Book Review: Julius Caesar: Lessons in Leadership from the Great Conqueror by Bill Yenne

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Patrick Shrier

[FULL DISCLOSURE: I received my copy of this book free from the publisher. I was not paid for this review and the opinion expressed is purely my own]

I am someone who loves the ancients and loves reading the their stories. That being said, I am much more likely to read Caesar’s Commentaries or Plutarch’s Life of Caesar than a modern day biography derived from those sources. In fact, I have read all those ancient works, most in both English and the original Latin. This book was a pleasure to read anyway. Bill Yenne has put together a comprehensive account of Caesar’s life that someone unfamiliar with Caesar’s exploits can enjoy. The book is separated into twenty thematic chapters with epilogue, source note, and index. It is not a large book at only 193 pages but the author manages to pack everything he needs into those pages.

The book begins with an account of what we know of Caesar’s birth and early life and segues easily into the meat of the story, his exploits in Gaul and the Civil War. Bill Yenne is at his best when describing the military campaigns of Caesar. he brings the battles alive and his descriptions are vivid enough that the reader can form a mind’s eye picture of the terrain. He describes the political relationships between Caesar and the various Germanic and Gallic tribes well. He also does an excellent job of describing the course of the Civil War. The book is really more of a straightforward narrative of the events of Caesar’s life and he does not attempt to analyze Caesar’s actions for fault, that type of analysis he leaves to the reader, which very refreshing from my perspective.

I did not really see where the subtitle of the book came in as I was reading it. It was actually only after I finished the book that it hit me. As Mr. Yenne narrates the story he throws in asides about modern events that occurred in the areas where Caesar campaigned. The vast majority of these asides relate to the allied campaign in France in World War II but he does mention World War I a time or two. Generally he relates the differences between the modern campaign and the way in which Caesar campaigned there. I did not really feel that were a lot of lessons pointed out for modern military leaders from Caesar’s campaigns or actions. At least nothing explicitly pointed out as such. That lack does not detract from the book itself though, it can stand perfectly alone as a biography of one of the greatest military leaders of all time.

The chapters flow easily from one to the other and the index is useful and actually more comprehensive than I expected it to be. The source note is just that, a note explaining the major sources he used in writing the book. I am sure it is not everything he consulted and I would much rather see a bibliography than source note, that is a minor complaint though as this book is meant for the lay market and not academia or college students. The only other complaint I have is the lack of citations but that is also probably the latent academic in me complaining and does not really detract from the quality of the book.

As a biography of Julius Caesar for people who are not historians, Bill Yenne has produced an excellent book. One of the best aspects of this book is that he relied on the ancient writers who were closer to the events for sources. He also writes in a clear easy to understand style that makes some of the complex events of Caesar’s life easy to understand. All in all this is an excellent book ad I recommend it to anyone with a casual interest in antiquity.

Book Review: Race & Economics: How Much Can be Blamed on Discrimination? by Walter E. Williams

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Patrick Shrier

I was first motivated to buy this book by the blizzard of negative articles and news pieces about it when it was first published. I also realize that I am opening myself to charges that I am not competent to comment or even post a review of this book because I am white, as the picture on the About Me page clearly shows. I am going to review it anyway because I think the book was worth reading and worth talking about even if someone disagrees with its conclusions.

Williams makes several highly controversial points in this book about policies that have kept black people and other minorities from achieving success in America. One of the things I liked the most about the book was that Dr. Williams makes extensive use of citations throughout the book so that the reader can look at his sources for the assertions he makes if they want. This is not a common practice in books that seek to make controversial points with a political aspect to them and I applaud Dr. Williams for doing it.

The book is organized into seven chapters that cover the history of the black economic situation in America through to analysis of why and what policies have caused that situation to worsen. The first and second are are historical overviews of the economic condition of blacks throughout American history and the real effects of discrimination on black employment and economic achievement. One particular passage in chapter two that struck me discussed the practice of slaves being able to hire themselves out and how this discomfited free whites – “In 1856, white builders in Smithfield, North Carolina, complained that they were being underbid by quasi-free blacks in the construction of new houses and boats, and criticized white contractors who pursued such policies.” (p.21) I had read before that the practice of slaves being allowed sell their labor was condemned in the antebellum South but this is one of the few concrete examples I have ever seen in print, the other being in a book about slavery I purchased at the Tuskegee University Museum bookstore about slavery a few years ago.

the next chapter deals with minimum wage laws and how they are self defeating from the standpoint of actually achieving what they are supposed to. More importantly, he makes the point that minimum wage laws are not just harmful to blacks but to everybody, blacks and other minorities just being hit harder by these laws. He includes a detailed discussion of the exact manner in which such laws are discriminatory. This chapter alone is worth the cost of the book.

The fourth and fifth chapters deal with licensing and the ways in which licensing laws tend to be discriminatory by increasing the cost of entry to a trade and driving up the cost of services delivered by those trades. He does not blast all regulation but instead points out how ridiculous the licensing laws fro some profession really are. The most illuminating portion of this chapter is the discussion of the historical background for some licensing requirements.

Chapter six is a discussion of racial terminology and its use and misuse in print and language. The final chapter is a summary and conclusion of the arguments in the rest of the book. His conclusion is elegant in it’s simplicity. It is unlikely t be taken up by policy makers because he essentially blasts most liberal policies of the last forty plus years as being the failures that they are. The unwritten subtext is that liberal policy makers like matters just the way they are despite their rhetoric to the contrary.

This provocative book should be require reading in all race/ethnic studies classes in America and should also be on the reading list of anybody who wants to look for realistic solutions to income inequality in America, especially policymakers. That is unlikely to happen though. Dr. Williams has produced a well written, damning indictment of social policy going back to the days of the New Deal and I highly recommend this book as food for thought, if nothing else.

Europe and Modern War

Posted on January 10, 2012 by Patrick Shrier

Saw an interesting piece awhile ago on the South African Business Day website called: GIDEON RACHMAN: Threat of war seems unreal in an age of peace. The essential point is that although war seems to have been eradicated in Europe, don’t count it out if the Euro crisis gets as bad as it possibly can.

I think it is naive in the extreme to think that because there has not been a major war in Europe for the past 65+ years that one cannot happen. We should keep in mind that it was 49 years between the Congress of Vienna ending the Napoleonic Wars and the Prusso-Danish war of 1864 and if you don’t want to count that little war then 55 until the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. Just because peace has held for a long time does not mean that is the normal state of affairs. Just look at the Wikipedia page listing European wars to get an idea of how bloody European history is.

The remarkable thing about the post-World War II period is that the major powers have not gone to war with each other. That is mainly because of the Cold War dichotomy between the democratic-capitalist western Europe and the communist east. The fact that the US kept significant forces in Europe along with the British helped ensure the peace too. That presence, especially the US, is rapidly fading away. The US Army in Europe (USAREUR) is a fore in search of a mission. So far they have managed to continue to justify their existence using the conflicts in the Balkans and the War on Terrorism as excuses. That will not last though as a simple cost analysis shows that it would be much cheaper to keep the troops in the US and deploy form there than do it from Europe, especially given the dominance of the US Navy at sea. There is also the fact that the US is shifting its geostrategic view to Asia rather than Europe, that is where most if not all new conflicts will come from in the 21^st century. I would predict that the US will be for all intents and purposes out of Europe within 10-15 Europe’s except for possibly a training base. The rest of Europe is going to have to increase defense spending if they want to continue to be taken seriously on the world stage, they can no longer shelter behind the coat-tails of Uncle Sam, he is taking his marbles and going home sooner rather than later.

Next, we should consider the state of European defense spending and the European economy in general. European defense spending is anemic at best.

Image from: http://blogs.cfr.org/lindsay/files/2011/06/Military-Expenditure-Select-NATO-Members.png

Britain and France spend the most and even they don’t spend but a fraction of what the US spends on defense. The defense establishments of the rest of Europe are even more of a joke. I have pointed out before the laughable state of European ,militaries which was demonstrated this past spring in Libya when Europe proved incapable of sustaining an air campaign less than 500 miles away from Europe without massive American logistical support.

Anyone who has been paying attention to financial news this year knows that the Euro is struggling and probably going to fail completely in 2012 or 2013. What happens then is anyone’s guess. That is where the specter of a European war comes in. It is not inconceivable that the war could occur when the poor south gets booted by the not so poor north. The only country in Europe in good economic shape is Germany but I don’t think that will last if the Euro and euro-zone economy implodes. WHEN, not if, the Euro crumbles I fully expect runaway inflation in the Euro zone and panic as people see what little spending power they have now disappear. Most Americans simply do not appreciate how little is left to the average person after big brother takes his share of their paycheck. Imagine how angry Americans would be if they made $2,000 a month and Uncle Sam took $800 or $900 in taxes. Taxes of which they see little benefit, but the 30% of the population on welfare does.

When Europeans lose their purchasing power and means of making ends meet what makes anyone think they won’t turn to nationalism again? Because the Nazis were so bad? Then how do you explain the rise of right-wing parties in Europe over the last few years and don’t think for a minute that the left is not just as bad. Ask anyone who had their car burnt by leftists in Berlin this past summer how peaceful the left is, don’t forget Lenin and Stalin were leftists. Stalin is the single greatest mass-murderer in history too.

As I alluded to at the beginning of this post, Europe has a bloody history, the past half century is the exception, not the rule. If things go downhill either economically or societally I fully expect Europe to revert to their traditional nationalism and tribalism and take the gloves off. If that happens, the Muslims in Europe should probably start looking or a way to go home because the first thing Europeans will do is target the other within before they target the other outside of their borders. I think we are in for an interesting ride over the next few years. Don’t forget to watch the economic news this year.

The Decline and Fall of the United States?

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Patrick Shrier

There has been much talk and discussion both in editorials and on various internet forums about the pending decline of the supposed US “empire” or the USA itself. I was thinking about this on the way back from dropping my wife off at work this morning and the more I think about it, the more I think it could only possibly happen if America lets it happen. The USA is not comparable to the UK prior to their fall from Great Power status post WWII. The disparity between the size of the two nations both physical and in population is too great for their to really be a valid comparison.

Image from http://http://blog.do-business-in-china.com

The USA has no choice in the modern world but to be a maritime power. This is especially true given the importance of trade to the future prosperity of the country. By virtue of the size and education of the US population it is inevitable that any military fielded by the US that is even half-way competently led will be a player on the global stage. America may have to share the world stage as one of the Great Powers with the rising giants of Asia such as China and India, but America will not lose it’s status as a Great power as quickly as did Britain and the European powers of the 19th century. Or, is there anyone willing to say that Britain, France, and Germany are all still Great Powers. I think their inability to sustain a small air campaign in Libya this past spring without significant American logistical support shows how far these nations have fallen. The problem with the countries of Europe is that they still think they matter on the world stage and while they may have some soft power they have none of the hard power they were able to use 100+ years ago.

China is an up and coming power, they are already an economic power although the amount of US debt they hold is a two edged sword that can cut both ways if they are not careful. They are rapidly engaged in upgrading their military and especially in trying to build a blue-water navy that at a minimum will be able to challenge America for control of the Chinese littoral. That they want to project power beyond the littoral is evident by their purchase and upgrading of an aircraft carrier. Aircraft carriers are only used to project power, they are offensive platforms not defensive. Submarines, destroyers and frigates are primarily defensive platforms.

The Chinese army has also been in a rush of modernization in recent years with a reduction in the number of soldiers in uniform but a concomitant increase in the quality of the troops that are left. There is also the simple fact that with a population of over a billion, of which the majority are males, they have a huge reserve of unused manpower they can draw on in any future conflict that stayed conventional but involved large land armies.

India must be reckoned on as well. The saving grace there is that India is a friendly power to the US and has increasingly adopted western ideals of government and freedom as it rapidly modernizes both its society and economy.

The US looks set to maintain its ability to project hard power for the foreseeable future at least. As long as America can put a carrier battle group off someone’s coast, they are a power to be reckoned with. America may be in decline, but despite the current economic difficulties, a fall is quite a ways off.

Historical Resources on the Web

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Posted on September 26, 2011 by Patrick Shrier

Updated 18 February 2012

Below the fold is a list of historical sources on the internet, this includes both primary and secondary source collections. I am constantly updating this list when I run across useful sites. Please point me at sites I miss in the comments section.

I am trying to keep this blog mostly academic or at least reasonably scholarly while at the same time making most of my source material easily available. Therefore I thought it would be a good idea to put up a note about sources I use on the site. For the most part I will try to use online sources in my essays and blog posts for one main reason. There is tons of great information on the internet if you know where to look and how to search. I hope that by posting online sources it will point people to some of the many resources available online. Occasionally I will use books from my personal library to cite some items that I just cannot find an online source for.

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