Tag Archives: Politics-CivicInterest

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 →

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A reading on the Presidency: A Man Divided?

Posted on January 18, 2017 by smellincoffee

The president really has two jobs. The first that has received is that of his managerial role, his responsibility for handling the nation’s affairs. Coupled with that is his role of personifying the nation and becoming thereby the unifying factor … Continue reading →

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You Have the Right to Remain Innocent

Posted on December 23, 2016 by smellincoffee

You Have the Right to Remain Innocent © 2016 James Duane 152 pages “One of the Fifth amendment’s basic functions is to protect innocent men who otherwise might be ensnared by ambiguous circumstances.” (Ohio v. Reiner) “People are inherently honest, … Continue reading →

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Local democracy and the State of Jefferson

Posted on December 17, 2016 by smellincoffee

mp3  One of the local-democracy initiatives Bill Kauffman covered in his Bye, Bye, Miss American Empire was the ‘state of Jefferson’, an area of northern California (and bits of southern Oregon) that want to be free of their respective governments. Today, … Continue reading →

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Bye Bye Miss American Empire

Posted on December 10, 2016 by smellincoffee

Bye Bye Miss American Empire: Neighborhood Patriots, Backcountry Rebels, and Underdog Crusades to Redraw America’s Political Map© 2010 Bill Kauffman You say you want a devolution? \ Far beyond the city across the river, this country is pregnant with happy … Continue reading →

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Conclave

Posted on November 30, 2016 by smellincoffee

Conclave© 2016 Robert Harris484 pages Inside the Casa Santa Marta, the elders of Rome are again assembling to choose the next bishop of Rome, and thereby the governor of Catholics the world over.  The Dean of the College of Cardinals … Continue reading →

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The Works

Posted on November 25, 2016 by smellincoffee

The Works: Anatomy of a City© 2005  Kate Ascher240 pages Cities are, for my money, mankind’s most astonishing invention. Their complexity is stupefying — system within system, handling tons of material at any given time, whether the subject is cars … Continue reading →

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The Road Taken

Posted on November 16, 2016 by smellincoffee

The Road Taken: The History and Future of America’s Infrastructure336 pages© 2016 Henry Petroski What, exactly, is The Road Taken?   Its title declares it a history, which is mostly true. It does have a bounty of historic sketches on the … Continue reading →

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Divided Highways

Posted on November 7, 2016 by smellincoffee

Divided Highways: Building the Interstate Highways, Transforming American Life©  Tom Lewis 2007, 2013416 pages No engineering project in the United States is more impressive than the interstate system; dense with the connections of a street grid, it serves not blocks … Continue reading →

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America First

Posted on September 21, 2016 by smellincoffee

America First: Its History, Culture, and Politics© 1995 Bill Kauffman296 pages For slightly over a year prior to the attack at Pearl Harbor, there existed a civic organization of nearly a million people called the America First Committee. It dedicated … Continue reading →

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