The Men Who Stare at Goats
by Jon Ronson
I picked this book up on a used book rack at the library in Japan two years ago. I saw the trailer for the movie a couple of months back and bumped it up on my reading list.
It’s funny, the movie got me more interested in the book. This cover doesn’t lend it much favor. I took it because it was free. I like to diversify my reading.
By the way, I still haven’t seen the movie. I want to though. I want to see George Clooney kill a goat with his mind. Poor goat.
I wonder how much of this book is factual. If it is complete fact, I want to learn how to do all this stuff … sans the goat killing.
It figures that doing such things hurts the one doing it too. I mean, it makes sense. Haven’t we been told that in every story about the fight between good and evil from the get go? We are connected to everything else, so it’s needless to say you cause harm to something then you harm yourself as well.
My brother is a U. S. Marine and he’s in North Carolina at the moment. I wonder if the Goat Lab is still around. Probably not. If it was real, and this book seems pretty real–I want it to be real–then it’s probably gone by now. Especially with a movie made about this stuff.
Chapter Three: The First Earth Battalion
Beautiful and disgusting. I’m glad we’re on the trail of the goat-killer. I wonder if we get to actually see any of the techniques and how to do them in this book. Probably not, but I would LOVE to see … and maybe try. It is a dream of mine to do REAL magic, and learn how to use more of my brain power.
Chapter Four: Into the Heart of the Goat
WHAT!? Major cliff hanger at the end of this chapter. We’re on the edge of mysticism here … and I’m a believer. I want to know! Mr. Ronson is a genius.
Chapter Five: Homeland Security
So yeah, another interesting chapter. I can’t tell if Mr. Ronson believes in this stuff or not. Sometimes he sounds like he’s having rapturous visions while he’s writing–totally buying into the “magic” at work. Other times he writes as if he can’t believe he’s even addressing this subject with his intellect. All in an amusing, thought provoking, way.
How stupid can you be? That’s all I have to say about that. Darwin at his finest right there. If someone can convince you to kill yourself like that–for any reason–then it’s your own fault. I’m sure there are people who were duped into it, but there is a point where every individual needs to take responsibility for their actions.
Chapter Seven: The Purple Dinosaur
I remember when this was on the news. I’m very familiar with this kind of torture. Whenever I get on a music kick, I tend to listen to the same song/album for days on end, driving everyone around me completely bonkers.
I just watched the trailer for the film adaptation of this book. It seems to be largely fictionalized, where the book stays (at least relatively) closer to the facts. Don’t get me wrong, this book is not definitive by any means, but it is less fiction than the movie looks. However, the movie looks very entertaining. The book is very entertaining! I can’t wait to see it.
Yeah, things like that are not necessary. Funny thing is, I know people like this … I work with one of them. I don’t understand how someone could love destruction so much. I have moments when I revel in darkness, but never to this true of a level. I’m excited about the next chapter though. We got a little preview there at the end.
And that’s something I’ve always disliked about the United States government: they think they know what’s best for everyone. Even the best of presidents don’t know every individual needs, and to try and force values on anyone is deplorable.
I guess I’m on Jim Channon’s side. I’d have done the same thing in his shoes. Given the government my ideas. It’s predictable though. The government was bound to construe them into something only vaguely resembling the First Earth Battalion in Mr. Channon’s vision.
Chapter Eleven: A Haunted Hotel
Whether the hotel was haunted for real or not, I don’t think it matters. Some messed up stuff went down there. I’m not sure I ever was fully under the control of those higher up in the chain of command when I was an active marine. In my down time, I sequestered myself in the nearly deserted library, and read books on philosophy. I would have LOVED this book at that time. Too bad I didn’t read it until now.
Actually, it might be a good thing I waited. Otherwise I might have gotten on my fellow marines’ nerves by spouting First Earth Battalion stuff at them neverendingly.
Chapter Twelve: The Frequencies
I realize now why the name Manuel Noriega sounds familiar. I learned about that whole ordeal while IN boot camp for the Marines. They told us in class that they used this music to pressure him out of hiding, and that it worked. I guess some First Earth Battalion things are taught all the way down the chain. Makes you wonder.
This book has some interesting insights on human nature. One can be of sound mind and suffer insanity in the same moment–with the same words he’s phasing with his lips! If half the stuff in this book are true … let’s just leave it at interesting, because some of this is uber scary.
Chapter Thirteen: Some Illustrations
That picture in the beginning of the chapter … unsettling.
Chapter Fourteen: The 1953 House
Now that’s all sorts of messed up! I love and loathe this book. He’s so dragging me into the story here. I’ve never liked a non-fiction so much! It’s ridiculously spooky. This whole “science experiment”/”suicide”/murder is crazy. I guess it’s more feasible in 1953 though … isn’t that when most American conspiracy theories started? Around that time?
Chapter Fifteen: The Harold’s Club or Bust!
Oh, now that just makes me angry. I would rather know the whole–indesputable–truth, than live with a “fun” lie. *Sigh* I guess that’s one of the reasons “truth is stranger than fiction.” It’s not that it’s inconceivable … it just that we don’t want to consider it happening in real life. It’s “fun” when it’s not real.
I think it’s funny, Mr. Ronson uses some of the devices he preaches against in chapter fifteen THROUGHOUT the book. He makes the subject fun to read. Seriously, this book is half laugh riot, half thriller. Not to mention the movie! THAT looks like rolling on the floor material.
All in all, an interesting book. I enjoyed reading it very much. Didn’t give much in way of answers to the important question (is this psychic stuff really real), but it was well worth the read. I think I’ll pass this book on to my brother. He’ll like it, I’m sure.
Tags: Books, Genre: Non-fiction
Thoughts on Books | Joey | 
24 December 2009 12:15 AM
Subscribe