When I began this blog, I hoped to make interesting articles I’ve read a regular feature. Alas, nothing has been regular, and I’m backlogged about 9 months on thought-provoking articles. But I’m going to be trying to posting these things with minimal commentary, more often.
Also, excuses to post unrelated photos as the cover images!
The Baby in the Plastic Bag by Bernt Jakob Oskenes
I mostly read about economics, politics, religion, and development. I wanted to start with recommending this—a piece about a newborn baby found in a cemetery—because it’s different from the journalism and opinion pieces I usually read. It’s also much better. It is what journalism should strive to be. It gained international acclaim, so you might’ve already encountered it, but if not, here’s my recommendation. No spoilers; just read/experience it now.
Basic Income, Not Basic Jobs: Against Hijacking Utopia by Scott Alexander
A friend once described reading SlateStarCodex as going down a rabbit hole. “He starts with this completely implausible idea and before you know it you’re thousands of words into the article and you agree with him”. On this topic, I actually agreed with the premise of this article before reading. I was going to write something about Universal Basic Income (in short, everyone in a society gets free money), but this article argues for it better than I could.
How to Be Good and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Comes to Terms with Global Fame by Larissa MacFarquhar
These are two profiles of people by the same journalist, though quite different pieces (after reading her profiles, I want to read her book about ‘do-gooders’). Shoutout to Sindy for her recommendation of the first. The profile of the late Parfit raises troubling philosophical questions while summarizing his fascinating life; the Ngozi Adiche profile is a look into her as a person and African literature more broadly.
Truth, Subjectivity, & Jungle Gods by Rod Dreher
This piece on the transcendent is one of my favourites from his blog; and represents what the blog does best.* I hope to read the book it quotes soon. The comments on this piece are also fascinating, if you’re into philosophy of religion.
*Sadly the quality of this blog, in my opinion, has declined over the past few years: more “vitriolic culture warrior” and less “reflections on family, Christianity, community, and beauty”.
How Rhetoric on the Left Fuels Bigotry on the Right by Conor Friedersdorf
Friedersdorf is one of my favourite American politics writers (at least the one with whom I share the most unpopular opinions). This article’s comparison of harmful rhetorical strategies on the American left and right was thought-provoking.
Can religion play a role in evidence-obsessed governance strategies? by Aikande Clement Kwayu
Article on how impact-focused development organisations (such as my own) should look at religious institutions as central to governmental and social change. I wish I could read the author’s whole thesis on faith groups and government.
If anyone has additional readings on religion and international development, please share! In my experience, people in my field (development work) are generally non-religious, while most intended beneficiaries are traditionally religious. I find this somewhat concerning: can people with a completely different moral view of the world (and, more significantly, sometimes a lack of understanding of other moral views) be trustworthy decision-makers for those with less power? (This framing is probably problematic, because the nature of decision-making in the development space is. Let’s discuss in future).