Future Books

Bhikkhu Bodhi was born in New York in 1944. He received a B.A. in philosophy from Brooklyn College (1966) and a Ph.D. in philosophy from Claremont Graduate School (1972). On May 15, 2000, Bhikkhu Bodhi addressed the United Nations at the first official U.N. celebration of Vesak, the day marking the birth, enlightenment, and passing away of the Buddha. This small book contains that speech. It explains the Buddhism in a very simple way and is useful for any Buddhist or non-Buddhist as one can too get a clear understanding of what the Buddhism is about. His profound, very wide knowledge is reflected throughout the speech.

Technology exponentially improves every year that passes, and in "Building the Future", an optimistic view of the advancement of technology and the good it can bring mankind, a shining beacon in the sea of pessimism of cyber crime, threats of nuclear war, and child predators getting marks on the internet. Life will only get better and better in the grand scheme of things claim Mac and Sam, writing under pseudonyms for reasons they say they won't explain, and future generations have a lot to look forward to. "Building the Future" is highly recommended to community library technology collections.

I received John Clem's book "Building the Future Today", and I was impressed with the variety of building subjects that it covered. It was writen in terms that the layman could understand. I would highly recommend this book to anyone contemplating a new home or extensive remodeling. I feel that even professionals could pick up interesting pointers from this book.

Hughes' American Model, July 3, 2005


Kent Hughes has an optimistic and realistic vision of the economic future of the United States. His optimism is rooted in confidence that future leadership will return to the bipartisan American model of the last two decades of the twentieth century. This American model for generating competitiveness was keyed to the adoption of advanced technology under a government/private partnership accompanied by fiscal and financial conservatism. Hughes' optimism may be realistic if future leadership and the country as a whole respond to current crises with the kind of shared risks and benefits approach that was evident in meeting the crises of WWII and the last two decades of the twentieth century.

Hughes provides chapter and verse in the development and success of the bipartisan American model of the Reagan/Bush/Clinton years. A Time Line appendix details the legislation and policies that underpinned the development of the American model. In 1980, Congressman Gilles Long, leading the Democratic Caucus, provided political support for a technology-based competitiveness policy. The Young Commission on Industrial Competition under President Reagan broadened and accentuated this policy. Alan Bromley, Science Advisor in the first Bush administration, was a key figure in continuing the competitiveness policy featuring emphasis on critical technologies. In the Clinton years, the bipartisan competitiveness policy was enhanced by deeper government/private-sector partnerships in technological development, by reduction of trade barriers, and by adoption of conservative fiscal and financial policies.

In the second Bush administration, new crises in security, fiscal, financial and energy policies have emerged. Hughes is optimistic that a return of a bipartisan American model stressing both efficiency and equity is possible and could be effective. Essential to reviving this American model is acceptance of a broad policy of shared risks and benefits. Those who live in the "City on the Hill" must share their benefits with the less powerful in order to spur competitiveness. Hughes finds improvement in efficiency and equity are both essential to the success of the American model. In this, Hughes taps into a strong theme in western philosophy - the Augustinian view that a universal and equitable society is necessary to assure progress.

John Hardt
Senior Scholar at National Council for Eurasian and Eastern European Research
Adjunct Professor of Economics, George Washington University






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This was an excellent book and very interesting reading. The collection of essays are varied and informative. As an Aid Development student I highly recommend it for anyone who would like to read up on some political history and western opinions. I don't agree with all of them, but the views are arguments are interesting in themselves. Of particular interest are the described motivations for facilitating Myanmar's entry into ASEAN. This book is a must for the political, sociological or culturally inclined.

This version of Cakes for the Queen Of Heaven is an excellent presentation of the weeks long curriculum offered in UU churches. It's a shame for it to be out of print. Shirley, consider Print On Demand. Some publishers will publish out of print books free.

I was living in Monterey, California when I first picked up this book. Monterey is one of the more beautiful and 'unaffected' areas of California, but no part of this state is fully immune to the problems listed in this book. Among them: crime, high taxes, over-population, illegal aliens, earthquakes, and the ever-pressing problem of the lack of water. While California is still a wonderful place to visit, I was already thinking that I no longer wanted to live there. The book was greatly influential in my final decision to move - back East.

I had the pleasure of studying political economy with Professor Schneider as an undergraduate during the final stages of this book's production. Although I do not own a copy, I have read it in manuscript form. Prof. Schneider's book first relates the decline in American productivity over the past few decades to the lack of social mechanisms to support productivity growth. He then goes on to demonstrate how the traditional Democratic support base is eroding as the Democratic party switches its focus from providing these social mechanisms to satisfying special interests.

The book is clearly written, and his point is very well argued, drawing examples from issues ranging from national defense to public education and childcare. I highly suggest this to anyone, of any political affiliation, who is interested in a troubling yet gripping thesis about why the Democratic party is losing its once dominant power in American politics.

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Interestingly, I wrote this review prior to the November 2002 elections. Prof. Schneider's thesis, also developed and published well prior to 2002, is almost a perfect fit to what many pundits and critics claim to be the reason for the Democrat's inability to pickup midterm seats. This book has turned out to be particularly prescient in that respect.

The fifth title in a six-book "The Reference Shelf 2004" series, The Car And Its Future is a compilation of informed and informative articles drawn from respected publications, and additional article abstracts, as well as a bibliography of other sources. Enhanced with a bibliography, a listing of websites, "Additional Periodical Articles with Abstracts", and a comprehensive index, The Car And Its Future is accessibly organized into six major sections: Life Behind the Wheel; Marketing and Design; Traffic and Safety; Insurance and Auto Repair; The Auto Industry: A Global Perspective; and Alternative Fuels. The result is a well-rounded, non-biased, and substantively instructive overview that will hold special interest and value for academia and the the interested non-specialist general reader alike.

The only immortality that I know isn't carved in some stone monument. It's the thoughts and memories recorded in the human heart, echoing down from one generation to another. If you want to be remembered, then write down your experiences, your dreams, and the adventure that is your life.

Mr. Houze has written a one of the seminal works of the 1980's. The concept is simple -- multi-task your career / don't put all your skills into one basket! Today, everyone knows this. Mr. Houze was a luminary in the HR world -- GE, Rockwell and then as a world-recognized executive recruiter. Many senior executives owe their careers to him.