Leningrad: State of Siege by Michael Jones My rating: 4 of 5 stars Westerners tend to think of their losses, sacrifices, etc., when thinking about WWII, and Americans in particular like to "brag" on how not only did they save the world twice in less than 35 years, but "won" WWII. I'm an American with …
Tag: Russia
Book Review: Losing Military Supremacy: The Myopia of American Strategic Planning
Losing Military Supremacy: The Myopia of American Strategic Planning by Andrei Martyanov My rating: 2 of 5 stars I have to admit I bought this book because the title and premise were intriguing, matching some of my own concerns about the recent, current and future state of the US military. But, wow, what a crazy …
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The Chair of the Joint Chiefs Wants Money & Has Some Interesting Comments To Make. What Are To Be Made of These?
(Note: I originally published this on LinkedIn on 11/23/18. The URL may be found here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/chair-joint-chiefs-wants-money-has-some-interesting-comments-holstad/.) U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford wants some serious budgetary money from Congress to "maintain its [the US military] eroding military edge against Russia & China — but also to start innovating." Interesting, & interesting …
A Review of Brother Number One
Brother Number One: A Political Biography of Pol Pot by David P. Chandler My rating: 3 of 5 stars The first “review” I read when I came across reviews for Brother Number One was one by “Annie,” which stated, “More objective, non-sensational and honest than than ‘Pol Pot: Anatomy of a Nightmare’.” Funny, having finished …
A Review of The Life and Times of Grigorii Rasputin
The Life and Times of Grigorii Rasputin by Alex De Jonge My rating: 3 of 5 stars Grigorii Rasputin was a real enigma. Was he a true holy man? Was he a mere charlatan? Was he the “mad monk?” Was he a con man? Did he indeed have supernatural powers? Was he merely a sex …
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A Review of Icon
Icon by Frederick Forsyth My rating: 5 of 5 stars I love this book by Forsyth. It was epic in scale. And he pulled it off masterfully. The first half of the book is plot set up, which is typical of the author. He's really into details and logistics, so this part of his books …