Lloyd Bowers | Discover Thrilling Stories: Divide the Country, Freedom as Public Utility, The Results of Polar Bear Research & Keep These In the Family

About the Author

Lloyd Bowers was born in Columbus, Georgia in 1952, graduated from Furman University in 1976, and has lived in Charleston, South Carolina since 2002.

The Results of Polar Bear Research is Lloyd's first novel and was published in 2007. Lloyd's next book, Keep These in the Family, is a collection of twelve stories and was published in 2010.

"I grew up in the South," says Lloyd. "The Southern Appalachians is a sort of fixed foot in my life, and the summer-time is a great time to gravitate unpredictably in social settings."

"Freedom is a Public Utility, published 2014, developed from the discovery of a stash of old family letters, dated 1812 to 1857, mailed to my great-great-grandfather John Siegling, who emigrated from Erfurt, Germany, and settled in Charleston in 1820. That he was en route, or 'unterwegs,' for five years impressed me.

"Divide the Country! was published February, 2020. It reflects my concern about the disunity, and even partisan hatred, that plagues the U.S."

Latest Posts

27 Mar 2026

Just Suppose . . .

I know that Democrats nor Republicans shiver at the prospect of having to govern their own nation, apart from their enemies in the other party; but just suppose that a force outside our control compels us to formally divide the dis-United States, so that two new independent nations emerge, who have the existential responsibility of governing themselves. They can no longer excuse their mistakes by blaming the other party, because the other party no longer plays a part in their affairs.

17 Mar 2026

Where are the Founders Going?

This image from The New Yorker magazine shows the disgruntled, crestfallen Founding Fathers of our country departing the White House over the Hubris of President Trump. The New Yorker makes no secret of its left-wing stance on most issues. A right-wing magazine could just as easily show the Founders departing the Biden White House, after listening to a strident critique of "Constitutional Originalism" by a brash, young, feminist-Democrat.

11 Mar 2026

The Resentful Man

This post began when I was browsing through the The Manchurian Candidate for the fifteenth time—the novel, not the movies—published by Richard Condon in 1959. The novel starts with the abduction and brainwashing of an American platoon in Korea. The intelligence services of China and Russia psychoanalyze the soldiers of the platoon and make a decision about one soldier named Raymond Shaw, a marksman, whom they need to train as an assassin.

09 Mar 2026

Nationhood, by Marcus Garvey

I really began to rethink my views about nationhood after reading The Philosophy and Opinions of Marcus Garvey, republished by his daughter Amy Jacques-Garvey in 1923. I had never even heard of Marcus Garvey until National Public Radio played some Reggae songs dedicated to Garvey on one of its programs, perhaps on Afro-Pop. (He was born in Jamaica.)

23 Feb 2026

The David Betz interview

20 Feb 2026

The Unvarnished Truths about Crime in America

Several years ago, my old Zenith TV gave out, and I purchased a fancy flat-screen TV to replace it. I never could make the damn thing work, however, and finally gave up. I hardly ever watch TV any more. With the Internet so available, who needs TV anyway? TV-viewing has existential-distraction value (also known as "excess consciousness"). That's about all.

16 Feb 2026

Polarization

I first heard the term "polarization" in the modern American context in a book The Second Civil War: How Extreme Partisonship has Paralyzed Washington and Polarized America, by political analyst Ronald Brownstein, published in 2007. Again and again, Brownstein frets over important elections decided by "razor-thin margins". The lack of common ground, expressed by politcal-party loyalty and the absence of cross-voters in Congress, suggests deep divisions in the body-politic, although the voters don't like cross-overs by politicians who represent them.

14 Feb 2026

The Disunity Myth

America does not have a problem with so-called "disunity", because America is no longer a single nation. It has evolved into two nations governed by a single national government. Each election is hardly more than an effort by one of those nations to take power and depose the other. The hostility rachets up the tension before each election and makes it hardly more than a war of nerves carried on between sworn enemies.

12 Feb 2026

Thinking about the Epstein Case

Given the fall-out from the Jeffrey Epstein case, more than a few Americans have dusted off their old copies of Mario Puzo's The Godfather, since it tells a number of stories about the dark side of the American Dream. The Godfather Vito Corleone leads an intriguing double-life, on the one hand as a gangster involved in gambling and prostitution—and, once in while, murder—and as a family- man with an inviolable sense of loyalty to family members and friends from the Old Country who get into trouble with corrupt Establishment types.

13 Jan 2026

Why We should remember Jonestown

Every thinking American should read Raven by Tim Reiterman, which chronicles the history of the Reverend Jim Jones, from his early life in rural Indiana, to his establishment of Peoples Temple in Indianapolis, reestablishing it in rural California, then relocating to San Francisco, and starting his rise to political empowerment in San Francisco. My readers should consult the outstanding videos about Jim Jones, available on YouTube.

13 Jan 2026

What Really Works . . .

I can remember reading a history about my great-great-grandfather's hometown in Germany, named Erfurt. In the 11th century, a regional battle raged in Erfurt. Besides losing the battle, a fire resulted in the destruction of most of the city. The regional archbishop took responsibility for the rebuilding of the town and providing for its future; so he had to make policy changes to strengthen it.

09 Jan 2026

Power Exists!

The expression"Macht existiert!" or "Power exists!" has an unofficial status as a "Sprichwort" that recalls Germany's rise to industrial supremecy in the late 19th century. The expression returned to relevancy during the years that the Nazi dictatorship unleashed its military might on Europe. Those experiences gave "Macht existiert!" a largely negative connotation. Post-War Germans naturally did not want to appear too powerful.

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