Last year, a friend of mine recommended I read Thomas Hager’s The Alchemy of Air. [Both recommended reading] Then, I was talking about Derek Lowe’s “Things I Won’t Work With”[lowe] column with a former chemist, who expressed shock and horror that I had read The Alchemy of Air and not Hager’s other book: The Demon Under The Microscope.
What is an “Authoritarian?”
Well, if you were an authoritarian, you probably wouldn’t even ask that question. For you, an “authoritarian” is whatever I tell you it is: authoritarians are people who accept beliefs based on simple assertion from an authority figure. In this case, since this is my blog, I say that’s what an authoritarian is, so there you go, let’s move on, we’ve got other things to talk about.
I’ll say up front, I am somewhat biased about this book. I lived through its creation, which was over a decade of my father researching and writing and organizing his history. I’m also not necessarily recommending you all run out and buy it; it’s an academic’s piece for academics, though it can be read like a novel and it’s quite engaging if you do so. Growing up with a historian, surrounded by other historians, it was kind of impractical to ask my father “what about the American revolution?” and get a high-level answer. “It’s complicated.” Indeed.
I read a lot. I sometimes have thoughts when I read things. Sometimes the stuff I read is interesting, other times it’s not.
If you’re not familiar with Derek Lowe’s “In the Pipeline” blog, you should be. Whether you’re a chemist or not, his writing is witty and wonderful and breathes zing and pizazz into, uh, your breath-mask. [things I won’t work with]
I grew up reading feats of military derring-do, and watching films like “Seven Samurai” and “Harakiri” – books and movies about martial glory and the character of the warrior. I noticed early on that a big piece of military glory and heroism is the stand against great odds – the acceptance that one’s mission will probably cost one’s life, but that’s a secondary concern: doing the right thing matters more. I read a lot about the samurai and bushido, and I always deeply felt the distinction between katsujin ken (the life-giving sword) and setsunin-to (the life-taking sword). Somehow it all ties together in my formative anarchy as part of something basically anti-authoritarian, because the authority and the establishment usually are the “powers that be” against which the life-giving sword must work.
… Is we talk about books.
It took me a couple passes to read this and wonder if the Wall Street Journal’s journalistic standards have fallen below the “write parseable sentences” level:
I stumbled on this back when the “news” first broke and concluded it was a “wait and see” kind of thing. I’m still waiting and I still haven’t seen. Allegedly someone bought one of William Shakespeare’s books on Ebay for $400.
I’m not surprised when someone who is 80 dies. But it’s the end of a universe of memories and experiences. Tepper was a big influence on me, and I’m adding “The Gate To Women’s Country” to my recommended reading list. (News on Locus Magazine)