Category: Books

Freedom to know and government secrecy

Freedom to know and government secrecy

Posted on by Jack

One of the interview shows are our local NPR affiliate (WHYY in Philadelphia) is Radio Times. I am sometimes lucky and catch all or most of a good interview on the radio but I miss most of them on the air.

Most days there are 2 one hour interviews so it is really hard to keep up unless you listen to the radio a lot. So I usually listen to the ones I find most interesting by podcast.


This morning I listened to a podcast of the Radio Times interview with James Goodale on his book Fighting for the Press: The Inside Story of the Pentagon Papers and Other Battles. If you can get the podcast, it is well-worth a listen.

James Goodale was the New York Times general counsel at a time when the Pentagon Papers were leaked to the NY Times. The Pentagon Papers was classified Top Secret, although that classification now seems excessive. After internal discussions at the Times, the paper battled Richard Nixon’s Department of Justice for the right to publish and won.

So this is an insider’s story of what may have been the most important case on First Amendment and freedom of the press. The interview and his book also talk about ‘freedom of the press’ issues arising since then. For much of the interview, he talked about the excessive amount of secrecy in the Obama administration and the unfortunate toll that takes on a free press.

Looking at the Amazon page, it seems there that both Kindle and Paperback Editions and the Kindle version is much less than the paperback.

The reviews on Amazon are great and I find this topic interesting and important so as soon as I finish this I plan to download the Kindle version. Whenever I’ve ordered a Kindle book in the past, it appears within seconds on my Kindle.

Wilson by A. Scott Berg

Wilson by A. Scott Berg

Posted on by Jack

Woodrow Wilson was a complicated man and he dealt with complicated issue so it seems fairly obvious that this biography must be complicated. In “Wilson”, A. Scott Berg tells this story well. There are some places where the complications and details slow down the reading but I think Berg gets about as close as you can get to a page-turner given the amount of material and complexity of material in some places.


He piqued my interest with an introduction about President Wilson’s journey to Europe to settle the terms of the peace after World War I. I was interested (otherwise I wouldn’t have even attempted the 800+ pages here) but this made me more interested.

Then Berg gives a more or less chronological account of his life giving you a better understanding of this man who would be President. I’ll not go into detail here but I will say Berg tells this well. You can probably find many short summaries of his life online.

Woodrow Wilson graduated from Princeton (Class of 1879) and would return there after practicing law, earning a Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University and several faculty positions. He was a respected academic and wrote extensively on government and politics. In 1890 Wilson joined the Princeton faculty and in 1902 became president of Princeton.

In 1910 the political bosses in New Jersey thought he was an electable candidate for Governor and could be easily controlled. He was elected and they were very surprised.

Then with about a year of political experience, he was chosen as the Democratic candidate for President. The bulk of the book describes the next 8 years as president and then his final years. Wilson is often rated among our greatest presidents. Read this book and you’ll learn why.

I enjoyed the book. It is a commitment to read book of this length but it is certainly worth it.

When politics worked

When politics worked

Posted on by Jack

When this Retired Guy was a bit younger, politics used to work. It wasn’t that long ago. Politicians knew how to compromise and seemed to talk to each other rather than just at each other. They could disagree, yet still respect the other side.


There is a new book out which discusses those days. The book is called “Tip and the Gipper: When Politics Worked” and it is by Chris Matthews. I first became acquainted with this book via a column by Michael Smerconish in our Sunday newspaper.

For those too young to remember (after all this was about 30 years back), Tip was the Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill and the Gipper was President Ronald Reagan. They disagreed greatly but had great respect for each other and were friendly. Needless to say, today’s President and Speaker are not at all like that.

Tip and the Gipper seemed to work out their differences, were able to compromise, solved some pretty big problems, and did a good job runing the country. The current batch of politicians seem to have trouble doing that.

I haven’t read the book yet but plan to so this isn’t a review. Just commenting on how politics has changed in my lifetime

The Trolley Problem, or Would You Throw the Fat Guy Off the Bridge? by Thomas Cathcart

The Trolley Problem, or Would You Throw the Fat Guy Off the Bridge? by Thomas Cathcart

Posted on by Jack

A simple question and a complicated answer. Most of us think we have a clear sense of right and wrong but how do we think about these things>

About 50 years ago Continue reading “The Trolley Problem, or Would You Throw the Fat Guy Off the Bridge? by Thomas Cathcart”

How to create eBooks (EPUB files) for free

How to create eBooks (EPUB files) for free

Posted on by Jack

Dick Eastman in his Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter has posted an article called How to Create EPUB Files for use in eBooks.

Since an EPUB has many advantages over the the PDF or even paper copies may be using now, you might want to consider it. The article goes into these advantages. But perhaps more importantly, it tells you how you can do this for free or with other paid options if you prefer that route.

Normally this article is available to customers of the paid version of the newsletter but this article is offered as free EPUB download to all who read the shorter version in the free newsletter online.

I read the article last night on my iPhone with the free Bluefire Reader app.

Doors by Daniel Brako

Doors by Daniel Brako

Posted on by Jack

First, I requested this advanced reading copy for review since the write-up on Netgalley sounded like it might be interesting but I wasn’t sure about that.

So I was approved and downloaded the galley to my Kindle. I started reading Doors and was instantly hooked. I am pretty sure this is the only book from Netgalley that I read entirely the same day that I downloaded. It was that good.

The story is a mix of mystery, fantasy, and science fiction with a good bit of psychology and a police chase. But if it was described that way, I wouldn’t have read it. Somehow Daniel Brako puts it all together in a thrilling package that keeps you reading.

Since my first description did not seem very interesting let’s try this:

Imagine you are a psychologist trying to help a patient who sees Doors that no one else sees and these Doors lead to other worlds. While trying to cure this delusion, you begin to see the Doors and go through them. Soon you are a murder suspect. And you need to clear yourself and save those you love.

It is not a very long book – 162 pages in paperback according to Amazon – but it is a good book. Read and enjoy Doors by Daniel Brako.

The Fact/Faith Debate: Why Science Hasn’t Killed Religion by Jack Gage

The Fact/Faith Debate: Why Science Hasn’t Killed Religion by Jack Gage

Posted on by Jack

The Fact/Faith Debate: Why Science Hasn’t Killed Religion by Jack Gage is an interesting and thought-provoking book.


The author did a great job in the Introduction telling us a bit about himself. And knowing a bit about him is important to understanding the book and why he wrote it.

Then Jack Gage goes into why there is a Fact/Faith debate in his first chapter. In this chapter he introduces the most unusual and an interesting aspect of this book. Rather than basing the book on just his beliefs, a panel of 6 jurors of various faiths or lack of faith get to vote on questions related to the issues presented in each chapter. This small group is somewhat like a jury in a legal trial.

Of course, 6 is a very small sample but it is a start in addressing the question of how intelligent and often highly educated people can examine the same set of “facts” (or scientific evidence) and come to very different conclusions, especially when these facts conflict with their faith-based beliefs.

I wish the sample size was larger and various jurors were able to discuss why they believe what they believe often in conflict with the evidence but that would be another book or maybe several books.

The middle (and much) of the book is a presentation of scientific evidence on various issues and then the faith-based view followed by a jury vote. I thought this was interesting at first but after 15 or so of these I just got a bit tired of it.

In many of these middle chapters the faith-based view was represented by fairly extreme positions such as Creationism or groups that interpret the Bible literally. But the beginning and end of the book discuss a variety of religious faiths so I do not think the book focuses too much on fundamentalist Christianity.

It also seems appropriate to examine these views since many Americans share many of these beliefs to some extent. For a relatively extreme example, here is a quote from Georgia Republican Representative Paul Broun of the US House of Representatives Science, Space, and Technology Committee.

God’s word is true. I’ve come to understand that, All that stuff I was taught about evolution, embryology, Big Bang Theory, all that is lies straight from the pit of hell. It’s lies to try to keep me and all the folks who are taught that from understanding that they need a savior. There’s a lot of scientific data that I found out as a scientist that actually show that this is really a young Earth. I believe that the Earth is about 9,000 years old. I believe that it was created in six days as we know them. That’s what the Bible says.

I thought the last few chapters were very good in reaching some conclusions on how and why people reconcile their religious faith with the scientific evidence.

It was a good book and I’m glad I read it.

The Penguin Pool Murder by Stuart Palmer

The Penguin Pool Murder by Stuart Palmer

Posted on by Jack

The Penguin Pool Murder by Stuart Palmer is an oldie but goodie. This book was made into a movie in 1932 so it has obviously been around for a few years. And I would guess that there have been many reprints.


This incarnation is digital. I have placed a link to and picture of the Kindle edition to the left but if you look around you can probably find other formats. Maybe even an older edition in physical book form. Or if you follow my Amazon link to the Kindle edition, you can find a DVD of the movie.

The story itself was entertaining and an easy read. I’ve not seen the movie.

It opens in a New York aquarium (near the penguin pool , of course) with a small mystery of a purse snatcher and a teacher taking her class of third graders on an outing. And there is a hunt for the teacher’s missing hat pin. The first few pages did not seem very promising to me.

But a murder is quickly discovered. The teacher, Miss Hildegarde Withers, gets involved in the murder investigation. And the story gets interesting. So don’t give up too quickly.

Enjoy the story. It moves quickly. The case quickly becomes more complicated as the third grade teacher and the detective find many people with motive to kill the victim and many suspicious actions.

I was surprised at least twice near the end. You may be too but in any case you’ll have an enjoyable read along the way.

How to Analyze Information: A Step-by-Step Guide to Life’s Most Vital Skill by Herbert E. Meyer

How to Analyze Information: A Step-by-Step Guide to Life’s Most Vital Skill by Herbert E. Meyer

Posted on by Jack

We have so much information available but we need to learn how to use it wisely. Herbert E. Meyer takes you through the steps that are needed to turn the raw information into useful knowledge in his e-book – How to Analyze Information: A Step-by-Step Guide to Life’s Most Vital Skill.

This is more of an extended essay than a book. Amazon estimates it as 21 pages on the Kindle. My e-reader estimates it as 19 pages. For sure, it is not very long but it covers an import issue and does it well.

My picture of the book is a link for the Kindle edition. The book is also available as an e-book in iBook, Nook format and presumably other formats as well. As far as I can tell it is an e-book only. The ones I have seen are fairly inexpensive. ($1.99 seems to be the usual price.)

Herbert E. Meyer has an impressive resume as a thinker, analyzer of data, writer, and speaker. You may wish to look at the page of his publisher Storm King Press to see a summary of his accomplishments.

I found it an easy to read guide to this intellectual process – concise and well-written with wonderful examples to illustrate each step in the process to going from information to knowledge to using that knowledge.

The RetiredGuy likes to drive and plan

The RetiredGuy likes to drive and plan

Posted on by Jack

As you may have guessed from the name of this blog, I am retired. I retired about 5 years ago and moved from Georgia to Pennsylvania. In my last working years, my wife and I knew we were ready to leave Atlanta after 30 years and we frequently visited family in New York, Maryland, and New Jersey.

So on each visit we would drive around and think about our retirement home. We finally decided on West Chester, PA which is about 25 miles west of Philadelphia and maybe 20 miles north of Wilmington, Delaware.

We like taking drives so we had been looking at library books and found one we like a lot so we bought our own copy. The advantages of buying are that you are not dependent on the book being in the library whenever you want it and you don’t have to worry about damaging the library copy. Books can get a little beat-up in the car.


So enough about us and building suspense. Were you really wondering what we bought?

We bought “National Geographic Guide to Scenic Highways and Byways: The 300 Best Drives in the U.S” from Amazon. So far we have done 2 of the 300 trips and have a few more in the planning stage so I suspect that we’ll get much more pleasure than the book cost. So if you click on the picture next to this, you’ll be able to see the book, read comments, and buy if you so decide.

We have no regrets about this purchase. I’ll be writing about those trips eventually, so stay tuned. And since I will be writing more, I’ll start a new travel category.

Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation release in a few days

Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation release in a few days

Posted on by Jack

I just wanted to remind everyone that Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation by Dan Fagin will be released in a few days (March 19). It is an important book and I hope quite a few read it.

I reviewed this book which tells the story of an industry and environmental catastrophe in some detail and does it well. See my review and if you think you might like this book, give it a read.

The Secret Gospel of Ireland by James and Leo Behan

The Secret Gospel of Ireland by James and Leo Behan

Posted on by Jack

The full title and subtitle is actually The Secret Gospel of Ireland:The Untold Story of How Science and Democracy Descended from a Remarkable Form of Christianity That Developed in Ancient Ireland. But that is quite long and would not do as a title of this review.

The Behan brothers begin with the early history of the Catholic church. The Romans never made it to Ireland but did rule most of the known world in those days. The Catholic church or at least that a large part of it was centered in Rome and became the official state religion of the Roman Empire in 380 AD.


The really interesting thing is that this is not just a straightforward history of the Church with perhaps a regretful statement about the light of learning going out in Europe but surviving in Ireland and then being revived in Europe by some travelling Irish monks.

No, this is much more. Consider the issues discussed, Why did the Pope send a mission to Ireland? Why was Patrick much more successful than the bishop sent by the Pope. How and why did Irish Christianity differ from the Roman Catholicism of the time. What were the philosophical and theological ideas of each? What were some of the other ideas considered? And how did they develop and influence each other?

The Behans cover a lot of ground in about 200 pages. And do so in an interesting fashion and weave an important explanation of events, relating some Irish influence on Catholicism to our ideas of science and democracy.

A very interesting book. And as a bonus, they added a short chapter at the end with references and suggestions on further reading.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit so this is really a very favorable review but I do have one minor gripe.

The title can be a bit misleading. That is, The Secret Gospel of Ireland might lead you to believe that this is about some long-lost secret scrolls found in Ireland. And that is not what this book is about at all. But that is a bit of a quibble and definitely not as important as the content of this wonderful book.

The subtitle is a much better indicator of what this book is about but it is too long to be a good title. So we have a shorter and less accurate title. Certainly not a major flaw but something I thought I should mention in case any prospective readers are mislead.

But the title does have the sense of the book and a short pithy title does make it easier to refer to the book, to say nothing of looking nice on the cover (very nice cover, by the way). So we have a good book with a title that might be more accurate but I have no suggestions there.

This book is definitely a keeper. I enjoyed it very much and learned a lot in the process. The nice part about having this book on my bookshelf is that when I am feeling a bit philosophical, I can reread parts or turn to that last bonus section to find more reading.

I highly recommend this book to those with an interest philosophy, theology, or the intellectual history of Europe.

Kindle App on the iPhone 5

Kindle App on the iPhone 5

Posted on by Jack

I had previously written about the Bluefire Reader e-reader on my iPhone so I thought I should also tell you about the Kindle App on the iPhone 5.

I have a Kindle which is several years old and really like it. I often use it to read the books I review on this website. More about that in my Bluefire link above.

The iPhone 5 screen is bigger that the old iPhones so that might make a difference in the experience but I suspect it would not make all that much difference. Any iPhone screen would be much smaller than a Kindle.

So if you are reading with similar size fonts the main difference is that there is less on each page. On the Kindle you have buttons to advance the page, but the app changes the page when you touch with screen at the side. Or you can also use the swiping action if you like that.

With the Kindle you have a bunch of buttons available to do various things but with the app those functions are hidden most of the time but reveal themselves when you touch the top or bottom of the screen. I haven’t checked to see if all functions on the Kindle are also on the app but those I use are there.

My Kindle is Wi-Fi only (no 3G) so if I am in the presence of Wi-Fi, the app and Kindle can synch so I can go back and forth between reading a book on one and then the other and my place carries over.

I usually read on the Kindle when at home. But the app is great if I am waiting somewhere and want to read my book for a while. I usually carry my phone when we go anywhere and carrying the Kindle around is not hard but now it is unnecessary.

I also use the app at home if my wife wants to use the Kindle so we don’t have to be a two Kindle family. Also sometimes I just use the app on my phone because I feel like it.

Note added:

I forgot to mention that the app is free from the Apple store. So if you have an iPhone and a Kindle account, you have nothing to lose by trying this. You’ll probably like it!

Environmental catastrophe, cancer, and water quality: Toms River by Dan Fagin

Environmental catastrophe, cancer, and water quality: Toms River by Dan Fagin

Posted on by Jack

Toms River by Dan Fagin succeeds on many levels. It is a detailed account of the events leading to extensive pollution and an excessive incidence of cancer in Toms River, NJ. Oddly, although the environmental catastrophe detailed here resulted in one the largest financial settlements in such cases, the story is not well known. Fagin tells that story well.

But he does much more. To put the story in context there is a bit on the development and history of the type of chemical industry involved. He delves into the history of medicine and particularly the association of chemical exposures and cancer and the applications of mathematics and statistics to the study of infectious and environmental diseases giving us the science of epidemiology.


This historical background is important to understanding what happened in Tom’s River and how the high incidence of childhood cancer was shown to be associated with the poisoning of this area near the New Jersey shore.

One would think that all this history and science could be a bit boring to the average reader. But by presenting it well and interspersing these history and science lessons with the human costs and events in Toms River, the book reads well and keeps your interest.

But I must tell you about me here. I am a retired scientist and my work was somewhat related to the issues covered in the book. So although I think all this science and history may be of interest to the average reader, I could be wrong. But I hope not. This specific case may or may not be of interest to potential readers but this issues of environmental pollution and health should be important to nearly everybody.

I had read an advanced reader on my Kindle (courtesy of Netgalley) and the book did seem long. Now that I am finished and writing a review I checked on Amazon and learned the book is 560 pages long (and will not be released until March 19, 2013). So it is a long book and will take a considerable investment of time to read but I thought it well-worth the time spent.

The book seems suitable for several audiences. It is certainly comprehensive and well documented with notes so that someone with a professional interest in environmental studies, public health, or some of the legal issues would benefit from this book. A student or general reader with an interest in any of these issues would learn a good bit of useful information while enjoying a good read.

I had planned on publishing this review around the time of publication but I read an article in the paper (I get the Philadelphia Inquirer which covers news in our neighboring state.) It seems there is currently a controversy in NJ about water quality and the importance of industrial representation in setting standards. I thought NJ residents might be interested that there is a soon-to-be-published book on the role of industry when the water quality in Toms River, NJ was an issue. Of course, I also hope many others read this book, too.

Here is the newspaper report I first read and several other articles I have run across.

This is an important book. Although the book is long and the subject matter complex, Dan Fagin does a great job in presenting the science in a highly readable way. I highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in the association of environmental pollution and health.

Black Irish by Stephan Talty

Black Irish by Stephan Talty

Posted on by Jack

A first novel by an established non-fiction writer, Black Irish by Stephan Talty is certainly a worthy entry into the crime-novel genre. This book is a first-rate thriller and promises to be a great introduction into a new series about Detective Absalom Kearney


As those who have seen my website know, I have been very interested in Irish genealogy and Irish history for several years. So the placement of this story into an Irish-American community added an extra interest for me.

The book grabs your interest right-off with a gruesome murder. Then you are introduced to Detective Absalom Kearney who is working a missing persons case of a utility worker from “The County” an Irish enclave in Buffalo.

The detective grew-up in the County but still is viewed as an outsider as her County tie is the result of being adopted by a now retired cop from the County. Absalom or Abbie left Buffalo after graduating from Harvard but returned to care for her father.

To make a long story short and grant you the pleasure of being able to read without any spoilers from me, let me just say the Detective Abbie Kearney becomes involved in the investigation of the murder and realizes before anyone else that she has a serial killer to deal with. But there is much too learn about who the killer is and why he is targeting residents of the County

I’ll not say much more (no spoilers, remember). But the clannishness of the Irish enclave and Irish history play large roles. The book is well written and it is a great story with many twists and turns. Just as Abbie has it figured out and it all makes sense, something else happens and you learn that you and she are both wrong. I liked this book very much and give it my highest recommendation.

Apparently other reviewers feel the same way. A few reviews that I’ve found:

Reviews