues by a respected figure, and should not be so easily dismissed because of the reviewer's views on Israel.The Declining World Order: America's Imperial Geopolitics (Global Horizons) Overview

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