Charles Ashbacher Reviews

Review of Capitalism: Opposing Viewpoints , edited by Bruno Leone, ISBN 0912616504 Four out of five stars Arguments on both sides haven’t changed   This book was published in 1978 and presents arguments both for and against capitalism. The first is by Adam Smith and basically sets down the basic arguments in favor of capitalism. Smith’s arguments were first made in the eighteenth century and are still cited largely in their original form by economists that favor pure capitalism.   The essay by Smith is followed by one by Karl Marx and is from “The Manifesto of the Communist Party,” and summarizes Marx’s basic arguments against capitalism. The remaining essays make more modern arguments for and against capitalism. The last essay is by Sam Love and was written in 1977. In that essay Love argues that capitalism is afflicted by “the terminal illness of bigness.” In other words, his essay puts forward the modern argument that some companies are “too big to fail.” In moder...

  Review of Jackie & Campy: The Untold Story of Their Rocky Relationship and the Breaking of Baseball’s Color Line , by William C. Kashatus ISBN 9780803246331 Five out of five stars History of two key figures in the civil rights movement   Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella were the first and second black players on the Brooklyn Dodgers, with Jackie of course the first black player in the major leagues after the color line was established. It would seem that they would naturally be friends off the field, but that was not the case. At first, they were friends, but major personality differences turned them away from each other.   Once the vow of silence was lifted from Jackie, he became very combative, even to the point of extremism. Jackie did not hesitate to bait and antagonize opposing players, managers and umpires. It reached the point where he began to lose the off-field support of his teammates, Dodger management and sportswriters. Jackie believed that t...

  Review of Dragonslayer, The Official Marvel Comics Adaptation of the Spectacular Paramount Disney Motion Picture!, ISBN 0960414657 Five out of five stars Last of the dragons and wizards   What made Dragonslayer such a good movie is that it presented a social transition, where the days of wizards, magic and dragons are being replaced by the Christian religion. Long-held belief systems are being replaced by different patterns of thought. The last wizard and dragon are both slain as they must be for Christianity to rise to have power over human minds.   The essence of the movie is well captured in this comics adaptation of the movie. The old and declining wizard has an apprentice that while capable, still is not fully capable of assuming the duties. There is the kingdom beset by the dragon where a young maid must be offered up as a sacrifice on a regular basis. The internal political struggles and the willingness to accept the bizarre tax of a young woman to be ...

  Review of Foreign Policy , by Alvin Wolf, ISBN 0133264211 Four out of five stars Dated, but very instructive   Written in 1970 while the Cold and Vietnam wars were in fully active mode, this book reflects much of the thinking at the time. Issues are put forward with both pro and con positions being presented. Of course, one of the issues “debated” is whether the United States should be militarily involved in Vietnam. The con side is a little weak, one of those articles is by teenagers and is a bit incoherent.   The next topic is American military involvement in Central America and the Caribbean, specifically the attempt by the American Central Intelligence Agency to overthrow the Cuban government of Fidel Castro. One of the two areas that I found most interesting were the articles about the American Peace Corps. The idealism of most of the American participants cannot be questioned, yet there were those that dismissed the Corps as little more than useless. ...

  Review of Obvious Letters: The Associative Alphabet Every Child Will Remember , by Gisela Hausmann, ISBN 0966421701 Five out of five stars Superior artwork expresses the letters   There are countless books designed to teach children their ABCs. With such a large number, there is also a significant variety in their quality. Since the letters are the letters and fancy calligraphy is not possible with beginners, the differentiating factor of such books is the artwork in and surrounding the letters.   In this book, the author takes a different approach and uses the basic shape of the letters to construct an object beginning with that letter. For example, the uppercase B is the right side of a butterfly, and the lowercase b is a backpack on an animal. There are two images for each letter where the shape changes with case but only one when it does not. For example, there is only one image for Z.   The producers also showed some excellent sense in that they us...

  Review of Sherlock Holmes vs. Dracula or The Adventure of the Sanguinary Count , by John H. Watson MD., as edited by Loren D. Estleman, ISBN 0385140517 Five out of five stars Great detective meets great villain   Of all the fictional villains that have been created, there is none more attractive than the vampire Count Dracula. Stories based on vampires have appeared countless times in print and video. In this case, the infamous count arrives in England on what appears to be a ghost ship where most of the crew has vanished with only the dead captain remaining. He is lashed to the wheel, having died at his post.   The great Sherlock Holmes becomes involved, and this is a situation where his famous dictum, “ When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth . ” Holmes quickly realizes that the events can only be explained by the presence of a vampire, in this case Count Dracula himself.   The chase is a merry ...

  Review of Rebel Rookie , by Robert Sidney Bowen Four out of five stars Troubled boy finds salvation in baseball Pete Hatch is a resident of the Medford Boys’ Home, a place for orphans. He has a hair trigger temper and baseball is the only outlet he has. Pete is a very good catcher, showing great promise for a future in baseball once he is old enough to leave the orphanage. Unfortunately, his temper overwhelms him on the baseball field and after fighting with another boy, it appears that he will no longer be able to play the game he loves. In desperation, Pete runs away from the orphanage and after stowing away in the back of a truck, he overhears the men in the cab talking about a baseball summer tryout camp being given by the Ravens professional team. It is scheduled to last two weeks and room and board will be provided. Since it will solve Pete’s immediate problems and give him a chance to play again and show his skills, Pete manages to hitchhike his way to the camp. ...