Going from adventures in the “Unreal” to adventures in the very real. This book is about creation and evolution of British Special Warfare troops in WWII. The focus is on the creation of the SOE (Special Operations Executive) by Winston Churchill and its eventual merger with the SAS/SBS operating the North African and Mediterranean theaters, including action in Greece and Italy. These were very unconventional warriors conducting very unconventional warfare, which made them much more effective in their ability to tie down or defeat much larger units of German and Italian conventional troops. Adventure in literature is often described as someone else in a lot of trouble, far away. Keep in mind, this book is non-fiction. The collection British, Danish, American, and Greek soldiers put themselves in incredible danger, and didn’t always get away to fight another day. Guy Richie is putting a movie soon based on this book, which I’m expecting to be well done, but do yourself a favor and read the book, including the official descriptions of the actions that won them multiple medals for valor in combat.
For those of you coming in late to the party, Earth Day” is on
Lenin’s Birthday. Not a coincidence, given that the “founder” of Earth
Day was much more a “Watermelon” than an actual environmentalist. Watermelon: Thin layer of green of the outside, red to the core.
“Civilization will end within 15 or 30 years unless immediate action
is taken against problems facing mankind.” — George Wald, Harvard
Biologist
“Population will inevitably and completely outstrip whatever small
increases in food supplies we make. The death rate will increase until
at least 100-200 million people per year will be starving to death
during the next ten years.” — Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University
biologist
“By…[1975] some experts feel that food shortages will have escalated
the present level of world hunger and starvation into famines of
unbelievable proportions. Other experts, more optimistic, think the
ultimate food-population collision will not occur until the decade of
the 1980s.” — Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University biologist
“It is already too late to avoid mass starvation,” — Denis Hayes, chief organizer for Earth Day
“Demographers agree almost unanimously on the following grim
timetable: by 1975 widespread famines will begin in India; these will
spread by 1990 to include all of India, Pakistan, China and the Near
East, Africa. By the year 2000, or conceivably sooner, South and Central
America will exist under famine conditions….By the year 2000, thirty
years from now, the entire world, with the exception of Western Europe,
North America, and Australia, will be in famine.” — Peter Gunter,
professor, North Texas State University
“Scientists have solid experimental and theoretical evidence to
support…the following predictions: In a decade, urban dwellers will have
to wear gas masks to survive air pollution…by 1985 air pollution will
have reduced the amount of sunlight reaching earth by one half….” — Life
Magazine, January 1970
“At the present rate of nitrogen buildup, it’s only a matter of time
before light will be filtered out of the atmosphere and none of our land
will be usable.” — Kenneth Watt, Ecologist
“Air pollution…is certainly going to take hundreds of thousands of
lives in the next few years alone.” — Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University
biologist
Ok, Ehrlich was sorta right on
this, if you restrict his predictions to modern Communist China, where
they are showing the typical communist/socialist contempt for the
environment.
“By the year 2000, if present trends continue, we will be using up
crude oil at such a rate…that there won’t be any more crude oil. You’ll
drive up to the pump and say, `Fill ‘er up, buddy,’ and he’ll say, `I am
very sorry, there isn’t any.’” — Kenneth Watt, Ecologist
Now we get to my personal favorite, although probably not Al Gore‘s… “The
world has been chilling sharply for about twenty years,” he declared.
“If present trends continue, the world will be about four degrees colder
for the global mean temperature in 1990, but eleven degrees colder in
the year 2000. This is about twice what it would take to put us into an
ice age.” — Kenneth Watt, Ecologist
The Hunter Killers by Dan Hampton
A well researched look at the creation of the “Wild Weasel” program by the US Air Force during the Vietnam war. The effective SAM (Surface to Air Missile) was a new thing, and the Russians were providing them to the communists in North Vietnam. So the Air Force put radar tracking equipment in planes, along with an Electronic Warfare Officer (EWO), to track down the SAM sites and take them out before they could take out the attacking aircraft.
13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened In Benghazi by Mitchell Zuckoff and the Annex Security Team
Since today is 9/11, six years after the terrorist attacks against Americans in Benghazi (killing four American, including the US Ambassador to Libya), I’m repeating my pick from May 2, 2016
Mitchell is a journalism professor at Boston University. This is not a political book. It is a detailed account of what happened on September 11, 2012 in Benghazi. It details what the security arrangement were, including the use of local militia groups, who was where during each of the multiple attacks, who died, who was wounded, and what the responses by the State Department, and the rest of the US government, were at the time.
“Even though socialism in its many forms has never succeeded in producing anything but death and chaos – the proletariat dictatorship never withers away; in fact, it only grows stronger in a totalitarian centralized government – dreams of a perfectly just and equal society never fade. In fact, like a monster from an old sci-fi movie, they continue to jump back up out of the swamp just when you think the monster is dead.”
For those of you coming in late to the party, Earth Day” is on Lenin’s Birthday. Not a coincidence, given that the “founder” of Earth Day was much more a “Watermelon” than an actual environmentalist. Watermelon: Thin layer of green of the outside, red to the core.
“Civilization will end within 15 or 30 years unless immediate action is taken against problems facing mankind.” — George Wald, Harvard Biologist
“Population will inevitably and completely outstrip whatever small increases in food supplies we make. The death rate will increase until at least 100-200 million people per year will be starving to death during the next ten years.” — Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University biologist
“By…[1975] some experts feel that food shortages will have escalated the present level of world hunger and starvation into famines of unbelievable proportions. Other experts, more optimistic, think the ultimate food-population collision will not occur until the decade of the 1980s.” — Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University biologist
“It is already too late to avoid mass starvation,” — Denis Hayes, chief organizer for Earth Day
“Demographers agree almost unanimously on the following grim timetable: by 1975 widespread famines will begin in India; these will spread by 1990 to include all of India, Pakistan, China and the Near East, Africa. By the year 2000, or conceivably sooner, South and Central America will exist under famine conditions….By the year 2000, thirty years from now, the entire world, with the exception of Western Europe, North America, and Australia, will be in famine.” — Peter Gunter, professor, North Texas State University
“Scientists have solid experimental and theoretical evidence to support…the following predictions: In a decade, urban dwellers will have to wear gas masks to survive air pollution…by 1985 air pollution will have reduced the amount of sunlight reaching earth by one half….” — Life Magazine, January 1970
“At the present rate of nitrogen buildup, it’s only a matter of time before light will be filtered out of the atmosphere and none of our land will be usable.” — Kenneth Watt, Ecologist
“Air pollution…is certainly going to take hundreds of thousands of lives in the next few years alone.” — Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University biologist
Ok, Ehrlich was sorta right on this, if you restrict his predictions to modern Communist China, where they are showing the typical communist/socialist contempt for the environment.
“By the year 2000, if present trends continue, we will be using up crude oil at such a rate…that there won’t be any more crude oil. You’ll drive up to the pump and say, `Fill ‘er up, buddy,’ and he’ll say, `I am very sorry, there isn’t any.’” — Kenneth Watt, Ecologist
Now we get to my personal favorite, although probably not Al Gore‘s… “The world has been chilling sharply for about twenty years,” he declared. “If present trends continue, the world will be about four degrees colder for the global mean temperature in 1990, but eleven degrees colder in the year 2000. This is about twice what it would take to put us into an ice age.” — Kenneth Watt, Ecologist
American Gun: A History of the U.S. in Ten Firearms by Chris Kyle with William Doyle
An interesting look at American history through the lens of ten historic firearms that helped shape the nation, and the people who used them. These include a Revolutionary War sniper using a highly accurate American Long Rifle, and Theodore Roosevelt. It was Roosevelt’s experience on San Juan Hill which lead to the development and adoption of the 1903 Springfield Rifle. While the technological aspect of the firearms is examined, who used them and how they were used is explored.
The Patriot
Going with something different for the 4th of July pick this year. Mel Gibson’s revolutionary war movie tells the tale of the war in the Southern states, and the hit and run tactics used by the American forces. Excellent movie with outstanding performances by Heath Ledger and Jason Isaacs. Star Trek fans will be happy to see Rene Auberjonois. Also featured is veteran actor Adam Baldwin, who should have played a tough guy in a Libertarian Space Western for five seasons.