(Part 2) Best historical biographies according to redditors

Correct. He also made it a point to donate at least 10% of every dollar he made from youth and made good on it. He is one of the fathers of modern philanthropy.

He was a ruthless businessman, BUT prior to taking out/absorbing a competitor he would meet with them, offer them fair value for their business or stock in Standard Oil, and would go as far as to simply open his company's book for them so they can see the futility of competition. Very interesting life. If anyone wants to learn more about him, they should really read Chernow's "Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller" Excellent book.

https://www.amazon.com/Titan-Life-John-Rockefeller-Sr/dp/1400077303

Browder is also the reason these sanctions exist.

His lawyer who was looking into large scale corruption and money fraud in the upper echelons of the Russian government is the "Magnitsky" in The Magnitsky Act

He is and should be considering by all a top expert in this matter.

EDIT:

Listen to these for more information on Bill Browder and The Magnitsky Act:

http://www.npr.org/sections/money/2017/07/14/537304186/episode-784-meeting-the-russians

http://www.earwolf.com/episode/bill-browder-kremlin-critic/


If you prefer to read his book:

https://www.amazon.com/Red-Notice-Finance-Murder-Justice/dp/1476755744

I strongly suggest Nothing is True and Everything is Possible, Peter Pomerantsev's exploration of his time as a television producer in Russia.

They've lived under dictatorships and tsars for over a century. Every single Big Promise for the last hundred years or more has gone to the same conclusion, every power vacuum was filled quickly by worse, or at best the same as before. Organized crime is referred to as 'authority'. When the only organization of any kind was criminal, they became the de facto pseudo-government.

This has affected the culture deeply. There's a special kind of permeating philosophy in the day to day mindset, in their relationship to truth, power and certainty.

It's fascinating.

Edit: Ok, thanks for taking my Gold Virginity, random stranger :)

More links: Red Notice by the recently headlined Bill Browder, on the Magnitsky Act and its gruesome origins. I haven't, but I will read this soon.

Bill Browder's lecture on How he became Putin's No.1 Enemy. Basically a longer version of his opening statement to the Senate Judiciary.

Putin's Kleptocracy, a promising but so far a bit dry look into how Putin steals everything.

😍😍😍 McCarthy bae

edit-

I remember the first time I stickied a "McCarthy was right" post, a couple of years ago. There was a lot of backlash by misled people spouting all of the lies you commonly hear about that hero.

It's nice to see the change in sentiment around here.

Also also read Blacklisted From History, the go-to book about the truth about McCarthy. Warning, it's pretty dry, but you're guaranteed to learn something you didn't already know, however much you think you do. The parts about total black holes in history (Like certain newspaper days/articles surrounding McCarthy events "going missing" from microfilm libraries) alone is insane.

https://www.amazon.ca/Higher-Call-Incredible-Chivalry-War-Torn/dp/0425255735

That book
https://www.amazon.com/Forgotten-Soldier-Guy-Sajer/dp/1574882864


Man...what an amazing book...thanks for brining back the memories. I do not recall the parts about gernades. But his personal account of his experiences on the Eastern Front...wow...

Nazi Germany and the Holocaust.

Edit = I've listed some of the best books I've read on the subject below. Just ask if you want to know anything about them:

[The Coming of the Third Reich by Richard J. Evans] (http://www.amazon.com/Coming-Third-Reich-Richard-Evans/dp/0143034693/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1457904650&sr=8-3&keywords=third+reich+at+war)

[The Third Reich in Power by Richard J. Evans] (http://www.amazon.com/Third-Reich-Power-Richard-Evans/dp/0143037900/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1457904650&sr=8-2&keywords=third+reich+at+war)

[The Third Reich at War by Richard J. Evans] (http://www.amazon.com/Third-Reich-at-War/dp/0143116711/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1457904650&sr=8-1&keywords=third+reich+at+war)

[Maus by Art Speigelman] (http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Maus-25th-Anniversary/dp/0679406417/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1457904780&sr=8-2&keywords=maus)

[Hitler and the Power of Aesthetics by Frederich Spotts] (http://www.amazon.com/Hitler-Power-Aesthetics-Frederic-Spotts/dp/1585673455/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1457904821&sr=8-1&keywords=hitler+power+of+aesthetics)

[Art of the Third Reich by Peter Adam] (http://www.amazon.com/Art-Third-Reich-Peter-Adam/dp/0810919125/ref=pd_sim_14_2?ie=UTF8&dpID=21WGRYFWN5L&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR115%2C160_&refRID=1VRZ6QYR6PG5XXXMYTPN)

[Hitler's Empire: How the Nazis Ruled Europe by Mark Mazower] (http://www.amazon.com/Hitlers-Empire-Nazis-Ruled-Europe/dp/014311610X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1457904865&sr=8-1&keywords=hitler%27s+empire)

[State of Deception: The Power of Nazi Propaganda by Susan Bachrach and Steven Luckert] (http://www.amazon.com/State-Deception-Power-Nazi-Propaganda/dp/0896047148/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1457904916&sr=8-1&keywords=state+of+deception+nazi)

[Hitler: 1889-1936 Hubris by Ian Kershaw] (http://www.amazon.com/Hitler-1889-1936-Hubris-Ian-Kershaw/dp/0393320359/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1457904967&sr=8-2&keywords=hitler+kershaw)

[Hitler: 1936-1945 Nemesis by Ian Kershaw] (http://www.amazon.com/Hitler-1936-1945-Nemesis-Ian-Kershaw/dp/0393322521/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=01WJ9WDS06KZ1AX79B3M)

[The Nazi Doctors: Medical Killing and the Psychology of Genocide by Robert Jay Lifton] (http://www.amazon.com/Nazi-Doctors-Medical-Psychology-Genocide/dp/0465049052/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457905061&sr=1-1&keywords=the+nazi+doctors)

[The Destruction of the European Jews by Raul Hilberg] (http://www.amazon.com/Raul-Hilberg-Destruction-European-third/dp/B008UYLG6K/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457905115&sr=1-4&keywords=destruction+of+the+european+jews)

[Heinrich Himmler by Peter Longerich] (http://www.amazon.com/Heinrich-Himmler-Peter-Longerich/dp/0199651744/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457905176&sr=1-1&keywords=heinrich+himmler)

[Hitler's Hangman - The Life of Heydrich by Robert Gerwartch] (http://www.amazon.com/Hitlers-Hangman-The-Life-Heydrich/dp/0300187726/ref=pd_sim_14_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=51FT1ecdFQL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR104%2C160_&refRID=084WSKT05G4GB1FGE1SY)

[Nazi Germany and the Jews: Volume 1: The Years of Persecution 1933-1939 by Saul Friedlander] (http://www.amazon.com/Nazi-Germany-Jews-Persecution-1933-1939/dp/0060928786/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457905269&sr=1-3&keywords=nazi+germany+and+the+jews+saul)

[Nazi Germany and the Jews, 1939-1945: The Years of Extermination by Saul Friedlander] (http://www.amazon.com/Nazi-Germany-Jews-1939-1945-Extermination/dp/0060930489/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=0DQYMK2GMYNVJK794F03)

[Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland by Christopher R. Browning] (http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Men-Reserve-Battalion-Solution/dp/0060995068)

[KL: A History of the Nazi Concentration Camps by Nikolaus Wachsmann] (http://www.amazon.com/KL-History-Nazi-Concentration-Camps/dp/0374118256/ref=pd_sim_14_6?ie=UTF8&dpID=41yRIhssGkL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR106%2C160_&refRID=0BSM1HJ13NDQ46VKENQK)

> Things like going to protests/marches - are they at all effective?

Very much so. Protests at airports all over the country have led to an emergency halt on Trump's immigration ban.

Moreover, consistent protests -- especially ones explicitly calling for inclusion unlike the Obama protests -- sends a clear message to the world. Continue to exercise your constitutional rights for as long as you are able.

> But what else can we do to influence policy that's being made on the national level?

Last year, there were studies and reports talking about how Millennials aren't interested in running for office for a bunch of reasons.

After Trump's election, it looks like things might change. Run For Something announced that they are grooming 1,200 Millennials to run for office. Even scientists are running for office because the Trump administration rejects climate change and is gutting environmentalist programs.

Check if any of these new politicians are running for office in your distrct. Rally behind public servants that run to establish a smarter, more compassionate nation. Work on their campaign trails if you can. Remember, we don't vote for the president -- we vote in the people that do.

Fight gerrymandering. FairVote is one such organization that addresses it on a national level.


> What's most effective and efficient? How can we make a difference as individuals?

Just be a good person. I hate the idea that your job and your activism is what determines your moral worth. People assume that the social worker at charity:water is a "better person" than the guy on Wall Street.

I think how you live your life is far more important than what you do with it. Whatever job you have, do it with integrity and do it well. If you're in a position of power, strive to create a compassionate environment and hire diversely. Follow through with all your promises, even small ones like hanging out with your friends. Show up early to everything early.

In short, be good at the little things, because ultimately, those are the things that matter. Marches and rallies are important but they don't convince anyone who doesn't already agree with you (the purpose of those events is to raise awareness and sustain morale) and they don't happen very often. A march only takes up a few hours of your day, half a day at most.

In contrast, building your character takes an entire lifetime. You are bombarded with opportunities to be a kinder, more dependable person everyday.

And when you're known as someone who never flakes out, who is kind to everyone, and who is always on time, the people in your life will respect you. So the next time you advocate a cause, people will listen. The next time you show up at a march, people will see.

And finally, read up on history. There is nothing new under the sun. Opportunists and bad leaders like Trump have existed all throughout history.

Read about how journalists covered the rises of Hitler and Mussolini. Read up on Berlusconi. Read up on how Golden Dawn continues to seize power in Greece. Read about how Putin went from being your run-of-the-mill pragmatic kleptocrat to an ultranationalist demagogue. Read about the journalists that covered Putin's regime.

Wisdom is learning from those who came before you. Of course, those situations are not 1:1 with ours, but they're a map and a compass. They provide some context to what we're going through so we can adapt and move forward.

I mentioned this in a previous thread about Browder's testimony, but if you have a chance, read his book Red Notice. Browder goes into detail about his investments into Russia (becoming the largest foreign investor in Russia) and the rise of Putin's corruption within the Russian government. He was the crusader who got the Magnitsky Act passed, as Magnitsky was Browder's lawyer who discovered a lot of the corruption and the trail that led to the oligarchs and Putin. It really does read like a thriller.

James Garfield was without a doubt one of the most extraordinary men ever elected president. He literally came from nothing and was on trajectory to be the hero the country needed when he was tragically assassinated--he may be the only reluctant president we have had aside from George Washington himself. I highly recommend Candice Millard's biography, Destiny of the Republic.

>Both sides hurled stone and lead slingshot at each other. About eighty of these lead balls have been discovered by archaeologists and many have brief, extremely rude messages scratched on them. Examples include “I seek Fulvia’s clitoris”; “I seek Octavian’s arse”; “Octavian has a limp cock”; “Hi, Octavius, you suck dick”; “Loose Octavius, sit on this”; and, rather more feebly, “Lucius is bald.”

• Anthony Everitt

His cover was as a translator, but per this BBC article and Masha Gessen's book on him, his job was probably pretty boring.

According to WaPo, he may have been ultimately trying to NATO secrets and Western technology. That sounds cool in theory, but idk how fun that would have been in practice, given it was Dresden in the 80s. The WaPo article also says he was probably tasked with recruiting new officers, but as I recall, Gessen's book doesn't make mention of that. In either case, those tasks would have undoubtedly involved a ton of dull work.

Though, I'll admit that while looking into his German career, it occurred to me that his St Petersburg career (in the late 70s) could have been pretty exciting, especially since his work got him selected for an elite spy school.

One thought is that his health was in great decline, so he set things up for a seamless transition of power to his successor. However, he unexpectedly recovered. Rather than put his succession plan at risk, his wife assisted him with his suicide by poisoning his figs.

I’ve always enjoyed that account, even if it’s not necessarily accurate.

EDIT: This is not widely believed to be what had happened. I’m just sharing what I remember (it’s been about eight years since I’ve read it) from Anthony Everitt’s Augustus: The Life of Rome’s First Emperor.

>Both sides hurled stone and lead slingshot at each other. About eighty of these lead balls have been discovered by archaeologists and many have brief, extremely rude messages scratched on them. Examples include “I seek Fulvia’s clitoris”; “I seek Octavian’s arse”; “Octavian has a limp cock”; “Hi, Octavius, you suck dick”; “Loose Octavius, sit on this”; and, rather more feebly, “Lucius is bald.”

• Anthony Everitt

You could say the same about Maus, but I think it gives a good look at the Holocaust, despite using mice and cats to depict the Jews and Nazis.

This is a good read on the topic:

The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down

The book Blacklisted by history is completely sourced. I mean pages of sources. It tells you exactly how and why McCarthy was right, and how they black listed him. I mean seriously all one has to do today is look at Hollywood and the universities, and government to know he was right. Once you see it, then you understand why places like r/history and r/askhistorians have such a death grip on their subs.. They fear being exposed.

Short answer: no.

Slightly longer answer: The radicalization of Islam in the Middle East ties into the division of the region by the western powers after WWI, and further during the Cold War, when the U.S. (not only, but in particular) supported the rise to power of radical religious figures in opposition to communist/leftist parties & figures who might be sympathetic to the Soviet Union, and therefore potentially threaten U.S./U.K. access to oil in the region. This included aiding in the over-throwing of democratically elected governments in favor of autocratic but U.S./U.K.-favored leaders - most notably the U.S.-led 1953 coup d'etat in Iran, when Mohammad Mosaddegh was overthrown. The 1978 Iranian Revolution began as a popular uprising against the Shah who replaced him.

For more extensive reading on the subject:

Inventing Iraq by Toby Dodge (I have some major issues with Dodge's conclusions post 9/11, but the historical analysis that makes up the majority of the book is solid)

Spies in Arabia by Priya Satia, and Lawrence in Arabia are good histories of imperial ambition during the WWI period and its after-effects

Paris 1919 by Margaret MacMillan for the political maneuvering of the Western powers

A Peace to End All Peace by David Fromkin

I also recommend Edward Said, if you're looking for cultural analysis as well as history

Hans von Luck was a busy man during WW2. He was in most of the major campaigns and battles of the war. On D-Day, he commanded a regiment in the 21st Panzer Division which was on the east side of the Orne river (the flank of the British side). When Pegasus bridge was taken (an incredible story by itself), it was his tanks that tried to retake it. His autobiography is a must read for WW2 buffs.

Everyone who thinks this is interesting should read The Republic of Pirates. It might blow your mind how misinformed we are about pirates.

https://www.amazon.com/Republic-Pirates-Surprising-Caribbean-Brought/dp/015603462X

According to Hans von Luck, who worked with/under Rommel, basically the assassination was to end the war with the West/negotiate for peace, and then persuade the Allies to fight the USSR together to defeat communism.


https://www.amazon.com/Panzer-Commander-Memoirs-Colonel-Library/dp/0440208025

The difference is that McCarthy was right. There's pure irony in the fact that McCarthy is used derogatorily.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venona_project

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Americans_in_the_Venona_papers

https://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068/

For many of the Japanese who were bypassed during the pacific campaign the war's end was either unknown immediately or largely ignored. With the supply chain cut off, communication was rarely readily available. It may have taken a while for the Japanese on these bypassed islands to get the word that the war was lost. For some, this news was hard to swallow and in some cases it was ignored. The Japanese soldier was trained to not give up, dying in battle was the ultimate goal of the Japanese warrior. There were also cases of Japanese soldiers who joined the fight for Vietnamese independence and Indonesian independence to rid the Asian colonies of western control.

There were search parties, both Japanese and American and sometimes joint, to convince the holdouts that the war was over and to bring them home. Still some Japanese resisted. This book ( http://www.amazon.com/No-Surrender-Thirty-Year-Bluejacket-Books/dp/1557506639 ) was written by Hiroo Onoda, one of the most famous Japanese holdouts following World war 2. He was finally relieved of duty by his former commanding officer in 1974.

Wizard: The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla : Biography of a Genius by Marc Seifer

> We could easily solve everything with diplomacy

No, this is as far from reality as possible. Diplomacy and negotiating can only exist if there is a stick to smack some one with if they step out of line. You don't get it. It is absolutely complex, you just don't want it to be. You like your neat little narratives.

https://www.amazon.com/Diplomacy-Touchstone-Book-Henry-Kissinger/dp/0671510991

I am sure you can find a pdf of it online.

If you want a more in depth western account of this scene, read Tokyo Vice.

The Venona documents and other evidence later showed that "At least 349 citizens, immigrants, and permanent residents of the United States had a covert relationship with Soviet intelligence agencies, among them Harry White (assistant secretary of the treasury in FDR's administration and the Communists' highest-ranking asset) and State Department official Alger Hiss."

A good book on McCarthy himself is Blacklisted by History: The Untold Story of Senator Joe McCarthy and His Fight Against America's Enemies by M. Stanton Evans. I found it a tad over-the-top in its defense of McCarthy, but mostly good work. TL;DR: McCarthy was mostly right, but went too far (e.g. accusing General George Marshall).

Here's some interesting background on Welch's famous "Have you no decency?" speech. Welch was defending an aide of his who McCarthy had accused of being a communist, but two weeks before, Welch had fired that same aide for... being a communist. So the speech was just faux outrage and theater.

I read Onoda's book No Surrender and it's a great look into his mindset at the time.

He and his compatriots didn't believe the first news of surrender, and no one wanted to be the first to give in. They were on a recon/intelligence mission for the Japanese invasion.

They understood that fighting had stopped, but believed Japan would gather its armies and resume the war, and at that point greatly need his intelligence on the island. Once the others died believing this, even a search party with his own brother could not get Onoda out of hiding. It was awful hard on him.

In one autobiography I read written by Panzer Commander Colonel Hans von Luck (the book: http://www.amazon.com/Panzer-Commander-Memoirs-Colonel-Libary/dp/0440208025) he says at one point he spotted a convoy of allied tanks moving in the distance and at the time he was standing near a deployment of Flak 88s. He ordered the Flak 88 crews to direct their fire on the tanks but the crews refused saying that they were only anti-aircraft crews and weren't going to engage tanks. He pulled his pistol, aimed it at them, and said they either engage the tanks or he would shoot them for disobeying an order. They ended up engaging the tanks from long range and took out several of them.

I don't remember exactly where this happened but I seem to remember it was somewhere near Normandy after the allied landings.

EDIT I didn't mean to imply that the flak 88 crews thought the guns would be ineffective. I read the books like 8-10 years ago and always remembered that part. I figured it was because they didn't want to become tank targets but as someone else pointed out it was because the crew's point was that they only took orders from Luftwaffe commanders.

I don't read a lot of action-y graphic novels, so I can't really help you with finding more stuff like Watchmen, Wanted, etc. (However, you have to promise me you'll read Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns.)

But I can recommend more laid-back graphic novels if you're ever in the mood for something different! Give American Born Chinese, Anya's Ghost, or Daytripper a shot sometime.

Persepolis and Maus are also graphic novel must reads, no matter what genre you usually favor. And Scott Pilgrim was super popular recently, with great cause.

And, if you're willing to settle down for a long haul and read your comics backwards, I really can't recommend Fullmetal Alchemist enough. 27 volumes, but it's the best action series I've ever read and one of my all-time favorites of any sort of media. Check out a stack of it from the library and you'll fly right through it. That's what I did one afternoon, and my time has never been better spent.

Edit: More suggestions, typos.

If you haven't read Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard, then do yourself a favor. An amazing story well told.

Rubicon by Tom Holland is perhaps the most popular of recent histories. It's a very well written history of the fall of the Republic. Holland has a particularly modern style. I recommend it.

Swords Against the Senate covers roughly the same period, but focuses on the influence and actions of the Roman Army during the period. Slightly more "scholarly", but equally interesting, particularly if you have an interest in the Roman military.

Anthony Everritt's much lauded biographies of famous Romans includes the excellent Cicero and Augustus, both of also deal with the autumnal years of the Republic, but obviously in the context of these two great men and the events that they lived through. I think Cicero is perhaps one of the best biographies I've ever read. Everitt also wrote a bio of Hadrain, which I have yet to get to, and the fascinating sounding The Rise of Rome, to be published later this year.

On a more broad scale, there is Robin Lane Fox's best selling The Classical Age, which covers Greek and Roman history from the earliest times to the Fall of the Empire.

Finally, Emperors Don't Die in Bed sounds exactly like what you're looking for. It's not the cheapest book, but it does offer potted biographies of the the most famous Roman Emperors and their down-fall. Fascinating stuff!

More?

There was a group of men called The Holdouts who refused to believe that Japan surrendered during WWII and subsequently hid in the jungles of the Philippines until 1974 defending Japan's honor. Hiroo Onada was one of the last holdouts, surrendering in March of 1974. He is still alive, living in Brazil. He's also written a book about it.

>He fired the FBI director so as to stopper investigation of his "Russian ties"? Wait a bit. How do we know that, any more than we know what is meant by "Russian ties"?

Because that's what he told the Russians - you know, the people with whom it's suspected his campaign colluded. And those ties to Russia just might be clearer if his financial records were disclosed.

>As to the Russian angle, may one ask innocently what difference Russian "influence" could really make in an American election? And what payoff are the Russians seeing for it, if so?|

The difference is to either 1) get a convenient stooge elected or 2) sow enough discontent to keep the US politically fractured. The payoff is that anything that's bad for the US is perceived as good for russia. Particularly sanctions. See Masha Gessen's book on putin.

>Have there been any signs of American concessions or moral rollovers that are likely to strengthen Vladimir Putin?

Let's see... a couple of their highest operators have been in the oval office. And so far media coverage has helped prevent any concessions from happening though they were being discussed by the POTUS elect's transition team.

>And did Trump give the Russians sensitive information in a meeting with the ambassador and foreign minister? Not according to his national security adviser.

More bullshit. McMaster gave non-answers. And then the orange one himself opened his maw to spill the beans in a mind blowing "I'm not spilling the beans" denial.

>Trump was selling his country down the river? That's what it sounds like the impeachment crowd is hinting at.

Maybe depending on whom you ask. Mostly what I get is that people are very concerned with the level of fucking incompetence and damage being done.

Seriously fuck William Murchison and the Creators - whatever the fuck that is.

> Almost like

Well, but they do.

> Sometimes I really think Joseph McCarthy was right.

He's been repeatedly proven correct. Someone in another thread posted a link to this book:

https://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068

Red Notice. Definitely more for entertainment than education, you don't need to know much about finance to enjoy it. About Bill Browder's hedge fund Hermitage Capital, which became the largest foreign investor in post-Soviet Russia following some successful activist campaigns by Browder challenging the corruption of the oligarchs. It's a quick and entertaining page turner.

Dude, that's a lot of pain to deal with. The only non-disabled family you have are your parents, and it seems like they are simply overwhelmed. I can't imagine the pain and grief they must go through every minute of every day just dealing with the massive struggle they go through every day.

Sincerely, I hope you can escape this and find a way to not drown. I really don't know how you will do it, but I hope you do.

If it helps to write confessions like this, do it. If it helps to write angry stories and then destroy them, do it. If you can afford a psychologist, go see them. You need every strategy you can find.

This book helped me through a dark place in my life. Maybe it can help you: Man's Search for Meaning

Regarding the part about not shooting down the victorious plane, if you get the chance, you should definitely read A Higher Call. It's a great book about the Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler incident, where Brown was flying a severely damaged B-17, and Stigler was ordered to shoot him down, but he didn't, and they met 40 years later and died a few months apart.

Bone

Akira

Mouse guard

Persepolis

Scott Pilgrim

Swamp thing by Alan Moore

Judge Dredd: The cursed earth uncensored

Nemesis the warlock

The league of extra ordinary gentlemen

Hellboy

Zot! by Scott McCloud

V for vendetta

Nimona

The sandman

Maus

American Flagg

Bean world

Dan Dare by Garth Ennis

Flintstones by Mark Russell

Giant days

Groo

The incal

Jonah Hex

The nam

Queen and Country

Rork

Usagi yojimbo

Nausicaa

Either that or they could have a basic understanding of the history.

Larger population and more powerful industry (especially compared to Russia).

If you look at this pdf, you'll see (from p. 34 onwards) that Germany's industry was more powerful than that of France. Just as one example, according to that essay, Germany in 1913 mined 190 million tons (metric) of coal compared to France's 41 million tons.

As to the organisation, I remember from Barbara Tuchmans's The Guns of August - a very well written, fascinating read about the outbreak and first months of WW1 - that the Germans had everything planned down to the minute (time intervals for trains crossing the Rhine etc.), while the French were less meticulous in organising beforehand which train car would be where etc. (Tuchman mentions "Système D" for "se débrouiller", meaning to think up something or to muddle along; I guess that would have been the soldiers' joke name for a lack of organisation).

Apart from stereotypes about the German planning fetish and French disorganisation, I presume the differences also had to do with how the armies expected the confrontation to develop: sending parts of the French army into Alsace and leaving the rest in the homeland to defend against the enemy would have required a bit less organisation and planning than sending almost the entire German army through a neutral country and into enemy territory, winning that war and then sending everything back against Russia.

As for Germany being a "young country" at that time: as a state, yes, but the population was larger than that of France, by quite a bit (about 20 million IIRC?). I don't remember the proportions of fighting-age males but with a larger population in general, the Germans will have had a larger reserve of army recruits as well.

German/Prussian militarism should also be noted. While this doesn't have much to do with organisation per se, German culture was, in general, much more militaristic than the French or British cultures. Quoting from memory from Robert K. Massie's wonderful Dreadnought: "It illustrates the great difference between German and British political culture that the German chancellor [Caprivi in the 1890s] would, in uniform, lead a cavalry charge past the Emperor." - or something to that effect. Germany was itching, as the newcomer on the European political stage, to get what it thought was its due. The beginning of WW1 was what the general staff had spent their professional lives planning for.

If you're looking for books:

• Christopher Clark's "The Sleepwalkers" was a bit dry for my taste but contains a lot of information on the situation in the Balkans, which sparked the whole thing, that I hadn't previously seen.
  
  
• Massie's "Dreadnought" is more biographical, going deeply into the characters of everyone involved from about 1850. I'm not sure he counts as "academic enough", but he sure is a great writer; it's the kind of history book you can read on the beach while learning tons of stuff about the time, the major actors and the political crises which led up to the war.
  
  
• Tuchman's "The Guns of August" is, on a literary level, simply a pleasure to read and basically a day-by-day account of the outbreak and first weeks of the war.
  
  
• John Keegan's "The First World War" is more of a military history. Very detailed... a bit too detailed for me, but anyone interested in a one-volume military history of WW1 is going to get what they were looking for, I think.

Very interesting original report of a POW interrogation that details the weeks after the Normandy invasion for a SS PzG division from the perspective of one of the division staff officers. Summary in the article and the entire actual report is provided as well.

EDIT: This intel report covers a similar time frame, location, and scope as one of the memoirs I have, Panzer Commander from Hanz Von Luck. It's a good read if you haven't gone through it, and want to get into additional first hand experience at a similar level on the same battlefield.

I don't know that I agree. I recommend reading Theodore Rex by Edmund Morris. It's a bit dry, but looking at the details of his life, you really come away with the impression that Teddy Roosevelt wasn't putting on an act - he really was that intense.

Incidentally, searching for a link there taught me that there is an unrelated film from 1995 by the same name starring Whoopi Goldberg.

Biographies are super interesting in general. I've read Steve Jobs and Elon Musk's, currently in the process of reading Rockefeller.

Speaking of, that would be my recommendation : [Titan: The Life of John D. Rockfeller.](https://www.amazon.com/Titan-Life-John-Rockefeller-Sr/dp/1400077303/ref=sr_1_1? ie=UTF8&qid=1527576392&sr=8-1&keywords=titan&dpID=51puoryvTiL&preST=_SY344_BO1,204,203,200QL70&dpSrc=srch) What better way to learn about empires than to read about the richest man since the invention of capitalism that had a monopoly on the oil industry, which would put him at a 400 billion dollar USD net worth today.

> But the way he talks about how Monopolies come and go is sort of the proof that they aren't really problems.

From the video, Standard Oil, American Tobacco, and Microsoft are all examples of competition and innovation stifling companies that resulted in government anti-trust action. Since the 1980s, US anti-trust law has loosened to mean only companies that destroy consumer surplus via artificially high prices. One of the interesting debates of the past couple years has been whether zero-cost monopolies Facebook and Google are stifling innovation. The EU has produced court rulings within that past year that indicate they believe the answer is yes. See this most recent stratechery post for some analysis.

If you're interested in the formation of the modern corporation, and the evolution of the railroad/commodity collusion and legislative bribery that allowed oil and steel magnates to become the world's richest people, I'd recommend Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr..

Highly recommend this as a very approachable "for-the-layperson" history of TE and the region during the same era that Seven Pillars covers. https://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Arabia-Deceit-Imperial-Making/dp/0307476413

After a bit of research: A Higher Call: An Incredible True Story of Combat and Chivalry in the War-Torn Skies of World War II https://www.amazon.com/dp/0425255735/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_lJJwub0FAWJEN

Anything by Alan Moore. Promethea is a personal fave, but might not be the best place to start. Top Ten is also very good if cop drama overlaid with some super-hero stuff sounds appealing. Watchman is a cornerstone of the form, but you will definitely appreciate it more if/when you have a fair bit of 'capes & tights' superhero work under your belt.

Blankets is just stunning. I've bought it 3 times already and have the new hardcover edition on perorder.

Stardust is another great one by Neil Gaiman. It's also unique in that if you enjoy the story you can experience it in 3 different, but all very good, forms. The original comic, the prose novel, and the film all work quite well and give a nice window into what bits a pieces work better in each form.

Of course no comic list is complete without Maus and Understanding Comics.

http://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President/dp/0767929713

http://www.amazon.com/The-River-Doubt-Theodore-Roosevelts/dp/0767913736/ref=pd_sim_b_1

Presidential biographies that are easy reads about manly men

EDIT: Real men don't need a "How to be a man for dummies" they read about other's experiences, pair them with their own, and better themselves.

Garfield is the most criminally under appreciated U.S. President. After reading this this book I wanted to put him on Mt. Rushmore: http://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President/dp/0767929713

I think the site deserves a plaque at least. #JusticeforJim

Long overdue recognition for a true genius. If you have an interest in the man who invented the AC motor and generator, radio (you thought it was Marconi, right?), remote control and so much more, you might enjoy this - http://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Nikola-Biography-Genius-Citadel/dp/0806519606

Kissinger also wrote http://www.amazon.com/Diplomacy-Touchstone-book-Henry-Kissinger/dp/0671510991

It is literally a text book for college courses on poli sci and international diplomacy.
It is a fantastic book, which makes me a fan of kissinger I guess, disregarding your quotes because I don't agree with those particular ideas of his.

As long as they don't die like Pres. Garfield did, because that was fucking tragic. (This book kinda messed me up: https://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President/dp/0767929713 - tl;dr: he got shot just late enough that doctors tried to do something, but just early enough that they made everything worse.)

This is quite the under-taking, so I'll just list the presidents from which I am familiar with the historical literature. In order to guarantee that you get an analytically thorough understanding of each president, I'll avoid "pop" histories (thus, nothing by David McCullough) in favor of more analytically driven, yet still well written, histories. I will still incorporate some books from non-academic publishers, however. First off, the best place to start would probably be the University of Kansas's American Presidency Series (note that this is different from the American Presidents Series, which is done from NY Times books. Always be sure to check the publisher). This series is great for getting a good understanding of what historians in general have written about each respective president; however, the series only focuses on the presidency, which is more constrained than what you're looking for. I'll just go in sequential order based on when the individual was president.

• George Washington
  
  Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow. (Do not buy this book off the internet. I've seen the hardcover version of this book in the overstock sections of Barnes and Nobles, Wal Marts, and even Albertsons for $6. Don't become reticent about it because it's in the cheapy bin at Wal Mart. Chernow is one of the best biographers of early American history and the book won a Pulitzer.
  
  His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph Ellis
  
  
• John Adams
  
  John Adams: A Life by John Ferling
  
  
• Thomas Jefferson
  
  Thomas Jefferson by R.B. Bernstein
  
  Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power by Jon Meacham
  
  
• James Madison
  
  James Madison: A Biography by Ralph Ketcham
  
  The Sacred Fire of Liberty: James Madison and the Founding of the American Republic by Lance Banning
  
  
• James Monroe
  
  James Monroe: The Quest for National Identity by Harry Ammon
  
  
• John Quincy Adams
  
  Paul Nagel's John Quincy Adams: A Public Life, A Private Life
  
  For an in depth look at his time as Secretary of State, check out John Quincy Adams: Policymaker for the Union by James E. Lewis, Jr.
  
  
• Andrew Jackson
  
  Robert Remini's 3-volume biography is still the most comprehensive on Andrew Jackson. Vol. I is Andrew Jackson and the Course of American Empire, 1767-1821; Vol. II is Andrew Jackson and the Course of American Freedom, 1822-1833; Vol. III is Andrew Jackson and the Course of American Democracy, 1833-1845.
  
  Old Hickory's War: Andrew Jackson and the Quest for Empire by David and Jeanne Heidler is also worth reading.
  
  
• Theodore Roosevelt
  
  Edmund Morris's 3-volume biography. Vol. I, The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt; Vol. II, Theodore Rex;, Vol. III, Colonel Roosevelt
  
  
• Harry Truman
  
  Man of the People: A Life of Harry S. Truman by Alonzo Hamby
  
  
• John F. Kennedy
  
  The aforementioned American Presidency Series book, The Presidency of John F. Kennedy, revised edition by James Giglio.
  
  An Unfinished Life: John F. Kennedy, 1917-1963 by Robert Dallek
  
  
• Lyndon Johnson
  
  Robert Caro's multi-volume biography (still unfinished). Vol. I, The Years of Lyndon Johnson: The Path to Power; Vol. II, Means of Ascent; Vol. III, Master of the Senate; Vol. IV, The Passage of Power; Vol. V is yet to be published.
  
  For a one volume account, LBJ: Architect of Ambition by Randall Woods is also good.
  
  
• Richard Nixon
  
  Strangely, there still isn't a definitive book on Nixon's presidency. For a good understanding of his presidency, you need to get into more specific areas, like Nixon and foreign affairs, Nixon and the civil rights movement, or even biographies of Nixon's closest advisers within his administration. The best account of Nixon himself would by the American Presidency Series's entry by Melvin Small, The Presidency of Richard Nixon. Equally important when attempting to understand Nixon's presidency is the life and thought of Henry Kissinger. The single best biography of Kissinger is Jeremi Suri's Henry Kissinger and the American Century.
  
  
• Gerald Ford
  
  Really the only substantive book on Gerald Ford comes from the American Presidency Series. It's The Presidency of Gerald R. Ford, revised ed by John Greene.
  
  
• Jimmy Carter
  
  The more substantive books on Carter are going to be too dry reading than what you're asking for. A readable, and analytically thorough, biography of Carter's presidency is The Presidency of James Earl Carter, Jr., revised and updated edition by Burton Ira Kaufman. For Carter's (much more effective) time post-presidency, check out Douglas Brinkley's The Unfinished Presidency: Jimmy Carter's Quest for Global Peace. For the Carter presidency's foreign policy, still the best account is Morality, Reason, and Power: American Diplomacy in the Carter Years by Gaddis Smith.
  
  
• Ronald Reagan
  
  It's hard to find a good, unbiased biography of Reagan. By far the best biography comes from the journalist Lou Cannon in his book, President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime.
  
  Sean Wilentz's The Age of Reagan: A History, 1974-2008 is also good, but the author becomes more clearly biased as the history gets closer to the present. Still, despite the author's biases it is a great book that is analytically sharp and incredibly well written.
  
  Morning in America: How Ronald Reagan Invented the 1980s by Gil Troy offers a solid, more positive assessment of Reagan than most historians provide.
  
  
• George H.W. Bush
  
  The American Presidency Series's entry by John Greene, The Presidency of George Bush
  
  
• Bill Clinton
  
  Historians are just now starting to dig into the Clinton presidency. The best account of the Clinton presidency, like Reagan's presidency, comes from a journalist: John Harris's The Survior: Bill Clinton in the White House
  
  There are also a ton of books on the George W. Bush presidency, many of them good, many of them bad. While I'm not a big fan of this sub-reddit's 20 years prior rule, I will respect it. If you want some suggestions on George W. Bush, just PM me.
  
  Edit: I realized I completely left out John Quincy Adams so I added him in.
  Edit #2: I also linked my suggestions to their respective Amazon page.

http://www.amazon.com/Augustus-Life-Romes-First-Emperor/dp/0812970586/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1320917363&sr=1-1

Highly recommended, a little embellished at times but an excellent read

Random selection of some of my favorites to help you expand your horizons:

The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan is a great introduction to scientific skepticism.

Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris is a succinct refutation of Christianity as it's generally practiced in the US employing crystal-clear logic.

Augustus: The Life of Rome's First Emperor by Anthony Everitt is the best biography of one of the most interesting men in history, in my personal opinion.

Travels with Herodotus by Ryszard Kapuscinski is a jaw-dropping book on history, journalism, travel, contemporary events, philosophy.

A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson is a great tome about... everything. Physics, history, biology, art... Plus he's funny as hell. (Check out his In a Sunburned Country for a side-splitting account of his trip to Australia).

The Annotated Mona Lisa by Carol Strickland is a thorough primer on art history. Get it before going to any major museum (Met, Louvre, Tate Modern, Prado, etc).

Not the Impossible Faith by Richard Carrier is a detailed refutation of the whole 'Christianity could not have survived the early years if it weren't for god's providence' argument.

Six Easy Pieces by Richard Feynman are six of the easier chapters from his '63 Lectures on Physics delivered at CalTech. If you like it and really want to be mind-fucked with science, his QED is a great book on quantum electrodynamics direct from the master.

Lucy's Legacy by Donald Johanson will give you a really great understanding of our family history (homo, australopithecus, ardipithecus, etc). Equally good are Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors by Nicholas Wade and Mapping Human History by Steve Olson, though I personally enjoyed Before the Dawn slightly more.

Memory and the Mediterranean by Fernand Braudel gives you context for all the Bible stories by detailing contemporaneous events from the Levant, Italy, Greece, Egypt, etc.

After the Prophet by Lesley Hazleton is an awesome read if you don't know much about Islam and its early history.

Happy reading!

edit: Also, check out the Reasonable Doubts podcast.

This was a very interesting book.

https://www.amazon.com/Titan-Life-John-Rockefeller-Sr/dp/1400077303

Available on Audible as well.

M. Stanton Evans showed that McCarthy was spot on, and he used Soviet archives as a key part of his proof.

Blacklisted by History: The Untold Story of Senator Joe McCarthy and His Fight Against America's Enemies

he did.

No Surrender: My Thirty Year War

I've been reading this memoir by a German WW2 soldier (ethnically French):
http://www.amazon.com/The-Forgotten-Soldier-Guy-Sajer/dp/1574882864

He actually claims that his unit received a lot of hospitality in Ukraine(including friendly women). There was no such luck in Russia. It might be that some Ukrainians didn't suffer too much from the German conquest.

> Is it also not possible that the guy that has lived relatively frugally

It is possible, but he has objectively not done this, unless you're talking relative to other billionaires, even then there are far more frugal billionaires with 1/100th the public image he sells to
try to distance himself & his fund from the typical fund image (John Cauldwell, Azim Premji, a lot of the european dynastic old money as a few examples. For first generation, look at almost any of the Danish/Skandi billionaires)

If you have multiple private jets for the exclusive use of you & your family and own multiple properties, each worth millions of dollars - you're not frugal.

> is donating 99.9% of his fortune to charity when he dies

Is donating the massively tax deferred portion of his net worth to a privately run organisation that his family will be involved in running for decades to come, after already having set up all of his direct descendants as billionaires.

> calls out tax laws that are b.s. but personally benefit him is just that simple guy?

"don't hate the player, hate the game" with regard to tax law when you're the 3rd richest person on the planet, best mates with the 2nd richest person on the planet & literally have the money & power to CHANGE the game is not a valid argument. He talks a big game about tax reform, but does not work to actually do anything about it. Hell, his donations swing heavily toward republicans who are AGAINST tax reform. He's done very well thanks to them too:
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/2/24/17048378/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-tax-cuts


A big chunk of Berkshire Hathaway's success is built on not paying tax, they've got $86,000,000,000+ in deferred taxes thanks to exploiting a loop hole where they don't have to pay tax while working on acquiring a company... So they just make sure they are always acquiring.

Imagine if you could defer paying tax forever with the argument that you're still busy buying shares or ETFs.. Given what subreddit we're on, it would be pretty appealing.

Then as previously mentioned in that linked article, the party you donate to comes along & cuts the tax rate, so now you owe billions less than you previously did - woohoo!

> His image may marginally help him

Buffett is selling what is essentially the antithesis of this subreddit. High fee managed funds that exploit tax rules for massive profitability to become personally one of the richest people on the planet. He's the anti-Bogle, yet this subreddit & a lot of FI/RE types love him, because of that image & brand.

Buffett is Berkshire, the reason why so many people & institutional funds are happy to pour money into Berkshire stock is because of the image. It hasn't helped him a little bit, it's helped him immensely.

> To me he seems to genuinely want what's best for the country/world.

To me he seems like another John D. Rockerfeller. A titan of industry who wants to be the richest so he can control where the money ends up. Win the game, then give most of it away. If you haven't read it yet, grab yourself a copy of https://www.amazon.com/Titan-Life-John-Rockefeller-Sr/dp/1400077303

The similarities are incredible.

YUP. Anyone thinking this shit is new can find much of the backstory by watching

Putin's Revenge- Part 1

Putin's Revenge- Part 2

Reading Red Notice by Bill Browder

Reviewing the Moscow Project

It's awesome. He was an officer, is very intelligent, and gives lots of jungle survival tips . Lots of lessons in doublethink too - how he managed to reconcile his view that the war was still on with the information he received as time passed.

Amazon link to the soldier's book

Yes. No Surrender : My Thirty Year War

Enjoy.

Very good story. I'm like you, I had the privilege of having a grandmother who was born in the late 1800s (actually, a great-grandmother). Anybody who grew up around those types of people are likely to have been positively influenced by them. This woman never had a car in her life, walked everywhere she went, did lots of hard work well in to her late 90s, like gardening all summer, lifting heavy stuff up stairs, etc.. Those types of people who grew up without electricity, air conditioning, soft beds, etc, are on a whole different level. Regardless of race.

I agree that you tend to develop sense of superiority compared to normal people, when you grew up hard, or succumbed to hard conditions at some point in life. To the point where you begin to see "hard work" as something that you actually need, like air or water. Also, what really inspires me about the older generations is how they didn't gorge themselves on food, in fact, they ate very little, and were surprisingly strong for their size, even in old age.


One guy who really inspires me is Hiroo Onoda, a Japanese soldier who lived in a jungle for almost 3 decades. I highly recommend reading his book about his experience. He was one of those "old guard" people who lived hard and long, and "did the impossible" as an everyday thing. Patience, persistence, stoicism... All attributes that have been totally lost in many countries, since WW2.

https://www.amazon.com/No-Surrender-My-Thirty-Year-War/dp/1557506639

I am glad that you referenced Roger's book. His related book, The Safeguard of the Sea, looks at Britain's (England's, Wessex's, etc.) navy from 660-1649 and is also an excellent read.

If you don't mind, I would expand on your comment to say this: One of the major arguments that both books make is that a major contributor to Britain's naval success was also the bureaucracy that grew up around the Navy. We tend to think of bureaucracy in negative terms today, but in having a regularized, systemic way of casting and distributing guns and ordnance; building and repairing ships; victualling ships; and manning ships, the British navy was far ahead of its competitors, even by the time of the Armada.

It's also worth pointing out that Britain's naval strength was helped by the establishment of dockyards, drydocks, and associated naval "bases" (although that's an anachronistic term) in various places, including the Thames and Portsmouth but also in other places along England's coast. Not to put too fine a point on it, but wooden ships rot, and regular maintenance was a major reason why Britain was able to keep up its naval strength.

This moves a bit past OP's timeframe, but allow me to recommend two other books by Robert K. Massie, that specifically look at the Anglo-German naval race in the run-up to World War I:

http://www.amazon.com/Dreadnought-Robert-K-Massie/dp/0345375564

http://www.amazon.com/Castles-Steel-Britain-Germany-Winning/dp/0345408780/ref=la_B000AQ6XVE_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1370812631&sr=1-6

Theodore Roosevelt is an immensely complicated and impressive man. His life and character can't be written into one book, much less quotes from an email.

In addition to his "manly" and "physical" exploits, he was a scientist, who enjoyed studying and cataloging songbirds as well as warships.

Suggested reading:
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Rex

Those are a good place to start.

Colid Woodard - The Republic of Pirates.

The excellent prequel by Massie is Dreadnought: Britain, Germany, and the Coming of the Great War

Gotta plug a book I just finished, A Higher Call.
https://www.amazon.com/Higher-Call-Incredible-Chivalry-War-Torn/dp/0425255735/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1485022791&sr=8-1&keywords=higher+call

It's about a German fighter pilot and an American bomber crew, it's the best WW2 book I've ever read.

I just started the book, A Higher Call, this afternoon.

I just read the book... https://www.amazon.com/Higher-Call-Incredible-Chivalry-War-Torn/dp/0425255735

I read a lot of historical fiction, hope thats allowed to recommend:

The book that made the greatest impression on me with regards to the frontlines in WW2 was https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Forgotten_Soldier. It is a fantastic story seen by the footsoldier. I really, really, REALLY dont want to be on the receiving end of artillery fire after reading this book.

A very different book is this https://www.amazon.com/Panzer-Commander-Memoirs-Colonel-Library/dp/0440208025.

Here you experience the war from a senior officers point of view. It mostly works on a division/batallion level. Instead of describing the horrors in detail, it often just states "we took heavy losses". Still it takes you from Germany to France to Russia to Africa to France to Germany to Russia to Germany, so you get to experience the war in many different places, stages, viewpoints (attacker, defender, prisoner) and times.

Edit: If you are interested in Alexander the great and want action packed historical fiction, do this one: https://www.amazon.com/God-War-Story-Alexander-Great/dp/1409135942

Among the Thugs, about someone (an American) who spent years with the football hooligans, while he worked in London as a journalist (he didn't do journalist on the hooligans, saved it all for the book).

The best book about Pirates.

True stories and facts based on historical information.

https://www.amazon.com/Republic-Pirates-Surprising-Caribbean-Brought/dp/015603462X

I highly recommend Lawrence In Arabia to anyone who is interested in the subject. It's one hell of a story.

Yes, there's a big distinction. Here's a link that scratches the surface of dreadnought background & development to get you started.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Dreadnought_(1906)

If you get really curious, here's two books that round out the subject of how dreadnoughts fit into naval history...

http://www.amazon.com/Dreadnought-Robert-K-Massie/dp/0345375564/ref=la_B000AQ6XVE_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1406314026&sr=1-6

http://www.amazon.com/Castles-Steel-Britain-Germany-Winning/dp/0345408780

Yes, that is the one. Here is the book I was referring to.

Hans von Luck was Rommel's favorite junior officer. While he was no Nazi, he was from a strong Prussian military background, and he fought from the invasion of Poland through to 1945. His autobiographical book offers a somewhat rare perspective on good soldiering on the Axis side.

I won't pretend to support the actions of axis soldiers, just the same as I wouldn't support the actions of soldiers in muddled conflicts like we have going on today, however I respect the courage and stalwart determination of soldiers no matter which country they fight for, or for what political/religious ideology they fight for.


It's with that sense of respect in mind, that I find bringing stories to light, from both sides of any conflict, is beneficial, and why I detest people who dismiss those stories and soldiers because "they were our enemy and they did horrible things".
War is horrible by definition, horrible things are bound to happen, and even worse things are bound to happen when religion is thrown in, as shown with Japan's involvement in WWII, but that doesn't make the stories or the soldiers any less impressive, or detract from the insane amount of courage it would have taken for ANY soldier to fight on those fronts, in those conditions, and with those tools.


In the same way I can absolutely respect and be amazed by the courage shown by the soldiers during the raid of St. Nazaire, I can also be equally amazed and impressed by the courage and fighting spirit (and oftentimes surprising humility) of the German soldiers during their conflicts, such as some of the stories of Hanz Von Luck (very interesting book, I suggest finding a copy), it's for those reasons that I think you should reconsider dismissing an entire army of its right to have its stories told simply because you don't like the thought of them having killed allies in past conflicts.

Depends on what you're asking about specifically.

The comic book series? Movie?

• Before Watchmen: A lot of people shit on it just because it's not the original 12-issue series. I see a lot of complaining to the extent that it's just 'not as good' but no solid reasoning as to why. I have every issue. I haven't read any of them yet (except about 4-5 pages of the first Moloch, and I liked it). I should get to them at some point so I can offer a solid opinion on them, but as of right now I'd say 'well, it's more of those characters doing things before the events outlined in the main series.'
  
  
• V For Vendetta: Another Alan Moore project, so the writing is similar/familiar. Also became a film, as you may know.
  
  
• From Hell: Another Alan Moore project. Featuring an investigator hunting down Jack The Ripper. Was also a decent film.
  
  
• Sleeper: It's a grown-up approach to superheroes, much like Watchmen.
  
  
• The Dark Knight Returns: Agreed to be a lot like Watchmen in a lot of respects.
  
  Most of this is also included in this article on io9.
  
  Looking at the comments, someone suggests Maus, and, really, that's not a good suggestion in relation to Watchmen. I'd highly recommend reading Maus but not because it has anything to do with Watchmen. It's an illustrated retelling of Art Spiegelman's father's memories of surviving the Holocaust, peppered with Art's problems in dealing with his father. It's a very good series. I even recommended it to my mother. She loved it. You can get both volumes in one book.
  
  EDIT: Here's another article suggesting similar comics.

Strongly recommend Bill Buford's Among the Thugs. Gets into the politics and sociology of hooliganism, if that's what you're looking for.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Among_the_Thugs

https://www.amazon.com/Among-Thugs-Bill-Buford/dp/0679745351

I would recommend the book Among the Thugs by Bill Buford. It's an incredible look into the ultras culture in Europe, including the UK Firms of the 70's and 80's. One of my favorite reads of all time, and it definitely touches on the sociological aspect of hooliganism.

Not Magic-related but I have to plug this. Destiny of the Republic is a really fascinating biography of Garfield, who is maybe our most obscure president these days. The beginning covers his near-accidental rise to the presidency. After the shooting it splits into three different narratives: Charles Guiteau, the nutcase who shot him; Dr. Doctor (his real name), who gave him terrible medical treatment; and Alexander Graham Bell, who essentially invented the metal detector to try to find the bullet embedded inside him.

I don't read much history but this book has a couple of really powerful moments.

I just finished http://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Nikola-Biography-Genius-Citadel/dp/0806519606

This is not a great biography. But the subject is so fascinating that it largely covers the significant flaws.

First the flaws:

The author is an unabashed fan of Tesla and clearly has an agenda to make sure that the reader recognizes Tesla above Edison and Marconi and the other giants of the age. For instance, he denigrates Edison as using the brute force of a massive volume of experiments to come to what works while Tesla would think it through and do the math and find what would work and then test it to confirm. The author celebrates Tesla as superior to Edison because of this difference--Edison is the plodding, dirty, workbench-chained technician--Tesla is the brilliant scientist with pencil and paper and thoughts soaring above. There might be some truth to this contrast, but it is made in an extreme sense and seems unnecessarily judgmental towards Edison. And so forth throughout the book.

A second flaw is that the author is so insistent in trying to prove Tesla's scientific priority over those that follows that he spends hundreds of pages going through technical aspects of patent applications and the inner-working of the various devices. This might be interesting to an electrical engineer, but to the lay reader it is tedious. I just about laid the book down once or twice. But there were enough brilliant insights to keep going.

A few interesting anecdotes:

Once Tesla nearly destroyed his lab building on Houston St. in NYC with one of his oscillators. Shortly afterwards he clamped one to a skyscraper under construction and nearly caused it to collapse, turning it off and slipping it into his pocket and slipping away in the confusion of men thinking an earthquake had struck. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tesla's_... (the book does not calim the oscillator cause an earthquake, but that the effect of the oscillator connected to a building's support structure was like an earthquake an could tumble a buildng within minutes. Amazing if true (and it sounds true to this non-scientiest--resonence of marching on bridges and all that).

Tesla was backed at different times by both John Jacob Astor (the richest man in the world) and JP Morgan (the most powerful financier in the world). He failed to deliver both times, taking the money which was earmarked for one purpose and diverting it to another purpose. When he ran out of money to complete the non-disclosed purpose and came back begging for more money, he was rebuffed. If he had done what he told the two men he was going to do with the money (in both cases creating a product that could be taken to market) instead of burning through it on scientific research without an end, he would have been a very very wealthy man and who knows what he could have accomplished. As it was, he never was able to raise money after betraying JPMorgan and was unable to do much significant work after that time.

Tesla was constantly a deadbeat borrower, evicted from many hotels for unpaid bills, and constantly begging others for funding during the last half of his life. It is sad to read, really.

Tesla was a lifelong celibate, almost certainly homosexual, but never practicing. A man of amazing self-discipline and focus.

His consuming dream was to provide free electric powerful to the world. It is unlikely that there is merit to this scheme or it would have been implemented somewhere at some time (same with his death ray concept which he claimed to have build a prototype).

It seems the longer he lived, the crazier he became. For instance, he was fanatically committed to pigeons--paying people to feed them when he didn't have enough money to pay his rent. He loved pigeons more than anything for his last few decades. One favorite visited him, he claimed, and communicated to him it was dying and Tesla saw light shooting out of its eyes, telling Tesla that his work was also done. Very odd. He also had to circle the block of his hotel six times before he would enter each night. He wouldn't shake hands due to germs. Typical obsessive-compulsive behavior stuff. Sad.

Bottom line on the man: Tesla was brilliant and we owe him much for our modern world is built on his inventions--everything that runs on electricity is a grandchild of Tesla. Tesla invented: AC current, florescent light, X-Ray machines, radio broadcast (the US Supreme Court ruled in 1943 that Tesla's patents were violated by Marconi), remote control of boats/airplanes/etc, the electric motor, robotics (and the entire concept of a robot), the laser, wireless communication. That is quite a list. His name deserves to be immortal.

Bottom line on the book: Tesla is still awaiting the biography he deserves. But this one is worth picking up while we wait.

• A Concise Guide to Macroeconomics - As concise as it promises & super accessible, I can't imagine a better primer to macro. this is required reading at HBS (where the author teaches)
  
  
• The Productivity Project - I'm working thru this now in audio book form. The guy took a year off after college to experiment w/ diff't productivity systems. it's a nice overview of lots of different productivity gurus/techniques
  
  
• Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller - the perfect read for the aspiring tycoon about the greatest CEO of them all, the man for whom anti-trust laws were first written.
  
  
• House of Morgan - or for the financially inclined, the original rainmaker, James Pierpont Morgan. My favorite part of this one is that it's actually a pretty thorough history of investment banking from 1900 - ~1990.
  
  But really, I think 'just relax' is best here, so:
  
  
• Diversify your interests
  
• Read some books you've always wanted to that have no obvious connections to self-improvement
  
• learn to code, build something dope, then start a company (okay, not 'relaxing,' but still great)
  
• whittle something (maybe also start a company with that, somehow)
  
• date someone out of your league
  
• volunteer somewhere unglamorous doing something hard & thankless
  
  etc etc etc
  

Congress thinks so. That's why it passed the bipartisan Magnitsky Act. For details about Russian fraud, false prosecutions, torture and murder that prompted Congress to pass the Magnitsky Act, I highly recommend the book Red Notice, A True Story of High Finance, Murder and One Man's Fight for Justice by Bill Browder CEO and founder of Hermitage Capital Management investment fund which was once the largest foreign portfolio investment fund in Russia.

Yes, it's called No Surrender
No Surrender: My Thirty-Year War https://www.amazon.com/dp/1557506639/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_UMd4Db0R4DM66

Everything about this guy's story is incredible

Sure there has.

On the other hand, you might want to read this:

https://www.amazon.com/Man-Without-Face-Unlikely-Vladimir/dp/1594486514

• Emotional Intelligence
  
• Leadership and self deception
  
• Man's search for meaning
  
• Taming your gremlin

Man's Search for Meaning. I've just started it, but it started resonating in the first couple pages. My physical therapist recommended it to me, saying he read it several times after his dad passed. It's somehow not as dark as it sounds. It's more about the psychology of what he went through and the philosophy extracted from that.

Also, Way of the Peaceful Warrior has always clicked with me.

You've asked a big question. I would suggest reading something like Viktor Frankl: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009U9S6FI/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

The term "addiction" is kind of loaded. Clearly the brain centers involved in addictions to heroin or cocaine are also involved in normal life. On a purely physiological basis, love is an addiction. So I'm with Seinfeld when he says, there's no such thing as sex addiction. We are all sex addicts, which generally bodes well for the survival of the species.

To take the 30,000 foot view, consider the possibility that addiction and depression share a common antecedent: that both are caused by a defect in the brain's reward system that manifests in adolescence. Causing the patient to have a blunted response to pleasurable things, to the point where it's even hard to imagine being happy. Depression is more complicated than addiction -- in depression you can have a disorder of energy regulation, and a disorder of cognition. But in both cases, the patient is incentivized to stimulate the reward center of the brain directly with drugs. Life itself isn't enough.

Unfortunately, antidepressants don't strike right at the heart of the matter. Typically they improve thinking, they don't directly affect the reward center. Any drug that does will eventually turn you into a rat pressing a bar; eventually the drug is enough; you choose to engage with the drug rather than life.

Well, it's enough until it isn't, which is another facet of addiction. Which is, that the brain resists the drug, does everything it can to resist its action. So in the case of opioids, which stimulate the reward center in the brain, and sedate the anxiety center, over time the reward center becomes even more numb and the anxiety center becomes even more over-activated. You wind up more depressed and anxious than you were to begin with, and plus you're hooked. Meaning, removing the drug at that point makes things unbearably bad.

This is true for cocaine, which stimulates the reward center directly, cutting out the middle-man so to speak. Also true for Xanax, which like heroin gets into both the reward center and the anxiety center, moreso the latter.

Emperor's New Drugs More about antidepressants than addiction but good discussion of the parallels between addiction and depression, and touches on spiritual issues like hope

Mad in America This guy is making hay discussing oppositional tolerance, and lambastes the pharmaceutical industry for putting profits first. The website is an iconoclast's dream.

I've approached the question in a bit of an unconventional manner, partially because addition, like depression, is multifactorial. The bio-psycho-social approach has merit. Clearly there are biological factors having to do with the brain's reward center, what's wrong with it to begin with, and what happens after prolonged drug exposure. I imagine most responses will take this tack. There's a psychology to addiction (which people don't talk about much these days). And there's a social component as well, note the parallel between the burgeoning number of people who have "given up" looking for work, and the addiction epidemic. I would submit that model, while valid up to a point, is incomplete. Both addiction and depression have a spiritual dimension, and we will never wrap our head around those things until we take that into account.

With that in mind, I'll say that Man's Search for Meaning is, by a wide margin, the most helpful book on mental health I've ever read.

ETA

That said, given an individual who is susceptible, what makes a chemical addictive is

- how much the drug stimulates the reward centers, and suppresses the anxiety centers

- how quickly it does so

- whether it induces tolerance

- how it induces tolerance (oppositional tolerance is worse than just not working anymore)

- whether the drug activates satiety centers, directly or indirectly (because of side effects).

So, cigarettes are more addictive than chewing tobacco, because one hits a lot faster than the other. Heroin more addictive than codeine, ditto. Prozac is less addictive than MDMA (what's usually in "ecstasy" or "molly") because antidepressants don't whack the reward center like MDMA does. MDMA is less addictive than amphetamine, because MDMA is more likely to just stop working, whereas amphetamines are more likely to induce oppositional tolerance. Alcohol is less addictive than Xanax, because most people get tired of all the puking. Buprenorphine less addictive than oxycodone; while both stimulate the reward center, the former directly stimulates satiety centers as well (leading to speculation that buprenorphine might turn out to be a great antidepressant)

Thought questions.

​

1. Given this conceptual framework, is cannabis addictive? Don't give me a counter-example, like, "I had a buddy who was a total pot-head." I had one patient who was addicted to water, to the point where he had to be hospitalized, several times. What effect does cannabis have on the reward center over time? Do people become tolerant to cannabis over time? If so, to what effects? Do people "fiend" for it usually? Is it more addictive than cocaine or meth? (The DEA thinks so...)
   
2. Are video games addictive? What about Facebook? The CTO of Facebook says it is addictive, intentionally so. How?
   
3. Is porn addictive? Casual sex? Is love truly an addiction, as we have defined it? If not, why not? (Is sex always just a matter of just pressing the bar? Is it ever?)
   
   ​

http://www.amazon.com/Titan-The-Life-John-Rockefeller/dp/1400077303

Great book... Incredible history

After many decades and the end of the USSR the facts of the McCarthy era emerged. Documents became unclassified and spies spoke the truth.

Seems McCarthy was correct and to date this fact is not widely recognized. Read this book and then form new and valid conclusions:

https://www.amazon.ca/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068

>when really it could just be a bunch of random Russian kids hired to do a job and have nothing to do with the Russian Government.

But you are wrong in that conclusion, especially given this indictment against Russians involved in US disinformation campaigns released today.

The main defendant in question, Yevgeny Prigozhin is popularly known as "Putin's cook" because of his businesses which "host dinners between Vladimir Putin and foreign dignitaries."

Russia is somewhat of a mob state in that there is less of a line between business leaders and state officials. It is for this reason that it is harder to track such operations. But as you can read in this indictment (pdf) there are Russian businesses which act on behalf of the Russian Federation, or Putin himself, in a very secretive and fluid manner.

I recommend reading Bill Browder's book Red Notice, which reveals some of the nature of the corruption in Russia's government through the story surrounding the murder of Sergei Magnitsky.

You are working awful hard to point other places on something that required no action to keep criminals from accessing their millions. In fact, the places you're trying to point to ARE these guys. the guys we're discussing are LITERALLY from Rosneft and other Russian oil and fossil fuel interests that are funding a significant portion of climate denial [1]

[1] Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man's Fight for Justice https://www.amazon.com/dp/1476755744/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_.DSZDbK74GAXT

I totally messed up the name. The Forgotten Soldier.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Forgotten_Soldier

https://www.amazon.ca/Forgotten-Soldier-Guy-Sajer/dp/1574882864

Brutal book as far as describing the misery these soldiers endured. Well written.

This will.

Excellent, however, sometimes somewhat depressing bit to read.

Yes ... I highly recommend the Book "A Higher Call" by Adam Makos (essentially a "Double Biography" telling these 2 mens' life stories and how they intertwine) I have given it as a gift to several friends who like history or aviation. Link to A Higher Call Book on Amazon

Diplomacy by the same author is actually an outstanding book. His notion of the 'balance of power' is probably what lead up to the current title.

I think that's fine as far as it goes. But I'm not sure that /u/jeffp12 really knows that that's why the folks in Ferguson are rioting. Riots happen all the time--after sporting events, for example. And while you COULD try to come up with an intellectual justification for them, it also seems to me equally possible that they're simply engaging in mob behavior. This book, for example, is a solid account of someone who went undercover as a soccer hooligan to see WHY they would behave the way they behaved. And while there is an economic component to it, the simple fact of the matter is that it was more mob mentality than anything else.

I certainly don't agree with the folks that /u/jeffp12 argues against either. But by saying "no, it's not X, it's Y", you're losing the fact that what we have going on here is a mob trying to overturn a fair process. And that's not an acceptable thing to be happening.

I was thinking the same thing: this enormous tomb is a little much for a president who was in office for just six months. I get that Garfield was assassinated, I read Destiny of the Republic, but when compared to the modest tombs of say, George Washington or Thomas Jefferson it really seems like someone was overcompensating...

What kind of history?

Candice Millard is my favorite history author lately. My favorite of hers is Destiny of the Republic about the James Garfield assassination.

Do it. Start now. Don't stop. Studying history gives you fantastic perspectives on the world around you and allows you to critique works of art in ways you didn't think were possible.

I'm serious. Find a topic that interests you. Go read a book about it. Don't start with microhistories or research papers, that shit even bores me from time to time^1.

Are you an American? Here, read Theodore Rex. Read about how Teddy Roosevelt makes Indiana Jones look like a dishwasher salesman.

Find a topic. Find a popular book. Enjoy history, and then get into the nitty gritty. History really can ruin your taste for fiction, because history is fucking crazy.


1.(I am a History M.A.)

TR was an amazing man. Other factoids:

• A true polymath, he was a solider, author, historian, hunter and naturalist. Even during his presidency, the Smithonian would sent samples of flora to him for identification.
  
• Believed to have a photographic memory.
  
• Runner-up Harvard boxing champion
  
• Could read a book & dictate two letters (using two secretaries) at the same time.
  
• Skinny-dipped in the Potomac... in winter.
  
• In real life, Nelson Mandel didn't give Pienaar Invictus for inspiration. Rather he gave him TR's "The Man in the Arena." (A truly great speech, IMHO.)
  
• First American to win a Nobel.
  
• Saw to the competition of the Panama Canal.
  
  In other words, he was a lot like Chuck Norris. Only for reals.
  
  If you can set yourself for long reads, the Edmund Morris TR trilogy is well worth it:
  
  
• The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt
  
• Theodore Rex
  
• Colonel Roosevelt
  
  Here he is on The Daily Show (the author, not TR):
  
  http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-december-9-2010/edmund-morris
  

If you're solely interested in the Presidential History, Theodore Rex is an excellent biography on Theodore Roosevelt's Presidential years. I would strongly encourage reading The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt and Colonel Roosevelt, his before and after years respectively, as they are equally excellent.

Love it, great quick summary. I would always recommend Republic of Pirates for anyone interested in an awesome book on pirate history. It is non-fiction that reads like fiction..excellent author.

Port Royal...the most evil place on earth it was called.

http://www.amazon.com/Under-Black-Flag-Romance-Reality/dp/0156005492

http://www.amazon.com/General-History-Pyrates-Dover-Maritime/dp/0486404889/ref=pd_sim_b_2

http://www.amazon.com/The-Buccaneers-America-Dover-Maritime/dp/048640966X/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_c

http://www.amazon.com/The-Republic-Pirates-Surprising-Caribbean/dp/015603462X/ref=pd_sim_b_11

http://www.amazon.com/The-Invisible-Hook-Economics-ebook/dp/B003SNJESU/ref=dp_kinw_strp_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2

I thoroughly enjoyed Republic of Pirates.

If you want to check out a lot of the history behind the time period of the show, give this book a read:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Republic-Pirates-Surprising-Caribbean/dp/015603462X

I found it to be quite enjoyable. The short answer is, the show is not accurate about her at all.

In that case I heartily recommend reading/listening to this...

Colin Woodard: The Republic of Pirates

/u/tealparadise is correct. I was referring to the book "Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan" by Jake Adelstein.

The other source was the primary source wikipedia links to. "Why Is the Japanese Conviction Rate So High?" by J. Mark Ramseyer and Eric B. Rasmusen.

I know it's not a documentary but I would highly recommend Tokyo Vice by Jake Adelstein. Amazing book about vice crime in Tokyo and Yakuza activity in general.

Not quite as wild as Yakuza video games, but this will give you some context for the craziness that was going on during a certain dark time in Japan's underground: https://www.amazon.com/Tokyo-Vice-American-Reporter-Police/dp/0307475298

eh. I actually was just reading this section in Lawrence in Arabia last night. Yes, US oil had something to do with Saudi Arabia's success but the creation of the country, the blind eye to Wahabbism, the promotion of their leadership above other concerns falls pretty squarely on Britain. Which, in a round about way, is also on France since they insisted on making such a complete clusterfuck of the Middle East during WW1 that Britain had few other options but to make that sort of deal.

SoCo and the US government's involvement wasn't particularly important until later. I mean, the region was oil rich, it was going to be powerful one way or another, but handing it to extremists (or rather a family backed by extremists) was a mistake very much on the European allies.

Lawrence in Arabia: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East

https://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Arabia-Deceit-Imperial-Making/dp/0307476413

That's gold! I've heard the movie is amazing, but which book are you talking about? A cursory google search turns up this guy: http://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Arabia-Deceit-Imperial-Making/dp/0307476413

But somehow that doesn't strike me as the book you mean.

> http://www.amazon.com/Dreadnought-Robert-K-Massie/dp/0345375564/ref=la_B000AQ6XVE_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1406314026&sr=1-6[2]
>
> http://www.amazon.com/Castles-Steel-Britain-Germany-Winning/dp/0345408780[3]

Cannot recommend these books highly enough! Everyone on this sub should read them :)

Robert Massie is my favorite historian, and he has 3 amazing books on the period. Dreadnought, about the Anglo-German naval rivalry that led to WWI, Nicholas and Alexander, a biography of the last Czar and the fall of the Russian Empire, and the beautifully titled Castles of Steel, about the naval battles of WWI.

You may wish to check out this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Dreadnought-Robert-K-Massie/dp/0345375564

I highly recommend it.

Dreadnought by Robert K. Massie. It starts well before the war (1900-ish) and is a bit of a dry read. I found it fascinating, however.

During that period it was a balancing act of a few primary factors: speed, guns, and armor. The amount of armor and guns directly impacted both the size and the weight of the vessel, and this in turn effected the speed.

At the time, the pinnacle of tactics during Naval Battles was what is known as "Crossing the T". Essentially, one line of ships would cut-off the other, and in doing so were able to bring all their guns to bear on their opponent. Likewise, their opponent could not bring all of their guns to bear to retaliate. This diagram shows what it would have generally looked like.

For a tactic like that to succeed you needed, as a battleship, a good combination of guns, speed, and armor. A classic example of this would be Admiral Count Heihachiro Togo and his victory over the Russians at Tsuhima in 1904. Both sides had guns that could fire at about the same range (and the bigger the gun, the bigger the range and the more destructive power). William Pakenham, who was a Royal Navy observer on-board Admiral Togo's ship, stated "when 12 inch guns are fired, shots from 10 inch guns pass unnoticed, while, for all the respect they instill, 8 inch or 6 inch might as well be pea shooters". Basically, the goal was to have the biggest guns possible on-board. This provides maximum firepower and range.

Admiral Togo had one more advantage over the Russians: Speed. He had about six or seven knots advantage over the Russians. If you have greater speed and range, then you can determine where and when the fight actually happens - by engaging the enemy from a longer distance and even moving away to keep that advantage. So if you can control those factors you can control the battle.

"Armor is speed" is something Jacky Fisher (important British admiral, key in the conception and design of HMS Dreadnought) is reported as having once said. This is because the more steel you put on the boat, the slower it is going to go. Unless of course you have new and more powerful methods of propulsion/power, which would allow you to attain a higher speed with more weight. Armor of course is important, as your ships need to be able to withstand hits. HMS Warsprite at Jutland for example, sustained 11 hits. While she was severely damage (and ordered home to Roysoth) she survived those hits and lived to see another day (a lot of days to be precise, she was engaged in WWII as well).

As u/Vonadler notes as well, money is a key issue. HMS Dreadnought cost approximately £1,784,000 in 1905. As an upgrade over other ship designs, she only cost £181,000 more. However, you have to multiply that by the amount of ships you want to build and then the number only gets more astronomical. In August 1914, the Royal Navy had 22 Battleships in commission (with 40 Pre-Dreadnoughts which are the older battleship designs that came before the Dreadnought in 1905) with another 13 under construction. And the price had only gone up since 1905. The Germans for example only had 15 built with 5 under construction. However I disagree that Vanguard was about 10 million GBP more to construct. Vanguard was built in the 1940s, 40 years after Dreadnought. Using [this inflation calculator] (http://inflation.stephenmorley.org/) I compared £11,530,503 in 1941 (the year that Vanguard was laid down) to 1905 (the year Dreadnought was laid down). In 1905, Vanguard would have cost about £5,291,677.27 pounds. A substantial increase to be sure, but only of about 297% compared to 546%. The overall point stands however, that bigger Battleships with more armor and whatnot do cost significantly more than their smaller counterparts.

And with ships you do not just have the cost of building. maintenance, crew (in the case of the German Battleships 1000+ crew members), fuel, etc... Those costs add up quickly. u/thefourthmaninaboat is also correct that the infrastructure was also a factor in Battleship design. On the other hand, cruise ships didn't really have to contend with all of this. They had their own design challenges to be sure, but armor for example wasn't really a factor.

This is my first "real" reply on this sub, so I hope it's been helpful and informative!

----------------
Sources

• Dreadnought: Britain, Germany, and the Coming of the Great War by Robert K. Massie
  
  
• From Imperial Splendor to Internment: The Imperial German Navy in the First World War by Nicolas Wolz
  
  
• Warships and Sea Battles of World War One published by Beekman House
  
  
• Inflation Calculator

If you like miltary history or WWII at all, A Higher Call was the best book I got on Audible. Absolutely amazing.

http://www.amazon.com/Higher-Call-Incredible-Chivalry-War-Torn/dp/0425255735

While not written by a pilot, A Higher Call is based mostly on interviews with Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler. The majority of the book seemed to focus on Stigler discussing his career in 109s and later in 262s. I enjoyed it very much.

If you haven’t read it already “A Higher Call” is a great book about an encounter with a b-17 and a me-109. Told in both the perspectives of the U.S. pilot and German pilot. Very good read

> something competely irrelevant.


Ahh yes these books published by people who were alive at the time and had contact with Rommel are irrelevant.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_Lewin

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0949476/


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rommel:_The_Desert_Fox

https://www.amazon.com/Rommel-Military-Commander-Ronald-Lewin/dp/0760708614

https://www.amazon.com/Panzer-Commander-Memoirs-Colonel-Library/dp/0440208025

A stunning look at World War II from the other side...

From the turret of a German tank, Colonel Hans von Luck commanded Rommel's 7th and then 21st Panzer Division. El Alamein, Kasserine Pass, Poland, Belgium, Normandy on D-Day, the disastrous Russian front--von Luck fought there with some of the best soldiers in the world. German soldiers.

Awarded the German Cross in Gold and the Knight's Cross, von Luck writes as an officer and a gentleman. Told with the vivid detail of an impassioned eyewitness, his rare and moving memoir has become a classic in the literature of World War II, a first-person chronicle of the glory--and the inevitable tragedy--of a superb soldier fighting Hitler's war.

https://www.amazon.com/Panzer-Commander-Memoirs-Colonel-Library/dp/0440208025

Most of my knowledge regarding the matter is European, so I'm going to give a list of my favorites regarding the European / African front.

To get the German perspective of the war, I'd recommend:

• Panzer Commander - Hans von Luck - One of my favorites
  
  
• Panzer Leader - Heinz Guderian - He developed Blitzkrieg tactics
  
  
• The Rommel Papers - Erwin Rommel - Written by my favorite German Field Marshal up until his forced suicide by Hitler. Good read of the Western and African theaters of war. Also a good book to read if you're interested in what German command was doing on the lead up to D-Day.
  
  I have a few battle-specific books I enjoy too:
  
  
• Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege 1942-1943 - You really don't know the brutality of Stalingrad till you've read this book. You'll see it in a whole new light I think.
  
  
• Berlin: Downfall 1945 - Battle of Berlin at the end of the war, another good book.
  
  Now if you want to play games, Hearts of Iron series is great (someone recommended the Darkest Hour release of the game. Allows you to play historical missions based on historical troop layouts, or play the entire war as a nation. Historical events are incorporated into the game. While you'll rarely get a 100% accurate game as it is abstracted, it is an excellent way to see what challenges faced the nations of the time. You could play as Russia from 1936 and prepare yourself for the eventual German invasion. Or maybe you decide to play as Germany, and not invade Russia. But will Russia invade you when they are stronger? Will warn you: It does not have a learning curve. As with almost all Paradox Interactive games, it is a learning cliff.

International Relations and Foreign Policy are two different things.

For a background in the former, the geopolitics Wiki is top tier (avoid the sub).

For American FP, which is the FP that matters, The Grand Chessboard provides the foundation for American Grand Strategy.

Kissinger is worth reading too, especially Diplomacy.

Other users here have mentioned Robert Kagan. I love the man, but he's more American cheerleader than FP analyst.

When studying national security and defense in school we used Military Strategy: Principles, Practices and Historical Perspectives it was a great resource for very cut and dry strategy. Also, Henry Kissinger's Diplomacy is an absolute must for historical perspectives and great commentary on what worked and why. It's a little bit different, as it goes more into a analysis of the decision making process than cut and dry strategy, but Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis is not only a fantastically entertaining read, but really explains the mindset of key decision makers and their strategy.

At the risk of having everyone here roll their eyes at me, Among the Thugs by Bill Buford is still one of my favorites. I know a lot of people don't really consider it a soccer book, but it was my first real exposure to the sport beyond YMCA herd soccer, so it holds a bit of a place in my heart.

Easily one of our most bad-ass presidents. For those interested in learning more this is a great read

My husband absolutely LOVED the series by Edmund Morris. Chronologically it begins with The Rise of Theodore Roosevent but he recommends starting with Theodore Rex. We're expecting a child and "Theodore" immediately rose to the top of his name list.

Have you read any Anthony Everitt? his work is amazing.

https://www.amazon.com/Augustus-Life-Romes-First-Emperor/dp/0812970586/

and also his other bio on Cicero really opened my eyes.

Augustus by Anthony Everrit is a great place to start for the life of Augustus.

Tom Holland's Dynasty is amazing as well and covers all of the Julio Claudian dynasty.

For original source material, Plutarch's Lives and The Lives of the Twelve Caesars by Suetonius.

It's already been mentioned here, but I'll mention it again: The History of Rome podcast by Mike Duncan is an easy way to digest this stuff. The production quality in the beginning is very poor, but that gets so much better as it goes on.

He published a book last year called The Storm Before The Storm, which is about how the Republic got to the point where men like Julius Caesar were able to come onto the stage and do what they did. There are some really disturbing parallels to our own times. While it's always a bit silly to compare America to Rome, the similarities are fairly stark. The paper back comes out later this month.

Duncan is also currently producing a podcast called Revolutions, in which he does narrative histories of the English, American, French, Haitian, South American, and Mexican revolutions, as well as the French Revolution of 1830, the pan-European revolutions of 1848, and the Paris Commune. I know this is off topic, but Duncan really is amazing and I never miss a chance to plug his work.

Edit: here are the two episodes of The History of Rome that deal with Augustus's style of rule. Caesar Augustus and Reigning Supreme.

I'm reading a book right now called Red Notice which involves a business man in Russia falling into a terrible situation with Russian Oligarchs. So if I do what you want, and take you at your word that you are genuinely in a feud with the CEO of Dominos Russia, then I can only say this: get the fuck out of the country. Do you have any idea what powers an oligarch has in Russia? Okay, well then picture how much power an oligarch would have if he also controlled the pizza supply. GET OUT. To fight him is to doom yourself and your loved ones to the Siberian Mozzarella Mines.

(Or hire a new PR person because whoever suggested this was an idiot.)

How about Red Notice, since that's the book Browder already wrote on the subject... https://www.amazon.com/Red-Notice-Finance-Murder-Justice/dp/1476755744

You should link to Bill Browder's book Red Notice. It puts this whole collusion thing into perspective - and it was published in 2015 before Trump was even a serious candidate.

http://www.amazon.com/No-Surrender-Thirty-Year-Bluejacket-Books/dp/1557506639

was such a good book about it.

Onoda also wrote a book about his experience called No Surrender:

http://www.amazon.com/No-Surrender-Thirty-Year-Bluejacket-Books/dp/1557506639

Reminded me of this book, the "Forgotten Soldier" by Guy Sajer. Absolutely terrific book which seems to be similar to the one you posted, except this one is about a German soldier on Eastern Front. I have read lot of books (especially soldier memoirs) and this is definitely in the top 3.

​

Edit: By the way I just remembered that a Finnish movie is based on the book you posted. I just watched it few months ago, great movie.

I understand about the tanks. Our tanks, mainly the Sherman, was a death-trap. Their shells couldn't pierce German armour and the only time their armour held up against German tank shells was when they hit on an angle. This book talks about how after a tank advance, about half the tanks would be completely disabled and another quarter damaged. They'd literally power-wash the dead crew out, patch-weld plate over the holes, and force a new crew into tank. The author was a mechanic in the 3rd Armoured Division.

Ball-turrets, worse? Man.

Although, I think the worst first-hand account of World War 2 I've read was from a French-Nazi who was on the Eastern front during Operation Barbarossa. For example: they'd have to build fires under car engines to get it started because motor oil would freeze up, completely locked. Endless zergling-like hordes of Russians who would overrun Nazi positions after their company machineguns overheated and rifles ran out of ammunition. How he survived, he has no idea and, from the stories in the book, neither do I.

I've read "With the Old Breed" and I agree it is a fantastic book. I'm mostly read on pilot memoirs though but I've read a few infantry accounts. No problem about telling you some good reads:

• Red Star Against the Swastika was probably the most interesting memoir I've ever read. Having the perspective of an IL-2 pilot that survived the war is a unique one and the only book I know of that's out there. His experiences were heart wrenching. It has criticism of being not well written. That is not the case. It was translated from Russian so that is why it reads as it does.
  
  
• Gabby Gabreski's book was a very well written book. Very detailed accounts of his sorties and points that you don't see very often in a pilot memoir. This is mostly because he kept a detailed diary throughout his life. Going from A P-47 pilot over Europe to flying an F-86 over Korea (and scoring an Ace against 5 MiGs) was as well, a unique pilot perspective. Great man and great leader.
  
  
• Forgotten Soldier was a very sobering book. Not much to say really. You just have to read it to really understand. It does have some criticisms of glossing over war crimes committed by his unit and fabricating stories but it was still a great read regardless.
  
  
• Samurai! by Saburo Sakai was an awesome account and one of my favorites. Very interesting that he taught himself and other pilots to make unconventional side-slipping attacks on TBFs and SBDs. His aircraft would slide sideways during his attacks to throw off the rear gunners. He swore by it because out of all the attacks he made, he was rarely hit.
  
  
• Baa Baa Black Sheep follows Pappy Boyington and his unit through the Pacific. The guy was hilariously courageous or stupid depending on your opinion. He would lead combat sorties half drunk from the night before. Telling officers over him he didn't like that they were assholes. He had no issues being insubordinate but he was so good at what he did, the officers over him couldn't do much about it. His unit was producing destroyed Japanese aircraft at a rate that surrounding units weren't even coming close to.
  
  Just a few of my favorites. I'm personally akin to reading about "guys who were there". But that's just my preference.

I read The Forgotten Soldier a while back, so my memory is a bit rusty but it is the autobiography of a soldier who served in the Grossdeutschland Panzergrenadier division, which was considered an elite Wehrmacht division.

Some notes about the book

1. The listed author "Guy Sajer" is actually a pseudonym, he was actually part French/German and lived in Alsace when he was drafted.
   
   
2. There have also been some critiques about it's authenticity, but I believe the most recent consensus is that the changes were either for privacy or unintentional errors, and that the majority of the events and perspective is accurate.
   
   
3. I don't believe the author ever wrote of himself as being an ardent Nazi but, if I recall correctly, early in the war he seemed to have a bit of teenage enthusiasm about joining the army. The book does get pretty depressing, and it demonstrates a lot of the logistic issues that are often overlooked in war.

the Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sayer has excellent descriptions of the experiences of a German soldier in training and combat.

Try [The Man Without a Face] (https://www.amazon.com/Man-Without-Face-Unlikely-Vladimir/dp/1594486514)

Well, I totally get the different lenses you are looking through. I would say that you may be mixing up the terms "happiness" and "meaning." They overlap, but they are different. Some people think they really want happiness - physical pleasure, material wealth, etc. But what they really want is meaning. Your friend has happiness available to him. But on the other hand he probably lacks meaning or purpose. He is disconnected. Just a thought.

The Power of Meaning is a good read that touches on why there is a lot of depression in 1st world countries and not too much in developing ones. Man's Search for Meaning is of course the classic in general.

> I believe it's our responsibility to liberate everyone we can of their mental anguish and suffering.

Just to play devil's advocate for a bit...

I don't think it's possible for anyone to be RESPONSIBLE for someone else's liberation.

In my experience, most people won't even participate in their own rescue — despite how much effort is exerted by well meaning folks like you.

Conversely, you cannot stop someone who is seeking liberation either, because, they will liberate themselves one way or another — regardless of the price.

What we can do is live our lives joyfully and happily and that alone will have a positive ripple effect through everyone you come into contact with.

...and eventually, what will happen is, you'll run into someone who is suffering and in agony (most of which is self inflicted) and they'll get inspired and will wonder if there are any other alternatives than what they've been living.

Since your presence and approach to life is demonstrably more joyful than theirs — a small percentage of people will actually consider it and get on the same path as you.

But, THEY must come to this realization on their own volition — not because someone marketed it to them.

The fact of the matter is happiness is a choice.

We've been lead astray to believe otherwise because our parents (and teachers and culture) inadvertently conditioned us to please them (by being polite, getting good grades, behaving, making our bed etc) in exchange for approval/happiness.

Even Jefferson fucked up by saying "....Life, Liberty and the PURSUIT of happiness....".

PURSUING happiness implies that you're starting from UNHAPPINESS — because the entire reason for pursuing anything is to fill a void.

So, even that is deeply rooted into our culture.

Also, pain is guaranteed in life, but suffering is 100% optional.

Plus, if you don't figure out a way to TRANSMUTE your pain into a greater version of yourself — you will end up TRANSMITTING that pain to someone else.

This is what Freud called the repetition compulsion — and almost EVERY parent I know (unknowingly) does it with their children by passing on their trauma/baggage to the next generation.

Pretty sad.

Go read Man's search for meaning if you want to learn how a master deals with pain.

So, Re: Liberating everyone — don't bother, because it's a full time job that will leave no time for your own life.

Sometimes, people need enough pain to wake them up from this matrix.

You can't heal yourself until you are sick of your sickness.

It's what Eckhart Tolle calls the PAIN BODY — and how he recovered from his lowest point is an excellent (and relevant) example.

See:

There was a young man walking down the street and happened to see a old man sitting on his porch.

Next to the old man was his dog, who was whining and whimpering.

The young man asked the old man “What’s wrong with your dog” The old man said “He’s laying on a nail”.

The young man asked “Laying on a nail?, Well why doesn’t he get up?” The old man then replied “It’s not hurting bad enough.”

I like biographies of famous people a lot.

Augustus, by Anthony Everitt: I find Augustus fascinating because his rise to power was one of the very very few examples in history where a Trio of teenagers defeated their enemies against overwhelming odds and succeeded creating an order lasting for more than two centuries. (The Principate stopped working after Septimius Severus took power in 193AD)

FDR, by Jean Edward Smith: FDR is simply my favorite US president.

Titan, The Life of John D. Rockefeller, by Ron Chernow: Rockefeller was born in a very poor family, never had an university education, and became a billionaire by the end of 19th century. Regardless how you view him today, his rise made an excellent story.

Steve Jobs, by Walter Isaacson: He was a jerk, but also a genius. His love/hate relationship with Bill Gates is story for the ages. This book also shines some good insight into the tech industry. I have to say this book helped me making lots of money in stocks.

100% agree. Read https://www.amazon.com/Titan-Life-John-Rockefeller-Sr/dp/1400077303 and then tell me you wouldn't want that lifestyle...

The guy semi-retired in his early 50's to play golf and live a life of luxury in his various manor homes. He lived until 97, money seems to have done a great job of keeping him alive.


Medicine is bad? Chicago university wouldn't exist without him and his huge bankroll, His money was almost singlehandedly responsible for curing ringworm in destitute southerners (and curing other illnesses and maladies) too. A huuuuge amount of modern medicine is thanks to John D & his willingness to fund medical research.

I mean sure he couldn't play angry birds... But the guy was rich enough to have stables built in Manhattan so he could race the worlds finest horses with his brother through central park. Toward his later years he was able to afford the worlds best cars in the world and professional drivers to take him for drives. Sure, they weren't as quick as a modern sports car, but i doubt he really cared.. Reliability? He could buy 100 of them, no problem.

The impact John D and even his son, John D Jr had on areas such as medicine and the arts is mind boggling. The New York MoMA nor the Cloisters would exist without them. (Jr and his wife co-founded the MoMA, donated the land & an incredible amount of art work to it. HE DIDN'T EVEN LIKE MODERN ART, HE HATED IT.) John D Jr gave more money to medical research and charity than he gave to his own damn family.

The amount of charitable giving they did (most of it anonymous) is insane. They bought entire forests to save them, donated huge chunks of land to be national parks, etc.

The United Nations? The land the headquarters is built on in Manhattan - Jr donated that.

Versailles in France? Jr was posthumously awarded France's highest honor, the Grand-Croix de la Legion d'honneur for contributing huge sums of money (with no requirement for any recognition, public attention, etc.. If anything he worked incredibly hard to HIDE his involvement) to the repair efforts because he thought it was an important building for the French people.

These are people who on multiple occasions would pay double or triple the asking price of famous art works to the ire of their friends and colleagues who wanted to acquire them, because while others in their social circle wanted to horde them in their private collections, they wanted to buy them so they could be donated and on show for all of the public, not just the rich elite.

If I could have my life today, or be transferred to John D or John D Jr's era and have 1/10th the impact on humanity that they had, its a total no brainer. Yes, John D committed some unsavoury (monopolistic) business practices... So did everyone else in that era. He was a devout baptist who practiced philosophy and frugality (he was far, far less spendy than anyone remotely comparable) from his youth as a broke assistant bookkeeper to his dying days as a titan of industry.

https://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068

It's hard to get people to pick up a book. Most of these geniuses don't even know HUAC and the Red Scare predate McCarthy.

> Now I think Joe McCarthy was right.

He was.

http://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068

Red Notice - https://www.amazon.com/Red-Notice-Finance-Murder-Justice/dp/1476755744

The author of this book
https://www.amazon.com/Red-Notice-Finance-Murder-Justice/dp/1476755744
Was on NPR discussing the Magnitsky act and stated it was the most important sanction that Putin wanted lifted. Haven't had time to go down the rabbit hole, just putting this out there

>I just have a personal interest in history, mainly WWII Eastern Front, and an interest in geopolitics mainly Russia.

Awesome I love history; my focus tends to be more global historical trends rather than any specific region, I just finished Jared Diamond's "Guns, Germs, and Steel" (It was awesome, obsessed with food production, but still awesome) and my next book is Yuval Harhari's "Sapiens: A Brief History of Mankind"

>Its pretty sad but interesting stuff. All of it.

"And then it got worse" -I heard this on the internet somewhere, I think it was associated with Russian history.

>But yeah people here don't know much outside of Putin in staged photos, Cold War propaganda and whatever they hear on whatever stupid news channel they watch. :p

Yeah its too bad, you'd be surprised how easy it is for most mainstream news to get distracted. Although you can still find out quite a bit about Eastern Europe/Russia from English language European News sources (however if you're an American with no background on the topic it's definitely much harder to pick up on what they're talking about), Youtube Videos, and Books on Russia from Americans (Bill Browder's "Red Notice" is probably the only book on Russia I've picked up though).

There were a lot of islands separated by a lot of ocean. Lack of communication was probably the primary factor in them thinking they had to fight on. No Surrender is a good book about a soldier that hid for thirty years thinking the war was still on. People knew he was out there, but he refused to believe the Japanese Empire would ever surrender. Even when they dropped newspapers describing current events in Japan, he thought "those crafty Americans and their propaganda." A hand written note from his brother that was dropped was also dismissed with him thinking "now they have even imitated his handwriting!"

I read his book:

http://www.amazon.com/No-Surrender-My-Thirty-Year-War/dp/1557506639

It's actually fascinating.

not sure if it was posted in here but good read!

http://www.amazon.com/No-Surrender-My-Thirty-Year-War/dp/1557506639

From Axis perspective:

Guy Sajer - The Forgotten Soldier

Herbert Werner - Iron Coffins

Sven Hassel books (treat it like the fiction)

Saburo Sakai - Samurai

Not my area, but I read Forgotten Soldier in high school and it blew my mind. It's a personal account of war on the Eastern Front from a Wehrmacht perspective... extremely accessible and a good read.

I read The Forgotten Solider. It's about a French kid in the German army on the Eastern Front. Interesting read but there is some doubt as to its' authenticity.

"Forgotten Soldier" by Guy Sajer is a pretty good read. It's not specifically about the eastern front, but it gives you a very good perspective about what life was like for a Wehrmacht solder.

Base it off this book: http://www.amazon.com/The-Forgotten-Soldier-Guy-Sajer/dp/1574882864

False flag opps are also done in Russia. Putin is a terrorist and has killed many of his own people. It's well documented that he kills journalists that speak out against his violent acts. Masha Gessen's book reveals many acts of terror against his own people and the killing of her mentor when she finally returned to Russia from Boston after years of exile for fear of the KGB and Putin. She was killed the moment she arrived in her parent's building on the stairway up to her parents house. She didn't even get to look into her parents eyes after all those years in the US. The web just makes us easier to track and Facebook is the CIA's wet dream come true.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Man-Without-Face-Unlikely/dp/1594486514

I know you're asking for a broader history of Russia that goes back much further, but for recent events I wholeheartedly recommend (Man without a face: the unlikely rise of Vladimir Putin)[https://www.amazon.com/Man-Without-Face-Unlikely-Vladimir/dp/1594486514] by Masha Gessen. This only deals with the second half of the 20th century, but it is the most penetrating and insightful exposes on Putin and his rise to power I have ever read. Gessen herself is a Soviet/Russian expatriate currently living in the US, and one of the foremost Putin critics of this generation.

the more I read about Putin and his alleged assassinations of those that oppose him, the more I worry about Trump's stance on Russia. I think Trump may do a reversal on Putin after getting the intelligence reports on him. here's one attempted assassination. here

this is not concern trolling and maybe we should move a debate on Putin to ATD. has anyone read this book

[Great read.] (http://www.amazon.ca/The-Man-Without-Face-Unlikely/dp/1594486514)

PDF: https://www.sonoma.edu/users/s/shawth/mans%20Search

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl-ebook/dp/B009U9S6FI

Your friend is not wrong, but he's only half right. He's also framing how one deals with the negative aspects of life poorly. One should do their best to minimize the bad in life, or at least its effects. And, when possible, turn allegedly negative things to one's advantage. One should also do their best to maximize the positive aspects. A lot of it has to do with your perspective and what you focus on.

Everyone has to support themselves somehow. If the only available work is something unpleasant or undesirable, focus on what it affords you and put effort toward getting into a line of work you appreciate more. You can't prevent yourself from ever getting sick, but you can do everything in your power to stay healthy. Healthy eating, an active lifestyle, and getting regular medical checkups all have their benefits. If someone assaults you and you are permanently injured, you're going to have to cope with that, yes. But I'm sure any school worth attending will make accommodations for a student who was assaulted presuming they were made aware of the circumstances.

So, yes, you will have to learn how to cope with the bad things. But you also need to learn how to maximize the positive. Work towards a career you enjoy. Build friendships. Chase your dreams. All that. People tend to write off encouragement and positive thinking, and focus on the negative. But life is what you focus on.

If you struggle with this, I have a few recommended reads for you.

• Victor Frankl's "Man's Search For Meaning". He was a holocaust survivor, and he writes about how even if you take everything else away from a person, they still have the freedom to choose how they react to their circumstances. If prisoners in a concentration camp can find ways to be generous and kind to one another and bring joy and love to each other, so can you.
  
  
• Dr. David M. Burns' "Feeling Good". One of the first books written on Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), it's written in such a way that the reader can apply these therapeutic techniques to their own life. The premise is that our thoughts direct our feelings, and by learning to recognize cognitive distortions and correct our thinking, we can make large headway in dealing with depression. CBT subreddits and posts
  
  
• Seneca "Letters from a Stoic", Epictetus "The Art of Living", Marcus Aurelius "Meditations". Three books by Stoic philosophers. Stoicism was to these ancient Greek and Roman philosophers what CBT is to modern psychologists. These three books contain some of the very best summaries of this school of philosophy. This isn't esoteric, inaccessible philosophy. This is wisdom directly applicable to the very sort of problem you and your friend are dealing with. /r/Stoicism
  
  I know this was an overly long response to your question, but I hope it helps. Learning how to cope well with life is one of the most important things a person can learn. I wish you, and your friend, well.
  
  

> Is this just a normal shuffling of life priorities that occurs at this stage of sobriety?

Probably. Hell, I think that's just life. The bottle has a way of clouding things and it can take awhile to re-acclimate facing life directly. If you haven't read it, I found this book, Man's Search for Meaning to be invaluable. (It's by a psychologist who was in a concentration camp during WWII, and how he was able to find meaning in his life even there.)

What I like most about sobering up has been that I actually have to face things in my life that I hid from for years. It's hard and occasionally terrifying, but I feel like it's the only real reason to live in the first place and I'm thankful for the opportunity.

Defoe

Woodard

Woodard

I'm guessing that these are the books they're using for history reference mainly.

Edit: Cordingly -Also a good resource book.

http://www.amazon.com/Tokyo-Vice-American-Reporter-Vintage/dp/0307475298/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1288744028&sr=1-1

Tokyo Vice - Jake Adelstein

Jake Adelstein wrote a book about his experiences with yakuza called Tokyo Vice. It was a fascinating read.

The US has gotten very interested in Yakuza activity in the US in recent years. See also Tokyo Vice which goes into how the FBI fast tracked a liver transplant for a Japanese mob boss in exchange for help on a bust in the US.

I am being 100% sincere and as non-insulting as I can when I say this - do yourself a favor, and check out some books about the history of the Middle East, because you have some wild misconceptions.

Lawrence in Arabia is a really good one to get started -

https://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Arabia-Deceit-Imperial-Making/dp/0307476413/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1469724389&sr=1-1&keywords=lawrence+in+arabia

And I also enjoyed The Great War for Civilisation, though it's a bit dense -

https://www.amazon.com/Great-War-Civilisation-Conquest-Middle/dp/1400075173/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1469724425&sr=1-1&keywords=the+great+war+for+civilization

Hello! I'll suggest the following:

1. Please watch the 8-part Israel/Palestine for Critical Thinkers. It is a good starting point, detailing the genesis of the conflict (it stops short before WWII, though).
   
   
2. Read the following books:
   
   

• Tom Segev's One Palestine, Complete: Jews and Arabs Under the British Mandate
  
• Jonathan Schneer's The Balfour Declaration: The Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict
  
• Scott Anderson's Lawrence in Arabia: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East
  
• James Barr's A Line in the Sand: The Anglo-French Struggle for the Middle East, 1914-1948, and
  
• Hillel Cohen's Year Zero of the Arab-Israeli Conflict 1929 and Army of Shadows: Palestinian Collaboration with Zionism, 1917-1948.
  
  I hope this will help you understand the conflict. Have a enlightening read~!
  

I'm not huge on nonfiction, but I loved Lawrence in Arabia.
Reading about influential people/events is really fun and feels more productive than reading fantasy (but man, do I love fantasy).

Edit. Nevermind! I read WW2 not WW1. There is a great book called Lawrence in Arabia: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East (https://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Arabia-Deceit-Imperial-Making/dp/0307476413) if you want to read more about Standard Oil and WW1

> My grandad wrote in his diary during WWI: 'Off I go again. Wherever in the world you find the US military, you will find Standard Oil.' We have been global fascists for a long ass time.

WW2 was a little different than the banana wars that the US had previously fought in though - the Axis powers WERE an existential threat to Europe and potentially even America. Standard Oil may have benefited from the post war environment but the US was fighting for a lot more than just economic advantage.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana_Wars for those not familiar with the term.

> In fact a common criticism of the allies is that they didn't keep their promise to their Arab allies who lead the revolt against the Ottomans (see the Hussein-McMahon correspondence).

Lawrence was so mad he refused to accept a Knighthood personally from the King.

http://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Arabia-Deceit-Imperial-Making/dp/0307476413

This is a really interesting book on the subject.

I read a pretty interesting book about Lawrence called "Lawrence In Arabia" by Scott Anderson. It offers an interesting view of the man.
https://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Arabia-Deceit-Imperial-Making/dp/0307476413

Dreadnought. It's a history of the naval build-up prior to WWI. And it's sequel Castles of Steel about the naval history of WWI coincidentally.

Barbara Tuchman was brilliant writer of history.

Albert Camus was a brilliant absurdist philosopher and novelist.

Jared Diamond has written some brilliant books at the intersection of anthropology and ecology. Another good book in this genre is Clive Ponting's A New Green History of the World.

Gwynne Dyer is an acclaimed military historian turned journalist on international affairs who has written a number of very engaging books on warfare and politics. His most recent book Climate Wars is the ONE book I would recommend to someone, if so limited, on the subject as it embodies both a wonderful synopsis of the science juxtaposed against the harsh realpolitiks and potential fates of humankind that may unfold unless we can manage to tackle the matter seriously, soon. Another great book on climate change is Bill McKibben's Deep Economy.

For social activists interested in ending world hunger and abject poverty, I can recommend: Nobel Prize winning economist Amartya Sen's Development as Freedom; Nobel Prize winning micro-financier Muhammad Yunus' Creating a World Without Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism; UN MDG famed economist Jeffrey Sach's End Of Poverty; and Greg Mortenson's Three Cups of Tea

For anyone of Scottish heritage, I heartily recommend Arthur Hermann's How The Scots Invented the Modern World: The True Story of How Western Europe's Poorest Nation Created Our World and Everything in It

For naval history buffs: Robert K. Massie's Dreadnought.

Last, but not least: Robert Pirsig's classic Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance.

Enjoy!

Dreadnought by Robert K. Massie

http://www.amazon.com/Dreadnought-Robert-K-Massie/dp/0345375564

The hopelessness and the inevitability leading up to it fascinate me. I find WWI (more so than any other) to be a pointless, depressing affair; it is like watching a train wreck in slow motion, with a 2 mile lead up. If you are interested in the causes, Robert Massie's book Dreadnought is a phenomenal read, and its followup Castles of Steel regarding the navel battle is equally interesting.

Is this the book? https://smile.amazon.com/Higher-Call-Incredible-Chivalry-War-Torn/dp/0425255735

Read the memoir of German fighter pilot Franz Stigler, A Higher Call by Adam Makos.

If he likes WWII nonfiction, I would recommend A Higher Call and The Hiding Place. I also liked this book on submarine Cold War espionage called Blind Man's Bluff.

I read half of Panzer Commander by Colonel Hans Van Luck.

You might like it more than I did.

https://www.amazon.com/Panzer-Commander-Memoirs-Colonel-Library/dp/0440208025

So I've been reading https://www.amazon.com/Panzer-Commander-Memoirs-Colonel-Library/dp/0440208025 and found that this author (A colonel that knew Rommel personally quite well) claimed that the July 20, 1944 plot to kill hitler, and after that germany would seek to befriend the western allies to defeat Russia and agree to de-nazify to an extent.

Idk if "lesser known" but that was certainly interesting to me. at a glance I dont see any kind of mention of that motive on wikipedia

Hans Von Luck wrote Panzer Commander not Panzer Leader

see here

And his wiki article

Its a great book, from someone who leaded from the ground.

He was at El Alamein, Kasserine Pass, Poland, Belgium, Normandy on D-Day, and the Ost Front.

EDIT: He was with the 3rd panzer army during operation barbarossa and at the personal request of Rommel, with the afrika korps in North Africa.

And that I think rather highly of myself. So I read books on military and diplomatic doctrines to help reinforce that hubris. Things like this.

Read Diplomacy by Doctor Henry Kissinger.

Doctor Kissinger, born in a jewish family, former Secretary of State, Entrepreneur, Advisor to the current administration, Harvard Graduate, Nobel Peace Prize. He is a brilliant man.

He have blood on his hands. A lot of bloods. Rivers of blood. But he is one brillant mind. He explains the modern history of Diplomacy from the 17th century to the Fall of the USSR and how good diplomacy is purely based on power, it's psychopathic.

Read his book

• Everything you are told about Democracy is bullshit. The West is not in Ukraine to help the Ukrainians or in Afghanistan to fight terror.
  
  It will help you understand how the US elite thinks and how the world really works.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Diplomacy-Henry-Kissinger/dp/0671510991 ?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/China-Henry-Kissinger/dp/0141049421 ?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/World-Order-Reflections-Character-Nations/dp/0141979003 ?

Do you have the history basis? In my university we start with intensive courses on history - first, general history and than we go through the material again, but with emphasis on the international relations. We used bulgarian authors, but any History of international relations would do. Right now I can think of - https://www.amazon.com/Understanding-International-Conflicts-Introduction-History/dp/0205658873

Other commonly recommended is Kissinger - Diplomacy and its extension ( I personally don't like Kissinger, but Diplomacy is a fundamental work for IR).

https://www.amazon.com/Diplomacy-Touchstone-Book-Henry-Kissinger/dp/0671510991/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1510609655&sr=1-1&keywords=diplomacy&dpID=51NYkCh8tWL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch

Regarding Sino-Russian relations: they tried that, and it didn't work out. Today is no different; they are allies of convenience and nothing more. And even if they weren't, the US would certainly not be fucked.

I think the relative peace we've seen since the Cold War is almost exclusively attributable to minipolarity. Regardless of what you think of Kissinger, the argument he lays out in this boo is pretty hard to refute: more zones of power equals more conflict.

Yes, China plays an important role, but like the original prompt said: "continued US present abroad is necessary to maintain stability." I agree that China is an important conduit to nations such as North Korea (and pretty much just N. Korea...), but for whom would they be a conduit if the US packed up and left. The defining IR logic of the region is a big "influencer state" (China), surrounded be smaller powers fearful of its influence (rightly or not; this list includes S. Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, India, Mongolia, and on and on), who then look to a bigger foreign power to counter this influence. Without this counter-balance, these many powers would inevitably wreak chaos on one another.

I enjoyed Diplomacy by H Kissinger. I know, he might not be the most popular person in the world, but this book was interesting

You should read Henry Kissinger's 900-page book on diplomacy.

Phillip P Pan's Out of Mao's Shadow: The Struggle for the Soul of a New China

A very interesting book that helps to contextualise a lot of what is going on in China, all made accessible by Pan's excellent writing style.

Henry Kissinger's Diplomacy

A fascinating book, not just because it is written by someone as outspoken and controversial as Kissinger. The book is an eye-opening exploration into international relations processes and also shines a new light on many of the diplomatic issues that linger today.

http://www.amazon.com/Diplomacy-Touchstone-book-Henry-Kissinger/dp/0671510991/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1382989085&sr=8-2&keywords=Diplomacy

http://www.amazon.com/Diplomacy-Theory-Practice-G-R-Berridge/dp/0230229603/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1382989085&sr=8-4&keywords=Diplomacy

Maus is probably one of the two most celebrated works in english comics

Fullmetal Alchemist is probably the most popular modern manga series

Dune by Frank Herbert.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series by Douglas Adams. You have probably read it, but if you haven't, it's superbly funny sci-fi comedy.

The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco. A book that I re-read once every few years, and every time I find something new in it.

Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets by David Simon. A gripping, heartbreaking non-fiction book about police detectives. It inspired the acclaimed TV series "Homicide: Life on the Street." Simon would go on to create "The Wire."

The Big Nowhere by James Ellroy. Noir-ish procedural crime fiction. If you enjoy "Homicide," you may well like this.

The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera, "a philosophical novel about two men, two women, a dog and their lives in the Prague Spring of the Czechoslovak Communist period in 1968," according to Wikipedia. One of my favorite books.

Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami. Detective novel meets sci-fi in one mind-bending existential work. If you watch "Fringe," well, this book is Fringe-y... and more.

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis. Time travel. Victorian England. A tea cozy mystery of sorts.

Graphic novels! Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. Maus: A Survivor's Tale by Art Spiegelman. Love And Rockets by The Hernandez brothers. The Sandman by Neil Gaiman. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind by Hayao Miyazaki. Elektra: Assassin by Frank Miller and Bill Sienkiewicz. And of course, Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. To discover yet more great comic books, check out the Comics College series.

Actually, if you read Maus, it's a compelling example of how in the most dire straits, under threat of imminent death, it becomes every man for himself; and all social ties, including blood ties, fall apart.

>What's the difference (if any) between a comic book and a graphic novel?

Comic Book: A "book" that tells a story in comic form. Now the book part varies and can mean a number of things.

It could refer to:

Single Issue: A comic story that is smaller than a graphic novel. Typically ~32 to 48 pages. These are also called floppies and are those books that you see in a Comic Book Store.

Graphic Novel: Usually, refers to a story told in comic form which is contained in a single book. For example, Watchmen or Maus are graphic novels.

Trade Paperbacks: Also called trades are books that have collected several single issues into 1 book. For example, New52 Batman Vol 1: The Court of Owls contains Issues #1 to #7 of New52 Batman.

Trades are different from Graphic Novels in that they don't have the complete story in them. Going back to the Batman example it's only "Volume 1" of 10 Volumes.

Note The words trade and graphic novel are usually interchangeable and people aren't gonna rage at you for using one or the other but the biggest difference is if it's a self contained story in a single book then it's a graphic novel.


>What's an omnibus?

An Omnibus is a larger collection of Single Issues into a single book.

Usually a Trade collects 6 or 7 Issues of a comicbook while an Omnibus would collect ~25 to 30 Issues of a comicbook.

>In DC, what are New 52 and Rebirth (without spoiling anything plot related if that's possible)?

New 52: Was a complete reboot of the DC Universe in an attempt to attract newer readers. It was met with mostly mixed results as it made things simpler for newer readers but in some cases drastically changed elements of certain characters that people liked.

Rebirth: Directly follows the New52 era. It was a, pretty successful, attempt by DC to rectify the mistakes of the New52 and bring back elements that long time readers had missed from their favorite characters. It was basically merging the elements of the pre-New52 and New52 universe. Leaving what works and changing what didn't.

>How do New 52 and Rebirth compare? I believe New 52 is older, but is it still relatively easy to get your hands on? Is there anything even worth going for, or should I just check out Rebirth stuff?

For the most part Rebirth was more well liked by fans than New52 overall. However there are certain New52 story arcs and series that people really enjoyed as well.

For New52 I recommend the following:
Aquaman Vol 1 to Vol 6 + Vol 8 (Skip 7)
Green Arrow Vol. 4 to Vol. 6
Batman and Robin Vol. 1 to Vol. 7
The Flash Vol. 1 to Vol. 4
Batman Vol. 1 to Vol. 10
Batwoman Vol. 1 to Vol. 4
Animal Man Vol. 1 to Vol. 5
Gotham Academy Vol. 1 to Vol. 2

>Who are a few of your favorite modern writers? I see Geoff Johns name coming up on a lot of stuff, is he actually good or just popular?

Geoff Johns is liked and popular. But his claim to fame wasn't writing a groundbreaking and award winning new series. It came from being consistently good over years and years of writing comics. He's reliable and knows what the majority of readers want.

For other writers I'd say that /u/holymoloid provided a really good list.

>My favorite characters are Batman, Flash, and Green Lantern. If you could only have one book or arc for each, what would you get?

Over at /r/DCcomics they have a wiki with a bunch of helpful suggestions I'd reccomend reading that.

But for a quick summary:

Green Lantern: Geoff Johns is the main guy to go to for Green Lantern. He worked on the book for ~9 years and built the foundation for the modern mythos.

The Flash: Mark Waid's run is considered the best read that first. Geoff Johns' run is considered the 2nd best, it follows Waid's run.

Batman: Start with Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's run from the New52. It's in the suggestion list I gave you above. (Vol 1 to Vol 10 of the New52)

The Complete Maus. Which is technically a graphic novel but it still counts.

>This got me thinking, I remember knowing about WW2 and Hitler as far back as then I was 5-6 years old but I have no idea how I got that knowledge. Perhaps it was just more prevalent as a subject back then in the early 90's considering it was only 49 years since my country (Norway) got liberated and I had a lot of relatives who grew up under German occupation.

I learned it because the children's magazine I read in the '90s they also had an encyclopaedia that covered various subjects, including both World Wars. Later on, in the children's library section of a community club I went to, they had a cute little comic with talking mice: Maus, by Art Spiegelman. So from a pretty early age, around 9 to 10, I knew all about World War II and concentration camps.

​

EDIT: This was all in Argentina, by the way. So I read it in Spanish. And way before I officially learnt it in high school, which must've been around ages 15-16 for me.

OP goes first. Among the Thugs by Bill Buford about English football hooligans.

If you do go down the violence path this is a great read.

If you enjoyed Green Street then you really should give this book a read if you haven't already.

Here are a couple great Non-Arsenal specific books. All come highly recommended:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Miracle-Castel-Sangro-Passion/dp/0767905997

http://www.amazon.com/Among-Thugs-Bill-Buford/dp/0679745351/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1422638459&sr=1-1&keywords=among+the+thugs&pebp=1422638445664&peasin=679745351

http://www.amazon.com/How-Soccer-Explains-World-Globalization/dp/0061978051/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1422638489&sr=1-1&keywords=how+soccer+explains+the+world&pebp=1422638475663&peasin=61978051

Lone Survivor - by Marcus Luttrell


One of the best action non-fiction stories I have ever read. Considering where our troops are around Afghanistan I found this book to be amazing with its detail, the courage of these men, and the ultimate battle each faces within himself. Truly an inspiring account of events we tend to not usually have privy to within our government.


Another favorite of mine that I recently finished was Among the Thugs by Bill Bufford - it's about soccer hooliganism in Europe during the 1970s and 80s. I am a big soccer fan so I absolutely loved it, but I think it would be a good, entertaining read for anyone that likes first person accounts where the author puts you in the mix of the craziness and you can picture yourself going through the story.

I can work on the + if allowable.

Read Among the Thugs. Terrifying stuff.

Fiction: American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Non-Fiction: Among the Thugs by Bill Buford (here it is, I want you to read it)

This goes a bit outside your interests but this was one of my favourite reads from last year. It's not so much a biography of James Garfield as it is a memoir of his assassination. I found it fascinating and heartbreaking. http://www.amazon.ca/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President/dp/0767929713/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1372116759&sr=8-1&keywords=destiny+of+the+republic

Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine, and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard touches on all three of these subjects. It's about the assassination of President Garfield.

Maybe not "changed my mind" but certainly opened my mind - Destiny of a Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard. I had no idea that this had gone on, what happened and who all was involved in the election and eventual death of James Garfield.

Might be a little longer than you were hoping for, but here you go.

I read this thick ass biography on Tesla (http://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Nikola-Biography-Genius-Citadel/dp/0806519606/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1420393751&sr=8-2&keywords=tesla+biography), and I have to say I really don't get the Tesla worship based on what I read in there.

Biography TL;DR: Here's a dude who does some really awesome stuff. Basically develops polyphase AC because of how it can drive a motor. Very neat. Does some really cool stuff with radio, and some very cool stuff with lighting. He also has very strange relationships with people and animals, he is constantly broke, and he has some really strange views on the occult and how physical forces work. Granted, I have the benefit of standing on his shoulders and 100 years of further discovery, but Wardenclyffe was NEVER going to work. Like not even close. The central premises of how he thought he could wirelessly transfer power indicate that he didn't really understand what he was working with at all. So let's not say he was 100 years ahead of his time. He was not. He was maybe 10 years ahead of his time. He did some cool stuff, but it's not like he's some untouchable genius and Edison is an idiot.

I'm not relying on webcomics. Tesla has been largely underappreciated in his lifetime and for many years after it. 5 years ago, most people did not have any idea who Tesla was. Now, he has become a hot topic (through webcomics and things like this post) and more people know about his innovations.

I've done a lot of research on Tesla. Here are some of my sources, if you want them: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

Good book about him

He has an autobiography that talks about his intentions called "My Inventions".

But theres certainly some good biographies.

http://www.amazon.com/Tesla-Man-Time-Margaret-Cheney/dp/0743215362/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345616103&sr=1-2&keywords=tesla

http://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Nikola-Biography-Genius-Citadel/dp/0806519606/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345616103&sr=1-4&keywords=tesla

Sure, this book was shocking, and this one was electrifying.

I am reading this one

its pretty good so far.

> Theodore Rex

Googled your recommendation: came up with THIS.

HERE'S the Amazon link for the book you mentioned. Thanks for the recommendation!

And I thought for sure that the name was an homage to our 26th President of the United States.

I will always be an FDR fanatic but I agree that Teddy was a walking tall tale. If you like Teddy Roosevelt I strongly suggest that you read Theodore Rex. A great look into his presidential achievements. (https://www.amazon.com/Theodore-Rex-Edmund-Morris/dp/0812966007).

I did it by being involved in responsibilities and duties that require you to act when no one else will. I served as a Resident Assistant during my college years, which means being the first responder to things like roommate conflicts, facility malfunctions, dorm evacuations, etc., and over 18-year-old freshmen, no less. After that, my first few post-college years were spent working in the security field, handling emergency situations, checking suspicious bags/packages, and enforcing policies against irate customers.

What I've got from those jobs is the expectation of being the only "go-to guy" when everyone else was free to ignore it or run the other way. Even better is the actual experience of it happening to you: everyone's got a plan until the actual scenario hits them in the face, and then they fall back on what they know. The more practice and "XP" you build up, the better your mindset will be in knowing when/how to act when you need to.

As far as literature goes, a good read I had years ago on the subject came from the Art of Manliness website's Sheep or Sheepdog articles. The series did a good job in discussing the inherent nature people have to avoid being the ones to act, recognizing it in yourself, and advises on ways to overcome it.

Also, if your interested in Teddy Roosevelt, I highly recommend the book Theodore Rex by Edmund Morris. Morris does an incredible job narrating Roosevelt's pre-presidency years, showing how a weak, bespectacled boy became the virile figure he's famous for today.

I read two history books this year that were excellently written and very-well researched. One is "Augustus: The life of Rome's First Emperor" by Anthony Everitt and The First Crusade: A New History: The Roots of Conflict between Christianity and Islam. Both great books and they'll keep you engaged the whole time. I truly recommend them.

I'm reading Elon Musk's biography right now and think it might be helpful if you're talking about career success. The dude seems like a jerk but has an incredible work ethic and drive to succeed.

You can say pretty much the same exact thing about Augustus' biography.

Outliers really helped me a lot, because it made me realize talent wasn't nearly important as skill/effort. You put in the time and effort and you will develop your skills.

If you're an introvert like me these books helped me "fake it till I make it" or just want to be more socially capable: Charisma Myth, anything by Leil Lowndes, Make People Like You in 90 Seconds. Not a book but the Ted Talk about body language by Amy Cuddy

A book on leadership I always hear good things about but haven't read yet is Start With Why.

A book about Augustus.

Amazon Link

The Republic of Pirates by Colin Woodard is an excellent read on the topic.

A General History of the Pyrates
An 18th century account of the life of many pirates of the era.

The Republic of Pirates
Modern history book examining piracy of the era.

Both of these books were apparently used as sources for the game.

Io dopo aver visto Black Sails ultimamente mi sto facendo una cultura sul mondo dei pirati (origini, dettagli amministrativi, finanziari e logistici, ecc...) con questo: https://www.amazon.it/Republic-Pirates-Surprising-Caribbean-Brought/dp/015603462X/

A reading suggestion for you:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/015603462X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_bJFPybWCFVJKR

I liked to think of the characters as represented from Black Flag as I read through it. I highly recommend.

Some are just criminals, but not all.

thought you might find this interesting it is the prices of some things from the book "The Republic of Pirates"

http://i.imgur.com/o4OREsO.jpg

You're missing The Republic of Pirates which is some of the source material for AC4BF.

A General History of the Pyrates is a contemporary account of many of the more famous pirates, historically, though much of it is hooplah.

Likewise, the devs have stated directly that they're trying to shy away from the romanticized version of pirates depicted in Hollywood cinema, so both films you have listed are not the best places to go to for reference points.

I found similar enjoyment in The Republic of Pirates. It is non-fiction, and took place a bit earlier, and has Blackbeard as protagonist, but still seafaring adventures and an interesting insight into the why of piracy.

hmmmm... well, not much that Ive read fall under that price range. Do you like in the USA, can you use Amazon?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0786884517/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1495585796&sr=8-6&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=pirate+biography&dpPl=1&dpID=51-foWCviEL&ref=plSrch

That one is 9-10 dollars, the story of Captain Kidd. If you dont mind used editions some of the stuff by Robert K Massie is under 5 dollars for print.

Dreadnought is about Britain and Germany gearing up do WW1

Peter the Great was one of the most famous Tsars of Russia

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/ol/0345298063/ref=mw_dp_olp?ie=UTF8&condition=all

Ghenghis Khan and The Making of The Modern world was fascinating

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/ol/0609809644/ref=mw_dp_olp?ie=UTF8&condition=all

The republic of Pirates was pretty interesting too

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/ol/015603462X/ref=mw_dp_olp?ie=UTF8&condition=all

i linked to used books, so be aware of that - i buy almost all of my books used in "good" or "great" condition and have no complaints so far.

Ｔｈｉｓ　ｉｓ　ｂｏｏｋ　ｏｆ　ｅｘｐｅｒｔ　ｏｆ　ｊａｐａｎ　ｃｒｉｍｅ　ｐｅｏｐｌｅ　”ｙａｋｕｚａ”

https://www.amazon.com/Tokyo-Vice-American-Reporter-Police/dp/0307475298?ie=UTF8&ref_=asap_bc

If you want to more more about that, i highly recommend the book Tokyo Vice

Tokyo Vice

ake Adelstein is the only American journalist ever to have been admitted to the insular Tokyo Metropolitan Police Press Club, where for twelve years he covered the dark side of Japan: extortion, murder, human trafficking, fiscal corruption, and of course, the yakuza. But when his final scoop exposed a scandal that reverberated all the way from the neon soaked streets of Tokyo to the polished Halls of the FBI and resulted in a death threat for him and his family, Adelstein decided to step down. Then, he fought back. In Tokyo Vice he delivers an unprecedented look at Japanese culture and searing memoir about his rise from cub reporter to seasoned journalist with a price on his head.

https://www.amazon.com/Tokyo-Vice-American-Reporter-Police/dp/0307475298

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jake_Adelstein&oldid=627123879

OMG, he is coming out with a movie 'Tokyo Vice'. Starring Daniel Radcliffe. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2887954/

He is described as an American reporter, not Jewish.

http://www.amazon.com/Tokyo-Vice-American-Reporter-Vintage/dp/0307475298

How Jewish networking works. Here he is promoted by Jon Stewart Leibowitz. He got Howard Rosenberg at ABC to get the Washington Post to publish his story.

http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/1stsxc/jake-adelstein

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0742222/

I am father fond of Foreign Babes in Beijing by Rachel DeWoskin and I just finished Tokyo Vice by Jake Adelstein. Both are about foreigners and their observations living and working in China/Japan. It's interesting stuff.

Last Summer I read Jake Adelstein's Tokyo Vice, right after Ronson's Psychopath Test, actually. The two are quite different, not just in subject matter; I found Ronson's neuroses endearing, while Adelstein's subtle narcissism sometimes nagged at me. I would say both are in the same ballpark though, page turner journeys on fascinating subjects, by authors with relatable voices.

Tokyo Vice by Jake Adelstein

http://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Arabia-Deceit-Imperial-Making/dp/0307476413
I am about 3/4 of the way done with this book. I am loving it so far and have learned quite a bit. It is pretty easy to read.

I read a book last year called Lawrence in Arabia: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East that was really good.

No, I mean Lawrence In Arabia which has much to do with Iran, Persia, and gives a very detailed account of how the Middle East has been shaped to what we see today.

If OP was looking for Persian history going back to the 1st century, then the book wont be of any importance, but if OP wanted more modern/current historical context, then Scott Anderson's book on T.E. Lawrence is as good as it gets for understanding much of what we see going on today.

Hmm, perhaps what is needed is a Netflix mini-series?

Seriously, it would be an awesome watch.

This guy was the original Indiana Jones before all his famous exploits during WWI. He also came up with the idea of the PT boat after the war.

I also highly recommend another excellent book, Lawrence in Arabia, an excellent companion to the Korda book and Seven Pillars of course.

I highly recommend Dreadnaught by Robert K Massie. It is a fascinatingly in depth, if a bit dense, history of the events leading to World War I starting from the foundation of Germany. To be honest, I started it 5 years ago and still have not finished it (it is huge!), but I do not think there is another book on the subject that comes close to the level of detail it contains. Read it if only to understand the complex personal relationships of the Royal families of that era that had such a great impact on the coming war.

I see a lot of great books already listed. I'll offer a few lesser-known books that haven't been mentioned yet.

Larry Gonick's Cartoon History of the Universe series is brilliant for general readers of almost any age.

I see William Shirer's The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich has been mentioned, but I find his book on France - The Collapse of the Third Republic - equally compelling.

For those who love Barb Tuchmann's Guns of August,
Dreadnought by Robert Massie and The Lions of July by William Jannen are excellent additions in covering the lead up to WWI.

For Roman History, I'd recommend Adrian Goldsworthy's Caesar: Life of a Colossus and Anthony Everitt's Augustus: The Life of Rome's First Emperor

This is absolutely right. I mentioned this briefly in my comment pitching Castles of Steel and Dreadnought. These are the two Massie books on the subject.

Dreadnought is the story of the naval arms race leading up to world war 1. It covers the development of the HMS dreadnought, and how this revolutionary ship immediately rendered the navies of the world obsolete. This effectively meant that Germany didn't need to build 500 ships to catch up to the British, they just needed to have comparable numbers of Dreadnought-calibre ships. This started a race on all sides, and caused Britain to end splendid isolation and build alliances to ensure naval supremacy, etc. Really great book on the naval aspect leading up to world war 1.

[Castles of steel] (http://www.amazon.com/Castles-Steel-Britain-Germany-Winning/dp/0345408780/ref=la_B000AQ6XVE_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1420834394&sr=1-6) is the story of how the navies conducted themselves during world war 1. It is a very different book from dreadnought, but there's so much more to ww1 naval action than u-boats and Jutland.

Both are great books. Castles of steel more closely answers the question about actual naval combat in world war 1. But if you're going to read just one, go with Dreadnought.

I just found out that many of the bombers didn't have the Norden and just bombed when the Norden equipped leader did. If that plane was blown out of the sky....well then thing fell where they may. Also timing/movement/chaos caused errors even when the lead was undamaged. Read that in this book:

https://www.amazon.com/Higher-Call-Incredible-Chivalry-War-Torn/dp/0425255735

I might have to disagree. That song told a tale of a noble deed in the midst of unimaginable horror, and while one could argue it is not exactly sunshine and rainbows, is not quite, well, sad.

The whole story is quite incredible, really. I highly recommend this book.

Quote from the Pilot section about Franz Stigler.

>The things he experienced could easily fill a book

here it is (tho not just about him, it does give out alot of Franz's life in it)

Please, i beg you, read it, and if you have, Read it again. i've read mine 4 times in the past 2 months. please, just do. it's my favorite book, and as 16 who do nothing but play war thunder all day, reading a book, yet alone having a favorite one is something i rarely experience.

Had they known about the holocaust those same generals would have ended the war very quickly.

I'd suggest you give this a read: http://www.amazon.ca/Panzer-Commander-Memoirs-Colonel-Hans/dp/0440208025

For a more tactical point of view you have Heinz Guderian's treatise on armored warfare; Achtung - Panzer! In it, he crafts the very tactics that were employed in the war.

Panzer Commander: The Memoirs of Colonel Hans von Luck is also quite good and may be more what you're looking for. Hans von Luck was a commander in Rommel's Panzer divisions at many points in the war including El Alamein, during D-Day, and on the eastern front.

If you're not looking for just one book that spans that whole time frame then Kissinger's book Diplomacy is a must-read.
http://www.amazon.com/Diplomacy-Touchstone-book-Henry-Kissinger/dp/0671510991

Henry Kissingers Diplomacy

Maybe cuz of "Maus"

This could be a very long list ... Will try to reign it in to some of my favourites. Most are popular enough that they won’t need explaining.

Springtime In Chernobyl

The Handmaid’s Tale: A Graphic Novel

Maus

Laika

Ichi-F: A Worker's Graphic Memoir of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant


Anne Frank's Diary: The Graphic Adaptation

To Kill A Mockingbird: A Graphic Novel

Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare Classics Graphic Novels)

The Hobbit Graphic Novel

Persepolis

The Kite Runner: A Graphic Novel

A Wrinkle In Time: A Graphic Novel

The Great Successor Kim Jong Un: a Political Cartoon, an Epic Comic of the Dark Kingdom and the Passing of Power to a Third Kim

Any of Guy Delisle’s travelogues

There's a pretty good Batman trilogy: Haunted Knight, The Long Halloween, and Dark Victory. It has more of the Gotham crime families in two of them, which is interesting. Also, I liked Frank Miller's Batman: Year One a lot.

If you also like graphic novels that aren't really "comics", I recommend Asterios Polyp (a man examines his life and a failing relationship through architecture and design), Maus I and II (a story about a Jewish family in the holocaust depicted as mice) and Persepolis (a memoir of a woman who grew up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution).

And by all means, for sure, read the Sandman books.

My list would have to include

The Ball is Round this is an amazing history of the sport. It is a very big book but very good.

The Numbers Game This has been one of my favorite soccer reads and I am surprised at how little people talk about it.

This love is not for cowards Truly an amazing story.

Amung the Thugs a fun and alarming tale of holgainism. Something I am very glad has not developed around the sport in the USA.

also if your not already receiving them you should subscribe to
Howler Magazine and
Eight by Eight


I hope this list gets you started. I have more on my list but have not got around to them.

In addition to the other books mentioned here, Among the Thugs and Winning at All Costs are both really good.

http://www.amazon.com/Among-Thugs-Bill-Buford/dp/0679745351

When the glass starts breaking, the ruck is on.

You may be interested in Among the Thugs.

Not sure what you're interested in but I read Among the Thugs by Buford in a sociology class and it's a great and interesting exploration of mob mentality/crowd psych through the lens of the life and activities of soccer/football hooligans.

http://www.amazon.com/Among-Thugs-Bill-Buford/dp/0679745351

Hey /u/Revinn, why don't you look up "Among the Thugs" by Bill Buford? I started reading it and I set it down but it seems like a fitting book to contribute to your paper.

http://www.amazon.com/Among-Thugs-Bill-Buford/dp/0679745351

Among the Thugs by Bill Buford.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0679745351/ref=redir_mdp_mobile/191-6902564-3828909

yeah I'm not trying to dispute the quality of your meme within the virgin-vs-chad archetype (its good shit) I'm just pointing out that Garfield was a really interesting character and he would have made a great president, as historical note. We lost a good man when he was killed, this is a great book about him.

Is? Maybe. But, we've had people rise from humble beginnings to become president. James Garfield comes to mind.

https://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President/dp/0767929713/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493416954&sr=8-1&keywords=james+garfield+destiny+of+the+republic

Poor James Garfield. Anyone interested in reading more about him and his unfortunate assassination should read Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard.

Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President. This was probably the best book I listened to last year.

http://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President/dp/0767929713

This James Garfield biography is fantastic:

Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard

This one's supposed to be good, falls short on a few points, but I don't know of a better one.

http://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Nikola-Biography-Genius-Citadel/dp/0806519606/

The best bio is supposed to be Wizard: The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla. I just started reading it; it's very well written and seems to have the right kind of perspective and depth.

Nicola Tesla

Here is a link to his Biography

Here's a good start for a book this info is in history books or in books like my high school part of the info is left out. I'm not making any crazy statements or trying to belittle Tesla. You can look up and tell during the first World War he lost investors because people weren't investing in projects. If you have alternate info from other books saying how he lost money I'd be curious.

Zero-point energy. The Frequency of the Sun. Basically anything stemming from the New Age movement.

Check out this if you want the true story on Tesla:

http://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Nikola-Biography-Genius-Citadel/dp/0806519606/ref=sr_1_1/188-3117367-0069910?ie=UTF8&qid=1420272983&sr=8-1&keywords=wizard+tesla

There's an analysis by an electrical engineer of Tesla's wireless energy system (in the book linked above). The conclusion is that it would work, but probably wouldn't provide nearly the amount of power we use today.

It also explains the historic causes of the myths regarding Tesla.

I'm assuming this film was based on the fascinating in-depth biography of Theodore Roosevelt's two terms as president?

I taught high school English for five years, and had my fill of the classics. I find I can't really get into that stuff anymore, although it certainly helps when I watch Jeopardy! I remain a big Hemingway and Steinbeck fan....

I've found as I grow older I am more drawn to non-fiction, with Bruce Springsteen's [Born to Run] (https://www.amazon.com/Born-Run-Bruce-Springsteen/dp/1501141511) and a great Teddy Roosevelt [biography] (https://www.amazon.com/Theodore-Rex-Edmund-Morris/dp/0812966007/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1497020483&sr=1-1&keywords=theodore+rex) by Edmund Morris being the last two books I've read. As far as fiction is concerned lately - dunno, but I'm always a sucker for whatever John Grisham is cooking.

I was a big Shannara series geek when I was a kid; my singular, lone experience with the fantasy genre. [The Sword of Shannara] (https://www.amazon.com/Sword-Shannara-Terry-Brooks/dp/0345314255/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1497020523&sr=1-2&keywords=Sword+of+shannara) was the very first "big" book I ever read, back in 7th grade. About fifteen years ago I got to meet the author, Terry Brooks, and had the distinct pleasure to say to him "The Sword of Shannara was the first book I ever read." Wow. What a nice moment that was. (He graciously thanked me and told me that he hears that a lot.)

Specific, timely recommendation - if you haven't read recently-deceased sportswriter Frank Deford's ["Alex: The Life of a Child,"] (https://www.amazon.com/Alex-Life-Child-Frank-Deford/dp/1558535527) please consider moving it up your list. It's his account of his young daughter's well-fought, yet losing battle with Cystic Fibrosis. I was so moved by this book that I taught it for a few years to my students. Gripping and moving and very readable, it was always a highlight of the school year. DeFord's recent passing brought the book back to me, and I enjoyed reading multiple articles/columns by writers and colleagues discussing the impact that little book had on them as well. It's nice to think that DeFord is now finally reunited with his daughter.

Last thing: Need a great go-to resource for book choices? For many years I've relied on [NPR's must-read list] (http://www.npr.org/books/), and it's always been a home run for me. My wife knows that if she wants to buy me a book, all she has to do is go to that website and pick from the top. I like it better than the NYTimes list, as the summaries are often accompanied by the radio reviews played on NPR.

> The following February, ignoring advice from GOP leaders, Roosevelt instructed his attorney general Philander Knox to sue the monopoly on the grounds that it violated the Sherman Act. According to Larry Haeg, author of Harriman vs. Hill: Wall Street’s Great Railroad War, it was the only thing TR, being TR, could do: The law was on the books, and he had to enforce it.
>
> Haeg writes, “Legally, of course, it was Roosevelt’s duty, just as he thought it his duty to enforce the Sunday liquor laws when he was police commissioner. He had solemnly sworn to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution.”
>
> It was the first time a president had confronted the biggest corporations in America, Dalton writes, and Knox’s suit succeeded in breaking up the company.
>
> That did not go over well with J.P. Morgan, who attempted to reason with TR and Knox at a meeting at the White House. Morgan suggested casually, “if we have done anything wrong, send your man to my man and they can fix it up.” Roosevelt snorted, according to Edmund Morris’s Theodore Rex, that that could not be done.
>
> The Northern Securities Company sued to overturn the decision, and the appeal went all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court.
>
> The court announced its decision on March 14, 1904. In a 5-to-4 ruling, the justices sided against the Northern Securities Company. Justice John Marshall Harlan wrote in the majority opinion that “no scheme or device could more certainly come within the words of the [Sherman] Act … or could more effectively and certainly suppress free competition.”
>
> Roosevelt had won. He had shown that anti-trust legislation, part of his broader attack on corruption in government, withstood judicial scrutiny. From then on, TR’s reputation as a trust-buster was cemented, and his victory at the Supreme Court helped Roosevelt’s election campaign that year.
>
> In November, TR was elected to his first full term as president. Having broken up the second-biggest company in the world, he set his sights on rampant corruption in the food and drug industry—the kind of corruption that threatened people’s lives.
>
> > Jenkinson: Then he becomes president and he steps back and thinks, "What are the things that need to be done here? What can a president do? What can I do?" He looks at all these problems and he realizes, well, for example, our food supply has changed because in Jefferson's era, 97 percent of the American people were family farmers and they were essentially feeding themselves. Well now, we're an increasingly urban nation. People are living in cities where they don't even have a garden plot. And so they're buying food in tins. If the food is awful, if it's not clean, if it's tainted, then people don't really have any options because they have to eat and they're not producing their own.
>
> According to Deborah Blum, author of The Poison Squad: One Chemist’s Single-Minded Crusade for Food Safety at the Turn of the Twentieth Century, food had to travel farther and for longer periods of time to reach city dwellers. Manufacturers increasingly used preservatives to ensure that food didn’t rot in transit. The problem was, most preservatives were toxic—and unregulated. Formaldehyde was added to milk to keep it fresh, while boric acid was used to preserve meat. Eating these substances in three meals a day could make people extremely ill. Not to mention that what was listed on the label might be completely different from what was in the can.
>
> Adulterated foods and drugs were a huge public health problem, and there were few federal laws for protecting consumers. Journalists had tried to expose the unsafe conditions in the slaughterhouses and the need for federal inspections, but their efforts were foiled by the so-called Beef Trust. Five major meatpacking companies had joined together to fight government oversight of their Chicago-based industry.
>
> > Jenkinson: He then gets a copy of Upton Sinclair's The Jungle …
>
> That’s the 1906 novel that exposed corruption and unsanitary practices in Chicago’s meatpacking plants.
>
> > Jenkinson: … reads it and is appalled and he then contacts Upton Sinclair as only Roosevelt would, and says, "I'm sure you're wrong. This looks like just the worse kind of sensationalism. And by the way, I don't appreciate the socialist track in the last chapter, but I'm going to look into this and if you're right, well then, we'll do something about it."
>
> Roosevelt himself had had experience with America’s lax food laws. As a Rough Rider during the Spanish-American War, he experienced putrid meat supplied by the Army. News reports claimed that meatpackers provisioned the military with tons of rotten canned beef preserved with boric acid to mask the stench. Many soldiers who ate it fell ill, and some died.
>
> Roosevelt wrote to the Army’s commanding general to complain, thus stirring the scandal: “The so-called canned roast beef that was issued to us for travel rations … and which we occasionally got even at the front, was practically worthless. Unless very hungry the men would not touch it … There was also a supply of beef … supposed to be fitted by some process to withstand tropical heat. It at once became putrid and smelt so that we had to dispose of it for fear of its creating disease. I think we threw it overboard.”
>
> > Jenkinson: And he looks into it and turns out it's worse than in Upton Sinclair and then Roosevelt calls in the meatpackers and said, "What are you going to do about it?" And they say, "Nothing." He says, "Well, I'll give you some time."
>
> Meanwhile, Roosevelt commissioned a secret undercover investigation into meatpacking industry practices, which issued its findings in the damning Neill-Reynolds report.
>
> > Jenkinson: They come back and they tell him, "If we did what you're asking, you would bankrupt the industry and blah, blah, blah." Then, Roosevelt says, "All right. You give me no choice. I'm going to publish the report." And the public is appalled and they demand change and Congress … is forced to attend to this and he gets the Meat Inspection Act of 19-6.
>
> When Roosevelt delivered the Neill-Reynolds report to Congress, he wrote [PDF] in an accompanying letter, “the report shows that the stock yards and packing houses are not kept even reasonably clean, and that the method of handling and preparing food products is uncleanly and dangerous to health … the conditions shown by even this short inspection to exist in the Chicago stock yards are revolting. It is imperatively necessary in the interest of health and of decency that they should be radically changed.”
>
> Congress did pass the Meat Inspection Act, and Roosevelt signed it into law on June 30, 1906. It banned the sale of adulterated or mislabeled meat products as food, and required that livestock be slaughtered in a sanitary environment. It also mandated federal inspections of food animals before and after slaughter.
>
> On the same day, Roosevelt signed another bill with a similar purpose. The Pure Food and Drug Act prohibited the sale of adulterated or misbranded food or drugs. In grocery stores and pharmacies, consumers would no longer find spoiled meat freshened with borax, children’s candies tinted with lead, whiskey consisting of prune juice and cheap alcohol, or fruit colored with coal-tar dyes. They could be sure that the drugs they purchased for common colds were actually the medicines they claimed to be.
>
> Two weeks after the Pure Food and Drug Act came into force, The New York Times reported, “Already the effects of it are amazing. The masquerade of alcohol, opium, cocaine, and other injurious drugs as nerve tonics or cure for stomach and lung diseases is at an end … The trade in nostrums and patent medicines is utterly demoralized.”
>

> (continues in next comment)

Thank you so much! I am pretty envious that you get to take an entire course on this period. I just get so excited learning about it.

There is the parish library right across the street from my house, but I never use it for some reason. I have three short books I want to read, and then I am going to read all of the books you listed. I can't wait to read about Theodore Roosevelt. Regardless of if you agree with his politics, he is just a fascinating guy.

I had never heard of settlement houses during the era, but I will definitely be researching that.

Here are the links to the Theodore Roosevelt biographical trilogy, just so everyone can find them easily:

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3

This may be a little more specific of a book question, but are there any books that explain the Progressive Era's impact on the rest of the world? Can youalso give me the definitive beginning and end of the Progressive Era (according to your course)? I seem to get a lot of differing years. There may not be an exact beginning and end but I might as well ask; it is AskHistorians anyway. Does it include or exclude WWI?

1. In primele 20 de secunde cand foloseste moneda ca argument nu zice asta.
   
   
2. Nu gasesc pe internet acum, dar o sa mai caut. Sursele mele sunt aceste doua carti foarte bune: http://www.amazon.com/Augustus-Revolutionary-Emperor-Adrian-Goldsworthy/dp/0297864254
   
   http://www.amazon.com/Augustus-Life-Romes-First-Emperor/dp/0812970586
   
   EDIT: Gata, daca textul la care face referie e asta:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eclogue_4. Pe wikipedia zice doar ca se crede ca se face referie la copilul lui Antoniu cu Octavia, dar in cartile de mai sus se spune ca era vorba si de copilul lui Augustus cu Scriboia. Ambele cupluri asteptau un copil, iar Virgil se astepta ca Augustus sa aiba un baiat, iar cand Scribonia a nascut-o pe Iulia, propagandistilor Augutieni le era frica, daca Antoniu, marele inamic a lui Augustus ar fi avut un baiat. Din fericire pentru Virgil si Octavia a nascut o fata.
   
   
3. Zice: "And by the time that Jesus died, an expanded Judea was under the rule of Herod Antipater" cand el "conducea" ce e cu roz!, nu e prea expanded
   
   Sincer nu stiu ce sa zic la ...
   
   Nu m-am bagat in seama ca sa imi dovedesc superioritatea, nu aveam de ce. Am inceput prin a zice ca faza cu moneda nu are sens si ca videoclipul are niste greseli. Tu m-ai intrebat care, iar eu am raspuns.
   
   Nu am discutat teologie, doar istorie. De ce ai crede ca sunt chiar asa de religios?:)
   
   

This one: https://www.amazon.com/Titan-Life-John-Rockefeller-Sr/dp/1400077303

If you like that shit read Titan and Carnegie as well. Throw in The First Tycoon and you got a comprehensive lesson in people who have more money than you will ever have.

> Rockefeller couldn't care less about people getting drunk.

He was a devout southern baptist who practiced and preached temperance WELL before the movement took off, mostly due to his experiences growing up with a father who was a heavy drinker.

He continued to practice it and punish his (adult) children for drinking well into his retirement.

Read: https://www.amazon.com/Titan-Life-John-Rockefeller-Sr/dp/1400077303

You will learn a tonne about Rockerfeller. He was a devout and pious man who was somehow capable of totally suspending his ethics in his professional work to collude with railways to form monopolies. His involvement with prohibition had nothing to do with his professional enterprise though.

Here's a far more detailed Quora comment rebutting this myth:

https://www.quora.com/Did-Rockefeller-bankroll-the-Prohibition-because-Henry-Ford-was-more-inclined-to-create-a-car-which-runs-on-ethanol

The markets do not regulate themselves. Read up on some history if you actually want to learn something instead of repeating Rush Limbaugh. You can start with Rockefeller and Standard Oil. No regulations there. He did what he wanted, and it blows a massive hole in your talking point. This book was excellent.

Slightly outside your request but Titan, the Life of John D. Rockefeller is excellent. It's a fascinating rags to riches epic that also tells the story of the industrial revolution and how it changed the US economy. Wonderful book.

Have you ever read Titan? It actually goes into this a bit when Standard Oil had to incorporate separately in each state. Pretty interesting stuff and a great book. Also goes into the nature of regulation the oil industry.

I will agree with that. There is a lot of redundancy involved in making multiple companies that service the same thing in each state.

I think we have to either go full socialized single payer or deregulate entirely. This halfway bastardization that we have is pretty horrible.

"Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefella Sr." by Ron Chernow
amazon

Ron Chernow writes excellent financial histories, I haven't read his Warburgs or his Washington biographies, so I can't comment on them; however I recommend everything else by Chernow. "The House of Morgan" is a bit difficult to digest, but it provides a sweeping history of finance in USA.

i like Ron Chernow's historical biographies.

I've read his books on John D. Rockefeller, JP Morgan, and am currently reading Hamilton.

They are well researched, and he tells a good story.

In fact, iirc, you are local-ish to me so you can borrow one of them from me if you'd like. If I can find them (having moved recently).

Hi HHH! I would like to educate you more - but I'm off to the beach now! (Sunny day in Bondi!)

From http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/Articles/The%20Enemy%20Within.html

We now know that many of those heralded as innocent victims of a McCarthyite witch hunt were in reality bona fide Soviet agents — some of them working in the White House, State Department, and OSS. Prominent among these were Alger Hiss, Duncan Lee, Maurice Halperin, Carl Marzani, Lauchlin Currie, and Harry Dexter White. (There were scores of others.) Many of them had been named first by former Communist spy Elizabeth Bentley.

And read the book:

https://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068

Actually, you've been lied to about Joseph McCarthy, it turns out he was very justified in looking for communists in the US Govt. Stefan Molyneux goes into it in great detail in a video of his. There's also a good book on the subject.

here is a link to the declassified venona files directly from the NSA. here is a link to the Wikipedia article about it. From the article “Some of the decoded Soviet messages were not declassified by the United States and published until 1995.” Blacklisted By History was published in 2009. Now if that’s not enough sources for you I’m very certain google can accommodate the inquisitive mind who would like to truly learn more about the Venona files and Joe McCarthy.

x. x.

McCarthy is infamous because the education system told you that. How much do you actually know about McCarthy? This is exactly my point, education has been coopted for so long you just believe McCarthy was wrong for no reason other than that's what you were told. https://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068

Should it be any surprise that a system co-opted by commies has attempted to brand a guy who went after commies as the bad guy?

More on the Magnitsky Act here.

For those interested in this sort of thing, Bill Browder’s book, Red Notice, is an absolutely harrowing journey into this life:

https://www.amazon.com/Red-Notice-Finance-Murder-Justice/dp/1476755744/ref=nodl_

Money, spies, stolen money, and assassins.

Сурковская писанина — роман «Околоноля», «Машинка и велик», «Ультранормальность» и т.д..

"Red Cocaine: The Drugging of America and the West"

Книжки Голицына, неплохо передают образ мышления корпорации.

The New Cold War: Putin's Russia and the Threat to the West

Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man's Fight for Justice

Дугинские «Основы геополитики» и сочинения Ивана Ильина. Местами книжонки Сергея Кара-Мурзы («Россия: точка 2010, образ будущего и путь к нему»), тоже просочились во властное сознание.

Hiroo Onoda beat em by 2 years I think, I read his book recently, pretty awesome.

http://www.amazon.com/No-Surrender-Thirty-Year-Bluejacket-Books/dp/1557506639/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1314298829&sr=8-2

No Surrender: My Thirty-Year War https://www.amazon.com/dp/1557506639/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_nmajDb1MPSGBF

Different guy but the book you're looking for.

My personal recommendations:
My 30 year war by Onada Hiro:
This book was written by a Japanese lieutenant who refused to believe the war was over, and continued living in the jungles of the Philippines until the 70s.

https://www.amazon.com/No-Surrender-My-Thirty-Year-War/dp/1557506639/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493673294&sr=8-1&keywords=Hiroo+Onoda

Battleground Pacific by Sterling Mace. A first person account from a USMC rifleman who fought in the Pacific war. He is also a redditor.

https://www.amazon.com/Battleground-Pacific-Marine-Riflemans-Odyssey/dp/1250005051?SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-d-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=1250005051

And the Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer, a French man who fought for the Germans on the Eastern Front.

https://www.amazon.com/Forgotten-Soldier-Guy-Sajer/dp/1574882864/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493673668&sr=8-1&keywords=the+forgotten+soldier+by+guy+sajer

Happy reading!

http://www.amazon.com/No-Surrender-Thirty-Year-Bluejacket-Books/dp/1557506639/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1269570463&sr=8-1

comes from that guy that wouldn't surrender

The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer is an incredible read. There is controversy about the validity of some of his claims. However, it is one of the most intense books on WW2 I have ever read.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Forgotten-Soldier-Guy-Sajer/dp/1574882864/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411555970&sr=8-1&keywords=forgotten+soldier

For those of you looking for a view of the Eastern Front from the German perspective I highly recommend The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer. It's quite a harrowing read at times, doesn't hold back on the blood and gore involved in war.

There are questions on how authentic some parts of the book are, even so it still well worth a read.

The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer is an autobiography of a French-German soldier fighting on the eastern front. He thought they were the good guys, but it doesn't really mention the concentration camps since he wasn't anywhere near them.

Probably not related towards Geopolitics but I'm loving this book "The Forgotten Soldier". I purchased it from the Andorid Playstore. So amazing. Shows you a perspective from the other side.

Here is a short summary that I copied from Amazon. Which the link is below.

"This book recounts the horror of World War II on the eastern front, as seen through the eyes of a teenaged German soldier. At first an exciting adventure, young Guy Sajer’s war becomes, as the German invasion falters in the icy vastness of the Ukraine, a simple, desperate struggle for survival against cold, hunger, and above all the terrifying Soviet artillery."

http://www.amazon.com/The-Forgotten-Soldier-Guy-Sajer/dp/1574882864

Edit: Seeing so many good recommendations. Looks like I'm going to be reading a lot. Thank you guys for the good recommendations.

Hi u/Bm188 Two recommendations for you:

1: the forgotten soldier by Guy Sajer

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1574882864/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1522746358&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=the+forgotten+soldier&dpPl=1&dpID=51OLqLHL9hL&ref=plSrch


A memoir from a german soldier and his war in Russia. A fascinating read that will cause a real itch regarding WW2 in the east, and a classic of WW2 literature.

2: Kokoda by Peter Fitzsimmons

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0733619622/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1522746522&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=kokoda&dpPl=1&dpID=61fQaatVf8L&ref=plSrch

A great overview of what was probably the toughest fighting in WW2, Australian (and some American) fighting against the Japanese in Papua New Guinea.

I’ve read both, and strongly recommend both. Neither are dry or heavy reading.

I've enjoyed the following, not being from that part of the world, culture or religion you'd have to take my insight with a grain of salt. There doesn't seem to be that much information about that part of the world, one of the reasons I find it so fascinating. It's fairly invisible. There is typically one viewpoint from this media, red team or blue team, nothing seems to be that unbiased. I found "The Oath" to be the most informative and interesting.

BOOKS-

• The Oath https://www.amazon.com/Oath-Surgeon-Under-Fire/dp/0802714048
  
  
• Inferno in Chechyna https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1611687373/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• Young Stalin https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1400096138/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• The Soviet Mafia
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0312071353/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• My Jihad
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1585745650/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• The Man without a Face
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1594486514/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• Blowing Up Russia
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1594032017/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• The World's Most Dangerous Places
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060011602/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• The Dirty War
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1860468977/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• Merchant Of Death
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470048662/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• Urban Guerrilla Warfare
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0813124379/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• ANYTHING by Misha Glenny (althought about Former Yugoslavia Mainly)
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1400044111/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0140257713/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0140172866/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  DOCS-
  
  
• Letter To Anna
  
• Chechnya The Dirty War
  
• cena prawdy "truth"
  
• immortal fortress
  
• From Beirut to Bosnia (good as well)
  
• Children of Beslan
  
• Terror in Moscow
  
• Nedoverie "Disbelief"

I've read Masha Gessen's book about Putin - I highly recommend it:https://www.amazon.com/Man-Without-Face-Unlikely-Vladimir/dp/1594486514/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1484750660&sr=8-1&keywords=masha+gessen

Had no idea about that. Then I read The Man Without a Face.

https://www.amazon.com/Man-Without-Face-Unlikely-Vladimir/dp/1594486514

Masha Gessin's book on the rise of Putin The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin https://www.amazon.com/Man-Without-Face-Unlikely-Vladimir/dp/1594486514 does a great job of explaining how the Russian oligarchy functions and includes a detailed account of Browder's experience too.

> If you knew me, you would know that I lived in many more countries and varied conditions than you did

Let me just state the same: If you knew me, you would know that I lived in many more countries and varied conditions than you did

> Anyway, there are much worse places than where you live, even in France.

One thing I know for sure is that you've never been to Russia. Otherwise you wouldn't be spouting such nonsense.

> whether you stay in Russia or decide to move to place you deem better. May be you are right, may be it does exist.

Oh, I'm not moving anywhere, I'm gonna stay here and try to change things. One good thing about Russia is that intersectionality and political correctness (in it's Western, "your-breathing-is-offensive-misogynic-and-oppressing" sense) are completely alien concepts here. And unlike their Western counterparts who glorify Marx and Lenin, the majority of our hipsters adore Ayn Rand and libertarianism.

> Here's some first class reading for you. It provides excellent background on the west.

I will read it. And since we're doing book suggestions here are mine:

https://www.amazon.com/Winter-Coming-Vladimir-Enemies-Stopped/dp/1610397193/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

https://www.amazon.com/Man-Without-Face-Unlikely-Vladimir/dp/1594486514/ref=la_B001H6MBXK_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1525652656&sr=1-2

https://www.amazon.com/Day-Oprichnik-Novel-Vladimir-Sorokin/dp/0374533105/ref=la_B001JOLA4G_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1525652758&sr=1-1

The first two are political/historical nonfiction books, written by people who had first-hand experience with Putin's regime.

The third one is a novel, but many of the things and ideas depicted there has come/are coming to life in Russia right now, unfortunately. Orwell's 1984 and Burgess' 1985 (read it too, by the way, great book) are good descriptions of what's going on in the West and where it is headed with its leftist ideology. And this Vladimir Sorokin's book does the same for Russia.

So do me a favor and read these three books (and do check out "1985", I'll say it again - great book). And I'll read your book as soon as I finish "Journey to the End of the Night".

Man's Search for Meaning https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009U9S6FI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_XmGEAbW592T48

This guy survived 4 nazi labor camps and watched his entire family die. If he can maybe you can too.

Richest Man in Babylon

The Road Less Traveled

Man's Search For Meaning

Things are already serious and getting more so but you don't know it. You're going to make decisions that are incompatible with who you wanted to be when you grow up without anyone saying a thing or you noticing. The foundation for being a good man is either solidified now or (as in my case) built amid the chaos of realizing I've drifted far from my self without knowing it in my forties.

All of these books are truly helpful but if you only have time for one make it the road less traveled. The first paragraph may change your life and stop you from being an entitled self-pittying child which, by and large, is how most of us enter our twenties and often thirties

anything by terry pratchett is amazing!

if you're looking for something a bit more life / philosophy related, you have GOT to read man's search for meaning https://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl-ebook/dp/B009U9S6FI it has a very good reason why it's a classic and a book everyone should read at least once.

Mans search for meaning. I didn’t see anyone suggest this so I wanted to share it because it helped me cope with a trauma. So sorry for your loss.



https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009U9S6FI/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Viktor Frankl's Man's Search for Meaning is a great place to start (link is to Kindle edition). This book is about finding within yourself your own meaning. It's about self-worth and not defining yourself with a role - like husband or, in Frankl's case, a Jew in a concentration camp.

Hemingway's Islands in the Stream is a good literary treatment of that. It's about a man whose an artist. He's divorced. His three sons come to visit him and it's the outbreak of World War II. Not explicitly MGTOW but I've always thought of it that way.

Try something like this for potential answers related to Meaning of Life:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009U9S6FI/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Try this for joy & happiness https://www.amazon.com/Book-Joy-Lasting-Happiness-Changing-ebook/dp/B01CZCW34Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1505429551&sr=1-1&keywords=dalai+joy

I highy highly highly recommend the last book.

I've got 27 years with chronic pain & disability but I don't like to talk to much of my experience as pain is so intensely personal

When those dark dark days and thoughts come to consume you, lay in a darkened room on a bed or as comfortable as you can make it, and try some mindfulness meditation, to help with the acceptance of those thoughts, if only from a moment by moment perspective..

Because really, that is all that matters

The cultural revolution occurred because of Soviet Agents working in the US Government falsifying reports. (Source: https://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536522132&sr=8-1&keywords=blacklisted+by+history+the+untold+story+of+senator+joe+mccarthy )

The Khmer Rouge happened because we let the Vietnamese purge conservatives following the Vietnamese war and the Democrats violation of the treaty with South Vietnam. They watched the communists of North Vietnam put a million people against the wall, and thought, "Not only is the United States not going to do anything, this looks like fun!"

Still waiting for the evidence of Spencer being a "self described Nazi".

​

>you know "commies bad" only happened after the cold war right

​

Incorrect you prion head birdbrain. The "alliance" with commies was a matter of circumstance, a deal with the devil, so to say, and the allies were planning to attack them as soon as they were done with Germany.

​

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Unthinkable

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General Patton said, on record, that "we defeated the wrong enemy" after the war. This was a high profile general, who had said before the war "And when we get to Berlin, I am personally going to shoot that paper hanging son-of-a-bitch Hitler. Just like I'd shoot a snake!".

​

Among the general population of USA, there was a disdain for the commies, called pejoratively as Pinko (coined in 1925).

​

Laws like the Hatch Act of 1939, which was aimed against the Communists, and Public Law 135 (1941), which sanctioned the investigation of any federal worker suspected of being Communist and the firing of any Communist worker were passed at the height of the war.

​

Source : https://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068

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In 1943, 90% of Americans said they'd rather lose the war with Nazis than end segregation (Source : Troubling the Waters: Black-Jewish Relations in the American Century, Chapter 3, Page 81). Furthermore, the Nazi eugenics program was inspired by California.

​

Nazi Germany and USA had much more in common than USSR and USA.

​

The Dunning-Kruger is strong with you. Don't worry though, it's just your genetic retardation, an immutable characteristic, so to say. Just don't reproduce.

​

​

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>Nazis and ethno nationalists don't get on

Most of their disagreements are on methodology. There won't be many, among the already <0.1% Neo Nazis, who'd complain if they get a white only ethnostate.

​

​

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>that's like arguing ISIS would disappear in an all Islamic homeland

Brainlet analogy. ISIS is funded by Saudi Arabia and operates on non "Islamic" homeland. 1448 odd Neo Nazis remaining in the Ethno States of America won't pose any threat nor would have any motivation to do so.

You know, the funniest thing about this is that the initial impetus of this conversation was me saying that entertainment doesn't teach you anything. You then proceeded to get incredibly angry about this. And you're somehow deciding that the best way to respond to this is 4chan memes, reddit tags and capital letters, while completely failing to provide evidence that entertainment has taught you something. Like, is this really how you were intending to convince me that you're not a stupid idiot? Like when you were laughing at a well-respected author and veteran, you were like "yes, this will show that I am a good person and not an entitled baby".

So really, kind of curious at this point: why did you bother? All you did was make yourself look like a loud, angry 14 year old who can't deal with criticism. If you want you can post this conversation in /r/iamverysmart but I gotta warn you, dude, it's not exactly flattering for you.

Read Tokyo Vice It's the story of the only America jounalist to be amitted to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Press Club. You'll find that the Yakuza and the TMP seem to have a very cozy relationship and that a lot of Japan's famed low crime rates should really should not be trusted.

Yep. Hans Von Luck talks about this idea in good detail in Panzer Commander.

> I on't know about him but I personally can't commit to longer storylines because I think life is too short to stick with a single story for weeks or months, when you can come up with something new every other day.

I appreciate your honest comment, but I can't help but think that some - of - the - best - stories simply need a longer effort to be narrated, or you're stuck in a much more shallow world of storytelling

http://www.amazon.com/Among-Thugs-Bill-Buford/dp/0679745351
related soccer hooligans

Edison and everyone else, including Westinghouse, took advantage of Tesla.

Check out these books :
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1931882851/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=0914732331&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1SCYAJCX2EN1R9X8YZ20

http://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Nikola-Biography-Genius-Citadel/dp/0806519606

Your master, Trump, is a pro-Russian useful idiot, and therefore, being the tools that you are, you've become useful idiots too.

Oh, talking about McCarthy, he's been vindicated:

https://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068

I found this one really interesting: http://www.amazon.com/The-Man-Without-Face-Unlikely/dp/1594486514

I would love to hear other peoples opinions about it.

Some sources

Blacklisted by History: The Untold Story of Senator Joe McCarthy and His Fight Against America's Enemies by M. Stanton Evans
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1400081068/?tag=freedradio-20

Joseph McCarthy: Reexamining the Life and Legacy of America's Most Hated Senator by Arthur Herman
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0684836254/?tag=freedradio-20

Witness by Whittaker Chambers
http://www.amazon.com/dp/162157296X/?tag=freedradio-20

The Venona Secrets: Exposing Soviet Espionage and America's Traitors by Eric Breindel
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0895262754/?tag=freedradio-20

Stalin's Secret Agents: The Subversion of Roosevelt's Government by M. Stanton Evans
http://www.amazon.com/dp/143914768X/?tag=freedradio-20

Alger Hiss: Why He Chose Treason by Christina Shelton
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1451655428/?tag=freedradio-20

The Black Book of Communism: Crimes, Terror, Repression
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0674076087/?tag=freedradio-20

McCarthy was right.

You mean the senator who was absolutely correct about communist infiltration of our government and media?

https://www.amazon.com/Blacklisted-History-Senator-McCarthy-Americas/dp/1400081068

Edit: apparently you hate history and reality, too.

Also, the Yakuza kill you if you step out of line w/ any of these unspoken rules. Or at the very least, if you have a dispute with a neighbor where they put their fence then you go to the Yakuza (Japanese mafia) to sort it out if you don't have the patience to wait the 1+ year it could take to settle in court . I'm not exaggerating about this latter example, check out out this book for how dominant the Yakuza is in Japanese culture: https://www.amazon.com/Tokyo-Vice-American-Reporter-Police/dp/0307475298