<

Notable recently

We have seen the future, and it doesn’t belong to you (The Register): “The coming decade is shaping up to be one in which we, as consumers and citizens, will see our control over choice and privacy eroded by business and government. Some of the effects will be mere annoyances, but others will transform society. And not for the better.”

Assassins of the Mind (Christopher Hitchens, Vanity Fair): “We live now in a climate where every publisher and editor and politician has to weigh in advance the possibility of violent Muslim reprisal.”

Is aviation security mostly for show? (Bruce Schneier, CNN): “When people are scared, they need something done that will make them feel safe, even if it doesn’t truly make them safer. Politicians naturally want to do something in response to crisis, even if that something doesn’t make any sense.”

The Messiah Complex (David Brooks, NYT): “It rests on the stereotype that white people are rationalist and technocratic while colonial victims are spiritual and athletic. It rests on the assumption that nonwhites need the White Messiah to lead their crusades. It rests on the assumption that illiteracy is the path to grace. It also creates a sort of two-edged cultural imperialism. Natives can either have their history shaped by cruel imperialists or benevolent ones, but either way, they are going to be supporting actors in our journey to self-admiration.”


January 9, 2010 ·  Post to Twitter ·  Email this ·  Notable ·  Comments Off


You might also be interested reading: