Tom
Was expecting to like this more than I did, I love the construction of the world and motivation of the expedition but the actual content felt flat in some way. Like it was trying too hard to be profound.
Was expecting to like this more than I did, I love the construction of the world and motivation of the expedition but the actual content felt flat in some way. Like it was trying too hard to be profound.
A concise and clear guide to the prevailing ideology of our time and why it's killing our world. Some takeaways
- Capitalism and Neo-liberalism is inherently reliant on colonial exploitation
- Rent-seeking is the primary mode of increasing wealth
- The rich and powerful launder ideas through think tanks that are uncritically regurgitated by the media
- There is a limitation of imagination when it comes to societal change, incrementalism is not the way
A concise and clear guide to the prevailing ideology of our time and why it's killing our world. Some takeaways
- Capitalism and Neo-liberalism is inherently reliant on colonial exploitation
- Rent-seeking is the primary mode of increasing wealth
- The rich and powerful launder ideas through think tanks that are uncritically regurgitated by the media
- There is a limitation of imagination when it comes to societal change, incrementalism is not the way
A concise and clear guide to the prevailing ideology of our time and why it's killing our world. Some takeaways
- Capitalism and Neo-liberalism is inherently reliant on colonial exploitation
- Rent-seeking is the primary mode of increasing wealth
- The rich and powerful launder ideas through think tanks that are uncritically regurgitated by the media
- There is a limitation of imagination when it comes to societal change, incrementalism is not the way
A concise and clear guide to the prevailing ideology of our time and why it's killing our world. Some takeaways
- Capitalism and Neo-liberalism is inherently reliant on colonial exploitation
- Rent-seeking is the primary mode of increasing wealth
- The rich and powerful launder ideas through think tanks that are uncritically regurgitated by the media
- There is a limitation of imagination when it comes to societal change, incrementalism is not the way
I initially started with the Re: Dracula podcast which releases episodes on the actual diary entry date. I found the voice acting to be good and I enjoyed the novelty but I could not abide by the ads and content warnings so I eventually dropped off in mid September and I only picked it up again with the audible version several months later. This turned out to be a much better way of listening.
Content wise Dracula is something of an oddity. Its first third is excellent with the parallel stories pushing the story along at a satisfying pace. It starts to slow down as everyone eventually converges on London, at times it feels like we are reading through pages of meeting notes as our heros deliberate endlessly. The final third is so drawn out that I started to suspect that the novel was serialised (it's not).
Another irritation is that the novel is very much a 'male-fantasy'. The women are sidelined except as either recipients of the men's noble blood sacrifices, articles of the men's demeaningly progressive compliments (Mina being told she has a "man's brain") or by parroting just how brave and bold said men are.
This is not to say that the novel is bad, just flawed, and I did enjoy listening to it, especially the first half. It's cultural reach is also undeniable and you can feel it's influence well over a century on.
I initially started with the Re: Dracula podcast which releases episodes on the actual diary entry date. I found the voice acting to be good and I enjoyed the novelty but I could not abide by the ads and content warnings so I eventually dropped off in mid September and I only picked it up again with the audible version several months later. This turned out to be a much better way of listening.
Content wise Dracula is something of an oddity. Its first third is excellent with the parallel stories pushing the story along at a satisfying pace. It starts to slow down as everyone eventually converges on London, at times it feels like we are reading through pages of meeting notes as our heros deliberate endlessly. The final third is so drawn out that I started to suspect that the novel was serialised (it's not).
Another irritation is that the novel is very much a 'male-fantasy'. The women are sidelined except as either recipients of the men's noble blood sacrifices, articles of the men's demeaningly progressive compliments (Mina being told she has a "man's brain") or by parroting just how brave and bold said men are.
This is not to say that the novel is bad, just flawed, and I did enjoy listening to it, especially the first half. It's cultural reach is also undeniable and you can feel it's influence well over a century on.
Having watched the first season of the TV show I was pleasantly surprised by how fast paced the book is. I don't think the characters are particularly well rounded but I'm here primarily for the setting and that carries the narrative throughout.
Having watched the first season of the TV show I was pleasantly surprised by how fast paced the book is. I don't think the characters are particularly well rounded but I'm here primarily for the setting and that carries the narrative throughout.
I wanted to dislike this book the moment the author insists in the first chapter that hedge funds have been unfairly maligned and are kind of good actually. But what follows is a fairly unbiased retelling of the history of the industry in a way that is both clear and engaging.
The author concludes that hedge funds are 'just big enough to fail' as opposed to the behemoth investment banks and therefore should be encouraged. I find this take both convincing and remarkably narrow minded. Hedge funds are indeed the ultimate form of capitalism but that doesn't make them good, they still inherit all of the perverse incentives and rot of their big brothers minus the ability to bully others as easily.
The author also has a convenient 'get-out-of-jail-free' card whereby he ceases to classify a hedge fund as such if it gets too big. When your lesser evil is predisposed to lead to your greater one then the distinction is moot.
I wanted to dislike this book the moment the author insists in the first chapter that hedge funds have been unfairly maligned and are kind of good actually. But what follows is a fairly unbiased retelling of the history of the industry in a way that is both clear and engaging.
The author concludes that hedge funds are 'just big enough to fail' as opposed to the behemoth investment banks and therefore should be encouraged. I find this take both convincing and remarkably narrow minded. Hedge funds are indeed the ultimate form of capitalism but that doesn't make them good, they still inherit all of the perverse incentives and rot of their big brothers minus the ability to bully others as easily.
The author also has a convenient 'get-out-of-jail-free' card whereby he ceases to classify a hedge fund as such if it gets too big. When your lesser evil is predisposed to lead to your greater one then the distinction is moot.
A compelling premise that is let down by the character of Svetlana. Throughout the book I didn't know whether to be appalled or impressed that the author had created such a despicable, hypocritical and irredeemable character. By the end, the fact that I was actively rooting against her made the last act more frustrating than thrilling.
A compelling premise that is let down by the character of Svetlana. Throughout the book I didn't know whether to be appalled or impressed that the author had created such a despicable, hypocritical and irredeemable character. By the end, the fact that I was actively rooting against her made the last act more frustrating than thrilling.
I don't envy writers that take on complex investigations like this. By design, the financial machinations are obtuse and confusing, deliberately concocted to bewilder even the most experienced outsider looking in. Despite the inherent complexity, I think the author could have done a better job explaining the core aspects of this case study.
That aside, the key points I took from this book were:
1. Private equity moved assets between entities in an attempt to defraud creditors
2. Private equity owners used the size of the company during the bankruptcy to avoid personal liability for aforementioned fraud (just like Perdue)
I don't envy writers that take on complex investigations like this. By design, the financial machinations are obtuse and confusing, deliberately concocted to bewilder even the most experienced outsider looking in. Despite the inherent complexity, I think the author could have done a better job explaining the core aspects of this case study.
That aside, the key points I took from this book were:
1. Private equity moved assets between entities in an attempt to defraud creditors
2. Private equity owners used the size of the company during the bankruptcy to avoid personal liability for aforementioned fraud (just like Perdue)
I don't envy writers that take on complex investigations like this. By design, the financial machinations are obtuse and confusing, deliberately concocted to bewilder even the most experienced outsider looking in. Despite the inherent complexity, I think the author could have done a better job explaining the core aspects of this case study.
That aside, the key points I took from this book were:
1. Private equity moved assets between entities in an attempt to defraud creditors
2. Private equity owners used the size of the company during the bankruptcy to avoid personal liability for aforementioned fraud (just like Perdue)
I don't envy writers that take on complex investigations like this. By design, the financial machinations are obtuse and confusing, deliberately concocted to bewilder even the most experienced outsider looking in. Despite the inherent complexity, I think the author could have done a better job explaining the core aspects of this case study.
That aside, the key points I took from this book were:
1. Private equity moved assets between entities in an attempt to defraud creditors
2. Private equity owners used the size of the company during the bankruptcy to avoid personal liability for aforementioned fraud (just like Perdue)
A compelling premise that is let down by the character of Svetlana. Throughout the book I didn't know whether to be appalled or impressed that the author had created such a despicable, hypocritical and irredeemable character. By the end, the fact that I was actively rooting against her made the last act more frustrating than thrilling.
A compelling premise that is let down by the character of Svetlana. Throughout the book I didn't know whether to be appalled or impressed that the author had created such a despicable, hypocritical and irredeemable character. By the end, the fact that I was actively rooting against her made the last act more frustrating than thrilling.
