The Real Hoosiers: Crispus Attucks High School, Oscar Robertson, and the Hidden History of Hoops, McCallum - B

            In 1927,  Indianapolis opened Crispus Attucks High School. It was during the era that the KKK dominated Indiana politics. The objective was to remove all children of color and isolate them in a segregated school. Attucks was a very good school and it also had a pretty good basketball team. The Robertson's moved to Indianapolis from Tennessee in 1942. Indianapolis was the most segregated city in the north. The Robertson's lived in an unheated tarpaper shack with an outdoor privy. Oscar's brother, Flap, was three years older and played for the first Attucks team to rise to prominence. Oscar made the varsity team as a sophomore in 1953. Attucks appeared in the state semi-final against the most legendary team in state history, Milan. Milan had only 73 boys in the entire school. They beat Attucks and went on to beat Muncie in the finals as immortalized in the film 'Hoosiers. From the first game of the '54-'55 season, it was obvious that the Crispus Attucks Tigers were going to be special. They began a two year run that saw them go 62-1, and put Black basketball front and center in Indiana. A loss in February did not prevent them from facing an all-Black Roosevelt in the final. Attucks won by a blowout. They were the first Indianapolis and the first Black team to win a state title. A year later, they were undefeated on the way to their second crown in a row. Oscar was Indiana's 'Mr. Basketball.' He finished his high school career by leading Indiana over Kentucky in their annual All-Star game.

        The Big O distinguished himself as a pro by taking on the presidency of the Players Association, testifying before Congress, fighting for the players pension plan, and acting as the named plaintiff in an anti-trust action against the league. He was a man committed to justice for players. He also was one of the greatest to ever play the game. This book details the racism that haunted the state that was home to the KuKlux Klan and also provides an excellent history of Hoosier basketball.

The Hundred year's War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917-2017, Khalidi - B

              The author is a highly-regarded professor at Columbia University, and the scion of a family of Jerusalem-based scholars going back generations. Indeed, an ancestor warned Theodor Herzl, founder of Zionism, that the objective of settling in Palestine would never succeed because there were indigenous people already there. Herzl, who visited Palestine once, ignored the warning. Herzl believed that the poor people of Palestine should be dispersed elsewhere in the Ottoman Empire. "Starting after World War I, the dismantling of the indigenous Palestinian society was set in motion by the large-scale immigration of European Jewish settlers supported by the newly established British Mandate authorities, who helped them build the autonomous structure of a Zionist para-state." The premise of this book is that"the modern history of Palestine can best be understood in these terms: as a colonial war waged against the indigenous population..."

             Arabs, Christians, and Jews lived amicably in Palestine as subjects of the Ottoman Empire. World War I brought hundreds of thousands of deaths through conscription, starvation and plague. After 400 years of Ottoman sovereignty , Palestine was occupied by a European power, one which had previously approved the creation "of a national home for the Jewish people."  Anti-Zionist riots took place in the 1920's. Throughout the Muslim world, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Egypt, and Iraq achieved independence - but not Palestine. The League of Nations confirmed the Mandate and the Balfour Declaration in 1922, and the Jewish Agency was granted quasi-governmental status. "The British treated the Palestinians with the same contemptuous condescension they lavished on the subject peoples from Hong Kong to Jamaica." The Jewish population grew after the rise of Nazism in 1933 bringing educated, skilled people and their wealth to Palestine. The Palestinians reacted violently in 1936 with a six-month general strike that led to a three year revolt, that required 100,000 British troops to quell. By the beginning of WWII, the die was cast. Palestine was on the road to becoming Israel.

               After the war, the US backed the Zionist cause.  The UN, led by America and the USSR, voted to create a Jewish state in late 1947.  The following May, Israel declared its independence,  and the US immediately recognized the new country. In the ensuing fighting, 80% of the Arabs lost their homes and 720,000 became refugees. "The ethnic cleansing of the Arab-inhabited areas of the country" transformed Palestine into Israel. The approximately  160,000 Palestinians who remained lost their land and homes and were subject to martial law for the next two decades. Almost a decade later, in 1956, when Israel, Britain and France attacked Egypt, the Israelis took advantage of the opportunity to wreak violence once again on the local Arabs.

                 In a mere six days in 1967, Israel destroyed three air forces and armies, and occupied the Sinai, the West Bank, and the Golan Heights. The Six-Day War saw the United States fully supportive of Israel. In response, there was a reemergence of Palestinian nationalism throughout the diaspora. The Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the PLO and Fatah appeared in the late sixties. Their ascent vastly complicated the politics of the Middle East. The front line states, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria wanted to contain them, but the Palestinians engaged in disruptive terroristic activities. Israel and Jordan, backed by the US pushed back. Indeed in September of 1970, Jordan expelled the PLO. The US helped Syria attack the PLO in 1976.

                        In pursuit of the PLO, Israel invaded Lebanon in 1982. There were 50,000 casualties before a cease fire was declared after ten weeks. Thomas Friedman described the Israeli bombing as "indiscriminate" before the NYT editors removed the offending characterization.  The US fully supported and supplied the offensive. Having provoked the Israelis with constant acts of terror, the PLO "found itself bereft of support from many of its traditional allies." The PLO left Lebanon for half a dozen Arab countries. Israel occupied Beirut, even though it had promised not to.  Afterwards, the Israeli judiciary castigated the country's leaders for the needless state sponsored massacres that took place in the Palestinian refugee camps. 

                       An unintended consequence of 1982 was a resurgence of nationalism in the Occupied Territories that led to the Intifada (uprising) in late 1987. It was a spontaneous "bottom up campaign of resistance," and led to worldwide sympathy and support for the two-state solution. A serious attempt to solve the Palestine problem was made by Jim Baker, who had a healthy skepticism of the Israelis, but it failed after Clinton defeated Bush in 1992. At Oslo, Israel agreed to the return of the PLO to the Occupied Territories, and a limited role for the Palestine Authority. However, virtually nothing had  changed for the better in the day to day life of the Palestinians. Indeed, matters deteriorated as travel between Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza became more restricted. The Second Intifada erupted in 2000. This century has seen an uptick in violence after Hamas took over Gaza and has been sporadically fighting with the IDF for years. Obama made an attempt at forcing Israel's hand in peace talks, but was unable to overcome America's traditional support for Israel.

                   Reconciling the needs and desires of two peoples connected to the same place and upholding the ideals of democracy appears to be beyond anyone's vision. The Trump administration reversed  American policies by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital. It also negotiated with the Gulf States to recognize Israel and completely ignored the Palestinians. It is only the fact that the plight of the Palestinians is very important to the vast majority of Arabs that keeps the issue alive, and resolving it favorably with due consideration of Palestinian rights is not on the horizon.

                   The essence of this book is that Israel has never had the moral high ground that we in the US believed they occupied. Indeed, "complaisant American public opinion" is a foundation of the state of Israel. I've read three reviews of this book. The one somewhat critical was in the NYTimes, and it doesn't disagree, but describes the author's hope for a resolution recognizing the Palestinians as "fanciful." As for me, I think the author makes a compelling case against the British for deeming it within their remit to tell the rest of the world how to live and for completely dismissing the Palestinians; against the Israelis for intending to eliminate the Palestinians from their world and for their extensive use of violence; and against the US for supporting and supplying the Israeli war machine.

 

One Nation Under Guns: How Gun Culture Distorts Our History And Threatens Our Democracy, Erdozain - B

               Lyndon Johnson's National Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Violence recommended that the 24 million handguns then in the US be reduced, by licensing, to 2.4 million. Today, there are over 200 million handguns in America.

             "There is no mystery to the Second Amendment.  The mystery is how one part of America convinced itself that privately held guns are the foundation of democracy, and how everyone else was bullied into acquiescence." "The norms of today are not the norms of American history or the values of the founders." The Myth of the Law-Abiding Citizen says that guns keep us safe from bad people. However, studies have shown that 84% of deaths are "altercation homicides" that is, those between friends or family. It has also been proven that homicide rates increase when gun density rises.  States allowing concealed carry saw increases in murder rates after the laws' enactments. Reagan's support for the NRA led to assault rifles, high capacity magazines and "constitutional carry."

              The fear of standing armies led to the Constitution's granting to Congress the power "to raise armies." The result  was the 2nd Amendment which clearly referenced a collective duty in a states militia that gave rise to the right to bear arms. Under the common law and well into the 19th century in America, merely carrying a threatening weapon in public was a crime. However, the Civil War created a gun culture by the manufacture of millions of weapons, and the training of young men to use them. The second half of the century legitimized violence by vigilantes, and by anyone fighting the Indians, as the west was tamed.

             Handguns were sold everywhere and were widespread in the early 20th century. New York passed a law criminalizing possession of a handguns, and the American Bar Association recommended a national ban on the manufacture and sale of handguns. The NRA loudly protested that the reforms were an attack on white America, a guns were needed to deal with the vipers arriving on every boat from Europe. FDR tried twice to pass gun control legislation, but failed both times.

            John Kennedy was assassinated by a man who made a mail order purchase of a rifle with a coupon from the NRA magazine, 'American Rifleman.' Riots ensued the following year, and in 1966, America saw its first mass murder at the University of Texas. An attempt to regulate weapons ran into the gun lobby and the NRA. A majority of the country believed in gun reform, but the volume of letters and telegrams that members of Congress received were overwhelmingly from the gun supporters. The 1968 law that passed was labelled by the Washington Post as a "crimp in the mail order business." It was close to meaningless. Richard Nixon hated guns and thought that no American should own a handgun. His successors viewed matters differently. For Reagan, life was a struggle against the evils of communism, and whether you were an individual or a nation, it was essential to be armed to fight the evildoers.  He promoted a bill of rights for gun owners. In the 1990's, a bill banning assault rifles passed, but it had a sunset provision. After the Columbine slaughter, Tom DeLay said it was the result of a "godless society." The NRA achieved its greatest victory in 2008when the Supreme Court issued its verdict in Heller, which was a "substitution of the mythology of the gun culture for the truth of the Second Amendment." Antonin Scalia twisted and contorted English and American history to convert the concept of a collective militia into an individuals right to own weapons without government regulation. Thus, we all live in fear ofpersonal violence and our grandchildren practice "active shooter drills." This is an excellent read.

Custer's Trials: A Life On The Frontier Of A New America, Stiles - B

                   This Pulitzer winning biography attempts to tell Custer's story as he lived it, and not as a prelude to "the march to the Little Bighorn." The hope is "to explain why his celebrity, and notoriety, spanned both the Civil War and the years on the frontier, resting on neither exclusively but incorporating both."

                   The son of a blacksmith, he received the coveted appointment to West Point in 1857. He was never much of a cadet and was constantly on report. "He laughed in class, threw snowballs, and lobbed bread across the mess hall." In his fourth year, he watched as state after state seceded and his classmates from the south left. Although he was sympathetic and close to the southerners, he "stood firm for the Union." He graduated last in his class, and was court-martialed soon after for allowing two cadets under his supervision to fight each other. He was found guilty, but not punished and was off to Washington. He actually made it to Bull Run but missed the battle, and joined Phil Kearney's staff. He saw his first action during the Peninsula Campaign. He was assigned to an engineering battalion, scouted the enemy from 1,000 feet in a balloon, and excelled in a number of skirmishes. He drew the attention of McClellan and joined his staff. He performed with considerable bravery and came to idolize Little Mac, who despised Lincoln, and Stanton, and hated the Black man. When McClellan was relieved, Custer felt that the "Abolitionist radicals had stabbed him in the back."

                  After Antietam, he spent the winter home in Monroe, Michigan. The following April, he was assigned to the Army of the Potomac. The politically well-connected Custer was appointed Brigadier General in June. He led four cavalry regiments from Michigan. On the third day of Gettysburg, Lee attacked in the center with infantry and sent Jeb Stuart's cavalry around the Union right to attack from the rear. The Michigan Brigade stood athwart their path. Custer personally led a charge that stopped the Confederate cavalry. He made a material contribution to the Union victory, and was now a nationally-recognized hero.

                 On Feb. 9, 1864, he married Libbie Bacon before 300 people in Monroe, Michigan. Two months later, Grant changed the leadership of the Cavalry and Phil Sheridan in charge. At Yellow Tavern during the Wilderness Campaign, one of Custer's men shot and killed Jeb Stuart. Custer quickly became Phil Sheridan's favorite. Custer continued to throw himself into every battle and every charge with unparalleled effort, panache, and the utmost of luck. He had innumerable horses shot out under him and was hit by at least three bullets, fortunately spent out and lacking in lethality. In the fall, Sheridan was tasked with expelling Jubal Early from the Shenandoah Valley. Custer again excelled and was elevated from "Union hero to national icon." Twenty-five year old Major General Custer finished the war at Appomattox. He had entered it as the lowest 2nd Lt. "His energy, tactical skill, and courage" had propelled him to the top. 

                 "As peace began, all that was self-absorbed and self-destructive in Custer bubbled to the surface again." Sheridan assigned Custer to an administrative post in Texas. His command was a total failure, as he could not adjust to peacetime, was inconsistent, temperamental, and such an over the top disciplinarian that complaints reached Grant. He stole a valuable horse, lied to the authorities, and evidenced a complete disregard for the freed slaves. His time in the south was brief, as he was mustered out of the army in January, 1866. Later in the year, he was afforded the opportunity to return to the army as a Lt. Col. at Ft. Riley, Kansas. A year later, he was court-martialed at Ft. Leavenworth for being AWOL, the abusive treatment of government horses, and the extrajudicial execution of men under his command. He had left his assignment at Ft. Wallace to ride over 200 miles to see Libbie, with whom he had been quarreling over what is generally assumed to be an extra-marital affair on his part.  He was found guilty on all three counts. He was suspended for a year, but returned to duty with the support of Grant and Sheridan. In November of 1868, Sheridan sent Custer south into Indian Territory in pursuit of a band of Cheyenne warriors. With 800 men of the 7th Cavalry charging to the tune 'Gary Owen,' Custer led his first charge in years on a Cheyenne camp. Although many women and children were captured as hostages, a great many also perished in the dawn attack. No warriors survived the morning. It was the first army victory over the southern Cheyenne, and many surrendered and came to the camps. Sheridan was once again very happy with his favorite cavalry officer.

                 A long leave and a brief, unsuccessful attempt to become a financier in NY was followed by an unpleasant tour in Kentucky, where federal troops were maintaining the peace between the races. By March of 1873, he was back in the Dakota Territories. The army's role was to "escort the surveyors from the Northern Pacific Railroad, protecting them from Sioux attacks." His efforts that summer were again successful as he managed and fought well. The following summer, he headed for the Black Hills. Many hoped he would find gold because it would lead to a vast influx of whites, provoking the northern Plains Indians into their Armageddon. Gold was discovered.

                 On May 18, 1876, Custer led all twelve regiments of the 7th Cavalry out of Ft. Abraham Lincoln and headed west toward  what was expected to be the final fight of the war with the Sioux.  In the aftermath of June 25th*, the army convened a hearing at the Palmer House in Chicago. The two officers generally believed to have not executed their orders that day, Reno and Benteen, clearly perjured themselves in an attempt to avoid condemnation. The inquiry did not reprimand either man, and concluded that the number of Sioux and Cheyenne warriors was so unusually high that day, and the fact that they chose to stand and fight a pitched battle, condemned Custer and his men to death. "But Custer as glory-obsessed, arrogant fool emerged as the persistent narrative." It held then and does so today. That narrative fails in one important regard: "his performance in battle, the one field in which he displayed consistent good judgment and self-possession. From the Civil War through his two battles on the Yellowstone, he proved decisive, not reckless; shrewd,  not foolish." Probably the most insightful chronicler declared, "The simplest answer, usually overlooked, is that the army lost largely because the Indians won."

                      Libbie struggled financially, but eventually wrote  successful books that elevated her position. She invested well and lived on Park Avenue when she died in 1933.

                      Custer was arrogant, delusional, a psychopathic liar, and simply not a stand-up fella. But he was extraordinarily brave, very lucky in battle and a brilliant intuitive tactician. Much of what I have read over the years has focused on his time in the west. I had no idea how much he contributed in the Civil War. Grant, Sherman, and Sheridan appreciated and approved of his battlefield skills. He may not have the reputation that Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain had in those first few days of July, but he was damned close. 

*Custer's two younger brothers, a nephew and his sister's husband were with him at the Little Bighorn.

I Hear Sirens In the Street, McKinley - B+

             Belfast's D.I. Sean Duffy gets caught up in a very odd murder. He and his team find a body, and the corpse's tattoos indicate he's American. Some research brings them to a dark corner of the county occupied by people who hate the 'peelers' so much they won't even talk to them. Duffy takes a week off and goes to the US to do some digging. He's on the right path, and that path indicates that the deceased was a US agent looking into John DeLorean and his car company. Duffy's right, but he pays a price for bucking the establishment. Busted to sergeant in uniform and back on the mean streets.

Absolution, McDermott - B

         Patricia Riordan Kelly is a born and bred New York Irish Catholic, a recent grad of Marymount and the new wife of  Peter Kelly. They are in Saigon in the early sixties where Peter, an engineer for Esso, is working for the CIA. Patricia recalls their time there in a long letter to the daughter of the woman who befriended her when they were young wives in Vietnam. It is a fascinating exploration of what it was like before everything changed for women. The expectation was to marry young and be a handmaiden to your husband's career. In this instance, Patricia had numerous miscarriages and no live births, the novel plumbs the depths of misery that she went through. And, it is a brilliant review of being Irish Catholic in that era. As an Irishwoman born in Brooklyn in the early 1950's, and educated in the parochial school system in Nassau, the author completely nails it.

The Fields, Young - B+

                       This is a superb police procedural set in Black Hawk County, Iowa and featuring recently promoted Sergeant Riley Fisher. In the midst of a gubernatorial election with the issue of big agribusiness v. family farmer dominating the state, Riley faces a serial killer. The first victim is a friend of hers from childhood through high school. The county is in such a state of anxiety that the Sheriff calls in the FBI. The plot thickens when it becomes apparent that the governor is behind some serious hijinks. The ending is bit of a stumble, but this still is a very good read.

Original Sins, Young - B

        Riley Fisher is in Des Moines and now working for the FBI. There are some weird political issues in the small satellite office, but Riley stays focused on the return of a serial killer in the capital, and the hatred directed at the state's first woman governor. She and a local police officer pull off the uncovering and arrest of some very bad people. This is a bit too close to its predecessor in its plotting for me.

Ilium, Carpenter - D

                    Highly acclaimed balderdash. A young Englishwoman is recruited by the CIA to help set up an assassination. Why she is recruited and how she helped is never explained. "Psychological thriller" - not that I can see.