Political reads
 

I'm reading Millennial Makeover: MySpace, YouTube, and the Future of American Politics. I don't like the title so much, but the book is amazing. It's about the 4 generational cycle that has been happening in America since the Whig party folded and we moved to the 2 party system. Once the cycle is pointed out, it seems blatantly obvious. I find it really invigorating to know that we are up for some real change. I highly recommend the book.

I also just read Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. These two tie together kind of nicely, as Vowell finds her own repeating patterns in history. She travels around to places made famous by the assassinated presidents, especially those we don't know much about.

Both of these books reminded me how much I love reading about American history, flavored with a bit of current politics.

Anyone else read anything with a political bent during this election season?

I read Daffy Duck for President by Chuck Jones.

Or just plain old "Duck for President" by Doreen Cronin.

I visited the FDR home in Hyde Park, NY yesterday and that got me interested in doing some reading on the New Deal. I need to look up some books at the library.

That's a great home, from what I remember of my visit 20 or so years ago.

Yep, loved the FDR Home back in my Long Island days.


i O.D.'d on American History making that CD (that likely, heheh, no one but me ever listened to)

The hubbo is reading Bob Woodward's new book, The War Within. It's about the Iraq War 2006-2008. Hubbo loves it.

I listened to it. Nice mixin'. :) Have to admit, not on my heavy rotation, but may have to put it on for Election day.

There's some serious buzz on this one. I haven't read any of the Bush Admin tell-alls, and I don't know if I could handle it. Seeing "W" will be hard enough...

I bought it (Millennial Makeover) and will take it to Europe with me.

In the other thread I wasn't saying the theses of the book were necessarily wrong, just that it is endeavor with a lot of good looking failure. Historical patterns have a habit of making complete sense and working fine right up until someone tries to use them to forecast future history. Hari Seldon is still a visionary. But that in know way makes them bad reads assuming the history is correct (and sometimes the forecasts work at least one more time too).