William Marsden (2)

Having lived in Alberta for most of life, I picked this book up hoping that it would bring a wider awareness to the current problems with refining the oilsands. Instead, Masden gives us the kind of superficial finger-waging that makes people feel very good about being on the "right side" of the debate without actually addressing the real issues surrounding the environmental damage being done.

He devotes an entire 1/3 of the book to a historical account of a plan to recover the oil by blasting the ground with atom bombs. Shocking, yes but relevant to today's current situation? No, since, thankfully, this insane plan never got off the drawing board.

Marsden's trip to Alberta seems to have been tragically short. Though he did visit the Athabasca region (the place and people who are suffering most from the environmental infractions) and raged about the injustice of their illnesses, he didn't make any attempt to find out how or where the river is being polluted. He has uncovered nothing that the average Albertan doesn't already know from talking to friends who work for oil companies. He also seems to have blurred the lines between the oilsands and all oil mining, spending more chapters on mining practices in general then on the oilsands specifically.

Marsden gives the impression that he believes mining should be 100% enviromentally friendly. It's a lovely, idealistic idea but sadly impossible. Any form of mining, whether your digging up oil, diamonds, or silcone, requires digging and that does damage to the surrounding environment.

Marsden's motives may br good, but his "investigations" into the oil sands are superficial at best and leave a great deal to be desired. If your looking for a strong investigative journalism piece about the oilsands, this isn't the book you're looking for.… (mer)

What do you think of Hells Angels? Are they a free-wheeling group of "good old boys" who occasionally have a run in with the law, or are they a global crime empire dealing in drugs and guns? Originating in West Coast America, the HAMC have expanded into every major continent, but by doing so, have attracted the attention of every major law enforcement agency.

Marsden and Sher are two Canadian journalists who initially wrote a feature on Canadian motorcycle gangs. From this, they expanded the scope of their research to include biker gangs across the world from Canada to Amsterdam, Scandinavia to Australia. Many horrific tales of murder, beatings and feuds are recounted, but also we read the stories of the undercover police who have risked their lives and sanity to reveal the extent of the bikers' activities.

The authors have done a lot of research following the trail of HAMC and their affiliates across the globe. For anyone new to the world of outlaw biker gangs, this serves as a great introduction, but the bland writing style negates a lot of the excitement and danger contained in these stories.… (mer)