Book Reviews

My wife is a fanatical reader. She reads anything from books about Khrushchev to books about the exciting lives of crossword puzzle writers. It amazes me that she can read a book and fall asleep in mid-sentence and pick up at the same place the next time she reads. I have to stop at the end of a chapter or at minimum a place where the story jumps to another character or situation.

Anyways, I would like to discuss some of the recent books I have read as well as hear your thoughts about what I might be interested in reading. And please don't tell me James Patterson or some other "A Walk in the Clouds" type book, I'm sure he is a phenomenal writer but pure love stories just don't interest me. Disclaimer: I don't always have to be open-minded... do I?

First off I would like to recommend Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. This is a powerful and compelling book all the while telling a personal story. I find myself trying to emulate some of the characters and in my opinion she could be predicting a future. I say "a" future because there are infinite possibilities regarding the future so to state that she "has" predicted the future would be premature. The only drawback to this book are it's nearly 1,200 pages and the authors large vocabulary. Now I may not have a rapist's wit like my friend Jon but I consider myself a learned man and I had to ask my wife what some words actually meant.

I also recently read 1984 and Animal farm by George Orwell. Very fascinating books, also quite possibly predicting "a" future. 1984 is also one of the best books I have ever read and just in the last few days I re-read the last few chapters. I still get a chill reading it. Orwell has a knack for making me feel like it could be me experiencing some of the things that his characters experience while at the same time letting me (the reader) discover what those experiences are. I hope that made sense.

Animal Farm on the other hand was not as exciting as the aforementioned books but did only take about 3 hours to read. Orwell's message is clear but I almost felt like it was written by a 15-year-old who had no idea what his message would be only she liked to write about animals. that said, I did enjoy it and would recommend it not only for its brevity but its thought-provoking ideas.

I can't say enough about R.A. Salvatore. He is definitely the best writer I have ever read. His books are based on a character named Drizzt (apparently pronounced Drisst but I will be a non-conformist and continue to say Drizzit). These are fantasy/sci-fi books much like Tolkien but in my humble opinion written exponentially better than the Lord of the Rings series (see below). I have read the two main series, "Icewind Dale Trilogy" and "Dark Elf Trilogy" twice and I cannot wait to read them again. The best part about the books is that Drizzt gives kind of a personal memoir before each book and we see him grow as an elf, a person and an intellectual. There is a lot of meaning behind what Drizzt has to say and he is the type of character that quite possibly is the subconscious of the author. I really recommend these books.


Sticking with the fantasy genre Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman have written numerous phenomenal books along these lines. I recommend starting with Chronicles (which I am reading again for the third time), a story about a group of friends trying to save their world. Again I really felt like I would be friends with some of these characters, if they would be friends with me. I can imagine my mySpace account having well over 100 friends, most of them fictitious of course. Once you have read Chronicles you will no doubt want to continue. However there are a series of books called "Death Gate Cycle" and they are just as powerful.

A quick note about Tolkien. I did like "The Hobbit" but as far as the trilogy that was made into a movie, I have a hard time reading it. I understand that Tolkien was the father of fantasy and no doubt influenced all the current fantasy writers but I find his books to be too descriptive. It takes 7 pages to describe the smell in a dark, damp room and only one sentence to describe a battle. Hence, I like the books for their storyline and content but for me they were way too wordy and descriptive.
Finally I would just like to mention some other great reads. Hocus Pocus by Kurt Vonnegut is a fantastic book as well as Slaughterhouse Five by the same author. I really enjoyed Still Life With Woodpecker by Tom Robbins, and I intend to read a few more of his books. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle and last but not least The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.

These are my recommended readings. I can't think of any more books that I have read at the moment, maybe that's all I have read but if you're looking for a good read try one of the books I have suggested and let me know what you think.

I think I am going to read the Federalist Papers next, a friend of mind we call "The Doctor" is reading them now and I will wait for his thoughts.

Addiction revisited

It's been a few months since I last updated my nicotine addiction. Well, I'm still addicted. I've started to realize that it is a love/hate thing. I mean tobacco has always been in my life. As a teenager my friends and I would make up sayings about tobacco and we continue to recite them to this day. For instance, "Marlboro Light, smoke them all night" or "Marlboro Red, smoke them til you're dead". And as for Kodiak, "The only Bear you'll ever pinch", I would love to take credit for that but that was one of their clever marketing campaigns. I even bought a T-shirt that said that.
Anyways, a friend of mine and I were discussing quitting a few weeks ago and he called himself a "lifer". The term basically means that he'll be chewing tobacco until he's dead. That's a scary idea that is certainly a possibility. I tried to tell him that I was not a lifer but he just shook his head and mumbled something about denial and self-loathing.
Well I have not given up my plight to rid myself of chewing tobacco. I recently quit for 4 days, and if you are not addicted, the first week is the hardest. I consider it winning a battle but the war is still waging. I know that 4 days does not sound like much but I was doing great until I had to spend 10 hours behind the wheel of my truck plowing snow. As the old adage goes, "Without nicotine and caffeine, plowing is a lonely, desolate highway with no exit signs".
And so I used plowing as my excuse. And as some of you may know, having an excuse to buy tobacco is as simple as convincing yourself that water is wet. Alas my addiction is reborn.
I have come to the point where I am searching the web for support groups and alternative means of quitting. One good way for chewing tobacco users is to try and replace the tobacco with something like Herbal Snuff. It has worked for me in the past but I always end up finding some excuse to buy another can.
There are actually support groups out there like Kill The Can and Quit Smokeless but I have not come to that point yet.
In closing I am going to give it another shot, maybe some time in February. In the past I have quit for my Mom as a birthday present but how can anyone take me seriously if I continue to go back to Grizzly Wintergreen, the juicy "unsafe alternative to cigarettes".

Why I miss my wife!

I wrote and composed a song for my wife since she has been visiting her parents for the last two days and won't be back until Monday. Unfortunately I am a horrible song writer and could not play an instrument if I was reincarnated as Rocky George, the one in the Pirates hat. So instead I compiled a list of just a few of the things that I love about my wife starting with A:

Alluring, Beautiful, Capable, Delicious, Engaging, Fascinating, Gorgeous, Honest, Intelligent, Just perfect for me, Knowledgeable, Lovely, Magnificent, Noble, Original, Passionate, Quirky, Reliable, Sublime, Tantalizing, Unmatched, Venerable, Wonderful, Xylophone, Yummy, Zesty!

Hey, you come up with a good adjective that starts with X...

Follow the Money

I hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! My hiatus has ended, again and I would like to share with all of you some interesting things that were brought to my attention. But before you read my eloquent thoughts please check this out first, you will need some time to look at it all and you might even want to have your Constitution booklet on hand as I do.

Let me start off by giving my disclaimer: The hardest thing I have had to do is retract my deep-seeded obedience to the Republican party. I still get antsy and almost defensive when I hear people say bad things about Bush or some of his policies (even if I have since changed my opinion about them) and my brain is quick to entertain scoffs regarding democrats. I am sincerely working hard to try and become as open-minded and un-swayed by political affiliations and in time I believe that I will be true to my new party, it's called "unaffiliated". So please try and read this with an open mind and when you feel yourself disagreeing and about to argue, stop, sit back and look at it from a different perspective, you might just like it!

For the past 3 months or so I have religiously watched or listened to C-Span (I know it sounds boring but my whole attitude towards government has changed quite a bit and my attitude towards those who disagree with me). Anyways, I have spent countless hours, especially since I have not been working since the landscaping season, trying to find evidence that will support any of my outlandish claims from the past. I've come to realize that I can prove virtually anything with regards to what I believe in my core but that those who believe differently can also prove their core beliefs just the same. It's all a matter of research and time willing to spend on things that have no black and white answers. And believe me, just check out Politifact.com and you will be amazed at what politicians will say to get elected, i.e. FOLLOW THE MONEY!

The only definitive answer that I could find was "Follow the Money!" And who am I to blame someone for wanting to increase their riches, I think the people who do not want to better themselves are the worst kind of people although doing so with no regard for others is a close second. It seems so simple and yet for the last 10 years I have been arguing for one side of the aisle, the side who claims to be for less government only to find out that the side I was defending was just as guilty if not more. Many of my views have changed and I have to thank my wife, C-Span, those who I consistently exchange political emails with and my endorsement of Ron Paul.

I have some things to say about the videos that I hope you watched. First I think that we need taxes, in fact I know that we need taxes. However, I am against the income tax. I believe that a consumption tax or fair tax would be a wiser choice, eliminating the IRS and the Fed. This video just solidified my belief. The chairman of the FED, Ben Bernanke, who I listened to last night on CSPAN while I was snow-plowing said that the best way to give our economy a kick would be to give more money to the people, especially those with lower income because they will turn around and put it right back into the system by buying food and clothes and other necessities. He consistently said that he wished to remain non-partisan so he would not comment on the raising or lowering of taxes but he did indicate that raising taxes gives people less money to purchase goods and services therefore putting a strain on the economy and further exacerbating inflation while a tax decrease, if not paid for by decreased government spending does the same thing. So as we can see what is happening now the long term effects of a tax decrease will be devastating if Congress continues to spend borrowed money and continues to increase our National Debt. I still want lower taxes but I want the government to decrease their spending as well. Of course some would say that more taxes is the answer but that is putting more power into the hands of the elite and as we saw in the video, more power to the bankers and the FED and the world market. Taxes are not the answer... So here's my solution.

Get rid of the IRS, go to a consumption tax or a fair tax, let people have the money that they earned. Get out of Iraq and Afghanistan and the rest of the world for that matter and concentrate our funds and resources and intelligence on keeping our borders, language and culture in tact. This notion of globalization and diversity only feed the fires of the elite. (I am somewhat like John Kerry, I was for the war and now I am against the war. My new philosophy is and I quote, "The only bad opinion is the opinion that never changes." Anyways, I don't think that we should have gone to war with them. Sure both sides have valid arguments but the financial cost alone makes it hard to believe its necessity. Furthermore our soldiers are dying daily, is there not a better way?

I have been saving this until I finished the book but I urge you to read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. It is the most compelling, interesting and provocative book I have ever read and despite it's nearly 1,200 pages I will soon be reading it again. I will not spoil this story by Ayn Rand, especially since I have two more chapters to go but if there ever was a person, or people I wished to emulate it would be some of the characters in that book.

Sorry about the tangent... Anyways, this is something to me that seems rather obvious but will be argued no doubt. Putting money into the hands of the people and not the government is the key to a good economy with little inflation. However in turn we need a government who does not borrow money from a private institution that charges them, and in turn the taxpayers billions of dollars a day in interest. I believe I should get every penny that I work for and in turn if I want a service, I use my money to pay for that service. The more money I have the more I can spend or save. Sure one could argue that a few bucks a year is no big deal but consider that few bucks in the pockets of millions of Americans who would in turn use it to pay down their debt, invest, buy something from somebody. According to what I heard last night on C-Span that would really invigorate our economy. Let me be in charge of my own destiny, if I choose to work and save and spend that is my own choice and many have died for that choice. I should not be held accountable for what someone else does with his money nor should I expect anything from him unless we both have something the other wants. I sure as hell am not going to take care of someones lawn for free just because they need it, they have to have some collateral, whether it be a service they can provide me or what we are all used to... money. It costs time and money to do that work and I can ill afford to support others when I am having enough trouble supporting myself. But these people have a choice, if they don't want to pay for a lawn service then they must do it themselves, it's no skin off my back.

Why should I be forced to pay for someone who is subjectively deemed by the elites or lobbyists or in a nutshell money (in need) when they offer nothing to me in return. Oh, you can give me the "where is your compassion" or "it's what's best for society", and to that I say is it better for society to rob Peter to pay Paul or is it better for society that those who wish for services have something to give in return? (Screw Peter, Paul needs something more than Peter does). After all if you were a bartender would you cover a shift for another bartender and then give him your tips, or let's say you sold cruises for a living. If you sold 5 cruises in a week would you gladly share your bonus with the guy in the next cubicle who sleeps all day (after all, he has not been able to pay his rent and soon he will be out on the streets, then he will be getting your money anyway, this time directly from the government), or if you were a computer programmer would you write code for a new computer software used by the government without compensation (Oh, it's a software that will help civilization according to the government, and we need it for the sake of the American People)... I sure as hell would not!

This takes me to corporations, small businesses, etc. How can we expect higher wages and more jobs when at the same time the government is forcing the companies to pay more in taxes. Common sense would tell us that the companies who have the most money can afford to pay the higher wages which attracts the brightest of people which in turn makes their product better which then increases the demand for the product and drives up wages and earnings, etc. Why the hell should that be punished by increased taxes? Who is making this decision to penalize success? FOLLOW THE MONEY! You need money to pay new workers but instead the government has decided it's going to fund aid in Africa or send 10 billion dollars to Pakistan, or to send a check to someone who has not looked for a job in 10 years or to rip off the veterans... For what? If the world is so concerned about these things why not fund it yourself, why should the United States have to borrow the money first? I'll tell you why. It's because the world bank and the FED, etc won't give out something for nothing but it's OK if the United States does.

Here are some of my humble thoughts that I thought to include in the blog. Let's think about Microsoft. The demand for their products is astronomical and the supply is continuous and the product is, well there is not much to compare it to but it serves my needs more than adequately. Yet those in the government and possibly some of us thought it was a monopoly. Did Steve Jobs think that? Instead, he forged ahead and began improving old technology and developing new technology and the competition began. He went to where he thought the money was. Was the money in suing Microsoft to get a beggar's share of the industry? No! It was in working hard and developing his own product. It was believing in himself and now he and Bill Gates both have superior products that demand superior workers who in turn demand superior wages who keep coming up with new and innovative products for the consumer and the cycle begins again. Why do people want to work so badly for successful companies... FOLLOW THE MONEY! I know for a fact that people who work for Microsoft are well paid and the employer, the richest man in the world spares no expense to keep them happy. Same with Steve Jobs, people are applying for jobs in their businesses by the hundreds daily. On a personal note I researched both these products while looking for a computer, have used both and the deciding factor for me was price, I went with a PC. That's how it works.! My point is that if we continue to look to the government to bail us out instead of thinking for ourselves and doing for ourselves then we become a product of the government and eventually a slave to the government. If we continue to allow our government to take what is rightfully ours then we will have nothing. For this I do not have an answer except to vote those in office who are willing to stand up for us and not for big government and big money!

In closing, finally I would just like to say that I am voting for Ron Paul whether it is a wasted vote or not. We all want change in America, after all, change is good. But I don't want change if it is going to take away my freedoms.

You can take our lives, but you can't take away our freedom! - Mel Gibson in Braveheart

It's all for nothing if you don't have freedom. - Mel Gibson in Braveheart

Government "help" to business is just as disastrous as government persecution... the only way a government can be of service to national prosperity is by keeping its hands off. -Ayn Rand

We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission; which is the stage of the darkest periods of human history, the stage of rule by brute force. -Ayn Rand