RedState’s WaterCooler! Tuesday, 5/16/2017 – Open Thread – Op-Ed and Tuesday’s Books

Op-Ed

Barring personal invitation, the only means of opportunity an average American will have to access the Oval Office is by photo, video or recording. That’s it. I’ve repeated a LOT, as obtrusive as they often are, our press corp is essential to transparency be it Fox News or Townhall. I know, an unpopular opinion. Nevertheless, given yesterday’s Washington Post alleged revelation, think how curative and assuring those images would be today, at least to the President’s (dwindling) fan base.

The average American was left out. And so as beings of curiosity and reasoning, we speculate.

Our President did, however, permit TASS, Russia’s state-owned media outlet, to proxy for the average Russian, we now know. Trump’s vetting acumen is certainly questionable given the photobombing from the Russians.

Anyway, that’s it. When the people receive a bigly “Keep Out” posted at the President’s office door, the people instinctively ask “why?”

1. The Vanishing American Adult: Our Coming-of-Age Crisis–and How to Rebuild a Culture of Self-Reliance, by Ben Sasse.
   • “America’s youth are in crisis. Raised by well-meaning but overprotective parents and coddled by well-meaning but misbegotten government programs, they are ill-equipped to survive in our highly-competitive global economy.” … “In The Vanishing American Adult, Sasse diagnoses the causes of a generation that can’t grow up and offers a path for raising children to become active and engaged citizens. He identifies core formative experiences that all young people should pursue: hard work to appreciate the benefits of labor, travel to understand deprivation and want, the power of reading, the importance of nurturing your body–and explains how parents can encourage them.”
2. Apollo 8: The Thrilling Story of the First Mission to the Moon, by Jeffrey Kluger.
   • “The full story of Apollo 8 has never been told, and only Jeffrey Kluger―Jim Lovell’s co-author on their bestselling book about Apollo 13―can do it justice. Here is the tale of a mission that was both a calculated risk and a wild crapshoot, a stirring account of how three American heroes forever changed our view of the home planet.”
3. The Highwayman: A Longmire Story, by Craig Johnson.
   • “Sheriff Walt Longmire and Henry Standing Bear embark on their latest adventure in this novella set in the world of Craig Johnson’s New York Times bestselling Longmire series—the basis for the hit drama Longmire, now on Netflix.”
4. The Flight: Charles Lindbergh’s Daring and Immortal 1927 Transatlantic Crossing, by Dan Hampton.
   • “Acclaimed aviation historian Dan Hampton’s The Flight is a long-overdue, flyer’s-eye narrative of Lindbergh’s legendary journey. A decorated fighter pilot who flew more than 150 combat missions in an F-16 and made numerous transatlantic crossings, Hampton draws on his unique perspective to bring alive the danger, uncertainty, and heroic accomplishment of Lindbergh’s crossing. Hampton’s deeply researched telling also incorporates a trove of primary sources, including Lindbergh’s own personal diary and writings, as well as family letters and untapped aviation archives that fill out this legendary story as never before.”
5. Wrestling With His Angel: The Political Life of Abraham Lincoln Vol. II, 1849-1856, by Sidney Blumenthal.
   • “Volume II of Sidney Blumenthal’s acclaimed, landmark biography, The Political Life of Abraham Lincoln, reveals the future president’s genius during the most decisive period of his political life when he seizes the moment, finds his voice and helps create a new political party.” … “Now, in one of the greatest American success stories, Wrestling With His Angel brings Lincoln from the wilderness to the peak of his career as he takes control of the nation’s most profound spiritual crisis—slavery—and enters the battle for the nation’s soul.”

Welcome, RedStaters, to the WaterCooler! It’s RedState’s only Daily open thread. Enjoy!

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