Armenian Tragedy: An Eye-Witness Account of Human Conflict and Natural Disaster in Armenia and Azerbaijan

Book Description

-Although the Soviet Union has the most abundant energy reserves of any country, energy policy has been the single most disruptive factor in its industry since the mid-1970s. This major case study treats the paradox of the energy crisis as an essential part of larger economic problems of the Soviet Union and as a key issue in determining the fate of the Gorbachev reforms.

The Environmental Heritage of Soviet Agriculture (Sustainable Rural Development Series)

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The Environmental Heritage of Soviet Agriculture (Sustainable Rural Development Series)
Bo Libert
Manufacturer: CABI
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Russia | History | Subjects | Books

Environmental Science | Earth Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Agricultural Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

Sustainable Agriculture | Agricultural Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

History | Agricultural Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Book Description

The environmental problems, such as pollution and land degradation, of post-Soviet agriculture are indeed serious and represent a major obstacle to the expansion of food production in the new political and economic arena. This book provides a thorough review of these problems and also responds to several reports claiming that the situation is irremediable. Although environmental problems are severe, the author shows that they are not necessarily the key limiting factor in agricultural production in the short-term. Drawing on a range of personal interviews and statistics and on the social, economic and political literature, as well as information on crop production, soil and water use, and the environment, it is shown how a more sustainable future might be attained. The book thus represents a major addition to the literature and is of interest to agricultural, environmental and social scientists concerned with this region.

Forests, Peasants and Revolutionaries: Forest Conservation and Organization in Soviet Russia, 1917-1929 (East European Monograph)

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Forests, Peasants and Revolutionaries: Forest Conservation and Organization in Soviet Russia, 1917-1929 (East European Monograph)
Brian Bonhomme
Manufacturer: East European Monographs
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Economic History | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Natural Resources | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Eastern | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

Russia | History | Subjects | Books

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Book Description

Forests, more than most natural resources, exist throughout Russia and constitute a clearly vital resource for both the State and public alike. The study of forests thus deeply intersects with a wide range of critical social and political issues central to early Soviet history. This book examines how natural resources were protected and exploited by the Soviet system across the vast majority of Russian lands not set aside as nature reserves. What was the situation when conservation and exploitation imperatives regarding vital economic resources -- coal, timber, furs, and so on -- clashed on a national scale? How did conservation fit into the broader structure of early Soviet socialist construction, especially given the Bolsheviks'overarching drive toward electrification and industrialization?

To answer these questions, Bonhomme focuses on two Soviet forest-law packages. The first, "The Basic Law on Forests", passed in May 1918, represented a highly ambitious effort to inventory, allocate, manage and reproduce forest resources in the most efficient, scientific, and organized manner possible. Situated politically and conceptually within the domain of War Communism, it fell hopelessly short of its goals, victim to a variety of circumstantial stumbling blocks and internal shortcomings. It was succeeded in 1923 by a new law, "The Forest Code", which sought to apply previous lessons learned while also reflecting the wider transition of the Soviet state from an era of revolution into the calmer period of the New Economic Policy, when heavy government intervention in the economy was mitigated by the enactment of modest free-market reforms.

This study also pays considerable attention to the often overlooked late nineteenth and pre-revolutionary twentieth centuries. It closes with the Stalinist Revolution in 1929, which effectively took forest matters in a new direction, bringing an end to a somewhat coherent "chapter" in forest conservation.

Industrial Decision Making and High-Risk Technology

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Industrial Decision Making and High-Risk Technology
Charles K. Dodd
Manufacturer: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Safety & Health | Technology | Science | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0847678474

Book Description

Nuclear power, one of the most controversial examples of high-risk technology, often sparks debates concerning safety and environmental contamination. Much of the opposition to nuclear power plants stems from the issue of plant siting, mostly because of its direct impact on individuals. This is the first book to study the controversy created by high-risk technology within the former Soviet Union. The U.S.S.R., particularly since the Chernobyl accident, has undergone a number of changes in the decision-making processes, participants, and policies utilized in the choosing of plant site. Charles K. Dodd explores the decision-making processes that were used in the U.S.S.R. when nuclear power plant sites were chosen and examines how they were manipulated over time. This is an important contribution to the historical study of policy formulation and compromise in the U.S.S.R.

Models Of Nature: Ecology, Conservation, and Cultural Revolution in Soviet Russia (Pitt Russian East European)

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Models Of Nature: Ecology, Conservation, and Cultural Revolution in Soviet Russia (Pitt Russian East European)
Douglas R. Weiner
Manufacturer: University of Pittsburgh Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Discovery of Global Warming (New Histories of Science, Technology, and Medicine)
A Green History of the World: The Environment and the Collapse of Great Civilizations

ASIN: 0822957337

Book Description

Models of Nature studies the early and turbulent years of the Soviet conservation movement from the October Revolution to the mid-1930s—Lenin’s rule to the rise of Stalin. This new edition includes an afterword by the author that reflects upon the study's impact and discusses advances in the field since the book was first published.

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Natural Enemies
Robert C. Grogin
Manufacturer: Lexington Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

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History & Theory | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Book Description

In an attempt to explain the seemingly a priori antagonisms of the Soviet Union and the United States during the Cold War, "Natural Enemies" stands apart from previous literature on the topic. Looking at modern European history and the rise of the United States as a superpower, Robert Grogin contends that the Cold War eventually arose out of the clash of two ideologically motivated political systems. Grogin helps us see how the conflict between an American, Wilsonian-inspired politics and Soviet Leninist ideology developed into a gulf that was bound to be antagonistic from the start. The various postwar crises and failed attempts at dŽtente frame this struggle, as Grogin charts the geopolitical trajectory of the conflict until its final dissolution. With an eye toward understanding the impact of this period on subsequent world events, "Natural Enemies" presents an integrated and original interpretation of Cold War history.

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Natural History of the Ussr
A Knystautas
Manufacturer: Trafalgar Square
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: 071261401X

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Nature reserves in the USSR
M Davydova
Manufacturer: Progress Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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ASIN: 5010017083

Bilateral exchange visit of Institute of Arctic Biology Scientists to the Institute of Biological Problems of the North, Magadan, USSR under project V-2.1 ... ecosystems: 26 August-13 September 1975

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Bilateral exchange visit of Institute of Arctic Biology Scientists to the Institute of Biological Problems of the North, Magadan, USSR under project V-2.1 ... ecosystems: 26 August-13 September 1975
George C West
Manufacturer: Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Natural History | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00072ZKJC

Chin Na in Ground Fighting: Principles, Theory and Submission Holds for all Martial Styles
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Chin Na in Ground Fighting:Principles,Theory and Submission Holds for all martial styles

Exellent guide to realistic groundfighting

Extremely in-depth and well executed book on ground fighting

Helpful Cross-training Guide

Not terrible, but usefulness depends upon your skill level.

Chin Na in Ground Fighting: Principles, Theory and Submission Holds for all Martial Styles
Al Arsenault
Manufacturer: YMAA Publication Center
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Martial Arts | Individual Sports | Sports | Subjects | Books
General | Sports | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Chinese Fast Wrestling for Fighting: The Art of San Shou Kuai Jiao Throws, Takedowns, & Ground-Fighting

Analysis of Shaolin Chin Na, 2nd Edition: Instructors Manual for All Martial Styles

Comprehensive Applications of Shaolin Chin Na: The Practical Defense of Chinese Seizing Arts for All Styles (Qin Na : the Practical Defense of Chinese Seizing Arts for All Martial Arts Styles)

Method of Chinese Wrestling

Taiji Chin Na: The Seizing Art of Taijiquan (Chinese Internal Martial Arts)

ASIN: 1886969663

Book Description

Focuses on the use of joint locks, cavity presses and bone misplacement to subdue any aggressor.

Customer Reviews:

Chin Na in Ground Fighting:Principles,Theory and Submission Holds for all martial styles.......2006-12-12

It provides a good basic history on groundfighting and basic techniques that can be mastered with some practice. Very honest and real.

Exellent guide to realistic groundfighting.......2006-10-28

I have been studying a highly effective and defense-oriented Okinawan art (Uechi-ryu) for the majority of my life. Like the traditional Chinese art it originated from, it's rooted in reality and includes grappling elements, yet lacks extensive groundfighting. At my dojo we have incorperated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu into our study for use in sparring and to help familarize our students in ground-defense, and through this study (as well as a personal interest in MMA and ground fighting that goes beyond the dojo) I have found that many of the pressure-points and small-joint manipulation that is part of my stand-up repertoire can be applied to ground-fighting. This book was the perfect tool to further adapt the grappling skills of my original art to groundfighting past my cross-training in BJJ, which despite being a great art, is not without deficiencies (just like any martial art).

It's clear that the authors have put alot of effort into this tome, and their experience on the subject shines through. It's always reassuringto read something by a person who has extensive expeience appliying martial arts in realistic combat situations rather than in a training enviroment, and based on his status as a veteran street cop in Vancouver it's clear that Mr. Arsenault has had ample opportunity to develop his techniques. There's a wide variation of diffrent locks in here, from ones that you might find in a jiu-jitsu tournament to more Chin Na-oriented figher and wrist holds, and there's no shortage of pictures to accompany the text. Despite the wealth of technical information on the holds, the authors are careful to keep their instruction rooted in reality, as they point out that all it takes is a finger to the eye to gain the upper hand. This reguard for reality and "dirty fighting" is what makes this book more relevant to self-defense than some of the more sport-oriented grappling manuals out there.

In addition to the description of locks and holds, it also includes exellent sections on pressure points and utilizing every part of the body to strike on the ground. The pressure point chapter concentrates on establishing the basic concepts of the body meridians and serves as an introduction to the subject that the reader could choose to further pursue. I found the chapter on body weapons to be particuarly good, as it fit perfectly with my original disipline and gave me new techniques to teach to my fellow students.

Despite some minor criticisms (some of the fighting sequences were odd) this is an exellent introduction to realistic ground-fighting that anyone could benifit from, whether they study a stand-up art or a grappling one.

Extremely in-depth and well executed book on ground fighting.......2005-07-15

This book is 5 stars any way you look at it. I was a little put off at first when I picked this book up as many were, expecting something along the lines of the other Chin Na books out there.

When I got to the analysis of the mechanics of joint locks I was pretty well hooked and upon further review decided I wanted this one for my collection.

Instead of including big glossy pictures of a few choice techniques, this book really breaks the techniques down to explore the concepts of what makes the technique work and why you would choose to use a specific technique.

While there's no doubt they pull the basis for some of these techniques from Jujitsu, BJJ, Judo, and other sources, they present each technique from its merits as a self-defense technique. The techniques are evaluated along the lines of an experienced practitioner of seizing and control techniques such as traditional Jujitsu, Chin Na, or law enforcement oriented methods. I think it's fair to call this a Chin Na book when you look at the basic definition of Chin Na.

The decision by the authors to include a comprehensive glossary of medical and martial arts terms is not only extremely helpful in understanding the techniques in the book, it really sets the standard in comparison to other books I've read. It also drives home the point that the authors are extremely knowledgeable and have painstakingly organized and documented their techniques.

If you enjoy breaking down martial arts scientifically this will appeal to you. I've been reading this book at lunch for several weeks now and this is the kind of book that is really full of insights that I like to go back to periodically and rediscover along the lines of the Ed Parker Infinite Insights series. If you don't already own a book that contains in-depth explanations of vital body targets, pressure points, body weapons, and anatomy this book is a good value for these things as well. This combined with the comprehensive glossaries and the mechanical analysis of joint manipulation is more than worth the asking price in my opinion.

Complaints: very few. The techniques in the book are not overly complex (a good thing) in my opinion so I don't need a bunch of highly detailed full color pictures. There was also not a huge amount of material detailing positions, positional theory and fighting on top vs. on the bottom but there are plenty of Brazilian Jujitsu manuals on the market to do that. If anything I would like to see a series from the authors more thoroughly covering their particular approach to fighting which seems to be somewhere between Chin Na, "traditional" Jujitsu, BJJ, and Mixed Martial Arts.

I encourage you to check this book out if you are one of these: a) an experienced stand up martial artist with an interest in ground fighting techniques, b) an experienced ground fighter looking to improve your techniques or incorporate more self defense applications, c) someone looking for a good general reference to the ins and outs of ground fighting techniques. If you are a complete beginner trying to learn self-defense techniques from a book this is probably not the one to start with.

Helpful Cross-training Guide.......2005-03-13

I've been studying Karate for about six years now, but my dojo practices very little ground fighting. I was looking for a book that explained the basics of grappling in a way that would be helpful to an (otherwise) advanced martial artist.

This book fits that bill... it explains how and why to perform many techniques that are, undoubtedly, basic to anyone who studies Brazilian Jiu Jitsu or Chin Na or any ground fighting style. While I can't comment on how helpful it would be to a beginner in any of those styles, it is a very useful aid to someone like myself, who already knows how to fight on their feet and is looking to adapt their skills to the ground.

Chin Na in Ground Fighting is helpful because it goes beyond a simple collection of techniques (which are always hard to learn from books anyway), and explains the simple mechanics behind common locks and holds. Since reading this book, I find myself finally being able to visualize various submission holds in advance, and am doing better on the ground now. Again - probably not that impressive to a student of a ground fighting style, but to student of a mostly stand-up-and-strike style, it is extremely valuable.

The illustrations are as easy to follow as any (which is to say, not easy at all unless you read carefully).

The focus is on learning the basics from many angles, from pressure points and anatomy to joint movements and mechanics of motion and resistance.

Overall, I've found myself referencing quite a bit over the past weeks during my training, and it has helped quite a bit.

Not terrible, but usefulness depends upon your skill level........2005-02-02

I have training in both Shaolin Kung Fu, with some limitted experience in Judo and free style ju jitsu. I am also an occupational therapist, who is no stranger to anatomy, physiology, or the workings of the human body.

I've been interested in submission wrestling and grappling as a Chinese martial artist long before grappling was popular. Perhaps this is why I'm not all that impressed with the book.

I have a vast collection of books on martial arts, especially grappling. This book was one I decided to pass up, despite the fact I find YMAA publications to typically be innovative and high quality.

First, the authors are not Chinese martial artists. They are martial artists with experience in judo or ju jitsu. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but it is a bit misleading to say this book is about Chin Na in groundfighting when it is simply basic techniques from ju jitsu.

Of course, the theories between so-called "chin na fa" (to seize and control) and Ju jitsu (gentle art) are very similar. Yet, a book devoted to Chinese groundfighting and wrestling (Shuai Jiao) would be very interesting, as the prior YMAA book was.

The authors do go into great detail on the theory of Chin Na, especially pressure point techniques. But if you have already read prior YMAA publications on the topic, this doesn't break any new ground. The use of pressure point techniques in the text borders on the obvious. Did you know yanking on a guy's hair can make it easier to put a sleeper hold on?

As much as I would like to rate the book higher, there are other YMAA publications I'd buy before I bought this one. Anyone with common sense could integrate Chin Na with the techniques of ju jitsu, Judo, or the Russian art of Sambo.

Book Description

Easy to read, authoritative, and up to date

No more struggling with the fine print, thanks to the Webster's New World® Large Print Dictionary, which has all the outstanding features of other Webster's New World dictionaries.

More than 60,000 entries, including all the current vocabulary needed for everyday use
Technical, scientific, cultural, business, and professional terms
Clear, highly readable type
Foreign words and phrases often used in English
Biographical and geographical entries conveniently included in the main A—Z section

PLUS:

Etymologies - word histories that add depth and historical context to the understanding of a word
Appendix with weights and measures, U.S. and Canadian data, U.S. presidents, and books of the Bible

With all this information presented in highly readable type, this is the one large print dictionary that you can't afford to be without.

Customer Reviews:

large vocabulary works for writer.......2006-02-23

unlike the webster's other large print dictionary with 3000 entries, this 6000 word dictionary is great with multip[le definitions.

Webster's New World Large Print Dictionary

Average customer rating:

Perfect for old eyes!
bought for my mom and she loves it
A quick alternativ e!
Webster's New World Large Print Dictionary

Webster's New World Large Print Dictionary
Webster's
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Sons, Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Webster's New Explorer Large Print Dictionary
The Oxford American Large Print Dictionary
Random House Webster's Large Print Thesaurus
Oxford Large Print Thesaurus
The Large Print Roget's II Thesaurus, Revised Edition

ASIN: 0764564919

Book Description

This Large Print Book Carries the Seal of Approval of N.A.V.H.
No more struggling with the fine print, thanks to Webster's New World Portable Large Print Dictionary
...which has all the outstanding features of other Webster's New World dictionaries, including clear, precise definitions
Based on the acclaimed Webster's New World Dictionary, Fourth College Edition, this is the most up-to-date and handy large print dictionary available, offering
* Over 35,000 entries
* Precise definitions
* Syllable breaks, accents, and pronunciation for difficult words
* Clear, highly readable type
With its authoritative, current, and accessible information in a compact, easy-to-use format, Webster's New World Portable Large Print Dictionary is the one dictionary you can use anywhere-in the office, in the classroom, at home...and all the places in between.

Customer Reviews:

Perfect for old eyes!.......2007-07-30

This is the perfect dictionary for older eyes!! I can actually read the defination of a word and not have to ask for help!! I LOVE IT!

bought for my mom and she loves it.......2006-11-10

Her eyesight is not what it used to be, so she asked me to buy her a "good dictionary in large print". I couldn't think of any other title but this one, and she loves it.

A quick alternativ e!.......2006-11-06

An excellent and easy quide for those of us now dependent on reading glasses. Perfect for the quick word check when using computer glasses and being too lazy to look for or change to our other set of specs.

Webster's New World Large Print Dictionary.......2005-09-19

I wish that I had ordered sooner. Print is very readable. Large printing but the dictionary is small in size. Will be giving for Christmas presents to my Senior Friends. Highly Recommended

Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language Large Print

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Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language Large Print
[Cleveland
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall Direct
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OTIB2G

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Webster's New World Large Print Dictionary
Merriam-Webster
Manufacturer: Prentice-Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0139629602

Webster's New World Large Print Dictionary (Compact School & Office Edition)

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Webster's New World Large Print Dictionary (Compact School & Office Edition)
Editor in Chief Victoria Neufeldt
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OIXCIA

Webster's New World Large Print Dictionary (Compact School and Office Edition)

Average customer rating:

An alright dictionary

Webster's New World Large Print Dictionary (Compact School and Office Edition)
Webster
Manufacturer: Hungry Minds
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0671868624

Customer Reviews:

An alright dictionary.......2000-11-16

The dictionary is great but is a lot of money for what you get. I recommend this dictionary if you are looking for a simpe one. I am with the school Los Gatos Academy and we use this dctionary a lot.

Book Description

Critical, independent voices are seldom found within the citadels of international finance. That's what makes Nomi Prins unique. During fifteen years in the upper flights of banks like Goldman Sachs, Bear Stearns, and Lehman Brothers, Prins never lost her ability to see the broader picture. Furthermore, as this eye-opening book testifies, she lived to tell the tale.

The result is an insider's account of the big banks' giddy ride through the boom economy. Prins provides fascinating firsthand detail of day-to-day life in the financial leviathans, with all its rich absurdities and ceaseless power plays. Uncovering the old-boy networks and hot-money flows between Wall Street, Corporate America, and Capitol Hill, she also exposes the whitewash reforms brought in to control them.

In the first years of the Bush administration some of America's most prominent corporate executives cashed out billions of dollars in stock options before driving their companies to ruin through fraud and bankruptcy. In their wake they left a tangle of lost jobs, depleted pensions, and shattered lives. Yet, to write off this corruption as the unbridled greed of a select few is an oversimplification. As Prins shows in this devastating exposé, the much-publicized corporate malfeasance of recent years resulted from deregulation that trashed the rules of responsible corporate behavior. Faced with increasingly absent regulatory agencies, toothless legislation, and an utter lack of accountability, the stock market roared on the back of phony balance sheets while the executives made out like bandits and Congress looked the other way. Worse yet, everything remains in place for a repeat performance.

Customer Reviews:

excellent topic, trapped in partisan commentary & poor editing.......2006-01-14

Nomi Prins, formerly a director at Goldman Sachs, has penned a work revealing that commercial & investment banks are principally interested in making money. No shocker there, but the folks employed at these large financial institutions might not have their clients' best interests at heart. This isn't news to the expected audience for a financial title like this, although her occasional description of seedy practices may surprise the average reader.

Nomi gradually moves on from the money-grubbing banks, to the pair of industries that fed on unlimited quantities of debt and equity issues to fund expansion: the telecom and energy sectors. WorldCom and Enron, respectively, are the principal focus of each sector. Nomi does a nice job providing the broad history of growth of these former giants, but details regarding operations, personnel and the accounting chicanery are left to other works.

At every turn, the discussion threatens to follow through with an indictment of the Bush administration, for numerous issues. This is where the partisan commentary seriously reduces the value of Nomi's work. She unmistakably has an axe to grind with the Bush administration, referring several times to the 2000 Supreme Court decision to stop ballot recounts in Florida (mind you, Florida State Law considered those recounts illegal, Florida State courts upheld that law when pressed by Al Gore's legal team, and the U.S. Supreme Court simply upheld those rulings). For Nomi, this turns into an opportunity to criticize the slow pace of justice in the prosecutions against Ken Lay, Bernie Ebbers, Andrew/Lea Fastow and Scott Sullivan. She also strikes at the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act as too little, too late, and criticizes the administration for its fundraising ties to big businesses. Before I skewer her line of thinking, let me grant that some points raised do deserve further investigation: for instance, why the government engaged WorldCom for more business after it entered bankruptcy and never prosecuted it for corporate fraud.

The single greatest reason Nomi's line of attack fails is simply this: all the deregulation, all the investment bank financing, all the mergers, all the political contributions, all the fraudulent accounting, all the SEC failures to review corporate books, all the IPO flipping, all the nonsensical Internet ideas that received funding, the 2000 peak of the stock market bubble... it all (or substantially all) occurred under the Clinton administration! Nomi, choosing not to detail the truth of failures in accountability and enforcement, therefore pins what little she has on the Bush years, such as the sweetheart fines Elliot Spitzer extracted from NYC banks and brokerages, and the failure to prosecute the likes of Jack Grubman and Sandy Weill. In other words, a fire raged for years to the delight of the Clinton administration, and Nomi blames the Bush administration for not dousing the few hot embers in the charred remains with all the waters of the ocean.

You'll become frustrated at times with run-on sentences, and missing or misplaced punctuation (neither is completely Nomi's failing, let's give the editor due credit too). Also, each of the 6 chapters contains some 20-25 smaller sections of a couple pages each. Each of these sections contains a header, but beyond the first paragraph of each section, the topic diverges wildly. The layout is truly scattershot within chapters (and sometimes across). Terms used early in the book are defined 50 pages later. Individually, these copy issues might not amount to much, but taken as a whole, there are some serious editing issues here. I can appreciate the desire to pack lots of information into a single work, and fault lies not so much with the intention as with the execution. I bet this final version differs little from initial drafts, because it reads very much like an unedited work.

If you want to further investigate the rise and fall of Enron and WorldCom, the unbridled greed and drive for cash at corporate banks, and the governmental failings that drove our economy and stock markets to unsustainable heights, I suggest you look at other works devoted to these topics. Nomi's attempt to cover them all, in a shell blaming the firemen for the fire and in desperate need of editing, is not a good use of your time or money.

Mixed Bag.......2005-07-29

Having now read many books on the "corporate mugging" of individual investors, I've either hit my breaking point or this is a boring book. This book is a rehash of how investors were mistreated and how Wall Street participated willingly. And given that it is written by an investment banker with over ten years experience, it does have some credibility.

What this book does well is give great background on the scandals focusing mainly on telecom and utilities. In addition to the general background of Wall Street and the climate in the stock market, she does an exceptional job of providing regulation and deregulation background. But this book eventually wears you down. Maybe that's my fault. Having taken a large WorldCom loss followed by substantial profits in the beaten down utilities in light of Enron, I thought the subject matter would be right up my alley. But it's repetitious so if you read WSJ, Businessweek and NY Times, you've already read all of this. With the possible exception of her detailed coverage of the regulatory environment affecting the utilities.

In summary, I was interested in a business biography. What I received was a detailed, complex college textbook analysis of this unique investment period and the excesses that caused such a great loss of wealth. Maybe it's just my fault for having read too much but in summary, this book was too detailed and too repetitious and I didn't enjoy it. Read at your own risk.

Disappointing.......2005-02-09

Ms. Prins, she tells us, was shocked, SHOCKED, to discover that Goldman Sachs is not a boy-scout troop. Well, yes, however I was left wondering why it took her fifteen years on Wall Street, and two years as an M.D. at Goldman, to realise this (more prissy than Claude Rains, she is careful to let us know that she left her winnings behind her). Has she never read Liar's Poker? Actually apparently she has, but you wouldn't guess.

No more impressive is her self-congratulatory description of how she would split from Goldman in her lunch break to join anti-IMF/WB/WTO/globalisation-in-general demos, which clearly gave her a self-satisfied glow of virtue. Unfortunately this does not strengthen her credentials. G-S may not require merit badges from prospective employees, but it does expect analytic intelligence, and anyone capable of landing a senior job there should have known that the (refined - if not the WSJ ed. page) case for globalisation has never been in dispute by uncool nerdy policy wonks (i.e. informed, intelligent people), but only by cool rock musicians and social sciences/culture studies students, and that all those feel-good demos were essentially no more than destructive stupidity, hurting the people whom the participants - at least sometimes - thought they were helping. Ms. Prins should read more by those infamous capitalist predators Paul Krugman and Jagdish Bhagwati before venturing back into print (she might also learn from them how to write).

Other Peoples Money comes with blurbs from the Economist and Ralph Nader both. It was even listed by the Economist as a book of the year (how can you resist a book recomended by Ralph Nader and the Economist both?), and as such it is a serious disappointment. It sprays moral indignation around with a firehose, but condemns banks as much for simply trying to make money as for gross moral turpitude, which is very bad for its case, since there is clearly moral turpitude and to spare.

This book reads like a set of preliminary notes, not a finished work: it repeats itself over and over, it lacks structure (indignation is not structure), and it lacks a coherent case. The real, and overwhelming, moral case, which is never effectively made, is not about the wickedness of banks, but about the need for effective, disinterested regulation. (Sure, there is lots about weak regulation, but this is presented as the fault of the banks - but there is nothing immoral about banks lobbying for privileges - everybody lobbys for privileges, proletarian heros such as steel workers included - what is wrong is politicians who are stupid or venal enough to give in to such lobbying).

Completely missing, also, is any analysis of the *stupidity*, as opposed to the corruption, of the banks and the consultants in the late 1990s and early 2000s; if they were dope pushing sharks, then they were also sharks addled a lot of the time on the stuff they were selling.

My conclusion, at the end (or more accurately, at about page 200, when I gave up), was that, with enemies like Ms. Prins, the Street need lose no sleep over the steadfastness of its friends.

By the way, I no-more believe that Ralph Nader actually read Other People's Money before providing his blurb than that the Pope or Ian Paisley watch the movies they condemn.

Exactly..........2004-10-30

What great journalism is supposed to do, challenge the powerful and succinctly, clear lay out complex issues to explain the motivations at their core. This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to see how the free market system has been overrun by charlatans and criminals whose hands were held by government and who all the while claimed to be its champions.

Whose Money? OURS!.......2004-10-04

Nomi Prins is the meteorologist of the Market Crash of 2002. She analyzes the "perfect storm" created by deregulation in banking, energy and telecom markets; combined with the manipulation of political power, and the avarice and greed of key executives in these industries.

Want to know whose money? OURS!

Robbing U.S. blind.(Other People's Money: The Corporate Mugging of America)(Book Review): An article from: Strategic Finance

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Robbing U.S. blind.(Other People's Money: The Corporate Mugging of America)(Book Review): An article from: Strategic Finance
Christopher Dowsett
Manufacturer: Institute of Management Accountants
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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This digital document is an article from Strategic Finance, published by Institute of Management Accountants on February 1, 2005. The length of the article is 603 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: Robbing U.S. blind.(Other People's Money: The Corporate Mugging of America)(Book Review)
Author: Christopher Dowsett
Publication: Strategic Finance (Refereed)
Date: February 1, 2005
Publisher: Institute of Management Accountants
Page: 23(1)

Article Type: Book Review

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