Merry Christmas

Wishing All of You a
Merry Christmas!

May your family be well this holiday.

Paul Revere's Ride

Paul Revere's Ride by David Hackett Fischer - Of all of the accounts of the American Revolution, this is by far the best one I've read. Until you've read this book, you'll have no idea how key a role Paul Revere actually played in the battles of Lexington and Concord. You'll also find out how extremely organized the network of militia and volunteers really were. You'll also learn how carefully the British and Americans regarded property rights and personal freedoms.

This is a great read that, despite its size, will fly by quickly and leave you wishing there were more. Highly recommended!

Trails of the White Savages

Trails of the White Savages by Gary Wiles & Delores Brown

This is one of the best history books I've ever read. I swear. It's about the Scots-Irish outcasts which Ben Franklin branded "White Savages," who became the trail blazers, warriors, and leaders of early 1800s America. It tells the stories of Andrew Jackson, Sam Houston, Kit Carson, Davy Crockett, Joe Walker, Ewing Young, and more.

This is one of the most vivid history books I've ever read. The portions dealing with Davy Crockett are written as a Tennesseer back-woodsman would speak and tell a "powerful lot" in the process. You become the right-hand of Davy Crockett, seeing his career as a politician in new light and his ultimate ejection from the US House of Representatives for what it really was: him acting under his own conscience ("Be sure you're right, then go ahead." was his motto) and getting villified for it.

The tale of Andrew Jackson (dubbed "Sharp Knife" by the Indians and "Old Hickory" by the Americans) is no less riveting. He carried two bullets in his body for most of his adult life, a product of two of his sixteen total duels of honor. His health plagued him throughout his life, but his iron will and determination kept him from the sick bed and death. He has the honor of being the only American president to rid the nation of debt and keep us debt-free during his entire tenure. I wish someone today could enter the office and do the same...

Others portrayed in the book, such as Sam Houston (founder of Texas, many say, and who was also plagued by a festering leg wound received during his service under Gen. Jackson), are shown intimately and in their true light. Joseph Walker, well-known trapper and mountain man who is credited with restoring the Old Spanish Trail to California and with leading Capt. Bonneville on his historic mission across the US to Oregon (founding several forts and acting secretly as a spy for the US govt.).

This is a truly great book of American history and should be read by anyone interested in the early years of our nation's development. The so-called "White Savages" are shown as the trail blazers and leaders that they were in a time when that was what the nation needed most.

Boston's Gun Bible

Retro Review: Boston's Gun Bible by Boston T. Party - This book is nothing short of awesome! It's great stuff from beginning to end and you'll hardly notice it's somewhere around a thousand pages thick! Boston manages to cover all aspects of the battle rifle, basic defensive pistol use, battle carbines, and more.

Boston's huge amount of experience and field use of these weapons really shows through and the data and rankings of those rifles is spot on. He goes into a lot of things that many of those who are considered "gun nuts" miss and makes fun of one of my favorite kinds of person: the over-accessorizer; the guy who has a fine rifle and then fills it up with extra grips, a too-large scope, an integral bipod, laser pointer, interchangeable buttstock, etc., etc... Yet can't hit a fifty-cent grouping at 50 yards...

Boston also includes a lot of great political commentary and information. He gives (no doubt accurate) predictions of what the lobbyists and gun-grabbers will go for next and how they'll succeed first in the near future. He explains definitively why we need to be armed and TRAINED in those arms to effectively defend our nation, way of life, and especially our liberty.

By far one of the most informed patriots and easily one of our nation's most learned gun nuts, Boston is worth listening to.

I don't care who you are, you need a copy of this book! Get one now!

Retro Review: Papillion

Papillion by Henri Charriere

This is a story of freedom: freedom that must be had at all costs. Papillion (a nickname meaning "butterfly") is arrested and convicted for a murder he did not commit and sentenced to life imprisonment in French Ghiana, the most ruthless of prison islands in the modern world.

Just over a month later, he makes his first daring escape attempt and sails 1500 miles in a rickety boat only to be caught by French authorities and put in solitary confinement.

Through sheer will and determination, he survives two years of solitary confinement and once again makes an escape attempt. He will not stop until he is finally free.

This is a true story written by the man himself. It vividly portrays life in the French prisons: the "underworld's" societal class, the cut-throat life behind bars, and the sadistic guards who torment their charges.

Above all, however, it's a story of the true Man of the West: the man who will be free no matter the cost and regardless of the time it takes to be so. The ultimate goal of Papillion is not to best the guards who keep him, not to change the world, or not to destroy that which binds him. The ultimate goal of Papillion is simply to "live free or die."

The High Priests of War

The High Priests of War



I was given the chance to read the latest from Michael Collins Piper, entitled “The High Priests of War: The Secret History of How America’s ‘Neo-Conservative’ Trotskyites Came to Power…” This book is now available at Amazon.com and bookstores nationwide, as well as on American Free Press (its publisher).



I will have to confess that I’ve never read anything from Mr. Piper before, but had heard him in interviews on the radio once or twice regarding his previous books. I had always relegated him to “conspiranoid author” status and never bothered to look any more deeply into his work.



Until now, that is.



I was offered a pre-production copy of this book to read last month and took it, thinking I’d maybe get around to it eventually. I was immediately impressed by the huge amount of research that had been done for a book that only spanned about 100 pages. Piper goes to great lengths to document his findings and, in most cases, does very little speculating himself and instead lets quotes and excerpts from news reporters and the “power mongers” themselves tell you directly what is going on.



This book is an awesome documentary on the “neo-conservatives,” their links to old Russian Trotsky-ite thinking, and their current drive for power here in America and (apparently) towards Global Empire.



You won’t find a lot of unsubstantiated conspiranoid ranting in this book. In fact, ranting of any sort isn’t present. Instead, you’ll find heavy bibliographical information, documentation, and a “storyline” of how the neo-cons came to power. You’ll also find that the same names keep appearing regularly in the neo-con events: those of Richard Perle and William Kristol, among others, will pop up continually.



In this book you’ll find plausible answers to questions you may ask regarding terrorism, Israel’s role in the Middle East, and who is really running American politics today. Don’t expect a lot of Jew-bating, hate-speech, or anti-semitic Nazi-talk from Piper. He tells it like it is without throwing in a lot of racial bias. He truly wants the answers and has found many of them.



I highly recommend the reading of this book by all concerned Americans wanting to know where the neo-cons came from, how they came to power in this country, and where they intend to go with it.

Retro Review: Invisible Resistance to Tyranny

Invisible Resistance to Tyranny by Jefferson Mack - This was published in 2002 and has very current information not only on ways to "hide" from the government, but more importantly, ways to make bureaucrats' lives miserable and perhaps even make some tyrannists rethink their job descriptions...

These paragraphs from the back of the book basically sum it all up:

"Invisible Resistance to Tyranny is both a manifesto and manual for everyday citizens who are alarmed by the never-ending enroachment upon the individual freedoms recognized (not "granted) in the Bill of Rights and who want to do something about it now before it comes down to a choice between violent revolution or total submission. It outlines a progressive program of resistance that anyone can undertake without having to protest in the streets, go on hunger strikes, or take up arms.

"For anyone living in a country where the authorities limit everyone's civil liberties while increasing their own perks and power, engaging in invisible resistance can be a giant step toward achieving greater freedom now and in the future. Read this book. You have nothing to lose but your chains."

That about does it. This is a GREAT read! Just for the record, the customer service as Paladin Press (this book's publisher) is AWESOME!

Heidevolk

I got both Walhalla Wacht and Der Stridjlust is Gebo at the same time and have been listening to both since. Holy crap! I've recently begun discovering the world of folk metal from various nations, especially Ireland and Scandinavia. This band is, in my opinion, the best folk metal band in the Scandinavian genre! Awesome.

If you're into folk, metal, or just want to experience something different from your regular everyday music, check this out! They sing in Dutch, so if you don't know the language (or a similar one, such as German or Icelandic), you'll have to find a translation for the lyrics. Even without knowing the lyrics, though, the music is great.

This band specializes in haunting rhythms with clean guitars and folk instruments along with deep-throated vocals. A great mix that captures the Scandinavian musical heritage. With a name like Heidevolk (meaning "pagan people"), you can expect a lot of Norse Mythology to be included in their themes.

A great band and a couple of highly recommended albums!

Don't Start The Revolution Without Me - Jesse Ventura

This is Jesse Ventura's new book. I got it when I got Ron Paul's new book, which is apparently the norm according to Amazon's book listings. I'd heard two different opinions on this book, both contradictory. One said that this was a great biography and an interesting look at how Ventura thinks and what his time as governor was like - and the real reason he quit. The other opinion said that this book was nothing more than Jesse begging people to ask him to run for President in 2008.

Now that I've read the book, I'd say it's a combination of the two, though it's heavier on the first part and only the last chapter or so really gets into his idea of running for President as an independent. I don't think he really plans to, though, since the last chapter kind of imagines a JFK-style scenario with Ventura nearly getting "offed" by the powers-that-be.

The book is highly entertaining - as is the man. His descriptions of things are hilarious and his way of going about things while in office were great. Anyone who bucks the system and makes a lot of waves is tops in my book, no matter their political leanings.

I'd highly recommend this book to anyone who's looking for an interesting read and a look at the inside life an elected official has to live, especially an executive-level official. Great stuff that will keep you reading from beginning to end.

The Revolution: A Manifesto

by Ron Paul

This book is very short and, unlike most political treatises by Presidential candidates, very to-the-point. It is Ron Paul's political platform for his Presidential campaign. More than that, though, it's a handbook for anyone fighting for freedom (through political means) in this country at this time.

Being less than 200 pages and having all of this information in it should tell you how concisely Dr. Paul writes his views. In that short span, it covers the current false political choices usually offered, true economic freedom and how we can get it, civil liberties and how we can restore them, and more. It's a great handbook for anyone who wants to regain liberty in this country and highlights how Ron Paul and his way of thinking is so fundamentally Republican – unlike most mainstream neo-con Republican apologists who are closer to fascists than one might suspect.

This is probably the most seminal work by Paul, though others might argue for his other books. I'd say he'll be remembered in history more for this book and his Presidential campaign this year than for anything else he's done throughout his career – deservedly or not, since his work up to this point is phenomenal.

I highly recommend this book as fundamental reading for any “Paulite,” political pundit, freedom-lover, and hopeful maker of political change. The reading list at the back is almost book-for-book required reading or any libertarian, conservative, or market anarchist and should be highly educational and revealing for any misguided liberal socialist out there.

Wizard's First Rule

by Terry Goodkind

This book is lengthy and obviously the first of a short series to be written. While the plot and world it is built around is very imaginative, the writing itself falls kind of flat. The characters are well-done and interesting, but until you are most of the way though the book, they are largely undefined to the reader as people. They remain constructs until Goodkind finally begins to show some of their real inner workings.

I was impressed with this book on many levels, but will probably not try to read the sequel to finish out the story where it leaves off. I was unimpressed with Goodkind's writing itself, it being more suited towards academic or critical writing than it is to fiction.

I would only recommend this book to those who are already fans of Goodkind and to those who are fans of more adult fantasy (there are sexual elements to this book and story), but only as a library checkout or because you can find nothing else. It's not completely bad, of course, but not really good either. There's plenty of other fantasy fiction out there, don't waste your time here.

System of a Down: Toxicity

System of a Down, I'll admit, is one of my favorite bands. Their music is ecclectic and sort of a mix of punk and heavy metal. This band is like Michael Jackson or Weird Al Yankovic: you either love them or hate them. No one "tolerates" or is indifferent to System of a Down once they've heard them.

This album is one of their many albums (a couple of which are linked here), but in my opinion might be their best. It's probably the most political of all their albums, which is saying something since they are a very politically-charged band.

I would highly recommend this album to anyone who likes SoD's music (or hasn't heard it before). Great songs like The Prison Song, Deer Dance, and Aerials make this album a must-have. Every track is great!

Liberty in Eclipse

The War on Terror and the Rise of the Homeland Security State
by William Norman Grigg (freedominourtime.blogspot.com)

I've read this book once through and have re-read several sections again. This is on of the best, up-to-date "how they're enslaving us" books available right now. William Grigg is an awesome writer, very succinct, but not bland. He doesn't write about the usual libertarian "abolish the IRS, legalize drugs, remember Jefferson" stuff - not that there's anything wrong with that, but it's overdone.

Grigg writes about our current police-state and how it's proliferating not just here, domestically, but world-wide. He's also the writer of one of my favorite blogs (linked above). The only problem I have with Grigg is that he lives in Idaho...which I consider to be Northern Utah. haha

This book is nothing short of awesome! If you love authors like Vin Suprynowicz and Claire Wolfe, then this man is for you! The book has back-cover reviews by Lew Rockwell and James Bovard, so why do you need my crappy recommendation?

GO GET THIS BOOK!

Ron Paul Update

The Children of Hurin (Tolkien)

I didn't even know this book existed until my friend loaned it to me. I've avoided most of the "releases" from JRR Tolkien's son, Christopher, since reading the Silarillion years ago. That book was lame and spelled out why Tolkien never released it why alive. It was a sort of "Bible" for the Middle Earth realm, but not really a great read in itself, so only of interest to real nerdy types.

This book, however, surpasses that crap legacy and is a great read all by itself, Tolkien fan or not. In fact, if you're a hardcore, read the trilogy five times a year fan, you'll probably hate this book. Mostly because it's not like the Lord of the Rings - or even the Hobbit, for that matter.

It's a tragedy, not really a story of true heroism like the other books. It's closer to Greek tragedies like Homer. REALLY awesome, though. I very much recommend that you read this book.

The story itself is alluded to in the LoTR series, though at that time it is "ancient history" for the humans. The story of Elrond and Gondolin is more thoroughly fleshed out (as this happens during the beginning, when Turgon was Elven King). Mostly, though, the story focuses on Turin, son of Hurin, a great hero for the Elves and Humans at the time.

Get this book, read it, and enjoy! I guarantee that unless you're some kind of illiterate or a hardcore Tolkien nerd, you'll love this one.

Mission Impossible III (MI:3)

Well, another one of Tom Cruise's career flicks - his version of Rocky, I think. To be honest, this series of movies hasn't been too bad, though not really great either. Of the three, I guess one is second only to the first one, but that's not really saying much. This one could have been much better if they'd not chopped it up so much to make it fit within some obligatory time-frame. Hollywood seems to be doing a lot of this lately. Some idiot probably did some inadvertently-biased survey and found that "under two hours" is the optimum time-frame for a flick. Geez.

Anyway, the movie is worth renting, but don't bother buying it. Unless you want it cheap, then you can get mine off eBay. :) The guy who plays the bad guy does a pretty god job, all told, but Tom Cruise is, of course, the highlight. Oh, and he runs funny. Probably some kind of L Ron Hubbard teaching or something...

The Simpsons Movie

I watched The Simpsons Movie, finally. I didn't expect much out of it and was greatly surprised at how hilarious this flick is! It's one of those rare, funny films that you can watch several times and keep seeing things that you didn't notice before, keeping you in belly laughs.

Of course, this movie isn't appropriate for the kiddies - in fact, I'd question whether teenagers should see this either. It's not too risque' or full of swear words, but it is very adult.

What is it then? It's frikkin' hilarious! That's what it is. The humor ranges from bathroom humor to politics to slapstick and more.

I highly recommend this movie to anyone who wants to laugh a LOT and who has an open enough mind to watch the movie. If your religious or "moral" sensibilities cause you to cringe and get sickly when some types of humor are made, then you're better off watching something else. In fact, the "end of the world" scene where the people come screaming out of the church and come screaming out of the bar and trade places is priceless in this regard. :)