A new way of examining government deficit spending and debt along with other selections looking at history to analyze contemporary problems and issues comprise the basis of this week's Newsmax Rising Bestsellers.
One offering explains that the wokeness that has destroyed California is in danger of infecting the entire country.
Another uses the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to warn of the dangers of nuclear war.
Even another submits that the political division we see in Washington politics today may end with a rebirth of freedom — it's happened twice before.
The novel of the week is a political thriller, based on the nearly 60-year-old unsolved murder of a future senator's daughter.
"The Deficit Delusion: Why Everything Left, Right, and Supply-Side Tells You About the National Debt Is Wrong," by John Tamny (Regnery)
In what has been described as a "pathbreaking book," RealClearMarkets Editor and Parkview Institute President John Tamny asks readers to look at deficit spending and national debt in an entirely new way.
Liberals claim that deficits can be reduced only by increasing taxes on the wealthy, while conservatives submit that it's all a spending problem.
Supply-side proponents claim that reducing tax rates will stimulate the economy enough to increase tax revenues and ultimately pay off the debt.
Tamny claims they all misunderstand why we have a debt in the first place. He makes a passionate case that the debt crisis is not what the alarmists of the competing ideologies imagine it to be.
"In his new book the always provocative John Tamny makes a compelling case for calm and reason about the national debt 'crisis,'" wrote Steve Buri, president of the Discovery Institute. "'The Deficit Delusion' offers a compelling counternarrative that effectively challenges the wisdom of the alarmists. It is essential reading for those seeking a contrarian view." [Nonfiction]
"Fool's Gold: The Radicals, Con Artists, and Traitors Who Killed the California Dream and Now Threaten Us All," by Susan Crabtree & Jedd McFatter (Center Street)
In the mid-20th century, surf sound of the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean were siren songs calling America's youth to move west to the Golden State. But after decades of mismanagement, outright corruption, and woke policies promoted by far-left politicians, that dream has become a nightmare.
That nightmare is illustrated each day by the state's massive homelessness, rising crime, and escalating drug-induced deaths.
January's Pacific Palisades fire was made all the worse through lack of forestry management and poor water management.
And now, today's Democrats want to take the failure that is California nationwide.
"A forensic guide to the who, what, why, where, and when of the 'woke mind virus' which has bubbled up from California," wrote Miranda Devine, TV political pundit and New York Post columnist. "The facts in 'Fool's Gold' serve as a vaccine for the rest of us, administered expertly by Susan Crabtree and Jedd McFatter." [Nonfiction]
"Ghosts of Hiroshima," by Charles Pellegrino (Blackstone Publishing)
This New York Times bestseller was published 80 years after the U.S. dropped bombs dubbed "Fat Man" and "Little Boy" on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to hasten an end to World War II in the Pacific.
Charles Pellegrino combined interviews of more than 200 survivors and their families with years of forensic research to illustrate the absolute horror of nuclear weapons.
The ghosts of those roughly 200,000 people who lost their lives from the bombings are calling out to today's leaders to be careful.
"Pellegrino grounds his latest in his research on survivors of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki," wrote Booklist in its review. "An enigmatic work which suggests much and encourages reflection." [Nonfiction]
"The United States: The Path to a New Birth of Freedom," by Julie Shiposh (Eternal Joy Publishing)
Trust in politicians and government are nearly nonexistent, while political division in America appears to be at an all-time high.
This is the result, in large part, of lawfare, argues Julie Shiposh, spying on political opponents, and congressional gridlock.
But we've been there before — twice, in fact. The first time was at our nation's founding, and the second during the Civil War era.
But here's the thing: Each such era resulted in a rebirth of freedom.
The first gave us the Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, ratified in 1791.
The second resulted in the Reconstruction Amendments, Nos. 13 through 15, which abolished slavery, established citizenship and equal protection under the law, and protected voting rights for African Americans.
"Part historical analysis, part self-help with a gentle-handed spiritual dimension, this right leaning book is thought provoking and offers direction on what could be based on what has already been," wrote C. Lang for Amazon. [Nonfiction]
"Squinting at Shadows," by John David Bethel (independently published)
This fictional tale is based on the 1966 murder of Valerie Percy, daughter of the late Sen. Charles Percy, R-Ill., in their home during his first Senate run, a crime that remains unsolved.
Similarly, "Squinting at Shadows" opens with the brutal 1989 murder of Senate candidate Corbin Edding's daughter while her family sleeps in its rooms nearby.
That murder also goes cold — but not forever. Things take a turn 35 years later when the brother of an initial prime suspect to the murder leaps to his death — from the very room where the murder took place.
In his pocket is a slip of paper upon which is written the name of a man connected to international arms trafficking. The case is removed from the cold case file and assigned to a pair of FBI special agents.
What begins as a straightforward murder case turns into a shadowy web of corruption, lies, and international power struggles.
"A fascinating story written by someone who has lived and worked in Washington, D.C.," wrote former Rep. James Lightfoot, R-Iowa. "David understands the inner workings of government, which sadly very few people in our country do. I would encourage you to read 'Squinting at Shadows,' as not only is it entertaining, but is also informative." [Fiction]
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