In our world today, several people, groups and minorities are singled-out for persecution. Yet there is one group that overwhelmingly has faced a more sustained, vicious, and relentless hatred: the Jews.Many people have negative perceptions about Jewish people and the state of Israel. The question is, why?The why is a bit elusive. But we know some of the sources, and sadly, the legacy of the notorious forgery, The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion has created widespread fear and hatred of the Jewish people. Purported to be a strategic document for taking over the world, the Protocols is actually a product of the Czarist police in Russia, not long before the Communist Revolution.Now, in License to Murder, esteemed scholar Alex Grobman has written a brilliant examination of this famous document, and his historical grasp is important to understand, if we are going to effectively battle persecution in our world today.
This is the true-life, roller coaster-ride story of a multi-talented, Earth-toned American singer, musician, and comedian, born and raised in Portland, Oregon, who survived a bullish upbringing that left him with a sense of unworthiness and not belonging, which metastasized into a wall of hopeless resentment and led to a rebellious, systemic journey of grapefruit-sour relationships, including a bogus military-based marriage, followed by a dysfunctional relationship in college, which led to a disastrous internship with the Portland Fire Department. He recognized early on his susceptibility to alcohol, and fell in love with a succession of women well-versed in the art of manipulation, relationships he respectfully describes as strange grapefruits. Having become involved in a biracial romantic entanglement, he relocated to the City of Seaside on the Pacific Northwest Oregon coast, working his way up to the position of supervisor of that city's most popular beachfront hotel. However, he bites off more than he can chew as he is a convenient and continuous target, of police brutality, and endemic, rural-region bullying racism for eleven consecutive months. While attending the post-nuptial reception of a friend, he and the newlywed bride find themselves cornered by an invading gang of racist bikers with murder on their minds, which turns into an all-out melee in the host's kitchen. After forcefully subduing the leader of the pack, he is elevated to instantaneous-hero status by the Seaside Police Department, who do a one-hundred-eighty degree turnabout regarding their treatment of a civilian they now hold in high regard. Despite this newly developed dEtente with the town heat, our plucky protagonist is still faced with another two-and-a-half years of constant death threats from the remainder of the notorious biker gang out of Portland, Oregon, who try to exact their racist revenge when they corner our hero once again. He escapes their clutches through a strange twist of fate, is arrested, charged with another infraction, goes to trial, and is found not guilty, twice, for acting in self-defense; Double jeopardy in a court of law, due to racism in the State of Oregon = Justified License To Kill in the eyes of the law.
Robert Young Pelton first became aware of the phenomenon of hired guns in the War on Terror when he met a covert team of contractors on the Afghanistan/Pakistan border in the fall of 2003. Pelton soon embarked on a globe-spanning odyssey to penetrate and understand this shadowy world, ultimately delivering stunning insights into the way private soldiers are used. Enter a blood-soaked world of South African mercenaries and tribal fighters backed by ruthless financiers. Drop into Baghdad’s Green Zone, strap on body armor, and take a daily high-speed ride with a doomed crew of security contractors who dodge car bombs and snipers just to get their charges to the airport. Share a drink in a chic hotel bar with wealthy owners of private armies who debate the best way to stay alive in war zones. Licensed to Kill spans four continents and three years, taking us inside the CIA’s dirty wars; the brutal contractor murders in Fallujah and the Alamo-like sieges in Najaf and Al Kut; the Deep South contractor training camps where ex–Special Operations soldiers and even small town cops learn the ropes; the contractor conventions where macho attendees swap bullet-punctuated tales and discuss upcoming gigs; and the grim Central African prison where contractors turned failed mercenaries pay a steep price. The United States has encouraged the use of the private sector in all facets of the War on Terror, placing contractors outside the bounds of functional legal constraints. With the shocking clarity that can come only from firsthand observation, Licensed to Kill painstakingly deconstructs the most controversial events and introduces the pivotal players. Most disturbingly, it shows that there are indeed thousands of contractors—with hundreds more being produced every month—who’ve been given a license to kill, their services available to the highest bidder.
The most frequently asked question about writing musicals is, "Which comes first, the music or the lyrics?" As anyone on Broadway will tell you, the answer is, "The book." Tony-winning book writer Robert L. Freedman takes you through the process of writing a new musical, including story structure, song placement, dialogue, character development, and more that led to the creation of A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, the 2014 Best Musical Tony winner. With candor and insight, Freedman describes the challenging and rewarding growing pains of what the critics called "Hilarious!" and "Ingenious!" and said "Ranks among the most inspired and entertaining new musical comedies I've seen in years."
Officer Marcus Moscowicz is a small town policeman with dreams of making it to detective. One fateful night, shots ring out at the surprise birthday party of Great American Novelist Arthur Whitney and the writer is killed…fatally. With the nearest detective an hour away, Marcus jumps at the chance to prove his sleuthing skills—with the help of his silent partner, Lou. But whodunit? Did Dahlia Whitney, Arthur's scene-stealing wife, give him a big finish? Is Barrette Lewis, the prima ballerina, the prime suspect? Did Dr. Griff, the overly-friendly psychiatrist, make a frenemy? Marcus has only a short amount of time to find the killer and make his name before the real detective arrives… and the ice cream melts!
The specter of the marauding serial killer has become a relatively common feature on the American landscape. Reactions to these modern-day monsters range from revulsion to morbid fascination--fascination that is either fed by, or a product of, the saturation coverage provided by print and broadcast media, along with a dizzying array of books, documentary films, websites, and "Movies of the Week". The prevalence in Western culture of images of serial killers (and mass murderers) has created in the public mind a consensus view of what a serial killer is. Most people are aware, to some degree, of the classic serial killer 'profile.' But what if there is a much different 'profile'--one that has not received much media attention? In Programmed to Kill, acclaimed and always controversial author David McGowan takes a fresh look at the lives of many of America's most notorious accused murderers, focusing on the largely hidden patterns that suggest that there may be more to the average serial killer story than meets the eye. Think you know everything there is to know about serial killers? Or is it possible that sometimes what everyone 'knows' to be true isn't really true at all?
Your soul is a war zone. Know your enemy. Learn to fight. Rather than aiming at simple moral reformation, Licensed to Kill aims at our spiritual transformation. This field manual focuses on the most critical information regarding our enemy, and gives practical instruction concerning the stalking and killing of sin.
Sleuth and first-time mom Kate Connolly and her baby are the victims of a hit-and-run, but escape unharmed. A witness identifies the car's French diplomatic license plates, yet when Kate and her hubby try to get some answers, they get le cold shoulder. But there's something going on at the French consulate that's dirtier-and far deadlier-than any diaper.
New York Times bestselling author Ann Rule brings several riveting accounts of seemingly normal men and women who are compelled by a murderous rage to suddenly lash out in this installment of her Crime Files. Ann Rule dives into one of Seattle’s most infamous crimes: a city bus ride that turned into mayhem and murder at the hands of a gunman. With her signature “devastatingly accurate insight” (The New York Times Book Review), she unmasks the forces that drove quiet, clean-cut Silas Cool to shoot the driver, causing the bus to plunge off the Aurora Bridge into an apartment building. Included here are nine other cases that illuminate Rule’s unique and authoritative view of the human psyche gone temporarily berserk. In A Rage to Kill, Ann Rule frighteningly shows that none of us are truly protected from the flashes of irrational violence that can erupt from the killers among us.
