NEWS TO MAKE YOU PAUSE AND THINK

How to Think

Chris Hedges, TruthDig.com

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/07/09-8

Brian Moench: As the West Burns: Speaking Truth to Fire
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/07/09-6

Robert Parry: The Silence on Global Warming
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/07/09-0

Donna Smith: For Our Health or Your Wealth, That is the Question
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/07/09-10

WHAT TO READ DURING THE SUMMER?

The Peacekeeping Economy: Using Economic Relationships to Build a More Peaceful, Prosperous, and Secure World by Lloyd “Jeff” Dumas, Professor at the University of Texas at Dallas

If you are looking for a Marxist screed about war and capitalism, Jeff Dumas’s latest work is not the one for you. But if you like practical ideas on how a more just U.S. and global economy could work better for everyone, and how a more peaceful world is possible with more equitable economic policies, then you will dig into this book, part of “an unintended trilogy” by Dumas. For good measure, he throws in a fascinating chapter on nonviolence. It’s a bit of a serious, somewhat academic read, but very rewarding, even to someone who was not very strong on Economics in my academic career! Dumas’s aim is true, and he aims to make a difference, not wow you with economics wizardry.