Richard Belzer (1944–2023)

I love the logical thought and deductive reasoning on display. Even if they find the plane, it has still been set up that something is off. Belzer & co. takes us through all the evidence in the- not so simple question- of what happened to flight MH370 and the media's (as usual) inept handling. I have my own ideas based on the facts- but I won't spoil it by including them. As someone fascinated by flight, I also enjoyed the background on Boeing 777 & how sophisticated the technology is which show more leads us to the statement of the Prime Minister of Malaysia, "planes don't just disappear. " show less

The quality of The Belz's book depends mostly on how you approach it: as a theory-and-evidence book on conspiracies and cover-ups, or as a humour piece.

As an academic book, it has major failings. You have to take Belzer's word, or the word of several references of unknown credibility, on a lot of things.

The humour aspect saves it somewhat, as long as you like Belzer's snark. Being familiar with his stand-up definitely helps, as you'd have a better idea of his tone during his rants.

Also, lest show more the title lead you astray, there is nothing about Elvis. show less

This is not my normal reading fare, but I picked it up as part of a Dewey Decimal Reading Challenge (000s). So far, I'm finding it to be an entertaining look at conspiracy theories around the JFK assassination. I saw Oliver Stone's JFK movie so long ago (& don't remember many specific details about it), but this book somehow reminds me of the Stone movie....

Update: I finished the book & found it somewhat funny & entertaining. The JFK conspiracy stuff was mostly nothing new to me; I'm not as show more familiar with the various alien theories out there, so some of that info was new to me. Belzer covers various conspiracy theories, makes plenty of cynical/snide/funny interjections, & includes a bibliography of his source materials. Relatively fun if you're looking for a quick, easy overview of JFK & alien conspiracy info. (Isn't that kind of thing on everyone's reading list? LOL.)

P.S. I'm giving it two stars because, while it was fun & easy to read, it's not like it's high literature or anything. Hope the aliens don't abduct me or the Men in Black show up at my door for saying so.... show less

Dead Wrong 2: Diana, Princess of Wales – Chillingly Comprehensive

Diana, Princess of Wales, met a tragic end in the early morning hours of August 31, 1997, in what appeared to be an unfortunate traffic accident. Supposedly speeding through a Paris tunnel, driven by an intoxicated chauffer, her boyfriend by her side, the car wrecked as it was chased by a horde of paparazzi.

At least that's what you're supposed to believe.

Authors Richard Belzer and David Wayne know the truth: Princess Diana show more was not only assassinated, she knew she would be murdered. She even knew how it would happen, it was simply a matter of when. Belzer and Wayne present the facts to prove what is easily one of the most shocking, deliberate acts of murder of all time. Even more chilling, when you realize those who carried out this heinous scheme got away with it…scot free.

Two young boys lost their mother because their grandparents, especially their grandfather, Prince Philip, felt nothing but antipathy toward the beloved woman who was truly “The People’s Princess.” You, too, will feel the bile rise in the back of your throat as you discover the ways in which Princess Diana was used and abused by the Royals and those closest to the Mountbatten-Windsors.

All too many of the terrible things you’ve heard about her, Dodi Fayed, Henri Paul, and others sadly involved in the tragedy simply are not true. Belzer and Wayne have impeccably researched this e-book, as they have their other collaborations, “Dead Wrong” and “Hit List.” The facts written here (and most carefully footnoted) are irrefutable – and terrifying. Thanks to Richard Belzer’s engaging writing style, his voice comes through as if he was sitting with you, relating the story personally.

Princess Diana was only five minutes from a hospital, suffering internal injuries that she would have survived. A complex, covert plan was underway to ensure she didn’t live to see another day.

That plan also included killing Henri Paul (her sober driver that night) and Dodi Fayed, her boyfriend whom by all accounts she planned to wed. In the process, bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones was so badly injured his face needed extensive reconstructive surgery and he has limited memory of the events of that fateful moment. Ironically, he was taken to the very hospital where Princess Diana’s life would have been saved.

"Dead Wrong 2" lays it all out there in extensively researched truth, so intensely compelling once you begin reading this e-book you won't be able to stop until you've finished. What you thought you knew has nothing whatsoever in common with what actually happened. This book sets the record straight, once and for all.

Available through Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Wrong-Diana-Princess-Wales-ebook/dp/B00GH6XBKC/ref=sr... show less