2012 elections, FUD and “Devil Wind”

As many of you know, one of the themes in the novel “Devil Wind” by Deborah Shlian and Linda Reid is how a rogue CIA operative (Albert Miller) plots to influence the 2000 presidential elections. We had just passed through the Clinton years feeling good about the country – especially the economy. Corporations were making lots of money. It was OK to be outwardly materialistic. “Greed is good” was not just Gordon Gekko mantra. People were willing to vote for someone like Bush who was characterized in the press as “fun”, “a party-boy”, “someone who didn’t make us look at anything too seriously”, “someone you’d like to have a beer with”.

I (Sammy Greene) had lost my CNN job in Washington after trying to expose Congressional corruption (the Senator I targeted was a fishing buddy of the station’s CEO). It took months of sending out resumes (hundreds), going for interviews (very few) and not getting callbacks before I landed the job at a tiny progressive radio station in Los Angeles. Ever the activist, I still wasn’t willing to go after easy “feel good” stories, I wanted to stir up the issues of corruption in local Southern California politics. Little did I know that by uncovering the shenanigans of an Orange County congressman (Neil Prescott), I’d stir up a hornet’s nest of trouble- for me, my estranged father, my boyfriend Reed and in fact, the whole country.

I don’t want to give away too much more of the plot, because I hope you’ll read the book. But let’s just say that there are parallels to the current election in that there are those who want to keep us afraid of everything. I don’t know who made up the term FUD, but it stands for fear, uncertainty and doubt– a tactic (according to Wikipedia) used in sales, marketing, public relations, politics and propaganda. As applied to the 2012 elections, FUD is great fodder for those who would like to steer us away from the real issues of our time (e.g. the basis for the economic mess, how we moved from capitalism to crony capitalism and real solutions, the continuing loss of privacy, the extension of the patriot act, need for election reform, need for true healthcare delivery reform, and on and on)

Now that my radio station was sold, I don’t have the platform I had to sound the alarm. So you all need to pay attention. This is another important election year.

Good luck!

Happy reading!!

 

 

 

 

– Sammy

 

“Dead Air” review on Audiofile magazine

Very nice review of the Audiobook version of “Dead Air” by Deborah Shlian and Linda Reid. Check it out here

“Dead Air” by Deborah Shlian and Linda Reid may be fiction, but it’s “dead on”

The authors of “Dead Air, Deborah Shlian and Linda Reid, wrote the thriller as a cautionary tale. As medical research has become more and more competitive, with funding often only availabe from corporate sources with profit motives, conflicts of interest are a real issue – one that literally costs human subjects and, ultimately, patients taking a drug that should not have been approved, their lives. ThisWall Street Journal article details the growing number of real life examples of poor medical research coming out of ostensibly prestigious institutions and published in widely-respected medical journals. This is becoming a serious problem that doesn’t normally get much press. Read the article, then read the book. “Dead Air” may be fiction, but as far as a premise, it’s really dead on!!

– Sammy

Dead Air by Deborah Shlian & Linda Reid, winner of Royal Palm Literary Award

Come on Down! To the Long Beach Barnes and Noble to Enjoy Devil Wind!

Can’t wait to see the photos from the  Hollywood Book Awards Ceremony where Devil Wind is the prize winning audiobook.  Ben Matchar will be standing in for Deborah Shlian, and Linda Reid and Barbara Whitesides will join him to celebrate Devil Wind’s success.  Then, on Sunday July 24th, Linda Reid will be at the Long Beach Barnes and Noble from 11 am to 8 pm to meet Devil Wind readers in person.  Linda will be doing a reading at 1:30 pm from Devil Wind–please come and join her and several other Greater Los Angeles Writers Society writers!

GLAWS_Print_Flyer_0711_   

The Good Reading Seal of Approval

Hey, everyone.  Just back from a week’s vacay in Cabo enjoying the beach with Reed.  My first sailing lessons with “Captain Wyndham” were fun!  Caught this column about summer reading from Linda on the flight home.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/yolanda-reid-chassiakos/self-publishing-advice-_b_888950.html

My recommendations for great summer reading:  Devil Wind, of course.

Stay cool, friends.

 

Neil Prescott, you have company.

Linda Reid just did a piece for Huffpo about politicians’ escapades–in the bedroom.  Well said, girlfriend.

Yolanda Reid Chassiakos: Not Again!

Originally Published By: Politics on HuffingtonPost.com
Read the Original Article Here

Maybe I don’t have enough testosterone. Or balls. But I just don’t understand, guys. Why can’t you politicians keep your pants zipped up and the head on top of your shoulders in charge?

I know, I know. Politics tends to draw a disproportionate number of people who may be narcissistic or power-hungry or both. There’s no question that the schmoozing skills required to separate individual and corporate donors from their money during a campaign can be likened to those used in seduction, as can the articulate, and, let’s admit it, sexy, charm that inspires voters to cast their ballots your way. But even if the electorate doesn’t, you know it’s a game — once you’re in office, you really need to be focusing on the job, not the perks.

And, who decided that an edgy sex life should be a perk of the profession anyway? Maybe you misinterpreted the true intent and meaning of “public service.” Think of how fortunate you are to have the opportunity to help the neediest in our society live a healthy and productive life. Or if you’re a Republican, to have the chance to invest in and promote entrepreneurial ventures and their CEO innovators. Looking in from the outside, I’d guess you could easily put in 15 hour days just doing the work your constituents elected you to do. You chose to take on this mantle — do the job you promised, and don’t blow it.

I’m not going to rehash all the psychological excuses that are often paraded out each time a politico gets caught with his pants down. Frankly, it doesn’t matter why you are “driven” to do what you do. My boss doesn’t care about my inner angst — he just expects me to be at the office every day, doing my work in a timely, high quality, and professional manner. And that’s what we, the voters, ask of you. We’ve elected you to serve as inspiring and capable leaders — you all are supposed to be our crème de la crème. You’ve disciplined yourselves enough to maintain professional standards through your years of education and paying your professional dues. Surely you can continue to do so once you achieve your ambitions and take your oath of office. If your goal has been to become a political rock star and impose your powers and positions on willing groupies, the deluded, the naïve, and, as we say in French, the réticent, then you’re not deserving of the mantle of leadership.

It’s not really that hard. If you’re married, don’t cheat. If you’re unhappily married, get a divorce. If you’re single, date, and keep your bedroom activity “for your eyes only.” The only thing you should be doing on social media is telling your constituents when the next rubber-chicken-and-balloons town hall meeting will be. If you’re gay or bi, don’t use the closet to undermine gay rights. And, gay or straight, don’t turn to professionals in the sex trade. Are you truly that desperate? Whatever your private taste du jour, get consent — and use a condom. Finally, if you’re into the “underage,” get help now, because that’s not only a shame, it’s a crime.

The lust for power and the lust for lust often go hand in hand — the bedroom is yet another gladiatorial arena in which to unsheath and draw your sword. We get it. But, for the good of their families and our country, it’s time for politicians to abandon sexual abandon and instead adopt the War on Drugs’ motto “Just Say No.” Political success has allowed those in power to act out their fantasies on a grand scale, unchecked by the limitations that most “mortals” face. That drive has left the path before us strewn with the bodies of victims; the injuries on a local as well as on a meta level to our nation and to the world beyond, can be traced to the unleashing of grandiosity unzipped — no longer kept in check and balance. It’s time for our politicians to resist the drug of arrogance and step back from the abyss. Do the job you were elected to do — and zip it.

Authors Deborah Shlian & Linda Reid on the Chick Lit Show from Australia!

Hi fans! My creators, Deborah Shlian and Linda Reid appear on Sylvia Massara’s Chick Lit show which hails from Australia. It seems that folks down under are reading about me!

Stop by, watch and post a comment. Thanks

Chick Lit show

Sammy

Congratulations to Deborah Shlian and Linda Reid! ” Devil Wind” has been named a Finalist in the Suspense/Thriller category of the 2011 Next Generation Indie Book Awards!

Check out the complete list of winners and finalists at www.IndieBookAwards.com

Devil Wind will also be listed as a Finalist in the 2011 Next Generation Indie Book Awards catalog to be distributed at Book Expo America in New York later this month to thousands of attendees including book buyers, library representatives, media, industry professionals, and others.  Glad to hear more readers will be able to learn about my latest adventure.

SUSPENSE/THRILLER

WINNER:

Skip, by Stan Meihaus (Stan Meihaus) (ISBN 978-0578074092)

FINALISTS:

Devil Wind, by Deborah Shlian and Linda Reid (Oceanview Publishing) (ISBN 978-1933515892)

Shadow Cay, by Leona Bodie (WRB Publishing) (ISBN 978-0984419814)

Shedrow, by Dean M. DeLuke (Grey Swan Press) (ISBN 978-0980037760)

Unfinished Business, by William G. Byrnes (Durban House Press) (978-0981848693)

Efharisto to Mavis Manus and the Hellenic Journal

Check out the May Issue of the Hellenic Journal at http://www.HellenicJournal.org, available online.  Southern California commentator Mavis Manus has highlighted “Devil Wind” and its Greek-American co-author Linda Reid.

Mavis, please accept a warm thank you for your outstanding column from Linda Reid and Sammy Greene!

http://www.hellenicjournal.org

Resonating with You

A couple of my “Devil Wind” readers have asked me about the resonator and how it worked.  I’m not an engineer, but I put in a call to Gus’ buddy Keith McKay, CEO of Pueblo Technologies in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and he was happy to talk about the science of resonation and earthquake safety.

Sammy:  Thanks, Keith, for helping us out with resonator science.

Keith:  Sure.  Happy to help.  I know it sounds like science fiction, but base isolation and seismic control systems have been around for a long time.  Your very own City Hall building in Los Angeles has been retrofitted with such a system.

Sammy:  Didn’t know that.  What does the system do?

Keith:  It keeps buildings from falling down in case of an earthquake.

Sammy:  That’s a real good thing.  How does it do that?   We get some strong quakes in LA.

Keith:  Well, did you ever see that video of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge?

Sammy:  The one that fell in the 1940’s?  They called it Galloping Gertie?

Keith:  Yes, you can see a video of the bridge online.  (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-zczJXSxnw )  The winds made the bridge buckle and sway like a wave.  Suspension bridges hang, they’re suspended.  Usually, you can’t tell they’re flexible, and that they move.

Sammy:  Works for me.  I like to drive on solid ground.

Keith:  In most cases, wind doesn’t move bridges much.  But with Tacoma Narrows, wind moved the bridge a lot.   The wind often  synchronized with the bridge’s natural swaying, making the swaying stronger and stronger.  The wave built up more and more, and eventually became so big that the bridge collapsed.

Sammy:  Wow.  That is one impressive video.  Was anyone killed—I hope not…

Keith:  No people, thank heavens.  The owner of the car couldn’t get his dog, and…

Sammy:  Oh, that’s sad…    But buildings aren’t bridges.  They’re built on solid ground.

Keith:  Yes, but they actually  sway, not only with earthquakes but with wind, too.  If you’ve ever been on a top floor of the Sears Tower in Chicago—it rocks, literally.  That flexibility actually makes the building less likely to fall.

Sammy:  Good to know.  So a flexible building can ride out an earthquake?

Keith:  Sometimes.  But if it’s a real strong earthquake, the forces might overcome the building’s ability to stay up—that’s where base isolation and control systems can help.

Sammy:  How so?

Keith:  Well, imagine earthquake or wind forces rocking a building.  Now what if you place a giant pillow between the building and the ground—the pillow would cushion and dampen the forces and make the building sway less.

Sammy:  Sure…

Keith:  Then, you add a computer control system that measures the earthquake forces and actually adjusts the pillow to counter the forces.  simply put, the earthquake pushes 3 feet one way, the control system adjusts the base, the pillow, to push back 3 feet.

Sammy:  Um…

Keith:  Here, stack 5 blocks on a plate.  Pick up the right rim of the plate and the blocks fall to the left.

Sammy:  Yes.

Keith:  Now, try it again.  This time, when you pick up the plate from the right side, take your left hand and push on the blocks towards the right—pushing back.

Sammy:  I can keep the blocks up.  I see.  But in “Devil Wind”, the buildings fell down.

Keith:  Well, there’re a lot more blocks making up a multi-story building, of course.  But the principle is the same.  Measure the quake with the control system and instruct the system to act like your left hand and oppose the quake forces.  If, however, you break into the system and cause it to work in the same direction as the quake forces, the building will fall down even faster.

Sammy:  Scary.  But in “Devil Wind”, we didn’t have an earthquake.

Keith:  No, but you had Devil Winds.  And explosions.  They’d make buildings sway like the Tacoma Narrows bridge, then, the bad guys could sneak into the control system,  and, rather than counter the swaying, synch up the system to magnify the swaying.  The building reaches a point where the resonating wave is so strong, it overcomes the ability of the building to flex.  Like the Tacoma Narrows bridge, it falls down.

Sammy:  Awful.   I’m so glad ‘the bad guys’ haven’t dared try this again.  I hope people are protecting their control systems so they can’t be manipulated.

Keith:  Don’t worry, they are.  That’s a big part of the work our company does.  Firewalls, encryption, IT security.

Sammy:  That’s reassuring.  Thanks, Keith, for taking the time to enlighten us today.  Stay warm in New England!

Keith:  Spring’s finally here—we will.  Wishing you and all of California a quiet seismic year.