Maxime Rodinson was an independent Marxist scholar and expert on the Middle East who sympathized with the Palestinian cause. When he wrote this book, the Six Days War of 1967 had just ended, with Israel gobbling up the territory of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, territories they occupy to this day. One major war and two intifadas later, the Palestinian people have refused to give up their fight against the Zionist state. Rodinson’s book is still essential reading if you want to understand why Palestinians and other Arab peoples hate the government of Israel. The book does a great job of showing why Israel is essentially a result of colonialism--even with its unique features. And it is especially good at anticipating and answering counter-arguments to this position. This makes it an excellent weapon in the debates over this subject today, as the U.S. is preparing to launch a war with Iraq, which will bring the Palestinian question to the center of world politics.

The author is from a Jewish family and taught in the Middle East for seven years. He responds to critics who called him "schizophrenic" by pointing out that "belief in the infallibility of one's own 'ethnic' group is a frequent phenomenon in the history of human groups. It is called racism." Further, he explains how "European supremacy had planted in the minds of even the most deprived of those who shared in it the idea that any territory outside Europe was open to European occupation."

Growing up in the middle of the US, not knowing anyone Jewish, my introduction to Zionism was the heroic portrayal in "Exodus." I found Rodinson's account of the arguments offered for the creation of the state of Israel eye-opening. It can help others who got pro-imperialist education like mine to understand the demand of the Palestinian people for a democratic, secular state of Palestine that would offer equal rights to all who live and work there.

Zionism and the Israeli state have always been at the service of Empires ( first the British one and then the Yanqui-U.S. one ) ; this book lays out the facts of this history. Until 1979 Israel was part of a twin set of gigantic military platforms for the Yanki empire,along with Iran.Its alliance with the real 'axis of evil' in Washington D.C.and the brutal repression used by Israel to try to humiliate the Palestinians as a people is making Israel a death trap for the Jewish people.Maxime Rodinson , using the tools of science Marxism provides, explains in this dynamite book how the settler state- and racist - nature of the Zionist project could only lead to perpetual war.Sept. 11 proved that the Yanqui Empire is making the USA a death trap for workers and farmers here--the result of ITS humiliations of nations around the world. That fact makes this book doubly necessary for fighters for fundamental social change to read today.

Nobody gets it like Kay Koplovitz. Women in record numbers are breaking away from the constraints of corporate life to seek fulfillment in business on their own terms. Kay captures the spirit of that movement in her book. A must-read for every woman who aspires to create her own destiny.

As one of the many people Ms. Koplovitz mentions in this book, I found it to be as honest, up front, inspiring and instructive as she is in person. Its appeal is in its focused, quick moving style that engaged me from the first paragraph.
In a comfortable, easy voice, Ms. Koplovitz openly shares her own experiences, good and bad, and also presents case histories of three other women entrepreneurs. I found it easy to identify with so many of the challenges discussed, and so helpful to read about her own story as well as those of the other women CEO's, and their quests for success in the venture capital and entrepreneurial arenas.
Over the years, she has also had business dealings with some of the more "colorful" characters in the contemporary business scene. Her anecdotes about Barry Diller, Edgar Bronfman, Jr., Sumner Redstone, Larry Ellison and many more, are fun to read as well as insightful.
The message Ms. Koplovitz urges is clear. It's time for women to stop banging their heads against the ceiling, and move towards the open skies of entrepreneurship. This is an accessible, forthright book that avoids unnecessary complexity and addresses issues relevant to all women in the workplace. I recommend it highly.

Women can learn how to play the entrepreneurial game for bigger stakes: the author went from selling cable TV series to running her own major cable TV franchise, and in Bold Women, Big Ideas tells the aftermath of her venture. She learned some tough lessons on venture capitalists and where they choose to invest their money (with male business owners), creating her own venture capital forum in the process, designed to help women develop networks to get the money they need. Bold Women, Big Ideas is packed with important business insights.

Why doesn't the popular news media tell us what this author told us? The facts laid out are easily referenced when checking the material out. This book tells so much truth on whats really going on in Israel and the lies behind the populous press. Execellent book , it revealed fact after fact and was in no way repetitous. The author was so honest in his views that it was refreshing not to get the typical "political comratory" in his writing, it held my attention to the very end, I couldn't put it down.

DR.PETER S.RUCKMAN has done his homework as usual.Some may not like his style,but he certainly documents what he says.In this day of political correctness and disinformation one must search for the truth.Anyone with an open mind will consider both sides of an issue before reaching a conclusion.Therefore it would behoove such a person to read this book.

I was originally turned toward this book through a graduate text on Middle Eastern History. It quoted Israel in the Mind of America as the best source on the topic of American dealings in Israel. Grose's bibliography and notes are a great help to anyone who is just interested in the topic or any scholar looking to forward his/her research in this area.

Rarely do I give books a five and actually I would like to give it a four and a half. Why? Because it is not the most up to date on the subject. If Grose would re-release the book with up to date information, it would be not a five, but a 10.

I have recommended this book to many of my scholastic colleagues, and I recommend it to you. It is a little hard to get a hold of, so buy it if you get the chance.

This is a remarkable autobiography. I highly recommend it, especially to those considering entering the legal profession.
Liman is a superb writer who's easy-to-read style makes reading the book both an enjoyable and worthwhile experience. Most importantly, Liman vindicates the legal profession by stressing the important contribution that good lawyers can offer to society. He also provides interesting insight into his role as a defense lawyer in the Michael Milken case and as a key player in the investigations of the Attica Prison riot and the Iran Contra scandal.

Regards,

Hans Perl-Matanzo
(...)

Having written an entire data warehousing system in db_lib I thought I'd like to call attention to this book's very good introduction to db_lib. The sample application builds a bulk loader that requires NO, I repeat, NO disk storage. This is possible because Sybase put in a special sub-set of db_lib that implements a bulk-load API, and Microsoft got that in the bargain too. Using these techniques I have been loading 91 million rows to 38 tables in 5 hours on a old Compaq Proliant 4000. The total memory requirement for my loader, which is MetaData driven and so is doing a ton of other stuff too, is 4MB. It occured to me that somebody out there might really find this chapter a god-sent so I decided to add this footnote to my previous review. If you're doing SQL programming and you don't have this book you're working WAY too hard. Good luck!

I can't say much that hasn't already been said in other's praises, without sounding redundant (there's too much of that in this field already.) This book is worth every cent paid. Of all the poorer-quality publications out here, esp. those with reams of endless prose and little substance, this one comes through. I do apply several criteria when judging a computer book (yes, even "theory" has its place...sorry), but the ultimate test is: does the book REALLY address useful issues, and solve problems. This book scores. Make sure you keep this baby close to your computer at all times.

I really enjoyed this book. It is well organized and well written. Plus, it deals with issues and topics that just aren't covered in the twenty pounds of books that Microsoft provides with SQL Server. All the information on data storage, transaction processing and, especially, query opitmization is invaluable to any serious MS SQL Server DBA/developer. Knowing how the query optimizer "thinks" helps solve most SQL tuning problems.

Agnon is the James Joyce of Hebrew Literature. This book is relatively short and accessible. It serves as a great intro to his works. In a few brief passages, Agnon vividly re-creates Jaffa and Vienna of circa 1900. In the same way that Joyce adds references to all of western literature, Agnon brings in both western and Jewish literature. This short book is packed with references to ancient Greek literature, Hebrew bible, Talmud, medieval commentaries, 19th century German philosophy and more. Yet it is an engaging, dramatic story, full of romance, suspense and the supernatural.

The late S.Y. Agnon, Israel's Nobel Laureate and acknowledge master of modern Hebrew fiction, is the author of more than 24 novels, novellas, and short story collections, was a master storyteller who aptly and amply demonstrated the literary abilities of the Hebrew language. Betrothed (written in 1943) is set in Palestine, in 1909, where a gentle scholar who studies the sea encounters a beautiful girl in the grip of a mysterious illness. This engaging story was first translated into English by Walter Lever in 1966 and is now available as an unabridged, flawlessly produced and narrated audiobook which will splendidly introduce a whole new generation to a master craftsman of enduring literature.

Others Unknown put into print what the majority of thinking Americans sensed about the Oklahoma City Bombing.

There had to be more people involved.

It all started with the FBI drawings of mystery man number 3, who was described by no more than 3 people to have been with McVeigh. He looked Middle Eastern. Hmmm, nope no terrorist acts would ever occur on American soil right. Then the second little facts that weren't put to light, the bomb making materials that they had receipts for would never have been enough to do that sort of damage. And on it goes.

The interesting thing is that Stephen Jones (the author and McVeighs attorney) even points the finger at Osama Bin Laden back in 1998. Hello is anybody listening. Hindsight is great, but I think we all knew there was more than meets the eye about this ordeal.

The weakest part of the book is that MR. Jones never delves deep enough into why the government cover-up. He barely scratches the surface, but I think that is the real mystery. Why was the government not screaming that we know there was at least one other person involved and we need to find him? Is it simply that Bill Clinton didn't want to rock the boat? Could it have been that he was trying to create a legacy for himself, other than ????gate (you fill in the scandal)? Did he think naming an Arab as a suspect might destroy peace talks with Israel and Palestine? These are all only conjectures but the book should have hit these issues harder.

Overall a good book, especially for the ignorant Americans who are spoon-fed their daily dose of propaganda from CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN, Etc., and think its news.

Stephen Jones, the lead counsel for Timothy McVeigh, writes an engrossing book that is not only about his client's case, but gives equal treatment about a nefarious government reminescent of Rome of the Roman Empire. In his writings Jones not only presents many deficiencies in the Federal government's case against McVeigh in the Oklahoma City bombing, but also paints the picture of a government agency completely hell-bent on "winning." Jones, in advocating for his client, contends that the prosecution's case was incomplete and circumstantial; exculpatory evidence was either withheld or stalled that could have helped in giving McVeigh a fair trial.

In his analysis, Jones does raise enough doubt in McVeigh's "direct" involvement in the bombing, and more that one can of worms is opened. For example, an extra leg is found in the Murrah Building rubble that does not belong to any victim. Additionally, several red flags that are discovered by Jones and his team may imply that the bombing was planned from abroad. For example, how can only two men plan and execute such a bombing of such magnitude, something said to be impossible by bomb experts in other countries where this kind of thing is routine? Jones questions Terry Nichols' ignorance of the OKC bombing plans. Nichols made several trips and many telephone calls to the Philippines, a hotbed of terrorist activity -- that's never taken seriously in connecting Nichols, much less in mitigating McVeigh.

Jones' book is also his own biography foray into a high profile case that transformed his life and his beliefs about U.S. justice. His book, as he writes, is not meant to cash in on this case, but to expose the truth. Jones believes McVeigh should have been found not guilty (Read especially the acknowledgements!), and portrays his client as a man, not the demon characterized by the press. Although Jones does not offer why McVeigh was involved at all, this would seem to be covered by attorney-client privilege. Despite this, whether or not Jones convinces the general public of the facts that McVeigh did not receive a fair trial and that the government successfully hid the truth is left for the reader.

This spring I enrolled in PSCI 398 Domestic Terrisom. As part of my outside reading, I came across this book. I found that it was very informative and offered a new insight into what happend in Oklahoma City. Though I read this book on my own time, it gave me lots of good ideas on how to explore the question that plagued my class "What is domestic terriosm?" This books explains why everyone including the guilty deserve a defense.

Israel's fighter pilots form a special elite, in a nation whose survival is owed to its men at arms. As such, free access to these national heroes is only rarely granted, which is what makes Peter Mersky's book such a special treasure. Together with "Israel's Best Defense" by Eliezer Cohen, and "No Margin for Error" by Ehud Yonai, Peter Mersky's "Israeli Fighter Aces" rounds out a trio of the best collection of books currently available on the Heyl HaAvir. All of these books pay heed to the fact that it is the men of the Israel Air Force, not the machines, that have made the Heyl HaAvir the premier air force of the jet age. But Peter Mersky has taken this axiom a step further, devoting his text almost exclusively to the first-hand accounts of the pilots. Although not as well rounded as the other two volumes mentioned above, Mersky's approach provides for a collection of first-hand battlefield accounts that is unequaled.

For a aviation history fan, this book is a MOST WANTED ITEM, certanly reveled some stories of only found in web pages without any autor; It focus in fighter pilots, their experiences and oppinions, interesting is the part of the early days

Its easy to read, but certanly needs more photos, specially in color and more photos of the victims

I hope that Peter B. Mersky write another one focus in atack aircraft or special misions

Well done

One of the most effective air forces in the world has to belong to Israel. Fighting pretty much every day since its existance in 1948, the Israel Air Force has played a major part in protecting Israel from its Arab neighbors. This book tries to tell about those fighting men who obtained the status of ace in the Israel Air Force. What is surprising is that the first Israeli ace didn't obtain that until the 1967 war! From flying Spitfires and Avia S199s to Mirages and Phantoms to F-15s and Kfirs, this book takes you through all the conflicts with lots of first hand information. The text is superb, but the pictures are even better. Not one picture in this book has been censored, so all the markings are clearly visible. Some of those planes were quite colorful! Overall, I can highly recommend this book for anyone who is interested in Middle Eastern air forces, or for someone who just wants to see what it was like to fly and fight with one of the best air forces in the world.

Chris Banyai-Riepl
Aviation What-Not

This book is not really about whether Tim McVeigh was or wasn't guilty in the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19th, 1995. This is not a "true confessions" sleaze piece told by a self-aggrandizing "ambulance chaser" lawyer. All of that is really moot now that McVeigh has been executed.

What this book is about is the fact that Tim McVeigh and Terry Nichols could not have pulled off a bombing of this scale off by themselves (not because the author says so but because unimpeachable terrorism experts say so). It is about a government that seems blind to evidence pointing to a much broader conspiracy; possibly even foreign backed. It is also about the lengths to which your government will go to get its way. Truth and justice have NOTHING to do with what went on in United States vs McVeigh and this should concern every American deeply.

The author, McVeigh's appointed defense council, takes it from the beginning and walks the reader through the entire sordid process of trying to conduct a fair, Constitutionally guaranteed trail against the U.S. Justice Department who basically are in control of the whole process. This is like putting the fox in charge of the hen house.

He explains how the prosecution made every effort to unfairly deny and or delay the defense's access to vital FBI evidence (remember the 3000 pages of documents that the prosecution "misplaced" that came out recently?) He tells how the prosecution lied and tampered with evidence. He tells how the FBI refused to let the defense examine the crime scene in detail and then demolished it before the trail began forever burying its secrets. He explains how the government manipulated and changed their stories to fit their version of the crime without any real evidence. He explains how the judge appointed by the government to preside over this case refused to let the defense bring witnesses and introduce evidence that would most certainly have brought reasonable doubt to a fair-minded jury. He explains how the same judge changed much of the way the Nichols case was handled which resulted in a verdict of life without parole instead of death and much more.

In short he lays out the blueprint for a government run lynching that spits in the face of everything we have been brought up to believe our justice system is about. This book will disgust anyone with the least bit of fairness and decency and it will tarnish forever any remaining belief that our government is above reproach.

Now, one might say that this is just "sour grapes" on the author's part because he lost. I suppose it could be but that's not the way the book is written and it is not the way the author comes through. He does not engage in any sort of bitterness one would associate with a "sore loser". In fact, he goes out of his way to congratulate and acknowledge many of his detractors and opponents despite their attacks on him before, during and after the trail. In every way the author comes across as a fair and decent man who is only interested in the truth. Read this book and also read "The Oklahoma City Bombing and the Politics of Terror". There is more to this than we are being told.

I read this book in 1999 and have shared it with many friends and family. I had the privilege of meeting Stephen Jones and immediately got the sense this was a man with integrity and a very strong belief in the Constitution of the United States.

After 9/11 my husband and myself re-read this book and again were passing it around to friends.

It makes you wonder why the government didn't pay attention to the information Stephen and his investigators were uncovering. It is obvious there was a connection of the middle eastern radical influence in the OKlahoma City Bombing.

With recent information connecting the 9/11 terroist and Tim McVeigh staying at the same motel makes a compelling argument that they are connected.

This is a must read if you Love America and all the freedoms we enjoy in everyday life.

The author, Timothy McVeigh's former lead defense attorney, sets out to sow the seeds of doubt concerning Timothy Mcveigh's role in the OCB, diminishing Tim's role to that of an appointed patsy in a much larger scheme. Unfortunately, these seeds neither take root in the FBI, which was not interested in even entertaining the thought of a possible conspiracy despite unresolved facts, nor in the minds of the jurors- minds, Steven Jones asserts with logical argument and careful observation, which likely were already biased against McVeigh from the onset, a contributing factor leading to an unfair trial for McVeigh.

Conspiracy: a phone call to the Department of Justice in DC stating that the Murrah building had been bombed, half an hour BEFORE the explosion actually occurred; the Murrah building being on prior "bombing" lists by various groups, and being scoped by another person dear to this story mentioned in the book when Tim was just in high school and had not yet even met this person!

Unresolved facts: an extra LEG at the crime scene...still UNIDENTIFIED...John DOE #2? McVeigh allegedly alone, ordering dinner at the Dreamland Motel, but the delivery person described SOMEONE ELSE answering the door, and this is just the tip of the iceberg, as Jones recounts the testimonies of the Ryder rental shop employees, at least one of whom described someone OTHER THAN MCVEIGH.

FBI Obfuscation: The government had an obligation to hand over all exculpatory evidence to the defense team, but always dragged its feet and tried to hide as much as possible. FBI laboratory analysis ineptitude: a given, with supporting facts. McVeigh's clothing: kept in a PAPER BAG, not a sealed, plastic bag, which allowed all sorts of contaminants to taint it, including even McVeigh's own personal gun.

Unfair Trial: This needs to be read firsthand, as Jones is the expert here. Bottom line: biased jury, and a possibly biased judge who wouldn't allow Jones to even present much of the conspiracy evidence and prime witness testimony (i.e., Carol Howe). Although this may not have proved McVeigh innocent, it would certainly have created REASONABLE DOUBT in any individual with a functioning brain.

(I have read "American Terrorist," by Michel and Herbeck, and mention is never made in that book about the phone call, the extra leg, and FBI obfuscation, though it does gloss over the possibility that the trial may have been unfair.)

"Other's Unknown" is a MUST READ for those who want a more complete story that only Timothy McVeigh's lead defense attorney can offer. This book is not a personal book about Timothy, the young man, but is strictly related to the development of McVeigh's defense and the obstacles faced by the defense team.