GUANTANAMO AND “detention policy fatigue.”

THE OTHER DAY, READER JASON WHITWORTH ASKED: “For those of us that were in school in the late 80’s/early 90’s and never had a Western Civ course, can you or your readers recommend one?”

I published that, the recommendations poured in, and of course I got too busy to properly digest them. But now here are some.

An anonymous reader emails: “Try The Rise of The West – W H McNeill…”

Rev. Todd Hester emails: “Glenn, Kenneth Clark’s Civilisation is forty years old now, but peerless in my estimation. Clark was an avowed humanist and anti-Marxist, and it showed. I was an English major in the early nineties; it was the basis for my humanities coursework, and was still deeply relevant. I suspect it is more so now.”

Prof. Stephen Clark writes: “In response to Mr. Whitworth, let me bang the drum for Jacques Barzun’s, From Dawn to Decadence: 500 Years of Western Cultural Life 1500 to the Present. A life’s worth of scholarship has been distilled in this work. Beautifully written, Barzun takes you on a grand 500 year tour of the Western world that will leave you in awe of all that has preceded you, but also in awe of a model of classical scholarship that Barzun represents.” I read that, and it’s excellent.

Linda Seebach emails: “Columbia’s course was called Contemporary Civilization, and Amazon has a number of used copies at reasonable prices (new are ~ $85). I took a version at Gettysburg in the late ’50s, but I don’t think that was ever commercially published. Also links to reading list, study guides online, for instance at http://www.wikicu.com/Contemporary_Civilization.”

Reader Dwight Green writes: “I saw the request one emailer made for Western Civ classes. There are many online courses available now at sites like Academic Earth (http://academicearth.org/) or Open culture (http://www.openculture.com/). There really is a burgeoning online industry for courses that I’m happy to see. For those that feel overwhelmed at taking courses, their best bet may be exploring the flourishing world of book blogging. Anyone interested, even casually, in reading is sure to find several that fits their tastes and style. For example, I’m currently working my way through Thucydides and posting my thoughts on it…it’s a challenging read but so well worth it.”

Josh Mandir sends: “I think a good start on Western Civilization is the book Carnage and Culture by Victor Davis Hanson. It covers 9 battles in world history from the Battle of Salamis to the Vietnam War, describing the unique properties of Western Civilization. I learned more about Western Civilization (and, really, history overall) than I did in college.”

Reader William Berry emails: “In response to reader Jason Whitworth’s query about a course in Western Civ for one who missed out on it the first time around, I would suggest the seminar reading list at St. John’s College, available at this link . There is Western civilization, laid out in all its glory. St. John’s is the best college most people have never heard of, where the humanities still flourish. Our eldest son is a student there now, and loves it. But if you can’t go there, the next best thing is to work through the readings on your own.”

Claudia Brown writes: “Your reader who’s looking for a Western Civilization course might consider purchasing the textbooks to the Providence College (Rhode Island) two-year Civ core. Two of my kids went to Providence, and we were really impressed with the course. During various campus visits we met other parents who had themselves attended Providence, and looked back on the Civ course as one of the best they ever took, regardless of what they ended up majoring in or what profession they pursued. (You don’t declare a major at Providence until late in Sophomore year — that’s a good sign.) Even without a course, I’m sure the readings textbook would be valuable.”

Andrew Morriss writes: “The Teaching Company has many, many marvelous courses on the essentials of western civilization. Prof. Rufus Fears’ courses on Rome are spectacular – he’s got a great voice! The best ‘why we got rich’ book is Deidre McCloskey’s Bourgeois Dignity – fabulous, well written, erudite, etc. Basically: don’t kill entrepreneurs and be nice to them and your society will prosper. It is the only explanation that fits the data. Her web page is here, and her website has the book for downloading, reviews (including mine), etc.”

Speaking of how-we-got-rich, the classic is Nathan Rosenberg’s How The West Grew Rich. Many readers recommended this.

Reader Will Danford recommends Roots Of Freedom: A Primer On Modern Liberty. “It was written (by my dad – sorry) for college students, but it was adapted from lectures delivered via Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty before the wall fell. It’s a concise summary of the Western political tradition.” Nothing wrong with plugging your dad’s work.

Reader Jonathan Good recommends this video series on the Western Tradition.

And, of course, if you’re in a big hurry, there’s always Andrew Klavan’s video history of Western culture in 2 1/2 minutes.

PETER SUDERMAN: Egypt’s Internet Kill Switch. “Here’s what happens when a dictator has access to an off-switch for an entire country’s Internet: Via the Committee to Protect Journalists, a visual representation of Egypt’s Internet traffic on January 27th.”

AT THE ATLANTIC, more Egypt liveblogging.

Plus, lots more coverage at The Tatler.

HMM: Porsche considers selling diesel-engined Panamera, Cayenne in U.S. I like the Panamera, and if I were rich I’d consider buying one. But would I be more likely to buy a diesel? I don’t think so. Now a diesel Cayenne makes sense. Or am I missing something?

UPDATE: Reader Matthew Hennessy says I am:

On purely performance grounds, diesel doesn’t cause engine damage from ‘knocking’ (since diesel compression combustion is essentially controlled ‘knock’ already) you can crank up turbocharging.. Also, it can run leaner than gasoline engines, thus leading to better economy. In the US these days, most diesel performance tuning is done on truck platforms (Gale Banks Engineering is big on diesel) but a high-pressure turbo system on a modern common-rail diesel along with a huge # of gears in a multiclutch trans could be a real winner.

Well, stay tuned.

IN BRITAIN, a call for men’s liberation.

INSIDE THE BRAINS OF PSYCHOPATHS. “Not all psychopaths lack the ability to comprehend emotions felt by others. It isn’t that they lack the ability to model the emotions of others. Rather, their emotional reaction to their own modeling of others is different than it is in most people. This is, by the way, why I fear future artificial intelligences. I do not expect they will have behavior-restraining empathy.” Not unless it’s designed in. Some people are working on how to do that.

IN THE MAIL: Gulag Boss: A Soviet Memoir.

PC WORLD: Get Internet Access When Your Government Shuts It Down. “In the land of no Internet connection, the man with dial-up is king.” Plus, thoughts on ham radio, etc.

You can still buy a dialup modem. Here’s another. And it’s harder — and more disruptive — to shut down the whole phone system than just the Internet.

UPDATE: Reader Tom Hill writes: “Would you mind asking your readers if fiber optic phone systems (such as Verizon Fios) could be shut down as part of an internet shutdown?” I’m sure they could be, but my guess is that Internet would be blocked at the ISP gateway. Others may know more than me.

And what’s the point of dialup if the ISP gateways are shut down? With dialup, you can reach foreign dialup nodes. Of course, it’s also possible to just shut down international phone calls, but that’s another step, and also a costly one.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Egypt Cuts The Net, The Net Fights Back.

POLL: Majority of Voters Oppose Federal Bailouts For States.

QUESTION: So why is it all right for women to be sexist about MEN?

I DON’T WANT TO HEAR ONE GODDAMN WORD ABOUT MY CARBON FOOTPRINT: FOIA Request Reveals Pelosi Logged 43 Flights Covering 90,155 Miles from January to October 2010. “According to previous documents uncovered by Judicial Watch, the former Speaker’s military travel cost the United States Air Force $2,100,744.59 over one two-year period — $101,429.14 of which was for in-flight expenses, including food and alcohol.”

CHANGE: Gallup Poll: Positive views of GOP for first time since 2005. “The view of the Democratic Party, meanwhile, has improved slightly. The poll showed 46% of Americans viewed Democrats positively, compared with 47% who have a negative view. Still, those numbers are among the worst Gallup has recorded for Democrats since 1992.”

MARKDOWNS ON blankets, bedding, and bath goods.

TIMOTHY DALRYMPLE: Why We Have Children.

POLIWOOD ON THE Kennedy Mini-Series Suppression.

YA THINK? Egypt Internet Shutdown Underscores Vulnerability.

Related: Zombie internet ‘kill switch’ bill back to haunt the Senate.

UPDATE: Chinese nervous? “CHINA has blocked the word ‘Egypt” from the country’s wildly popular Twitter-like service, while coverage of the political turmoil has been tightly restricted in state media.”

JAMES TARANTO: Eliminationist rhetoric against Sarah Palin: a production of the Missoula Children’s Theater. “In all seriousness, though, like much of what we have been writing about in the past few weeks, this incident is shocking but not surprising. For all the bogus accusations being thrown at Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin, genuinely hateful political rhetoric is commonplace in the art world, even in art that is not overtly political.”

KEVIN WILLIAMSON: Statistical Chicanery: Texas Budget Edition. “The fact is that Texas, at $985 per capita, received less stimulus funding than almost any other state. (Virginia and Nebraska were lower.) It is no surprise to find Paul Krugman manipulating figures, but I am surprised by the number of people who fell for this storyline.”

HOW REAGAN TOOK ADVANTAGE of being underestimated.

Only Phil Hartman had it right.

SHOCKER: Civil Rights Commission Report Reveals Racial Double Standard At DoJ.

RANKINGS: College and University Endowments.

CIVIL RIGHTS UPDATE: University of Idaho Law Student Challenging Ban on Possession of Guns in On-Campus Housing.

MEGAN MCARDLE: What would a U.S. debt downgrade mean?

I think the answer is: Nobody really knows. But probably nothing good.

IMPORTANT HEALTH NEWS: “Adults who make love first thing in the morning apparently not only feel more upbeat for the rest of the day, but also benefit from a stronger immune system. Research suggests that adults who begin their day this way are healthier and happier than those who simply opt for a cup of tea and some toast before heading out of the door.”