Andrew > Recent Status Updates

I am conflicted so far. It’s a very confused book. It’s very ideologically conservative, linking traditional family to happiness and human connection. It’s clearly anti-communist as well but also seems to be critiquing communism for being too consumerist??? I think it nails this latter part of the critique (in isolation) but at large it feels like an old boomer yelling about how things were better in his day.

Though this update is only for page 10, I have read a lot more of this because the Arendt prefect is so long. Really liked the collection essay! Obviously liked arendt’s segment on Benjamin’s relationship to the Jewish question. Excited for more

Read the garden of forking paths (first 9 stories) and man I love this.

Very basic and dry policy talk. The book seems to encounter the same problem that all proposed solutions have and acknowledges that - it assumes that there is political will to do so. It does provide paths to get there: international pressure. But it does not expound on this or elaborate on anything novel. Basically a compilation of the greatest hits of facts and vague policy solutions so far.

Incredible book with some incredible writing so far. A bit jumpy but definitely glad I am reading this.

Had to pause real quick to acknowledge that the conversation between Laurie and Manhattan in chapter 9 is like one of the greatest issues I have ever read.

of course, talk radio is very different from what dominates today, and there are a few parts of this that seem very unique to radio. However, the essay on conservative talk radio is erely relevant — Wallace seems to have captured something that would only become stronger with time.

Finally got to the title essay and it was great. John McCain and Dosteivsky were also good, but I think you start to see DFW's liberalness shine through. By that, I don't mean that he is on the American left, which he is, but his conception of politics feels almost surface level to me.

oh man that linguistics dictionairy essay was another BANGER

The Kafka essay is a banger.

Haven’t loved this so far, but I really liked A Little Cloud and then I ABSOLUTELY ADORED A Painful Case. Maybe I just liked it so much because it brought up some personal feelings but it hurt a lot.