Thunderstruck

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thunderstruckThis is the third book I’ve read by Erik Larson, and it is by far my least favorite. My wife, who is my primary literary advisor, bought the book and eventually announced she couldn’t finish it. She commented something to the effect that she “…would just have to wait for my review.” So, here it is.

The book attempts to weave the story of the efforts of Guglielmo Marconi to develop the wireless telegraph and the life story of Hawley Harvey Crippen, the man who was convicted of the North Cellar Murder, into a single novel. There is certainly an abundance of details about Marconi, wireless transmissions, and the people in his life. However, I came to dislike him the more I read about him. Crippen is portrayed as a meek and somewhat uninteresting man who is convicted of murdering and mutilating his wife. The wife was outgoing and interesting when with friends and was irritatingly and persistently obnoxious to Crippen when they were alone. Continue reading →

Benghazi–What Difference Does It Make

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I have been astonished at the lack of attention given by several major media outlets to the attack in Benghazi, Libya that killed four Americans, including our ambassador to that country. I understand that many in the media did not want anything to distract the voting public from re-electing Mr. Obama. They apparently now do not want anything to get in the way if Hillary Clinton chooses to run in 2016. Perhaps that’s why there was little media criticism when Clinton responded to a question whether the attack was a spontaneous protest or an organized terrorist attack. “Was it a protest or is it because of guys out on a walk one night and they decide they would go kill some Americans?”What difference, at this point, does it make?” The media celebrated the “brilliance” and emotion of her response. I was appalled at her response. Continue reading →

United States Had Hottest Year Ever

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Fans of global warming have been celebrating that the U.S. had the highest average recorded temperature in 2012, and the national media was full of stories about the horrors to come. Reports that indicate there is no global warming trend were displayed less prominently. One report mentioned that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said that the average temperature for the entire world barely made it into being one of the top ten years. The average was 58 degrees Fahrenheit, which is a full degree above the twentieth century average.

Another article that did gain a rather large headline on page 19A of the January 6, 2013 Denver Post reports that China is experiencing unusually cold weather. The national average temperatures are the lowest in almost three decades. Snow and ice have created havoc and knocked out power in several provinces. That information should be remarkable to advocates of the theory that global warming is being caused by man’s carbon dioxide emission, since China has been busy outstripping the U.S. in those emissions. Continue reading →

Notice about Expression (and Review) Blog Page(s)

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The Expressions and Review weblog pages of RockyFlatsFacts.com have been experiencing technical problems that are forcing their migration to a different blogging platform. Access to the blog pages has been disrupted (for both you and me) several times over the past few weeks, and made it a challenge to meet my regular Wednesday schedule to post new reviews, expressions, and commentaries.

We are busy battling further service disruptions and transferring content from current weblog pages to our new platform, and intend to transition completely to the new platform as soon as practicable. Regular readers of this page will probably notice a few format and content improvements, which we hope you will appreciate. We are attempting a smooth transition and ask your indulgence for any temporary glitches over the next week or two.

I expect to get back into my regular posting routine as soon as transfer to the new platform is completed.

The Whole Shebang

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The Word Detective explains that the phrase probably originated with the Irish “seibin,” which is a small mug. “Shebang” first appears during the Civil War to describe a hut, shed, or some other kind crude makeshift shelter for soldiers. At about the same time “shebang” started being used to mean a vehicle and a rented coach in particular. “Shebang” has also been used to describe a disreputable tavern or hotel that is also called a “dive.” Today it is most commonly used to describe the entire thing or matter.

Wasp

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waspThis is a book I’ve always remembered reading with fascination as a youngster. I recently obtained “Entities, the Selected Novels of Eric Frank Russell” on an interlibrary loan that included that novel. The book was written in 1957, the year I began my junior year in high school. A review on Amazon says it is probably Russell’s best known novel. It is the story of James Mowry who is asked to be an agent behind enemy lines in Earth’s war with the Sirian Combine. He is asked to be like the wasp in the car that stings the driver and causes the car to crash. The novel was nominated for the 1998 Prometheus Hall of Fame award.

Terry Pratchett said he couldn’t imagine “…a funnier terrorists’ handbook,” although I didn’t see that much humor in the book. The central theme is that an enemy can be greatly harmed by psychological and guerrilla warfare by a small, deadly protagonist. I think the book is pertinent because of the huge impact being made on the U.S. and the world by relatively small groups of terrorists dedicated and willing to die for a cause (which is why I’m breaking my usual habit of reviewing nonfiction books).

The introduction by Jack L. Chalker describes Russell as being a science fiction/fantasy writer preceding WWII. Russell worked in the British office of naval intelligence section call XX, or double cross. His group, which included the author of the future “James Bond” books, Ian Fleming, was to think of inexpensive ways to harm the Japanese and Germans and diminish their military capabilities. He put together the book as a blueprint for wartime terrorism. It is interesting that the Japanese secret police was called Temperikai and that the author named the secret police of the enemy planet Kaitemperi. Continue reading →