Book

Missive #431 Published 21 January 2025

Reviews of High Border Country should be entrusted to novelists since it is one of many current books which are historically based, but in which the emphasis is upon the telling of a good story. The book is superb, rapidly moving description, generously sprinkled with potent adjectives and conversation which skillfully etch the portraits of he-men, and in some cases of he-women, who careen through a famous or an infamous career, usually to a sudden death with their boots on. The book is one of the best collections of tall tales of the northern high plains which have been produced. It is possible that it may give a new name to the upper Missouri country of Montana and portions of the adjoining Dakotas, Wyoming, and Idaho in which it has its setting.

Missive #430 Published 20 January 2025

At least half of these essays were published in previous books. Those that were not were most likely written by Huxley in his 'later years' when he became mystical, experimented with mescaline and LSD and became an advisor to Timothy Leary.

Missive #427 Published 15 January 2025

Everyone would benefit from seeing further into the future, whether buying stocks, crafting policy, launching a new product, or simply planning the week's meals. Unfortunately, people tend to be terrible forecasters. As Wharton professor Philip Tetlock showed in a landmark 2005 study, even experts' predictions are only slightly better than chance. However, an important and under reported conclusion of that study was that some experts do have real foresight, and Tetlock has spent the past decade trying to figure out why. What makes some people so good? And can this talent be taught?

Missive #426 Published 13 January 2025

This is the third book in the series which if you are going to read any of them you should start with the first book and read them in order. The read like all of the were written as one manuscript and the publisher decided to make three books out of it. I was undecided when I read the first book and then liked the second one better; I'm now hooked and will finish the series.

Missive #422 Published 7 January 2025

I could not find any book promos for this book and there are very few customer reviews. Not a very popular book today, just lucky that it is still available at archive.org as part of of the Mainstream Of America series. It is a good history of the Southwest including Texas which some people consider part of the Southwest. The author writes popular history, a broad genre of historiography, that takes a popular approach, aims at a wide readership, and usually emphasizes narrative, personality and vivid detail over scholarly analysis. Much better than the academic historians.

Missive #418 Published 1 January 2025

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2025

Missive #417 Published 30 December 2024

This book was published in 2009 and everything the author said then is still true today only worse. I don't see anything being done with or to the Fed until the dollar collapses as the reserve currency. Then maybe.

Missive #414 Published 26 December 2024

Lavender is a writer of western history but in this book he has concentrated on the fur trade in the middle part of America. He does provide some history of the move into the Rocky Mountains but mostly as it involves Ramsay Cooks, the main character in the book. A good read.

Missive #413 Published 25 December 2024