Non-fiction I read in 2009
07/01/10 17:48
A list of non-fiction books I read in 2009:
ON WRITING
1. Professors as Writers, Robert Boice
2. Getting is Published, Germano
3. How to write a book proposal, Michael Larsen
4. Non-fiction book proposals anybody can write, Elizabeth Lyon
5. Writing the Breakout Novel,
6. How to write for a general audience, Kendal-Tackett
7. How to write a lot, Silvia
8. How to write a damn good nove, James Frey
9. Writing the breakout novel, Donald Maas
PHILOSOPHY/SCIENCE
1. A Tolerable Anarchy, Perdy
2. Dependent Rational Animals, MacIntyre
3. Becoming Human, Tattersall
4. Our Practices, Our selves, May
I read parts of this book:
1. God, Philosophy, Universities, MacIntyre
I read more than I thought in non-fiction, but most of it dealt with writing. I need to read more philosophy and do more writing. Here's to 2010.
ON WRITING
1. Professors as Writers, Robert Boice
2. Getting is Published, Germano
3. How to write a book proposal, Michael Larsen
4. Non-fiction book proposals anybody can write, Elizabeth Lyon
5. Writing the Breakout Novel,
6. How to write for a general audience, Kendal-Tackett
7. How to write a lot, Silvia
8. How to write a damn good nove, James Frey
9. Writing the breakout novel, Donald Maas
PHILOSOPHY/SCIENCE
1. A Tolerable Anarchy, Perdy
2. Dependent Rational Animals, MacIntyre
3. Becoming Human, Tattersall
4. Our Practices, Our selves, May
I read parts of this book:
1. God, Philosophy, Universities, MacIntyre
I read more than I thought in non-fiction, but most of it dealt with writing. I need to read more philosophy and do more writing. Here's to 2010.
Unemployment as Social Sin
15/12/09 11:48
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/15/us/15poll.html?_r=1&th&emc=th
The statistics here are frightening but not as frightening as they could be. How can anyone doubt the sinful nature of unemployment and the capitalism that causes it with this information? And yet, we hear more and more about abortion and so little about thespiritual cost that comes with unempolyment. These lives -- these lives of the unempoyed -- are just as valuable as those of the unborn and suffer just as much when their lives are aborted through capitalist profit. Where is the spiritual leadership for sustainable development, for sustainable green energy, for sustainable living.
Abortion results from the same carefree laissez-faire attitude that drives capitalism. It's the same as unemployment -- these lives are not valuable. These lives are not convenient. These lives are not profitable.
What we need is a change in attitude! A change away from the usury that controls our everyday lives. Until we live sustainable lives, we will always abort the unwanted because they aren't sustainable -- whether that's abortion of fetuses and embryos or abortion of whole living beings to a system of nihilism. Is it any wonder that zombies and vampires capture our modern minds they way they do?
The statistics here are frightening but not as frightening as they could be. How can anyone doubt the sinful nature of unemployment and the capitalism that causes it with this information? And yet, we hear more and more about abortion and so little about thespiritual cost that comes with unempolyment. These lives -- these lives of the unempoyed -- are just as valuable as those of the unborn and suffer just as much when their lives are aborted through capitalist profit. Where is the spiritual leadership for sustainable development, for sustainable green energy, for sustainable living.
Abortion results from the same carefree laissez-faire attitude that drives capitalism. It's the same as unemployment -- these lives are not valuable. These lives are not convenient. These lives are not profitable.
What we need is a change in attitude! A change away from the usury that controls our everyday lives. Until we live sustainable lives, we will always abort the unwanted because they aren't sustainable -- whether that's abortion of fetuses and embryos or abortion of whole living beings to a system of nihilism. Is it any wonder that zombies and vampires capture our modern minds they way they do?
McNamara and War
09/07/09 23:11
With the passing of Robert McNamara, we have a moment
to reflect on a common understanding of human nature.
McNamara was the principle architect behind the Vietnam War. We know now that early on McNamara knew the US couldn't win. But he didn't recommend pulling out (thus violating one of the principles of just war theory handed down through the ages). What's more interesting for me is that McNamara that human nature was essentially and ultimately aggressive. He thought we would always be at war. How much, I wonder, did later presidents inherit his belief bout human nature.
This thought has been held by many. It even shows up in fiction. Elizabeth Haydon writes a wonderful fantasy series The Symphony of Ages. One of the main characters is Achmed the Snake. Achmed believes that peace is just an intermission between wars when the intelligent plan for the next war. It's just human -- or bolg - nature.
But to what extent does human history testify to this? And to what extent can we escape war? Obviously, war marks human history, highlighting many of the transitions in time. But we needn't believe that war is inescapable. What we need to do is look at how societies avoid war. Democracy isn't necessarily the answer. However, an article in Discover suggests some possibilities:
Empowering females
Control Population Growth
Find Alternatives to Fossil Fuels
Avoid Tribalism
Avoid Religious Fundamentalism
We should recognize that human nature is fluid. As fluid, we can change our fates. We can make the world the way we want. But this means taking progressive steps toward making that future real and taking steps which increase the likelihood of that future. It's just like losing weight and maintaining a healthy life-style -- plan ahead, work hard, and don't be pessimistic in the face of inevitable stumbles.
McNamara was the principle architect behind the Vietnam War. We know now that early on McNamara knew the US couldn't win. But he didn't recommend pulling out (thus violating one of the principles of just war theory handed down through the ages). What's more interesting for me is that McNamara that human nature was essentially and ultimately aggressive. He thought we would always be at war. How much, I wonder, did later presidents inherit his belief bout human nature.
This thought has been held by many. It even shows up in fiction. Elizabeth Haydon writes a wonderful fantasy series The Symphony of Ages. One of the main characters is Achmed the Snake. Achmed believes that peace is just an intermission between wars when the intelligent plan for the next war. It's just human -- or bolg - nature.
But to what extent does human history testify to this? And to what extent can we escape war? Obviously, war marks human history, highlighting many of the transitions in time. But we needn't believe that war is inescapable. What we need to do is look at how societies avoid war. Democracy isn't necessarily the answer. However, an article in Discover suggests some possibilities:
Empowering females
Control Population Growth
Find Alternatives to Fossil Fuels
Avoid Tribalism
Avoid Religious Fundamentalism
We should recognize that human nature is fluid. As fluid, we can change our fates. We can make the world the way we want. But this means taking progressive steps toward making that future real and taking steps which increase the likelihood of that future. It's just like losing weight and maintaining a healthy life-style -- plan ahead, work hard, and don't be pessimistic in the face of inevitable stumbles.
Obama's Address on Lincoln
14/02/09 15:11
Discussion of Obama's address on the 200th
anniversary of Lincoln's birth. Read
More...