John Paul II For Dummies (For Dummies (History, Biography & Politics))

Book Description

The first Polish Pope, John Paul II, was a thinker and a leader whose religious convictions defined a new approach toward world politics—and changed the course of history. When he died on April 2, 2005, millions around the world mourned his passing. No other person in recent history has had such a tremendous display of respect and honor. The fact that so many non-Catholics honored this man attests to his effect on the world—and not just within his own religion.

Now, you can get to know the man behind the papacy and appreciate his remarkable achievements. John Paul II For Dummies is a friendly, plain-English guide to the life and legacy of one of the world's most beloved religious leaders. You'll discover:

The Pope's influences
His personal struggles
How he impacted the Church
His approach to world politics
The ways he spread his message

Rev. John Trigilio Jr, PhD, and Rev. Kenneth Brighenti, PhD, explain the vision and perspective of the man known as the “people's pope.” You’ll come to know John Paul II's early influences and defining moments as well as his personal successes and tragedies. You'll trace his career from priesthood to bishop to the papacy as the authors reveal:

The effect he had on Vatican II
How he defended and upheld church teaching and tradition
The pivotal reforms he enacted
His role in such important events as the fall of Communism and the Vatican/Israel negotiation
John Paul's views on anti-Semitism, forgiveness, and the role of women in the Church
His efforts to help young people

From the controversial topics he denounced—abortion, the death penalty—to his efforts to dialogue with other faiths to the current process to make him a saint, John Paul II For Dummies gives you a complete understanding of this celebrated man and his incredibly meaningful life.

Book Description

From the 16th to the 19th centuries, Moslem corsairs from the Barbary Coast ravaged European shipping and enslaved thousands of unlucky captives. During this same period, thousands more Europeans converted to Islam and joined the pirate holy war. Were these men (and women) the scum of the seas, apostates, traitorsÂ—Renegadoes? Or did they abandon and betray Christendom as a praxis of social resistance? Second edition, with new material documenting piracy in the very early days of New York City.

Customer Reviews:

Depends on your expectations.......2005-06-07

Those familiar with this author know his areas of interest and what to expect from him in general, but in this case the particular subject matter imposes some additional constraints. Those who have done any reading on pirates in general know that it's very difficult to find a book that's actually interesting that doesn't wander too far off into wild speculation (or downright fiction). Pirates of any kind were not, for the most part, prolific writers; there are few first-hand accounts of their lives to draw from. In this book Wilson counts on his reader to be understanding of the difficulties he faces in trying to put together the story of the Corsairs and Renegadoes, and for the most part his effort is interesting enough to make you forget its shortcomings.

Wilson's account centers on the corsair republic of Sale, which presents a particular challenge in that there is less documentary evidence for him to work with than the better-known corsair enclaves in Algiers. Nonetheless he leans heavily on the sources he does have, and I thought I was in for a rough read when, about halfway through the book, he included a chapter that was essentially page after page of quoted material, with only a sentence or two of his own writing to break it up.

This does not last for too long, however, as the later portions of the book get more speculative and interesting. The author's usual areas of interest are all in play: Islamic mysticism, egalitarian/anarchist ideals, a sprinkling of vice and pederasty, etc. Some of his speculations are particularly dubious, as when he concludes that the Renegadoes were cannabis users based primarily on a single hand-drawn sketch of three men laughing, but for the most part Wilson is good about not attempting to pass these things off as historic fact. It is just that his primary interest is in the way things *could* have been, and admittedly this is far more interesting than the little we know about how it actually was.

It may not be a great book, but all in all Wilson knows his audience well, and if you came here looking for this book (as opposed to a casual browser), you will probably not be disappointed.

FASCINATING.......2004-06-17

For anyone who likes history, pirates, religions, anarchy... in fact, nevermind, for absolutely anyone. this book is simply fascinating, you wouldn't want to put it down. it paints such an amazing image of a time and place that i would do anything to go live there and now one of my goals is to visit the city of Sale in Morocco and walk in the lands were such amazing characters once lived...

Book Description

outsider history of 16th-19th century North Africa

Customer Reviews:

The best of PLW.......2003-08-28

786
Possible the best of PLW. A one-of-a-kind chronicle of an era of history that the Western World would love to forget: the heyday of Ottoman and independant Barbary Piracy. Read about thousands of Moricos (Spanish Muslims) who joined the Barbary fleets en masse after being kicked out of Spain after the Inquisitions and their unique imprint on emerging Morrocan society; read about the thousands of European "Renagadoes" who happily dropped out of the Western world and its stifiling oppression to take up the green banner of Islam; read about life as a Renagado Corsair and some rare accounts of their lives. Destoy your myths about piracy and "jihad." Despite PLW's eccentricites and (at times)weird agenda, this book is a masterpiece, no doubt.

An excellent title on Pirates from a unique Perspective.......2000-04-27

I really thought this book was great. It has a unique stance and is not just written from a historical perscpective. Wilson's premise is that the pirate republic of Salle was actually the first democracy (leadership not based on class, race or money) even before the French Revolution, though I'm still a bit skeptical on that point, I thought it was well argued and a good read. I've actually bought this book a few times and given it away to freinds and had to buy a it again! I especially liked the chapter on female pirates.

Piracy and social resistance.......2000-03-29

"Pirate Utopias"is a refreshingly new look at an almost forgotten episode in European/North African history.Wilson not only examines the lives and actions of several notorious pirates in order to identify their incentive,but paints them against a colourful backdrop of a restricted Christian Europe,comparing this picture with the more democratic tendencies of the Islamic nations. During the period concerned (from the 16th to the 19th century),several thousand European Renegadoes renounced Christianity to join the pirate "jihad".In Wilson's view,only a few had been forced to convert,but the majority may have chosen Islam in order to practise social resistance.- The author's view on the socio-political aspects is challenging our pre-conceived perceptions on piracy in particular and history (in the Hegelian Monumentalist sense) in general. He describes the Bou Regreg republics as the first democratic spaces ashore-the pirate ships already being such. While the main subject of the book is to examine and re-evaluate the relationship between Islamic pirates and European renegades,Wilson also uses the figure of Corsair Captain Murad Reis as a link to inspect piracy in 17th century Ireland. Because a closer look would stretch the limits of this book,he kept it brief,just as he only mentions the Uskoks in a footnote. Consequently the latter Utopias of Hispaniola,Libertatia and Nassau are confined to the last chapter. It is a generally well-researched book,which is very exciting in its innovative take on piracy in relation to larger social structures. An exciting book which satiates your literary appetite only to leave you wanting more! And good fun to read, too...

Piracy and social resistance.......2000-03-29

Hunting Pirate Heaven: In Search of the Lost Pirate Utopias of the Indian Ocean

Average customer rating:

A Death-Defying Search for the Pirate Edens in East Africa

Hunting Pirate Heaven: In Search of the Lost Pirate Utopias of the Indian Ocean
Kevin Rushby
Manufacturer: Walker & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

General | Africa | Travel | Subjects | Books

Essays & Travelogues | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0802714234

Book Description

A chance meeting on the muddy foreshore of the Thames River launched Kevin Rushby on a voyage to rediscover the lost pirate settlements that once dotted the islands and atolls of the Indian Ocean. Hitching rides on a motley assortment of freighters, dhows, yachts, and fishing smacks, Rushby sailed up the east coast of Africa, then turned east to the islands of Comoros and Madagascar, his ultimate objective being to locate the descendants of the infamous sixteenth-century pirates—such as Captain Misson, the legendary French pirate who may have been dreamed up by Daniel Defoe; English sailor-turnedbuccaneer Thomas White; and Rhode Islander Thomas Tew—who carved kingdoms for themselves in the remote jungles of northeast Madagascar. As he traveled, Rushby met up with the crackpot dreamers, the tough settlers, the fighters and the failures, who live on the coasts and islands now. His is a romantic story in the old-fashioned sense of the word, full of adventure and colorful incident: voyages to islands where forgotten Portuguese forts lie covered in jungle, where some have tried to shoot their way to paradise, and where the ocean can destroy lives and dreams as quickly as men and women create them.

Customer Reviews:

A Death-Defying Search for the Pirate Edens in East Africa.......2004-03-23

Unless you are a lot more adventurous than I am, the closest you will ever get to most of the places and people described in this book is reading the book. Mr. Kevin Rushby deserves great credit for taking on a very dangerous and unpleasant journey in search of what utopian life in the tropics really provides. His talent for taking situations seriously and letting his imagination run wild provides the book with a fiction-like quality that makes the writing more vivid and interesting than in most non-fiction books.

What little we know about pirates mostly comes to us through fiction . . . often built on bits and pieces of what people have claimed to be true about pirates. Mr. Rushby did his homework before starting by locating the regions on the Indian Ocean on or adjacent to Mozambique where pirates were supposed to have been active. From these stories, he heard tales of "edens" where pirates went to rest up . . . or even retire. "What were these edens like?" he wondered.

Starting from the area where the British East India Company launched its first voyages 400 years ago, he quickly moved to a freighter leaving South Africa so he could hedge-hop the coast of Mozambique. From there, his accommodations and creature comforts went mostly downhill. As he visited each area, he asked about pirates . . . but usually didn't learn very much until almost the end of the trip. But he did meet modern equivalents of people living in tropical "paradises" and he often reflects on what he finds. He often finds "trouble in paradise" as well as paradise.

Along the way, he suddenly discovers that not everyone is as friendly as they might be. Nature can be dangerous, too!

Be sure to stick with the book until the end. It just gets better and better.

I did grade the book down one star though. Why? I found that this would have been a better book if it had focused simply on what life is like in that part of the world . . . and either mentioned the pirates in passing or skipped them. I found the pirates to be more of a distraction than an appeal in my reading.

Amazon.com

Freedom's not dead in cyberspace. That's the premise of philosopher Peter Ludlow and most of the contributors to his Crypto Anarchy, Cyberstates, and Pirate Utopias, and it's hard to argue otherwise after reading it. Deliberately freeing the volume from the shackles of academic rigor (and jargon), Ludlow draws deeply from the cyber-underground and mixes classic rants with post-millennial realism. From John Perry Barlow's chestnut "A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace" to Jedediah Purdy's cautionary "The God of the Digerati," the collection is direct, confrontational, and thought-provoking.

Though the topic of virtual communities has been thoroughly explored elsewhere, the possibility of spaces free from terrestrial jurisdiction--called "Temporary Autonomous Zones" by Hakim Bey--has not yet penetrated mainstream thought. Strong encryption and essential qualities of the Internet--like portability--ensure that such utopias will remain theoretically and practically tenable through the foreseeable future, and Ludlow's visionaries want to see them flower. The penultimate section on experimental governing systems and the appended interview with Noam Chomsky demolishing widely held beliefs about anarchy crown the book with deep thinking about issues vital to the future of freedom--online and off. It's exciting to see this work get the widespread attention it deserves--with any luck, the iconic Net user will soon trade in the pocket protector for an eye patch. --Rob Lightner

Book Description

In Crypto Anarchy, Cyberstates, and Pirate Utopias, Peter Ludlow extends the approach he used so successfully in High Noon on the Electronic Frontier, offering a collection of writings that reflects the eclectic nature of the online world, as well as its tremendous energy and creativity. This time the subject is the emergence of governance structures within online communities and the visions of political sovereignty shaping some of those communities. Ludlow virtual communities as laboratories for conducting experiments in the construction of new societies and governance structures. While many online experiments will fail, Ludlow argues that given the synergy of the online world, new and superior governance structures may emerge. Indeed, utopian visions are not out of place, provided that we understand the new utopias to be fleeting localized "islands in the Net" and not permanent institutions.

The book is organized in five sections. The first section considers the sovereignty of the Internet. The second section asks how widespread access to resources such as Pretty Good Privacy and anonymous remailers allows the possibility of "Crypto Anarchy"--essentially carving out space for activities that lie outside the purview of nation states and other traditional powers. The third section shows how the growth of e-commerce is raising questions of legal jurisdiction and taxation for which the geographic boundaries of nation-states are obsolete. The fourth section looks at specific experimental governance structures evolved by online communities. The fifth section considers utopian and anti-utopian visions for cyberspace.

Contributors:
Richard Barbrook, John Perry Barlow, William E. Baugh Jr., David S. Bennahum, Hakim Bey, David Brin, Andy Cameron, Dorothy E. Denning, Mark Dery, Kevin Doyle, Duncan Frissell, Eric Hughes, Karrie Jacobs, David Johnson, Peter Ludlow, Timothy C. May, Jennifer L. Mnookin, Nathan Newman, David G. Post, Jedediah S. Purdy, Charles J. Stivale.

Customer Reviews:

Well edited anthology.......2002-10-27

Need to know where the Internet society came from? Where it thinks it is? When it can be regulated? What the future plans of political bodies and their legal policies may be?

Want it all in one book? Well, this is as close as it comes today (2002) and it is an exceptional piece of editorial work selecting the material and organizing it so well.

In the age of "homeland security" policy butting heads with the EU privacy laws...this is a fine balance of views.

New Activism, No Boredom.......2001-09-07

As a media activist, I'm constantly confronted by people who don't understand that the real revolution in media is not the commercial internet, but the "undernet" of hidden economies and private interchanges. Ludlow's book gets it right, avoiding the common misconceptions about the Internet to show why it's not just the battleground for big companies, but the playground for a real revolutionary force. What I really like in this book is the way he collects some of the classic (but under-read) articles on the possibilities of the new media and adds in some intense new stuff. It's like a one-stop shop for the coming age of controlled digital chaos. You NEED to read this book if you want to understand what the future of activism is going to be.

totally kewl.......2001-08-29

With all the B.S. about cyberspace showing up in the newspapers and dopey newsmagazines its about "Time" somebody got it right. This is what makes the whole internet/underground culture thing interesting. Lots of great essays on how the new way is actually changing the way people live and interact. If your take on electronic culture comes from reading the kiddie-porn articles and "death of the internet" stuff in the mainstream media, you're missing the big picture. thank you, peter ludlow!!!!!

THE source for info and theory on Cyber Utopias.......2001-08-29

By bringing together a seemingly disparate group of essays Ludlow has discovered a hidden theme in contemporary writings about cyber-space, alt-culture and techno-politics. The strain of dissident utopianism that Ludlow brings forth in this arrangement of short pieces is clearly an important trend, and it's incredibly useful to have all these writings (some classics, like Hakim Bey's "Temporary Autonomous Zones" and some excellent new material, including a great intro by Ludlow) together in one volume. This is really a must-read for anyone interested in what's happening with radical thought right now. Sets out the blueprint for a post-Marxist/post-Capitalist culture that is developing itself outside and within the existing social, economic and political structures. These are texts that academic thinkers will be catching up with in another ten or twenty years...Ludlow transcends his academic background (he's a philosopher, sadly) by seeing their value today.

Political Thinking in Deep Cyberspace.......2001-08-25

Ludlow has done it again. His justifiably esteemed High Noon zapped those of us who anachronistically still read ink smudges on paper with a set of electronically vibrant cybermessages from the Electronic Frontier. In Cypto Anarchy, Cyberstates, and Pirate Utopias he delivers a second installment. Here the messages are cyberpolitical: describing, analyzing, imagining, and revelling in the new forms of social, intellectual, and political organization that the net already does, definitely will, maybe could, or just conceivably might make a reality. Half serious argument, half bonzo manifesto, and in both halves some of the sharpest political thinking now in process.

The Savoy Operas; Volume I: Trial by Jury, Sorcerer, H.M.S. Pinafore, Pirates of Penzance, Patience, Iolanthe, Princess Ida & Vol. II.: Mikado, Ruddigore, Yeomen of the Guard, Gondoliers, Utopia Unlimited, Grand Duke (World's Classics series) (1 & 2, set)

Average customer rating:

The Savoy Operas; Volume I: Trial by Jury, Sorcerer, H.M.S. Pinafore, Pirates of Penzance, Patience, Iolanthe, Princess Ida & Vol. II.: Mikado, Ruddigore, Yeomen of the Guard, Gondoliers, Utopia Unlimited, Grand Duke (World's Classics series) (1 & 2, set)
W. S.; Derek Hudson, ed.; David Cecil & Bridget D'Oyly Carte intro's. Gilbert
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000KNXO1Y

Peter Ludlow, ed. Crypto Anarchy, Cyberstates, and Pirate Utopias. (book review): An article from: Utopian Studies

Average customer rating:

Peter Ludlow, ed. Crypto Anarchy, Cyberstates, and Pirate Utopias. (book review): An article from: Utopian Studies
Peter Sands
Manufacturer: Society for Utopian Studies
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Utopian Studies, published by Society for Utopian Studies on January 1, 2002. The length of the article is 1827 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Peter Ludlow, ed. Crypto Anarchy, Cyberstates, and Pirate Utopias. (book review)
Author: Peter Sands
Publication: Utopian Studies (Refereed)
Date: January 1, 2002
Publisher: Society for Utopian Studies
Volume: 13 Issue: 1 Page: 218(3)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Crypto Anarchy, Cyberstates, and Pirate Utopias

Average customer rating:

Crypto Anarchy, Cyberstates, and Pirate Utopias
Peter Ludlow
Manufacturer: The MIT Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OQB3A6

Book Description

This revised edition of Taylor's classic work on the internal-combustion engine incorporates changes and additions in engine design and control that have been brought on by the world petroleum crisis, the subsequent emphasis on fuel economy, and the legal restraints on air pollution.

The fundamentals and the topical organization, however, remain the same. The analytic rather than merely descriptive treatment of actual engine cycles, the exhaustive studies of air capacity, heat flow, friction, and the effects of cylinder size, and the emphasis on application have been preserved. These are the basic qualities that have made Taylor's work indispensable to more than one generation of engineers and designers of internal-combustion engines, as well as to teachers and graduate students in the fields of power, internal-combustion engineering, and general machine design.

Charles Fayette Taylor is Professor of Automotive Engineering Emeritus at MIT. He directed the Sloan Automotive Laboratories at MIT from 1926 to 1960

Customer Reviews:

Lots of Thermodynamics.......2007-09-13

This is the first of two volumes. It deals, mostly, with the Thermodynamic processes. A lot of information, but requires some engineering background. An important textbook to have in your library, if you are interested in the theory of internal combustion engines.

Volume II, which deals with design considerations, is available through MIT Press.

Excellent book.......2007-01-12

Very well written and extremly in depth. A must have for anyone that wants to know what really makes an ICE work.

still a classic, but where is a 3rd edition?.......2006-07-06

Sadly there will be no 3rd edition by Taylor. He died in 1996, at the age of 102. These volumes remain classics. Written by a person whose life spanned most of the development of the internal combustion engine, and who worked for the Wright brothers.

The book gives an excellent education in the basic physics of the engine. Nor does the book confine itself to a strict 4 stroke engine. It also covers the two stroke engine, typically found in motorcycles and lawnmowers. The comparison between the 4 and 2 stroke designs are especially illuminating. It gives you an idea of the defining properties of both, and their relative limitations.

Perhaps Taylor's estate can find someone suitably talented to co-author a third edition. The second edition dates from 1985, and there have been improvements in this field. Somewhat modest perhaps, but the progress of time makes those changes sufficient to deserve recognition in a book of this repute. Plus, the currently perceived high price of petrol is leading to investigations of improved engine performance, be this in such areas as fuel mixtures or mechanical configuration. Another incentive to update the text.

Bible of ICE design.......2005-03-23

This is the bible of Internal Combustion Engine design. Every automotive engineer has one (or has access to one at work) for reference. Excellent for engineering students also. Not a book for people with no engineering or automotive background. Also not a book of the "latest and greatest" developments. It is a detailed book of fundamentals, and in that capacity it is excellent.

Excellent for the pro's.......2002-12-27

If you are a engineer looking for a book of formula's...this is your book. However it does little to explain things (such as the how's and why's)...you really must have a backround in mechanical or automotive engineering to understand things. By no means is this a beginners book, far to advanced in theory and mathmatics.

I give it 4 stars because I know once I understand the complexity of the subject it will be a useful book...but its not a great teacher.

Average customer rating:
The Internal Combustion Engine in Theory and Practice: Vol. 1 - 2nd Edition, Revised: Thermodynamics, Fluid Flow, Performance
Charles Fayette Taylor
Manufacturer: The MIT Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OQKQ18

Book Description

This is a major new textbook in environmental science by Vladimir Savchenko, uniquely qualified as a geneticist and environmental scientist who has also written the definitive work on the after-effects of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant explosion (The Ecology of the Chernobyl Catastrophe, Parthenon Publishing, 1995). In The Genosphere, Savchenko combines ideas and approaches to teaching on the biosphere, biogeocoenology, genetics, and evolutionary theory, incorporating the ideas of cybernetics and extensive use of computers. As he writes in his Preface, "The time has come to draw the attention of research workers to the problems connected with the study and conservation of the biosphere's genetic systems. Without studying the genosphere, we are not able to fully understand the process of evolution and the mechanisms of change in the biosphere, and it is impossible to create an effective system of genetic resource conservation. Any forecasts and predictions concerning biosphere dynamics are valuable only if they take into account the changes in the genetic system of the biosphere-the genosphere."

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books