It is messed up. I can't understand half of it, and I've done an A-Level designed specifically to analyse this ****.
What Books have you read/reading currently?
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It is messed up. I can't understand half of it, and I've done an A-Level designed specifically to analyse this ****.
Chokopop
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Yeah he is. Although i'm not the biggest reader, i really enjoy this book. Might read the rest of his books as well.
I never really read Harry Potter. I got halfway through the first one, and then it just died on me. The movies are good though.
LOTR trilogy is different. I like the books better than the movies.
I attempted to do it in AS. ^.^
Mate. Ulysses is shocking. If you want any pointers though, I did a literary analysis for a unit this year so I'll try dig the **** out and remember some points. Easy enough when you get into it.
I read an e-book called 'The White-Luck Warrior' by Richard Scott Bakker which is the second book from the trilogy 'The Aspect-Emperor' and 5th if you count the first trilogy 'The Prince of Nothing'. Had to read it as an e-book cause it won't come out in Croatia for at least half a year. Now I'm waiting for September cause that's when I'll find and download 'Inheritance' from Paolini, to get FM12, Assassins Creed Revelations and some other games maybe...
I Hate Fish
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Failed States - Noam Chomsky
I thought Ulysses was regarded as Joyce's greatest ever work, and one of the best pieces of literature?
I'm currently reading 'How to save a football club' by Ian Ridley. Its a true story, based on from when he brought financially striken Weymouth FC, and it shows a real insight into a how a lower-league football club is ran. Even stuff like getting 2 big men to un-block turnstyles is mentioned, and having Steve Claridge as manager.
Great book in my opinion.
Great book in my opinion.
mark 19 times
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great read.
Yeah I just ordered it from ebay, should arrive soon and cant wait to read it... apparently Hitler wrote it when he was in jail
mark 19 times
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i'm not fascist, i'm far from it but his ideas are actally quite interesting. yeh he wrote it when in jail in 1923ish i think.
it's rerelased in germany in 2015 oO)
Isn't it? Luckily I didn't do the A-Level on it, but my god...
I thought Ulysses was regarded as Joyce's greatest ever work, and one of the best pieces of literature?
Yes Joel, Ulysses is widely considered to be the magnum opus of Joyce's literary career, however I am of the opinion that "A Portrait of The Artist as A Young Man" in all its fine modernist glory is much better.
To be honest I only had to write about an extract from Ulysses, I tried reading it all and got so far but gave up.
I've heard it's virtually impossible to understand...I want to give it a go because it's so important but I don't think I could understand it reading it on my own.
Did you like it? I read a few stories in it in high school I think and remember thinking it was really good, but it's been a while. I'm thinking of getting it for my kindle, it's only a few bucks.
I'm sorry but that's a load of rubbish. You may hate the forms socialism took in history but there's nothing that's morally reprehensible in his writing; at worst it's simply utopian idealism that shouldn't have been taken too literally. Not to mention along with Darwin and Freud he's one of the three pillars of modernism. How you can say it's worse than the deranged writings of a dictator who wanted to racially purify German society is absolutely beyond me. Sounds like you're taking the work of Ayn Rand way too seriously, which is arguably more devoid of morality than Mein Kampf (at least Hitler has concern for his society as a whole and wants to do what is good in his eyes). Anyway, here are the ten measures to implement socialism in The Communist Manifesto:
1. Abolition of property in land and application of all rents of land to public purposes.
While we never went this far, property taxes are now standard.
2. A heavy progressive or graduated income tax.
Modern first world countries have this.
3. Abolition of all rights of inheritance.
In many places inheritance is heavily taxed.
4. Confiscation of the property of all emigrants and rebels.
Assuming this happened after a revolution, this would be pretty obvious, especially for the emigrants. Even in the American revolution most of the loyalists' property was confiscated.
5. Centralization of credit in the banks of the state, by means of a national bank with state capital and an exclusive monopoly.
We basically have this too.
6. Centralization of the means of communication and transport in the hands of the state.
In many first world countries transportation is publically owned.
7. Extension of factories and instruments of production owned by the state; the bringing into cultivation of waste lands, and the improvement of the soil generally in accordance with a common plan.
This happened in history as the modern state is much larger than the state that existed back then, and of course today we do have some concern for the environment.
8. Equal obligation of all to work. Establishment of industrial armies, especially for agriculture.
We have a similar idea only a different system, and I don't see anything wrong with this.
9. Combination of agriculture with manufacturing industries; gradual abolition of all the distinction between town and country by a more equable distribution of the populace over the country.
He didn't foresee the eventually disappearance of the countryside population for obvious reasons, but this is a good ideal.
10. Free education for all children in public schools. Abolition of children's factory labor in its present form. Combination of education with industrial production, etc.
We have this too.
Really wasn't as radical as people think it was and a lot of modern social welfare programs came directly from him (social security, for example, was his idea) and if you take the time period into context you understand where he's coming from. And because of the invaluable contributions he made to the social sciences he should be required reading, not banned as you implied.
How is it? I've heard good things. I read Hegemony or Survival back in high school, thought it was pretty good although he rants at times and there wasn't anything too original in there, mostly a long list of facts demonstrating how imperialistic America's foreign policy is without enough analysis of the reasons behind it or the difference in the foreign policy of the different administrations. No differentiation is made between the realism of the Kissinger years, Reaganism, the neoliberalism of the Clinton presidency, and the neoconservatism of the Bush era: it's all empire for him and motivated by the same reasons, whatever they are (aggressive realism that is somehow motivated by big business, when I saw him speak it seemed like that's what his stance was). He's surprisingly not that radical and much more moderate than you'd think, at the lecture I went to he more or less said all that should happen is the decision-making process in regards to foreign policy should be more in the hands of the American people.
It was okay Curtis, wasn't exactly my favourite book, some of the stories were enjoyable, but then some were just plain weird. Also found it to get a bit tiresome near the end, felt like it was just going over the same critiques of Dublin in slightly different contexts. But that's just me. 
Going to read Stephen Hawking's newest book some time in the summer I think.
Going to read Stephen Hawking's newest book some time in the summer I think.
The Millennium Series (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest) by Stieg Larsson is currently on sale in Tesco. £5 for all 3 books, probably reduced to clear out all of the old sleeves so they can bring out a new one soon to tie in with the new movie.
Chaz Sexington
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Which in my opinion is what we call theft, in addition to being ******* dumb. An example were the communal grazing areas of the middle ages. Because it belonged to the village, the profits were private and the damage was public when it was overgrazed. It doesn't work with industry. Property rights is something I hold very dear.
50% of America's tax payers pay 97% of the federal tax. I hardly see how it's fair that half the tax payers should prop up the rest. Additionally, in Norway it's quite common that people don't work Fridays in well paid jobs as they'd end up with a lower average hourly wage due to the tax brackets.
Which is morally bankrupt in any case. It's my money; I earned it and I decide what to spend it on. I simply disagree with this on all levels.
That isn't really purely socialists.
Yeah, how's the inflation going? Not necessarily that much against this.
Which is a ******* dumb idea. Granted, roads are fine to be paid by taxes - but even as far back as Ancient Rome this was done. However, examples include Norway's railways which are a shambles (aside from the privately owned airport trains). Oslo especially had trouble this year as they were run so badly. The difference I've noted is that public transport tends to be quite shoddy and unreliable, whereas private transportation is more expensive.
Not quite understanding what you're saying here.
Which doesn't work if you can't profit from being better.
Didn't quite get your point here.
Free doesn't exist - it's still paid for through taxes. And education for all goes as far back as Sparta (also, Scotland had it in the dark ages). It was definitely not an original idea. And abolishing child labour wasn't originally his idea either.
But what if I don't agree with the suckling of the government's teat? Teaching people it's okay to take stuff from someone who has something you feel you need?
However, I'm no libertarian or proper Ayn Rand follower. I'd say the book's more about philosophy than economics. I'm still for a welfare state, but I'm also against government monopolies.
Also, I'm not going to reply to your reply (which I foresee), as this is a book thread and not politics
Currently reading "Erfaringer for Fremtiden" (Experiences for the Future) by Kåre Willoch, Norway's greatest modern right wing PM. He's very odd relative to the world - a pro-Palestina conservative.
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