Sunday, December 6, 2009

Special Forces or Commies

Special Forces: War Against Terrorism in Iraq

Author: Eric Micheletti

Long before the beginning of the Second Gulf War, the Special Forces and other clandestine teams of the Coalition's various services were already operating in Iraq.

This spectacular new book shows these highly specialized teams in action, fulfilling their missions well ahead of the arrival of the conventional forces. Even today the Special Forces, mainly US and British, are waging a merciless war against terrorists of all kinds who proliferate in Saddam's former empire.

The book is profusely illustrated with hundreds of shots taken at the heart of the action on the ground in Iraq, showing all the clothing and equipment used by the Special Forces.

Eric Micheletti's previous book from the "Raids Magazine" group at Histoire & Collections, Special Forces - War against Terrorism in Afghanistan, was a huge success here when it was published last year.



See also: Empire of Debt or Start and Run Your Own Record Label

Commies: A Journey through the Old Left, the New Left and the Leftover Left

Author: Ronald Radosh

"Ronald Radosh's earliest memory is of being trundled off to a May Day demonstration on Fifth Avenue by his Communist parents. His boyhood heroes were his uncle Irving Keith (his Communist Party name), who fought in the Spanish Civil War, and his mother's cousin Jacob Abrams, a famous Jewish anarchist who lived in "exile" in Mexico City and was a friend of Trotsky's." "Radosh has been called "the Zelig of the American Left - seen everywhere and knowing everyone." Indeed, Commies is filled with memorable portraits of the people he has met in his unique journey - schoolmate Mary Travers, later of the folk group Peter, Paul and Mary; Pete Seeger, who taught him the banjo and the Communist Party's musical line; young Bob Dylan, who played folk music with him at Radosh's apartment in Madison. Michael Harrington, Tom Hayden, Michael Lerner, William Appleman Williams, Irving Howe, and all the others who made "the Movement" are also actors in Radosh's drama." "But if Commies is an intimate social history of the American Left over the past half-century, it is also a compelling story of a crisis of radical faith."--BOOK JACKET.

Publishers Weekly

Radosh captures well the times and personalities of his journey. Some...will admire the courage of his journey. All will acknowledge that he both entertains and engages in the unusual and heartfelt memoir.

Booknews

Radosh recounts his childhood with communist parents, college political activity, his defection from the left when he wrote , and his encounters in Central America with old acquaintances. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)



Saturday, December 5, 2009

The Best of I F Stone or Europe as Empire

The Best of I. F. Stone

Author: I F Ston

and/or stickers showing their discounted price. More about bargain books

Book about: Snoozers or How Do Dinosaurs Clean Their Rooms

Europe as Empire: The Nature of the Enlarged European Union

Author: Jan Zielonka

This book offers a strikingly new perspective on EU enlargement. Basing his findings on substantial empirical evidence, Zielonka presents a carefully argued account of the kind of political entity the European Union is becoming, with particular reference to recent enlargement.



Table of Contents:
List of Figures and Tables     xi
Introduction: the neo-medieval paradigm     1
Genesis of the book     2
Unidentified political object     4
Should Europe become a state?     7
The neo-medieval alternative     9
Two types of empire     11
Uses and abuses of models     14
Structure of the book     20
Return to Europe     23
Assessing Eastern European progress     25
Market reforms and social peace     29
Constitutional liberalism or praetorianism?     33
Flash points that never flashed     34
Comparison with other post-Communist states     36
Conclusions     42
European power politics     44
The purpose of accession     49
Imperial design and the process of accession     54
Benign empire in action     57
Agents behind the accession     59
Conclusions     63
Diversity and adaptation     65
Diversity and European integration     67
Diversity and European institutions     71
Economic 'fault lines' in the enlarged EU     74
Diversity in democracy and political culture     78
The American bias     83
Conclusions     88
Economic governance     91
The challenge of internal cohesion     94
The global competition challenge     100
The cross-border interdependence challenge     105
Conclusions     115
Democratic governance     117
Governance structure     120
Majoritarianism versus constitutionalism     125
Public space and democratic culture     333
Conclusions     137
Governance beyond borders     140
The EU as an international actor     143
The emerging international system in Europe     150
Competing universalistic claims: EU versus United States     156
Conclusions     162
Conclusions: implications of neo-medievalism     164
What makes Europe neo-medieval     166
Integration through enlargement     171
Governing the neo-medieval Europe     176
Legitimacy in the neo-medieval Europe     182
Participation, representation, and contestation     186
The case for optimism     189
Notes     192
Bibliography     272
Index      285