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Post by moralhazard on Nov 25, 2009 3:33:16 GMT -5
What was the last book you read and was it worth the paper it was printed on?
For me the answer is sh*t yeah. I was reading The Good Soldiers by David Finkel. It's a factual account of U.S. Battalion 2-16 stationed in Rustamiyah in Baghdad. Written by a journalist who was with the platoon for 9 months. I simply couldn't put it down. I was supposed to be working, and before I knew it the book would be in my hands and the hours going by.
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Post by Ganbare! on Nov 26, 2009 17:55:40 GMT -5
Hmmm let's see, the only thing I've read in a long time is............... Twilight. Kidding. In all seriousness it must be, 'The Malaise of Modernity' by Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor in which he resolves the paradox of post-modern era where people are still unhappy because of their own narcissism and their relations with the greater group. 'Le sens des choses' by Jacques Attali, which can be roughly translated as the meaning of things. The originality of this book is to be written by several specialists about their own discipline only, so it is not a polemic book in the slightest. Each author sheds a critical light on the great upheavals of our time, social, cultural, economic, political and geostrategic. In a text both accurate and lively, packed with illuminating examples on the future of sexual relationships (prospective sex as a mean of entertainment with no strings attached), the place of religion, the next world order, media dematerialization etc Highly informative to prepare ourselves for what's coming if there is a world after 2012 that is .
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Post by Pocky Monster on Nov 29, 2009 5:52:00 GMT -5
edit: ^ Iver, that sounds brilliant. I'll be picking it up at the library. Thank you for sharing. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Last week I finished Dune by Frank Herbert. Though the first few chapters were difficult to get through (mainly because I've never delved into science fiction novels and jumping viewpoints were distracting) I've concluded Dune was definitely worth the read. I can't help not mentioning the books I plowed through before Dune. Worth x10 its weight in gold is A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin. Didn't take long to finish the next 3 books in the A Song of Ice and Fire saga and I can't wait for the next. What I enjoyed about these books are: 1) (shockingly ) Main characters do die. 2) The storyline, like life, is gritty. "...Martin writes frankly of sex, including incest, adultery, prostitution, and rape. As a result, illegitimate children play prominent roles throughout the series..." And is it strange that it's finally nice to read about someone taking a piss? 3) You're constantly given different perspectives so I wouldn't be surprised if like me you eventually warmed up to a character you initially despised. Even though it's fiction I'm reminded how there's a little bit of yin and yang in everyone. The author has a complex understanding of the human psyche. Books like these make me wonder how far you can disconnect yourself to become another person without going insane.
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Post by Ganbare! on Dec 10, 2009 8:34:47 GMT -5
Currently reading Sun Tzu's 'Art of War', every aspect of the antic treaty is still relevant to this day. I understand why so many of the greatest men read this book, it completely revolutionizes one's approach of interpersonal relationships and leadership, mesmerizing !
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Post by admin on Dec 10, 2009 10:57:01 GMT -5
Currently reading Sun Tzu's 'Art of War', every aspect of the antic treaty is still relevant to this day. I understand why so many of the greatest men read this book, it completely revolutionizes one's approach of interpersonal relationships and leadership, mesmerizing ! An army of douchebag Wall Streeters read that book in the 90s.
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Post by moralhazard on Dec 11, 2009 4:08:25 GMT -5
Just finished reading 3 Para by Patrick Bishop. This one is about British paratroopers sent to southern Afghanistan in 2006. Overall, a pretty good read. Now I know a little bit about Taliban fighting strategies ('shoot & scoot') & how opium crops play into all of this too. Although admittedly, I skimmed the sections where it got bogged down in weapons history.
Starting to read Gold: The once and future money by Nathan Lewis. Sounds dry, but so far it has been entertaining. A history of how gold has been used as a unit of account starting with Ancient Rome.
Might check out Ms Guava's science fiction book. I usually end up picking sh*thouse science fiction & fantasy (Lord of the Rings is the exception), but the Dune sounds good.
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Post by rob on Dec 11, 2009 10:44:14 GMT -5
Currently reading Sun Tzu's 'Art of War', every aspect of the antic treaty is still relevant to this day. I understand why so many of the greatest men read this book, it completely revolutionizes one's approach of interpersonal relationships and leadership, mesmerizing ! An army of douchebag Wall Streeters read that book in the 90s. Agreed. Every insecure banker, two-bit intellect I've met quotes that stuff ad nauseum. The latest Sun Tzu apostle I had to work with was this douchebag that lost half a billion dollars and managed to sweep it under the rug. Anyways, I digress. Fun/interesting read, but if anyone starts spouting Sun-Tzu or Machiavelli, cut them out of your life NOW.
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palavore
Full Member
I put my pants on just like the rest of you -- one leg at a time. Except, once my pants are on, I make gold posts.
Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
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Post by palavore on Dec 11, 2009 11:01:15 GMT -5
^I don't see quoting from these tracts as particularly offensive. It's like quoting from the Bible or Koran. Do you need the sanction of organized religion to apply literature in your life? Better Sun-Tzu than some fluffy corporate mission statement. At least, that is a message they can't control. Last week I finished Dune by Frank Herbert. Though the first few chapters were difficult to get through (mainly because I've never delved into science fiction novels and jumping viewpoints were distracting) I've concluded Dune was definitely worth the read. I read the series all the way up to the middle of Chapterhouse: Dune (the 6th book). I stopped there because the main plot had seemed to end and the witches started to sleep with the animals in too much detail. Right now, I'm reading Tolstoy's Anna Karenina. It's been a while since I picked up fiction again.
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Post by admin on Dec 11, 2009 13:23:12 GMT -5
^ You might be surprised how many corporate mission statements, or at least internal campaign slogans, are based on "The Art of War." I watched a brain-dead CEO flush $700 million of CASH down the tubes in 2 1/2 years on the way to total insolvency, all the time with "The Art of War" on his desk, with him thumbing through it for new corporate strategies when not snorting coke off the dust jacket. You are correct, that taken individually and used precisely, there is nothing wrong and there are many things interesting and wise in the book. The book is not the problem, the problem is the legion of morons who think that the book is going to make them an instant success without having any brains or work ethic. While there might be times when a quote from the book might be timely, I will hold back simply because I don't want to get identified with the drooling hordes.
I am not big on the "vanquish the other guy" books anyway. I'm currently enjoy a more introspective book, a new translation of Marcus Aurelius' "Meditations." Here's a bite:
Bear in mind that the measure of a man is the worth of the things he cares about.
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palavore
Full Member
I put my pants on just like the rest of you -- one leg at a time. Except, once my pants are on, I make gold posts.
Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
Posts: 298
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Post by palavore on Dec 11, 2009 15:27:49 GMT -5
^ Stewie: Machiavelli! You've told me nothing I don’t already know! Ah, Sun Zhu's The Art of War... Lois: Stewie, those books aren’t for babies. Here. Watch the Teletubbies. Stewie: How dare you! That book may hold the key to my enslaving of all mankind. ^_^~~
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Post by Ganbare! on Dec 12, 2009 18:52:37 GMT -5
Damned! Reading an essential treaty behind the foundation of military science while currently working on a peace keeping project in the Near East and not the corporate world how dumb of me..
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Post by midnightnovelist on Dec 13, 2009 10:36:50 GMT -5
I love the original (i.e. non-Ghostwriter) Tom Clancy novels, which sadly seem to have stopped after "The Teeth of the Tiger". In the complete opposite direction, I recently read a book at a random youth hostel on my travels I wouldn't normally pick up. It was a religious book called "90 Minutes in Heaven" by a person named Don Piper. I don't classify myself as Christian, but it was a really inspiring and pretty cool book nonetheless regardless of who you are
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palavore
Full Member
I put my pants on just like the rest of you -- one leg at a time. Except, once my pants are on, I make gold posts.
Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
Posts: 298
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Post by palavore on Dec 16, 2009 1:59:00 GMT -5
^I appreciated Red Storm Rising, but couldn't finish NetForce. I enjoy his fictionalization of current events in the geopolitical realm. It's his characters that I don't like--something he spends too much time with in NetForce. Damned! Reading an essential treaty behind the foundation of military science while currently working on a peace keeping project in the Near East and not the corporate world how dumb of me.. Might it be anything by Carl von Clausewitz? I tried reading On War which was the philosophical foundation for the idea of total war to be waged between nation states. Was his influence that great or did he merely foresee the modern wars to come?
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Post by Ganbare! on Dec 16, 2009 10:04:34 GMT -5
The reason behind the evolution of warfare was nationalism. This greater cause through State propaganda exhalted people into the belief that it was everyone's duty to contribute to the war effort.
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palavore
Full Member
I put my pants on just like the rest of you -- one leg at a time. Except, once my pants are on, I make gold posts.
Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
Posts: 298
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Post by palavore on Dec 16, 2009 10:55:53 GMT -5
^The reason might be very different from the passion. That is, the pot being stirred might be very different from hand that stirred it--propaganda being the tool of agitation.
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