For Y!A Politics contributors: What book(s) are you reading right now?

Question

I would like to think that the Politics section of Y!A is made up of readers, so I would like to know what everyone is reading right now. I'm currently reading the book "Germany: A New History" by Hagen Schulze.

Answer 1

Betrayal of the American Right by Murray N. Rothbard

This book, which was written in the 70s, and only recently published, details the forgotten history of the right-wing during the 30s and 40s (It details how they were far more consistent in supporting free markets, how they wanted to repeal the New Deal, IRS, Federal Reserve, and some even wanted to repeal the Judiciary Act of 1789 and the Constitution and reinstate the Articles of Confederation, and how they were far more anti-war than even the most anti-war of Democrats today). It also covers how National Review, which was founded with money from the CIA, hijacked the right and turned it into the warmongering right-wing that only supports free markets in rhetoric that we know today.

This book contrasts heavily with other books, which credit the Neo-Cons (a group of Wilson-FDR-LBJ Democrats and Trotskyite Conmmunists that switched parties in the 60s) as having hijacked the right.

Some of the events in this book which were most interesting were a speech by Joseph Kennedy (father of JFK and an ultra-right-wing Isolationist) in the 50s in which he argued against the Cold War and was absolutely correct on all points (for example, he said that Communism was eventually just going to fall because it wasn't a sustainable system, which was proven correct in 1989). There was also a very interesting section on the buildup to WWII (of course, FDR instigated Pearl Harbor through economic warfare against the "Axis") in which it talks about how Charles Lindbergh (the famous airplane pilot) made the mistake of referring by name to the Jewish lobby (which has long been a warmongering group, but of course that isn't something you should say publicly as this lobby paints anybody who opposes their war as an "anti-semite," besides engaging in denial of the Armenian Genocide). Lindbergh later became a target of defamation.

This book has many parallels to today's political situation and shows how the advocates of war have always made the same bad arguments and the anti-war movements have always been the subject of their personal attacks.

Answer 2

I'm currently reading Amerikanen,a Belgian book in Dutch about Americans by two Flemish journalists who spent some years in the States.

I'm mostly interested to see if these people who for most Belgians represent and explain American issue's have real insight.It's more about evaluating Flemish foreign news than Americans.I think I have better sources to do that.
If that would be the case I would assume the same is true for the news I hear about other issue's like Russia and I might try to find alternatives for Belgian Media there too

Answer 3

Ah, maybe this is how the HSA is getting this info....

Just kidding -

I'm reading a few books on coaching soccer, and I always keep a copy of Sun Tzu's "The Art of War" handy. Pre-season I read Liddel-Hart's "Strategy" as well as portions of Guderian's "Achtung Panzer" and Rommel's "Infantry Attacks."

It's all about soccer.

Summers I read Hemingway, Edith Wharton, Faulkner, other American classics. Two summers ago I read Camus, I thought it was babyish, that whole French existentialism movement is babyish - maybe if they'd read Guderian and realized what was going to hit them they would have been better prepared and they wouldn't have been so defeatist ever since.... "We lost, and we must be the good guys, so there is no justice, we all go to Hell, I don't even know if the real world exists but if it does, it's all a set-up...." blah, blah, blah no wonder Democrats think they're so smart....

I also like to read about classical military battles, particularly the strategic elements so I can apply it to soccer. Also Greek classics, but it's all so pedantic and provincial even though they're trying to be worldly, or other-worldly - I mean really, you can sum up Euripides in two words: "Sparta sucks."

Also I like to watch the occasional DVD - I still think I'm the only one who figured out that Mulholland Drive is the Jesus/Judas story and its broader theological implications.

Answer 4

Right now I'm drowning in textbooks, so I'm reading some fiction for downtime from overworked brain cells. That would be "Lisey's Story" by Stephen King. I have a stack of political books I intend to get to, but for right now reading some light fiction is like a vacation every night.

Answer 5

State of Denial: Bush at war, Part III

by Bob Woodward

The first 50 pages or so are an awesome introduction into the psychology of and adult preparation of Bush, as well as a close look at Rumsfeld. This really helps to understand why his administration became so dysfunctional. It's hard to recall now just how green Bush was in 2000 and truly ignorant in foreign affairs.

Getting a bit bogged down in the minutiae now as the book progresses.

Answer 6

When I have free time, I read through Robert Greene's The 48 Laws of Power. It's similiar to Macchiavelli's "The Prince" but written primarily for the masses. It shows not only how to seek and retain power but how to defend against it as well.

For the meantime, I'm stuck with reading and analyzing Brothers Grimm fairy tales for an English class. *snooze*

Answer 7

I am currently re-reading sections of "Points of View", an older polisci textbook of mine, and "Freedom Under Seige" by Ron Paul. I just finished "What's the Matter With Kansas" by Thomas Frank (again).

Answer 8

Just finished - War on the Middle Class by Lou Dobbs. An excellent book. I am about to start State of Emergency by Pat Buchanan.

Answer 9

Just finished Gulag Archipelago.
Quite a sobering read.

Answer 10

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser.