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[Don Bowen KI6DIU <don.bowen AT earthlink.net>]

At 10/3/2007, you wrote:
> The Good House Book: A Common-Sense Guide to Alternative Homebuilding
> by Clarke Snell
> Building Green: A complete How-To to Alternative Building Methods by
> Clarke Snell & Tim Calahan

They do overlap but are very different.  I have not done any more than a 
brief look through them, another book landed on my pile that pushed 
everything else aside.

Manias, Panics, and Crashes: A History of Financial Crises by Charles P. 
Kindleberger & Robert Aliber seems to be a serious study on the whys and 
ways of financial crisis.  Fascinating book but slow going as I have to 
stop and think about what I just read.  It is more an advanced economics 
text but not jargon filled or I have been reading so much economics that I 
understand it.

The part about manias was very interesting and something seen in the recent 
housing bubble.  During a mania, everyone tries to get on the "next good 
thing" and there is much talk about how things have never been better, 
things will only continue to get better, better get in while you have a 
chance.  Manias always lead to panics when appreciation of the asset no 
longer covers the interest on the loans.  A panic is when holders have to 
sell to cover loans and prices go below loan values.  If prices fall far 
enough it is a crash.  The book has several examples from the well known 
Tulip bubble, the Mississippian bubble of the early 1700s, up to the stock 
bubble of the late 1990s with several others in between.  He covers what 
are called shocks that launch either a mania or a panic.  The industrial 
revolution is such a shock as was the advancement in telecommunications 
first in the 20s then in the 90s.

Very interesting book in light of recent events.


Don Bowen              Awl Knotted Up                       KI6DIU
http://www.braingarage.com