Posted on 02/04/2012 9:10:25 AM PST by Travis McGee
Over the last two weeks I've totally overhauled and revamped my website, especially the home page and author page.
The last step was adding this bit, which I hope you will find worthwhile reading.
What the books are about, and why I wrote them:
I began writing Enemies Foreign And Domestic in 2000, after too many years of watching our constitutional republic morphing into a police state. These novels, based upon nearly a half century of carefully studying historical patterns, are my attempt to shine a light forward in time. My goal is to warn my compatriots that we are inescapably losing our freedom, one step at a time.
The Muslim terror attacks on 9-11 kicked the process into high gear. But instead of new laws targeting our actual enemies--radical Islamists bent on the global spread of their Sharia Law nightmare--the new police powers were aimed equally at all Americans. Projecting forward, the inevitable outcome will be to turn the United States into a dictatorship--the USSA, if you will.
The federal government, under the rubric of fighting a generalized terror threat, has for many years been providing local police departments with high-grade military weapons, equipment and training. The quid-pro-quo for this federal largesse is unquestioning local cooperation with federal law enforcement agencies, turning thousands of local police SWAT teams into force multipliers for burgeoning federal police power. In the name of fighting a murky and undefined "war on terror," we have allowed the creation of a militarized national police force, something which our Founding Fathers explicitly warned us against and tried their best to prevent.
During the same period, our debt-based economy has nearly reached the bitter end of the road. It is only a matter of time until America experiences an economic crisis on the level of what is currently taking place in Greece, or even far worse. If and when federal entitlements, food stamp payments, housing allotments and all the rest are curtailed, I believe our major urban areas will explode in riots beyond anything America experienced in the 1960s. This will cause a breakdown in the national distribution of food, fuel and other commodities necessary to sustain life. At that point, some form of martial law will be put into effect, and our newly-militarized national police forces, along with active-duty military units, will be called upon to "restore order." In so doing, the last nails will be hammered into the coffin containing our legacy of American freedom.
Obviously, I don't desire to see this happen, but if such an outcome is preordained, I want at least to provide a beacon into the future. My goal is to provide my readers with some alternatives that will be less horrible than the worst-case scenarios, which otherwise shall be arrived at by chance and happenstance.
This is why I prefer to write what I call semi-dystopian novels, set in the near future. The post-apocalyptic genre has been beaten to death, and life in the rubble at a bare survival level provides few practical lessons. To me, the slide is more instructive than the post-collapse period. The often-repeated historical process of economic collapse and the loss of freedom is what interests me the most, and that is why I am driven to write these novels. I hope that you enjoy them, and that you gain some insights which might prove of value during the tumultuous years ahead.
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"What the books are about, and why I wrote them."
... turning thousands of local police SWAT teams into force multipliers for burgeoning federal police power.
Conveniently circumventing that icky Posse Commitatus.
So convenient how the “war on terror” becomes “the war on American freedom.”
Article, then graphics at # 3.
Thanks, Travis McGee.
You can change the price of your paper or Kindle books any time you want. The Kindle change is advertised as taking effect within 48 hours - ours changed within 6-8 hours, maybe less.
I’ll be ordering, too!
Hear here!
99 cents but I am sure it will become part of the free lending library on occasion. Basically for 99 cents NASCAR fans will find out how they can earn at least HUNDREDS of dollars at each race. Based on my experiences from 2 full seasons on the road following NASCAR events around the country. Only reason I quit doing it full time is that was when I got into the internet and couldn’t pull myself away from the Web. This was in the early days before laptops and the wide availability of WiFi.
Actually, you don’t have to buy a Kindle. You can download the Kindle for PC for free right from Amazon’s website. Then you can buy the Kindle versions of Matt’s books and read them right on your computer. You can adjust the font size to be as large as you want.
I highly recommend you do so—his books are fantastic!
I’ve no problem with picking up a great deal, but I might dismiss a product whose maker does not consider it valuable.
There’s the story of remodeling the kitchen: Since the old fridge doesn’t match the new decor, it goes out to the curb with a sign saying “free to good home.” It sits outside for a week. Finally it gets a new sign reading “$80,” and the thing disappears from the curb overnight.
My advice (and perhaps worth all you’ve paid for it, LOL) is to state a specific limited amount of time for the discount offer, and stick to it. Also that inspiration for the discount offer was “loyal readers who wanted to make the books available to groups and clubs they belonged to” without risking loss of their own copies.
Thank you so much for what you have done and continue to do for your country, Matt. When the next book comes out, I will certainly make the collection current with another signed copy!
Any chance of having a bundle sale with Kindle? Maybe the first three for $20? Your $9.99 is certainly at the top end of the sub $10 range, but your customers seek you out so $9.99 isn’t so bad. Reducing a price is tough to just later increase the price. A sale is best IMO.
“Just an article about how NASCAR fans can ECONOMICALLY go to the races and even come out of it with money in their pockets. How To article.”
That sounds great! I have several NASCAR queens in the family and they would love more info on that topic.
Many thanks. I like the idea of adjustable fonts.
I wonder how the folks who bought them at full price will feel....
Thanks for the mega-ping, Lucy!
I printed them, started reading them this evening. Look for my check this week for the book. So far, I’m really liking it!!! Nice job!
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Someday the Chinese are going to stop buying our debt.
Then, all heck might break loose!
bfl
How long did it take to write Enemies Foreign and Domestic?
I wondered about that, but I didn’t hear a peep from anyone. Our sale was very short-lived, just two weeks. We posted the sale on our Facebook page, too - a few of the fans of the page who had already bought the book on Kindle said they’d tell a friend about it.
I really think that Amazon’s continual price changes have become so normal that it really didn’t become an issue.
P.S. - I really like the idea of a Kindle bundle!
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You’re welcome, TM. Glad to help.
Actually, that's exactly the plot of Foreign Enemies and Traitors, the third book of the Enemies trilogy.
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