Manipulation

"...an exhaustive description of the different technologies...provides useful and specific information and possible applications to this field..." (Cell Biology International)

I really like this book. It is very clear, though Thiseleton is constantly referencing philosophers from all throughout history. I am American enough to find myself pining for the bottom line, but I know reading references is good for me because I am getting a lesson in philosophy and history at the same time! The sheer volume of citations in these first two parts testifies to the experience and the patience of Thistleton as a philosopher.

In the first part, he examines the Nietzscheian idea that truth is nothing other than a metaphor that we have forgotten is a metaphor and keep around only in so far as it serves an individual's will to power. He points out that the postmodern fear of manipulation can actually be healthy for the Christian Church, because it will help us to unite against the "Christian Leaders" who are, in fact, merely manipulating people. He also points out that the whole Nietzscheian slave morality thing really just doesn't apply to true Christianity. He gives examples from Bonhoffer and Luther, testifying to the fact that Christianity is not a system of beliefs that calls for its people to remain passive while the Truth is being slandered. And as for manipulation, the New Testament is clear about the fact that false apostles will try to distort the Truth to suit their agenda, but we are not to give them any credit (2 Corinthians and Galatians).

In chapter 5 Thistleton has a lot to say about Wittgenstein and language that is incredibly important. One of the major conclusions of part one is that Truth is usually best interpreted relationally. This is the idea that leads us into part two. In part two, we get a lesson in hermeneutics. This section seems exceedingly long, but that is just because Thistleton is so patient to give credit to all the different thinkers who have contributed to the discussion and all that. What we end up with, however, is fairly simple. It is basically just the exact opposite of Derrida's deconstructionism. In chapter 10, Thiselton gives us 5 interesting theses. 1) We can always tell something about the author when we study a text. 2) The Scriptures speak to our true selves. 3) All texts speak to readers as thinking selves. 4) Different interpretations tell about differences in readers. And 5) The Bible was written to transform our lives, and if we are to understand what it says, we must keep that in mind.

The third part is basically just a refutation of Cupitt's "Sea of Faith Network" stuff. It seems that Cupitt was some sort of religious atheist who got a good deal of press over in Great Britain. Based on what Thiselton had to say about the movement, I really don't even see why Cupitt's ideas were worth the time it took to refute, but I guess because Cupitt wrote more than a book a year for about ten years and had a large following, Thiselton was worried that his ideas may spread.

Part 4 is more constructive, I think, but less clear. It is obvious that Thiselton is a very clear thinker, but he is so faithful in giving credit for borrowed ideas that it is often confusing as to whether Thiselton is presenting someone else's views to refute them (like he did with Cupitt's ideas) or to incorporate their ideas into his thesis. This anal name-dropping really takes a lot away from the readability of this final section, but I think that the basic thesis is clear.

Thiselton starts off by pointing out the fact that it is our duty to translate the Gospel into contemporary language games without compromising the message. He points out that in Nietzsche's day, Christianity was just getting into the whole dualism thing (which was already almost dead in philosophical circles). Christianity was so hung up in antiquated philosophy that Nietzsche and Heidegger dismissed the whole religion as "Platonism for the People" (by the way, this makes me suspect that Nietzsche and Heidegger got their understanding of Christianity entirely through Ron Nash's books).

The point for us today is that Dualism is out, and has been out for a while. Physicalism is in now. We need to give up all this mind/body dualism junk and do our best to translate the Gospel into physicalist terminology. We don't have to agree with all the basic beliefs of Physicalism, but we should never have agreed with the basic beliefs of dualism either! We don't need to let our message get distorted by the secular philosophers, but we need to talk their language so that they can at least understand us! The final chapters of this book are an attempt to show the postmodern subject that what they need is Christianity. Whereas the defining characteristics of postmodernism are cynicism and despair, Christianity offers hope and promise. The Christian can be realistic about how bad the existential situation is because they have hope in a sovereign God, and His promise to work everything out for his good purposes. There is no longer any need to resort to superficial optimism, as the modern subject did, but there is also no need for self-destructive pessimism. Christianity offers the opportunity for honest realism and hope at the same time, and that is what we all need to hear. As Tim Keller likes to say it, "You are worse off than you ever dared to imagine, but God loves you more than you ever dared to hope." That is the radical message of the gospel. We need to tell the world to forget about all that dualistic, superficial, "I don't care if it rains or freezes, 'long as I got my plastic Jesus," nonsense that has been aptly labeled the opiate of the people. What we all need is the radical grace of the Gospel that lets us be real and lets us be optimistic, even as we learn the lessons that postmodernism has to teach us.

This pure deductive manual of a manipulative discovery is astonishing. I have changed my 45 year medical-surgical attitude since I became aware of Jones' discoveries. It led to my desire to develope a manual to "loose-leaf" the cookbook application of his precise findings, however a Dr. Herbert Yates did just that in "Handbook of Osteopathic Technique" and saved many of us interested in body ailments from not being able to advance in our fields. And his association with Dr. L.Jones gives a continuoum knowledge of Jones' findings. I knew Jones through his book and videos and the proofs of his work through experience,and I have a devout reverence for the man and his contribution to osteopathic medical enhancement. This book keeps no secrets and is clearly written and has photos to demonstrate all technics. This is Nobel-Prize revelations in body mechanics.

Laser cooling and trapping techniques have given researchers new tools to explore the atom's dynamics and control. The book gives a good introduction to the forces that arise when an atom interacts with a light (laser) field, and puts a lot of emphasis on giving the reader an excellent idea of what's going on when atoms and photons interact.

Rather than giving all the details of the mathematical and quantum mechanics background that is needed to understand the subject the authors concentrate on giving a clearer picture of the real physics involved.

The book starts with a review of the quantum mechanics principles used to understand laser cooling and trapping, which serves as a good remainder for a person who already has a basic grasp of it.

Although all the mathematical analysis that shows how the formulas and mathematical expressions are derived is not done in the book, the presentation is sufficient to guide the readers interested in it do the work by themselves.

The book also has an excellent reference guide that an interested person can use to get all the mathematical and experimental details on the field.

A systematically arranged text presenting the "Maitland's concept" of manual physiotherapy through joint mobilization and manipulation. The approach focuses on detailed assessment, clinical reasoning and reassessment to determine the physical dysfunction and efficacy of manual physiotherapy techniques. It is not the techniques themselves only but the communication, interaction and reasoning processess which create a good manual physiotherapy approach.

A classical "bible" for any physiotherapist specializing in manual physiotherapy.

Dear booklovers First of all i want to say that all of the books written by josef kirschner are great They gave much more self-confidense even now i am still reading may for the fourth time his book The art of living without fears ( or smthng like this ) Txs for the attention ( i hope u ll excuse my poor english) Sincerrely yours grigor mitkov grigor@netplus.bg sofia bulgaria 3 of june 2000

This book is an excellent reference source for the evaluation and treatment of the spine, pelvis and TMJ using both manual techniques and exercise. The book has informational chapters on each of the aforementioned joints, as well as the vertebral artery, the scanning examination, and the subjective examination. The text is extensively referenced, and there are numerous case studies, that challenge the reader to test their differential diagnostic skills. There are also a lot of review questions at the end of the chapters. This book is a must read for novice and expert therapists alike.

The book provided the most comprehensive history of massage I have ever seen. I'm sure 99% of massage therapy teachers don't have this information. The technique descriptions were sophisticated. Unfortunately this book was written in 1960 and many diagnoses have different meanings today so it is not always clear whether the writer is "speaking our language."

This was the greatest book I have ever read. The material was excellent and the authors writing style superb. This was the first Lung book I read and after I was hooked. As much as I was enjoying it and being absolutely hypnotised by it that i'm sure the authors really knew what they were talking about. I give it five stars, but having said that, this book probably isn't for everyone.

The text "Mobilisation of the Nervous System" is an excellent text for both the novice and experienced Physical Therapist. I bought this book to review for the Orthopedic Clinical Specialist exam, and have found it very helpful. The text does an excellent job of describing general anatomical and physiological reasoning behind commonly used evaluation and treatment techniques, as well as describing these techniques in detail. The illustrations and descriptions are good, so that if you are not practiced at these techniques you will be able to clearly see the proper postioning that is required. I would recommend this text for anyone who wants to update their clincal skills or for new Physical Therapists that want to learn more about this aspect of Physical Therapy.