We should start a book club

[Mycroft]

I just finished Natan Sharansky’s "The Case for Democracy" and was feeling appreciative of Rik for suggesting it and Demon for goading me into advancing it on my reading list.

What I liked about the book is it breaks away from the usual liberal/conservative dichotomy and looks at world events from a moral perspective I think everyone can agree with, that freedom should be encouraged and that free societies are inherently more stable than non-free (fear) societies.

I also found it thought provoking. In another thread when BPSCG challenged various people to provide an alternative to war in removing Saddam from power, answers were not forthcoming. Yet Sharansky has an answer, Link aid, relations and legitimacy from the West to observing human rights at home.

I think we should form a book club. Get a dozen or so people from different viewpoints, pick one book per month that everyone reads and discusses. In that way not only would we expose ourselves to points of view we wouldn’t normally explore on our own, but perhaps the dialogue would be a little bit more deep than just stating and restating the same positions back and forth.

 

[rikzilla]

Cool...glad you liked it!

It's an important book I hope everyone here reads. It breaks the whole left/right impasse. I read it during the weekend of the Iraqi elections and it put the whole democratic process into perfect context. His ideas are as true for Iraq and Lebanon as they were for the USSR.

As for the book club idea, I think it's a good one. We already have a sub-forum for literature, but it's a backwater. I think we should conspire to have a political book club contained right here in this forum....otherwise it'll fall into relative disuse as well.

-z

 

[aerocontrols]

I never learned to read.

 

[BPSCG]

As for the book club idea, I think it's a good one. We already have a sub-forum for literature, but it's a backwater. I think we should conspire to have a political book club contained right here in this forum....otherwise it'll fall into relative disuse as well.

Perhaps as a subforum under PCE&SI?

Make it a book-every-two-months club? One month to give everyone time to read a book, and the second to allow discussion? That may sound like too much time to read a book, but I've been reading Sharansky about a week and I'm barely halfway through it. Not that I'm a slow reader, but my life demands I do other things besides read all the time (unlike, say, demon...).

Would have to find a way to strike a balance between ideologies. Can't have Ann Coulter's latest this month, followed by Sean Hannity, followed by Rush Limbaugh... (and I'm hoping the intellectual level would be somewhat higher, as well).

How do we arrive at consensus on what's the next book up for review, in a way that forces a balance across the ideological spectrum?

Note regarding Sharansky: I remember a "Li'l Abner" strip a thousand or so years ago, where it somehow fell upon Abner to embark on some quest to save the world. On sending him off, Mammy Yokum memorably observed that "Good is better than evil, 'cuz it's nicer."

Sharansky lays out the reason democracy is better than tyranny, a credo that is not, apparently, universally accepted.

 

[Mycroft]

I never learned to read.

There are books on tape.

I think the first order of business is to solicit volunteers for membership. I think an effort should be made to get people from different points of view. While I’d love to see what offerings are put up by BPSCG, Skeptic and Jocko, I’d also like to see evidence the Fool and AUP actually read books, and I’d even be willing to wade through a rambling manifesto submitted by Demon to see it.

So who’s up?

 

[corplinx]

There are books on tape.

I think the first order of business is to solicit volunteers for membership. I think an effort should be made to get people from different points of view. While I’d love to see what offerings are put up by BPSCG, Skeptic and Jocko, I’d also like to see evidence the Fool and AUP actually read books, and I’d even be willing to wade through a rambling manifesto submitted by Demon to see it.

So who’s up?

You don't care about what books I read? I'm soooo offended.

 

[aerocontrols]

I remember a "Li'l Abner" strip a thousand or so years ago, where it somehow fell upon Abner to embark on some quest to save the world. On sending him off, Mammy Yokum memorably observed that "Good is better than evil, 'cuz it's nicer."

But to quote Dark Helmet:

Evil will always triumph because good is dumb.

Books on tape are expensive. I purchased/listened to Howard Zinn's People's History of the United States (20th Century) on tape.

I guess if we do that one, I'm in.

MattJ

 

[Cleon]

Would have to find a way to strike a balance between ideologies. Can't have Ann Coulter's latest this month, followed by Sean Hannity, followed by Rush Limbaugh... (and I'm hoping the intellectual level would be somewhat higher, as well).

You want an intellectual level higher than Coulter, Limbaugh, and Hannity? How about "Dick and Jane" books?

Seriously, sounds like a neat idea, but I doubt it would work in the long run. I would suggest instead a sub-forum where each book recommendation could be its own thread. For example, Rikzila could post about the wonders of Sharansky's latest, and the thread could be for discussion. Skeptic could post about what an eye-opener Patai's The Arab Mind is, and the thread would follow.

It seems to me a regimen like that would be a lot easier to deal with than a decision-making process about what book to read.

 

[IllegalArgument]

I'm interested, are we limited the books to political ones only?
Because I just got through reading some damn interesting books about human perception. I would strongely suggest reading "Blink" and "The Tipping Point".

"Case for Democracy" is a great book I would definately recommend it for everyone to read.

 

[rikzilla]

There are books on tape.

I think the first order of business is to solicit volunteers for membership. I think an effort should be made to get people from different points of view. While I’d love to see what offerings are put up by BPSCG, Skeptic and Jocko, I’d also like to see evidence the Fool and AUP actually read books, and I’d even be willing to wade through a rambling manifesto submitted by Demon to see it.

So who’s up?

I'm in....but then again I already made the first suggestion and some folks have already run with it.....

-z

 

[rikzilla]

First rule: NO OBVIOUS POLEMICS

 

[aerocontrols]

First rule: NO OBVIOUS POLEMICS

Nah.

The first rule of Book Club is that you don't talk about Book Club.

 

[Skeptic]

I never learned to read.

You could be the "progressive anti-war ethically superior" guy, then.

 

[Skeptic]

Nah.

The first rule of Book Club is that you don't talk about Book Club.

You mean, it's going to be like "fight club" in the movie with the same name, only in a library??? The "Book Club" rules would need some amending, then:

The first rule of Book Club is - shhh.
The second rule of Book Club is - SHHH.
Third rule of Book Club, main character dies, goes into an asylum, makes it back home, the book is over.
Fourth rule, only one patron to a cubicle.
Fifth rule, no more than five books at a time, fellas.
Sixth rule, no shirt, no shoes, no service.
Seventh rule, Tolstoy, Dickens, and Stephen King books will go on as long as they have to.
And the eighth and final rule, if this is your first day in Book Club, you have to read the Young Adult stuff.

 

[Darat]

If Members want to get together on this happy I’ll be happy to set up a controlled sub forum. (And by controlled all I mean is that it’s not to be used as a sub-forum of this section but just for the "The BookClub" idea.)

 

[kimiko]

Sounds great. I'm in.

 

[Mycroft]

Books on tape are expensive. I purchased/listened to Howard Zinn's People's History of the United States (20th Century) on tape.

I guess if we do that one, I'm in.

I'm counting on you to present the neo-con point of view.

It seems to me a regimen like that would be a lot easier to deal with than a decision-making process about what book to read.

Maybe, but I like the idea of interaction between people of different viewpoints in addition to just creating a reading list. The way I see it, the downside risk is nill, if it doesn't work out we just stop or try it in a different way.

If Members want to get together on this happy I’ll be happy to set up a controlled sub forum. (And by controlled all I mean is that it’s not to be used as a sub-forum of this section but just for the "The BookClub" idea.)

I sort of envisioned just starting a thread every month in the same way the language awards are handled, but that’s an idea too.

I'm interested, are we limited the books to political ones only?

That’s a great question and I don’t have an answer. I was thinking a political book club, but would a broader base of subjects be more interesting? One could even argue that perception is very political and is very much on topic.

So so far we have myself, Rikzilla, BPSCG, Coprlinx, Kimiko, Aerocontrols, IllegalArgument, Cleon and Skeptic. Not all of whom have said, "I want in" but who have all expressed enough interest to post in this thread. Next we need some suggested reading material.

Nominations?

 

[Cain]

"Should we start a book club?"

No.

 

[Cleopatra]

This is a good idea although Renata attempted to started this a couple of years ago on a different subject of course and it didn't work.

Even for those that do not have access to the books they could just read and get informed.

Another idea and tad easier would be to read and discuss "influential" Op-Ed's about a topic-- yeah I have Middle East in my mind but this is not the only topic in the universe( although I am not certain about that).

 

[Chaos]

*snip*
Another idea and tad easier would be to read and discuss "influential" Op-Ed's about a topic-- yeah I have Middle East in my mind but this is not the only topic in the universe( although I am not certain about that).

That´s another good idea, even more so for those of us with limited access to US political literature (and a limited budget, too).

BTW, thanks for pointing bitterlemons out to us a while ago. It´s very interesting.