Category Archives: Politics and Civic Interest

Civics Literacy Test

Posted on August 18, 2017 by smellincoffee

Within the last few weeks I stumbled across a pdf  labelled “1960s Alabama Literacy Test”.  The host is a state university that has put it in a ‘jimcrow’ folder, so I assume it is presented as an example of the … Continue reading →

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Boomsday

Posted on July 30, 2017 by smellincoffee

Boomsday© 2007 Christopher Buckley336 pages By day, Cass Devine is a public relations specialist who labors to ensure her clients’ sh-tuff doesn’t stink. By night, she’s a  tax revolutionary, stirring the pot — blogging furiously and urging young people to … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Civic Interest, Reviews | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

La Florida

Posted on March 29, 2017 by smellincoffee

La Florida: Five Hundred Years of Hispanic Presence©  2016 Viviana Díaz Balsera & Rachel A. May312 pages Florida, like many places in the United States, bears the name given to it by another culture.  The Spanish, setting first foot on … Continue reading →

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Podcast of the Week: Science Fiction, Liberty, and Dystopia

Posted on March 15, 2017 by smellincoffee

“One of the great things of it, Tom, and this is where Orwell was such a genius —  in looking how language was being used as a form of manipulation. Orwell is always interested in propaganda and makes the point … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Civic Interest, science fiction | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

Podcast of the Week: Conflicting Visions

Posted on February 15, 2017 by smellincoffee

On Monday, historian and author Tom Woods discussed the premise of Thomas Sowell’s book A Conflict of Visions.    According to their discussion, Sowell maintains that there are two main political convicions: an unrestrained vision of man and a restrained … Continue reading →

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Garbology

Posted on February 15, 2017 by smellincoffee

Garbology :Our Dirty Love Affair with Trash© 2012 Edward Humes288 pages Readers who are passionate about garbage — a description which includes sanitation workers, victims of SimCity, and ecologists, I assume — will find no shortage of books on the … Continue reading →

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Out of the Ashes

Posted on February 9, 2017 by smellincoffee

Out of the Ashes: Rebuilding American Culture © 2017 Anthony Esolen 256 pages Some things, like a Roman bridge, can last for millennia through the virtue of their design, the simplicity of their use, and the inherent strength of their … Continue reading →

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The Twilight of the Presidency

Posted on January 29, 2017 by smellincoffee

The Twlight of the Presidency: An Examination of Power and Isolation in the White House© 1970, 1987200 pages In Twilight of the Presidency, George Reedy uses his personal experience as a Johnson aide, along with the study of other administrations … Continue reading →

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Laughter is Better than Communism

Posted on January 26, 2017 by smellincoffee

Laughter is Better than Communism: Politics, Wit, and Cartoons180 pages© 2014 Andrew Heaton  A couple of years ago I stumbled upon Andrew Heaton’s “EconPop”, a series of videos in which he used popular films to illustrate economic concepts in a … Continue reading →

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A reading on the Presidency: The Ship of State Turns Not Easily

Posted on January 19, 2017 by smellincoffee

Another reading from The Twilight of the Presidency: Newton’s first law holds that a body at rest will remain at rest and a body in motion will continue in motion along the same line until acted upon by an outside … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Civic Interest, quotations | Tagged , , | 2 Comments