by Rick Lowe
I haven't posted about books either on the night table to read or those in process in sometime, but thought the following books were worth mentioning. Besides it's a slow news week.
I've been delving in and out of Ted Kennedy's memoir, and have found it most interesting so far. It's always intriguing how people perceive themselves and what others think. So much has been written about the so called "Chappaquiddick Scandal" I could not wait to read what he wrote about it. And I must say he dealt with it quite openly and thoroughly.
The book is called, True Compass. Order your copy here…
The newest book in the pipeline is, The Amateur: Barack Obama in the White House by Edward Klein.
Here's what the publisher says about it:
"Klein, who is known for getting the inside scoop on everyone from the Kennedys to the Clintons, reveals never-before-published details about the Obama administration's political inner workings, as well as Barack and Michelle's personal lives."
Of course, Mr. Obama is worshipped by many as something close to a messiah, while those same people demonise Mr. Romney, (and vice versa of course) so I'm looking forward to seeing what this is all about.
Here's what James Delingpole, columnist for the Daily Telegraph and the Spectator and author of Welcome to Obamaland, had to say about it:
“All the horrors I predicted in Welcome to Obamaland have now been definitively proven true by Edward Klein’s rip-roaringly readable new book The Amateur,
which uses great stories and great reporting to illustrate just how
ideological, arrogant, and hapless Obama and his administration really
are. An outstanding demolition job on the most overrated president of
our time.”
Next up is, In the Eye of All Trade: Bermuda, Bermudians, and the Maritime Atlantic World, 1680-1783, by Jarvis, Michael.
This was recommended by a local historian. It's quite a tome, so I'm sure it will be tough going but here's the publisher's comments:
In an exploration of the oceanic connections of the Atlantic world, Michael J. Jarvis recovers a mariner's view of early America as seen through the eyes of Bermuda's seafarers. The first social history of eighteenth-century Bermuda, this book profiles how one especially intensive maritime community capitalized on its position "in the eye of all trade."
Jarvis takes readers aboard small Bermudian sloops and follows white and enslaved sailors as they shuttled cargoes between ports, raked salt, harvested timber, salvaged shipwrecks, hunted whales, captured prizes, and smuggled contraband in an expansive maritime sphere spanning Great Britain's North American and Caribbean colonies. In doing so, he shows how humble sailors and seafaring slaves operating small family-owned vessels were significant but underappreciated agents of Atlantic integration.
The American Revolution starkly revealed the extent of British America's integration before 1775 as it shattered interregional links that Bermudians had helped to forge. Reliant on North America for food and customers, Bermudians faced disaster at the conflict's start. A bold act of treason enabled islanders to continue trade with their rebellious neighbors and helped them to survive and even prosper in an Atlantic world at war. Ultimately, however, the creation of the United States ended Bermuda's economic independence and doomed the island's maritime economy.
Finally, I'm making my way through LIVING ECONOMICS, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow by Peter J. Boettke.
Dr. Boettke is one of my favourite economists, so I recommend you get yourself a copy.
O Rick,
please stop it…
Obama is serving his country and the world well, despite the odds…
He must be re-elected… lets all support him…have you noticed the option…
O Rick,
please stop it…
Despite the odds Obama is doing well, considering the option… American has absolutely no other choice other then to re-election Obama in an historical landslide….
Peter please I just spilled my coffee after reading your comment. Can you say the word “Trillions” Peter ? ( and please don’t insult me by saying that’s the fault of Bush ) that’s how much he’s put the USA in debt,so far, and if he fortunate enough to be re-elected, that number will certainly increase.
Maybe Peter would like to send some of his $ for re-distribution to help the cause.
Sorry Peter, I don’t drink political “Kool Aid” any longer.
Obama’s messianic followers and haters are as bad as the Romney followers haters.
It’s becoming funny, but it’s so scary.
I don’t care for either of them by the way.
Subjectivity without fact is empty thought or just plain old stupidity.. To support this Socialcom for a second term can only lead to possible national bankruptcy and the economic destruction of the United States.. Massive deficit spending with money extracted from overburdened taxpayers and borrowings that will never be paid back is a road map to financial self-destruction.. The Obama Administration’s economic policies have been a complete and total failure.. Record unemployment, a failed energy policy, record high gas prices, we could go on and on with the list of failures In foreign policy, the United States has become the laughingstock of the world as failed policies and initiatives have created a massive terrorist block across North Africa extending all the way to Iran.. Again we can go on and on..
Nevertheless what really bothers me is the ultimate impact of this potential failure upon the Bahamas.. For starters, with 85% of our tourist arrivals coming from the United States, record unemployment and loss of incomes will greatly reduce the number of visitor arrivals from America.. Hotels will be half empty and tourist receipts will be in sharp decline.. Airport arrivals will fall to level we could never imagine.. Many Taxi drivers, tour operators and tourist attractions probably will have to close down.. It is a simple fact that without the American tourist our tourism product will most likely fail.. Don’t look to Europe as it too will be in prolonged economic recession.. The same with Asia as the prolonged recession will be world-wide.. As the dollar becomes worthless, trillions of dollars of wealth and asset values will merely vanish.. As for the Bahamas we will share in the same fate..
The coming election in the United States might very well determine the course of history for the first half of the 21st century.. If current economic policies are not reversed, one has to wonder in fright if the United States and our Bahamas will survive as viable economic entities..