Pot, Inc. Inside Medical Marijuana, America’s Most Outlaw Industry by Greg Campbell (Sterling, 2012). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Pot, Inc.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Once again I am joined by the writer Greg Campbell. He’s written a new book, Pot, Inc. Inside Medical Marijuana, America’s Most Outlaw Industry. We’ll get Mr. Campbell to tell us what the book’s about, and how he involved himself in the debate over marijuana in the United States. In this part of the world, by that I mean Vancouver, we’re pretty liberal when it comes to pot, so it’ll be interesting to see what his research uncovered. Not only did he grow pot in his basement, in this book he also looks at the culture of DIY ganjapreneurialism, and the history over marijuana prohibition. Greg Campbell was last on for the book he co-authored, Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History, which was a bestseller and a hell of a read. He’s also authored Blood Diamonds, and The Road to Kosovo. He’s won awards for his journalism which has appeared in many publications. The book is published by Sterling. The website for more is www.bygregcampbell.com. He joins me from his home in Fort Collins, Colorado. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Greg Campbell; Mr. Campbell, good morning.

Who Killed Abraham Lincoln? by Paul Serup. (Salmova Press, 2010) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Who Killed Abraham Lincoln?

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Abraham Lincoln is widely considered America’s greatest president, and his assassination in 1865 remains a source of fascination many decades later. There’s a forthcoming movie by Steven Spielberg, and season after season books about Lincoln come out. Paul Serup joins me now. He is the author of Who Killed Abraham Lincoln? It was published a couple of years ago, but it’s worth looking at. He joins me now to talk about why he wrote this book and who he believes killed Lincoln. The focus of the book is Charles Chiniquy. He was a Quebec-born priest who championed temperance. He goes to Illinois to do some work for the church there but gets into some legal trouble and seeks defence from a Springfield lawyer named Abraham Lincoln, who soon becomes a friend. Chiniquy soon leaves the church and subsequently authors a popular autobiography, Fifty Years in the Church of Rome, in which he investigates the Lincoln assassination. The research that Mr. Serup does in his own book is exhaustive. We’ll find out why he was interested in Chiniquy, what Chiniquy concluded, and more. Published by Salmova Press, the website for more is at www.salmovapress.com. Incidentally, the full subtitle of the book is: ‘An investigation of North America’s most famous ex-priest’s assertion that the Roman Catholic Church was behind the assassination of America’s greatest President.’ Paul Serup joins me from Prince George, British Columbia today. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Paul Serup; Mr. Serup, good morning.

The Enemy Within: Terror, Lies and the Whitewashing of Omar Khadr by Ezra Levant. (McClelland & Stewart, 2012) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Enemy Within

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Once again I’m joined by Ezra Levant. The lawyer, political activist, journalist and television personality on the Sun News Network has a new book out, The Enemy Within: Terror, Lies and the Whitewashing of Omar Khadr. Like his previous books Shakedown and Ethical Oil, it’s already a bestseller, and also a strident, timely book. Omar Khadr has been held at Guantanamo Bay since October 2002, when at the age of 15 he was accused of killing a US sergeant in Afghanistan. His lawyers, as well as his defenders in Canada, his family and certain members of the press have argued that he’s a child soldier and a victim. He struck a plea deal where he will be able to serve part of his sentence in Canada. Not if Mr. Levant has his way. In the book he argues that Khadr, now 25 has become more radicalised in prison, that he’s not disavowed the hateful, terrorist views he holds. We’ll get Mr. Levant to tell us about what’s gone on with Khadr, what the chances are of his return to Canada, and what he’s doing and suggesting others ought to do to prevent that from happening. It’s a timely book, as I’ve said, and it looks at how we view immigration, terrorism, the law, and our relationship with the United States. The book is published by McClelland & Stewart. Ezra’s website is at www.ezralevant.com. And his show, The Source with Ezra Levant is on nightly on Sun News, that’s on here on this coast at 2.00pm, 5.00pm Eastern. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Ezra Levant; Mr. Levant, good morning.

Ed King by David Guterson. (Knopf, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Ed King

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

David Guterson joins me now. The bestselling author is in town as part of the Cherie Smith Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver Jewish Book Festival. He’s also just published his latest novel, Ed King. It’s described as a story of destiny, desire and destruction, reimagining Sophocles’s Oedipus Rex. We’ll get him to tell us more about this book. Mr. Guterson is the author of the novels East of the Mountains, The Other, Our Lady of the Forest, and Snow Falling on Cedars, which won the PEN/Faulkner Award. He’s also written a short story collection The Country Ahead of Us, the Country Behind, and Family Matters: Why Homeschooling Makes Sense. He lives in Washington State, where Ed King is set. It’s published by Knopf. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, David Guterson; Good morning, Mr. Guterson.

Owning US Property the Canadian Way, 2nd Edition by AUTHOR. (PUBLISHER, 2011) Click to buy this book from: www.altrolaw.com

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

With the economy what it is, foreclosures in the United States and our dollar at times at par or over the American dollar, perhaps it’s a good time to buy property in America. Canadians are often known to leave the country for warmer climes in the winter, and this winter will be no exception. My guest now David A. Altro is an expert at cross-border real estate. He is the author of a new book, Owning US Property the Canadian Way, 2nd Edition. The subtitle of the book is ‘Protect Your Family with The Cross Border Trust and Other Strategies.’ Mr. Altro explains jargon like the short sale, how foreclosure sales work, as well he states the tax implications of buying property in the US, and under whose name the property should be placed. David Altro is the managing partner at Altro and Associates, a multi-jurisdictional law firm with offices in Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, Fort Lauderdale, Sarasota, Naples, and Phoenix. He’s been practicing law in both countries for well over 30 years now. You can get this book from www.altrolaw.com. He joins me from Montreal this day. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, David Altro; Good morning, Mr. Altro.

Come From the Shadows: The Long and Lonely Struggle for Peace in Afghanistan by Terry Glavin. (Douglas & McIntyre, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Come From the Shadows

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Terry Glavin joins me again. The award-winning journalist has a new book out now, Come From the Shadows: The Long and Lonely Struggle for Peace in Afghanistan. It’s a thought-provoking read about a place and a conflict we hear about a great deal, but perhaps don’t think about nearly as often as we should. In this book Mr. Glavin looks at Afghanistan and its people, but he also goes there and goes ‘outside the wire’ as it were and shows us a different sort of Afghanistan, one where its children are going to school, where women’s rights activists are speaking out, where rebuilding is happening. With Canada’s role in the region changing, and the American government also adjusting its role, even towards reconciliation with the Taliban, Terry Glavin warns us about what could happen. What I found particularly thoughtful was the author’s challenge and evisceration of the left’s knee-jerk reaction, that we should never have been there to begin with, that we should pull out immediately, and that it was never Canada’s place to be there. We’ll get him to tell us more of what’s in the book. Terry Glavin was last on for his book Waiting for the Macaws. He lectures at the University of Victoria, is the co-founder of the Canada-Afghanistan Solidarity Committee, and he’s won many prizes for his work, including the 2009 British Columbia Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence. His blog is at http://transmontanus.blogspot.com. This book is published by Douglas & McIntyre. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program in Victoria, Terry Glavin; Good morning, Mr. Glavin.

Me & Lee: How I Came to Know, Love, and Lose Lee Harvey Oswald by Judyth Vary Baker. (Trine Day, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Me & Lee

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

It’s nearly fifty years now since the assassination of John F. Kennedy. This past week, Lee Harvey Oswald would have turned 72. His lover, Judyth Vary Baker, has been in Canada this week to do a series of interviews about Oswald, their relationship and the undercover plot that brought them together which resulted in the murder of Kennedy in Dallas, Texas, November 22nd 1963. Ms. Baker has written a book, Me & Lee: How I Came to Know, Love, and Lose Lee Harvey Oswald, and after its publication some time ago, she is finally talking about what’s in the book, and about Oswald, all in an effort to reconsider, and rehabilitate his place in history. We’ll get Ms. Baker to tell us about what Oswald was doing, how he got set up, and how he eventually met his own demise some days after the assassination at the hands of Jack Ruby. Since the assassination Judyth Vary Baker has lived a quiet life outside the public eye living overseas in the midst of death threats. She joins me from Montreal today. The book is available from www.meandlee.com, as well Amazon and Chapters are selling it on their websites. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Judyth Vary Baker; Good morning, Ms. Baker.

In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin by Erik Larson. (Crown, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: In the Garden of Beasts

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

A marvellous book out now is In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin. It takes us to 1933 Germany. The Nazis have just come to power, and Adolf Hitler is completing his first full year as chancellor. The unlikely ambassador to Germany from the United States is a mild-mannered academic, William E. Dodd. He and his family move to Berlin, and it’s through them that we see Germany as it was. Hindsight is always 20/20, but in this book, which reads like a novel, we see life as it were as Hitler tightens his grip on power. We see the gathering storm as Jewish persecution mounts and attacks on Americans occur, as well we see the reaction from Dodd, the American State Department, and their contemporaries. We also see the charmed life lead by his daughter Martha, who is fascinated and entranced by the ‘New Germany,’ which leads to romance with figures within the Nazi regime. Erik Larson joins me from Toronto now. He is the award winning author of six books including the critically acclaimed and bestselling Isaac’s Storm, Thunderstruck and The Devil in the White City, which was a number one bestseller on the New York Times list. This book, published by Crown, is this week also number one on the Times list. The website for more is at www.eriklarsonbooks.com. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Erik Larsen; Good morning, Mr. Larsen.

Walking Home: The Life and Lessons of a City Builder by Ken Greenberg. (Random House, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Walking Home: The Life and Lessons of a City Builder

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

I’ve just started reading Ken Greenberg’s new book, Walking Home: The Life and Lessons of a City Builder. It promises to be an important and necessary book as it looks at our cities, how they’re built, how liveable they are now and in the very near future. Mr. Greenberg, principal of Greenberg Consultants, is an architect, urban designer, teacher, writer and former director of Urban Design and Architecture for the City of Toronto. In this highly readable book he tells his own story, where he grew up, where he’s lived and worked, and the ideals of good city planning he’s gleaned from those places. The post Second World War exodus to suburbia came at the expense of ideal urban living. We’re going back to it, thanks to rising cost of energy, and in how to go back the book is highly instructive. In 2010, Ken Greenberg was the recipient of the American Institute of Architects Thomas Jefferson Award for public design excellence. The website for more is at www.greenbergconsultants.com. The book is published by Random House. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program in Toronto, Ken Greenberg; Good morning, Mr. Greenberg.

Among the Truthers: A Journey into the Growing Conspiracist Underground of 9/11 Truthers, Birthers, Armageddonites, Vaccine Hysterics, Hollywood Know-Nothings and Internet Addicts by Jonathan Kay. (HarperCollins, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Among the Truthers

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Jonathan Kay is a managing editor and a columnist at the National Post. He has written a fascinating and highly readable book, Among the Truthers. Its subtitle says it all: ‘A Journey into the Growing Conspiracist Underground of 9/11 Truthers, Birthers, Armageddonites, Vaccine Hysterics, Hollywood Know-Nothings and Internet Addicts.’ Mr. Kay researches and interviews those in the world of conspiracy theorists. He examines their beliefs and thoughts, how they got to what they believe, and what it means to our society, our discourse and our politics. The book is published by HarperCollins. The website for more is at www.amongthetruthers.com. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Jonathan Kay; Good morning, Mr. Kay.