Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D.

Here.

Many people who voted for Donald Trump this past November did so because they despise the media (understood as television networks and major newspapers). We (Trump's voters) love it that Trump thumbs his nose at reporters. Why should he give them the time of day? They did everything they could to ridicule, abuse, and defeat him, and they failed to derail his candidacy. When journalists stop being partisan (don't hold your breath), they'll get the respect they once had.

First there was premodernism; then there was modernism; then there was postmodernism; and soon, as a result of the Muslim invasion of the West, there will be premodernism again. Thanks, postmoderns!

This song appeared on the 1985 EP Wide Awake in America. The version posted here appears on the bonus audio CD of The Unforgettable Fire (2009). I have loved this song for more than 30 years. The harmonies are exquisite; the bass is crunchy; the main guitar refrain is sweet and delicate; and there are shards of guitar scattered about. All in all, an amazing song.

I did 75 sit-ups every day this year, for a total of 27,450. I'd like to say that I have abs of steel, but wood (or styrofoam) is more like it.

To the editor:

It would seem that Justin Raimondo suffers from the polar affliction TAS, or Trump Apology Syndrome. (“Do you suffer from Trump Derangement Syndrome?,” Dec. 27)

The many cases I have seen over the last six months seem to be primarily delusional in nature, characterized by a complete and utter inability to recognize statements made by President-elect Donald Trump for what they are. Many of those who voted for Trump did so based upon his ability to “say what he means,” except now it seems no one wants to admit the he “means what he says.”

The primary and secondary stages of TAS, while not generally dangerous, can be extremely annoying. Later stages, however, are thought to be fatal to the general health and well-being of the country and its political system.

When coming in contact with anyone who is in the throes of TAS, it is best not to excite them too much; under no circumstances should you cite facts or statistics, and please do not quote Trump in the presence of the patient.

Thomas Sexton, Huntington Beach

Note from KBJ: What Thomas Sexton really hates is that, after eight years, we finally have a president who loves his country and wants to make it great again. Get some help with your Trump Derangement Syndrome, Tom. In the meantime, stop making a fool of yourself.

Here are the books I read in 2016:

Michno, Gregory. The Mystery of E Troop: Custer’s Gray Horse Company at the Little Bighorn. Missoula, MT: Mountain Press Publishing Company, 1994. Pp. xv+349. (1-9-16)

Myers, John Myers. The Saga of Hugh Glass: Pirate, Pawnee, and Mountain Man. Lincoln and London: University of Nebraska Press, 1976 (first published in 1963). Pp. 237. (1-17-16)

Punke, Michael. The Revenant: A Novel of Revenge. New York: Picador, 2015. Pp. 262. (2-10-16)

Karnos, David D., and Robert C. Shoemaker. Falling in Love with Wisdom: American Philosophers Talk About Their Calling. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994 (first published in 1993). Pp. ix+261. (4-18-16)

McInerny, Ralph. Ethica Thomistica: The Moral Philosophy of Thomas Aquinas. Rev. ed. Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 1997 (first edition published 1982). Pp. xi+129. (5-10-16)

Ostler, Jeffrey. The Lakotas and the Black Hills: The Struggle for Sacred Ground. The Penguin Library of American Indian History, ed. Colin G. Calloway. New York: Viking, 2010. Pp. xvi+238. (5-16-16)

Mackie, J. D. A History of Scotland. 2d ed., revised and edited by Bruce Lenman and Geoffrey Parker. New York: Dorset Press, 1985 (first edition published in 1964; second edition first published in 1978). Pp. 414. (5-24-16)

Custer, General George Armstrong. My Life on the Plains: or, Personal Experiences with Indians. The Western Frontier Library, vol. 52. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1962 (first published in 1874). Pp. xxvii+418. (6-24-16)

Kagan, Shelly. The Limits of Morality. Oxford Ethics Series, ed. Derek Parfit. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1989. Pp. xiii+415. (7-7-16)

Rescher, Nicholas. Presumption and the Practices of Tentative Cognition. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006. Pp. xiii+181. (7-24-16)

Martinich, A. P. Philosophical Writing: An Introduction. 4th ed. Walden, MA: Wiley Blackwell, 2016. Pp. xii+221. (9-23-16)

Hammer, Kenneth, ed. Custer in ’76: Walter Camp’s Notes on the Custer Fight. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1990 (first published in 1976). Pp. xii+303. (10-7-16)

Kneale, William, and Martha Kneale. The Development of Logic. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1962; paperback ed., 1984. Pp. viii+783. (11-4-16)

Taylor, Michael. Community, Anarchy and Liberty. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982. Pp. vii+184. (11-23-16)

Larrabee, Harold A., ed. Bentham’s Handbook of Political Fallacies. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1952 (Apollo ed., 1971). Pp. xxxii+269. (12-9-16)

Rawls, John. Justice as Fairness: A Restatement. Edited by Erin Kelly. Cambridge and London: Harvard University Press, Belknap Press, 2001. Pp. xviii+214. (12-16-16) (first read on 11-15-05)

These are just the books. In addition, I read dozens of articles, reviews, judicial opinions, and miscellaneous items.

What's the best book you read in 2016 (and why)?

Masters of Classical Music, Vol. 3 (1988).

Here.