by Marie Davis on August 31, 2010
From Publishers Weekly
Merry, president and editor-in-chief of Congressional Quarterly Inc., offers a wide-ranging, provocative analysis of the controversial presidency of James K. Polk. Using a broad spectrum of published and archival sources, Merry depicts Polk as an unabashed expansionist. His political career was devoted to extending American power across the continent. Polk saw the fulfillment of manifest destiny as transcending even the festering issue of slavery. Elected president in 1844, he pursued confrontational diplomacy with Britain, structured a war with Mexico and enlarged the U.S. by over a third, essentially to its present boundaries, in a single term of office. Polk’s achievements were correspondingly controversial across the political spectrum. Merry uses congressional debates and newspaper quotations to depict the genesis of a fundamental, enduring debate on America’s nature and role. Conceding Polk’s personal lapses and his least impressive traits. (more…)
by Marie Davis on August 23, 2010
Amazon.com
Enjoy rich, full sound from music or movies with this compact pair of sleek Bose speakers. Whether placed on a desk or bookshelf or mounted on a wall for use as surround speakers, these speakers are designed to deliver balanced, spacious sound with minimal or moderate amplifier power (10 to 100 watts per channel). Automatic protection circuitry keeps the speaker drivers from being overdriven, heightening the speakers’ reliability without interfering with your listening. If you’ll be using them in a home-theater capacity, keep in mind that they’re designed to blend seamlessly with the Bose VCS-10 center-channel speaker and any Direct/Reflecting Bose speaker system. Unlike conventional speakers, which radiate sound in a single direction, these speakers use Articulated Array driver positioning and Stereo Everywhere technology to deliver balanced sound throughout your listening area. Further, Bose’s two 2.5-inch proprietary Twiddler drivers per speaker move m (more…)
