Reading List

I have 65 pages left of Atlas Shrugged; I also have at least a dozen books sitting in my "about to read" pile, so just in case I run out of something to read I've ordered A Safe Haven: Harry S. Truman and the Founding of Israel.

Israel Matzav posted about it today and I've been looking to bone up on this subject. A timely recommendation!

The book's authors responded to PowerLine's request to preview their book and wrote:

"In A Safe Haven we seek to answer the persistent question, why did he do it? We follow Truman as he grappled with the pros and cons of supporting the creation of a Jewish state and made crucial decisions that would affect the outcome. Through a narrative history, we view Truman as he confronted the Holocaust, the situation of the Jews still lingering in European DP camps after the war, and the resolve of world Jewry to have a country of their own in Palestine. Supporting this goal were significant numbers of the American public and Congress, key White House advisors, influential opinion-leaders, and ultimately the United Nations."

"It is our argument that had FDR lived and Truman not become President, Israel most likely would not exist today. It is a dramatic story about the many forces Truman had to deal with, especially his handling of the Arabs who insisted that the only acceptable outcome was for the Jews to live as a minority in an Arab state, the recalcitrant British who gave up their Mandate over Palestine and handed it over to the United Nations to come up with a solution, and his own Department of State, whose Arabists sought to undermine him."

I'll post my review when I've read it, but since it took me four weeks to read Atlas Shrugged, you might want your own copy.