Your favorite English books in politics & religion?

kafer Peon

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#1

"To read a writer is for me not merely to get an idea of what he says, but to go off with him, and travel in his company." Andre Gride

What are your favorite books in politics & religion that had an impact on the way you perceived things in life?

Please share you titles with us of your top 5 books. If you can please include Amazon.com review and a brief note of your personal opinion.

Here are my 5-book list:

1-The New Rulers of the World by John Pilger

A wonderful book. Read it and I guarantee you that your views of International politics will change forever.

Reviews-Synopsis:

John Pilger is one of the world's most renowned investigative journalists and documentary film-makers. In this fully updated collection, he reveals the secrets and illusions of modern imperialism. Beginning with Indonesia, he shows how General Suharto's bloody seizure of power in the 1960s was part of a western design to impose a 'global economy' on Asia. A million Indonesians died as the price for being the World Bank's 'model pupil'. Ina shocking chapter on Iraq, he allows us to understand the true nature of the West's war against the people of that country. And he dissects, piece by piece, the propaganda of the 'war on terror' to expose its Orwellian truth. Finally, he looks behind the picture postcard of his homeland, Australia, to illuminate an enduring legacy of imperialism, the subjugation on the First Australians.
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2-The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins

Do you want to corner the believers like a rat then this is your book. Dawkins here has put to shame every religious apologetic ever existed. He eloquently defended Darwinâ€™s natural selection theory of evolution. Read it and the way you precieved god will never be the same.

Editorial Reviews from Publishers Weekly

The antireligion wars started by Daniel Dennett and Sam Harris will heat up even more with this salvo from celebrated Oxford biologist Dawkins. For a scientist who criticizes religion for its intolerance, Dawkins has written a surprisingly intolerant book, full of scorn for religion and those who believe. But Dawkins, who gave us the selfish gene, anticipates this criticism. He says it's the scientist and humanist in him that makes him hostile to religionsâ€”fundamentalist Christianity and Islam come in for the most opprobriumâ€”that close people's minds to scientific truth, oppress women and abuse children psychologically with the notion of eternal damnation. While Dawkins can be witty, even confirmed atheists who agree with his advocacy of science and vigorous rationalism may have trouble stomaching some of the rhetoric: the biblical Yahweh is "psychotic," Aquinas's proofs of God's existence are "fatuous" and religion generally is "nonsense." The most effective chapters are those in which Dawkins calms down, for instance, drawing on evolution to disprove the ideas behind intelligent design. In other chapters, he attempts to construct a scientific scaffolding for atheism, such as using evolution again to rebut the notion that without God there can be no morality. He insists that religion is a divisive and oppressive force, but he is less convincing in arguing that the world would be better and more peaceful without it. (Oct. 18)
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3- The Dark Side of Christian History by Helen Ellerbe

If you are sincere and want to know the real Christian history and its negative impact on the world, then go no further.

Reviews from the Publisher
Back Cover Text:

"This is simply a book that everyone must sit down and read. At a time when the so called 'religious right' asserts that Christian values will save society from its rampant sins, the ordinary citizen should know exactly how the Christian Church has attempted to 'save' societies in the past. It is a grim lesson, but one that it is imperative to absorb. Doing so could save lives." -- Alice Walker

"In a lucid, objective, and accessible style, Helen Ellerbe presents some of the long-hidden shameful secrets of organized patriarchal religion. Her book is a fascinating read, essential for a complete picture of the cultural evolution of Western civilization." -- Barbara G. Walker

"If embracing the shadow is essential to healing the spirit, confronting The Dark Side of Christian History may help us to purge Christianity of its demonic elements and allow us to hear the good news once again." -- Sam Keen

By denying evil we do harm. By denying darkness we obscure the light. Over a period of almost two millennia, the Christian Church has oppressed and brutalized millions of individuals in an attempt to control and contain spirituality. The Dark Side of Christian History reveals in painstaking detail the tragedies, sorrows and injustices inflicted upon humanity by the Church. This expose is a compelling and passionate cry for human dignity and spiritual freedom.
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4- Why I Am Not a Muslim by Ibn Warraq.

Read this book first and get informed before starting to criticize the religion of Islam.

Midwest Book Review:

This is the first book written by a former Muslim to critically consider the major principles of Islam. From the religion's origins and the nature of Mohammed's message and laws to Islamic views of women, politics and society, this provides a strong critical view of the Koran and its associated societies.
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5- Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life by Jon Lee Anderson.

Jon Lee Anderson has made a tremendous effort in writing cheâ€™s complete biography. He even managed to interview the forever in hiding solder who executed Che. You will never find a balanced written book about Che better than this. You will truly go off with the writer and travel in the company of Che.

Synopsis:

He became a myth in his own lifetime and an international martyr-figure upon his death; he was a revolutionary fighter, a military strategist, a social philosopher, an economist, a medical doctor, and a friend and confidant of Fidel Castro. Che Guevara's dream was an epic one - to unite Latin America and the rest of the developing world through armed revolution, and to end once and for all the poverty, injustice and petty nationalisms that had bled it for centuries. In the end, Che failed in his quest but he is recognized as that one-in-a-million personality who just might have pulled it off. "Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life" shuttles between the revolutionary capitals of Havana and Algiers to the battlegrounds of Bolivia and the Congo; from the halls of power in Moscow and Washington to the exile havens of Miami, Mexico and Guatemala, in a gripping tale of revolution, international intrigue and covert operations. It has an epic sweep as it evokes an era of tumultuous change, describing major events like the Bay of Pigs invasion, the October Missile crisis and Kennedy's assassination. Among its cast of characters are scores of historic personalities including Castro, Kennedy, Kruschev, Mao Tse-tung, Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir, to name but a few. Jon Lee Anderson has been given unprecedented access to the Cuban Government's archives and has had total co-operation from Che's widow, Aleida March, who has never previously spoken for publication about her late husband. He has obtained hitherto unpublished documents, including several of Che's personal diaries and, in the course of his research, broke open a twenty-eight-year-old mystery - the whereabouts of Che's body in Bolivia. There is no doubt that this monumental work will stand as the definitive portrait of one of the twentieth century's most fascinating, yet largely unexplored, historical figures.
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kafer, May 15, 2007 IP

demosfen Peon

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#2

You'll never be able to watch Fox News again - without vomiting, anyway. It's been out of print for some time though.

demosfen, May 15, 2007 IP

Jackuul Well-Known Member

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#3

I have to say the best book I have read which proves that IBM is the mother of all organized evil is a nifty little thing called "IBM and the Holocaust"

Jackuul, May 16, 2007 IP

kafer Peon

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#4

Jackuul said: ↑

I have to say the best book I have read which proves that IBM is the mother of all organized evil is a nifty little thing called "IBM and the Holocaust"
QUOTE]

Wow! that's new to me, IBM and the Holocaust? I'll be looking forwards to read it.
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kafer, May 16, 2007 IP

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Your favorite English books in politics & religion?

kafer Peon

demosfen Peon

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