Weekend Reads: July 10, 2021
Demons, The cult of Green Energy, Revolt of the Public, and More
Hello all,
Here are a few reads and listens I’ve enjoyed this week that you may find interesting.
Articles
“On Demons” by Sam Kriss @ First Things.
This is an excellent quick review of Dostoyevsky’s Demons over at First Things. This book is often read too blithely through the lens of hyper-Orthodoxy and Kriss brings a great angle to it by comparing it with the 1967 French film La Chionese loosely based on the novel. He explores why the “Abolish ICE” movement lost its steam after the election of the most recent US president, why the French Communist Party’s biggest critics were often the Marxists of France, and why the demons of the New Testament more readily acknowledge Christ’s divinity than even His own followers do. Excellent read.
“How marginalized communities in the South are paying the price for ‘green energy’ in Europe” @ CNN.
Apparently a 2009 regulation enacted by the EU in the name of ‘green energy’ categorized biomass energy as ‘green,” … despite the fact that “biomass” here is a Green Industrial Complex euphemism for “uproot trees, process them down to pellets, and burn wood for energy.” (I thought moving past burning wood was a sign of civilizational progress?)
Now the consequences of that policy are coming home to roost in places like South Carolina, where most of the biomass is manufactured. Two things stick out to me about this article: the first is the conflict between two crypto-religions of the modern age — equity and environmentalism. What happens when these two come into conflict is this kind of story. The second is that it’s amazing how the obvious solution to green energy concerns is always ignored:
Books
The Scandal of Money by George Gilder.
I originally read this book a few years ago when going down a rabbit hole on Gilder’s work. He’s an excellent author and supremely readable (though I question his enthusiasm for certain elements and characters in the crypto space). This book in particular explores why and how the abandonment of sound money policies in the United States in the mid-late 20th century negatively affects the non-financialized (what Gilder calls “Main Street”) and benefits the highly financialized (“Wall Street”).
The Boy Crisis by Warren Farrell.
Recommended by an old acquaintance who has done a deep dive on being the father of a boy — and how contemporary society really does hurt boys (and in turn, men). Only recently started it but a great foil against this idea that somehow the society we live in disproportionately benefits men — while simultaneously doing an excellent job of not taking on the weird, crypto-misogynistic lens of the MGTOW world (Farrell served on a board for the feminist organization NOW, for example). Really heartbreaking — though I look forward to finishing it and having some substantive action items to share.
Audio
“Revolt of the Public” @ Honestly with Bari Weiss (Podcast).
One of the books I am also working through right now is Martin Gurri’s Revolt of the Public, which was said to predict the tumult of the last couple of years with surprising clarity. It’s a long but readable book. This hour-long interview with Gurri by Bari Weiss distills the general thesis well, though. Something I thought was edifying was how adamant Gurri is that the conflict we see today is not between right and left but rather between the elite and the public — but the “public” is really more of an anti-ism. There’s no overarching ideology or philosophy uniting the populist revolts of the last decade — it’s all about being against the establishment.
Let me know if you enjoy this kind of content. I find myself particularly engaged with these emails from those I follow, so I’ll keep it up if so.
Cheers,
Zak