This is the type of book that, unfortunately, is lacking within the legal profession. Perry is a law professor who concerns himself with religious and/or moral issues in law and politics. How is morality reflected in law? What is laws proper sphere when legislating morality? Can neutrality ever be a viable option amongst a pluralistic society? These are the questions Perry asks in this book. His answers: 1.) all laws are reflections or morality, 2.) we 'should' refrain as much as possible but 'should' is only a guideline, and 3.) No. Neutrality is contra democracy.

Of course, mine is just a summation. The book is roughly two-hundred pages of text with extensive endnotes taking up 100 pages themselves. The first part of Perry's book focuses on the question: In a pluralistic society, are consensus, objective claims to moral knowlege, or moral neutrality in law reasonable goals? Perry says no. He is not a moral skeptic who argues qua Mackie that moral knowledge doesn't exist. Rather he is an epistemic relativist. (read the book to find out more) It is this relativism, and the subsequent belief that moral and political consensus, while desirable, is a bit chimeric that fuels the rest of the book.

The next part of the book focuses on the possibility of a liberal (meaning either neutral or equalitarian) theory of moral legislation. Perry again is skeptical, taking on Rawls, Dworking (ewwww...Dworkin!!) and Ackerman, finding them wanting. He then outlines his suggestion on his theory. (read the book to find out more)

To close, he outlines his 'non-originalist' view of constitutional interpretation. Interpreting the constitutioin as a.) a living blueprint and b.) a set of aspirations handed down from the framers, Perry argues, is most consistent with his moral and political theories. I don't agree and, after reading the book, fail to see that Perry adequately connected this legal view to his above moral and political ones but...hey...more for his sequel to explain, right? (I think it's called "Love and Politics" or something akward like that). Overall, good read, thought provoking, and on a subject badly neglected by both philosophers and law students.

John Perry loves the wild lands,this is evident in this book. He encourages us to see them for ourselves. Behind the glitter and neon of the tourist areas of Florida there are places of wonder to explore. Here you will find the real Florida,the subtropical natural world that is quickly disappearing in the face of over development.The book is divided into four Zones under which individual entries are listed. Chuck Geanangel, a Florida birder and environmentalist, lists the common birds of that Zone.The Perrys list all accessible wild areas within the Zone and include information on park hours, available camping, wildlife, etc. There are symbols to aid in quickly finding a camp ground, backpacking trail, horse trail, boat launch or the Florida Trail,along with other hiking trails.This is a guide you will treasure whether you live in Florida, visit the state as a tourist, camp, bird watch or just plain love the wilder side of Florida.

"The New Complete Coffee Book" is an excellent coffee table book on coffee. It tells you most of what you need to know, and is impressively presented in a way which would look good on any coffee table.
Nonetheless, this book could, I feel, have done with a few more basic bits of information. I would have enjoyed a section on how to make basic coffee (ie latte, cappucino, machiato) - even if these are considered 'simple' coffee making skills. Also, a bit more information on the different aspects of different coffee region produce would have been good. Furthermore, there is a section on savoury coffee meals (lamb with coffee rub, anyone?) which can at best be described as superflous.
On the whole, though, the book is pretty damn good, and certainly worthy of purchase. I am very happy with it.

It's been some years since I read this one, but it seems a shame to leave a good book with no reviews, so please forgive any errors of memory:

The Omega Cage is the story of the prison escape alluded to in Perry's more recent novel, Brother Death. It follows a prisoner in the Confed's most secure prison (called, not surprisingly, the Omega Cage). With the help of the warden's albino sex slave, he escapes the prison and makes his way off planet using some interesting alien technology.

The pace of the novel is reasonably fast, but because of the prison setting, much of the action is not as brisk as most of Perry's novels.

At first glance this seems a reissue of Lightning in action, aircraft no.25, but that is NOT the case. It is a different book, by a different writer, with the same title and the same publisher, but published 14 years later. Since I own both books I ought to know. Though both are made within the same Squadron/Signal in action-formula, the contents differ enough to make it worthwhile to buy both books. Loads of photographs, splendid (color)artwork, and also very informative. This one has even 8 extra pages compared to the earlier title.

I don't understand this policy of Squadron/Signal, they should name this one "Lightning in action, Volume 2", I had to ask the shopowner where I bought my copy whether there was any difference between the two books with the same title and he assured me that when the numbers differ, the contents differ also. This not only applies to this plane, there are at least ten "doubles" within the renowned 'in action series', and they are all worth of buying that second copy.

This book will make a good reference for the general user. It gives good information, however, it gives it in a very general sense. It is hard to find specific "how to" info and leaves you wondering if the methods the author uses will work on your system. Conclusion: well written, good for general/overall info; not so good to use as a "how do I fix my problem" reference.

This is a fascinating account of the intellectual career of Perry Anderson, long-time editor of the New Left Review and cofounder of New Left Books. But in giving such a full survey, Elliott, probably unintentionally, exposes Anderson as arrogant, dogmatic and, practically, useless.

For a Marxist, an understanding of class is basic. What is Anderson's idea of the working class? He assumes it is just the manual workers, not seeing that as capitalism has developed, it has needed growing numbers of white-collar workers to keep it going. Elliott explains, "Given that the proletariat was a social minority in most capitalist countries ... ."

This wrong premise, never argued, made room for the notion that this small weak working class needed a separate 'socialist intelligentsia'. Its members were, according to Anderson, the 'sources of consciousness in society' - workers are not even conscious! He concluded that the "party ... must include intellectuals and petit bourgeois who alone can provide the essential theory of socialism." Workers need the 'petit bourgeois' to teach them socialism!

How do we turn a minority revolutionary movement into a mass revolutionary movement? Anderson claims that only the development of revolutionary theory can move the class towards revolution, but that the absence of a mass movement prevents the emergence of this theory - an impasse. He adheres to Trotskyism, writing smugly in 1976, "the tradition descended from Trotsky ... filled no chairs in universities" - ironic now that he is Professor of History at the University of California.

Anderson believes that progress for Britain can only come from abroad - earlier, from Euro-Marxism, more recently, from the European Union. As he wrote in 1992, "a major task of the Left will be to press towards the completion of a genuine federal state in the Community, with a sovereign authority over its constituent parts."

Anderson's ideas are the polar opposite of what Marxism should be: he is unrooted in, and hostile to, our trade union movement and to the British nation. We need workers' nationalism, not abstract internationalism.

This is the first Perry Mason mystery I've ever read. If you liked the television series, you'll find all the same characters in this book. It's a good mystery and moves swiftly. It reads a bit too much like a script, however. There's almost no attention to scenery. The reader is given almost no information of what the characters think and feel.

This is a great text for teaching Radiology Residents because it sees the big picture very well. I would like to see some chapters updated :
a)C T to inlcude multislice and spiral CT.
b) fluoroscopy to include digital fluoroscopy
c) Mammography
d) PACS, teleradiology

If you love the TV series, you'll like this book. It's fast reading and the plot is not complicated, but intriguing. There are the usual moral messages and action. The author doesn't get caught up in introducing you to so many characters that you can't keep them straight. It's simple and to the point. The ending was somewhat predictable, but enjoyable, nonetheless. Read it, I think you'll enjoy it!