This book is intended as a education and training tool for a professional jewelry repair technician. In my opinion the book makes a successful attempt to capture all aspects of executing a successful ring repair and addresses all the challenges: To identify metal and stones correctly, and how to assess what other jewelers have done to the piece prior to you . If you are interested in achieving a JA Bench certification and / or know every variation associated with ring repair, this book will be valuable to you.

Total length 122 pages, divided into two parts. Part I. : 31 pages of narrow columns and huge drawings on beautiful glossy paper covers introduction, safety, procedures and tools Part II.: 15 different alterations presented in a story book fashion, with detailed step by step photos. The visuals are excellent and the accompanying text is extremely detailed. ( to the point that one is instructed to remove the polishing compound , before returning the ring to the customer) The anecdotal stories explaining the history of the ring before and after the much needed repairs add a humorous element.

".....the ring, sitting on a ledge next to the soap dish, swiped off a safe place by the hand of it's owner. As she removes spaghetti sauce with a serving spoon, it gets knocked into the sink and then - OH NO -, the switch for the garbage disposal accidentally is flipped on. She dives for the switch to undo the upcoming misfortune, but

it is too late. The ring gets sucked in. TRAGEDY! Sharp blades do what they are designed to do, mangle! .........you, the repair expert, are sought out and with loving attention repair the priced possession. The customer adores you and trust you with all her valuables. She invite you for dinner! You accept the invitation, but make her promise that she will let you do the dishes. The End." .

What struck me is that this book analyzes natural law within a legal context: many of the contributing authors are attorneys as well as philosopher. This is particularly helpful to our nation today, as I think more citizens will have to reassess the role of the judiciary these days.

For the latter half of the 20th century, worries over "judicial acitivism" and judges' making decisions that should be made by legislatures have been the domain of conservatives, with Roe v. Wade probably being the chief example. But now liberals have said similar things about the Supreme Court's Bush v. Gore decision. It is high time for intelligent discussion, and this book is a solid foundation for a dialogue.

By looking at natural law historically, legally, and philosophically, the authors of this book examine how natural law works and various challenges to it. This book is a very good introduction, and I have come away with a greater respect for natural law and its vital role in our nation, and also new questions to pursue (and more books to buy...).

The contributing authors are an impressive team of formidable thinkers, and while most of the writers clearly come from a religious background, the are pretty good about keeping what they say applicable to a secular society (the last two essays tend to be more theological than philosophical, and I thought that hurt their impact).

I think MacIntyre's essay on the role of the ordinary person in natural law is particularly valuable: if the American citizenry cannot execute sound moral judgment, our nation as a constitutional republic is in grave danger. Fuller's essay on Locke's struggles with natural law is an honest and challenging look at natural law's theoretical chinks. Riley's essay on tort law gave excellent lessons on liability, but with lawsuits being as common as they are nowadays, I would have hoped for more practical insights on today's situation, and possible remedies.

On the whole, this book is a good read and a good challenge. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in ethics or concerned about the present condition of the United States.

Common Truths: New Perspectives On Natural Law is a collection consisting of cogent remarks and prescient essays: Are There Moral Truths That Everyone Knows? (Ralph McInerny); Natural Law: The Legacy of Greece and Rome (J. Rufus Fears); Aquinas, Natural Law, and the Challenges of Diversity (John Jenkins); John Locke's Reflections on Natural Law and the Character of the Modern World (Timothy Fuller); Theories of Natural Law in the Culture of Advanced Modernity (Alasdair MacIntyre); What Dignity Means (Virginia Black); Natural Law and Positive Law (Robert P. George); Natural Rights and the Limited of Constitutional Law (Russell Hittinger); Natural Law and Sexual Ethics (Janet E. Smith); Contract Law and Natural Law (Edward J. Murphy); Tort Law and Natural Law (William N. Riley); Criminal Law and Natural Law (Ian A.T. McLean); and Natural Law in the Twenty-First Century (Charles E. Rice). Common Truths is scholarly, intellectually stimulating reading for anyone wanting to better understand and appreciate the permanent norms of human action and their relationships to a moral and political life.