ONE SHORT SENTENCE IN ONE SPEECH -- AND A REASON TO THINK WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN

 Tim Walz gave his acceptance speech Thursday night. He mentioned that his father died when he was young, but his family survived. “Thank God for Social Security survivor benefits.”

What he said struck me like touching an electric wire to a nerve. It struck home.

When I was 16, my dad, a retired factory worker, died of a heart attack. I was a high school junior. The youngest of seven children by nine years, I was the only child still at home. In fact, I was the only one not already making my way in the world.

Like Walz's family, my mother and I survived largely due to Social Security survivor benefits. These benefits enabled me to live at home, complete high school, and attend nearby Ball State University, where I earned my BA degree summa cum laude. 

Fifty years later, I’m now retired after more than 40 years of practicing law. I was selected to the State Bar Association’s GP Hall of Fame and was the first solo practitioner honored with the Indiana Lawyer’s Barrister Award. I’ve written 3 novels, and my historical true crime book will be published in October. And I try to pay back a bit by substitute teaching in local schools.

I have 3 adult children making their own way in the world, one running her own business, another an aircraft mechanic instructor for a major airline, and the third a psychiatric nurse practitioner. 

Tim Walz's comments made me wonder what would have happened to me in an alternate universe? What would have happened in a nation where Social Security survivor benefits did not exist?

There are people who want that type of universe. Just read Project 2025. I hope that when you walk into the polling place in November, you will think about that.

I know I will.

THE JAMES BOND BOOKS -- A POSTSCRIPT: IAN FLEMING: THE COMPLETE MAN

Nicholas Shakespeare's biography of Ian Fleming is what it claims to be: a complete biography of the man and more.

The book covers Fleming's complex and, in many ways, tragic life, starting with his destitute grandfather, who rose to be one of the richest and most important businessmen in Great Britain -- and in the United States. It details Fleming and family through Fleming's untimely death at age 56 -- and even afterward, through the suicide of Fleming's only child in 1975.   

Indeed, the book does detail the complete man.

The book is well written and keeps the reader's interest despite a few unnecessary sidetracks into the lives of some rather trivial characters in Fleming's life. However, the depth of this book adds a richness to understanding Fleming's life that may be missing from the other biographies of Fleming.

Ian Fleming, creator of the world's most famous spy and longest-running movie series ever, was born as the second child of an overbearing woman and a saintly father who was killed in France on the battlefields of WWI when Ian was only 8 years old. From then until WWII, Ian struggled in the shadow of his older brother, Peter Fleming, who was better at school, better with having a family, and in the years leading up to WWII, the most popular writer in England. While Peter was thriving, Ian struggled for success at anything -- school, an attempted military career, and as a stock broker. His only real success was as a journalist and a foreign correspondent. But that career didn't pay enough money for Fleming's life style. 

All of Fleming's life, he functioned under the thumb of his overbearing mother who tried to control every aspect of his life. She even interfered in his first great love, breaking up Fleming's long-standing relationship with an Austrian woman to whom he had become engaged. His mother continued to interfere throughout Ian's life, until her death only two weeks before Ian.

It was not until WWII that Ian began to move out from under the shadow of his then-more famous brother. Shakespeare details Fleming's remarkable career in the British Secret Service during the war -- a career that in some ways was even more remarkable than Fleming's alter-ego spy. Fleming formulated sensational plans, formed a troop of commandos, and helped the United States form its OSS, which later became the CIA. It was a time when Ian developed all of the background needed to create James Bond. 

But the war was also full of tragedy. Ian's fiance was killed in a German bombing raid on London. 

In the post-war years, Ian joined the London Sunday Times as its foreign manager. He established  a worldwide news agency to compete with Reuters. Shakespeare convincingly argues that Fleming's foreign correspondents also acted as a spy network for British intelligence. 

But a key provision of Fleming's agreement with the London Sunday Times was his insistance on a 2-month annual vacation.  During a visit in WWII, Fleming fell in love with Jamaica. Shortly after the war, he bought a parcel of land overlooking a protected beach on the north shore of the Caribbean island. Next to his neighbor, Noel Coward, he built a rather rudimentary vacation home and dubbed it Goldeneye. 

It was these vacations to Goldeneye in January and February each year that reshaped Ian Fleming's life -- and the lives of so many people around the world. 

In early 1952, Fleming, at age 42, was on the cusp of his first marriage. It was a bit of a shotgun wedding. Ann Charteris, a married socialite, was pregnant for the second time by Fleming through their long-standing affair. The first child died shortly after birth, and Ann remained married to her husband. But with the second pregnancy, Ann divorced her husband. She and Ian were to be married in March in Jamaica. The result was a troubled son, Casper, Ian Fleming's only child.

Having talked of writing a spy thriller since the days of World War II, and now facing an unexpected and perhaps unwanted marriage, Ian Fleming sat down with a Royal portable typewriter and began writing: "The scent and sweat and smoke of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning."  James Bond was born.

Success, either with the books or the marriage, did not follow. Sales of the early Bond books were modest, and Fleming's efforts to attract movie and television interest failed. 

And his marriage was no better. Ann was a socialite, always planning upper-crust parties. Ian, on the other hand, rather despised parties and Ann's friends. He preferred small dinners with his friends.

Ann was not supportive of Fleming's writing. At parties, Fleming walked in on Ann and her friends making fun of Ian's books, howling as someone in the group read excerpts from his thriller. Ann also took up a very public affair with one of England's leading politicians who later became prime minister.

From Russia With Love, published in 1957, changed Ian's fortunes as a writer. Originally planned as a likely end to Bond (hence the ambiguous ending), the book drew rave reviews and a huge spike in sales. Particularly influential to Fleming was a flattering review by British author Eric Ambler. So Fleming decided to continue the series with Dr. No.

By 1960, there was interest in movies. And when new President John F. Kennedy listed From Russia With Love as one of his 10 favorite books, sales of the Bond books, particularly in the US, skyrocketed almost overnight.

At the same time, Fleming found a rewarding relationship --  not with his wife, but with his neighbor Blanche Blackwell. 

The tragedy of Ian Fleming's life continued. Just as success beyond measure was at hand, when book sales were setting records, and the first two Bond movies succeeded beyond anyone's wildest dreams. Even when he found personal contentment in a relationship beyond his overbearing mother and his selfish wife, his health failed. His habits of being a 70-cigarette-a-day smoker and very heavy drinker caught up with him. 

Ian Fleming had several heart attacks severely limiting his ability to enjoy his new-found fame and riches. On August 12, 1964, he died at age 56.

Shakespeare's biography does justice to Fleming's remarkable and, in many ways, tragic life. It is a MUST READ for any true James Bond fan and for anyone who has an interest in Twentieth-Century history, excellent biographies, or fascinating lives.

THE LAST IAN FLEMING BOND BOOK: OCTOPUSSY AND THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS

This is it—the final book of my rereading, in order, all of Ian Fleming's James Bond books—Octopussy and the Living Daylights.

Actually, it was not the final book that Ian Fleming wrote. That was The Man With the Golden Gun, written in the first months of 1964 and published posthumously in the spring of 1965.

This book was a collection of short stories that were previously published in various magazines in the early 1960s. They were accumulated and published in book form in 1966. However, the book's contents vary based on which edition you have in your hands. 

The first edition (cover pictured) contained only Octopussy and The Living Daylights. A later edition, the one I read, also contained the story The Property of a Lady. A final edition also contained a story "007 in New York."

This was a journey into the past for me. I was introduced to James Bond when I saw the movie Goldfinger in the spring of 1965. I was immediately enthralled. It was quickly followed by seeing a double feature of Dr No and From Russia With Love. By the time Thunderball was released, even though I was only in 8th grade, I was reading Ian Fleming's books. The impact of these books (and movies) on my life is hard to overstate. It inspired my love of reading -- and writing -- and even music through John Berry's incredible scores.

I read all of Fleming's books within a few months, and then a couple of years later, I read them all in order. Most I had not touched since—more than 55 years ago. Now in my early 70s, I decided to re-read all of the Fleming books—in order—in the same Bantam editions that I first read.  The task—a joyous one—now is complete.

Among the greater population, Ian Fleming is best known for his novels—twelve in all, only eleven of which he liked to claim. The Spy Who Loved Me was an effort at an out-of-character Bond novel told by a female protagonist. Among scathing criticism, Fleming quickly disavowed it and initially prohibited its publication in the paperback or in the US.

But Fleming was also an absolutely sensational short story writer. Octopussy and the Living Daylights was published in June 1966, nearly two years after Fleming's death at age 56. The three stories in the book, including the two title stories and a third, The Property of a Lady, were originally published in periodicals. All three are outstanding short stories, although they do not have the pace or consequence of the novels.

While the title of Octopussy seems marginally salacious, the story is a low-key tale of justice, in the form of Bond finally catching up with a man who had stolen Nazi gold bars at the price of killing a ski guide. It so happened that the guide was a young Bond's ski instructor in his pre-war years. Like A Quantum of Solace in the other collection of Fleming short stories, this is told from the perspective of the older man still living on his gold bars in Jamaica. Suffering terminal cancer, he is facing the reality of death regardless of whether Bond arrives or not. 

The Living Daylights is a Cold War tale about Bond being sent to Berlin to act as an assassin to protect a British agent escaping to the West. Bond ponders his murderous assignment role but is determined to do his duty. But a surprise awaits. Those who recall the movie of the same name will see the similarities in the opening scenes of the movie with the short story.

The Property of a Lady is a subtle story whose biggest action scene is an auction of a Faberge egg. It is another low-energy Bond story, but one that looks more realistically at the inner workings of the art of spycraft than most of the Bond books.

The final story, not included in my version, is "007 in New York." It's another low-action story focusing on Bond's reflections on New York City in the early 1960s and his favorite recipe for scrambled eggs, a favorite dish of both Bond and Fleming. The plot of warning an MI-6 agent that her new boyfriend is a KGB agent is almost secondary.

This is a MUST-READ book for true James Bond fans who want to add richness to their understanding of Fleming's writing and his character.

This is a good way to end my quest through Ian Fleming's Bond books—a quieter end with wonderfully written but relatively low-key stories. I think that's probably the way it should be.

JAMES BOND BOOKS #13 - THE LAST NOVEL: THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN

The Man With the Golden Gun is Ian Fleming's final novel. It was written in the first months of 1964 when Fleming was suffering from the effects of his serious heart ailment. His illness was the product of stress, family heredity, a life of heavy drinking, and a 70-cigarettes-a-day habit. The book was published posthumously in the spring of 1965.

With the exception of the 1966 publication of a collection of 3 previously published short stories, The Man With the Golden Gun represents the end of Fleming's James Bond books. As I read through the final chapters, I could not help but feel sadness as if I was still mourning Fleming's passing. 

Maybe I was.

By the way, as with so many Bond movies, don't expect the book to be like the movie. There is no arcade-like killing game, no laser and Nick Nack, the creepy little guy played by Hervé Villechaize.

The last real James Bond novel (I don't count the subsequent Bond novels written by others), begins with Bond, brainwashed by the Russians, attempting to kill M. After Bond is treated, M gives Bond a shot at redemption by sending him on an assignment to kill Francisco Scaramanga, the world's most dangerous assassin, also know by his weapon of choice -- a golden gun. 

The trail of Scaramanga takes Bond back to Fleming's favorite location—Jamaica, the place where Ian Fleming wrote all of the Bond books at his beloved winter home, Goldeneye. Bond ingratiates himself to Scaramanga, who calls on Bond to help with a meeting of mob figures and Russian agents. The meeting leads to a showdown between Bond and Scaramanga on a narrow gauge railroad crossing a dense swamp.

The book draws the reader in, as do all of Fleming's works. It's a fitting final adventure although it will leave the reader wanting more, just as it did 60 years ago.  It is a MUST READ for any Bond fan.

JAMES BOND BOOK #12: YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE

You Only Live Twice, the 12th Bond novel and the last of the James Bond Blofeld trilogy, was the last Bond book published during Ian Fleming's lifetime. I last read it more than 50 years ago. 

While this novel is somewhat different in structure from the previous Bond books, it is a powerful, well-written thriller that stands out in many ways. But if your only knowledge of this title comes from the movie, don't expect rockets, astronauts and a volcano spaceport. That is NOT the Ian Fleming book.

The story opens with Bond suffering debilitating depression from the loss of his wife, Tracy (On Her Majesty's Secret Service). The depression has caused Bond to botch two recent assignments and has caused M to consider removing Bond from the 00 section. Instead, he offers Bond a chance at redemption with an impossible task—one that is more diplomatic in nature than 00 section assignments. Bond is sent to Japan to negotiate for Britain's access to the highly secret Japanese code-breaking machine that reveals Chinese secret communications, something that currently is only being shared with the CIA.

When Bond arrives, his host is Tiger Tanaka, the head of Japan's secret service. Tanaka's price for the secret information is high. He wants Bond to rid Japan of its newest problem -- Dr. Shatterhand and his Garden of Death (what a great name for a 60s rock band).  Bond quickly discovers that Dr. Shatterhand is Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the mastermind behind Thunderball and On Her Magesty's Secret Service and the murderer of Bond's wife, Tracy.

The book is, at times, almost a travelogue of Japan. The major action is confined to about 20 pages, but it is not at all slow or boring. It is a fascinating look at Japan in the post-war years from a Westerner's eyes, including the world's introduction to ninjas. And, as with From Russia With Love, it ends with Bond's future in question.

The book famously includes Bond's obituary, written by M, which provides much of Bond's previously undisclosed background. It also contains perhaps a hint of Fleming's plans for a future Bond storyline—his child with the book's Japanese Bond female lead, Kissy Suzuki, who, unknown to Bond, was pregnant with his child at the end of the book.

Reading this Bond book, particularly at a time when I am simultaneously reading the new Ian Fleming biography "Ian Fleming: A Complete Man," comes with a bit of melancholy. Written in 1963, the book was published in England in the spring of 1964 as Ian Fleming was dealing with severe health issues and the legal morass of the Thunderball lawsuit. 

On August 12, 1964, five days before You Only Live Twice was published in the United States, Ian Fleming died of a heart attack after a weekend of playing golf at Royal St. George's Golf Course. He was only 56 years old. 

You Only Live Twice is a MUST READ for any Bond fan. 

JAMES BOND BOOK #11: ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE

On Her Majesty's Secret Service, published in 1963, is the second of the Blofeld trilogy. It was published to strong reviews just weeks before release of the first Bond film, Dr. No.

This book is most well known to Bond aficionados as the book where James Bond gets married. But more importantly, it marks a return of Ian Fleming to his full stride following a nearly 4-year lean stretch after Goldfinger. In the intervening years, he wrote only Thunderball, which was adapted from a failed screenplay, a short story collection (For Your Eyes Only) of previously published stories, and the failed novel from a female perspective (The Spy Who Loved Me) which was so poorly reviewed that Fleming initially prohibited a paperback version from being published. 

But On Her Majesty's Secret Service is all Fleming, and ranks among the better books in the series. Bond meets Contessa Teresa "Tracy" di Vicenzo, and her crime boss father, Marc-Ange Draco. It is Draco who helps Bond locate Ernst Stavro Blofeld, who is disguised and hiding in a fortress in the Alps after the failed project that was the subject of Thunderball. Now Blofeld is plotting his next attack, this one on the world's food supply with the help of 10 unwitting young women.

Bond takes the identity of a British expert in heraldry, Sir Hilary Bray (the name borrowed from one of Fleming's closest friends). Undercover, he travels to Switzerland and confronts Blofeld. Bond narrowly escapes in a tense mountain chase, one of the best chase scenes in any Bond book. He  escapes only when he is rescued by Tracy. But with the help of Draco, he mounts an attack on Blofeld's fortress. Any Bond fan knows how it ends, but for those who have spent the past decades living in a cave, I won't spoil it. 

This is Ian Fleming and James Bond at their best. A really great thriller written just on the cusp of Bond's breakout success on the big screen. It is a MUST READ for any Bond fan.

JAMES BOND BOOK #10: THE SPY WHO LOVED ME

 When I first read The Spy Who Loved Me more than 50 years ago, this was by far my least favorite of Ian Fleming's James Bond books. --  It still is.  And going back and reading through book reviews from 1962 when the book was released, my opinion was shared by reviewers of the time.

Still, it is an interesting trip back into early 1960s America. And while it is quite different than any of the other Bond books, it is still an interesting addition to the series, if for no other reason than a peek inside Ian Fleming's mind. 

The Spy Who Loved Me is written in a first person female perspective by the fictional Vivienne "Viv" Michel, a young Canadian woman. James Bond does not even make his appearance until two-thirds of the way through the book. The first half is Viv Michel telling about her life and loves which result in her being a caretaker for a night of an isolated motel in upstate New York. When a couple of thugs burst in on her, we have the stage set for Bond's appearance.

There's no saving of the world here. Just saving a young woman. 

Accounts of Fleming's life at this point more than hint that Fleming was struggling with coming up with new plots for his books. The fact that his three books after Goldfinger were a short story collection, a novelized screenplay that landed him in legal trouble ("Thunderball"), and this out-of-character book, bears evidence that indeed Fleming was struggling with the Bond plots. But the end of the book contains some fascinating reflections by Fleming on the character he has created. Those observations alone make the book worth reading.

The book was so poorly received that Fleming ordered that the book not be released in a paperback version and that it not be released in the United States. When the movie rights to the series were sold, Fleming included The Spy Who Loved Me, but with the caveat that while a film could use the title, the plot of the novel could not be used for a movie. 

Of course when the Bond book sales skyrocketed, The Spy Who Loved Me did appear in the United States and in paperback editions.

Is this book worth reading? It depends. For a casual Bond reader, this is the one I would skip. But if you are a true fan of the Bond book and want a full picture of Fleming and his character, you need to read this one, too.