Experimental Blog # 194

Brief comments on 6 more of Richard Nixon's books:

About four years after Richard Nixon resigned from the American presidency in August of 1974 he completed his rather massive memoir, "RN - The Memoirs of Richard Nixon". His book is well over 1000 pages. Although it is difficult to imagine that very many people today would carefully read the entire book, it seems to be a very good source book for many conversations and other events of Richard Nixon's presidency. However, there is no mention of Elvis Presley. It is well known, and it can be easily verified, that Elvis Presley visited President Nixon at the White House and brought him a present of a 45 caliber colt revolver!

About two years after his memoir was completed, Richard Nixon, in 1980, published his third book entitled "The Real War". He later wrote that he wrote this book because he was afraid that America was losing the Cold War.

Richard Nixon's fourth book came out in 1982 and is entitled "Leaders - Profiles and Reminiscences of Men Who Have Shaped the Modern World". In the third paragraph of this book Richard Nixon writes. "For the last thirty-five years I have had the exceptional opportunity, during an extraordinary period of history, to study the world's leaders firsthand. Of the major leaders of the post-World War II period, I knew all except Stalin.". Some of Richard Nixon's best writing is in this book as he describes his encounters, conversations, and sometimes friendships with at least 23 world leaders.

Towards the end of this book Richard Nixon writes, " < > I believe that before the end of the century we will probably elect a woman to the vice presidency and possibly to the presidency." A prediction that obviously did not come true. Otherwise, the book ends somewhat tediously.

All of Richard Nixon's books, except #s 5 and 6, have extensive indexes. "Real Peace" is only 107 pages, and in this book Richard Nixon repeatedly emphasizes the impossibility of war between the "superpowers", that is, America and the Soviet Union. The book came out in 1984.

"No More Vietnams" is perhaps Richard Nixon's most controversial book; maybe sometimes the worst and sometimes the best. He writes, "The Vietnam War began when World War II ended." "France had ruled all of Indochina - Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam - for over half a century." Some people might say that the Vietnam War began in 1887, when France declared Indochina to be a part of the French empire.

"In January 1969, the United States had 542,000 troops in Vietnam. By July 1970, as our operations in Cambodia came to an end, our troop level was down to 404,000. < > By July 1972, we would have only 45,600 troops stationed in South Vietnam."
"On April 30, 1975, with Soviet-built tanks rolling through the streets of Saigon, South Vietnam surrendered. Communist Khmer Rouge guerrillas had conquered Cambodia thirteen days before. Hanoi-backed Pathet Lao forces took over Laos a few days later. All the dominoes in Indochina had fallen."

Richard Nixon's ninth book, "Seize the Moment - America's Challenge in a One-Superpower World", was published in 1992. In the late 1980s and the early 1990s Richard Nixon was, in spite of his age, going to Russia every year. As the communists lost control, Russia almost seemed to have become Richard Nixon's favorite country, after America, of course.