Ordered the first book of the series.Originally Posted by Glenn E. Meyer
Ordered the first book of the series.
-All views expressed are those of the author and do not reflect those of the author's employer-
That's a classic -- Philip Caputo.
Last edited by idahojess; 09-11-2019 at 10:43 PM.
Joe Abercrombie - A Little Hatred.
It's the first book of a new trilogy in The First Law world, set about 25 years after the last one. If you liked the first trilogy and the other novels, this is every bit as good. A lot of the characters are still around for this one too.
Last edited by Darth_Uno; 09-25-2019 at 08:46 AM.
Permanent Record - Edward Snowden
An interesting autobiography offering a peek into CIA & NSA cyber operations following 9/11. Those that already think Snowden a traitor will probably be put off by some of the disclosures he seems to casually make throughout the book (e.g. locations & descriptions of sensitive sites & strategies). And at times he comes off as smug. But he is clearly a brilliant man who ably explains complex ideas while telling an interesting story.
The book isn't all serious. Moments of levity include looks back at the early internet (e.g. how he met his girlfriend on Hot or Not) and the indifference of fellow clandestine workers to his passing out Cato Institute copies of the Constitution every September 17th. I particularly related to his reminiscing about the higher quality & camaraderie of email groups & message boards in the 1990's when the internet was a bit more exclusive (Pistol-forum remains a glaring exception to the decline in modern message boards).
While I still disagree with giving classified material to a foreign journalist, I better understand his reasons and I hope bringing things back to light under a less popular presidency will lead to reforms.
PS: He is a gun guy and references taking his girlfriend to the range & splurging on her revolver.
His interview with Trevor Noah:
Last edited by 0ddl0t; 09-26-2019 at 02:27 AM.
In Jack Carr's second novel, True Believer, Three Sips of Gin is mentioned and sounded very familiar. So I looked down the library of books in my Kindle and apparently I had purchased it about five years ago but never read it. It's an autobiographical account of a guy who grows up in Africa, then his family splits up and he winds up in in Canada and eventually finds himself in Rhodesia fighting in their bush war. Good first hand accounts of some interesting times.
@0ddl0t,
I must disagree with politeness and respect. No one is ever forced into employment with national security, or is ever held there against their will. Everyone signs a Non-Disclosure Agreement, and works hard to prove that they are a useful and reliable cog in the machine of national security. Everyone also agrees to protect the information that they are exposed to, in alignment with that NDA, and hopefully with a love of the Stars & Stripes and the Consitution in their heart while they make that agreement.
Snowden's a traitor, in the meanest and most literal sense of the word. I admire high ideals, but I believe that there's a moral price to be paid for the actions Snowden's taken.
No one is assigned a security clearance, and all volunteers for such accept the reponsibility for protecting information that could otherwise be used to harm the greatest opportunity for humanities' freedom. No one is compelled to make the choice to receive such information, and I believe that great responsibility is communicated to those who would receive such information.
If there were things he wanted to reveal, then the responsibilty for revealing such also falls on his shoulders. His attempt to avoid such responsibility is even more cowardly than his actions to reveal information.
There's a reason the whole world hates informers, leaks, and stukachi.
Last edited by Bergeron; 09-28-2019 at 08:22 PM.
Per the PF Code of Conduct, I have a commercial interest in the StreakTM product as sold by Ammo, Inc.
I read Ruocchio’s Howling Dark and was disappointed with it for reasons I laid out at length on goodreads, but which boil down to the author’s philosophical reach significantly exceeding his grasp, habitual conflation of certain ossified habits of thought and language as The Truth, and his chronic failure to understand that simply because one person cannot swim t does not follow that all will drown. It was as if he read Bacigalupi’s Windup Girl and drew almost entirely the wrong conclusions from it. Still, I’ll give the series one more book to right the ship or sink more coherently.
I also thought Russwll’s Epitaph a bit of a let down after the outstanding Doc. The writing just wasn’t up to her usual standards, and a better editor could have helped. .
Jade War by Fonda Lee is a well told sequel, but I grow weary of the world and culture that is its setting. Probably done with it, but I may change my mind in a year.
I started Player of Games by Iain Banks on my way to reading Use of Weapons, which some here rate highly.
I am reading Holloway's Raiders right now. I am on chapter 9 and it's a good read.
Snowden would say, and I agree, that his oath to protect and defend the constitution from all enemies - foreign *and domestic* - supercedes his NDA.
I personally disagree with his jump from:
a) realizing that his immediate chain of command (and the intelligence community as a whole) can't be trusted to police itself
to
b) giving classified material to a foreign journalist.
In Snowden's own words, he didn't believe those with oversight in the Senate knew what was going on. So bringing the matter to them seems like an obvious step 1 to me. From there it is still a long road to giving the material (not even a summary) to a foreigner.
(Admittedly by his account) he was prepared to die for this leak. He was prepared to bring scrutiny and dishonor to his blue-blooded family (his American lineage predates the revolution, his admiral grandfather was even at the Pentagon on 9/11). He is willing to stand trial. He certainly was willing to leave a beautiful yoga instructor girlfriend and a ~$200,000 job in Hawaii. So I don't think it is fair to say he is a coward afraid of the consequences.If there were things he wanted to reveal, then the responsibilty for revealing such also falls on his shoulders. His attempt to avoid such responsibility is even more cowardly than his actions to reveal information.
The real rub is that current whistelblower law effectively denies him his 6th amendment right to a jury trial - specifically his right to argue an affirmative defense ("yes I did violate the statute and this is why") in hopes the jury will reach the verdict of "not guilty." Any attempt for him to argue *why* he violated the law would be suppressed so he would effectively be looking at 10 years per classified item - easily a life sentence. And you can bet the prosecution would exclude anyone who knew the details of the Snowden case during jury selection so he'd be looking at a jury of Kardashian-followers who may have heard his name mentioned in the news about leaking, but knew nothing more.
That isn't my idea of a fair trial by an impartial jury.
Last edited by 0ddl0t; 09-28-2019 at 09:10 PM.
There really is room for fundamental disagreement between intelligent, educated, and moral individuals, and I think that's where we are. Seriously, with respect.
I imagine that my views may change if Snowden was sitting proudly in Ft. Leavenworth instead of Moscow. But that's just me.
For the record, I love this place, and I love the participants. My own code compels me to a strong defense of my government against admitted traitors. I still retain my admiration and respect of those who particpate in this forum, and I wish for the difference in my feelings between law-abiding Americans (who I love and admire) and those I consider committed traitors to be made clear.
With admiration for my fellow P-F'ers.
Per the PF Code of Conduct, I have a commercial interest in the StreakTM product as sold by Ammo, Inc.
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