The Rebellion Within

In The Rebellion Within (published in the June 2, 2008 issue of The New Yorker), Lawrence Wright describes the known life of Sayyed Imam Al-Sharif-known in some circles of the extremely secretive jihadist underground as Dr. Fadl.

Fadl, an extremely gifted Islamic scholar, met Ayman al-Zawahiri in 1977 while both were attending medical school in Cairo. Within a decade he found himself at the ground floor of the Jihad movement. As a matter of fact, he literally wrote the book on the subject.

Two of Fadl's texts, The Essential Guide for Preparation and The Compendium of the Pursuit of Divine Knowledge, became (and probably remain) cornerstones of the training and indoctrination of Al Qaeda recruits in the power vacuum of post-Soviet Afghanistan.

Much happened in the following decade. On the sprawling list of Topics Most Americans Ought to Familiarize Themselves With, 1990s-era Afghanistan is certainly near the top. The meteoric rise of the Taliban and the fast polarization of Islamic politics, I should not need to remind you, remain era-defining issues.

But there are lengthy books for that, written by people with so much storytelling ability that I, in comparison, look like a kid scribbling with crayons. I recommend going all-out with Steve Coll's excellent Ghost Wars.

Anyway, here's how Fadl ended up: In October 2001-seven years after he cut ties with his extremist past and took up supposedly earnest work as a surgeon-was arrested by Yemeni secret police and thrown into an Egyptian prison with a life sentence. Since then, he's mellowed out, renounced violence and become a vocal opponent of Al Qaeda.

If you've got an hour to kill, it's a great read.

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The Love - Hate Relationship in American Politics - A Book Review

They say you should not talk about religion or politics in mixed company, and yet, that's exactly what people want to talk about. Especially politics, and everyone has an opinion, and they are dying to tell you, and explain why. And if you disagree, well God help you, because they are going to convince you otherwise if it takes them all night. It seems that Americans have a love-hate relationship with politics, on one hand they just can't get enough of it, on another hand they feel repulsed by it.

If you'd like to talk more about this philosophical debate, then I have a very good book for you to read. Not only is it interesting, but it will very much make you think. I keep a copy in my personal library; the name of the book is;

"Why Americans Hate Politics" by EJ Dionne Junior, 1991

Divide and conquer is the name of the game, but this author explains how political parties hurt Americans, and he gives an interpretive history of 30 years of politics from 1960 to 1990, it's quite good indeed. He explains all the differences between; neo conservatism, liberals, socialists, reformers, libertarians, leftists, and even communists. He explains McGovern and the modern Republicans.

This book is broken into parts and in Part One; "the failures of liberalism" and the new left he goes into great detail. He explains Reagan's issues and concerns about over regulation and he goes into great details about the divides that we have placed in our society and civilization such as; blacks and whites, family politics, and feminism.

If you are a liberal he won't let you off the hook, neither will he back off from the conservatism contradictions or the religious right and how Christianity was hijacked by the Republicans. He also explains how politics and economics go hand-in-hand, and there is a chapter on supply-side economics.

The chapter I enjoyed the most was the one about "the logic of false choices and the lesser of two evils." He explains how all these factors led to voter revolts and lower turnouts, as he shows us that people are tired of politics, and they no longer trust the system, which is a scary thought in and of itself. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this.

Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank. Lance Winslow believes politics are problematic. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lance_Winslow http://www.pippoproducts.com/products4.html

Dumbocracy - Adventures With the Loony Left, The Rabid Right and Other American Idiots

Dumbocracy: Adventures with the Loony Left, the Rabid Right, and Other American Idiots
, Marty Beckerman, 2008, ISBN 9781934708064

The author spent four years visiting with political extremists on both sides of the spectrum. These are people who believe in nothing less than total victory for their side. Most Americans are moderates on the issues, but, for instance, pro-life and anti-war activists still see things as very black and white.

Beckerman discovered a lot of interesting things in his travels. Betty Friedan, founder of the National Organization for Women, compared American housewives to the millions who walked to their own death in the concentration camps. Those on the Right blame homosexuality for the destruction of American society, but just over half of Americans think of homosexuality as an acceptable life-style. Texas A&M University requires that all faculty members celebrate and promote homosexuality.

It would be a much better country if women did not vote. That is simply a fact.--Ann Coulter. The American Institute for Philanthropy has ranked MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) as one of the most corrupt and least effective charities in the country. In 2006, the California Supreme Court allowed authorities to break into citizens' homes anytime--without a warrant--to check their blood alcohol levels. A legislator in Missouri compared biology teachers to terrorists, for teaching evolution. Environmental activists have demanded control over citizens' home thermostats, threatened to spy on those who do not recycle and suggested that governments should intelligently reduce human populations to one-sixth their present number.

In 2006, the Bush Administration joined with Iran to ban a gay-rights group from addressing the United Nations. In 2004, Canada officially banned criticism of homosexuality, which is now punishable by up to five years in prison. Also in 2006, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that forcing drug suspects to consume laxatives, in order to find drugs in their digestive tracts, is not an unreasonable search. In the 1990's, a Republican member of Congress proposed mandating the death penalty for all drug dealers. When his son was convicted of growing thirty marijuana plants, he received community service, not a lethal injection. Neither side has a monopoly on hatred of free speech.

This is the sort of book that will be thrown across the room by True Believers on both sides (sometimes those are the best kind of books). For everyone else, it is an excellent, and eye opening, look at the state of politics in America. It is very much worth reading.

Paul Lappen is a freelance book reviewer whose website, http://www.deadtreesreview.com, has over 700 reviews on all subjects, with an emphasis on small press books. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paul_Lappen http://www.pippoproducts.com/products4.html

Rewriting History - A Review of the Book

The book Rewriting Historyby Dick Morris tells of the semi-shocking tale on who the real Hillary Rodham Clinton is. The former first lady is described by Morris as someone who shows only a certain part of her face or persona to attract voters, not only during the time prior to her candidacy for the senate seat but a long time before that.

The dismaying thing is the question raised if the former first lady is really a devoted public servant or is just somebody who rides the tides and goes where the demographics lead her like for example, she ran for Senator in a state where the minority population is strong and this population likely to vote for a democrat.

It must have been devastating for many women out there who idolized or respected Mrs. Clinton and read the said book, I myself was devastated a little because I have always believed in her compassion and her utter belief in an ideal model for her programs i.e. the health care fiasco. The health care policy she stubbornly believed in is one of her downfalls in politics but one should see that it is her belief in something ideal is genuine enough to drive her to do what she did. I respect that quality in her, a character not quite discussed in the book, something we always overlook. That however is also one of her biggest character flaw because if it is coupled with her naivete or her being easily swayed, this is rather dangerous. These are of course discussed in length in the book.

I have read the book from front to back even the indexes that is how engrossing it is. Apart from that history buffs would love the book as well, maybe more than I do.

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What is Libertarianism? A Book Review

All of us in the United States have friends that are libertarians. After all, it appears that nearly 10 to 20% of our population during any given election call themselves libertarians. And this group of individuals often is the deciding factor in elections because they become the swing voters. But, if you are wondering what it is to be a libertarian, then I have a very good book that I like to recommend to you. The name of the book is;

"Libertarianism in One Lesson" by David Berglund, 1977

There was a book on Libertarianism which was translated in Polish and it caused a revolution in 1988 and 1989. 1990 communism was ousted in socialist nations collapsed due to the thought that "you own yourself." Libertarians believe; "No one has the right to force you to do what is not in your best interests," each person owns themselves - you cannot force others to do what is against their best interests. However, you must take responsibility for yourself.

There is a chapter on cooperation versus force in the book that is quite good. The book made me think about the possibility that perhaps, government could work as conglomerate franchised module in the service business for things like trash, power, enforcement, military, and dog catchers. I definitely enjoyed this quote; "If people are inherently good, you don't need a government and if the people are evil you don't dare have one," and "Government is us and they are no more noble than the bureaucrats in it," and since everyone in government comes from the population, if there are any problems, it's already our fault.

In fact, the book was full of great quotes, here's another one; "A government agency which falsely justifies actions against a citizen is not an acceptable government" in some ways one could say that Government is not real, it's a lie we all agree to live by, a fictitious entity, worth nothing without our consent. How can you have a social contract when government legislators and regulators make onerous and restricting laws against freedom and liberty? We must respect the rights of all; there is no superior human being in our government. Anyway, I think you would enjoy the discussion that went on throughout this book, it will really make you think.

Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank. Lance Winslow believes in fairness. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lance_Winslow

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Review - Listen to Your Mother - Stand Up Straight! How Progressives Can Win

Listen to Your Mother: Stand Up Straight: How Progressives Can Win, Robert Creamer, 2007, ISBN 0979585295

Based on four decades of hands-on experience, this book shows how, for political progressives, being right on the issues is less important than being the winner.

A campaign should concentrate their attention on two types of voters: persuadables, or swing voters, and mobilizables, supporters who need to be motivated to go to the polls. If a campaign can peel off the occasional GOP voter or two, that's great, but do not spend a lot of time or money on it. A campaign needs to find, and address, people's self interests: physical needs, need for structure, intellectual stimulation, control over your life, etc.

These days, it is tempting to base a campaign around new media, like blogs, Facebook and Twitter. Do not, for any reason, abandon old-fashioned Get Out the Vote methods, like phone banks, calling people several times during the campaign, and knocking on doors. People like to be asked for their vote.

All the effort in the world will be worthless if the candidate is boring or wishy-washy on the issues. People like to feel that the candidate is on their side, that they aren't afraid to stick to their values, that they have vision and integrity, and that the candidate respects the voters. Next in importance after having a good candidate is having good organizers and a field operation that can cover the whole area (town, district, state).

It's tempting to think that the election of President Obama, and the current unpopularity of the national Republican Party, makes this book not necessary or obsolete. Nothing could be farther from the truth. It's easy, in relative terms, to win one election, whether on the local, state or national level. The hard part is to continue the day-to-day work to get voters to realize that Progressivism can become the dominant American political philosophy. Besides, the Republicans will not stay unpopular forever. They will be back, perhaps in 2010, perhaps in 2012, and Progressives cannot wait for them to return before they start fighting for the future of America. They should be doing everything possible to change the playing field, now.

This book is an excellent place to start. It is full of information for people planning any sort of political campaign, and is extremely highly recommended.

Paul Lappen is a freelance book reviewer whose website, http://www.deadtreesreview.com, has over 700 reviews on all subjects, with an emphasis on small press books. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paul_Lappen http://www.pippoproducts.com/products