We CAN talk about Choke

Choke by Chuck Palahniuk

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Dude is nuts! Completely original. Writing and story are a bit choppy, but by design. I'm going to read more of Chuck's stuff.


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Marx book

Marx: A Very Short Introduction by Peter Singer

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
Cute little gem. Easy enough. A bit boring, but maybe that's Marx's fault and not Singer's. The last chapter is the best: a great overview of what Marx got right and what he got wrong.


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Foreign Affairs articles

Two new articles from Foreign Affairs, a non-partisan journal for academics and practitioners in the world of international relations.

On Iraq: Biddle, O'Hanlon, and Pollack. I'm not sure about Biddle, but the latter two are left of center. All three know their military issues well. Bottom line: it's too soon to get out of Iraq. The US is just seeing progress there, and must stay until a stronger stability is secured.

Secretary of the Treasury Paulson on engaging China. Haven't read this one yet.

Southern Politics

Haven't read this yet myself, but could be an interesting article on the politics of the South. From the WSJ.

Great article on Afghanistan. Lots of work to do there.

It just doesn't matter

Interesting take from the Washington Times. Bottom line? There are a whole host of issues on which Senators McCain and Obama agree:

On some policy issues, the presidential election just won't matter - both Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain are prepared to overturn President Bush's policy and expand federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, one of a series of contentious issues pushed out of the presidential debate because those at the top of the tickets agree.

Afghanistan

Great stuff out there about Afghanistan.

First, SmallWarsJournal.com has a nice synopsis on General Barry McCaffrey's after action report. Great American soldiers, lots of hard work to do, and the US needs a LOT more help from allies.

Second, the Wall Street Journal has a great piece on the increasing use of suicide bombers there and how those bombers come to take on the task. Fascinating. (NOVA students can access the article for free through the library - go to Factiva).

Political fiction

Executive Privilege: A Novel by Phillip Margolin

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
Not the worst thing ever, but no great shakes. Rather simple with an ending that I saw coming from not too many pages into it. I say that not as props for my own detective skills - I usually can't see a Three's Company ending coming five minutes after the three of them are laughing on the couch about the missed communications situation they just solved. It was still fun enough to keep me reading. What more can a dude ask for in fiction book?


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China's recent business moves

Great article from the NYTimes on China's efforts to bring in more hi-tech business.

War

War in European History by Michael Howard

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book was perfectly phenomenal. In 144 pages, Howard packed in so much, without making it appear over-packed. 1,000 years of warfare, with all the attendant strategies, tactics, and developments, are presented in a readable and thorough fashion, without coming across as simplistic or factoid laden. Howard finished the book in 2001 (I’m thinking in the pre-9/11 2001) and in the last page he nailed some of the major issues the world would be dealing with in the early stages of the 21st century. First, he properly casts doubt on the Revolution in Military Affairs approach (doubt, mind you, and not a complete discard); second, he recognizes the likely rise of terrorism; and third, he points out that troops will be taking on far more than conventional battle missions, which will come to include peacekeeping, counterinsurgency warfare, and a host of other previously difficult to imagine military missions.


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Talks failed, interesting guy

Article on India's lead negotiator/wrench-thrower at WTO talks. Free-market guy. Interesting.

Iraq

July 2008 was our best month yet in Iraq, with all due sadness to the losses suffered. See the Washington Post for an article and helpful chart.

Great article by Karen DeYoung on the surprising closeness of the two campaigns on the Iraq issue.

Henry Kissinger grows old and never goes away. Here are his thoughts on Iraq.

John McCain's mind

Interesting article on John McCain in the Washington Post.

Interesting article on McCain and his campaign's decision to bring up the race issue, which they point as having been really brought up by the Obama campaign. Tough and touchy issue.