Category Archives: Readings

David Gibbs’ book, Revolt of the Rich, is interesting and valuable on so many levels. Even the title rings an unexpected note: ‘revolt’ is usually associated with the powerless, not the powerful.  Another general assumption is that the turn toward conservative politics, both at home and abroad, was associated with President Reagen, not the kindlyContinue reading “DAVID GIBBS’S REVOLT OF THE RICH”

After my professional immersion in literature, my retirement finally offered the option of catching up with non-fiction. The comments and “reviews” were, for the most part, stimulated by my active participation in a reading group. I am grateful to my fellow book club participants for introducing me to unfamiliar subjects and for putting up withContinue reading “INTRODUCTION”

Vladimir Brovkin’s Book, From Vladimir Lenin to Vladimir Putin, is remarkable on many levels. Although his book covers the last hundred years, his knowledge has deep roots in Russian history: its Eurasian dimensions, its ethnic diversities, its economy and finances – and last but not least, the organization of its political institutions. His knowledge ofContinue reading “Review of Dr. Vladimir Brovkin’s Book, From Vladimir Lenin to Vladimir Putin”

As Americans, we all live with the urgent question Caleb Maupin addresses in his latest book: Where Is America Going? And if we want to know where we are going – it surely follows that we need to know where we came from.  Moreover, whether we like it or not, we must also acknowledge thatContinue reading “REVIEW OF CALEB MAUPIN’S BOOK”

Sorensen’s book is not primarily about inviting us to “feel” the horrors of war. It is, instead, about “understanding” something – the algorithm that runs “the system” or “war industry” pretty much on auto-pay. People are, naturally, caught up in this system: those that profit from lubricating it, and those that pay the bills inContinue reading “UNDERSTANDING THE WAR INDUSTRY by Christian Sorensen”

INTRODUCTION “Don’t you believe in science?” This is what I hear from my friends and neighbors when I wonder about the policies instituted because of Covid-19. For people who are not doctors or epidemiologists, it has been hard not to be coopted into highly politicized camps. The review below is a first attempt to turnContinue reading “THE COVID 19 CONTROVERSY”

INTRODUCTION I have lived my formative years in an Arabic country, namely Morocco. This experience has resulted in my absolute conviction that Arabs – whether in Morocco or Palestine or elsewhere – are just people like you and me. Of course, people’s historical developments and cultural traditions are different: in particular, Morocco’s colonial status wasContinue reading “UNDERSTANDING THE MIDDLE EAST”

Diana Johnstone’s memoir Circle in the Darkness is immensely absorbing. It recounts events one is familiar enough from reading the papers or watching the news, but then it takes you from what you think you know to what you need to know. Is it “radical” to expect that if “regular” people are told the truth,Continue reading “DIANA JOHNSTONE’S MEMOIR”

INTRODUCTION Yuri Slezkine’s The Jewish Century, and the metaphor of classifying certain peoples (land settled) as Apollonian and others (wanderers) as Mercurian was a moment of personal insight to me. Yuri Slezkine, who was trained as an ethnographer in the Soviet Union, while highlighting the condition of the Jews as a prime example of Mercurians,Continue reading “THE WORKS OF YURI SLEZKINE”