Monday, May 12, 2008

With Every Mistake by Gwynne Dyer

With Every Mistake by Gwynne Dyer is an edited collection of columns from between 2001 and 2005. Dyer an expatriate Canadian writes on current affairs, international relations, history and the environment. Each selection is prefaced with an update as well as some notes on his state of mind as he wrote the column..

There is quite a bit of self-flagellation about his inability to discern neoconservative strategy quicker. This concerns the run-up to the Iraq war and the nonsensical claims of weapons of mass destruction. He does seem to be a little too hard on himself after all no one else connected the dots either. Hindsight being perfect sometimes makes it difficult to figure out just what we knew at the time.

Dyer is somewhat of an iconoclast He argues that terrorism is really not that bad. More people die of automobile accidents every year. Israel will have to make concessions. The North Koreans aren't crazy. I tend to hold opinions like these so I enjoyed it. If you don't your mileage will vary. There is a very interesting section on media ownership and how this can stifle different perspectives. His columns were tossed out of various newspapers for their perceived bias.

Highly recommended.

Is available through Abebooks.

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