Philip & Allison Nelson: Reading

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Allison's 2010 Books
Title***, Author

        Philip's 2010 Books
Title, Author


Philip's Favorite Books
The Tempting of America: the Political Seduction of the Law, Robert H. Bork
The Vision of the Anointed, Thomas Sowell (America's leading intellectual)
The Road To Serfdom, Frederick Hayek
Cry, The Beloved Country, Alan Paton

         Allison's Favorite Books - Non-fiction
Slouching Toward Gomorrah - Robert H. Bork
Wild Swans - Jung Chang
Cheaper by the Dozen -- Gilbreth
John Adams - David McCullough
Anything by Thomas Sowell (e.g., The Vision of the Anointed)
Anything by Ann Coulter (e.g., Treason)
 
       Allison's Favorite Books - Fiction
Perelandra Series - C.S. Lewis
To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
Crossing to Safety - Wallace Stegner
Anything by Charles Dickens (e.g., David Copperfield)
Anything by Ray Bradbury (e.g., Fahrenheit 451)

        Why We Support Traditional Marriage
Collection of reasons for voting YES on California's Prop. 8
My Reply to Morris Thurston re: 6 Consequences if Prop. 8 Fails
News & Commentary
Powerlineblog is a must-read.  The writing is good, the analysis is impeccable, and the topics always current.  Because it links to  interesting primary sources, this is my favorite news aggregator, with consistently intelligent and interesting political commentary.

Good 2010 Articles

Labash: Living Like a Liberal (long, but funny)
Spruiell: Mechanical Failure (of the economy)
Lowry: Bedtime Stories for Islamic World
Krauthammer on NASA's new mission
Enforced Diversity in Financial Sector--and beyond?
Epstein on Supreme Court, Religious Speech
George Will on AZ law
York on AZ law
Article on California Bond Sales
WSJ: Obama's Failure to Foreign Dissidents
NR: The Descent of Liberalism
Time: article
UCI MSU anti-Isreal plot part-II
UCI MSU anti-Israel plot
WashTimes re: John Adams Project
NR re: John Adams Project
Oaks talk to Harvard audience
Obama's Cousin on Obama-care
Simons on Wilders
Krauthammer on Geert Wilders
Texas v. California re: Taxes
Reading People Talk
FT: Lessons from Fed's Past
Yoo in WSJ: My  Gift to the Obama Presidency
Spruiell: Accounting for Fannie, Freddie
W. Ex'r: DOJ Conflict of Interest?
Frum on Ron Paul's Money Plan
Steyn: Obama an Orator?
NJ, Taylor: More Miranda Idiocy
Peters: Miranda Wrongs
Sowell: The Fallacy of Fairness
Kudlow: The Global Debt Revolt
Super Bowl: Audi Commercial
Goldberg on Obama, Ideology
Krauthammer Lecture: The Age of Obama
Steyn: Review of Obama S.O.U.
NRO: Discussion of whether to support Bernanke
WSJ: Taylor Replies to Bernanke on Taylor Rule
Steyn: Obama's Speeches--too much of a bad thing
NRO: Lib Profs, Class Envy, and Caring
Krauthamer:The Meaning of Brown
Lee: The ethical case against 'strategic' default
WSJ: The Rise of Mortgage 'Walkers'
WSJ: Uncertainty and the Slow Recovery
WSJ: on Fed. plan to stop buying mortgages
Big Journalism: on Climategate
Hatch et al.: Health Care Bill Unconstitutional
Impact of an Inverted Yield Curve
WSJ: Price for Fannie, Freddie Goes Up
WSJ: Unlimited Fund for Fannie, Freddie through 2012

Allison's 2009 Books
The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History, John Barry
The Death of Common Sense, Philip Howard
Ina May's Guide to Childbirth, Ina May Gaskin
Square Foot Gardening, Mel Bartholomew
The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth, Henci Goer
State of Fear, Michael Crichton
The Magician's Assistant, Ann Patchett
The Help, Stockett
East, Pattou
Hunter's Moon
, D.R. Melling
The Summer King, D.R. Melling
The Light Bearer's Daughter, D.R. Melling
House of Dreams, D.R. Melling
One More River To Cross, Young
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Shaffer
Contagion, Robin Cook
Train Go, Sorry, Cohen

        Philip's 2009 Books
1976, David McCullough
Fire in the Bones, S. Michael Wilcox

Philip's Favorite Books
The Tempting of America: the Political Seduction of the Law, Robert H. Bork
The Vision of the Anointed, Thomas Sowell (America's leading intellectual)
The Road To Serfdom, Frederick Hayek
Cry, The Beloved Country, Alan Paton

         Allison's Favorite Books - Non-fiction
Slouching Toward Gomorrah - Robert H. Bork
Wild Swans - Jung Chang
Cheaper by the Dozen -- Gilbreth
John Adams - David McCullough
Anything by Thomas Sowell (e.g., The Vision of the Anointed)
Anything by Ann Coulter (e.g., Treason)
 
       Allison's Favorite Books - Fiction
Perelandra Series - C.S. Lewis
To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
Crossing to Safety - Wallace Stegner
Anything by Charles Dickens (e.g., David Copperfield)
Anything by Ray Bradbury (e.g., Fahrenheit 451)


        Why We Support Traditional Marriage
Collection of reasons for voting YES on California's Prop. 8
My Reply to Morris Thurston re: 6 Consequences if Prop. 8 Fails
Good 2009 Articles
WSJ: Price for Fannie, Freddie Goes Up
Steyn: Climate Hypocrites
NRO: 5 Reasons Obamacare might not pass
Rove: Obama No B+
WSJ: OK to Walk Away From Mortgage?
Steyn on Obama's Windbaggery
Steyn: The Unrealistic Realist
Sowell: Dismantling America
Schlafly: Obama Makes Polygamy a 21st Centry Issue
Goldberger: Winner Take All on Healthcare
Krauthammer: Medicalizing Mass Murder
Meese: Power of Plaintiffs' Bar
Steyn: Ideology of Terrorism
Frum on Romney
Rush: Race Card, Football
Bolton: Obama's Dangerous Dithering
Black: Failure All Around
Time, Von Drehle: Peace Prize Should Go To Nukes
RCP: Nobel Prize for Moral Posturing
Ponnuru: Romney Reboots
National Affairs: Who Killed California?
Krauthammer: Obamma's French Lesson
RCP, Olsen: Reemerging Republican Majority?
Macleans, Steyn: Dislike Obama? You must be racist.
WS, Greenwald: Post-Allied America
WSJ, Rove: Obama Getting Stale
NR, Lund: The Case Against Boies-Olson
Wash. Times: Worst Foreign Policy Ever
Krauthammer: Van Jones, Trutherism as Political Psychosis
Goldberg: A Ring of Truth(ers)
Coulter's Healthcare series: #1, #2, #3, #4
Hanson: From Preparedness to Appeasement
Goldberg (from 2003): "Bush=Hitler"
WSJ: The Real CIA News
Rove in WSJ: Obama and the Perfect Political Storm
Barone: Gov. Healthcare in Stealth Mode
Golberg: Democrats' Fear Is Showing on Health Care
Steyn: The Community Is Restless
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death Panels (McCarthy, Steyn)
Sowell: Whose Medical Decisions?
Charen: Up North (healthcare)
NRO: Hawaii as Healthcare Bad Example
Rove: Obama can't sell Obamacare with empty slogans
Goldberg: Broken window fallacy and healthcare
Kling: Economists with Pseudo-Knowledge
Interesting ethics debate on foreclosures, religious questions
Forbes, Robinson: Kennedy's Soviet Gambit
Steyn: Airbrushing out Mary Jo Kopechne
Radosh: Communist in the White House? (Van Jones)
WS, Joscelyn: What Made KSM Talk?
VDH: Obama and "Redistributive Change"
WSJ: Gay Marriage, Democracy, and the Courts
Duncan: On Iowa's redefinition of Marriage
Duncan: Overview of Marriage Law History, Bush's Efforts
Great source for "Global Warming" data, debate: Climate Audit
Barone on cash for clunkers, unintended consequences
Sowell: Utopia versus Freedom
Steyn: Healthcare is A LIBERTY ISSUE
Coulter: How About a National Conversation on Race Hoaxes?
VDH: Our Angry Aristocracy
Hawkins: Conservatives often betrayed; Sarah Palin
Geraghty: Charting Obamacare
Krauthammer: Obamma's tactical retreat
Barnes: Obama's hardball tactics backfiring
Old archive of me in the newspaper (Don't know where to put this)
NR: Interesting Global Temp. Charts
NYT: Bouchard against researcher conformity
Feldman: Is Obama Smart and Literate?
Krauthammer: Obama's illusory health-care nirvana
Goldberg: Ginsberg and Eugenics
Sowell: A Personal "Inequity"
Steyn: Gaia and returning pre-industrialized society
Barone: Getting Cold Feed Over Big Gov't
Steyn: The State Despotic
Sowell: Disparate-Impact Dogma
Hitchens:  Irananians wanting to emulate Iraqi elections?
Geraghty: Obamacare doomed to Hillarycare fate?
Obama's flipflop on Taxing Healthcare
Sowell: We get what we pay for with Healthcare
Barone on Obama's Adolescent Behavior
Laffer: On coming inflation, money supply
Steyn: The State Despotic
Sowell: Is Judge Sotomayor in Payback Mode?
WSJ: Obama's paygo ruse
Steyn: bleak, but incisive on Europe, Jewphobia
Krauthammer: Obama Clueless on Iran
Breitbart: Anti-semitism resembles hard-left idealogy
Geraghty: Now acceptable to bash the AMA?
Goldberg: Plea for Obama to do something for Iran
Sowell: Varieties of Nothing
Hitchens: When extreme becomes the norm
Sowell: code name for new racism: 'diversity'
Steyn on Nuclear North Korea, etc.
Steyn on GM and Obama in Cairo
Caroline Glick on the Cairo Speech
Very interesting interview with an Economist (audio)
Coulter uses the pro-abortion logic to discuss Tiller incident
WJ, Greenhut: California Tax Revolt?
Lowrey: Nancy's Nutty CIA Conspiracy Tales
Paulsen: Obama's Injustice Department
McArthy: The Justice Dept's Torture Hypocrisy
Sowell: Obama's rhetoric on 'torture' is unserious
Barone: Chrysler Bailout, UAW interests prevail
Steyn: Conservatives should fight the uphill battle
CRB, Voegeli: Liberal Condescension
Coulter reminds what real torture is
Sowell on the Supreme Court- Time is On Our Side
Mansfield: Is the Overly Predicted Life Worth Living?
Tebow Super Bowl Ad
Brooks: The Sporting Mind
Krauhtammer: The Electorate v. Obama's Agenda
Sowell: A Rookie President
HF: A Brief Guide to the Flat Tax
WSJ on Pelosi's Amnesia
Kudlow: 100-day lurch to the left
Krauthammer: Obama's celebration of American decline
Sowell's Musings on the Age of Obama
Sowell on Mind-Changing Books
Letter: Dear AIG, I Quit!
Goldberg on Labor's Card Check Tricks
Sowell: re: AIG, Politicians are bad actors
Lowry: Afghan war hasn't been tried
Guariglia: White House As Maffia
Sowell: Republican Civil War
Hinderacker: Will China Lend to Obama?
Freddoso: We Are AIG
Krauthammer: Obama unserious on stem cells
Dr. Demming Congressional Testimony on global 'warming'
Contentions: Reaganism Dead?
Hanson: Triumph of Banality
Sowell: Why the Intelligentsia Loves Obama, Hates Palin
Steyn: Obama: All At Sea
Spectator: Unemployment and Stimulus
Sowell: Pardon Scooter Libby
Kaplan: Iran's Postmodern Beast in Gaza
Murry (WSJ): Optismistic for 2009
Ledeen on Gaza, Iran
Steyn: Gaza, Clashing Civilizations
Coulter: Banned by NBC for life for being a downer
Schlesinger advocating for real estate investment
Oaks speech: Weightier Matters
        Allison's 2008 Books
Angels and Demons  - Dan Brown
Mayflower --  Philbrick
The Canon
  -- Angier
The Moffats  -- Estes
The Worst Hard Time --  Egan
The Rector's wife -- Trollope
Christy  -- Marshall
Tangerine  -  Bloor
Cheaper by the Dozen  -- Gilbreth
Status Anxiety   -- de Botton
If Life were Easy it Wouldn't be Hard -- Dew
Into the Wild  -- Krakauer
In Defense of Food  -- Pollan
The Lost Years of Merlin  -- Barron
The Seven Songs of Merlin  --  Barron
The Fires of Merlin  -- Barron
The Mirror of Merlin  --  Barron
The Wings of Merlin  --  Barron
The Glass Castle  -- Walls
Three Came Home -- Keith
The Omnivore's Dilemma  -- Pollan
Creating a world without Poverty  --  Yunnus
The Sweet Far Thing  -- Bray
Women of the Silk -- Tsukiyama
Precious Bane  -- Webb
Old Filth --  Gardam
Citizen Soldiers  -- Ambrose
A Coal Miner's Bride -- Bartoletti
Marley and Me -- Grogan
Woman in White -- Collins
Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant -- Tyler
The Seven Dials Mystery -- Christie
The Boy who Dared  -- Bartoletti
Crisis -- Cook
The Goose Girl -- Hale
Much Ado About Jessie Kaplan -- Cohen
The Question of God -- Nicholi
The Miracle at Speedy Motors  -- Smith
The Alchemist -- Coelho
Princess Academy  --  Hale
Jane Austen in Scarsdale  --  Cohen
Sorcery and Cecelia  --  Wrede and Stevermer

Philip's 2008 Books
The Inimitable Jeeves -- P.G. Wodehouse
Into the Wild  -- Krakauer (intriguing, but not necessarily recommended)
The Connection -- Steven Hayes (well-researched, relatively short book
detailing how al Qaeda's collaboration with Saddam Hussein has endangered
the U.S.; highly recommended)
The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 -- Lawrence Wright  (Very well-written narrative of the main terrorists, middle-eastern leaders, and U.S. investigators planning and investigating attacks leading up to 9/11.  Highly recommended).

         Allison's Favorite Books - Non-fiction
Slouching Toward Gomorrah - Robert H. Bork
Wild Swans - Jung Chang
Cheaper by the Dozen -- Gilbreth
John Adams - David McCullough
Anything by Thomas Sowell (e.g., The Vision of the Anointed)
Anything by Ann Coulter (e.g., Treason)
 
       Allison's Favorite Books - Fiction
Perelandra Series - C.S. Lewis
To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
Crossing to Safety - Wallace Stegner
Anything by Charles Dickens (e.g., David Copperfield)
Anything by Ray Bradbury (e.g., Fahrenheit 451)

       Philip's Favorite Books
The Tempting of America: the Political Seduction of the Law, Robert H. Bork
The Vision of the Anointed, Thomas Sowell (America's leading intellectual
The Road To Serfdom, Frederick Hayek
Cry, The Beloved Country, Alan Paton


Good 2008 Articles
Duncan: California Betrayal
Duncan: For Marriage, A Good Lawyer is Hard to Find
Sowell: Politics is the art of the IMpossible
Steyn: An Obamafied American Idol Christmas
Sowell recommends: Outliers
Sowell: Another Great Depression?
McGurn in WSJ: Now for an Honest Debate on Gitmo
Malkin on Kooky Politics and trutherism
Coffin: Enough with the Oogedy-Boogedy
Ponnuru: Scapegoating the Social Right
Kristol: patriotism helps fight terror
Sowell: Ivan and Boris Again: We are all Russian peasants?
Barone: Rangel to keep tax cuts?
Steyn: It's Not the Cold War: Updating strategy to fight the ideology
Prager: Is Gay the New Black?
Rove: Now Obama Has to Govern
Hanson: Failure Is Not an Option
Malkin: Married to the Mob: Insane Same-Sex Marriage Rage
Sowell: The Right To Win: Wrong
Sowell: "Intellectuals": Ignorance Has Consequences
Steyn: The Death of the American Idea
Malkin: Cowards
Goldberg: Progressivisms Achilles Heel
Duncan: Marriage Moves Voters
NRO: Marriage Endures
Morse: Winning Proposition
My law firm mentioned:  The AmLaw Daily
My law firm slandered: by failed former KMOB associate
Very Interesting Video: Burning Down the House
Freddoso: Where Credit Is Due
Goldberg: No One's Clean
Sowell: Bailout Politics
Freddoso: Frank Talk: Just an oversight
VDH: Dr. Frankenstein's Wall Street
Pearlstein: Gut Check
Malkin on the bad loans
The Economist Reviews Freddoso's book on Obama
Blankley: The Man Who Never Was
Blankenhorn: Liberal Democrat Supporting Prop. 8
We might go see this: Forever Strong
Coulter derides Democrat fake religiosity
Hassett: Financial Crisis Created by Democrats?
RedState: Article Regarding TARP
Kurtz: Obama and Ayers Pushed Radicalism On Schools
Hitchens: Is Obama Another Dukakis?
Malkin: on censorship Hollywood ignores
City Journal re Community Reinvestment Act "boding ill"
Krauthammer on Gibson's gaffe interviewing Palin
Sowell: Idols of Crowds
Goldberg on Obama's technology attack ad
Malkin on Al Qaeda wanting credit for 9-11
Krauthammer: Obama's Descent to Earth
Sowell on the Left's lovely dreamworld
Goldberg: basketball analogy on McPalin
Barone on Obama's fading narrative
Robinson interviews Schlaes re: Great Depressiont
NRO: Conservative Summer Reading
Pipes: Grass Greener With Socialized Medicine?
Is Obama a Radical?
Schiffren: Confiscatory Tax Dreams of My Father
Freddoso: Obama Record on  Abortion
FRC: The Slippery Slope of Same-Sex 'Marriage'
2008 Republican Platform
Great interview of an LDS stake president on "I Believe"
Map: the world as seen from Paris
A Conservative Political Humor Movie!?
Latest data on Who Pays the Taxes
Strassel: Republican Energy Fumble
Eastland: Oops!  Supreme Court Goofs
Gerard Baker: He Ventured Forth To Bring Light Unto The World (very funny)
Malkin: Ill-Timed Pelosi Book Tour Decrying Hipocrisy
Schoenfeld: Penetrating the Iranian Underground
Wa-Po: Obama's Timeline Not Supported By Iraqis
Mirengoff: War and Peace and the Democrats
David Brooks: Obama Playing Innocent Abroad
Even the Wa-Po recognizes Obama's Iraq timeline is foolish
Devastating Krauthammer column about Obama's Narcicism
Andrew Ferguson on Impolitic Truths
Phyllis Schlafly on Jesse Helms
Ann Coulter chimes in on Jesse Helms
Jesse Helms' 2000 Speech to the U.N. Security Council
Fred Barnes on Helms, 1997 Article, and 2008 adendum
WSJ comments on Jesse Helms
Great Fed-Soc Panel on 2007 Sup. Ct. Term
Rove on Obama's Revisionist History
WSJ Editorial on McCain, Global Warming
Steyn on Obama, Rev. Wright at the Nat'l Press Club
Cryosphere Today: Polar Sea Ice Data (note growth of Southern ice)
Sowell on the Consequences of Faux "Reporting"
Sharansky on the supposed Euro rift
D'Nesh D'Souza at C-PAC anti-atheism talk
David Pryce-Jones: Book review of 'Human Smoke'

Mark Levin: Rally for Romney
Thomas Sowell: McCain's Straight Lies
Levin: The Real McCain Record
Dan Riehl: Endorses Romney
Glenn Beck tribute to President Hinckley
Mark Levin: Speak Up!
McCarthy: Your Speech or Your Life!
Robert Bork on McCain and Huckabee
Call for Fred supporters to support Romney
MSNBC Florida Republican Debate
Coulter: The Elephant in the Room
Lowry: The Huck Hoax
Steyn: Fictional Horrors of War
Funny blog: unnecessary quotation marks
G.O.P. debate analysis
George Will: The Phantom Menace
2007 Books (Allison)
Crocodile On The Sandbank- Peters
Portuguese Irregular Verbs- Smith
Camille- Dumas
Slaughterhouse Five- Vonnegut
Curse of the Pharaohs- Peters
The Mummy Case- Peters
The Finer Points Of Sausage Dogs- Smith
At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances-- Smith
Lion in the Valley -- Peters
A Raisin in the Sun -- Hansberry
Undaunted Courage -- Ambrose
What I Saw at the Revolution  --  Noonan
The Deeds of the Disturber -- Peters
The Last Camel Died at Noon -- Peters
The, Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog -- Peters
Ronald Reagan: How an Ordinary Man Became an Extraordinary Leader -- D'Souza
Twilight -- Meyers
New Moon -- Meyers
Blue Shoes and Happiness  -- Smith
The Hippopotamus Pool  -- Peters
The Lost Colony -- Colfer
Seeing A Large Cat -- Peters
Godless -- Coulter
The Ape Who Guards the Balance -- Peters
Heroes of History  --  Churchill
Goodbye Mr. Chips -- Hilton
Face of a Stranger -- Perry
The Falcon at the Portal -- Peters
Freakanomics -- Leavitt and Dubner
The Giant Rat of Sumatra -- Sid Fleischman
The Thirteenth Tale -- Setterfield
America Alone -- Mark Steyn
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -- Rowling
Our Hearts were Young and Gay -- Skinner
Manhunt  -- Swanson
Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin  --  Franklin
A Door in the Wall  -- de Angeli
Founding Mothers  --  Roberts
Fast Food Nation -- Schlosser
Saint Maybe  --  Tyler
When Madeline was Young --  Hamilton
Team of Rivals  --  Goodwin
The Secret Adversary  -- Christie
Marker  --  Cook
Letters From Earth  -- Twain
The Good Husband of Zebra Drive  --  Smith
The Stranger -- Albert Camus
The Piano Shop on the Left Bank -- Thad Carhart




The Romney Flip-Flop Fallacy (Philip's 'brief' on the subject)

McCain Feingold Research

Brief arguing against constituationality of McCain Feingold
FEC v. WRTL Supreme Court case--McCain loses
Bopp: Silencing Criticism, the history of sham arguments for McCain Feingold.
McCain on McCain-Feingold
Lowry: Why the FCC needs to keep its hands off YouTube.

Mitt Romney Speech, etc.

Mitt Romney's Speech: Text, Video
NRO Symposium: Latter-Day Speaker
James Dobson
Fred Barnes: Romney's Achievement
Kathleen Parker: One Nation ...
K-Lopez: A Faithful American Candidate
Hewitt: Common Creed of Moral Convictions
Michael Medved: Romney's Home Run
Rush: Romney Raised the Bar
Rush: Romney's Inspiring Speech
Rush: Romney Speech Freaks Out Libs
Peggy Noonan: Mormon in America
Steorts: Rational Questions
Buchanan: Mitt's Hour of Power

Krauthhammer: Huck's Unholy Dance
Kathryn Lopez on Huckabee
David Limbaugh on Huckabee
2007 Books (Philip)
Godless -- Ann Coulter
America Alone -- Mark Steyn
The Giant Rat of Sumatra -- Sid Fleischman
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -- J.K. Rowling

Good 2007 Articles
O'Sullivan: Huckabee or McCain?
Beran: Comrade Billionaire
Quin Hillyer: Angry Old Man
John O'Sullivan: The best laid plans o’ mice and men/Gang oft agley
Steyn on Pakistan
NRO Editors on McCain
Jeffrey Holland answers all the hard questions
NRO Endorses Romney
Mona Charen: A Second Look at Romney
Michael Novak endorses Romney
K-Lopez: A Mormon Can Be President
NRO Editors: Romney's Religion
Article on Romney's Mission in France
Stanley Kurtz on Pakistan: Al-Qaedastan
Haaretz Article: Did Israel strike a nuclear bomb assembly site?
Count Rangula - Article on Charles Rangel tax proposal
Inconvenient Tax Truths - WSJ Article
Strange that this erstwhile Syrian Nuclear Cache has received so little news attention.
Gerard Alexander: The Myth of Racist Republicans
Ann Coulter points out that the Democratic response to Petraeus was  never in question
Why We Are In Iraq: Book Review of Norman Podheretz' new book
Bruce Bawer on The Peace Racket
Amir Taheri on Iran's Ward On The Kurds
David Ignatius on The Real Causes of the Financial Storm
Michael Barone makes some reasonable points regarding racial preferences in grad. school.
Story of maddening mine activism in Eastern Europe.
Interesting Review of The Al Qaeda Reader.
CAIR loses more credibility every day than it ever had to start with.
Eliot Spitzer's fall from grace is amusing, given his recent rock-star status in NY.
Lots of news on the Fed as lender of last resort lately, but to me, the picture is still fuzzy.  These seem to shed some light: Bernanke, Bagehot
Website reminiscent of the old classic: "Powers of Ten"
Larry Kudlow on Sub-primes and the Fed
Run on the banks?
Atheist Tracts -- Harvey Mansfield slaps down the arrogant atheist Christopher Hitchens.  (Although Hitchens is good on the war/security).
I haven't ever wanted to see Schindler's List.  How can anyone feel uplifted by seeing such horrors, no matter what the underlying message?  This review describes well some additional reasons I have to dislike the whole genre.
Funny Mark Steyn article ruminating on everything at once.
Book lecture by author of an interesting book exposing evolution's junk science.
Gripping true first-hand account of an operation to arrest a corrupt Iraqi official.
Michael Ledeen on Iranian Kidnappings of U.S. Citizens.
Peter Berkowitz on "The Conservative Mind" through works of Kirk, Hayek, & Strauss.
NY Post: Al Qaeda is in Iraq, despite the left's attempt to change the subject.
Slightly outdated written debate on the picture in Iraq from two very credible commentators.
Interesting moves by Sarkozy's foreign minister.
Mark Steyn draws some strange connections to immigration 'reform.'
The great debate: Reagan v. RFK
Two great cartoons on gas prices:  Gas Fumes, and Who's Gouging?
Bernard Lewis Contrasting U.S.& Russia on ability to deter Terrorists
Norman Podheretz: The Case For Bombing Iran (Commentary)
World Bank Rolls : the trumped-up "scandal" at the World Bank.
Outstanding and incisive comment by Senator Lieberman on the surrender bill.
Michael Barone on political demographics and the booming heartland.
Sarkozy's New Europeans, by Anne Applebaum.
NY Sun Article on a leading Vietnam historian's difficulty: campus politics.
Good UN Watch piece in Le Figaro.
Call for PBS to free the film "Islam v. the Islamists."
Steyn skewers Obama on the light bulb comment, while making broader points.
A more hopeful analysis on political progress in Iraq.
Mark Steyn draws some conclusions from the capture of the Fort Dix Six.
Review of British Documentary debunking Global Warming myths.
Dead End: an interesting, if pessimistic, historical argument that we can't prevail in Iraq because we will not terrorize the population.
In Orientalism, Said says it wrong: an essay on the truths from the travel literature.
Analysis of Presidential Race from the American Thinker.
Great article from 1999, but still relevant: Was Kissinger Right?
I like this NY Post article on the Iran intelligence.
Good analysis of disputes in the middle east NOT related to Israel.
I have high hopes for U.S. success killing terrorists in Somalia.  Will we succeed?
VDH on The Surge Gamble.
Caroline Glick compares the Iraq strategy to Israel's operations.
Pelosi's Price Club.  Why federal government negotiation for drugs is foolish.
Interesting Article about Supreme Court case on use of union dues.
The New 'Yellow Peril' : Sowell on Discrimination against Asians.
Book Review of "Sins on the Sienne," France's betrayal of Israel.
Sandy Berger: What Did He Take, and Why Did He Take It?
Interesting news about some trends in Japanese politics, including defense policy.
Daily Standard article on U.S. efforts in Somalia.
Terrorizing the Terrorists in Somalia.
2006 Books  (Allison)

The Member of the Wedding- McCullers
Year of the Griffin--Diana Wynne Jones
Dark Lord of Derkholm - Diana Wynne Jones
Shane - Schaefer
Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde - Robert Louis Stevenson
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut
Hiroshima - Hersey
The Prince and the Pauper - Mark Twain
Siddhartha - Hesse
Double Indemnity - Cain
The Optimist's Daughter - Eudora Welty
Collapse - Jarrod Diamond
Artemis Fowl: The Cube - Eoin Colfer
Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception - Eoin Colfer
Two Years Before the  MastRichard Henry Dana
DuneFrank Herbert
The 39 Steps - John Buchan
Greenmantle - John Buchan
Mr. Midshipman Hornblower - C.S. Forester
Blink - Malcolm Gladwell
The Tipping Point - Malcolm Gladwell
We the Living - Rand
A Good Year  - Mayles
Toxin  - Cook
Murder in the Cathedral - Eliot
Death in the Family - Agee
Secret Agent - Conrad
Fraternity of the Stone  - Murrow
These is my words  - Turner
Never Let me go - Ishiguro
Out of Africa - Dinesen
Sunday Philosophy Club - Smith
North and South - Gaskell
House of Seven Gables - Hawthorne
Belinda - Edgeworth
Ender's Game - Card
A Great and Terrible Beauty - Bray
Rebel Angels - Bray
Mister Monday - Nix
Johnny Tremain - Forbes





        Rob's 2006 Booklist

2006 Books (Philip)

Saddam's Secrets: How An Iraqi General Defied and Survived Saddam Hussein
, by Georges Sada. 
     General Sada is a Christian who came to play an important advisory role to Saddam after a brilliant career as a fighter pilot.  The style is unabashed, with frequent mentions of his faith.  Includes nuggets such as a planned chemical attack on Israel before the 1st gulf war (called off at the last minute after American forces attacked Baghdad) and detailed accounts of WMD smuggling flights to Syria before Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Treachery: How America's Friends and Foes Are Secretly Arming Our Enemies
, Bill Gertz, 2005, 287 pages.
     This sobering account catalogues the arms deals to and between the axis of evil countries.  Germany, China, Russia, France, and Pakistan hardly seem to be America's friends, given the facts discussed here.  The reporting is thorough, but occasionally the reader's eyes glaze over from the sheer volume and complexity of these shady transactions.  My conclusion: we should triple the budget for all counter-proliferation operations that don't involve the state department.  (This can be paid for by having a flat tax--ending the IRS--or abolishing the department of education, for example).

Rescue of the 1856 Handcart Companies, Rebecca Bartholomew and Leonard J. Arrington, 1993.
     Very interesting factual account of the rescue and status of the handcart companies at the end of their journey.  Relatively dry prose, but it makes the true pioneer stories all the more dramatic--many quoted directly from first-hand sources.

Imperial Grunts: The American Military on the Ground
,, Robert Kaplan, 2005, 372 pages.
     Interesting first-hand travelogue by a modern journalist, describing experiences with Army Special Operations Forces in Yemen, the Philippines, the Horn of Africa, Mongolia, Afghanistan, Colombia, and Iraq.  Good blend of historical and geographic background with actual events; style ranges from historical meditation to reports of actual military operations.  Realistic, unedited descriptions (including frequent profanities when quoting the military).  Despite this, I enjoyed it quite well, and learned a lot about world politics, history, and the complex American military, as well as the lives and missions of its courageous "grunts."

Good 2006 Articles

Refutation of the common refrain that "conservatism is finished."
Interesting article arguing that Baker's ISG is "shilling" for the Saudis.
Good Mark Steyn Article: Exit Bolton
Interesting monograph on America's relationship with Israel by Martin Kramer.
An Excerpt from Mark Steyn's new book.
Very interesting BYU speech about CS Lewis' views on eugenics, the modern abortion debate, etc.
I want to read Isaiah Berlin's essay on two concepts of liberty.  Here is a blurb that talks about it a little.  (Berlin, I., 1969, 'Two Concepts of Liberty', in I. Berlin, Four Essays on Liberty, London: Oxford University Press. New ed. in Berlin 2002)
Putin's statist crackdowns have not been in the news, but they should be.  This interesting articles asks: What Time Is It In Russia?
An article from the Brussels Journal, a new find.
Interesting short history of recent world affairs, showing disastrous effects of the Carter years.  The writing isn't that polished, but it is still worth a read.
This article points out some economic effects of improved security, but disagrees with the WSJ, saying they are worth it.
Tony Blankley adds more analysis of the Waziristan agreement.
This article paints the recent Musharaf-Waziristan agreement as a surrender by Pakistan, and backs it up with details of the agreement's terms.
William Kristol argues for a larger army.  Sounds persuasive.
Richard Miniter, an authority on the hunt for Osama, contradicts Clinton's disingenuous outburst: What Clinton Didn't Do... and when he didn't do it.
Mark Steyn reviews a new book by Juan Williams--sounds like Juan makes some good points.  He must have learned something from Fred Barnes et al.
Condi v. Bubba, from the NY Post.
Bring Them Freedom, Or They Destroy Us. I've only heard good things about Bernard Lewis, and this article didn't let me down.  Great historical insights into Arabs and Democracy.
Use and Abuse of Churchill in History, by Steven F. Hayward.
VDH sees good news for November.
The Pope and Kissinger Warn the World, by Tony Blankley.
Global Warming: Apocalypse Now?, from Commentary.
WSJ article: no global warming consensus, by "MIT's inconvenient scientist."
Article on Mitt Romney in the American Spectator.
Political advice and thoughts by Jed Babbin.
I used this site to help me make our website.
Good editorial and overview of the insurgency at Dartmouth.
Steyn's commentary on  the forced conversion of the kidnapped reporters.
Good article, great title: Rumsfeld Speaks, Democrats Screech.
Mark Steyn points out there is a new book debunking 9-11 conspiracy theories.
Ann Coulter's take on Lincoln Chafee.

Article making a point I had also considered--Romney as V.P. would exhaust all the Mormon bashing and he would have a better chance at president later.
Thoughtful, nay, INSPIRED interview responses by Dallin H. Oaks and Lance B. Wickman on same-gender attraction.
Latest great article by Ann Coulter.
Mark Steyn reviews Coulter's new book: "Godless."
Continental Drift.  A very interesting essay by Jeremy Rabkin on the Euro "Constitution"
Iran's Showdown with the West, by David Frum at AEI
Hezbollah on the ropes - A heartening view by Steve Schippert.
War-torn Democrats Monograph, by Peter Berkowitz.
Joseph Epstein ruminates on the friendships of famous intellectuals, and makes interesting observations about friendship itself.
Amir Taheri explicates the Iranian/Hezbollah relationship.
Coulter chronicles War on Terror events.
Romney poll is not as bad as the LA Times asserts.  What strikes me is that the way the poll was worded, it was a perfect "bigot" identifier.
Patience Is Wearing Thin, by Victor Davis Hanson at RCP.
The Fallacy of Proportionality, by Daren Bakst at TAE.
In this Report From Israel, Joel Mobray interviews Natan Sharansky.  Great analysis and overview.
The New Antisemitism, by Bernard Lewis.
Who Pays The Taxes I & Who Pays The Taxes II, by Bruce Bartlett.
Horowitz v. Beinart.  Beinart may claim to be a "hard" liberal that opposes MoveOn.org and the Michael Moore types, but Horowitz shows how Bush Derangement Syndrome clouds his analysis even so.
Free To Press, by John Eastman.  Thorough analysis of NY Times liability for violating U.S. laws.
The Real Iraq by Amir Taheri.  I really like the first-hand facts and clear-eyed analysis in this article, and the writing is excellent, too.
After Compassionate Conservatism, by Andrew Busch.
Interview with Victor Davis Hanson, historian extraordinaire.
Interview with Michael Yon, discussion of Zarqawi killing, etc.
The Sorry State of the CIA, and Why Its Unlikely To Improve
.
Mark Steyn's Book Review of Londonistan.
With This Bill... Fred Barnes' discussion of the Senate's Marriage Bill
Outstanding recent Thomas Sowell articles on immigration:
     The current bill: Bordering on Fraud (BOF) I, BOF II, BOF III
     Political angle:  Republicans and  Immigration 
     Economic angle: Hidden Costs, Why Not Everybody?,
     On the protest marches: Immigration "Solutions", An Ugly Reality
     Guests or Gate Crashers I, Guests or Gate Crashers II
I'm happy to see Rush places two songs in the top 50 of conservative rock.
In defense of SPRAWL!  I'm convinced it is a great thing.
Noam Chomsky is indeed America's Dumbest 'Intellectual'.
This thoughtful Wall Street Journal piece debunks four myths about the Iraq war.
Dennis Prager points out how Liberal Thought has become an oxymoron.
This is a great book review of what looks like a very lame book.
On Immigration, this Wall Stree Journal article makes some pretty good  economic arguments, but this rebuttal from David Frum is more convincing.
A Genius For Friendship: Lincoln As Lawyer, Scott W. Johnson & John H. Hinderaker (06/30/2000; Claremont Institute)
Bowing To Precedent: A decent respect for the Constitution should cause the Supreme Court to reconsider some past decisions, by Robert F. Nagel (04/17/2006; Weekly Standard)
France's Immigrant Problem--And Ours, by Victor Davis Hanson (03/24/2006; Claremont Institute)
9/11: Debunking The Myths (March/2005; Popular Mechanics)

2005 Books (Allison)
                                                                                                                           
Unexpected Guest - Agatha Christie
The Mysterious Affair at Styles - Agatha Christie
The Vision of the AnointedThomas Sowell
Anthem - Ayn Rand
The No. 1 Ladies detective agency - Alexander McCall Smith
Pilgrim’s ProgressJohn Bunyan
How to talk to a liberal if you must - Ann Coulter
The Case for Democracy - Natan Sharansky
The Mystery of the Blue TrainAgathie Christie
Tears of the GiraffeAlexander McCall Smith
Truman David McCullough
Beloved - Toni Morrison
Conquests and Cultures Thomas Sowell
Unholy Alliance - David Horowitz
Screwtape LettersC. S. Lewis
The Elusive Pimpernel - Orczy
Middlemarch - George Eliot
Crossing to Safety - Wallace Stegner
The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
Zemindar - Valerie Fitzgerald
Reading Lolita in Tehran - Nafisi
Life of Pi -Yann Martel
The Half Blood Prince J.K Rowling
The American Republic - Winston Churchill
Angle of Repose -Wallace Stegner
Scoop - Evelyn Waugh
Morality for Beautiful Girls - Alexander McCall Smith
Kalahari Typing School for Men - Alexander McCall Smith
Full Cupboard of Life - Alexander McCall Smith
Babbitt - Sinclair Lewis
Path Between the Seas - David McCullough
Deliverance - James Dickey
Call of the Wild - Jack London
Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
Mere Christianity - C.S. Lewis
Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
Amsterdam - Ian McEwan
The Five People You Meet In HeavenMitch Albom
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nightime - Mark Haddon
Migrations and Cultures - Thomas Sowell
White Fang - Jack London
Rich Dad, Poor Dad - Robert T. Kiyosaki
In the Company of Cheerful LadiesAlexander McCall Smith
The Bridge on the River Kwai - Pierre Boule
Milkweed - Jerry Spinelli
Wringer - Jerry Spinelli
The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
The Illustrated Man - Ray Bradbury
Artemis Fowl - Eoin Colfer
Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident - Eoin Colfer
2005 Books (Philip)

Coercing Virtue: The Worldwide Rule of Judges, Robert Bork
The Vision of the Anointed, Thomas Sowell
Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News, Bernard Goldberg
Life in the Law: Answering God's Interrogatories, J. Reuben Clark Law Society
How to talk to a liberal if you must, Ann Coulter
The Case for Democracy, Natan Sharansky
Conquests and Cultures, Thomas Sowell
Unholy Alliance, David Horowitz
The Half Blood Prince, J.K Rowling
Migrations and Cultures, Thomas Sowell
John Adams, David McCullough
Arrogance: Rescuing America from the Media Elite, Bernard Goldberg
The Road To Serfdom, Frederick Hayek