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Author: Derek Leebaert
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439141673
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 354
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Book Description
AFGHANISTAN AND IRAQ are the latest in a string of blunders that includes Vietnam and an unintended war with China from 1950 to ’53, those four fiascoes being just the worst moments in nearly a lifetime of false urgencies, intelligence failures, grandiose designs, and stereotyping of enemies and allies alike. America brought down the Soviet empire at the cold war’s most dangerous juncture, but even that victory was surrounded by myths, such as the conviction that we can easily shape the destinies of other people. Magic and Mayhem is a strikingly original, closely informed investigation of two generations of America’s avoidable failures. In a perfectly timed narrative, Derek Leebaert reveals the common threads in these serial letdowns and in the consequences that await. He demonstrates why the most enterprising and innovative nation in history keeps mishandling its gravest politico-military dealings abroad and why well-credentialed men and women, deemed brilliant when they arrive in Washington, consistently end up leading the country into folly. Misjudgments of this scale arise from a pattern of self-deception best described as "magical thinking." When we think magically, we conjure up beliefs that everyone wants to be like us, that America can accomplish anything out of sheer righteousness, and that our own wizardly policymakers will enable gigantic desires like "transforming the Middle East" to happen fast. Mantras of "stability" or "democracy" get substituted for reasoned reflection. Faith is placed in high-tech silver bullets, whether drones over Pakistan or helicopters in Vietnam. Leebaert exposes these magical notions by using new archival material, exclusive interviews, his own insider experiences, and portraits of the men and women who have succumbed: George Kennan, Henry Kissinger, Robert McNamara, Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, and Presidents Kennedy, Carter, and George W. Bush all appear differently in the light of magic, as do wise men from Harvard, Georgetown, Stanford, and think tanks such as RAND and Brookings, as well as influential players from the media and, occasionally, the military, including General David Petraeus as he personifies the nation’s latest forays into counterinsurgency. Magic and Mayhem offers vital insights as to how Americans imagine, confront, and even invite danger. Only by understanding the power of illusion can we break the spell, and then better apply America’s enduring strengths in a world that will long need them.
Author: Derek Leebaert
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439141673
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 354
Get Book Here
Book Description
AFGHANISTAN AND IRAQ are the latest in a string of blunders that includes Vietnam and an unintended war with China from 1950 to ’53, those four fiascoes being just the worst moments in nearly a lifetime of false urgencies, intelligence failures, grandiose designs, and stereotyping of enemies and allies alike. America brought down the Soviet empire at the cold war’s most dangerous juncture, but even that victory was surrounded by myths, such as the conviction that we can easily shape the destinies of other people. Magic and Mayhem is a strikingly original, closely informed investigation of two generations of America’s avoidable failures. In a perfectly timed narrative, Derek Leebaert reveals the common threads in these serial letdowns and in the consequences that await. He demonstrates why the most enterprising and innovative nation in history keeps mishandling its gravest politico-military dealings abroad and why well-credentialed men and women, deemed brilliant when they arrive in Washington, consistently end up leading the country into folly. Misjudgments of this scale arise from a pattern of self-deception best described as "magical thinking." When we think magically, we conjure up beliefs that everyone wants to be like us, that America can accomplish anything out of sheer righteousness, and that our own wizardly policymakers will enable gigantic desires like "transforming the Middle East" to happen fast. Mantras of "stability" or "democracy" get substituted for reasoned reflection. Faith is placed in high-tech silver bullets, whether drones over Pakistan or helicopters in Vietnam. Leebaert exposes these magical notions by using new archival material, exclusive interviews, his own insider experiences, and portraits of the men and women who have succumbed: George Kennan, Henry Kissinger, Robert McNamara, Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, and Presidents Kennedy, Carter, and George W. Bush all appear differently in the light of magic, as do wise men from Harvard, Georgetown, Stanford, and think tanks such as RAND and Brookings, as well as influential players from the media and, occasionally, the military, including General David Petraeus as he personifies the nation’s latest forays into counterinsurgency. Magic and Mayhem offers vital insights as to how Americans imagine, confront, and even invite danger. Only by understanding the power of illusion can we break the spell, and then better apply America’s enduring strengths in a world that will long need them.
Author: Mike Johnstone
Publisher: Arthaus
ISBN: 9781588469540
Category : Games & Activities
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
Magic and Mechanics Clash! Sorcerers and wizards truck with demons while tinkers and engineers build mighty engines of battle in this sourcebook for Dungeons and DragonsR WarcraftR the Roleplaying Game, which translates the hugely successful Warcraft computer game series into an exciting pen-and-paper roleplaying game world based on the popular d20 System rules! Requires the use of the Dungeons and DragonsR Player's Handbook, published by Wizards of the CoastR. This product utilizes updated material from the v.3.5 revision Designed with extensive input from the creative minds behind the Warcraft computer games, Magic and Mayhem includes: * In depth discussion of magic in the Warcraft setting, including rules for arcane corruption and a new type of magic called rune magic. * The new runemaster core class; 8 new prestige classes, including the warden and the steamwarrior; and several new feats. * New spells, as well as full descriptions of the new rune families and runes used by the runemaster. * A horde of new magic items and technological devices, as well as expanded details on creating technological devices. * Statistics for Warcraft constructs-the ultimate in the merging of magic and technology!
Author: Sylvia Day
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0061763551
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 96
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Book Description
A sexy and lighthearted Halloween anthology featuring intertwined short stories from two New York Times–bestselling romance authors! Magic by Cathryn Fox: Good witch Brianna James writes a sexy, forbidden love spell on her thirty-first birthday—on the thirty-first day of October during a full moon—and conjures up on roguish, bad boy warlock! But she has no idea that she’s about to experience a passion so intense it will forever turn her good girl days into bad girl nights. And when that spell lands in the wrong hands, be prepared for a little mayhem . . . Mayhem by Sylvia Day: When Abigail Garvey steps into Conjure, the local magic shop, all she’s looking for are a few props to round out her fortune teller Halloween costume. Abby isn’t looking for a love spell that turns her drop-dead gorgeous, but long-oblivious neighbor into an aggressive alpha sex machine. Sure his single-minded pursuit (and follow-through!) is the stuff her wickedest fantasies are made of, but how much of it is the real deal? And how much of it is just a little magical mayhem?
Author: Amanda Flower
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
ISBN: 1643853198
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 298
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Book Description
A famous fiddler has been kilt. A magic garden's left to wilt. Does Fiona Knox's father hold the guilt? Will florist Fiona's blood be spilt? World-famous fiddle player Barley McFee arrives in blustery Bellewick, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, for a grand homecoming concert organized by jeweler Bernice Brennan. Fiona Knox, owner of the Climbing Rose Flower Shop, is starting to regret volunteering to help with the concert. Bernice is an exacting taskmaster, and Fiona has enough tension dealing with her parents, who have traveled from Tennessee to visit Fi and her younger sister, Isla, and to reveal a secret about Fi's birth. But when Barley is found dead in his trailer during the concert's intermission, and his death is shockingly tied to Fiona's father, Fiona discovers there are more secrets surrounding her family than she realized. Much to the chagrin of handsome Neil Craig, Chief Inspector of the County Aberdeen Police, Fiona delves into the case to clear her father's name. To make matters worse, Fiona learns that Duncreigan, the magical garden that she inherited from her godfather, is dying. At some point during the concert, someone broke into the garden and cut the centuries-old climbing rose--the source of the garden's magic--from the standing stone. The stakes are higher than ever and Fiona could lose all that she's grown unless she's able to dispel this terrible curse and dig up the truth--fast.
Author: Tamara Macfarlane
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0744044952
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 82
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Book Description
Immerse yourself in the rich, fascinating history of dragons in this illustrated gift ebook. Meet the fire-breathing beasts of mythology in this beautifully illustrated ebook brimming with scaled behemoths. Lurking in every corner of the earth, from the deepest depths of the oceans, to the tips of the tallest mountains, even tucked beneath the very ground that you tread on, dragons watch and wait. They take many forms--sea monsters, serpents, wild cats, eagles, and they represent many different things; Gods to be revered, evil kings to be feared, wise friends, and fierce foes. So, when you accidentally step on a sinewy vine and it whips out from under your feet, or invisible forces gently fan warm air across your face, or the acrid smell of cinders pokes at the back of your throat, how will you know whether to stand and wonder, or run and hide? Dragons have breathed fire into our minds since we could first imagine, but why do they exist in stories from every land in the world? Come in and explore Dragon World. Look into their lairs while they make shape-shifting mischief, playing with the weather and protecting earthly treasures. Soar across continents into tales as old as time. Prowl through the pages to discover rare dragon species. Find clues to track them and master how to draw them. Behold the earthly dragons of today!
Author: J. W. Ocker
Publisher: The Countryman Press
ISBN: 1581575548
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 484
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Book Description
Edgar Award-winning travel writer spends an autumn living in one of America's spookiest tourist destinations: Salem, Massachusetts Salem, Massachusetts, may be the strangest city on the planet. A single event in its 400 years of history—the Salem Witch Trials of 1692—transformed it into the Capital of Creepy in America. But Salem is a seasonal town—and its season happens to be Halloween. Every October, this small city of 40,000 swells to close to half a million as witches, goblins, ghouls, and ghosts (and their admirers) descend on Essex Street. For the fall of 2015, occult enthusiast and Edgar Award–winning writer J.W. Ocker moved his family of four to downtown Salem to experience firsthand a season with the witch, visiting all of its historical sites and macabre attractions. In between, he interviews its leaders and citizens, its entrepreneurs and visitors, its street performers and Wiccans, its psychics and critics, creating a picture of this unique place and the people who revel in, or merely weather, its witchiness.
Author: Jennie Nash
Publisher: Tree Farm Books
ISBN: 9781733251129
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 142
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Book Description
How to write a novel in the most efficient way by tackling the hardest part before you start to write, from top book coach Jennie Nash "This process makes me want to write, and it makes what I'm writing better. I read it before every draft. It's that good." -KJ Dell'Antonia, New York Times bestselling author of The Chicken Sisters Whether you're writing your first novel or your tenth, there is a temptation to pin it to the page before it disappears. It's such a brilliant idea and you can see the whole thing shimmering in your mind, just out of reach. Maybe you do some work on character development and plotting, but you're a racehorse at the gate, ready to run, ready to write. This book is an argument to stop and define the foundational elements of your story before you keep writing - which means understanding your motivation as a writer, considering your reader's expectations, and making sure your story has a solid structure that will hold up inside and out from beginning to end. This clarity is what gives a novel its power and a writer their confidence. Jennie Nash is the creator of the Book Coach Certification program at Author Accelerator and has taught hundreds of book coaches and thousands of novelists how to use the Blueprint for a Book system-and the Inside Outline at the heart of it - to help them produce their best work in the most efficient way. "Jennie Nash turned me into a plotter and changed the way I think about approaching any new project. I'm an Inside Outside outline fan for life!" -Alison Hammer, author of You and Me and Us and Little Pieces of Me "If you are about to start writing or revising your novel - hold up! You need this book before putting fingers to keyboard. It's a step-by-step design-your-novel manual that encapsulates the most important aspect of great story-telling: how to reach deep into your writerly heart and into the heart of the story you want to bring to life." - Janet Fox, author of The Artifact Hunters "I will sing the praises of the Inside Outline forever. It's f*ing genius." -Carla Naumburg, author of How to Stop Losing Your Sh*t With Your Kids "The Inside Outline is making writing easier. I can focus more on the writing rather than discovering what the scene is about when I'm creating it. Why isn't every writer using it? Instead, people are plonking down good money to be told ten key steps in writing dialogue or setting a scene. I'm so grateful I'm no longer one of them." - Kate Kimball, first time novelist
Author: Nicholas Bella
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 270
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Book Description
Private detective, Adrian Elias, knows what trouble looks like, and ruthless mobster and lion shifter, Sage Tamir, was just that with a capital T. On top of smelling like heaven, the man has the face of an angel, with a body made for unbridled sin. A combination Adrian finds very hard to resist. Unfortunately, someone is trying to kill Sage and they're using magic to do it. Sage usually takes these types of matters into his own hands, but this time, he's out of his league. He believes the only person who can help him is the down-on-his-luck detective. Problem is, Adrian doesn't want to take his case because he feels it may be too dangerous. Never mind the volcanic-level attraction they seem to share for each other raising the stakes. Magic and mayhem awaits.Reader Advisory: 18 and older. Strong adult situations and language. A sarcastic PI and a no-nonsense mobster will keep you turning the pages way past your bedtime. Best order that pizza, because once you start this book, you won't want to stop.
Author: Robyn Peterman
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781532721960
Category : Man-woman relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 224
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Book Description
"Caring for people wasn’t in my repertoire until I landed in Assjacket, West Virginia. Falling in love wasn’t anywhere on my agenda. It’s messy. However, I’ve been told messy is what showers and therapy are for. I’m hoping that info is correct because Goddess knows I’m trying. Never until now have I been a witch that wanted it all—the guy, the job, the friends and the place called home. Now I just have to fix my slightly irresponsible and somewhat unstable witchy ways so I deserve it."--Page 4 of cover
Author: Icy Sedgwick
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780615964898
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 102
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Book Description
Though Jyximus Faire lives in a crumbling tenement in the Underground City, he escapes the squalor daily to attend lessons in magic and sorcery at the prestigious Academy in the City Above. But the pace isn't fast enough for Jyx. He wants to learn everything - and he wants to learn it now. Then the dread necromancer general Eufame Delsenza sets her sights on Jyx; she needs a new apprentice, and Jyx fits the bill. When she tasks him with helping to prepare royal mummies for an all-important procession, he realises this might be a chance of a lifetime. Will Jyx's impatience lead to him taking his education into his own inexperienced hands, and can a necromancer's apprentice really learn to raise the dead - and control them?
