Author: Urban Waite File Type: epub From Publishers WeeklyDrug smuggling in the Pacific Northwest provides the backdrop for Waites promising debut. Phil Hunt leads a quiet life with his wife, Nora, raising horses near Auburn, Wash., except when hes helping make drug deliveries through the mountains to Canada. Twenty years earlier, Phil killed a man during a botched robbery, and though he did his time, hes still serving the emotional sentence. Living in nearby Silver Lake is deputy Bobby Drake, the son of a legendary lawman who got arrested smuggling drugs just like Phil. Disaster results after Bobby, who hasnt seen the elder Drake in 10 years, inadvertently stumbles on Phil and his new partner during the middle of a drug exchange. Soon, Phil is on the run not only from the law but also a ruthless assassin sent by the smugglers. Waite eloquently depicts men in turmoil for whom the choice isnt necessarily between right and wrong but where to draw the line. (Feb.) (c) PWxyz, LLC. From BooklistStarred Review A few years ago, just as the creases were starting to form on his chiseled face, Clint Eastwood would have been perfect for the role of Phil Hunt, a horse farmer and ex-convict in Washington State who supplements his meager income with the occasional spot of drug smugglingnothing too dramatic, just picking up a few bales of weed dropped into the mountains, strapping them onto his horse, and riding the load back to civilization. Then a deputy marshal, Bobby Drake, whose father was also in the marijuana business, stumbles across one of Hunts horseback pick-ups, and though Hunt escapes their first encounter, Drake, with a single-mindedness reminiscent of Lieutenant Gerard on the trail of Richard Kimble, sets off after his man. Ah, but this is noir-tinged fiction, not TV melodrama, and standing between Drake and Hunt is a psycho-killer hit man, hired by Hunts drug bosses, who enjoys his work way too much (think Robert Mitchum in Cape Fear). Hunt is cut from the western rugged-individualist mold, but there is vulnerability there, too, just behind the eyes, and when he tells his wife, long-suffering Nora, that well figure this out, and well be all right, we hear the determination, but we also hear the tired resignation of a man forced to make a stand that may be beyond him. In a blood-spattered chase that winds from the Cascade Mountains in Central Washington to Seattle and back again, first-novelist Waite never eases the throttle, but even at high speed, its the interplay between the characters that gives the novel its power. An outstanding debut. --Bill Ott

Author: Alberto de Mingo Kaminouchi File Type: pdf Power is an issue that is attracting increased interest among philosophers, theologians and social scientists. The gospel of Mark, especially in 1032-45, contains teachings attributed to Jesus about the use and abuse of power. This book applies a combination of different methods and approaches mainly orality, criticism, literary criticism and a sensitivity for the social and cultural environment of the text, showing the centrality of Jesuss message on the issue of power both for the plot and for the theology of Mark. This message is a call to practice leadership in a way that is subversive toward the networks of power of the empire.**

Author: Pippa Norris File Type: pdf The flaws in the American electoral process have become increasingly apparent in recent years. The contemporary tipping point in public awareness occurred during the 2000 election count, and concern deepened due to several major problems observed in the 2016 campaign, worsening party polarization, and corroding public trust in the legitimacy of the outcome. To gather evidence about the quality of elections around the world, in 2012 the Electoral Integrity Project (EIP) was established as an independent research project based at Harvard and Sydney universities. The results show that experts rated American elections as the worst among all Western democracies. Without reform, these problems risk damaging the legitimacy of American electionsfurther weakening public confidence in political parties, Congress, and the U.S. government, depressing voter turnout, and exacerbating the risks of mass protests. Why American Elections Are Flawed describes several major challenges observed during the 2016 U.S. elections arising from deepening party polarization over basic voting procedures, the serious risks of hacking and weak cyber-security, the consequences of deregulating campaign spending, and lack of professional and impartial electoral management. Pippa Norris outlines the core concept and measure of electoral integrity, the key yardstick used to evaluate free and fair elections. Evidence from expert and mass surveys demonstrate the extent of problems in American elections. She shows how these challenges could be addressed through several practical steps designed to improve electoral procedures and practices. If implemented, the reforms will advance free and fair elections, and liberal democracy, at home and abroad. **

Author: Simon Critchley File Type: epub To philosophize is to learn how to die. Cicero assassinated by order of Mark Antony One who no longer is cannot suffer. Lucretius suicide, allegedly driven mad by a love potion Life is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short. Hobbes died in bed, age 91 In this collection of brief lives (and deaths) of nearly two hundred of the worlds greatest thinkers, noted philosopher Simon Critchley creates a register of mortality that is tragic, amusing, absurd, and exemplary. From the self-mocking haikus of Zen masters on their deathbeds to the last words of Christian saints and modern-day sages, this irresistible book contains much to inspire both amusement and reflection. Informed by Critchleys acute insight, scholarly intelligence, and sprightly wit, each entry tells its own tale, but collected together they add up to a profound and moving investigation of meaning and the possibility of happiness for us all. From the Trade Paperback edition. **