The deceptive, crooked path that led him to today began a few months back. Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, nineteen-year old Fleming was a professional baseball pitcher with the Chicago White Sox. His successful first year in the minor leagues was waylaid when he received his draft notice. Through a series of misadventures, he ended up enlisting for four years in an elite unit called the A.S.A. or Army Security Agency; the army’s equivalent to the N.S.A. or the National Security Agency. Once in the army, Fleming learned that the recruiter had manipulated him with a host of untruths. Then, to his dismay, he learned that the army had lost his orders and he was placed in an infantry unit. Once in Vietnam, Platoon Sergeant, Levine questioned Fleming and dragged out of him the sad story of how he had enlisted for four years and ended up in an infantry unit. He became the butt of the platoon’s jokes and underwent vicious ribbing by the other platoon members. That day, the platoon was ordered back to their base camp: L.Z. English. Before leaving, they endured a mortar attack and then a ground probe. Fleming’s foxhole mate was critically wounded. Fleming did everything he could to save the man but his wounds were too severe and he died in Fleming’s arms. Repulsed by the ordeal, Fleming was left wondering if he could endure a whole year of this. Twelve-year old Van Phan Duc and his two friends twelve-year old Hoi Anh Vanh and Dan Tri Quang lived happily in their village until the day a N.V.A. invaded and forced them to join their struggle and fight the invading Americans. They were then assigned to a Viet Cong unit where they met Sergeant Chi, the man who would train them to be soldiers for the revolution and lead them into battle. Three American soldiers had been captured. Chi ordered the three boys to participate in brutally torturing the Americans. Dan embraced the torture and it turned him into a brutal fighting machine, much to Chi’s satisfaction. On the other hand, Hoi was repulsed by the events and a part of him died that day. He performed the torture but it wasn’t to Chi’s satisfaction. Van, a devout Buddhist, was also repulsed. He realized that life, as a soldier was three hundred and sixty degrees opposite of Buddha’s spiritual path. The 173rd’s area of operations was the Central Highlands. The 173rd’s home base was in and around the town of Bong Son, but they patrolled all over the province of Binh Dinh. For the next few months, Fleming and Van’s units met on numerous occasions. The first time they engaged each other in combat was in a simple ambush that lasted only two minutes. Both men were left repulsed by the carnage that could take place in only two minutes. Right after the ambush, Fleming’s company was deployed in a battalion-sized operation located in the Dak To mountain range. It was an area where numerous North Vietnamese soldiers infiltrated into South Vietnam from neighboring Cambodia and Laos. Fleming’s company was dropped into an area far from Dak To and the men were forced to march (hump) to their final destination. During the trek, they had to carve their way through impenetrable jungle and cross leach infested rivers to reach their destination, all the while suffering under Vietnam’s oppressive heat. Van’s Viet Cong unit was sent to the Dak To mountain range to do battle with Fleming and his company. Months passed with Van and Fleming’s units constantly meeting. Both men had similar personalities. Both men overcame their initial shock at war’s brutality and became highly competent soldiers who bravely fought the enemy. Both men were ultimately made into squad leaders. Both men continued to hate the war, yet were entrapped in the insanity that was war. They both recognized what war was—a brutally insane series of events where lives were lost and where dreams died.

    404, a report on using hemp hurds as a paper-making material. The bulletin proclaims that: “Without a doubt, hemp will continue to be one of the staple agricultural crops of the United States.” The report also warns that: “Our forests are being cut three times faster than they grow.” It finds that (over a 20-year period) 10,000 acres of hemp can produce the same amount of paper as 40,500 acres of trees. The test results are so favorable that USDA Bulletin #404 is printed on paper made from hemp! "The Gospel of Hemp" explains why a crop that was hailed as a "one of the staple agricultural crops of The United States" in a U.S. government report was deceptivley made essentially illegal in 1937. The time has come for America and the world to correct this deception and injustice for the future of our planet.

    2: AmericanThen he saw, an indefinite distance beyond him, burning like red-hot iron through the darkness, a little scarlet or crimson gleam, as of a lighted cigar.

    R. James is best remembered for his ghost stories which are widely regarded as among the finest in English literature. One of James' most important achievements was to redefine the ghost story for the new century by dispensing with many of the formal gothic trappings of his predecessors, and replacing them with more realistic contemporary settings.According to James, a story must "put the reader into the position of saying to himself: 'If I'm not careful, something of this kind may happen to me!'"

    Now, the entire epic is represented in four beautiful trade-format volumes. The Clan Novel Saga reorganizes the chapters from all 13 novels (and the Clan Novel Anthology) in strict chronological order, showing the progress of the epic night by night and minute by minute.The Fall of AtlantaVolume One features a variety of prologue material and the dramatic events of June 1999. The vampires of the Sabbat move into the Camarilla city of Atlanta, and the dreaded relic called the Eye of Hazimel makes its appearance on the scene.With a Foreword by Stewart Wieck and an All-New Story by Philippe Boulle

    He might be that kid you feel like pointing towards and laughing at, but Ralph Wiggum has a 'special' way of disarming you with his completely off–kilter statements that always have the ring of truth about them. See the world through Ralph–coloured glasses as he muses on household pets, poetry, constellations, homemade gifts, hiding spots, sports, school, right and wrong, crime and punishment, love, leprechauns, wookies, wiggle puppies and a lot more non–booger and paste–related subjects.So don't just stand there with your finger up your nose . pick a winner with The Ralph Wiggum Book.In The Simpsons Library of Wisdom, Matt Groening, the creator of 'The Simpsons', offers an ongoing series of portable and quotable books that will eliminate the need for all religions and philosophies, exalt man's role in the universe and make the world a better place ... sort of. No other television show in history has commented so freely and so humorously on modern times, and there seems to be no end in sight for the sharp satire and pointed parody that 'The Simpsons' serves up every night of the week all around the world.

    Somerset Maugham’s “Before the Party” is a novelette first published in the December 1922 edition of “Nash’s Magazine.” After the death of her husband, an alcoholic colonial administrator in Borneo, Millicent returns to England to live with her parents and sister. Did Millicent’s husband die of a fever, as Millicent claims, or was his throat cut? And if the latter, was it suicide or homicide?Sample passage:Mrs. Skinner had thought it very peculiar that her daughter should have no photographs of Harold in her room. Indeed she had spoken of it once, but Millicent had made no reply. Millicent had been strangely silent since she came back from Borneo, and had not encouraged the sympathy Mrs. Skinner would have been so willing to show her. She seemed unwilling to speak of her great loss. Sorrow took people in different ways. Her husband had said the best thing was to leave her alone. The thought of him turned her ideas to the party they were going to.About the author:W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) was a British novelist, short-story writer, and playwright. Notable novels are “Of Human Bondage,” “The Moon and Sixpence,” and “The Razor’s Edge.”

     It’s a cold day in January, and Ichabod visits Patriots Park for a moment of peace. Instead, he receives a disturbing vision from his wife, Katrina, in which she delivers a cryptic but urgent message: he must retrieve the Congressional Cross that he was awarded by the Second Continental Congress for bravery in action. There’s just one problem: Ichabod was killed before he ever received the medal, and he is unsure where it might be. Together Ichabod and Abbie set out to uncover the mystery of the cross and its connection to George Washington and his secret war against the demon hordes. They soon learn that a coven of witches is also seeking the cross in order to resurrect their leader, Serilda, who was burned at the stake during the Revolutionary War. Now they must locate the cross before the coven can bring back Serilda to exact her fatal revenge on Sleepy Hollow.

    Dutch Schaefer heads an elite CIA paramilitary rescue team chosen for a simple, one-day job in the Central American highlands. But there's another kind of hunt going on in the jungle, and one by one Schaefer's men are picked off by an unseen predator.

    And in so doing, she collides with the ignorance and imbalances of the twenty-first century, battling injustice as Wonder Woman. But even with skills and abilities to rival those of her Olympian namesake, Diana is put to the supreme test as the horrors of the ancient past rise again to wreak havoc upon the world. Now her indomitable will and astounding powers are pitted against the patient and all-encompassing malice of the War God Ares, who feeds on the strife created by humanity's propensity to turn against itself.

    No other version has so vividly expressed the horror, cruelty, beauty, and outrageous imaginative flight of Dante's original vision.

    Everyone's used to it. But now women are lying in alleys, gutters, and parking lots-their bodies drained of blood! Is it possible? A vampire stalking the Las Vegas streets?"Fantastically marvelous...executed with equally marvelous realism."-Richard Matheson, author of The Incredible Shrinking Man

    To determine these patterns, they needed to hear many different examples of authentic speech by various speakers of different ages and in different regions. They eventually discovered that one of the easiest ways to convince older local residents to give them lengthy examples of their natural speech was to ask the residents to tell their favorite stories to the brothers. As the Grimms Brothers recorded the style of speech of the speaker for their research (which eventually led to the formulation of Grimm's Law), they also recorded the various stories that they were told, and eventually published them in 1817.

    Wandering the world alone, Conan was forged into a peerless warrior by hardship and bloodshed. Years later, he crosses paths with Zym and his armies. But before Conan can exact vengeance, he must contend with the warlord's daughter-the seductive witch Marique-and a host of monstrous creatures. Only then will Conan's quest bring him face to face with Zym in an epic battle to avenge his people and save the world.

    The Ageless classic now in Comics