Against the Tides & the Times (On Occasion‪)‬

Jim ODonnell, who wrote this book in the third person because hes allergic to the perpendicular
pronoun I, has had a careen rather than a career. After attending three colleges in four years
and getting his MA from Fordham in history, Jim ODonnell worked a smorgasbord of jobs
in college teaching counter intelligence, newspapering at the United Nations, followed by a
decade as a confi dential aide to a DA, council president, and strongest candidate for governor
against Nelson Rockefeller. In the interim, he also served as director of Hubert Humphreys
winning campaign for president in New York. In his last two jobs, he tried to ease the building
of a nuclear plant on Long Island for over seven years and fi nally ended as a consultant to a
company whose chairman became a major fi gure in the pursuit of peace with justice in Northern
Ireland. He is presently at work on a second book on a future, , and perhaps last, pope. He
admits to being lucky in being supported by a very patient wife, Elaine nee Bruck, of Ohio.
They met in Japan and have four children and ten grands and numerous family and friends here
and overseas. About this book, he says: it has its moments for the political and crime buff, the
scholar, and philosopher as well as the historian. Weve been surrounded by good people all
our life and remember some of them here; its too bad more of their character isnt better known
and didnt rub off.