| Wednesday,
August 4, 2010 : A
Newbie's Guide to Publishing: The High Cost of Self Promotion
http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/
2010/08/high-cost-of-self-promotion.html
This is something about self-publishing that is new
and deserves careful attention.
Regards,
Francis Hamit
=================
Not mere nostalgia
As a regular Jonah Goldberg reader you've undoubtedly
seen (or will in due course) his column dismissing the nostalgia for certain
conservative leaders of the recent past:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/
la-oe-goldberg-newright-20100803,0,3157292.column
The latest example comes from my old National Review
colleague David Klinghoffer in this paper. "Once, the iconic figures on the
political right were urbane visionaries and builders of institutions — like
William F. Buckley <http://www.latimes.com/topic/economy-
business-finance/media/william-f.-buckley-
PECLB004350.topic> Jr., Irving Kristol and Father Richard John
Neuhaus <http://www.latimes.com/topic/
religion-belief/richard-john-neuhaus-
PERLL000173.topic> , all dead now," Klinghoffer lamented. "Today,
far more representative is potty-mouthed Internet entrepreneur Andrew
Breitbart."
As someone who knew Buckley and Kristol (and was a
brief acquaintance of Neuhaus), I think David's got it wrong.
Goldberg may have a valid point if he's right in how
he characterizes the true motivations of the nostalgic commentators he's
criticizing. But at least in the case of Buckley I think there was embodied
in one person a combination of qualities that comes along rarely and has yet
to be rivaled or replaced, which is the conservative who "has it all" -- a
visionary approach to the movement, rhetorical gifts, courage and
perseverance, and skills in practical politics.
--Mike
I did not take Goldberg's meaning precisely as you.
Of course I knew Buckley, and Kristol and I corresponded. I was one of
Russell Kirk's protégés. Possony and I were colleagues. They were giants,
and we are the poorer for having lost them.
============
Bleive it or not....
Hi:
Due totally to my lack of eye sight, my access to
audio recordings of novels is rather limited. However on Audible.com just a
week or two ago there was a sale of older works and being of the kilt
wearing type I couldn't pass up a deal. One of the books was Lucifer's
Hammer which I mistakenly bought. I was in a hurry and thought the book /
novel was about Harley Davison's racing motorcycle from the 70's - 90's, for
you see I once raced bikes myself until 18 years ago.
Any how, much to my surprise I began reading the
novel. Let me tell you, it ain't about a racing V Twin. However, I hadn't
heard of either yourself or co-author but you both are on my radar. What an
incredible read… We had a holiday in Canada yesterday and I spent nearly
seven hours reading and have a bit to go.
I have a related question, what were your thoughts
when Jupiter was hit with the Schumacher / Levie comet? Lucifer's Hammer was
only off by two planet's.
I've begun to look through my sources for recorded
versions of your work, would you happen to have a list?
Sincerely,
Jim
I really ought to make up a list.... Try
Footfall, The Prince, Fallen Angels, and go over to Baen Books and have a
look under my name... Thanks for the kind words. Hammer is indeed an
incredible read...
==
Inferno, Burning Tower, & Escape from Hell on
Android Kindle
Dr Pournelle
I just purchased all three books for Kindle on my new
Android X. Download took seconds and the text is very clear. So far it has
turned out to be a great device.
I just finished the first chapter of Burning Tower and
like it a lot. Can't wait to finish it later on after work.
Thanks and best regards
===
More Kindle stuff
Dear Doctor Pournelle,
It is possible to search across all the books on the
Kindle, by clicking the HOME button and then entering the search term. You
can then choose between ‘search my items’ (all my books), ‘store’, ‘google’,
‘wikipedia’, ‘dictionary’ and ‘go to’. I’m not sure what ‘go to’ does, and
the browser options only work with a US Kindle.
It is possible to switch the Kindle between a US and
an International version, by changing the country in the ‘Manage Your
Kindle’ section of ‘Your Account’ at amazon.com. If you set a valid United
States address, the browser is enabled. Of course, if you are outside the US
when you do this, you may incur additional charges for the international
traffic. I haven’t (yet) tried buying a US-only book yet, but I do intend to
attempt this soon.
Regards,
Dave Checkley
=============================
Free people are not equal and equal people are not
free - but John Rawls wins again as NY Representative Jerrold Nadler wants
to equalize tax burden by raising federal taxes where the cost of living
is less.
Today's WSJ: The Blue State Blues
Taxing the rich, except in my district.
One irony of the tax increase that arrives on January
1 is that the it will hit residents of high-income, Democratic-leaning
states like California, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York the hardest.
This is a problem for pro-tax Democrats.
Enter New York Representative Jerrold Nadler, who
wants to exempt his own six-figure constituents from the tax hike he
supports. Mr. Nadler's bill would "require the IRS to adjust tax brackets
proportionally in regions where the average cost of living is higher than
the national average."
C
Surprise!
===========
Afghanistan, Pakistan ISI and CIA
What Spengler and most others seem to be completely
blind to is that the ISI has been a subsidiary of the CIA in that region for
quite a long time.
The madrassas that taught their students "Talib" a "stoneage"
version of Islam got heavy support from the CIA via ISI passthroug.
My guess is that even the conflict with India was
bankrolled and pushed from the US side to "compensate" for India having (positiv)
relations to the SU.
My conclusion is that in its base motivation the
forces that determine US foreign policy still work on having a conflict zone
on the russian and chinese borderfringe.
uwe
Apologies but I know for a fact that the ISI is not
anything like a subsidiary of the CIA. In Charlie Wilson's War the ISI got
most of the support because it was the only way to get the weapons to the
anti-Soviet warriors. Your other conclusions aren't supported by any
evidence I have seen. The Agency understood full well that building up ISI
was not popular in India, and that there would be repercussions and
blow-back. It was judged at political levels that supporting the
insurrection against Soviet occupation of Afghanistan was in the national
interest even so.
As to the present administration I have no clues
beyond their public statements.
========
Patients given huge radiation overdoses during
stroke CT scans..
http://www.nytimes.com/
2010/08/01/health/01radiation.html?_r=1
I thought you might be interested in this. Shades of
the Therac-25 disaster only this time the operator's fault.
Best, -Jim
=============
Asimov vindicated? -
Jerry,
It looks like Hari Seldon’s psychohistory <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Foundation_Series>
may be taking shape in this new startup:
http://www.gizmag.com/recorded-future-
uses-the-internet-to-predict-the-future/15921/
“Now there’s a company called Recorded Future that
says it can use information scoured from tens of thousands of websites,
blogs and Twitter accounts to predict the future.”
Cheers!
E.C. "Stan" Field
I have heard those people on George Noory's show. I
have not been able to understand precisely what they do. It is an
interesting approach to predicting the future, but I have not myself seen
any spectacular results. It's like Distance Viewing, the promise is great,
but the results don't seem to come as expected.
==========
Wikileaks and detained researcher
Jerry,
Read the CNET article referenced in today’s View about
detention of Jacob Appelbaum and the examination and seizure of some of his
equipment.
I’m a constant worldwide traveler as part of my job
running a global sales team for a security company and we are advised by our
legal team that when entering the US, but before you clear customs, you are
in a no-man’s land. You are physically in the United States, but not exactly
legally in the US until you are cleared. As such, normal search & seizure
and 4th Amendment protections do not necessarily apply.
As someone who travels with a Smartphone and a laptop,
both of which are encrypted, I haven’t decided what I would do if told that
I had to provide the password for access. Hopefully it will never come to
that.
Thanks for your writing and research,
Alex Thurber Santa Clara, CA
See reply to next letter
==
Jerry:
Very confused on your wiki-leaks stance. Three points.
1. Fourth Amendment protections don't apply when you
cross the border. Maybe they should. Maybe Congress should pass a law to
protect people. But that particular rule is as old as the Republic.
2. You seem to think the wiki-leak is bad. An American
who is part of that, then, is guilty of treason, and maybe our border thugs
(you can sense my views on those people) should be busting his ass. Or not?
3. The gentleman in question was a programmer at Tor,
which, of course, started as a DOD program to allow our spies to snoop on
islamic web sites at work while effectively anonymizing their IP address.
Krishna
Point One: I am not at all comfortable with the
notion that once an American Citizen has landed on American soil he does not
have constitutional rights. I understand the arguments, and I have read the
court cases, and I think the situation needs clarification, and certainly is
open to discussion. Either citizens have rights or they do not. As to that
rule, it is not as old as the Republic.
Point Two: The treason charge would apply to the
person who furnished the information in violation of an on oath of
allegiance and loyalty. As to the question of anonymity on the Internet,
that needs a lot more discussion than this. So does the entire question of
"leaks" and publishing. We have been debating that since the days of the
Alien and Sedition Laws in the earliest days of the Republic (and much of
that debate, still unresolved, was taught in 7th grade in Tennessee when I
was young). The debate is healthy. In general I am always in favor of
transparency; but Republics do have the right to keep some secrets. Names
of intelligence source would be among legitimate secrets as are the
sailing days of troop ships.
Point Three: I didn't know that and I don't see
that it changes my views in any event.
==
Traitors
Dr. P,
It is hard to get serious about a war when traitors
are treated with kid gloves. A number of people will remain convinced that
the source of the wikileaks documents will be suitably punished by some jail
time, but the fact remains that for traitorous acts during wartime any
consequences short of dancing the Danny Deever are a mere slap on the wrist.
Are the peacetime humanitarian sensitivities that rule our nation today
worth the certainty that we will encourage others to take the same actions
in or out of a combat zone?
I suppose the real question is "Are we at war, or
not?" For many people the outcome of the investigation and trial, plus the
reality of what charges are actually filed, will answer that question. A
nation at war cannot allow it to be "ok" to commit acts of treason. If that
dude lives more than a year, the inescapable truth is that we are not in
fact a nation at war, and we all (especially our military members conducting
combat operations) need to be very careful to understand what that means.
Acts in a combat zone that provide aid to the enemy and place allied lives
at direct risk used to carry the threat of capital punishment in the field,
at the earliest opportunity. Passing along detailed information on
operations including names of collaborators and allies certainly meets the
criteria, so if this whole thing leads to a demotion, reduction in pay, and
some jail time, that will send a loud message to our troops in combat.
I would like to think that passing that sort of
information to our enemies during a time of war would rate punishment
somewhat greater than you'd face after robbing a convenience store, but I
bet that's what we'll see come out of this.
Name withheld please...
============
Subject: Win 7 up, Mac OS X down in market share
wars
http://www.theregister.co.uk/
2010/08/02/os_market_share_stats/print.html
Tracy Walters, CISSP
=================g
TOP
CURRENT
VIEW Wednesday
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