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by James Thornton
ISBN: 0609803921
Paperback: 288 pages
Condition: Used: Good
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. No publisher marks, no writing. This book appears in a like new condition but has liquid damage in the margins of only a few pages. This is minimal and went unnoticed during the first inspection.
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Customer Reviews
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Nothing new here
Rating  (2)
Date: 2008-10-08
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Of course I am reviewing it years after it was written, but shouldn't a good book be readable for years after it's published? You'll get nothing out of this one. Skip it.
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Excellent New Age book--A critical review
Rating  (5)
Date: 2001-08-02
7 out of 8 customers found this reveiw helpful
I read this book because I strongly believe in reading opinions I disagree with. And in the end, I do disagree with some of Thornton's conclusions. However, I have to admit that this is one of the most insightful New Age texts I have ever read. It was very challenging on a personal level, and I learned a lot about myself while reading it. Thornton is certainly thought-provoking, intelligent, and a capable writer. If you enjoy New Age books, you should definitely read this one. If you do not, you should give this one a try. Few books about spirituality get better than this.
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DOES GOD KNOW MY NAME?
Rating (5)
Date: 2000-01-31
15 out of 15 customers found this reveiw helpful
Not long ago, after having read many books on Buddism and meditation, I began to think that maybe the whole idea of a personal, loving God or Father was a myth of my own making... Our making... A fabrication we needed to survive... An opium of the masses. Although I gained much from reading on Buddism and meditation, I found I just didn't want to let go of the idea of a personal, loving Father with a plan for my life. If this is your hope too, read this book. His encounter with God is honest, unpretentious, and truly mystical. I no longer have any doubt.
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Whole Spiritual Guidance
Rating (5)
Date: 1999-04-07
21 out of 21 customers found this reveiw helpful
This is an unsentimental book that takes you into James Thornton's sacred world and allows one to form or deepen one's one world. He does this with short, easy-to-digest chapters, and in fact I love reading one or two before bedtime. The depth and breadth of wisdom is unique and joyous. He writes, "There is always the terror of stepping out of our old protective skin. But a new one will reliably extrude itself . . . Our heart is broken open, again and again, until it is big enough to hold the world." So, you see, beautiful writing and beautiful wisdom. If you are a person who hesitates to buy books about the soul, fearing new-age trends (I am one of those people who does not go in for cliched new-age topics), please be assurred that this book is not trendy or maudlin. It is a profoundly joyful book, and Thornton's natural vignettes are thought-provoking and calming and illuminating.
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amazing and uplfting .I can get there from here
Rating (5)
Date: 1999-03-02
6 out of 8 customers found this reveiw helpful
I`ve already turned to this book for wise counsel in stressful times and it has really helped. I have friends who want to borrow it but I seem to refer to it every few days so I plan on making birthday gifts to those who really need the natural and positive messages. We really need this book these days!
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by Martin Luther King Jr. (Editor: Peter Holloran) (Editor: Clayborne Carson)
ISBN: 0446675547
Paperback: 234 pages
Condition: Used: Good
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. Book in good condition with minimal reading wear. EX LIBRARY copy. Library markings present but no further markings or imperfections.
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Customer Reviews
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Inspired messages
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-11-03
I was very happy to be able to get this in CD form. For me, Martin Luther King, Jr. is one of the finest speakers of our times. Even though he has been gone for so long, his messages are inspirational, easy to understand and profound. This has been done very well with excellent reviews before each message.
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Excellent
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-08-14
Simply great! A must read for any aspiring individual, puts you right into the heart and thoughts of Martin Luther
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American Hero!
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-05-15
Wow! I was born around the time of his death and sadly did not see or hear much about this great American growing up. Then there was a holiday. Then a few more breakthroughs in history with regards to American race relations. Because of the magic of technology this recorded collection puts you right there sitting in the pews up front at the church where this great man preached only the truth. Today you wonder where have our great heroes all gone.
The collection of the sermons was truly uplifting and deeply inspirational even 40+ years since his death - still TIMELY! A tear fell from my eye with everyother sermon. The discussions about his sermons were mostly weak, but I didn't mind. Some of the recordings had imperfections and gaps, but I didn't mind.
Finally I was saddened by the hate that took his life and robbed us of one of our true American heroes who really fought for all of us. Where would this world be today if we had a fearless voice for the people like him still willing to confront hatred at every turn like Mister Doctor Martin Luther King Junior did? I'm sending copies to intelligent, thoughtful people I know who will appreciate his powerful message. I am now looking to read more about his life so I can only try to understand and better appreciate what he meant to America; then, today, and in the distant future.
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MLK
Rating  (1)
Date: 2009-04-28
0 out of 3 customers found this reveiw helpful
Martin Luther King Jr. was a minister and humanitarian, and of course a civil rights leader. Very intelligent eloquent and compassionate. He did walk the walk The Word requests of us.
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Inspiring, educating, nourishing
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-04-25
A wonderful anthology of Dr King's sermons with an excellent commentary. These recordings of his actual sermons allows us to share in his zeal, passion, compassion, justness and spiritual power as he navigated through this tumultuous period with an almost unerring vision.
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by George E. Somers
ISBN: 0923568719
Paperback: 276 pages
Condition: Used: Very Good
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. No shelf wear, no publisher marks. Apart from a personal inscription on the first page, this book appears as new.
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by James Blake Thomas
ISBN: 0961628502
Hardcover: 152 pages
Condition: Used: Good
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. No publisher marks, no writing. This is a used copy with reading wear/ shelf wear.
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by Tavis Smiley (Contributor: Stephanie Robinson)
ISBN: 1439100020
Hardcover: 320 pages
Condition: New
Comments: Sold with pride. UNREAD, new copy with publisher's mark.
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Customer Reviews
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Review of Tavis Smiley's book "Accountable.
Rating (5)
Date: 2010-02-18
This is a fine book written for all races and classes of people. It tells us how we all should be accountable from our households to the White House.
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Accountable: Making America as Good as Its Promise
Rating  (3)
Date: 2009-11-18
ISBN 1439100020 - In all fairness, I have to admit upfront that I dislike Tavis Smiley with a passion. That isn't nice and maybe isn't fair, but it's reality and I don't mention it to bash the man, but to inform anyone who reads this review in the interest of full disclosure.
Personal stories are centered around major issues of our time, from health care to the environment and everything in between. At the end of each chapter, there is a checklist of questions.
The content is timely, certainly. The personal stories are often close to home. The problems I have with the books are twofold. The first is that the style and what the book (inadvertently, perhaps) suggests is that you're an idiot. It would make an excellent tool for an eighth or ninth grade civics class, but it doesn't bring much to the table for a reasonably aware, and reasonably educated, adult. Interestingly, the book had the potential for a long, healthy shelf-life, but that was killed by the almost too-timeliness of it; in a very short period of time, the contents will be so dated as to be utterly useless other than as a historical record (a purpose already well-filled by the internet).
My second issue is with the author, though not on a personal level. I find that it strikes me as questionable that Smiley, whose first two books in this "series" were aimed strictly at a black readership, suddenly has an interest in communicating with a broader audience. While I can't prove that it means anything, Smiley has been involved in at least two instances in the past few years that might have turned a portion of the black population against him. Perhaps this is a factor in the abrupt attempt to broaden his audience. Whatever the reason, I can't help thinking that there's more to this than the apparent "we're all in this together" idea that Smiley puts forth and that I'm just not buying from a guy whose career, to this point, has been all about speaking to a single race.
- AnnaLovesBooks
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Mona Lisa
Rating (3)
Date: 2009-10-22
Accountable provides real-life examples of how curcuial issues like health care, education the ecomony, unequal justice and the einviroment show themselves in our communities. This book shows the urgancy to make our politicians and ourselves responsible for our communities. This book examines present day conditions and the consequences for America if Poliiticians and even ourselves are not held accountable for our actions. This book demonstrates how we as Citizens are responsible to help our Communities thrive. I recommend this book.
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A Political Must Read
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-09-18
Accountable, the third book in a series designed to help citizens understand their role in the political system, hits the nail on the head with several key issues. The book brings up several of the most important issues in America today: Health Care, Education, The Unequal Justice System, The Economy, The Environment and Energy, Democracy and how we can keep election fraud from happening again. The book not only points out what is wrong or right with these systems, it offers solutions. So many books offer no solutions to the problems they present. This one does, and each chapter ends with a checklist of things that we as citizens can do to help correct these situations. Every American should read this book and get involved, even if only a small level.
The book also ends with a lengthy list of quotes that Obama has made pertaining to each of the above mentioned chapters. At the end of the list of quotes is a checklist where we can keep record of how many of his election promises he has fulfilled.
Some of the stories in this book are surprising. People dumped from their health care plans.. the list of disenfranchised felons by state is disheartening. The chapter on rigged elections and gerrymandering will likely be an eye opener for some even if it seems like old news to others. This book will give you a look at the real America, and hopefully it will help us, citizens and government alike, to fix it.
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pretty basic
Rating (2)
Date: 2009-07-23
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
This would be a good beginner's guide to American politics, especially for younger people just getting interested in current affairs. Tavis Smiley explains the political system in a fundamental and simple manner, using the Obama administration as his inspiration/medium. However, if you are someone who follows politics and/or current affairs normally and already have a fairly good understanding of how the political system is designed to work then this reads a little obvious. If you're looking for a deeper perspective on american politics and/or the inner workings of Washington or the Obama Administration, probably better to pass.
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by Joanna Mellor, Joann Ivry
ISBN: 0789020653
Paperback: 300 pages
Condition: Used: Like New
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. No publisher marks, no shelf wear, no creases in spine, no writing. Stamped on the side as a review copy. This book is as new.
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by Mark Shaw
ISBN: 0971759669
Paperback: 238 pages
Condition: Used: Acceptable
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. EX LIBRARY copy. No writing/ markings other then library markings.
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by John J. McGraw
ISBN: 0974764507
Paperback: 416 pages
Condition: New
Comments: Sold with pride.. No publisher marks, no shelf wear.
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Customer Reviews
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Hard-hitting on the concept of the soul; less so on substance dualism in general
Rating  (4)
Date: 2010-02-14
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Brain and Belief, by John J. McGraw, is a fascinating and very well-researched critique of the concept of the human soul. He briefly charts the concept's evolution through history, explains how the brain works and how drugs affect the brain, how drug use and religion are connected, and runs with this in the last third to destroy the concept of an immortal soul. He does it well, and the book would deserve five stars if this is all it did. In the course of critiquing the concept of the soul, however, he also attacks substance dualism in general. Now, as an atheist and strict naturalist who believes the notion of "mind" or "spirit" as divorced from the workings of the brain to be incoherent, I can sympathize with McGraw here. But this book simply does a poor job of trying to discredit substance dualism. Granted, as with almost any other philosophical idea, McGraw would have needed quite a bit more space to offer a sound critique of it. It is the author's fault, however, for trying to address a complex philosophical issue when he didn't have the space to do so adequately. He got too ambitious, and it hurts the book as a result.
His research, however, is excellent (although the section on Socrates is admittedly somewhat contentious). There is a wide range of knowledge on display here. Concepts from fields as wide-ranging as history, neurology, psychopharmacology, theology, ancient literature, and psychology are all explained in unpretentious, crystal-clear prose. And, as I said before, while it isn't especially effective in its critique of substance dualism, it utterly devastates the concept of an immortal soul, or anything worth being called a "soul." When you put this book down, you might not be a strict materialist, but you certainly shouldn't remain a Christian or Muslim, either.
I highly recommend this book.
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Inspiring thought and questions about current religious mythology and beliefs
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-09-17
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
The author is covering many bases and if he were to be as thorough as the 1-and 2-star critics, his book would be twice the size. Most people reading this book will not be neurophysiologists and probably will find the information on brain biology more comprehensive than they can or want to understand. This book is NOT focusing on professional neurobiologists or professional theologists, etc. but on laypeople who may know some information, but not all information presented in this book. I have had premed classes, philosophy,and an excellent upper English class pertaining to the many versions of the Bible as literature. I have my copy of the Bible next to my books on Norse, Egyptian, Native American, Greek and Roman mythologies, all of which I believe are based on some facts (e.g., the great flood being the ending of the last glacial age) handed down over generations of listeners.
I am always glad to find books written by others who have similar beliefs as I do (e.g., humanists) and realize that questioning the beliefs that you were raised with develops your mind beyond religious belief, it allows you to also perceive other parts of our universe with open, somewhat unprejudiced, views. Most of the intent to me of books like this is to provoke intelligent questions and discussions, to remove the religious biases, and to think about the universe in your own way, not blindly as others have told you to look at the universe. After all to believe in a specific religion unquestioningly, people were literally brainwashed as children and adolescents into the specific beliefs of their family and close associates and then the myths were reinforced every religious gathering, including every Sunday in Christian churches.
The concept of a "soul" as with other religious myths is a way to explain the unknown; and frankly a vast majority of people, even now, cannot scientifically explain phenomena that have been proven (e.g., how the sun generates visible light, or that water expands when going from a liquid to a solid state). People here in the US have great resources to find truths, particularly from the internet and local libraries. This author is presenting bits and pieces of information that do support his (and my) beliefs that we are of one mind/body and this wonderful world is what we have. Thus, we enjoy this beautiful world, help other people and the environment NOW, and strive to learn more. This is a wonderful world and the universe is fascinating and awe inspiring. I look at Hubble's images and do not see any god's hand in them, but the wonder, mystery, and beauty of the chance evolution of the universe that most definitely includes us puny, inconsequential, humans on a small planet in a common barred-spiral galaxy. I still love the idea of being alive at this time to see the wonders of the universe and to dream of the (hopeful) future of humans, including space exploration and meeting other intelligent life-forms. I don't need the vision of a (boring) heaven or otherworld to feel happy about my existence here on this world. This world is more than enough for anyone living on it; you can find your own "heaven" here on earth and enjoy it greatly.
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Wide-ranging and witty but superficial
Rating (2)
Date: 2009-04-13
5 out of 5 customers found this reveiw helpful
This book on brain and (religious) belief attempts to use brain science to refute traditional theistic beliefs in life after death and the soul. Its merits include the tremendous breadth of matter covered and an excellent writing style coupled to a fine sense of humor. Unfortunately there are also serious problems, of which the deepest are the failure to consider what others have written on the relationship between brain and belief, and the false assumption that all theists must be substance dualists and ignorant of neurobiology.
The first quarter of the book addresses the origins of Western dualism, which McGraw claims (controversially) to have arisen from the influence of Orphic shamanism on Socrates, "the last shaman of European culture" (p69). Hence, via Socrates' pupil Plato, dualism dominated Greek thought and ultimately Christianity. McGraw states correctly that Judaism and early Christianity were not dualistic, and even writes "the most remarkable fact about Christianity and dualism is that Christianity isn't really dualistic" (p86), but nevertheless seems to assume that all Christians have been substance dualists since the time of Pope Benedict XII (14th century), carrying unknowingly the intellectual baggage of shamanism. In the rest of the book, he attempts to free us from this unfortunate burden by revealing the mysteries of brain science. He seems unaware that most modern writers on the relationship between brain and belief, whether Christian, Jewish, Buddhist or atheist, are NOT substance dualists; and the minority that are (or were), such as neurobiology Nobel prizewinner Sir John Eccles (a liberal Christian) and theological philosopher Richard Swinburne (Eastern Orthodox) have sophisticated arguments for their position that McGraw seems not to know.
The second part of the book provides an introduction to brain science. Apart from a lively section on psychoactive drugs I found it disappointing. As a professional neurobiologist I am perhaps a bit demanding, but frankly most of the facts presented could be found in an elementary neuroscience textbook from about 1970. Most of the recent evidence relevant to dualism/monism is ignored. There is no electrophysiology, nothing on modern brain imaging or brain stimulation in humans. There are also several errors; for example McGraw implies that enkephalins and endorphins are the same thing (p199); they are not. More seriously, he seems to think that the "soul" (he means an immaterial Cartesian soul) can be swept away by the simple facts that drugs and brain damage change our experience and behavior, and that drugs can promote mystical experiences. This does not work logically. Substance dualists postulate a bidirectional influence between soul and brain, so the psychological effects of drugs or brain injuries might in principle be accounted for by substance dualists. I am personally opposed to substance dualism and believe that brain science will one day disprove it, but this will require a more sophisticated presentation than McGraw's.
The third and final section says virtually nothing about the brain, but mainly draws on a wide range of thinkers including Freud to expose psychological mechanisms (self-deception, projection etc.) that supposedly underlie theistic belief. It seemed to me irrelevant to the title subject of "Brain and Belief".
All in all, then, the book fails to provide a satisfactory discussion of the relationship between brain and religious belief. The author refers to Freud, Nietzsche and Schleiermacher but makes no attempt to relate to the modern debate. About 20 books and numerous articles in journals have been written on this subject in the last decades, by philosophers, neurobiologists, psychologists and theologians of varying persuasions. McGraw ignores them all.
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For those on the lookout
Rating (5)
Date: 2008-05-14
I liked this book very much. It is scholarly yet succinct. In part one, McGraw gives a cogent and interesting history of the soul in just 113 pages. Part two describes what scientists have discovered about the brain and how chemicals and other things impact it. And finally, part three (my favorite section and the one that I've already reread), attempts to make sense of the first two sections, attempts to find a world view that makes sense in the 21st century. I majored in philosophy in college mainly because of my feelings of uncertainty and confusion about the soul/mind/body issue. I hadn't really revisited the problem since I graduated college until I read McGraw's book. His book accurately captures and explains the psychological human desire for an explanation that makes of death less final. He then captures why this desire can't be fulfilled. The book is written in an engaging style and is also humorous, which is a nice change of pace for a book in this genre. Other books in this vain often read like a funeral dirge sounds.
I think the book is also especially important for those of us who do not subscribe to an organized religion and who are trying to assimilate all the discoveries that science has made over the past 100 or 200 years. Personally, I'm looking for meaning and a meaningful life without any notion of a personal God, and this book gave me quite a bit of hope. It is realistic about the human condition, but never, for even a page, resorts to despair. I recommend this book for anyone with an open mind who is seeking answers.
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Where does God live?
Rating (4)
Date: 2007-09-12
3 out of 4 customers found this reveiw helpful
I think John McGraw is mad at God, so mad that he decided that God does not exist. The author tried many different religions and found them all wanting. So did I when I was younger. But I decided God did not live in religions, not that God was dead. Actually, the author also decided God is not dead. How could what never existed outside of the human mind be dead?
To my way of thinking, it is still impossible to prove that God exists and it is impossible to prove that God does not exist. I do not even know if I exist outside my own mind. But the author takes aim at God with the intent of proving that which cannot be proven. And he does so in a delightful, informative, and methodical way.
He begins with our earliest human beliefs about God, and with stops at Aristotle, Jesus, and a few other men of religion, he ends at the latest research into the human brain. He concludes that altered states of being, especially ecstasy, are rooted in the chemistry of the brain, not in some outside force. And he says, if I understood him correctly, that ecstasy is at the root of all religion, even those that have made it a sin to be happy.
As an aside, as a longtime devotee of meditation, I found it interesting that he wrote that the altered states I seek in meditation could be found in hallucinogens, both natural and manmade. Perhaps he is right, but unfortunately, most hallucinogens are illegal, whereas meditation is not. Therefore, I will keep meditating. But more importantly, proving what happens in our minds when we have altered states simply does not disprove the existence of God. It only proves something is being altered in our minds.
Did John McGraw convince me that God does not exist? No, he did not.
But he nevertheless believes as I believe. Whether or not God exists, I am responsible for my life. I am responsible for my actions. I cannot act as though there will be another life in which to finally live my dreams because to do so insures I will not live this live fully. Nor, do I believe any of us can act as though God will ride down from the heavens on a celestial horse, and with angels galore, save us from our own insanity; for to do so will insure that our insanity continues.
I must be responsible for myself. I think John McGraw would agree.
Thank you, John C. Conley, author of "Letters to My Friends: A No Guarantees Guide to Awakening."
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by John W. Dean
ISBN: 0143114212
Paperback: 352 pages
Condition: Used: Like New
Comments: Sold with pride. This is a previously unread copy pulled from our store shelves. It is rated as like new because it may have light shelf wear.
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Customer Reviews
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John Dean is right
Rating (5)
Date: 2010-03-05
John Dean is correct that many people who were confirmed as judges lied to be confirmed. Check out the confirmation speeches that John Roberts gave and the ruling that opened Pandora's box with allowing corporations to give as much money as they wish to corporate puppets in Congress.
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Unbelievably scary!
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-09-15
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
I knew things were bad, but I had no idea they were this bad. IIRC, some 60 to 70% of Americans think our political system is seriously broken. How right they are. So stop feeling guilty because you haven't taken the time to write your congressman. What'd be the point?
Dean is a Goldwater (I.e., far right) Republican who cannot believe how badly his beloved GOP has been behaving. In his day, the GOP had some honor and some integrity. Nowadays, they act like integrity has become a dirty word. (Note: if a liberal like Al Franken had written this book, it would be only a fraction as credible as it is.)
I already knew that Bush and Cheney were virtually the embodiment of evil, so what Dean said about the Executive Branch didn't disillusion me too badly. But Congress, when the GOP controls it, has been acting just as badly. It's like the "legislature" in North Korea or Burma.
However, our Judicial Branch is far, far worse. Apparently, our Supreme Court already has 3 or even 4 members who are Constitutional Fundamentalists. With only 1 more Fundamentalist, they could even form a majority. But I had no idea what that meant. They're going to interpret the Constitution literally, or else according to the original intent of the founders. Naively, I didn't see that as a bad thing. For example, what's wrong with restoring the Bill of Rights, or with giving the states or the people a little more power?
But boy, was I naïve. Dean went over exactly what Thomas and Scalia mean by Constitutional Fundamentalism, and it sounded like a return to the Dark Ages. I've already forgotten most of the specifics of what Dean said. I probably blocked it out, because it scared me too much to take it all in at once.
So Dean, a Goldwater Republican, urges us to avoid this judicial catastrophe by voting Democratic. And here I was, beginning to wish that there were some honorable Republican I could vote for, now that I've gotten so disillusioned with the Democrats. Little did I know just how bad the Republicans have become. They are truly, truly scary.
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John Dean the insiders insider
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-06-08
2 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
Broken Government by John Dean is a must read for all Americans but especially for all working class Americans that vote/support republican politics. John Dean succinctly points out how self-serving, self-important, greedy republicans have/are destroying the Constitutional Republic we call the United States of America. This is the third book of his trilogy about the greed of these evil people and I suggest reading all three of these informative books.
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Broken Government
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-04-06
2 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
Good review of events and presentation of facts.
Well written.
Would purchase another product from this author
Thanks
Sharon R. Barnes
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Doesn't live up to its potential
Rating (3)
Date: 2009-03-16
0 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
I had high hopes on reading the introduction to the book. Mr. Dean talks at length about how the process of government has broken down, that politicians and the media don't think it matters, but that people actually care about how the government works.
Then comes the first chapter, with a vitriolic attack on the Republican controlled Congress after 1994, followed by how the great reforms under the Democrats starting in 2007. The one sided adjective laden attack on conservatives shows Mr. Dean is writing as a partisan rather than with any real concern for the government.
A quick fact check also raises questions. Mr. Dean implies that once the Republicans gained control in 1994 they switched Congress to a 2 day work week, while the Democrats restored it to a 5 day work week in 2007. A look the number of days in session for the House and Senate over the last 40 years does not show a major change in days in session (see http://www.c-span.org/questions/weekly17.asp and records from http://thomas.loc.gov/home/ds/index.html). In 2007-08 the Democrats met 283 days, compared to 290 days in 1995-6 when the Republicans took over.
Time will tell if Mr. Dean really cares about government or if he has a political agenda. He ought to produce an updated account in a couple years comparing the Democrat's performance now that they control Congress and the Presidency. We've already seen a few of the abuses blamed on the Republicans so far this year, although objective evaluations of the government are extremely hard to tease out of the partisan media.
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by John W. Dean
ISBN: 0143114212
Paperback: 352 pages
Condition: Used: Like New
Comments: Sold with pride. This is a previously unread copy pulled from our store shelves. It is rated as like new because it may have light shelf wear.
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Customer Reviews
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John Dean is right
Rating (5)
Date: 2010-03-05
John Dean is correct that many people who were confirmed as judges lied to be confirmed. Check out the confirmation speeches that John Roberts gave and the ruling that opened Pandora's box with allowing corporations to give as much money as they wish to corporate puppets in Congress.
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Unbelievably scary!
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-09-15
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
I knew things were bad, but I had no idea they were this bad. IIRC, some 60 to 70% of Americans think our political system is seriously broken. How right they are. So stop feeling guilty because you haven't taken the time to write your congressman. What'd be the point?
Dean is a Goldwater (I.e., far right) Republican who cannot believe how badly his beloved GOP has been behaving. In his day, the GOP had some honor and some integrity. Nowadays, they act like integrity has become a dirty word. (Note: if a liberal like Al Franken had written this book, it would be only a fraction as credible as it is.)
I already knew that Bush and Cheney were virtually the embodiment of evil, so what Dean said about the Executive Branch didn't disillusion me too badly. But Congress, when the GOP controls it, has been acting just as badly. It's like the "legislature" in North Korea or Burma.
However, our Judicial Branch is far, far worse. Apparently, our Supreme Court already has 3 or even 4 members who are Constitutional Fundamentalists. With only 1 more Fundamentalist, they could even form a majority. But I had no idea what that meant. They're going to interpret the Constitution literally, or else according to the original intent of the founders. Naively, I didn't see that as a bad thing. For example, what's wrong with restoring the Bill of Rights, or with giving the states or the people a little more power?
But boy, was I naïve. Dean went over exactly what Thomas and Scalia mean by Constitutional Fundamentalism, and it sounded like a return to the Dark Ages. I've already forgotten most of the specifics of what Dean said. I probably blocked it out, because it scared me too much to take it all in at once.
So Dean, a Goldwater Republican, urges us to avoid this judicial catastrophe by voting Democratic. And here I was, beginning to wish that there were some honorable Republican I could vote for, now that I've gotten so disillusioned with the Democrats. Little did I know just how bad the Republicans have become. They are truly, truly scary.
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John Dean the insiders insider
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-06-08
2 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
Broken Government by John Dean is a must read for all Americans but especially for all working class Americans that vote/support republican politics. John Dean succinctly points out how self-serving, self-important, greedy republicans have/are destroying the Constitutional Republic we call the United States of America. This is the third book of his trilogy about the greed of these evil people and I suggest reading all three of these informative books.
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Broken Government
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-04-06
2 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
Good review of events and presentation of facts.
Well written.
Would purchase another product from this author
Thanks
Sharon R. Barnes
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Doesn't live up to its potential
Rating (3)
Date: 2009-03-16
0 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
I had high hopes on reading the introduction to the book. Mr. Dean talks at length about how the process of government has broken down, that politicians and the media don't think it matters, but that people actually care about how the government works.
Then comes the first chapter, with a vitriolic attack on the Republican controlled Congress after 1994, followed by how the great reforms under the Democrats starting in 2007. The one sided adjective laden attack on conservatives shows Mr. Dean is writing as a partisan rather than with any real concern for the government.
A quick fact check also raises questions. Mr. Dean implies that once the Republicans gained control in 1994 they switched Congress to a 2 day work week, while the Democrats restored it to a 5 day work week in 2007. A look the number of days in session for the House and Senate over the last 40 years does not show a major change in days in session (see http://www.c-span.org/questions/weekly17.asp and records from http://thomas.loc.gov/home/ds/index.html). In 2007-08 the Democrats met 283 days, compared to 290 days in 1995-6 when the Republicans took over.
Time will tell if Mr. Dean really cares about government or if he has a political agenda. He ought to produce an updated account in a couple years comparing the Democrat's performance now that they control Congress and the Presidency. We've already seen a few of the abuses blamed on the Republicans so far this year, although objective evaluations of the government are extremely hard to tease out of the partisan media.
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