I’ve decided to be nice to the FBI. I’m going to save them the trouble to bother my local librarian to find out what I intend to check out from the library and write my list here instead. OK, it’s a tiny bit selfish as I’ve discovered that I often forget my list when I get to the library – and if I have it available on the web all I have to do is print it out. This is a list in progress, mind you. I would ask my San Leandro readership to not be mean and check these books out before I get to them.
Currently available at the library.
Non-Fiction
The Nasty Bits
by Anthony Bourdain
641.5 BOURDAIN
in New Books (ckout)
American theocracy : the peril and politics of radical religion, oil, and borrowed money in the 21st century
by Phillips, Kevin P.
973.928 PHILLIPS
in New Books (ckout)
Cobra II : the inside story of the invasion and occupation of Iraq
by Gordon, Michael R.
956.704 GORDON
in New Books
Casting with a fragile thread : a story of sisters and Africa
by Kann, Wendy
968.91 KANN
in new Books
Scribbling the cat : travels with an African soldier /
by Fuller, Alexandra
968.94 FULLER
in new Books
Losing Moses on the Freeway: America’s broken covenant with the 10 commandments
by Hedges, Chris
241.5 HEDGES
An African in Greenland /
by Kpomassie, Tete-Michel
919.82 KPO
The assassins’ gate : America in Iraq
by Packer, George
956.7 PACKER
The sacred willow : four generations in the life of a Vietnamese family /
by Elliott, Duong Van Mai
959.704 ELLIOTT
Pornified : how the culture of pornography is transforming our lives, our relationships, and our families /
by Paul, Pamela.
306.77 PAUL
Santeria : la religion /
by Gonzalez-Wippler, Migene
299.6 GONZALEZ-WIPPLER
SPA
missing
Don’t let’s go to the dogs tonight : an African childhood /
by Fuller, Alexandra
FULLER FUL
BIOG
Fiction
THE RUINS : a novel /
by Smith, Scott
CATALOGUING
The pale blue eye : a novel /
by Bayard, Louis
mystery – new
End of story : a novel of suspense /
by Abrahams, Peter
ABRAHAMS
new
Snakeskin shamisen
by Naomi Hirahara
in library catalogue but no item info
mystery
The second coming of Mavala Shikongo: a novel /
by Orner, Peter
ORNER
The people’s act of love
by Meek, James
MEEK (new books)
The historian : a novel
by Kostova, Elizabeth.
KOSTOVA
The good terrorist /
by Lessing, Doris
LESSING
look at other books by her
Snobs: a novel
by Fellowes, Julian
FELLOWES
Under the glacier
by Laxness, Halldor
HALLDOR
Paradise of the blind /
by Duong, Thu Huong
DUONG
Field of Blood: A Novel.
by Mina, Denise
mystery
Deception: a novel /
by Mina, Denise
MINA
Oblivion
by Abrahams, Peter
ABRAHAMS
Classics
Bleak House /
by Dickens, Charles
DICKENS
The call of the wild
by London, Jack
The sound and the fury
by Faulkner
Sons and lovers /
by Lawrence, D. H.
The grapes of wrath /
by Steinbeck, John
classic
Not availabe at the library
The Warwolf
by Hermann L
Author: marga (Page 125 of 158)
The Week, a magazine that summarizes news and stories from the world media, is one of my favorite readings. It brings me up to date on what happened around the world during the previous week, and it gives me an idea of what issues are reverberating worldwide. But not everything in the magazine is serious. They have gossip, recipes, the “bargain house of the week” (I could sell my house and buy a huge mansion outright if I was only willing to move away) and a section of quotes. I always mean to copy some of these here, but I always forget. Today will be the exception.
I particularly liked the following quote by Edmund Burke, an 18th century parlamentarian and political philosopher. It spoke to me because lately I’ve been feeling quite impotent. We are heading towards a global state of exception, the US government with its policies of killing and torturing has shown its own lack of respect for liberty and life, and there is very, very little I can do to stop any of the abuses worldwide. The quote gives me, if not hope, at least a reason to keep going:
“Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little.”
While I don’t agree with much of Burke’s political (and in particular religious) philosophy, I did find a number of quotes that I think are worthwhile to keep in mind given our present circumstances.
One that is similar to the one above and that I used to use as a signature line says:
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do
nothing”
and along those same lines:
“Never despair; but if you do, work on in despair.”
Some of his quotes are useful in understanding the Bush administration and American’s reaction to it. This one could be interpreted as describing both the administration and the American people, depending on how you define “confound”
“One that confounds good and evil is an enemy to good. ”
And this might explain why Americans have been supporting Bush on his democidal policies:
“The people never give up their liberties but under some delusion. ”
This quote is the flip side of the one before:
“Tyrants seldom want pretexts.”
This one, if true, is a bad omen as to what we can expect from the Bush team:
“Those who have been once intoxicated with power, and have derived any kind of emolument from it, even though but for one year, never can willingly abandon it. They may be distressed in the midst of all their power; but they will never look to anything but power for their relief.”
But I hope this one is true:
“I venture to say no war can be long carried on against the will of the people. ”
Finally, some recent experiences made me reflect on the validity of this particular quote:
“I have never yet seen any plan which has not been mended by the observations of those who were much inferior in understanding to the person who took the lead in the business. ”
Marga
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