We're the Military and Airpower Guys of Jonah Goldberg of National Review Online + a stray we found wandering around looking lost. All original material JHD, BHD, JR, WT, and KA 2003-2010 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html Sat, 24 Mar 2012 15:54:20 Z Movable Type 4.12 en Copyright 2012 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification Post 2500. Anudder milestone. Over at Villainous Company, the dyspeptic wench posits a poser: I felt that this question, more than any other, gave me a real sense of who the candidates were: what there values were and how they thought. The question was, "What book or author, more than any other, most shaped your intellectual life?" So I'm going to throw that question out to you all, because I think it's an interesting one. And don't limit it to non-fiction, because I think that would be a mistake. I was surprised to realize that fictional works often had a... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html Fri, 07 Apr 2006 14:19:07 -0600 Serve myself! Surely you jest. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43715 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43715 Sat, 08 Apr 2006 15:31:55 -0600 The machine's over there, yer high-and-mightiness... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43714 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43714 Sat, 08 Apr 2006 13:48:03 -0600 "This Is Our Town" Faith & Freedom series "On The Threshold of Faith" by Pope John Paul II; "Night" by Elie Weisel; and "Mystic River" by Dennis Lehane ...............but I've veered off the path into the jungle room and kitten talk has taken over.......shouldn't I be served a margarita while reading these comments?]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43713 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43713 Sat, 08 Apr 2006 12:52:03 -0600 I'll pat pretty pussy, and then she will purr; And thus show her thanks for my kindness to her. Isn't that the way it usually works...? oh.. "I love little pussy"... heh. A poem. Imagine that... ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43706 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43706 Sat, 08 Apr 2006 05:02:42 -0600 "Boyd", by Robert Coram. I had waited a long time for it to come out in paperback; saw it in the local Books-A-Million; bought it. Look at the photo of the man on the cover! I think he was, in a word, *EARNEST*! I think I'll try a review of it on my blog. That guy had some quite eerie similarities with some people in my family. Our cats even have similar names! I recall reading about his famous speech about being, or doing. (Would you rather do the right thing by yer country and yerself, or would you rather be a General?) http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43703 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43703 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 22:58:03 -0600 I, for one, find programming a computer much easier than writing a sonnet. Then again, I've spent more time doing the former ;-) http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43696 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43696 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 17:56:47 -0600 Obviously our minds work in very differnt ways. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43691 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43691 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 15:33:47 -0600 I'd have to say that writing a sonnet would have to be easier than programming a computer. At least with a sonnet, a misspelling doesn't require a complete de-bugging. And you don't have to learn a new language to do it. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43687 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43687 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 13:58:16 -0600 A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, pitch manure, solve equations, analyze a new problem, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects. It's from his The Notebooks of Lazarus Long. Interestingly, I've read interviews in which he pointed out Lazarus as the primary character he most disliked and disagreed with (mostly because Lazarus had no loyalty to any place or country). Some people talk about being able to see the other guy's point of view. Heinlein could write from it. Writing a sonnet is tough, BTW.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43686 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43686 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 13:07:26 -0600 Bergmann MP-18, with snail drum magazine. The first true subgun, designed for the Storm Troops.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43685 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43685 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 12:34:05 -0600 Heinlein, Starship Troopers Sneaking politics and philosophy into military adventure. On the bounce, you Apes! Larry Elder 10 Things You Can't Say in America What finally pushed me from conservative to libertarian.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43684 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43684 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 12:14:50 -0600 John: all of the above (especially the Heinlein), plus Asimov and Ray Bradbury too.. but i would add in Bullfinch's Mythology also. i got hold of that in an accelerated readin program when i was just a wee little nipper, and that lit the fuse for a lifetime of reading all the good classics listed above. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43679 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43679 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 09:23:24 -0600 I forgot, when I was in Middle School, I read auty murphy's biography along with Patton's and a whole slew of WWII and Civil War books which made me very interested in history. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43672 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43672 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 08:38:14 -0600 books that influenced me, one way or the other: Pride and Prejudice (Romantic, but I thought it always spoke to how people can screw things up on their own although later life taught me that it doesn't always come out so nice; I also liked the language) A tale of two cities (adventure and self sacrifice) Scarlet Pimpernel (adventure; do the right thing even for people that are sometimes less than deserving) Ivanhoe (self sacrifice) Le Morte Du Author (nobility and chivalry; I was always interested in knights and the concept of chivalry/courtesy. I think it helped me later in life) Rise and Fall of the Third Reich (How evil can be so mundane that millions of people believe in it, fight for it and die for it without questioning; that whole buearacracies can be built around the practice of it, just like it was any given work) Shakespeare's Julius Ceasar, Richard the Third and Henry V (each of these had their own lesson that was pretty obvious, but I always enjoyed Shakespeare; in fact, I think I would say that ALL the shakespeare plays actually inspired me to write. Gees, I could say that about Mark Twain, too. Huckleberry Finn and tom Sawyer; the O. Henry books; too many to count I think; inspired me to read too) Gettysburg (this one should be obvious; I always thought that it was about bravery and the will to go on even under the worst circumstances) Red Badge of Courage (real bravery; the common man becoming the uncommon) I could go on. I've read many classics. I think that this has helped me to try and inspire my nephews to read some of the classics or older adventure books like the Three Musketeers and such. They aren't book works like me, but I always feel a little thrill when I get them to read something like that and, at first, they're complaining and then, as they get into the story, they think it's exciting. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43671 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43671 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 08:34:23 -0600 hehe....!!! http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43670 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43670 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 08:21:47 -0600 You are *so* bad... Heh. I feel much better about myself now. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43669 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43669 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 08:14:49 -0600 But wait! There's MORE! I did a Google search and found an extended version. I would edit my comment above, but I don't have the keys. love little pussy, her coat is so warm; And if I don't hurt her, she'll do me no harm. So I'll not pull her tail, nor drive her away But pussy and I very gently will play. She shall sit by my side, and I'll give her some food; And she'll love me because I am gentle and good. I'll pat pretty pussy, and then she will purr; And thus show her thanks for my kindness to her. But I'll not pinch her ears, not tread on her paw, Lest I should provoke her to use her sharp claw. I never will vex her, nor make her displeased - For pussy don't like to be worried and teased. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43668 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43668 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 08:08:17 -0600 .... and for those of you who doubt that poem really exists, it is, in fact a real poem. First published in 1830, it was meant to teach children how to treat kittens. Here it is in its entirety: I love little pussy, Her coat is so warm, And if I don't hurt her, She'll do me no harm. So I'll not pull her tail, Nor drive her away, But pussy and I, Very gently will play. *snerk* http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43667 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43667 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 08:05:34 -0600 Probably not, John. In all seriousness... I can't say that any books have really, truly influenced my life. People and experiences have much more influence than the books I read for pleasure. And the books I *had* to read were text books I'd rather forget. Except for my American History ones- I suppose those would be the ones with the most impact on my life. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43666 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43666 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 08:02:10 -0600 Oy. I'd shoot you in the head, but it would have no effect. Sigh. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43665 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43665 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 07:39:33 -0600 Does the poem "I love little pussy" count? *WHAP* http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43664 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/04/cassandra_asked_i_answer.html#comment-43664 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 07:36:30 -0600