This book gave me an education and help me to make an informed decision on how to deal with a difficult situation.

Nice try. But all the evidence of common descent can also be used, even more successfully, to demonstrate a common designer. It is far from true the statement made by the American NCSE, that "similarities and differences among living things on Earth over time and space display a pattern that is best explained by evolutionary theory". But even if the NCSE statement was true today, that isn't reason enough to prevent the development of new research programs that in the future may prove superior to evolutionary theory. Intelligent design is one of such paradigms. To say the contrary is to favour the retarding of scientific progress in the name of "unscientific protectionism" of prevailing academic vested interests and dogmas. For instance, the fact that broadcasters and most of the audience are content at some point with analogue terrestrial television should not prevent the development of cable or digital TV, although we know that even here "the powers that are" often try to prevent the emergence of new competitors thus retarding structural and technological innovation. We must notice that, as Jonathan Wells puts it, "the claim that evolution is a fact, like the claim that humans evolved from ape-like ancestors, owes more to materialistic philosophy than to empirical science". According to this Berkeley Professor, "Homology (defined by modern Darwinists as similarity due to common ancestry) is not evidence of common ancestry". Well remarks that "At the level of the animal phyla, common ancestry is not inferred from "sources of information" such as fossils, molecules or embryos; instead, it is assumed on theoretical grounds." In this light, homology can be plausibly interpreted as an evidence of a common designer, of different aplications of the same basic "life-operating-system" produced by an intelligent agent. As far as Windows, Word, WordPerfct, Excel, Power Point, Netscape, etc, are concerned, homology is not a sign of common descent but of a common designer. Although some "bugs" actually appear here and there, they cannot be used to deny intelligent design. They must be explained without denying intelligent design. I don't see why it can't be any different in biology. Nothing, apart from naturalistic bias, determines that the common designer hypothesis should be ruled out in advance. On one hand, common descent is far from proven beyond reasonable doubt. In fact, it is even doubtful that one can come up with a "preponderance of evidence" case for common descent without a little help from a piori naturalistic assumptions. Microevolution is not macroevolution, and macroevolution in a limited scale is not the same thing as macroevolution at a large scale. On the other hand, mathmatics, information, design and complexity theories all point to the empirical possibility of detecting and measuring intelligent design in nature.

There are few better suited to reflect on the Ring Cycle than John Culshaw. An instrumental figure in the titanic Solti Ring, Culshaw's Ring Resounding offered a clear, bright view on Wagner's phenomenon, a 16-hour opera cycle that has been regarded, with the Chartres Cathedral at Notre Dame, as one of Western art's pinnacles. Reflections does the same: it shows Culshaw's personal yet often virtually universal thinking.

This book was drawn from Culshaw's lectures, in the intermissions, which appeared on the Met Opera broadcast of the entire Ring Cycle some years back. Essentially this is a volume printed by popular demand. Reflections is a "middle ground" to read. The book's character analysis tends to be concise yet much more meaningful than the general pages and pages of review, and the same applies for the rest of the volume. The connections forged by this book between Wagner's Ring and general humanity are strong, and Reflections is certainly a good companion to the Ring for those who seek to find a greater awareness within Wagner's work. The photographs and illustrations are in the style of Wieland Wagner's famous Bayreuth productions. They seem, to me, a perfect choice for the book. John Culshaw's words are designed to get the reader thinking about Wagner's meaning: Wieland's sets and lightings are likewise very open to interpretation.

John Bowen, a professor at Washington University in St. Louis, wrote this as a college textbook for anthropology of religion. For this it is excellent. It is also really good for lay readers looking for an introduction to this field. It includes a review of religious studies theories from Hegel and Edward Tylor to Clifford Geertz. It includes examples from many religious traditions commonly studied--Catholicism, Islam, Judaism, Umbanda, Native American traditions, Cargo cults, Japanese New Religions, Quakers, Mormonism, Hinduism; a good breadth indeed.

His chapters are: 1) Elements and Theories of Religion; 2) Doctrine and Practice in Tension; 3) Transitions in Life and Death; 4) Extending Our Powers: "Magic" and Healing; 5) Explaining Misfortune: Witchcraft and Sorcery; 6) Sacrifice Contested; 7) Prohibitions and Boundaries; 8) Objects, Images, and Worship; 9) Sacred Speech and Divine Power; 10) Places and Pilgrims; 11) Religious Authority and Religious Movements; 12) The Place of Religions in Modern Nation-States.

The book is expensive, so unless you find it used or really want it, I wouldn't buy it. But I really wanted it, and wasn't at all disappointed.

As one of Chavez' former secretaries, it was interesting to see Cesar's very personal, conversational speaking style analyzed so diligently. In addition, readers see Cesar in the context of his work with farm workers and the general public, which he approached for support of the grape, lettuce, and other boycotts. While a plum piece of reading for academicians, it warrants reading by anyone interested in Cesar and his speaking style--such a person might find the work weighty and often repetitious. There's no question, though, nothing more thorough has been published about the man so far. The material is helpful for my own upcoming books on my friendship with Cesar.

Best translation of this work. Useful notes and essays. Highest recommendation.

Though somewhat dated John Gillingham's treatment of the famous or infamous (depending on your viewpoint) revived image of one of the most famous and sometimes obscure English Kings, Richard I (r. 1189-1199). Gillingham's book engages from the start as it attempts to reconstruct the circumstances around the famous Warrior-King's death. The author realized that the circumstances surrounding Richard's death were and are to a good degree an intricate part of his detractor's criticism of the Lionheart being negligent with concern to his kingdom. Gillingham convinces his readers that Richard was on important business, putting down revolts in his continental possessions. Gillingham made more use of diverse sources than any historian before him. The author pointed out with effect that Richard's obligations reached well beyond England and that by 12th century standards, Richard was an ideal king. However, Gillingham does strain to justify Richard's occasional acts of cruelty such as the massacre at Acre. One also wonders about the extensive energy used to dispell the myth of Richard's homosexuality. Gillingham does expose the lack of evidence concerning this apparently 20th century interpretation. However, what does Richard I's sexual preferences have to do with his abilities or failures? Still, Gillingham does give us a clear and believable portrait, albeit somewhat idealized.

These are some of Sargent's most beautiful compositions and color galore. He was an amazing portrait artists and still, these landscapes are out of this world. His command of the painting media was genius........sheer genius. You'll love the beauty of these pictures. The more Sargent I see.......the more I have to rub my eyes to be sure anyone could be that good.

The book, Schooling For Young Riders, was a bok that I read 15 years ago as I was beginning my adventure as a horse educator. Richard Young 's memorable narrative about a spoiled pony that he purchased to train with his daughter, covers many of the same problems that I have encountered in the years since I read the book. He shares a common sense way of thinking like a horse to solve those problems and bring a young rider and horse both to their potential. This perspective has blended into my own methods that have come to include many natural horsemanship techniques. I would say that John Richard Young was ahead of his time, and shared that well in this book.

The Scopes Trial: A Brief History with Documents is a wonderful introduction to the Scopes "monkey" trial and its significance in history. I found the narrative history to be a quick but compelling and informative read, and was especially interested in the way in which the author shows how events during the time period following the First World War influenced the parties and helped to explain their motivations. I also found the documents, including excerpts from the trial transcript and newspaper articles of the time to be very helpful in understanding the manner in which the trial developed and the manner in which it was perceived nationally. Anyone looking for a readable yet informative work on the Scopes trial would be well advised to look into this book.