52) The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East by Robert Fisk I will admit I wasn’t expecting a book of 1366 pages when I bought this, but I’m glad I did. Robert Fisk was a British journalist who spent his career following the conflicts in the Middle East an interest of his that came about through his father’s enlistment in WWI and the subsequent Balfour Declaration following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire. This is a long winded book, but Fisk does deliver with an analysis that doesn’t shy away from being critical where need be. Given recent upheavals, it serves as a look into what has lead to the current geopolitical climate of the region.
53) America’s Coming War with China: A Collision Course Over Taiwan by Ted Galen Carpenter I started this book knowing full well that much has changed in the years since it’s publication. Despite knowing this, it was still rather disappointing as I found myself thinking ‘what else is new?’ as what was presented was pretty much the same tune that has been sung for so many years and that it presented a rather over simplistic view of the potential danger that may lie ahead especially when one looks back on recent events in Hong Kong and how the ‘one country, two systems’ model will work. This seemingly draws you to that conclusion that the author feels that this will be the best outcome for all parties involved, but as a Taiwan born Australian I can safely say that I would sooner keep the status quo than any thought of a Hong Kong style of government.
Last edited by Crazy_Babe; 08/14/21 08:07 AM.
