The Astonishing Power of Emotions

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars If Only
What a Book

There is not a person on this earth who could not benefit from reading this book and applying the teachings within it .If only i had discovered it sooner.

5 Stars Astonishing Power of Your Emotions
Fantastic life changing book on how to flow with life’s river….downstream. You can have it all just let go of the oars….”there is nothing you want upstream…” (excerpt from the book).

5 Stars Practical, easy and insightful
This is likely the best book I have read on the law of attraction as it gives you practical, easy steps to take to get what you want. The beauty of it is the message that there really is nothing to do. Just read the book over and over.

5 Stars THE POWER OF LOVE
I strongly recommend to read every chapter even if you don’t think it applies to you, there is a message to be heard. I am so loving life right now, finally someone has answered the questions that I have been asking for so long, and finally someone has reassured me that what I have been feeling and knowing for so long is the way that I should have been feeling.

I also recommend other book about feelings, emotions and relationships that is a perfect match with this great book: I Love You. Now What?: Falling in Love is a Mystery, Keeping It Isn’t

5 Stars The astonishing power of emotions
Theh astonishing power of emotions will change the way you look at your life, but read all of Jerry and Esther Hick’s books because there is something wonderful in all of their books in fact I have pre ordered their next book, Money and the law of attraction.

I have even given these books as gifts because they are a must read for everyone.

Linda Eschler

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The Nine Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court

In The Nine, acclaimed journalist Jeffrey Toobin takes us into the chambers of the most important—and secret—legal body in our country, the Supreme Court, revealing the complex dynamic among the nine people who decide the law of the land. An institution at a moment of transition, the Court now stands at a crucial point, with major changes in store on such issues as abortion, civil rights, and church-state relations. Based on exclusive interviews with the justices and with a keen sense of the Court’s history and the trajectory of its future, Jeffrey Toobin creates in The Nine a riveting story of one of the most important forces in American life today.

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars The Wind Blows
The founding fathers would not like to read this book. It is well researched and presents a factual case to show that the highest court in the land is devoid of constitutional fortitude and is quite manipulative in its own manner. Not really what most americans expect.

The writing covering the elements of the key cases is quite interesting. Sections in between that show the games in the selection process were very chewey and not worth the shoe leather.

The writings giving insight to the lives of the justices and the relations between them are quite well done. It may not have been the point of the author,but he proved there are nuts on the court.

One reason the lay reader should pick up this book is to realize that the rule of law is a mere extension of the rule of politic. The lay man, common man, average joe may think he is protected by a constitution, but Mr. Toobin will show that it no longer exists. Depending on which way the wind is blowing, the court will move from one ‘analysis’ of law to the other to fit personal opinions rather than concept of the constitution. Rationalization, justification, twistification and plain old ‘because I said so’ are what really drives the process behind the black robes.

And if you never knew it before, this book will show you why lawyers are better than the rest of us.

5 Stars Legal Politics
A legal analyst with CNN News and a graduate of Harvard, Jeffrey Toobin brings forth an account and supberb evaluation of how he sees the Supreme Court at present which has resulted in his individual interviews with these justices.

The election of 2008 for a new President might very well change the status of our Judicial System. It is important to keep in mind that all members of the Supreme Court, the highest body in the United States, are appointed by the current President and confirmed by the Senate. In addition, the President selects individuals who share his idealogical views.

I recommend Mr. Toobin’s “The Nine” to those who are interested in law and politics and what the Supreme Court is today.

5 Stars Conservative Agenda
The subject matter of the book is the impact of the conservative agenda on the Supreme Court. The death of Chief Justice Rehnquist is covered in the Prologue. The Warren Court had transformed the entire legal culture.

By 1991 and the appointment of Clarence Thomas the conservatives had made remarkable progress. Thomas is a philosophical heir to Booker T. Washington. Chief Justice Rehnquist used a line from IOLANTHE regarding his conduct during the Clinton impeachment trial that he did nothing in particular and he did it very well.

Near the end of the Clinton years the conservative judicial revolution was sputtering. The Bush v. Gore opinion amounted to a catalogue of the Court’s worst flaws as judges, the author asserts. The argument is supported by Toobin’s description of the procedures followed and the atmosphere of the Court in December 2000.

Subsequently, the Court became more liberal as evidenced by Lawrence v. Texas and other decisions. Justices Breyer and Kennedy, in reaching for solutions to the Court’s cases, sometimes emulated foreign models.

Justice O’Connor saw in the Schiavo case a threat to judicial independence. After Justice O’Connor left the Court, Justice Kennedy’s position became critical to the case outcomes of the Court. In the Roberts Court, dissenting justices wondered what had happened to the doctrine of stare decisis.

This excellent book concludes with a focus on the primacy of ideological differences. The text throughout is able and interesting.

4 Stars Not so much inside, as its impact on the outside and how to get in
I liked this book a lot, it concerns the Supreme Court personalities and impacts from the mid Eighties to 2006, though the bulk of the book concentrates on the Clinton/Bush era. I read it after Woodward’s `the Brethren’, which deals with the years 1968-73. The tenures of the justices are so long, that this book is almost a continuation. The processes of picking and adjudicating cases are the same as described in the Brethren, as is the processes by which majorities opinions are shaped and preserved. However Chief Justice Rhenquist seems to have taken pride in the running a far more efficient process than his predecessor. One key difference seems to be that there is a more explicit process of caballing to ensure that a particular opinion becomes the majority, though still informal, it seems to be a more acknowledged behaviour than in the early 1970s.

The book’s main focus is the political impact of the decisions taken - particularly on the `culture wars’, and the more focused approach (particularly among Republicans) on getting candidates selected and approved who will take a conservative line.

The Rhenquist court, despite having 8 of 9 justices who were appointed by Republican presidents, was a disappointment to conservatives who wished to reverse the `liberal’ trend of its predecessor courts. However, due in part to Rhenquist’s focus on efficiency rather than philosophy and the peculiarly individualistic natures of Justice Scalia and Thomas, the courts opinions were influenced by those of Justice O’Connor; whose views were decidedly middle-of-the road - not against restricting abortion, but ensuring that the mother’s health was given paramount consideration; not against school prayer as long as it wasn’t promoted by school authorities; not in favour of forced integration, but in favour of desegration; not in favour of gay practice, but an upholder of rights to privacy, incorporating sexual orientation

The book is quite good on giving pen portraits of the character and concerns of each of the justices, and shows what a varied bunch they are. It is particularly good at demonstrating how the work, and its associated experiences, have changed Justices O’Connor, Stevens and Kennedy, while leaving Justices Souter, Scalia and Thomas almost unchanged. It’s most telling impression on me was that both the Clinton (Ginsburg and Breyer) and Bush (Jnr) appointees (Roberts and Alito) were much more heavily scrutinised and their subsequent opinions were much more predictable, than previous appointees - Stevens,O’Connor and Souter were viewed a `squelches’ by conservatives, appointed by Ford, Regan and Bush (Snr) respectively, they were viewed as having veered `leftward’ upon appointment.

I particularly enjoyed the descriptions of the political machinations around the appointment process of new justices, from Bork onwards. Bush Snr’s approach seemed detached, Clinton’s haphazard and chaotic approach, while Bush Jnr’s was focused and ruthless, but also impersonal, in the sense that it seemed run by a selection team rather than a personal priority.

The book is best on the processes by which Bush vs. Gore was decided. Toobin is of the view that the Court shamed itself on this. I found this argument convincing, it seems the court intervened early, and the Justices took pre-determined positions, in short became too political. However there is also an argument that if the Court was to decide on a vote, then it had to do so, rather than let the re-counts and re-runs continue until chaos ensued. However, given the Republican appointed majority and the partisan process by which the court was invited to decide the case, I think I agree with Toobin that it was this Courts least fine hour, and indeed tainted this set of Justices in relations to their predecessors.

4 Stars Interesting History
I found this book very enlightening. Prior to reading this book, I never really followed in detail the movements and history of the Supreme Court. I am not a lawyer but found the book fairly easy to follow and found the politics behind the members surprisingly interesting.

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Creative Visualization Meditations Gawain Shakti

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Good Meditations
I recommend Shakti Gawains Creative Visulization Meditation CD. It’s

certainly not the best one out there, but is good for beginners. This 60 minute CD is much better then the original book on tape she did years ago. On that tape, she read very fast, she sounded unenthusiastic, the meditations were rushed, so I couldn’t get much out of it.

Here, she reads slow and her voice is calm and relaxing. The added music is pretty good, however I would have wanted a little more time spent with her guidance through the creative visualizations.

3 Stars Content was a 4 or 5 star
The case was broken in shipment because the CD had not been packed properly/at all. It was shipped in a manila envelope with no cushion or bubble wrap whatsoever.

5 Stars calming effects
This is a great CD as an introduction to meditation and how to do it.

Also, I use it to calm my self and stop a lot of the inner chatter that goes on. I highly recommend it.

5 Stars Good Variety
I was looking for a creative visualization meditation program that I could listen to in the mornings when I woke up. There are several short meditations on this CD that are perfect for that and don’t take much time. What I also like is the 30-minute relaxation & goal visualization session that I can listen to at night before bed. I regularly have this CD is my car when I need to relax or motivate myself with positive thoughts. The CD is 60 minutes long, but you can easily listen to it in short pieces if you don’t have an hour to spare.

5 Stars Enlightening
The power we have over ourselves usng creative visualization is infinite. This was easy, relaxing and perfect for people who want to tap into themselves. One of the best purchases ive made.

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Meggs Making Graphic Design History

Graphic designer, professor, historian, and author Philip Baxter Meggs (1942-2002) was born in 1942, Meggs began teaching in the Communication Arts and Design Department at Virginia Commonwealth University, chairing the department from 1974 to 1987. In 1983, he published his History of Graphic Design–the book that not only put graphic design in its historical context; it put graphic design on the cultural map.

Before Phil Meggs wrote his seminal book, graphic design was left largely unchronicled. A History of Graphic Design offered designers and students of design a foundation on which to build, a starting point from which to move forward, and a context for graphic design’s place in history.

This single work afforded an immediate legitimacy to a field that had, until that moment, been considered more of a trade than a profession. As Steven Heller wrote in PRINT magazine, Meggs “laid more than a groundwork; he built a monument to graphic design’s legacy. Now he is an integral part of that legacy.”

Meggs: Making Graphic Design History is at once a retrospective of Phil Megg’s achievements as a historian, educator, and artist in his own right, a deserved tribute to his lasting influence on the graphic arts, and a loving memoriam written by family, friends, and colleagues who were lucky enough to have known him.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Spectacular
I had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to go through the Communication Arts & Design program at VCU with Phil as illustration instructor, and student advisor.

This book, about the life and times of Phil Meggs is essential reading for all graphic designers and artists whether you knew Phil or not. It follows a time line up to his death, showing sketch books, projects and designs by Phil, giving a glimpse of this truly gifted designer — while providing any creative visual communicator a recipe for gathering, digesting and interpreting visuals — a creative shot in the arm to say the least.

The rememberances of those last months, written by Libby Meggs (Phil’s wife) noted illustrator in her own right, brought tears to my eyes.

Bottom line: the graphic designer, illustrator or visual communicator now has a detailed map on how to get where they want to go — creatively. And for me, when faced with difficult design projects, I finally have the answer to the question: “What would Phil Meggs do”

This book is in the number ONE spot for nomination for “BOOK OF THE YEAR” at www.Design-Bookshelf.com and DTG Magazine. And that recommendation says it all.

Just buy it.

5 Stars A Must Have
If you were fortunate enough to have been taught by Phil Meggs or perhaps you had a professor that used A History of Graphic Design in class, then you must own this book.

It’s beautiful and touching. I will treasure it always with my fond memories of Professor Meggs.

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