Q3 2007 Nonfiction Book Poll!

[Chris OConnor]

Official Q3 2007 Nonfiction Book Poll!Q3 2007 = July, August & SeptemberPlease read these directions BEFORE you vote! How many nonfiction books will we be reading?We'll be reading 2 nonfiction books in 3nd quarter of 2007. This poll will select 1 of the 2 nonfiction books for community discussion, while the Q3 2007 Freethinker Book Poll will select the other book. So we're reading a total of 2 nonfiction books where one is of general interest and the other advances issues of importance to freethinkers. Periodically, there will be some overlap of these two sections.How long will the poll stay open?This poll is opening on Saturday, June 16th, 2007 and will be closing on Tuesday, June 26th, 2007. This is a total of 10 full days.Who can vote?All active members are invited and encouraged to vote and participate in our book selection process, but please follow these simple rules:Only cast a vote if you have 10 or more posts on our forums. If you don't have at least 10 you should have no problem jumping into some discussion threads and meeting this rather relaxed criterion. You can meet this requirement in one day.Don't vote if you don't plan on participating if your book wins. Again, if you vote for a book and it wins we really hope you participate. You should not be influencing the direction of the community if you're not actively involved.If you vote for a book and it does not win we still hope you read and discuss the winning book with us, but we understand if you opt to not participate. Please try to get involved no matter which book wins, as this is all about education AND entertainment. We can all learn from our book selections and from each other, and reading a book you typically would never have even picked up is a great way to expand your horizons and perspective on life.How do I vote?If you are an active member with 10 or more total posts AND you plan on participating in the Q3 2007 discussion if your chosen book wins THEN you are permitted to cast a total of 3 votes. You can use your 3 votes however you see fit, which could mean assigning all 3 votes to just one of the book choices, or distributing the 3 votes over the book choices according to your own interest level for each book. No half-votes assigned to books. You should make a brief post to this thread telling everyone how you wish to distribute your 3 votes.Nothing further needs to be said, however you're welcome and encouraged to be as verbose as you like. Just make it crystal clear how you are voting.It is inevitable that some people will either forget to cast all 3 votes or will not have read this entire post. They will simply vote on one book. If this happens I will be assigning all 3 of their votes to the one book they selected. You are permitted to change your vote at any time during the voting period, but not after I close the poll. The poll is closed on the last day of the polling period as stated above. There is no gaurantee of what time the poll will close on the last day, so please do not wait till the last minute to vote.This thread can and SHOULD be used as an open discussion of the books on the poll. You're welcome to try to sell people on a particular book, or dissuade them from another. I am asking you all to comment on the votes as you see them. Don't be shy...speak your mind. NOTE:As always, we will need a discussion leader that is willing to be active in the reading and discussion of the winning book. If you are up to the task please let us all know in this forum by making a post and stating your interest.Or, if you are only interested in being the discussion leader if your choice of books wins the poll, you can say so or just wait to see if it wins. But please consider volunteering! Being a discussion leader does not entail being an authority on the subject matter or defending the author's position. You simply need to attempt to stimulate discussion. And here are our NONFICTION book choices for 3rd Quarter 2007 (July, August & September). Please read about all books before casting your votes. Think hard about which book will be the most educational, entertaining, and worthy of discussion. May the best book win! Drum roll please... Edited by: Chris OConnor  at: 6/16/07 10:08 pm

[Chris OConnor]

Book 1 Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War by Nathaniel PhilbrickFrom Publishers WeeklyStarred Review. In this remarkable effort, National Book Award

[Chris OConnor]

Book 2 The Evolution of Deadly Conflict in Liberia: From 'Paternaltarianism' to State Collapse by Jeremy LevittBook DescriptionThis book represents the first attempt to holistically document and analyze the causes of deadly conflict in Liberia from its founding to the present. It reconstructs and examines the root, operational, and catalytic causes of seventeen internal deadly conflicts that transpired in Liberia between 1822 and 2003, including the 1980 coup d'etat against the Tolbert regime and the Liberian Civil War (1989-1997) (Great War). The book seeks to answer two primary questions: what are the historical causes of deadly conflict in Liberia, and to what extent has the evolution of settler nationalism contributed to the stimulation of conflict between settler and native Liberians? To answer these questions, Levitt examines a continuum of circular causation among the state of affairs that led to the founding of the Liberian State, the evolution of settler authoritarianism and nationalism, and internal conflict. By analyzing these processes together, the causes of seventeen conflicts are revealed and thoroughly discussed. The book also has three major objectives: to determine the historical causes of deadly conflict in Liberia, in particular, the underlining historical phenomena responsible for birthing the Great War; to present an alternative framework to comprehend and examine the aged conflict dynamic between settler and indigenous Liberians, and within Liberian society itself; and to produce the first comprehensive study of deadly conflict in Liberia. This book advantageously spans the fields of political science, history, international law, and peace and conflict studies; it is an excellent interdisciplinary choice. SynopsisLevitt (Florida International U. College of Law) documents and analyzes the root, operational, and catalytic causes of 18 internal deadly conflicts in the African country of Liberia from its founding in 1822 through the fall of the Charles Taylor regime in 2003, paying particular attention to the Great War (1989-1997). He argues that the authoritarian political apparatus introduced by the American Colonization Society and inherited by the colonizing settlers

[Chris OConnor]

Book 3 Interventions by Noam ChomskyVanity Fair, June 2007"Unwavering political contrarian Noam Chomsky smart-bombs the U.S. military's global 'Interventions'. Shock and awe!" Book Description"Chomsky is a global phenomenon . . . perhaps the most widely read voice on foreign policy on the planet."-The New York Times Book ReviewInterventions is Noam Chomsky at his best. Not since his all-time best-selling title, 9/11, published in the Open Media series in 2001, have readers had a timely, short, easy-to-read, affordable Chomsky. Unlike 9/11, Interventions is a writerly work-a series of more than thirty tightly argued essays aimed at various aspects of US power and politics in the post-9/11 world. While critical of US military interventions around the globe, each piece in the book is in itself an intellectual intervention aimed at raising public ire about the consequences of US use of power at home and abroad. Interventions' subjects span from 9/11 and the Iraq war to Social Security and Intelligent Design, South America and Asia, the Israeli occupation of Palestine and the election of Hamas, Hurricane Katrina, and the US concept of "just war." According to BusinessWeek, "With relentless logic, Chomsky bids us to listen closely to what our leaders tell us-and to discern what they are leaving out. . . . Agree with him or not, we lose out by not listening." Chomsky's Interventions delivers what readers want: an accessible set of skeleton keys for opening up a wide range of global issues dominating today's political landscape. Noam Chomsky is the critically acclaimed author of many books, including Hegemony or Survival, Imperial Ambitions, Failed States, Manufacturing Consent, and Media Control.About the AuthorNoam Chomsky, Ph.D (born December 7, 192 is the Institute Professor Emeritus of linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Chomsky is credited with the creation of the theory of generative grammar, considered to be one of the most significant contributions to the field of theoretical linguistics made in the 20th century. Edited by: Chris OConnor  at: 6/16/07 11:04 pm

[Mr. P]

I will not be participating in the Non Fiction reading as none of these even remotely strikes my interest.Mr. P. But atheism is no more a religion than not playing chess is a hobby. - Robert Sawyer - Sci Fi AuthorI'm not saying it's usual for people to do those things but I(with the permission of God) have raised a dog from the dead and healed many people from all sorts of ailments. - Asana Boditharta (former booktalk troll)"The Sentient may percieve and love the universe, but the universe cannot percieve and love the sentient. The universe sees no distinction between the multitude of creatures and elements which comprise it. All are equal. None is favored...It cannot control what it creates and it cannot, it seems, be controlled by its creations (though a few might decieve themselves otherwise). Those who curse the workings of the universe curse that which is deaf. Those who strike out at those workings fight that which is inviolate. Those who shake their fists, shake their fists at blind stars." - Michael Moorcock in the "Queen of the Swords"

[JulianTheApostate]

3 votes for Noam Chomsky's InterventionsThe two history books don't appeal to me, even though I read plenty of history. There are a few history books on my bookshelf that I plan to read first. Also, early colonial American and Liberia are not areas I'm particular interested in. Finally, it's not clear what we'd talk about.I read some Chomsky in grad school, which was a while ago. Though his book is my favorite of the three, I may not participate even if it's chosen.Out of all the good suggestions, why were these three selected?

[George Ricker]

I'll cast my 3 votes for Mayflower. Of the three choices, this one seems most intriguing. I would like to revisit the book on Liberia later. I love Chomsky, but I doubt I would find much that's new in his book.George "Godlessness is not about denying the existence of nonsensical beings. It is the starting point for living life without them."Godless in America by George A. Ricker

[Chris OConnor]

2 votes for Mayflower and 1 vote for Interventions.

[riverc0il]

3 for Mayflower.I can't bring myself to read more US Policy critique books (not because I disagree with anything Chomsky has to say, but rather because I already completely agree and and sick of the subject). The Liberia books does not interest me.

[thrush]

I vote for Mayflower also.