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TECHNOLOGY NEWS

Carroll Video Was Filmed Under Duress

Source: MSNBC; Discoverthenetworks.org; englishaljazeera.net; 03-31-2006; 04-02-2006

Former Iraq hostage Jill Carroll says her video as a captive that criticized U.S. involvement in Iraq was made under duress. The jihadist terrorists pointed guns and threatened to take her life unless she participated in making the video. The freelance reporter for the Christian Science Monitor made a statement on Saturday about the actual events involved in the making of the video. In Germany, while in route to the United States, Carroll said, "During my last night in captivity, my captors forced me to participate in a propaganda video. They told me I would be released if I cooperated. I was living in a threatening environment, under their control, and wanted to go home alive. So I agreed...."

[OBSERVATION] One of the critical factors in verifying any statement is waiting, giving an event time to mature, so that events settle. In the case of Carroll, she had been kidnapped, and hearing statements while in captivity versus her freedom today provides sufficient contrast and clarity for the public.

Check out the English version of the aljazeera site www.aljazeera.net





Reviews



THE WONDERS OF SOLITUDE EDITED BY SALWAK
$12 U.S., 127 Pages, published by New World Library

The Wonders of Solitude is a beautiful pocket-size book. The content is drawn from a wide range of sources and presents to the reader all the powerful elements of simply spending time with and on yourself. Salwak introduces a lot of naturalists and environmentalists in the quotes that I found refreshing from most compilations of famous lines, and does not water down the richness of religious quotes as well. In short, Salwak gives us substantial dimension from those who yearn and understand the “quiet” that satisfies the soul.

The press that produced this gem is New World Library. They do a lot of nice work in areas that involve philosophy, poetry, religion, and spiritual thought and this book feels like a spiritual renewal on the subject. A less-than-common approach is how New World Library used the endorsement back cover in a different fashion than most books. You don’t get a load of pithy statements from “modern gurus” of philosophy, but more quotes from notable figures of the past like Spinoza, Anne Frank, and Mahatma Ghandi. In publishing, the back cover visual real estate is very important because how you use it and what you put on it can affect a potential buy.

The front cover photo is soft and the empty gangway is appropriately suggestive of the power of solitude. The title is embossed and the spine uses a nice black and white contrast to make the title pop more off a shelf. The repeat of the image on the back cover that is darkened just does not work from an artist and even a functional point of view. The press could have used something different and more effect to make the quotes jump out a bit more.

The hardcover came out in 1995, and the trade reprint was in 1998. The original price points seemed a bit high to me at the time, but you can find quality copies at superb bargain rates. It may not be a big block seller, but it seems to be hanging in there as a reliable backlist draw for New World Library. Overall, a nice book to recommend for readers.