...What Was Sam Houston’s Most Heroic Decision? The 67 foot statue of Sam Houston, in Huntsville, Texas is a fitting tribute to a man who lived life large. His titles included Major General, President of the Republic, Congressman, U.S. Senator, and Governor. Even though at the age of 39 he almost totally broke down he became an alcoholic, quit his role as governor of Tennessee, and his wife left him, he then took the challenge to make good relations with the Comanche and later became one of the most admirable men of all time. During his memorable life he was confronted with many difficult decisions that were extremely heroic. His most heroic decision was to not sign an oath to the Confederacy. As governor of Texas he made the unpopular...
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...and struggles during the colonization and fight for the independence of Texas. H. W. Brands brings to the reader vivid portrayals of such great men as Andrew Jackson, Stephen F. Austin, and Sam Houston along with a host of lesser known individuals whose pioneering spirits brought them to the Texas borders only to face opposition from Spaniards, marauding and hostile Indian attacks, and ultimately an army of power-hungry Mexican leaders, fearful of the growing numbers of American settlers. He begins by painting a picture of Moses Austin, a failed businessman who, like many others, was driven to this remote border province of Mexico. Austin and his brother successfully operated a lead mine in Virginia, borrowing heavily to finance the venture. A bank downturn left him holding worthless bank notes, starting his push to the Western borders to do business. He ends up over five hundred miles from the United States border at San Antonio de Béxar, the capital of Texas. He negotiates with a hostile Spanish governor for a land deal in the state, if he brings American immigrants inside. Moses's son, Stephen F. Austin, ends up leading a group of settlers to Texas on the promise of his dying father's last wish. Thus begins the balanced, informative account of one of America's best epics. "The land was enough to excite any man's lust, and perhaps emotions more deadly," writes Brands. The author...
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...of the Last Fifty Years RUSS BAKER Contents Foreword by James Moore 1. How Did Bush Happen? 2. Poppy’s Secret 3. Viva Zapata 4. Where Was Poppy? 5. Oswald’s Friend 6. The Hit 7. After Camelot 8. Wings for W. 9. The Nixonian Bushes 10. Downing Nixon, Part I: The Setup 11. Downing Nixon, Part II: The Execution 12. In from the Cold 13. Poppy’s Proxy and the Saudis 14. Poppy’s Web 15. The Handoff 16. The Quacking Duck 17. Playing Hardball 18. Meet the Help 19. The Conversion 20. The Skeleton in W.’s Closet 21. Shock and . . . Oil? 22. Deflection for Reelection 23. Domestic Disturbance 24. Conclusion Afterword Author’s Note Acknowledgments Notes Foreword When a governor or any state official seeks elective national office, his (or her) reputation and what the country knows about the candidate’s background is initially determined by the work of local and regional media. Generally, those journalists do a competent job of reporting on the prospect’s record. In the case of Governor George W. Bush, Texas reporters had written numerous stories about his failed businesses in the oil patch, the dubious land grab and questionable funding behind a new stadium for Bush’s baseball team, the Texas Rangers, and his various political contradictions and hypocrisies while serving in Austin. I was one of those Texas journalists. I spent about a decade trying to find accurate information on Bush’s record in the Texas National Guard. My curiosity...
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...Readings for American History Since 1877 Historiography in America...................................................................................................................................................... 2 How to teach history (and how not to) ................................................................................................................................ 6 How Ignorant Are Americans? ........................................................................................................................................... 9 The West ............................................................................................................................................................................... 11 The Education of Native Americans ................................................................................................................................. 11 Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee .................................................................................................................................... 15 Prostitution in the West: .................................................................................................................................................... 17 The Gilded Age ..................................................................................................................................................................... 21 The Duties of American Citizenship ...........................
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