FIGHT FOR THE FUTURE!Shrapnel: The Official BattleTech Magazine surges onward, waging wars that will decide the fate of the BattleMech-dominated future of the 31st century and beyond! Follow a quest for quick cash that yields unusual Star League relics. Commiserate with an aging MechWarrior convinced he is cursed with the devil’s luck—which is about to run out. Listen to the tale of how mercenary commander Ace Darwin obtained his iconic ’M...

IT’S TIME TO SETTLE OLD DEBTS…Riker was just another has-been loser drowning in debt, until the offer of a lifetime fell into his lap. All he had to do was take a boring security gig, and a mysterious benefactor would make sure the Sprawl’s gangsters didn’t sell his organs and toss his body into the Barrens. He’s been working his way up the corporate ladder ever since, and now his savior has given him his final mission: extract the brilliant scientist Valarie St. C...

From culture writer Mark Hill comes an entertaining, all-encompassing account of the history of the end of the world, uncovering just why humanity continues to be obsessed with the apocalypse.Has the end of the world always been just around the corner? From biblical prophecies to zombie outbreaks, from medieval plagues to modern fears of nuclear war, pandemics, and technological collapse, humanity has long been obsessed with predicting its own demise. This sweeping...

Take a tour across Ireland with these ghost stories from every county … Ireland is an ancient land of magic, superstition and belief in otherworldly things, so it is no surprise that it is also rich in ghost stories. These 32 terrifying tales have been handed down from generation to generation, carried from fireside to fireside by professional storytellers, or seanchaí, and are now collected and retold here for younger readers. From witches to banshees to poltergeists, there's a spooky sto...

The concept of human dignity is already embedded in the constitutional architecture of the European Union and throughout the world, but it remains a slippery and elusive concept. In this volume, leading commentators from across the globe address the shift from the monolithic influence of major world religions in the past towards religious pluralism coupled with the increased secularism of civil society. The contributors, drawn from different backgrounds and traditions, explore how the depl...

The modern world relies entirely on a seamless, invisible network of thousands of orbiting satellites. GPS navigation, global banking transactions, military intelligence, and high-speed communications are all completely dependent on this delicate extraterrestrial infrastructure. However, decades of unregulated launches and exploded rocket boosters have turned the Earth's low orbit into a hyper-lethal, high-speed minefield of jagged metal trash. This investigation explores the terrifying, r...

This book attempts to briefly describe the rich History of the Inland Water Route of Northern Michigan. From the fur trading Natives to the recreational use today, snippets of various accounts of significant events are presented with curious flair. Early railroad and steamer vessels led the way for the transportation of both goods and services. Resorts and camps developed alongside the use of lake steamers. Emphasis of the Steamer Topinabee, the Atherton Inn and the Indian play Wa-Ya-Ga-Mu...

For centuries, since the Roman Empire's adoption of Christianity, the continent of Europe has been perceived as something of a Christian fortress. Today, the increase in the number of Muslims living in Europe and the prominence of Islamic belief pose questions not only for Europe's religious traditions but also for its constitutional make up. This book examines these challenges within the legal and political framework of Europe.The volume's contributors range from ...

Freedom of religion is an issue of universal interest and scope. However, in the last two centuries at least, the philosophical, religious and legal terms of the question have been largely defined in the West. In an increasingly global world, widening our knowledge of this right’s roots in different cultural and legal systems becomes a priority. This Handbook seeks to attain this goal through a better understanding of the historical roots and expressions of the right to freedom of religion...

Derived from the renowned multi-volume International Encyclopaedia of Laws, this convenient resource provides systematic information on how the United Kingdom deals with the role religion plays or can play in society, the legal status of religious communities and institutions, and the legal interaction among religion, culture, education, and media. After a general introduction describing the social and historical background, the book goes on to explain the legal framework in which religion...

This collection, by leading legal scholars, judges and practitioners, together with theologians and church historians, presents historical, theological, philosophical and legal perspectives on Christianity and criminal law.Following a Preface by Lord Judge, formerly Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, and an introductory chapter, the book is divided into four thematic sections. Part I addresses the historical contributions of Christianity to criminal law drawing on biblical so...

The Great Christian Jurists series comprises a library of national volumes of detailed biographies of leading jurists, judges and practitioners, assessing the impact of their Christian faith on the professional output of the individuals studied. Little has previously been written about the faith of the great judges who framed and developed the English common law over centuries, but this unique volume explores how their beliefs were reflected in their judicial functions. This comparative st...