Perfect Storm

For someone who lived through Watergate, this was a walk down memory lane. Except not really. Before online media, the news and the weight of its meaning were tightly controlled. You only knew what those at the top decided you should know. In the late-1970s, a political buff had to wait for a book to learn about backroom maneuvering and non-mainstream points of view. Laskey’s book is one of those full disclosures after the fact. Laskey argues that politics has always been rough and largely defends Nixon by endlessly cataloging similar acts by his predecessors. Few of these parallel episodes were reported when our news came solely from network half-hour broadcasts, newspapers, and newsmagazines. Democrat dirty deeds were glossed over or dismissed.  Although Laskey has some good points, it did Nixon little good and is now little more than a historical curiosity. What was more striking about the book was the deep hatred aimed at Nixon by Democrats and their media allies. Nixon’s enemi...

It will take me time to write Perfect Storm, and since it is about current events, I don't know how it will end. Of course, I know how I want it to end, but I don't write an alternate history.  For a lark, I had AI design two covers. I'll aim for a triumphant cover similar to the one on the left. Americans deserve nothing less. Read all about it!

  Unlike many celebrity books, Trump: The Art of the Deal  carries the author's personality to the page. Either Tony Schwartz knew his subject well or, more likely, Donald Trump spent considerable time making sure the book was the way he wanted it. I listened to an audio version read by  Kaleo Griffith, and the narrator emulated Trump's unique cadence of voice. It fit Trump so well that the audiobook felt like a tape-recorded manuscript, which it may well have been. I'm not certain, but The Art of the Deal may be better to listen to than to read. It is an entertaining and educational listen. It felt like a lively conversation, which is better to listen to than to read. The Art of the Deal was published in 1987, but I never read it when it was the #1 National Bestseller. I assumed it was a dry business book outlining high-end dealmaking strategies and tactics. Reading it now, I see that it is a biographical description of Trump's early dealmaking, and it is up to th...

  Under Siege Reading Under Siege is like overhearing a stranger at dinner with the president's son. The conversation is light and lively--sometimes jumping from one subject to another--but never going into any real depth. Eric Trump is far too cautious to spill any beans. Still, this is an engaging discussion of epic events by a principal participant. The writing is clean, and the book moves forward like an engaging conversation. I enjoyed reading Under Siege ,  and I felt like I learned something about father and son. Eric is now more focused on business than on politics, and he seems to be an excellent operational manager. That is not to say he is not an empire builder like his father, but with Eric, it seems it will be a smooth upward trajectory rather than his father's grandiose statements that took years to put together. I could be mistaken because at the same time I was listening to  The Art of the Deal on my daily walks, and this may have skewed my impression of...