A word from "The Rocket" Rick Rodriguez

Uncommon by Tony Dungee with Nathan Whitaker

By Rick Rodriguez

Almost everyday  we read a story about the collapse of an individual's integrity!  We gasp in disbelief!  How could he do that?  Or who would have ever imagined that she would do this?  Startling...yes!  But, as these events continue to develop at a rapid pace; we are numbed almost; we've come to expect it!  And now, we are no longer that surprised or amazed at the depravity of human kind.

In his book, Tony Dungee, the professional football coach, reaches out to us/me searching for that UNCOMMON MAN/WOMAN that goes against the grain of this depravity!  He charges us with the responsibility to change this and gives poignant, gripping advice on how to do it!  He suggests that this generation has lost its way venerating material objects sacrificing long term gain for immediacy.  Moreover, he sees a loss or an avoidance of character; a paucity of individuals adhering to the challenges of hard work, and the theme of superfluous expression rather than the wealth of inner-knowing!

Uncommon Dungee/Whitaker 2009 P.18 "Pride is all about me, but confidence is a realization the God has given me abilities and created me to fill a unique role that no one else is called to fill.  Borne in humility, confidence is a recognition that life is not about me but about using gifts and abilities I have been blessed with to their fullest."

Uncommon Dungee/Whitaker 2009 P.165 " Look, things change.  Life throws us curve balls.  Some days it feels like we are facing a blitz after blitz.  People walk out of our lives or let us down.  Things get confusing, loved ones misunderstand us, and relationships become tense.  Fear comes and grasps us by the back of the neck, ready to carry us off and away from our dreams.  And it often happens when our cars blow up in the desert, or our lives take detours that we didn't plan for, or we get pummeled by disappointments, heartaches, and tragedies.  But through it all, the dreams that God put in your heart never change.  Your integrity--your promise to yourself--demands that you step up and follow those dreams to a better place, to pick yourself up yet again and push on.  Follow your dreams."

The text reads easily and the chapters are very basic!  But the work, hits home and is timely.  What's amazing is that a book can be written from one man's perspective yet we've heard this story told in so many different ways! 

This particular book came into my life February 2, 2009.  On that day, I sat with my daughter Amanda, at Starbucks, and while she did her home work--I dedicated the book to her by writing her name Amanda (8.5 years) from Daddy (45 years) in the orange/tan inside cover of the book!  It's a book I will leave for her someday...

Uncommon is 260 pages.  I read it in April 2009.

Kabul Beauty School by Deborah Rodriguez

By Rick Rodriguez

Continuing with my run of reads of Afghanistan, Kabul Beauty School, does not disappoint in that its consistent with other books of a country unique in its culture.  Juxtaposed with Kite Runner (fiction), and Three Cups of Tea; Kabul Beauty School shares similarities in the consistency of what each author says about the Afghan culture.  Much of what this book describes is the experience of women living in a country strife with traditional roles.  The reader may come to appreciate many of the things we in the United States take for granted: running water; electricity; freedom of speech; or the freedom to travel as a woman alone.  Yet, this is but a small part of the story, and not the main premise. 

I came to this book one day while browsing in the Danville Library.  The book was part of a city read between Danville/San Ramon.  Obligated to other reading, nonetheless, I grabbed it and took on the responsibility of another book.  The effort was well rewarded.  I came to learn a well told experience of a person that took a chance (the Author), and experienced a singular event.  Anyone interested in fulfilling a worthwhile goal might learn a thing or two here!

I found the book interesting to read save for a few times where the Author never fails to cover all aspects of a particular event.  Yet, like other good books imagination brings me to the place of the experience, and this Author's skill made the memories of Kabul Beauty School much more vivid.

Kabul Beauty School is 270 pages.  I read it in December of 2008!

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins

By Rick Rodriguez

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, is an intriguing read about the influence of Corporate America world-wide.  In fact, it's a riveting account of what corporations do to countries, leaders, and key industries to influence their agendas.  In this sense, the book offers an important story about what occurs behind the scenes.  Here's an excerpt posed by the author, John Perkins. (Perkins P.64) "I also began to wonder who benefits from war and the mass production of weapons, from the damming of rivers and the destruction of indigenous environments and cultures. I began to look at who benefits when hundreds of thousands of people die from insufficient food, polluted water, or curable diseases.  Slowly, I came to realize that in the long run no one benefits, but in the short term those at the top of the pyramid--my bosses and me--appear to benefit, at least materially." 

The book reads like an espionage thriller and is quite engaging.  In one sense, it's a sad story and perhaps it's one that not all will appreciate.  The story, in some ways contends, that the bastion of hope and goodwill; traits we assume of America, may not at all be true!  And in this sense, the revelations are disturbing.  My interests include economics, politics, critical thinking, and history.  In these subjects, the book is thorough, and the Author manages to blend his involvement quite fluidly.

I read the book pretty quickly.  It is a page turner.  The book made me think about what is occurring in our lives; and how much of what we're are told is worthy of acceptance without our own investigations?  The book is 277 pages.  I read it in November of 2008.

Duel in the Sun by John Brant

I finished reading this book, appropriately, on the exercise bike.  The bike is where you'll likely find me at Clubsport in San Ramon, and if so, my face will be buried in a book.

Duel in the Sun is the story of what's considered America's greatest marathon race,  the 1982 Boston Marathon, contested by Alberto Salazar and Dick Beardsley.  It is an uplifting and inspirational tale about the runners, the race, and the mystique of the Marathon.  The story details the runner's lives to some extent, and posits why we run; why the protagonists of this story ran, and chronicles the experience of the race--the 82' Boston Marathon!

A runner will certainly appreciate this story, and so should athletes, and those people interested in running, or running Marathons.  

As a runner, and a semi-retired Marathoner, I found the story important and worthwhile for several reasons: it renewed an appreciation for me of a past accomplishment; it taught me more about running and the difference between runners and elite athletes; it introduced several new ideas for consideration, and finally it inspired and motivated me to continue my running pursuits!

Brant (2006) " The 1982 Boston Marathon was great theater: two American runners, one a renowned champion and the other a gutsy underdog, going at each other for just under 2 hours and 9 minutes.  Dick Beardsley and Alberto Salazar ran in each other's pockets the entire 26.2 miles, with no other competitor near them the final 9 miles.  They were so close that, for most of the last half of the race, Beardsley, while in the lead, monitored Salazar's progress by watching his shadow on the asphalt."

Duel in the Sun is 203 pages.  I read this book in July of 2008.

The Age of Turbulence by Alan Greenspan

The title of this book fits the era we are living in---TURBULENCE!  I don't think I've ever experienced an economic time period where so much of the world is united in flux.  We've got astronomically high gas prices (by US standards), fading real estate values; a weakening dollar, stagflation, and a general economic negativeness pervading throughout the general populace.  Moreover, as the world has become more connected, any major event occurring anywhere in the world will have an impact on our daily economic decisions.  In fact, there is no doubt in my mind that these events will continue to occur, and the only thing we can really do is be prepared to accept them by being prepared.

Mr. Greenspan, in his book The Age of Turbulence, chronicles his experience in the chair as the Federal Reserve Chairman for 14 years.  It's his story, and he covers many of his decisions over his tenure; how he arrived at them, and his outlook for the future.  For economics buffs, the book provides ample insight and back ground into Greenspan's life and experiences.  The book starts with his upbringing and leads into his making as an Economist.

My interest in economics, history, and attention to my economic future brought me to this book. Here are some of my highlighted notes:

Greenspan (2007) On centrally planned economies " production and distribution are determined by specific instructions from the planning agencies to the factories, indicating from whom and in what quantities they should receive raw materials and services, what they should produce, and to whom they should distribute their output.  No wonder centrally planned economic systems have great difficulty in raising standards of living and creating wealth."

Greenspan (2007) " The verdict on central planning has been rendered, and it is unequivocally negative."

Greenspan (2007) "America's material standard of living continues to improve, yet the dynamism of that same economy puts hundreds of thousands of people per week involuntarily out of work."  Certainly, that seems clear to me, and I bet a lot of people that are being displaced by technology and the global working environment would concur.

Greenspan (2007) " I was aware that the loosening of mortgage credit terms for sub prime borrowers increased financial risk , and that subsidized home ownership initiatives distort market outcomes.  But I believed then, as now, that the benefits of broadened home ownership were worth the risk.  Protection of property rights, so critical to a market economy, requires a critical mass of owners to sustain political support."  Mr. Greenspan touches close to home here, after all I am a Realtor, and as a front line observer, I could see both ends of this argument.  Undoubtedly, the home buyers that purchased in the last couple of years have been hurt badly, especially sub prime borrowers.  On the other hand, buyers of real estate four plus years ago have experienced enormous increases in property values!

Greenspan (2007) " But to compete, I had to improve.  I had to offer better service.  I had to become more productive.  In the end, of course, I was better off for it.  So were my clients, and I suspect so were my competitors well.  Down deep that is probably the message of capitalism: " creative destruction"---the scrapping of old technologies and old ways of doing things for the new---is the only way to increase productivity and therefore the only way to raise average living standards on a sustained basis.  Finding gold or oil or other natural wealth, history tells us, does not do that."

Mr. Greenspan has so many pieces of advice in his book, these are but a few.  I suggest picking up a copy; highlighting and underlining key passages, and putting it to good use.  The book is 505 pages.  I read it in 2008.

MARX by Gill Hands

In 1994 I read an extraordinary book, Secrets of the Temple by William Greider, and since that time I've been hooked on Economics.  The book gave me the opportunity to examine who really runs this country, the Federal Reserve, and not the President of the United States, as most people assume.  Surely, I understand that the Commander-in-Chief is still the President of the United States, and is considered the leader of the free world; however, what Greider's book taught me is that monetary policy plays an enormous role in our everyday lives, and the Fed has the power to control the economy with its influence on it.  The book also chronicles the tenure of Paul Volcker, the Fed chairman prior to the more familiar Alan Greenspan.  So, having recently read Alan Greenspan's The Age of Turbulence,another groundbreaking expose on the Federal Reserve seen from the perspective of Alan Greenspan, I thought it necessary for me to gain a perspective on another form of managing an economy--communism.

Certainly, I'm not going to declare that this form of living is comparable to capitalism in a superior fashion, or could exist in today's world; history has already proved that communism has, at best, failed in today's society.  Yet, as I go along here on Earth living under capitalism, and being a devout capitalist, I read to learn, and perhaps examine other methods to see if they offer something, anything, that could be of value to me--today!  So, that's why I came to this book.  Here are some tidbits, paraphrases, and excerpts of the book.

According to Hands (2007) "Karl Marx is considered to be one of the greatest thinkers in the last thousand years.  Born in Germany in 1818, he was a great philosopher, historian, economist, and social theorist.  His writings led to revolution and to a total change in the political structure of the world."

Hands (2007) states " that Marx' main contribution to the development of philosophy was historical materialism: a way of studying the relationship between the material world and the world of ideas."  He further states " the capitalist economy needs costly machinery to produce goods.  Only those who can afford to invest capital in the economy can profit from it."

Most of us, including me, have just assumed that we can get job, start a business, make money, and someday become rich.  However, there are some people that have a head start, and are in positions which according to my understanding of the book exploit others for their labor.  In other words, it's always been that way and always will under capitalism.

Another key idea according to Hands (2007) is Marx' description of "how fetishisms of money, capital, and commodities alienated people." Here, my understanding is we (capitalists) are so focused on materialism that we become alienated from each other because in many ways we are competing with each other, and are always trapped by materialism; yet material possessions somehow serve to assuage our alienation.

There is a chapter where Marx discusses religion.  And, one of his famous sayings "Religion is the opium of the people" is mentioned in the book because Marx, an atheist, believed that religion was a sort of by product of capitalism in that it dulled the senses.  In other words, the suffering under capitalism could be rationalized through religion because of the great things to come in the after life.

The book goes on to discuss key ides such as the dialectic, and other concepts attributed to Marx; however, it is not necessary for me to elaborate on subjects beyond my grasp.  I did, however, come away with a fundamental understanding of Karl Marx, his ideas, and the era in which he influenced after completing the book.

I also gained a new perspective, and though I certainly don't believe the system (communism) could ever work, some of the ideas Marx describes about capitalism, good and bad, have come to fruition. 

I leave it to the reader, learner, and individual that questions the way things are to continue the quest of discovery.  I value the accomplishment of challenging my mind to gain a new perspective, and to further aid me in evaluating the world we live in.

MARX by Gill Hands is 178 pages.  I read this book in May of 2008.

History of the Conquest of Mexico by William H. Prescott

History of the Conquest of Mexico is a story that most of us know, but unless you are a student or admirer of history it is difficult to know it in the manner that Prescott tells it.  The Author filled the vacancies in my mind on the ancient history of the Aztecs, Spaniards, Tlascalans, Mixtecs, Otomies (my Mother's ancestors); as well as a plethora of others.  He also shed new light for me of Christianity, it's necessary purpose in the new world; and why the abolishment of the Aztecs perhaps contributed in some manner to the betterment of mankind.

Published in 1843, and  considered a masterpiece; it is a voluminous work that is well researched and told.  Prescott, like many great writers, brings the reader to the discovery of the new world.  He finely details every bit of the arduous plight of the Spaniards, and the amazing features of a thriving new World empire of the Aztecs.  According to James Lockhart " Prescott belongs with Thoreau and Melville and is very close to someone like Washington Irving.  Prescott belonged to an age in which distinction between "literature" and "scholarship" was not as stark as it is today.  A romantic historian, he thought in terms of characters and plot, and was aware of his affinity to such writers as Sir Walter Scott."

More importantly, for me, the book shed a new light on my view of a conquered people; the Aztecs; how that was accomplished; and perhaps why it was inevitable.  I know this NOW!  And, I could take time to detail it here, but it would certainly be an elaborate explanation; and moreover, I would clearly only impress upon the Reader something that could possibly be interpreted and understood differently.  Of course, the journey is up to the Reader; as is always the case, but in this one--what a journey it is!

In this age, as we move to electronic means of communicating and moving through everything so quickly; the challenge of great historical novels like this one is to not sink into the archives of great past works; but continue to be read by those that appreciate the ancient societies of the past, and how perhaps inextricably the past is tied to the present.  Individuals that continue to define man's true identities through history--it is works like Prescott's that will remain pertinent and forever endure.

This was a monumental achievement for me!  History of the Conquest of Mexico is 970 pages.  I read this book over a long period of time and completed it in February of 2008. I read the published version of the The Modern Library Classics with an Introduction by James Lockhart.

Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell with Patrick Robinson

Reading teaches me so much about things I know little of, but it also helps me gain new perspectives.  Sometimes these perspectives reinforce my beliefs and contribute new points of view to consider, and in this case Lone Survivor gave me an opportunity to examine my positions in politics, foreign invasion, war, and the cost in human terms of our military. 

Wow!  That's really the best way to begin describing this griping account of an experience of a United States Navy Seal in Afghanistan! Marcus Luttrell is a Navy Seal and a real hero!  He's a United States Navy Seal that defends Americans.  He believes in the Red, White, and Blue.  Here's a guy that crawls through the Hell of Navy Seal training to defend America, and that to me is a--Hero! 

The story is about 4 Navy Seals that our dropped High in the Afghan Mountains on a mission to destroy this particular Taliban leader hell bent on killing Americans.  Apparently, Intelligence has deemed this guy a major threat, and the Seals are sent in to get him; not an easy task.  In fact, it damn near seems impossible, and almost ridiculously unbelievable what Seals are put through in training, and then in actual combat.  Yet, this eyewitness account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of Seal Team 10 is a true story.

The account made me consider my position in the war in Iraq against the Extremists.  I am convinced that there is an extreme element of hatred for Americans; and our way of life concentrated in this area of the world. And this extreme element is fixated on eliminating the United States of America from this planet.  The accounts in this book made me revisit this though the events occurred half a world away!  I, of course, hardly think about what's going on in the war, except when I hear of another car bomb.  I don't really think about the rules of engagement, the affects of the media, and the sacrifices our soldiers make to defend Americans on either aisle of the political divide; however, I know this--I am a proud American, and I am proud and grateful that there are men like Marcus Luttrell, Danny Dietz, Matthew Axelson, and Michael Murphy defending my family, my friends, you, and me!  God Bless America!

Lone Survivor is 380 pages.  It is an exciting fast read.  I completed this book in January of 2008.

The Long Walk by Slavomir Rawicz

This is a true story of a trek to freedom beginning with a long train ride through Siberia to a labor camp.  It's a memoir, and it is a painful one.  It's a lesson about the struggles of many in the past, and perhaps a testament to others to serve as a warning. 

Mr. Rawicz is a prisoner in a Soviet labor camp in Northern Siberia, and he along with six other prisoners escape, and begin a 4000 mile quest South to India.  Along the way they encounter frigid temperatures, starvation, dehydration, illnesses, scorching desert temperatures; a variety of other ills, death, fear, and every other thing you could possibly imagine all in a quest for freedom.

The book gave me an opportunity to once again appreciate the great freedoms I enjoy in this Country.  These freedoms include the right to have and share my beliefs; as well as, the right to live in a non-totalitarian or under an oppressive government. 

I was amazed by the will to live by the survivors, and the extremities of human endurance.  If a memoir appeals to you, especially one about the fight for freedom, then try The Long Walk.  The book is 245 pages and reads easily.  I finished reading this book the 1st week of January 2008.

Blood & Thunder by Hampton Sides

A friend, Hank Perry, gave me this book this year.  It was unexpected but Hank thought I might enjoy reading it.  Despite my initial feelings about taking on another reading obligation, I sent Hank an email thank you, and started the process of reading this condensed and smaller point read.   

This is one of those books where a neophyte American history reader might say " I had no idea," and that's what I said.  Of course, I've read much American History, but this story drew me in because it is so well researched.  I often turn down a page or two in books I read to re-read a passage or paragraph, or even draw a pen and underline words I find meaningful; I found myself doing this frequently reading this book.

Blood and Thunder is a detailed story of the settling of the Old Southwest in the bigger backdrop of Manifest Destiny, the American plight of uniting the east with the west border of the United States.  Along the way we learn of people like John C. Fremont, James K. Polk, John C. Kearney, James H. Carleton; Narbona, a Navajo chief, Manuelito and Barboncito, leaders among the Navajo people; the Comanches, Utes, Jacarillas et al, and the protagonist of the story, Kit Carson.  In fact, the entire story seems to be a tribute of the seemingly unheralded, intrepid, perceptive, compassionate, and vastly experienced Kit Carson. 

There is also extensive descriptions of the terrain, the Santa Fe Trail, and New Mexico in general.  The writing is intense and I found myself feeling the blistering heat of the New Mexico summers, and the dreaded cold of its winters. And, traversing the canyons and crevices seemed almost palpable.

Moreover, digesting the melancholic experience of Manifest Destiny as viewed from the perspective of the victims was informative, yet somewhat disturbing.  I found myself wondering "what if the Native Americans were just left alone?"  What would their and our world be like today? 

Near the end, the writer puts forth a thought to consider" Have we improved these people or made them worse off?"  It's difficult to know, but certainly Blood and Thunder caused me to think in these terms.  Blood and Thunder is 404 pages and contains Maps, and Epilogue, and references.

I finished reading this book in December of 2007.