The Most Provocative Founder
932585
Aaron Burr has intrigued me since I read Gore Vidal's fictional take&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Burr-A-Novel/dp/0375708731/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Burr: A Novel</a>&nbsp;on his improbable career.  Amazing, a sitting Vice-President duels with a former Secretary of the Treasury and is wanted for murder in two states. He then embarks on a great adventure to rally militias to conquer Spanish territories.  After he's tried for treason (6 times) and is acquitted in each trial and he goes abroad to continue to raise funds for his plan.

Author David O. Stewart gives the best account of Burr's post-duel adventure I have seen. It is heavily documented from what little writing Burr left behind, the public record, and the papers, memoirs and autobiographies of others, and newspaper accounts of the time.

Nancy Isenberg in her&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Fallen-Founder-The-Life-of-Aaron-Burr/dp/B000YT9D3C/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Fallen Founder: The Life of Aaron Burr</a>&nbsp;gives a spirited defense of this man who would, but for one vote, have been President. She shows how he expanded voter eligibility, fostered public works, cared about the rights of women and, while a slave owner himself, understood the hypocrisy of the rhetoric of the time.

Stewart doesn't enter the debate on Burr. He keeps a tight narrative of what Burr did and why he was acquitted.

This book is important for bringing together all this material., and has the benefit of being an engaging read as well.
3780404
A champagne swilling, fox hunting, rich capitalist factory owner playboy who was best friends with and financial backer of Karl Marx (and co-author of The Communist Manifesto)?  A multi-lingual, polymath philosopher in his own right?  A charming firebrand who foresaw the breakdowns of capitalism generations before they occurred?
You couldn't make this guy up!
An extraordinary insight into a key influencer of our century (and every one thereafter).
[audio book ably performed by Norman Dietz]
1228313
"The Unbound Soul Applied Spirituality" is an autobiography and instructional book into the author's "Observation Meditation" and "Dance of Self" Techniques.  The author also discusses such topics, among others, as the mind, memory, psychic sense, physical body that relate to seeking the path of "Being" which seems very similar to Advaita Vedenta Philosophy.
  Most provocative and fascinating is the author's chronicling of his prodigious spiritual and psychic experiences that molded his philosophy through the years.  Very early in his life, the author had very profound dreams of Jesus who exhorted him to find the essence of his teachings.  At one point, Jesus stated "find my bones for they are the core of my teachings"  This probably marked the beginning of the author's long journey into his spiritual unfoldment.  He later had visions of himself as a spiritual teacher.  It is very interesting to note that in the author's youth, he suffered from a severe depression, had suicidal tendencies and was on the verge of committing suicide when a profound peace enveloped him and the author described a power that transformed him instantly. After this post depression period in his life and after fracturing his ankle practicing marshal arts, the author had a spiritual experience of encountering a great void and "just beyond" a presence and intelligence.  When the author queried this intelligence as to what it was, the answer received was that there was no other and that the author and "Presence" were One.  I believe this is the essence of the book that is so difficult to fathom that we share identity with this "Presence" ("God", "Absolute") but are simultaneously the "self" or "personality"  It appears that the author's early vision of Jesus and the exhortation "to find my bones" led the author to a deeper spiritual enfoldment .  Shortly afterwards, what the author describes as the "Isness inspirience", he went into a long depression for several years.  No early visions, dreams, or spiritual experiences could compare with it and, I believe, the author was never able to understand or duplicate it completely.  Perhaps describing it would be infinitely greater than explaining the difference between yellow and green to a person who never had the benefit of vision
  I believe the instructional exercises outlined in this book appear somewhat difficult to negotiate without the proper guidance and coaching.  It should be noted, however, that the author does provide a number of videos and articles on his website free of charge.  Another alternative would be the "Self Inquiry Method" outlined in various books by Ramana Maharashi and Paul Brunton
  In closing, achievement of "self realization", indeed, is no easy accomplishment.  I'm reminded of the great mystic and psychic U.G. Krishnamurti who stated that there was no self realization, no prerequisite to it and that only one out of a billion people could ever achieve this state.  U.G. described this state as a state of not knowing, which was not something that he ever hoped to achieve and, furthermore, the experience depended on the background of the individual.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, this is a provocative, comprehensive and, most importantly, hopeful book which I would highly recommend
871107
Moses Hull was one of the great Spiritualist speakers, writer and debaters. In this book, he defends the new faith, and takes on questions and objections. He consistently points of Spiritualist phenomena and shows the Hebrew prophets to be mediums, exhibiting mediumistic behaviours. He even points out some of the reformers as having spiritual occurrences, such as Martin Luther and John Wesley. Hull is a fine writer, so even if one is skeptical, much can be learned from this author. He challenges you to think and decide for yourself, based on the evidence.
1717473
Professor Rubenstein was my most fascinating and challenging professor at FSU during the 1970s. His range of intellectual inquiry makes him a "Renaissance" man. He has written numerous provocative and important books.

And I am re-reading the books thirty plus years later.
53975
Amazing!  This man is a legend!! He is one of the most influential people in history. His name will live on forever.
4345554
I have not read a more thought-provoking or challenging book of ideas since reading Ayn Rand's "The Fountainhead" or her "The Virtue of Selfishness" and there has been a long time in coming since then.  Paul Gehrman, the author of "Kaleidoscope" may not be as talented a writer as Ms. Rand, but his book definitely asks to be in comparison of "The Fountainhead" as it challenges us to think differently than what most non-freethinkers would have us believe, as much of Rand's characters asked us to consider how to look at the world through new ways of thinking through architecture and design. Gehrman's book is all encompassing of the religion versus science argument and a very good read as well.  It would be interesting to see what he follows it with.  It teaches to trust in reason before faith and superstition, something so very radical, it is very difficult to clean all those cobwebs out and start with new texts when one prays.  Although the characters do not have the feel of flesh and blood characters at times, it is still a towering work and definitely recommended.  It makes a convincing point on a lot of issues.  An unforgettable novel.
1470264
There is perhaps not a single thinker in the world more fearless than Kyrel Zantonavitch. Pure Liberal Fire is the direct, provocative distillation of his thoughts on metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, politics, economics, culture, religion, and the history of philosophy  including Objectivism and Classical Liberalism. Zantonavitch seeks to evoke a pure, true liberalism, and he shows no mercy for ideologies and attitudes that constitute its antithesis. He certainly leaves no doubt in the readers mind about where he stands on the issues addressed  and each article within the book employs an abundance of superlative expressions  be they positive or negative. When Zantonavitch praises, he *really* praises  and the same goes for when he condemns.

I give this book five stars because it invariably makes people think  no matter who they are or what their starting persuasions and assumptions might be.  There are many areas in which I strongly agree with Zantonavitch  and quite a few where I strongly disagree as well. He articulates many valid points about the fundamentals of philosophy, the importance of liberty in political theory, atheism, the damage perpetrated by various political movements and policies, and the unfortunate tendencies among historical and current Objectivists toward dogmatism and conformism instead of independent thought and the honest pursuit of truth. Some of our areas of disagreement include war, areas of foreign policy, and, perhaps more generally, the desired mechanisms for achieving societal change.

Zantonavitchs approach and style would entail achieving a fiery, dramatic, immediate deposition of everything (every person, every policy, every idea) he considers evil, dangerous, or damaging. My view of reform is more surgical, focused on getting the sequence of steps right so as to minimize the damage inflicted during the transition while ridding the world of the disease of bad policies (and, in a more long-term fashion, through persuasion and free-market education, also ridding it of bad thinking of the sort that motivates bad policies).

Zantonavitch combines his no-holds-barred treatment of his subject matters with a unique dialectical technique. There are several places in a book where he characterizes a particular set of ideas (or people) in a strongly negative way  but then later (or earlier) also portrays them as either highly praiseworthy, or at the very least understandable and characterized by redeeming attributes. Two examples that come to mind are (1) his discussions of Objectivism as a brainwashing cult in some places and as the most advanced, best-developed philosophy to date in others, and (2) his characterizations in some places of religious believers as not particularly bad as long as they do not take their belief too seriously  and in other places of anyone who believes in a god or teaches his/her children such beliefs as being guilty of evil and/or abuse. The reader can glimpse in this a deliberate juxtaposition of these opposing characterizations in a dialectical fashion  in an attempt to examine both the positive and the negative aspects of the ideas and behaviors Zantonavitch is writing about. (With regard to Objectivism, there is definitely merit in pointing out both the great strengths and the failures, as I have myself done, for instance.) This also creates a second layer of meaning in Zantonavitchs work, as his uses of positive and negative superlatives with regard to the same subject are seldom immediately close to one another. While the rest of his writing endeavors to be extremely direct (indeed, provocative) with regard to its meaning, he seems to expect his readers to make their own connections in this respect without him deliberately pointing them out. As a result, with regard to Objectivism especially, Zantonavitchs readers have the opportunity to acquire a more balanced, nuanced view after having been exposed to both his glorious praise and his scathing condemnation of the philosophy.
2670276
Johnson is passionate and erudite debater for the principle of asking the right question before answering.  Famous for application of this in the area of origin of the universe, here Johnson provides brief but fascinating inquiry into not only the origin issue, but also worldview.

Clearly he provides the strategic impetus for attacking those who hide behind their answers and thwart asking the right question, whether it be in the philosophical or political or educational arena.

How frustrating is it when those in control will not allow true debate?  One plays into this the book contends when allowance of the wrong questions to dominate the debate.  He has admirably championed the cause of contending not with science but with philosophical naturalism.  Not allowing the debate to center on Genesis but on John 1:1 is revolutionary.

His bravery in discussing his own humbling experience with stroke rehab is touching and instructive.

Challenging the question of the most important historical event to date should cause all, but especially educators and culturally elite to consider the factual data rather than philosophical bents.  Worldview presuppositions certainly do shape what we allow to be discussed, taught to our young, and be allowed in our culture.

One wise person said that it is significant that one side will always be willing to discuss all options, while it is equally significant when some will allow not all options equal discussion.  Johnson certainly is a proponent of all sides having their day in the discussion.
425369
Author Nick Bilton conducted hundreds of hours of interviews with both current and past employees at Twitter, as well as their friends and even competitors at other companies. All four co-founders of the company agreed to be interviewed - and so did board members (past and present). I've read plenty about the history of the company and still found some surprising information in this book.

In addition to interviews, Bilton turned to Twitter itself to help fact check Twitter's history and  the varied personalities behind the company. He also pored through thousands of online photos, videos, and tweets. If conversations with key players revealed significantly different recollections,  trails of info found on Twitter could often set the record straight. A smart move on the author's part - scrutinizing how the founders used Twitter - right down to tweets on the exact days and times when certain pivotal events occurred.

From the first pages, I  found myself drawn to the details of the power plays and personalities vividly chronicled by Bilton. The first section focuses on Twitter's founders: Evan Williams, Noah Glass, Jack Dorsey, and Biz Stone. All of them diverse and fascinating. Williams, the farm boy who came to California and taught himself code. Noah Glass, who opens a magazine and realizes he lives in an apartment directly across from Williams (talk about coincidence) and introduces himself by yelling, "Hey, Blogger!" at Williams. Then there is Jack Dorsey, , the "invisible man" who had a significant speech impediment but didn't let that stop him from eventually becoming so successful that he won Wall Street Journal's 2012 "Innovator of the Year Award" in technology. And Biz Stone gets his due, noted to have left millions of dollars in stock options on the table when he quit Google.

After the fast-paced, yet amazingly detailed, introduction, there is  a play by play account of the rest of Twitter's  history, with even more close-ups of the founders and their friends, associates, and competitors. Each part is lively and irresistible. The backstabbing. The irony of a company meant to bring people together but which alienated its founders from one another. The various intrigues.

 The final part of the book is also riveting, providing an update on Jack, Evan, Biz and Noah. But won't give anything away here so you'll have to to read the book to discover which man currently has relatively little money  and hopes to be part of another start-up someday. Or which one is worth millions, earning $500K  - or more - for a 15 minute speech, yet still drives old cars and dresses in clothing that could easily be found a thrift shop. Another founder is often featured on magazine covers and in media interviews but is portrayed as someone who spends plenty of nights in his "lonely glass castle in the sky." Then there is the one so affected by his Twitter days - and the power plays - that he doesn't allow his kids to use iPads, iPhones, or television.
2697344
This lively interview with one of the biggest movers and shakers in health care policy in America is a must-read. It's chock full of Emanuel's provocative  but well-supported  opinions on the future of medicine, aging, and mental health, delivered in a way that draws the rest of us into the dialogue too, and turns us into informed participants.
165042
This is an incredibly well-written biography of a man so remarkable that it's hard to believe he's still working his miracles in this venal old world.

Paul Farmer grew up in an eccentric (to understate it!) family.  With brains aplenty, he earned an advanced degree in anthropology AND an MD at Harvard.  Concurrently.  And, during his residency, he spent half of his time in Haiti treating patients at a clinic he founded.  He was also at the top of his medical class in every regard.  By age 27, he had treated more illnesses than most doctors would see in a lifetime.

Other than brains, Farmer's most marked attribute is his understanding of poverty and his abiding belief that one man can make a difference.  He is a hands-on doctor who thinks nothing of hiking 7 hours through the wasteland of central Haiti to verify that a TB patient is taking his meds and then examining and treating everyone who appears in the hut's doorway to see Dr. Paul.  Or of challenging and thereby changing the World Health Organization's protocol on treating multidrug-resistant TB.  Or of achieving the impossible:  getting American pharmaceutical companies to lower drug prices by 90+ percent for his patients.  Or of getting into Siberian prisons and convincing Russian officials to treat prisoners' HIV/AIDS and TB.  He accomplishes this on almost zero dollars.  In the midst of all this, Farmer makes time to speak at numerous international conferences, recruit volunteers, and return to Mass General where he is a renowned teacher and diagnostician, worshipped by patients and students alike.  But he always goes back to his beloved clinic in Haiti.  Still, Farmer is a most modest man----smart, funny, continually teaching everyone around him--patients, colleagues, and itinerant biographers alike.

Farmer represents not only what medicine and doctors could be, but what Man could be.  I do truly suspect that he is a saint.  Literally.  I also suspect that spending even a day with Farmer would be a life-changing event.  Highly, highly recommended.
416429
From one of the top pro-life pioneers of our day who will go down in history as a groundbreaking activist for the pro-life movement. Be a part of it.
1102345
An oustanding man with a thirst for knowledge from some of the top inspirational entrepreneurs in the world and now you get a peek at his continuous journey!
4532906
This is the story of the founder of the Equitable Life Assurance Society. It was written after he died by his son James Hazen Hyde,William Alexander,and James Alexander at the behest of the Equitable. Portions of this could also be found in the Equitable's history from 1859-1964. This is probably the most important book ever written about American business history. It's still relevant to this day. Henry Baldwin Hyde was probably some sort of inspiration to Doctor Jeckyl and Mister Hyde. He was an original member of the Jeckyl Island Club in Georgia. He used to work for The Mutual,but when he suggested doing this to Mr. Frederick S. Winston there,he was essentially fired. Undaunted,and armed with a $100,000 loan(New York had just passed a law in 1853 that all new insurance companies had to have $100,000 on deposit with the State Controller in Albany),he set up shop in the same building with a bigger sign on July 28,1859. What he did while he was alive is contained in this book. What happened after he died is perhaps more interesting. Two of his pall bearers included President Richard A. McCurdy of the Mutual Life and President John A. McCall of the New York Life. The Equitable built up such an assortment of assets and cash stream(over $1,000,000,000 insurance in force by 1899) that it drew the attention of John Pierpont Morgan. Hyde left his portion to James Hazen Hyde AKA Caleb. If he could of held out for five years,he would of attained the control his father had. Instead,using the flimsy excuse of a party,some people made enough controversy to offend Caleb and to sell to Thomas Fortune Ryan who later sold it to John Pierpont Morgan. Caleb moved to France and came back eventually in the 1950's. By this time he looked like Clarence,the Angel from Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life. He died on the hundred year anniversary(7/28/59)of the Equitable. That he fell victim to such people shouldn't really surprise us to this day. They wouldn't do this while Henry Baldwin Hyde was alive. That they got around the New York,as well as other state's, Insurance Commission(s) and the Armstrong Commission says something about mistreating rich people versus poor people. In the end,John Pierpont Morgan's heirs sold it. The power was a figment of his imagination(marginal prospensity for financial control).Eventually the Equitable was bought by the French;thus fulfilling Caleb's wishes at the educational level(Harvard,1898).
1490411
Roy Neuberger's journey to find himself is extremely inspiring. It goes to show you that a man can have all the money in the world,but without a some spiritual guidance, what is he really living for? In some ways his wealthy background was a great hinderance to him. His parents did not give Roy all the proper attention and guidance as the Ethical Cultural Schools merely confused his thinking.
Finally after 31 years, a colleague woke him up to the fact that he is a Jew whether he realizes it or not. Mr. Neuberger finally realized that he was not giving his own heritage a chance. Finally he asked to visit a synagogue with a friend and it so happened the Rebbetzin Jungeris was speaking there that night. At that point a chain reaction fo events triggered in Mr. Neuberger's brain that this was answer he was looking for.
The rest of the book consists of many powerful miracles based on prayer and faith in G_d. Although many of the stories are repeated from Esther Jungeris' The Committed Life, it is still a pleasure read about people turning their lives around by believing the Power of the Jewish Religion. Judaism encourages its followers to be strong and persist towards acheiving happiness and overcoming obstacles.
This book will make you believe in miracles even if you are not Jewish. An inspiration to us all.
2806652
This is a well written and very provocative novel, the title captures it all too simply. As you read this book, you can't help think that the concept is not so farfetched. The class distinction issue in the political theater and Occupy Wall Street movements, combined with the news this week about the disgruntled Goldman Sachs employee and the US Army sniper gone off the deep end, make Bogin's story all too possible. Highly recommended!