Category Archives: Reviews

Bad Money: Reckless Finance, Failed Politics, and Global Crisis of American Capitalism

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This review will be one of the few times I spend a significant amount of time writing about what is wrong with a book. Perhaps I should have posted this on the blog link, since my opinions consume a significant portion of the posting. However, I picked up the book at the library because I wanted to review a book on this subject. I prepared a combination blog/review posting because I found what was not included in this book to be more interesting than the content.

The book discusses some of the causes of the mortgage crisis, but I can’t explain the omission of the government’s role. Politicians have long looked for policies that would open the American Dream of home ownership to more people. (The idea is admirable as long as the people who are given access to a home have some chance to actually afford the costs.) Loan agencies began to be forced to make loans to people who couldn’t previously qualify. The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) was passed during the Carter era to monitor and punish banks that weren’t making enough loans to people in inner cities, and the CRA is not even listed in the table of contents. CRA was just the beginning of government meddling. The Clinton administration added more penalties for loan agencies that turned down loans to people who weren’t previously approvable. The Government Sponsored Entities (GSEs)  Freddie Mae and Fannie Mac were directed to make a significant percentage of their lending support to “affordable housing.”  (There is a short discussion of the two GSEs on page 187 of this 209 page book.) Continue reading →

The River of Doubt, Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey

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I posted a two part review of “Destiny of the Republic, A Tale of Madness, Medicine, and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard (November 16 and 25). That book led me to this magnificent book, which I highly recommend to anyone who enjoys a well written story with fascinating events and characters. The book has many details about Roosevelt that were new to me, and I had never heard of the expedition down the Rio da Duvida, or the River of Doubt.

The book begins with Theodore Roosevelt deserting the Republican Party to run for President for what would be his third term in office. He had become President after McKinley was assassinated, finished about three years remaining on that term, and had been reelected. He was disappointed in Republican William Howard Taft who followed him, and ran as a Progressive against Taft and Woodrow Wilson. He was shot and badly injured while campaigning, but continued campaign appearances with the bullet still in his body. He said, “It takes more than that to kill a bull moose!” He and his party were thereafter called the “Bull Moose.” Roosevelt finished with the second highest number of votes behind Wilson and ahead of Taft and the Socialist Eugene Debs. Angry Republicans blamed him for Wilson’s victory, and made him miserable by their scorn.

The American Museum of Natural History recruited Roosevelt to lead a “…not particularly dangerous…” exploration of a tributary of the Amazon. George Cherrie, a talented explorer and naturalist was chosen to accompany him. Brazilian officials provided Colonel Candido Rondon as the guide for the expedition. Rondon brought a contingent of military “camaradas,” or companions to the expedition. Roosevelt’s son Kermit joined the expedition. Less competent members were winnowed as the trip progressed. The five tons of equipment selected for the trip contained many unnecessary items. One stevedore commented about the piles of goods, “Nothings lacking but the piano!” The boats were never put into service because they were far too heavy for portages, and the expedition was reduced to using cumbersome dugouts.

A Catholic priest, Father John Zahm, who was inexplicably added to the expedition, casually mentioned to Roosevelt that perhaps he should “…go down an unknown river…” Thus the River of Doubt was chosen. Many thought the selection was far too dangerous, and Roosevelt’s backers wanted the plan changed. Roosevelt wanted to do something dangerous that would test him physically and mentally, and he responded “…if it is necessary for me to leave my bones in South America, I am quite ready to do so.”

There is fascinating information in the book about Roosevelt and his son, but I’m going to focus Colonel Rondon, and his troops. His camaradas were dedicated to Rondon and were the backbone of the expedition. Rondon and his men faced frequent danger with skill, bravery, discipline, and stamina. They lived on starvation ratios and completed the many portages while under onslaught from swarms of a variety of biting and disease-carrying insects. They moved through a jungle so massive, dark, and silent that it was said to drive strong men near or to insanity.

Candido Rondon was born to parents who were of mixed Indian and European descent. Both died of smallpox; his father died before he was born and his mother died when he was two. He was raised by grandparents and went to a military school when he was sixteen. He was so poor he couldn’t afford books, and no one noticed he was slowly starving to death until he collapsed. He survived and became a “Positivist” with a primary goal of gaining better treatment for the Indians of Brazil. He led many expeditions into territories where there were Indians willing and able to kill outsiders. All but one of his men complied with his command, “Die if you must, but never kill.”Many of the scattered tribes of the Amazon dared to trust Rondon. Roosevelt was the figurehead of the expedition, but Rondon was the commander.

The cannibalistic Cinta Larga Indian tribe allowed the expedition to pass down the River of Doubt. Some future expeditions were apparently wiped out. Rondon’s ritual of leaving gifts in clearings might have resulted in the survival of Roosevelt and his companions.

There is considerable attention given to Roosevelt’s struggle to survive a leg injury and infection. Roosevelt implored his companions, “You can get out. I will stop here.” He was not left to die because he had demonstrated thoughtfulness to Rondon and his men.

There are descriptions of the fish and animals of the Amazon. One man made the mistake of sticking a piranha stunned by a dynamite blast in his mouth as he gathered others with his hands. He nearly bled to death after the piranha bit his tongue. There is also the candirus fish, which swims up an orifice such as the anus, vagina, or urethra. It then feeds and is unable to detach, which causes intense difficulty for the victim. The man-eating priaba can grow up to nine feet long, and are so dangerous people would build stockades in the water where they could bathe in safety. Some of the fifty species of coral snakes in the Amazon do not follow the adage “Red touching yellow, dangerous fellow.” The anacondas and caimans were seen, but didn’t cause a problem. The expedition was too noisy to often be able to harvest food from the jungle despite the large numbers animals that were able to blend into the jungle.

The expedition lost one camarada to drowning and another to murder by one of his fellows who ran into the jungle and was eventually abandoned to what was likely to have been a quick death. The ones who survived to make it through were nearly starved and wearing little but rags. Roosevelt survived because of the care he received and probably because he was robust when he began the trip. He never fully recovered from the leg infection other maladies. He was however, able to give a triumphant speech about the expedition after some questioned the validity of the story. The river was renamed Rio Roosevelt.

Read the book. You are likely to enjoy the wealth of interesting detail I haven’t included.

How to Break a Terrorist

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The most important part of this book to me was the description of the origin of the conflict between Shia and Sunnis. It comes in a quoted passage of the author being questioned to determine his qualifications to be on an Iraqi terrorist interrogation team. When asked to explain the difference between Shia and Sunni, he replied, “That’s an easy one. It goes back to the schism in Islam caused by the death of Muhammad. Sunnis believe that the legitimate successor was Muhammad’s closest disciple, Abu Bakr. Shi believe the succession should have passed through his cousin Ali, who was also his daughter Fatima’s husband. The Shia lost, and Abu Bakr retained leadership until he died…and the Sunnis have held the balance of power ever since.” Sunnis held power under Saddam Hussein in the dominantly Shiite country of Iraq.

The book describes how an American interrogation team was searching for Abu Musab Al Zarqawi, who established a terrorist organization called Tawhid al Jihad, and established strong ties with the Sunnis after Saddam was taken out of power. The book is listed as being authored by Matthew Alexander, but the author’s note states that it was written under a pseudonym and passages are blacked out, as by a censor.

The wake of the Abu Ghraib scandal changed everything in the interrogation techniques to “more civilized interrogation techniques.” The Foreword by Mark Bowden states that the question of limits to interrogation techniques “…had become predictably politically charged and highly controversial, with liberals viewing harsher tactics as a sign of more and legal degeneration, and conservatives regarding attitude toward coercion as a litmus test of one’s seriousness about the war on ‘terror’.” The “more civilized techniques” included getting to know the subject “…and then manipulating him by role-playing, flattering, misleading, and nudging his or her perception of truth slightly off center.” It seemed to me that “misleading” was the most important aspect, since lying to the prisoner was the most frequent part of the process. Continue reading →

To Die In Chicago, Confederate Prisoners at Camp Douglas 1862-1865

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I recently reviewed “Andersonville Journey,” about the Union prisoners of war held at that “death camp,” and decided I should read about treatment of Confederate prisoners of war. The book by George Levy provides a wealth of information about Camp Douglas, named after a deceased Senator Stephen Douglas, but it is certainly not fun to read. The occasional quotes from prisoners are interesting. I was much less interested in the discussions of budgeting, construction, sanitation, security, and command and control. Chapter 15 is titled “Social Life Among the Prisoners,” and that sounded interesting. The chapter begins with discussions of scurvy, reinforcing the stockade, the commandant, organization of the fire department, favoritism among prisoners, the water supply to the bath houses and for flushing the sinks (latrines), deaths from freezing, the value of tobacco, sadistic guards and punishments, numbers of new arrivals, prisoner of war Confederate General Beall arranging the sale of cotton (the North needed cotton and the South needed money), and meal cooking arrangements. The social activities of the prisoners are discussed in a few short paragraphs (including arts, crafts, gambling, and entertainment) fifteen pages into the chapter.

The camp was constructed to house Union units being trained to fight in the Civil War, so there were decent barracks and other facilities. Supplies of food were often described as at least adequate, and sutlers sold fruits, vegetables, and other supplies to the prisoners. Occasionally the commandants would cut that off, and prisoners would develop scurvy. By comparison, Andersonville was a stockade with no shelter, didn’t have an adequate water supply, didn’t have a way to dispose of wastes, and food supplies were grossly inadequate for both prisoners and guards. The only advantage prisoners had at Andersonville was that they didn’t have to contend with the winter cold. Like Andersonville, Douglas was a serious mistake because of the unanticipated numbers of prisoners, parolees (Union prisoners exchanged for Confederates), guards, and soldiers in the many units that used the place. The early days of the camp were marked by a lack of discipline. There were 1037 men court martialed between January and August 1862 for drunkenness, insubordination, fighting, theft, destruction of property, desertion, shooting an officer, and “…playing cards with prisoners.”  Continue reading →

Killing Lincoln, the Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever

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This book by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard (tell people the second author if you don’t want to admit reading a book by O’Reilly) have written an excellent book. The Prologue begins with Lincoln’s oath of office for his second term. Andrew Johnson gave a drunken speech followed by Lincoln appealing for reunification. He said, “With malice toward none and charity for all…to bind up the nation’s wounds, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace…” John Wilkes Booth was standing only a few feet from Lincoln. He actually lunged at Lincoln, was restrained by Officer John Westfall, and explains he stumbled.

Lincoln was on the decks of the steamboat River Queen about four weeks later watching “the rolling thunder of heavy metal” as Union artillery pounded the Confederate defenses at Petersburg. The book elegantly describes the horrors of war as the Union Army works to drive Lee and the Confederates out of Petersburg after a long and brutal siege. Lee abandons the city and begins a retreat with Grant’s huge army in pursuit. There is a description of Lincoln riding through what had just recently been a battlefield “…littered with hundreds of dead soldiers, their unburied bodies swollen by death, and sometimes stripped bare by scavengers.” Continue reading →

Andersonville Journey, The Civil War’s Greatest Tragedy

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Any book on this subject is disturbing, and this one is no exception. Much of the book is about the commandant of the horrid prison where Union prisoners of war died by the thousands. Captain Henry Wirz was tried and executed after the war after a sham trial. The story of the prison is a disgrace as evidenced by the nearly 13,000 marble headstones nearly touching one another at the Andersonville National Historic Site. There were more than 33,000 prisoners of war crowded into the eighteen acre filthy log stockade with no shelter. The men made tents out of anything they could find. Some dug caves in the red clay. The only water for the first several months was an inadequate stream. The rations consisted mostly of corn ground with the cobs and shucks to give it bulk and rancid raw pork. The same food was issued to Confederate guards, since Confederate law required that prisoners and soldiers would be given the same rations.

Henry Wirz was born in Switzerland Heinrich Hartman Wirz. He “got in over his head” in some financial deals, was convicted of the crime of being in debt, and was exiled by the Swiss government. He immigrated to America, changed his name to Henry, and worked in a variety of jobs. He worked for a doctor for a time and learned enough about health care to move to Kentucky and opened a practice as a homeopathic physician. When the Civil War began he enlisted as a private in a Louisiana Confederate infantry unit. He was a sergeant by the time he fought at the Battle of Seven Pines and was wounded by minie balls in his right arm and shoulder. He was commissioned as a captain and was assigned to a variety of administrative duties. He was assigned to Andersonville in March 1864. Continue reading →