Post: #401

Tides of War, Steven Pressfield.

Basically, this is the 27-year Peloppenesian War between Athens and Sparta, as seen (more or less) through the eyes of a soldier named Pomenides. The story's framed as a story-within-a-story; the narrator is the grandson of one Jason, who is called on to defend Pomenides against a charge of murder, around the same time as the death of Socrates. Nice technique, one that recalls the piecemeal accounts we necessarily have of ancient history. It's a massive undertaking; unlike Pressfield's first novel Gates of Fire which essentially tells the story of Thermopylae (and which I haven't read and surely must) this book sets out to cover the entire sweep of a thirty year war through the eyes of one man. It's a long slog of a book, and Pressfield mostly achieves his purpose. Put it this way, if you like David Gemmell's books, it's a more literate form of his work, and he liked the books a lot.

It hits its best on two aspects: the shittiness of war in general and observations of the people and cultures that carry it out. It is very, very well-researched and does pretty much what it's reputed to do: give you a real, breathing picture of what life in this period was like. The book is on the reading lists at the US Naval War College, and I can see why, even if nobody's sailing triremes around anymore. I do not pretend to have read anything on the period other than Thucydides, but you can sense a lot of classical authors in the speeches and the writing. There are several points throughout the book where I've dog-eared pages to come back to the speeches therein (and I'd guess many are probably lifted from the classical authors), but I won't at this point. Suffice to say there are penetrating observations on life, and sad confirmations that, when it comes to politics, not a hell of a lot has changed in two and a half thousand years of democracy.

As said, this is a true epic novel, so it doesn't follow one character around without exception, but if there is one figure who is a focus of the book, it's the Athenian, then Spartan, then Persian, then Thracian, general Alcibiades. He more or less personifies Athens' lust for empire, but the character himself is very human, such that I did have a lump in my guts as the book headed to its conclusion and the tragic end to Alcibiades' and Athens' ambitions.

I do recommend this one for any of the brothers here who trudged with us through Thucydides nearly a year ago. It's a vivid personalisation of the war and it's well-worth the read, albeit a little meandering now and then.

God save us from people who mean well. -storm

Post: #402

Story Structure Architect, Victoria Lynn Schmidt.

I was reading this one separately to the other one. In essence it's more of a reference book for beginning fiction writers than anything else. Basically it's a top-down approach to building the structure of a plot, from its form through to its incidents, and the majority of it restates Polti's 36 Dramatic Situations.

Is it any good? Well, I'm spoiled because I've read Robert McKee's Story. Schmidt is a PhD academic, one of those people who's spent a lot more time writing books about writing than publishing anything herself. Her books are based towards cataloguing the most obvious story forms and character paradigms, and they have the usual feminist smugness attached to them and failure to comprehend male forms of fictional journey. McKee's book gets you to pretty much the same place, Schmidt's book is basically a birds-eye view of the subject. Not bad, not great.

God save us from people who mean well. -storm

Post: #403

How to Argue & Win Every Time: At Home, At Work, In Court, Everywhere, Everyday, Gerry Spence. This is the audiobook version.

I've ordered the print version. That said, some of the most salient advice Spence gives relates to sound, something that isn't conveyed well on paper. And Spence gives the reading all his forty years of experience as a criminal defence lawyer, so it's an enjoyable experience on its own. Spence at least has runs on the board; he never lost a criminal case in his career. Even allowing for the fact this isn't quite as impressive as it sounds (the prosecution has a heavier evidentiary burden than the defence, so really all a defendant technically has to do is allow the prosecution to get one thing wrong) that speaks for itself. You do not get to an unbroken run of wins without a combination of ability in a court and a good intelligence/instinct for what really is a hopeless case and what can be won.

What you get with Spence is what I'd class as the advice of a real expert, one who's been down the road of every rhetorical device and logical fallacy and has come to the end with one main insight: conveyed emotion and sincere belief in an argument, more than anything else, makes an argument a powerful one. Preparation and knowledge of one's materials are key to this, but Spence's main concern is with disinhibiting you to be able to make an argument forthrightly, taking the thesis that if you know your material, the great argument comes naturally, because you'll be communicating credibility by your belief in the argument. He correctly notes that the art of speaking and the art of writing are two different things entirely, as different as giving birth to a child as drawing a careful picture of a child.

Basically, it's a bit of a Zen guide for argument. That said it's pretty accessible and it has some thought-provoking advice to offer around arguments in relationships, one that's consistent with Red Pill when you think about it.

God save us from people who mean well. -storm

Post: #404

Just finished this old book called The Mature Mind by Harry Allen Overstreet. This book is probably my second favorite psychology book ever with first being psychocybernetics. I don't want to spoil the book but it definitely will give you the answer as to why so many people in society are so irrational and what factors are responsible for that.

Post: #405

I read the Bible while imprisoned, essentially. I read Revelations at least fifteen times.

Post: #406

This book follows 3 UN workers. There's one who, as a surgeon, is quite obviously a valuable asset in a war zone. The second dude eventually proves himself to some degree with some of his field work, but the girl seems to go around the world looking for cock. Nothing new there, but I can't work out why she would want to publish it. At one point she spends 3 days fucking a Masai, smoking weed etc. and I think if I remember correctly crying in shame.

Post: #407

Finished all three volumes of The Baroque Cycle by Neal Stephenson. Took me over six months to plow through it. Unquestionably one of the best works of literature I've ever read.

Post: #408

(06-14-2016 08:17 AM)Paracelsus Wrote:  How to Argue & Win Every Time: At Home, At Work, In Court, Everywhere, Everyday, Gerry Spence. This is the audiobook version.

I've ordered the print version. That said, some of the most salient advice Spence gives relates to sound, something that isn't conveyed well on paper. And Spence gives the reading all his forty years of experience as a criminal defence lawyer, so it's an enjoyable experience on its own. Spence at least has runs on the board; he never lost a criminal case in his career. Even allowing for the fact this isn't quite as impressive as it sounds (the prosecution has a heavier evidentiary burden than the defence, so really all a defendant technically has to do is allow the prosecution to get one thing wrong) that speaks for itself. You do not get to an unbroken run of wins without a combination of ability in a court and a good intelligence/instinct for what really is a hopeless case and what can be won.

What you get with Spence is what I'd class as the advice of a real expert, one who's been down the road of every rhetorical device and logical fallacy and has come to the end with one main insight: conveyed emotion and sincere belief in an argument, more than anything else, makes an argument a powerful one. Preparation and knowledge of one's materials are key to this, but Spence's main concern is with disinhibiting you to be able to make an argument forthrightly, taking the thesis that if you know your material, the great argument comes naturally, because you'll be communicating credibility by your belief in the argument. He correctly notes that the art of speaking and the art of writing are two different things entirely, as different as giving birth to a child as drawing a careful picture of a child.

Basically, it's a bit of a Zen guide for argument. That said it's pretty accessible and it has some thought-provoking advice to offer around arguments in relationships, one that's consistent with Red Pill when you think about it.

I'm half way through this and wholeheartedly agree.

His points on tone and closing his eyes when the opposition is making their argument solidified the book for me. Understanding that point alone is worth the read considering this area of the internet knows all about body language and when combined with effective tonality, watch out.

Also, enjoy his points on the "heart zone" and giving the "other" outs to reject you. I just happened to see it in the library and remembered MikeCF raves about this guy.

There is so much of this book in Gorilla Mindset. Of course mike takes the concepts and makes them much more physical and broad based.

I can't recommend enough that everyone read this.

Post: #409

Starting from Scratch by Wes Moss (Winner of the Apprentice Season 2)

He starts off with the premise of his theory and foundation which is an acronym that escapes me right now.

He then transitions into profiling 17 entrepreneurs from around the country that vary in industry, size, and scope. Each batch of profiles (3-5 people) cover one topic of his four step foundation to getting things off the ground.

In the end, you're left with some feel good stories, a framework, and an outlook that "you too can kick some ass".

For any reader more advanced on the topics of business, I'd avoid. For younger guys in college, HS, or haven't tried your hand at any businesses yet, it might be worth it.

Post: #410

I read "Free Speech Isn't Free" last night and gave it a 5 star review on Amazon. Y'all should read and review it as well.

Post: #411

I read a book a long time ago but I forgot the title. It has a black girl called Pearl, a jewish guy and another black guy on drugs. The book starts with, 'fuck me, fuck me,' whilst Pearl is banging the Jewish guy. I think it was called the Village or something. Does anyone have a clue about the title? Was the author David Mamet?

Post: #412

I've got several books on the go at the moment, but this evening I just finished The Moscow Bombings of September 1999: Examinations of Russian Terrorist Attacks at the Onset of Vladimir Putin’s Rule by John B Dunlop. It sounds dry but made fascinating reading.

Post: #413

Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom - Cory Doctrow, 2002

This is a quick read. Just over 200 pages. Doctrow runs BoingBoing and he's influential in tech circles. This is a futuristic book. The premise is that humans have learned to conquer death - not perfect immortality but they've figured out how to restore from backup and grow new bodies, so basically when your old body gets too shot, you grow a new body, have yourself euthanized, and restore from backup into your new body. Or if you die via an accident or if you're murdered, same thing. You lose part of your life between backup & restore, which will be more or less difficult depending on how much time you lost.

Is it utopia? Is it dystopia? That's what I struggled with, finally coming down on the side of dystopia. One of the essential points of the book is that in this post-scarcity world, the new currency is "Whuffie", which seems to be a combination of goodwill, popularity, and social status. This is an important point. The entire book centers around various characters' attention whoring, especially the protagonist. People don't seem to work anymore, at least not in a meaningful sense. People form "ad-hocs" and do whatever makes them happy. In the case of the protagonist, he's joined an ad-hoc that's taken over running Disneyland and spends their days running the theme park.

The reason I came down on dystopia was because you view this all through the eyes of the protagonist, who epically fucks up his life (which gives the book its title), and you see the tyranny of society from someone on the losing end, and the bleakness of someone trying to live life on their terms in a society where the answer to everything is "restore from backup".

Post: #414

Fearless by Eric Blehm



It's the true story of a guy named Adam Brown. This dude went from the lowest of the low to the highest of the high. In his early 20's, post-high school he finds himself a crack/methhead loser, stealing money and possessions from his friends and family, doing absolutely nothing with his life, and one day finds himself in jail. He gets on his knees that night in his jail cell and asks God to come into his life. Over the next few years, he works his way up to the highest of military ranks: A member of a SEAL Team, among other feats. SEALS, if you don't know, are the know-all-do-alls of the military. These are the guys that took down Osama Bin Laden (Adam's team, in fact, were the guys responsible.) He also finds love and has children. Adam's path from his jail cell to the most respected rank in the U.S. military also has its share of near-impossible hurdles, which makes it even more surprising and meaningful.

This dude is comparable to Louis Zamperini in terms of courage, patriotism, heroism and willingness, and that's saying something. (See: Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. Read it last summer, would also recommend.)

Very inspirational, very red pill. And all true events.

One of those books that I'd say really, really benefits you both personally and as a knowledgeable American citizen by reading it. Gives you insight on the military and the Iraq and Afghanistan War, as well as life's struggles and how we can overcome them even when we get pushed down hundreds of times.

Thanks to MiscBrah for recommending me this.

Post: #415

Started reading an old book of mythology, I think it's called Children of Odin. Pretty cool stuff.
I bought it a long time ago on the kindle market - it might be there for free.

Post: #416

Just finished John L Ransom's Andersonville diary.

It's basically his diary entries from his time as a confederate prisoner during the American civil war.

His description of Andersonville prison, which was basically run as a death camp, was intense and horrifying. Yet through it all there is a streak of optimism and hope that was inspiring to me. The author nearly died from scurvy (twice) and still managed to never give up psychologically, except for a time when he was clearly about to die from malnourishment unless saved. The fact that the man survived to the end of the war after living through such hell physically and mentally is incredible.

Post: #417

An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural by James Randi.

Museum of Hoaxesby Alex Boese

Both within the genre of false history and chapter 1 of Scott Adam's Master Persuasion Reading List. Both these books cover stuff like horoscopes, crop circles, bigfoot, Y2K scares, and various doomsday predictions throughout history.

I've never been a believer of any of these hoaxes, and I've used them myself (anyone else still run the cube from Game 1.0 Mystery Method? ). What I found most important/applicable was a section in Boese's book: Don't Get Hoaxed, running over basic, "common sense" fact-checking:

• How many sources does this idea/hoax have? Fewer or a singular source should arouse suspicion.
• Some scams and hoaxes will make an appeal to expertise to create the veneer of truth, such as the "Lovenstein Institute" and George Bush IQ of 91 hoax. (Interestingly, Trump writes in Art of the Deal that he was taken more seriously when he branded his organization "The Trump Organization.")
• Knowing point 1 and that a singular source could be untrustworthy, smart hoaxers may disseminate disinformation in a wide swathe to create the perception of social proof.
• Despite all of this, there's still a chance you can fall prey to a skillful hoax.
  

Post: #418

How to Get Rich by Donald Trump.

The title is a misnomer, but I liked the book. It's basically Donald Trump sharing some lessons, wisdom and insights from his life, as well as a few random facts such as:
- Donald Trump hates shaking hands. He considers it a disgusting habit.
- He hates politics because you can't say what you want to say (bear in mind this book from 2004)
- He used to hate spending money on 'stupid' things like good suits. But then he discovered people took him more seriously and were more willing to do business with him when he dressed sharp. So despite his desire to be frugal, he started to dress wearing amazing, pricier, suits.
- One major reason he keeps his hair style the way it is, is because people can't seem to stop talking about it. Free publicity.
- He basically believes journalists are scum but you can get them to do your dirty work if you manipulate them the right way
- It's important to say outrageous things and then to gauge the reaction. If it didn't work, say something else; if it does work, roll with it.
- His hair is coloured. He hates having grey hair, so he colours it.

The book had some lame filler - there was a boring 'a week in my life' section and an appendix which was basically and advertorial for Trump properties. But otherwise I liked the book because I got to know the future United States president as a person, and there was some good advice in there, especially about negotiating and sales, and prenups.

I haven't read the Art of the Deal, so I'm going to try to get my hands on a copy of that next.

Post: #419

Nietzsche's Thus spake Zarathustra:

It's tad bit difficult to read while remaining focused. Some topics discussed are perhaps a bit outdated today, but it is still essential read to get close and personal with Nietzsche and his philosophy. It could have been shorter while still making the same point.

Important thing to keep in mind is the date of release. At that point, Nietzsche was highly innovative, controversial, and perhaps could foresee many changes in spirituality of modern men, but however, he failed to predict overcoming of nihilism, which is still a predominant sentiment.

Nevertheless, whoever reads philosophy, politics and religion, must not skip it. It's one of the essentials.

Post: #420

Post Office - Charles Bukowski

Solid book. Main character works as a post office temp. Gets drunk and fucks girls.

Good times

Post: #421

Popular Economics by John Tamny

A good introduction to economics. He essentially argue for a pro free market economy with chapters arguing against antitrust legislation, high taxes and supports free trade, etc. it is not a book to learn about economics in its entirety but similar to Economics in One Lesson, you can learn about certain topics. The only downside to the book is that the references in this book to many modern celebrities will make the book dated. After all, how familiar are you with the celebrities of the 1970s and 80s? Aside from that, the book is quite readable and excellent.

Post: #422

Born Fighting by Jim Webb

The book chronicles the history of the Scots-Irish, from the early history of Scotland and William Wallace, up to the 20th century, emphasizing their migrations to America in the 1700-1800s. I was looking for more insights into my ancestors, and was glad to find it in this book.

Webb also discusses some differences between the UK groups that came to America. The idea that you can just say they were 'white' and that this was just a monolith culture is greatly mistaken. And the idea that they had no culture (i.e. and can there for be the hosts for 'diversity') is false.

Post: #423

Western Civilization (7th edition) by Jackson Spielvogel. I bought it to prepare for the Western Civilization CLEP exam that I'll be taking soon. Feeling pretty optimistic.

Post: #424

Free Speech Isn't Free by Roosh

Crisis of Character by Gary Byrne

Post: #425

Recently finished A Song of Ice And Fire - A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin. I really like Game of Thrones, but since I've watched the series as well I feel like reading a few other things before I pick it up again.

As mentioned here, I also read and finished Dave Egger's The Circle (cheers to Lucky whose post made me aware of this book's existence) a few weeks ago. Forget about 1984 and dystopian novels of how machines will enslave us, because Egger's vision is way more realistic and even scarier to me personally. Without repeating the abstract given by other members, the novel essentially hovers around the question "Should everything, absolutely everything, be transparent to everyone?" The Circle argues "yes", and while Mae (the protagonist girl) questions this in the beginning, she becomes more and more convinced that this is the only solution in order to maintain a healthy, peaceful, crime-free society. At the same time the company obliges its employees to share everything possible with the rest of the world - and you're suspicious if you don't. The final stage in the book is people "going transparent": Wearing a small high tech camera that records everything you see, hear and say, with a permanent live stream to everybody who wants to participate in, or better experience your life. Those who are willing to do this have to give in eventually, otherwise society will simply exclude and eventually exile them.

The second major statement is: "Everything must be measured." This is rather subtile, as Mae has to keep increasing her "Social Rank" by commenting content, posting and submitting comments/audio/video, participating in events, running events herself, you name it. If your rank drops, you again become suspicous. Why is she not sharing what she is doing? Does she have something to hide which prevents the community from benefiting from her secret? A fuckbuddy of her gets angry because she first refuses to rate his sex abilities on a scale from 1 to 10. In a wider sense, not measuring activities/experiences prevents utilising it for the good of society or one's bankroll.

There's even a nice analogy of a beast devouring anything within the same living environment in the book, mirroring the development of The Circle vs. the rest of the world, a spot on example for "if you are not with us, you are against us".

Seriously, I almost got the shivers reading some parts of this book, because it paints the wet dreams of people like Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg in vivid colours: No more privacy for anyone. After all, this is a "relict" of the 20th century and mankind's history before that, right?

I believe most people on here can think of their own examples of consequences. How come anyone would want an ant society where everybody does the same, thinks the same, acts the same? Total transparency means you're only allowed to do what society deems acceptable; everything outside you remotely consider doing would flag and expose you outright with all its consequences, so you don't do it. There are no personal experiences anymore, because everything is shared; yes sure, you found this amazing place while travelling through country X yourself, but for some reason heaps of other people are already here despite its remoteness.

This book should be read and analysed in schools, because this is the direction we're pushed in by big data startups and the "old evils", Facebook, Google and Co. Just like 1984, this is a warning - I recommend it, Dave Eggers takes the data and transparency hype to an extreme while staying fairly realistic throughout. As a novel it doesn't offer many surprises, but succeeds in giving you a pretty good idea of how the new, "democratic" totalitarianism could work.

Should this technocracy ever prevail, I'm among the first ones choosing to live in a reservation, just like in Huxley's "Brave New World" and the movie "Surrogates".