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Friday, November 28, 2014

Free libertarian ebooks

I love to read.

This was the mortal equivalent of Heaven to me at the 2014 ISFLC.

I also believe in the voluntary exchange of information, especially if it's free. I have compiled this list of free ebooks to help people (like you!) be more easily able to access the knowledge of the universe - aka libertarian. You are very capable of Googling all of this (pretty much like what I did), but I know that most of you were probably too lazy to do so, so you're welcome.

This will be constantly updated, and I know that there are doubles. Feel free to comment with links to more free books.

While a lot of these books, organizations, and authors I don't doubt are reasonable, there are a few I even questioned putting on here. Just remember to intake information with a grain of salt. If the author is a bad person, it does not necessarily make his/her work illegitimate, and vice-versa.

Foundation for Economic Education (FEE)

Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt

Economic Sophisms by Frederic Bastiat

The Law by Frederic Bastiat

The Mainspring of Human Progress by Henry Grady Weaver

Marxism Unmasked by Ludwig von Mises

Leviathan at War - Freeman Essay Collection

Cato Institute

A Life of One's Own: Individual Rights and the Welfare State by David Kelley

A New Deal for Social Security by Peter J. Ferrara and Michael D. Tanner

A Search for Enemies: America's Alliances After the Cold War by Ted Galen Carpenter

After Prohibition: An Adult Approach to Drug Policies in the 21st Century by Timothy Lynch

America Entangled: The Persian Gulf Crisis and Its Consequences edited by Ted Galen Carpenter

An American Vision: Policies of the '90s by Edward H. Crane and David Boaz

 Antitrust Policy: The Case for Repeal by Dominick T. Armentano

Apocalypse Not: Economics, Science and Environmentalism by Ben Bolch and Harold Lyons

Assessing the Reagan Years edited by David Boaz

Balanced Budgets, Fiscal Responsibility, and the Constitution by Richard E. Wagner and Robert D. Tollison

Best of Byline 1986 by the Cato Institute

Beyond Liberal and Conservative: Reassessing the Political Spectrum by William S. Maddox and Stuart A. Lilie

Beyond NATO: Staying Out of Europe's Wars by Ted Galen Carpenter

Beyond the Status Quo: Policy Proposals for America edited by Edward H. Crane and David Boaz

China in the New Millenium: Market Reforms and Social Development by James A. Dorn

Clearing the Air: The Real Story of the War on Air Pollution by Indur M. Goklany

Climate of Fear: Why We Shouldn't Worry About Global Warming by Thomas Gale Moore

Collective Defense or Strategic Independence: Alternative Strategies for the Future edited by Ted Galen Carpenter

Common Cents, Common Dreams: A Layman's Guide to Social Security Privatization by Peter J. Ferrara and Michael D. Tanner

Competing Visions: The Political Conflict Over America's Economic Future by Richard B. McKenzie

Competition and Finance: A Reinterpretation of Financial and Monetary Economics by Kevin Dowd

Defining Defense: The 1985 Military Budget by Earl C. Ravenal

Delusions of Grandeur: The United Nations and Global Intervention edited by Ted Galen Carpenter

Designing Defense for a New World Order: The Military Budget in 1992 and Beyond by Earl C. Ravenal

Destroying Democracy: How Government Funds Partisan Politics by James T. Bennett and Thomas J. Dilorenzo

Dollars, Deficits, and Trade edited by James A. Dorn and William A. Niskanen

Economic Reform in China: Problems and Prospect edited by James A. Dorn and Wang Xi

Educational Freedom in Eastern Europe by Charles R. Glenn

Energy: Ending the Never-Ending Crisis by Paul Ballonoff

Exiting the Balkan Thicket by Gary T. Dempsey

Failure & Progress: The Bright Side of the Dismal Science by Richard B. Mckenzie

Flag-Burning, Discrimination, and the Right to Do Wrong: Two Debates by Roger Pilon

Forfeiting Our Property Rights: Is Your Property Safe From Seizure by Rep. Henry J. Hyde

Free the Mail: Ending the Postal Monopoly edited by Peter. J. Ferrara

Freedom to Trade: Refuting the New Protectionism by Edward L. Hudgins

Generosity: Virtue in Society by Tibor R. Machan

Global Fortune: The Stumble and Rise of World Capitalism by Ian Vasquez

Grassroots Tyranny: The Limits of Federalism by Clint Bolick

Haunted Housing: How Toxic Scare Stories are Spooking the Public Out of House and Home by Cassanddra Chrones Moore

Immigration: The Demographic and Economic Facts by Julian L. Simon

Junk Science Judo: Self-Defense Against Health Scares & Scams by Steve J. Milloy

Left, Right, Babyboom: America's New Politics edited by David Boaz

Liberating Schools: Education in the Inner City by David Boaz

Making America Poorer: The Cost of Labor Laws by Morgan O. Reynolds

Market Liberalism: A Paradigm to the 21st Century by Morgan O. Reynolds

Meltdown: Inside the Soviet Economy by Paul Craig Roberts and Karen Lafollette

National Economic Planning: What is Left? by Don Lavoie

NATO at 40: Confronting a Changing World edited by Edward H. Crane and David Boaz

NATO Enlargement: Illusions and Reality edited by Ted Galen Carpenter

NATO's Empty Victory: A Postmortem on the Balkan War edited by Ted Galen Carpenter and Barbara Conry

Patient Power: Solving America's Health Care Crisis by John C. Goodman and Gerald L. Musgrave

Patient Power: Solving America's Health Care Crisis (Abridged) by John C. Goodman and Gerald L. Musgrave

Perpetuating Poverty: The World Bank, the IMF, and the Developing World edited by Doug Bandow and Ian Vasquez

Plant Closings: Public or Private Choices edited by Richard B. Mckenzie

Pocket Constitution (Arabic/Bilingual Version) by Roger Pilon

Pocket Constitution (Spanish/Bilingual Version) by Roger Pilon

Porkbarrel: The Unexpurgated Grace Commission  Story of Congressional Profligacy by Randall Fitzgerald and Gerald Lipson

Quagmire: America in the Middle East by Leon D. Hadar

Regulators' Revenge: The Future of Telecommunications Deregulation by Tom W. Bell and Solveig Singleton

Renaissance: The Rebirth of Liberty in the Heart of Europe by Vaclav Klaus

Rent Control: The Perennial Folly (Cato Public Policy Research Monograph No. 2) by Charles W. Baird

Scalia vs. Epstein: Two Views on Judicial Activism by Antonin Scalia and Richard Epstein

School Choice: Why You Need It & How You Get It by David Harmer

Science Without Sense: The Risky Business of Public Health Research by Stephen J. Milloy

Silencing Science by Stephen J. Milloy and Michael Gough

Social Security: Averting the Crisis by Peter J. Ferrara

Social Security: Prospects for Real Reform by Peter J. Ferrara

Social Security: The Inherent Contradiction by Peter J. Ferrara

Sound and Fury: The Science and Politics of Global Warming by Patrick J. Michaels

Telecommunications in Crisis: The First Amendment, Technology, and Deregulation by Edwin Diamond, Norman Sandler, and Milton Mueller

Telecompetition: The Free Market Road to the Information Highway by Lawrence D. Gasman

The Affirmative Action Fraud: Can We Restore the American Civil Rights Vision? by Clint Bolick

The Captive Press: Foreign Policy Crises and the First Amendment by Ted Galen Carpenter

The Case for Gold by Rep. Ron Paul and Lewis Lehrman

The Crisis in Drug Prohibition by David Boaz

The End of Welfare: Fighting Poverty in Civil Society by Michael D. Tanner

The Financial Sevices Revolution: Policy Directions for the Future edited by Catherine England and Thomas Huertas

The Future of Money in the Information Age edited by James A. Dorn

The Government Factor: Undermining Journalistic Ethics in the Information Age by Richard D. Kaplar and Patrick D. Maines

The High Cost of Farm Welfare by Clifton Luttrell

The Last Monopoly: Privatizing the Postal Service for the Information Age by Edward L. Hudgins

The New Right v. The Constitution by Stephen Macedo

The Peasant Betrayed: Agriculture and Land Reform in the Third World by John B. Powelson and Richard Stock

The Politics and Laws of Term Limits by Edward H. Crane and Roger Pilon

The Revolution in Development Economics by James A. Dorn, Steve H. Hanke, and Alan Walters

The Rule of Experts: Occupational Licensing in America by S. David Young

The Rule of Law in the Wake of Clinton by Roger Pilon

The Satanic Gases: Clearing the Air About Global Warming by Patrick J. Michaels and Robert C. Balling, Jr.

Through Green-Colored Glasses: Environmentalism Reconsidered by Wilfred Beckerman

Tripwire: Korea and U.S. Foreign Policy in a Changed World by Doug Bandow

Underground Government: the Off Budget Public Sector by James T. Bennett and Thomas J. Dilorenzo

Water Markets: Priming the Invisible Pump by Terry L. Anderson and Pamela Snyder

What Has Government Done to Our Healthcare? by Terree B. Wasley

Why Schools Fail by Bruce Goldberg

Zoning, Rent Control and Affordable Housing by William Tucker

Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE)

FIRE's Guide to Free Speech on Campus

FIRE's Guide to Due Process and Fair Procedure on Campus by Harvey Silvergate and Josh Gewolb

FIRE's Guide to Student Fees, Funding, and Legal Equality on Campus by Jordan Lorence

FIRE's Guide to Religious Liberty on Campus by David French

FIRE's Guide to First-Year Orientation and Thought Reform on Campus by Jordan Lorence and Harvey Silvergate

Young Americans for Liberty (YAL)

Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal by Ayn Rand

Anarchy, State, and Utopia by Robert Nozick

On Liberty by John Stuart Mill

The Law by Frederic Bastiat

Anthem by Ayn Rand

Free to Choose by Milton Friedman

Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt

Libertarian Book Club

Healing Our World by Dr. Mary J. Ruwart

Local Problems, Libertarian Solutions by William D. Burt

Anthem by Ayn Rand

Ethics of Liberty by Murray Rothbard

The Law by Frederic Bastiat

Common Sense by Thomas Paine

1984 by George Orwell

Libertarian Essays by Daniel B. Klein

Intellectual Life, Civil Libertarian Issues, and the Student Movement at the University of California by Carl E. ive Schorske

The Revolutionary Movement in Spain by Helmut Rudiger

Students For Liberty (SFL) Handbooks

Leading Liberty: A Comprehensive Guide to Liberating Your Campus

Example Executive Board Handbook

College Students: The Future & The Present

Students For Liberty (SFL) Book Publications

The Economics of Freedom: What Your Professors Won't Tell You

The Morality of Capitalism: What Your Professors Won't Tell You edited by Tom G. Palmer

After the Welfare State edited by Tom G. Palmer

Why Liberty by Tom G. Palmer

Peace, Love, & Liberty edited by Tom G. Palmer

Mises Institute

America's Great Depression by Murray N. Rothbard

Education: Free and Compulsory by Murray N. Rothbard

Forty Centuries of Wage and Price Controls: How Not to Fight Inflation by Robert L. Sheuttinger and Eamonn F. Butler

Liberalism: In the Classical Tradition by Ludwig von Mises

Toward a Libertarian Society by Walter Block

On Equality and Inequality (Hebrew Translation) bu Ludwig von Mises

Economics and Public Welfare by Benjamin Anderson

Essay on the Nature and Significance of Economic Science by Lionel Robbins

Castles in the Air by Leonard E. Read

The Great Depression by Lionel Robbins

Economic Calculation in the Socialist Commonwealth by Ludwig von Mises

The Gold Standard: Perspectives in the Austrian School by Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr.

Anatomy of the State by Murray N. Rothbard

Deflation and Liberty by Jorg Guido Hulsmann

Study Guide to Human Action: A Treatise on Economics by Robert P. Murphy

Libertarian Critique of Intellectual Property by Butler Shaffer

What Must Be Done by Hans Hermann Hope

Our Enemy, the State by Albert Jay Nock

Fascism versus Capitalism by Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr.

Theory and History: An Interpretation of Social and Economic Evolution by Ludwig von Mises

Lessons for the Young Economist by Robert P. Murphy

Economic Principles by Frank A. Fetter

Reassessing the Presidency: The Rise of the Executive State and the Decline of Freedom by John V. Denson

Essentials of Economic Theory by John Bates Clark

An Outline of International Price Theory by Chi-Yuen Wu

Outlook for Freedom by Leonard E. Read

Where Lies this Fault? by Leonard E. Read

Instead of Violence by Leonard E. Read

On Doing the Right Thing by Albert Jay Nock

Two Essay by Ludwig von Mises (Middle of the Road Leads to Socialsm; Liberty and Property) by...do I really need to say it?

Prices and Production by Friedrich A. Hayek

Complete Libertarian Forum (1969-1984) by Murray N. Rothbard

Individualism and Economic Order by Friedrich A. Hayek

Economic Policy: Thoughts for Today and Tomorrow by Ludwig von Mises

The Economics of Liberty by Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr.

What Has Government Done to Our Money? by Murray N. Rothbard

Fabian Freeway: High Road to Socialism in the U.S.A. by Rose Martin

Theory of Money and Fiduciary Media by Jorg Guido Hulsmann

Pursue the Cause of Liberty: A Farewell to Congress by Ron Paul

Give Me Liberty by Rose Wilder Lane

Accent on the Right by Leonard E. Read

Awake for Freedom's Sake by Leonard E. Read

Comes the Dawn by Leonard E. Read

Deeper than You Think by Leonard E. Read

Having My Way by Leonard E. Read

Let Freedom Reign by Leonard E. Read

How Do We Know? by Leonard E. Read

Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt

For a New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto by Murray N. Rothbard

Friday, November 7, 2014

"Take the stick out of your ass, girl!"

I saw this video on my Facebook newsfeed.



Then I noticed that the majority of the comments on several threads were negatively pointing out the woman, describing her as a "bitch," "cold," and having a "stick stuck up her ass." Even some articles said that she was giving him the "evil eye" and telling us to look at her "death glare."

However, when I watched it, she just seemed like she was trying to concentrate and was preoccupied with other things. If anything, she seemed to be a bit nervous, especially since she was fussing with her hair (anything doing with having to go on-air?). Not to mention that the video is edited, which you can see by the different camera angles utilized. If you care to notice (be sure to think about my choice in words), at some points, she is kind of moving along with the music. This is not the only video of him dancing.



In this one, she looks much more amused. If he does this every time, it would be understandable on why he does not illicit much of a reaction from her. When he asked her to dance with him, she said, "I can't dance...on camera."

So, she's a bit self-conscious about her dancing? What a cold-hearted, evil bitch!

Why is this important? Why am I writing about this on my blog?

As much as I would love to watch you attempt to answer these rhetorical questions, I will just go ahead and explain why.

People in our society seem to love bashing on women, from unprovokingly voicing their opinions on why Katniss from The Hunger Games sucks to "Like, oh my god, Stacy was totally hitting on Jeff. He and Jess broke up, like, three week ago! I wouldn't be surprised if she flirted with him while they were together - she's kind of a bitch."

We are too quick to jump onto the "bitchwagon."

Women are, to an extent, expected to be "fun" and "giggly," especially around men. In the adult industry, such as with strippers and camgirls (especially camgirls), customers are more likely to pay attention to the giggly women who act like airheads. Some women realize this and come up with this character. (As for how I know this stuff, I've done my fair share of observing strippers and customers, conversing with both, watching camgirls, and talking with the camgirls and viewers alike.) When a woman is not like this - for whatever reason, may it be boredom, in a less-than-good mood, distracted by the internetz, telling the truth ("No, I don't do this because I'm horny. I do it because I need to make money."), etc. - she is not paid as well, men try to trick her into doing things for him/them, and she is called names. For example, "Bitch."

People need to realize that women, and all human beings, have their own personality, and it needs to be respected. Some are more "fun-loving" (however you may define that) than others. Not everybody is confident about their dancing. There are those who get more anxious than the average person. Not to mention context. It may shock you to learn this, but humans have something called "moods." The environment, internal and external, combine to affect the emotions of people. If I am waiting in a long line for an audition, I may be feeling really anxious and be less willing to engage in conversation with strangers. If I am watching Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and drinking a shit-ton of whiskey with my friends, I am probably joyous beyond comprehension.

I think this whole bitchwagon thing is really irking me because I am not naturally the outgoing type. I can be quite the introvert to the point of being anti-social. Men have also treated me badly (or not as well as they could have) because I don't necessarily say/do things that they consider to be "fun." Sure, I can be giggly, but I don't consider that to be a part of my personality. People who know me are amused when I become giggly because they know it's not something I do often. If I was Dan Thorn's co-anchor, would I have danced along with him? Probably not? Maybe I would have bounced along with the beat. If I was in a really giddy mood and was comfortable with being around him and the others in the studio, the chances of that happening would be higher.

Let this brew in the back of your mind for a while.

Peace out, and here is one last video of Dan Thorn having a good time.

Saturday, November 1, 2014

"Avatar: The Last Airbender" - "The Promise" analysis

Hopefully it goes without saying that there will be spoilers.

For about a year, I have been waiting to make enough money to buy the A:TLA comic books. Unfortunately whenever I did have enough money, I always forgot about them. One week, I got lucky enough to have about $30 to spend on whatever I wanted, so naturally, I decided it was time to buy some of the comic books. I bought one which was the collection of all the comics kind of just lying around, from Nickelodeon Magazine and such.

 

That was good fun, but I know I also had to get The Promise, and especially The Search - I mean who does not want to find out what happened to Zuko's mother?? The problem was...I only had enough money for either or. Because I am weird like this, I decided to buy The Promise because it came out before The Search. Yes, that is how my mind works. Sure, I will die a happy woman once I find out what happened to her, but chronological order is more important.


Maybe by buying The Promise first, I actually spared myself a few more months to live.

I had no idea I would enjoy it as much as I did - hence why I am writing this.

In order for you to know what I am even talking about, I will provide a synopsis for you - as a refresher if you have already read it, or do not ever care to read it (or you want to read it, but do not care about spoilers). After the war, Firelord Zuko and Earth King Kuei agree that is best that the former Fire Nation colonies are restored to how they once were, and Avatar Aang is recruited (or more like he volunteers) to make sure the transition is peaceful. It will be called "The Harmony Restoration Movement."

With a name like that, how could anything possibly go wrong??

Later, Zuko makes Aang promise him that if he ever sees him turning into his father, to "end" him. Reluctantly, Aang promises (hence, why this book is called what it is). A year later, a woman tries to assassinate Zuko, and he finds out that she did so because of her anger at The Harmony Restoration Movement, which is affecting her home - one of the colonies. The woman's father makes a point that generations of Fire Nation citizens have lived there, so they consider it home. After visiting with his father (which he does quite a bit), he decides to retract his support from THRM, which infuriates Aang, who seeks Avatar Roku's help. (In this case, Roku was as useful as he was when Aang tried to decide how to defeat Ozai without compromising Air Nomad morals.)

The Gaang goes to Yu Dao (that colony) where they encounter people, including the Freedom Fighters, protesting Zuko's decision. Speaking with Zuko, they discover that Yu Dao is the oldest Fire Nation Colony, where the first colonials settled over a hundred years ago. Because of the Earth Kingdom's influence, the citizens were able to develop some of the finest metalwork, making it one of the richest cities in the world, making it better for everybody who lived there. Not only did this help the economy and well-being of Yu Dao, the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation people started marrying. The woman who tried to kill Zuko is the child of such a mix. Zuko's explanation does not phase Aang because he believes that in order to be peace and harmony throughout the world, the four nations need to be completely separate from each other.

Let me tell you - once you read the first few pages of this book, you will never watch the A:TLA finale the same way again.

There is a sidestory about Toph and her school called "The Beifong Metalbending Academy" where she tries to teach a cast of misfits. However, due to THRM, a firebending school takes over the building, "reclaiming" it. They agree on having a match to see who is the better school...and Sokka seeing how much better the firebending students are, agrees to help train Toph's students. In the meantime, Aang and Katara land in Ba Sing Se and bump into the city's  chapter of the "Official Avatar Aang Fan Club." Katara gets jealous, but the Club provides them with a place to stay for the night.

Zuko, seeking advice on "pressures of the throne," visits his father, who tells him a story of an incident that happened during one of their family vacations to Ember Island. Young Zuko, no more than three-years-old, tried to rescue a turtle-crab from a hawk at the beach - he had an "odd affinity for the weak." Ozai says, "The hawk looked at you with hungry eyes, and you realized you were condemning it to starve." Before Zuko could make a decision on whether to side with the hawk or turtle-crab, a giant wave carried him out into the ocean and Ozai had to save him. After Zuko brings his father some tea, he figures he should have sided with the hawk - "It was strong and noble, much like the Fire Nation. It had earned its meal." Ozai does not accept his assessment, saying he is only partially correct, and tells him, "What I'm saying is this - there is no right or wrong apart from what you decide. Who you choose to defend deserves to be defended simply because you chose them." While Zuko is have an inner-battle between what is right and wrong, Ozai points out that the Earth King will send out his army to "crush" the Fire National colonials, "in an attempt to restore his own dignity." Ozai also believes that the Avatar is "an irrelevant relic of a bygone age" because he/she does not allow the stronger to triumph over the weak. Zuko defends Aang as his friend, but Ozai asks if he trusts Aang more than himself, and Zuko is unable to answer.

Kori, the woman who tried to kill Zuko, is training with her cousins when her boyfriend, Sneers, a member of the Freedom Fighters shows up. After learning that Sneers was a part of the protestors, she gets mad and they argue. He tells her she either has to choose the Earth Kingdom or Fire Nation. She replies, "Choose, choose, choose! All my life, people have been asking me to choose! I am an earthbender and a Fire Nation citizen, and I live in Yu Dao! That's what I choose!"

After Katara and Aang break the news to the Earth King about Zuko's refusal to continue with THRM, Earth King Kuei thinks it over and decides he is "tired of being weak" - he is going to send his army to Yu Dao, and the colonials have the options of  leaving peacefully or facing "the most dire of consequences," much to Katara's and Aang's horror.

When the Gaang goes to Yu Dao to warn the Fire Nation to leave because of the Earth King's army, they find out, just like Zuko did, that the situation is more complicated than they originally thought. The president of the Yu Dao chapter of the Avatar Aang Fan Club, Xing Ying, enters and introduces herself to Aang, who is impressed by her and her club members' attire ("Your clothes look just like the uniforms the Western Air Temple students used to wear!...And the arrows you've painted on your foreheads look almost exactly like real airbender tattoos!") However, to his frustration, he finds out that the tattoos are real, which ends up in this exchange:

"What?! But air nomad tattoos have to be earned though years and years of airbending practice! They're not-"

"Oh, we know, Avatar Aang! For a fan club member to receive her tattoos, she must master of airbender-like forms!"

""Airbender like"?! Those tattoos are sacred to my people! They describe who we are and how see the world! You have no right to tattoo yourselves like that!"

"I assure you that our members go through the most rigorous of study programs! By the end, they-"

"But how could you study air nomad philosophy at all and still do something like this?!

Despite Katara trying to reassure Aang that it was an honest mistake, he continues with, "For you to treat our tattoos like a part of some...some costume...! My costume isn't a game!"

After Aang flies off, Katara finds him in a miserable state, and he relays to her his thoughts, "I think I figured out why the nations have to be separate for harmony. Whenever two nations come together, the stronger one can't help but hurt the weaker one. They'll conquer or burn or, at the very least, make a joke of the weaker nation."

Katara replies with, "You once told me that separation is an illusion. Guru Pathik taught you that. The Four Nations are really one and the same."

Aang is caught up with preserving the world as he knows it, and feels that he has to see THRM through the end, even if that means fulfilling his promise to Zuko and going against his air nomad philosophy.
 
It would have probably been great if this song existed in the Avatar world.

Katara reveals to Aang that the first time Zuko showed them around Yu Dao, she "saw Kori and her family standing in the street, staring at us like we held their whole lives in our hands," leading her to change her mind about THRM. Their session is interrupted by Smellerbee's protestors, and after quelling some of the action, Katara goes on to say that what she wants is to find a peaceful way for Yu Dao to go on the way it has for the past century.  Aang wants to end things peacefully too, but with the Fire Nation leaving Yu Dao peacefully too. She knows that it is not an option anymore when both the Zuko's and the Earth King's armies arrive.

After getting out of the way of most of the action, Katara tells Aang that when she saw Kori's family, she also saw their future. "If the nations have to be separate, what will that mean for us?" Aang decides to go find a quite place to help himself make the right decisions.

Sokka sums up the situation perfectly: "Let me see if I got this, the protesters and the Earth Kingdom army want the colonials to go, the Fire Nation army wants the colonials to stay, and the Yu Dao resistance just want their city to be left alone?"

Katara makes her way into the Earth King's hot air balloon, where he is cowering, and he remarks with, "Who knew Yu Dao would be like this?!"

"You've never visited Yu Dao?" Katara responds.

"Up until a year ago, I'd never even visited my own city's outer ring."

She extends a hand to him to show him the people "who have had to live with [his] decisions."
After the Earth King gets to see how Yu Dao actually is, all ends well...although Roku warns Aang in meditation that if he continuing to make indecisive action, he continues to put the world at risk. (Is this from Roku's own regret on not killing Sozin, and/or have we seen repercussions in Korra?)

Even the Yu Dao Avatar Aang Fan Club earns Aang's respect, as he tells them:

"I have to admit, I'm a little nervous about this. I love my people's culture and I don't want to see it corrupted. At the same time, it can't just belong to history. Air Nomad culture has to belong to the future, too. According to my friends, many of you led the way to peace on the battlefield, putting your lives at risk for the sake of others. I 'm deeply impressed. You already have the hearts of Air Nomads, so I've decided to teach you the ways of the air nomads. But you can't just be a fan club anymore. From now on, you'll be known as the Air Acolytes!"

They seriously need to make these comic books into TV movies.

Anywho, now that I am done with providing you all with practically the gist of the entire book, let us touch upon the themes...

While The Harmony Restoration Movement sounds good on paper, as we can see, it did not play out well in real-life. Little did anyone expect two nations living in one area not only cooperating with each other, but starting families. The idea of the four nations has been around for so long that they cannot see through the illusion of the separate nations. I would be willing to bet all of my money (which is not saying much, since I am literally broke while writing this) that this series of events with THRM and Yu Dao were a precursor to the establishment of Republic City.
Not only were the"Fire Nation" and "Earth Kingdom" citizens cozying up with each other, but their economy is pretty damn good. Is this a precursor to global capitalism in the Avatar world, and that it makes people's lives better?

By reading this, I felt we got to know Ozai a bit better , and not necessarily in a bad way (adds a bit of dimension). Ozai's story about Zuko connects with the theme of Roku's disapproval of Aang being "indecisive." When Ozai says that the Avatar is the "irrelevant relic of a bygone age," it reminds me of the Red Lotus' beliefs on keeping nations separate. We get to see that a ruler can set out their armies on a whim, also keeping in tune with the Red Lotus' ideas that leaders and governments cannot be trusted. It also foreshadows the topic of the relevance of the Avatar that Korra is struggling with in her series.

Through learning that story of Zuko and the discussion he has with his father afterwards, I can see a theme that makes its way into Book 3 of Korra - the absolute power of the leader, whether or not the people of the kingdom or elsewhere agree with it. According to Ozai, if Zuko has to make a choice, by making that choice, he makes it the correct one. Bumi points out in Book 3 of Korra that the Earth Queen had the right to treat her citizens in the dastardly way she did. I kept procrastinating while writing this, but we see the same thing (it's actually a major theme) in Book 4 of Korra.

It is only when the Earth King actually sees the people of Yu Dao, he and Zuko decide not to go through with THRM. Because of Katara wanting to one day form a family with Aang, she knows that THRM will do no good for anyone. Too often in the world (yes, including ours) we separate ourselves from other groups of people and label them as "others," an unfortunate side effect of human's natural tendency to collectivism, which is not a bad thing. Nevertheless, in a changing world, behaviors that have served us well in the past can turn their backs on us. With wars being waged around the war, it can be too easy to isolate ourselves from other groups. By letting individuals on all sides connect with each other, we can see that not all members of that certain group are bad.

The last social topic I ever thought that A:TLA would touch upon is that of cultural appropriation. Despite the Yu Dao Avatar Aang Fan Club's sincere attempt at reviving the Air Nomad culture, Aang is infuriated at their (unknowing) lack of respect. I find discussions on cultural appropriation to be quite sticky and headache-inducing at times because of many individual agents trying to define the term - where is the line crossed from cultural appreciation to appropriation? When in time does wearing a costume become appropriation to historical reference, and does it depend on the group? (For example, is a samurai costume a historical costume or a stereotypical reflection of Japanese culture?) Very basically, I think it can be defined as people wearing costumes that superficially display a certain culture, especially sacred garments, in a way that contributes to the objectification of the attire and that culture.

People try to tack on other aspects to the definition, but this is what we will stick with right now because this is a topic that deserves its own post. Not only does Aang have to deal with children appropriating the sacredness of his culture, but he has to, again, face the reality that his people are gone. While his feelings were probably justified, the way he went about scolding them was not. All too often in real life, I see people shaming others who engage in cultural appropriation (think Halloween). Realistically, the people who wear "geisha" costumes or dress as an "Indian chief" do not realize the impact of dressing as these characters. It is important to try to patiently educate them on why what they are doing is potentially harmful. Of course, Katara is able to sympathize with the Avatar Aang Fan Club. The formation of the Air Acolytes is a good compromise in this situation, but I doubt it could be employed in the real world for several reasons.
What were some of your thoughts about this story? Which themes have you noticed in this that are also seen in A:TLA and Korra?