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What did you just read?
- Thread starter Fippy Darkpaw
- Start date
INTHEMIDSTOFLIONS
Trakanon Raider
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Thanks for sharing. I really do need to read BNW (I haven't, yet). I think DrRetarded or Lanx recommended it. I added it to my TBR along w/ Lord of the Flies (another classic I just never read).
I was looking up the differences last night between:
- Socialism - government ownership of the means of production and the distribution of goods rather than private profit
- Democratic Socialism - a socialist economy with social ownership of production alongside democratic principles
- Social Democracy - capitalist market economy but utilizes high taxation and regulation to fund strong social programs
- Nationalism - policies and taxes aimed at national citizens, no foreign intervention, no foreign wars, free trade w/ foreign countries, benefits for national citizens, not world police or world day care center
- National Socialism - socialism for national citizens only
- Classical Liberalism - individual liberty, private property rights, and free markets with minimal government intervention in personal and economic life
For a second, I thought maybe I was for social democracy + nationalism, which I was like wait.. is that national socialism? lol. Then I remembered that the nazi party really were socialists at the heart of it and I dont believe in a socialist economy. Anyone who thinks nazis werent socialist havent read Mein Kampf or anything really about Nazis except that they hated Jews. Even if you look up "national socialism" on wikipedia, it's pretty much all about how they hated ethnic groups and nothing about their economic policies. Which, I mean nazis had social security before USA did, and at the time, USA even had strong advocacy by political leaders for Eugenics. Hell, everyone did until the end of WW2 and they all collectively backtracked.
"Oceania has always been at war with Eurasia."
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A few comments:
It is the crux of the matter that after WW II ended, and it was put on very public display (in the Nuremberg trials) where Eugenics would lead to if implemented consequently and ruthlessly, that everyone suddenly scurried away from the very concept, just like cockroaches from light. It was so fucking bad that the supreme court upheld the involuntary sterilization of a 17 year old woman because of "feeble-mindedness" (Buck v. Bell, 1927). Money quote: "a genetic threat to society". Which wasn't overturned to this day.
As for the Nazis being socialists: As explained in Mein Kampf, Hitler saw two rising societal concepts after the fall of the monarchy and feudalism: British style industrial capitalism, and Russian style global soviet communism. He hated both, and saw himself proposing a third way, because he didn't want to defer to a global communist rulership far away that had no interest in national identity. This was his common point with Mussolini, who ironically started as a socialist, but was was kicked out because he wanted to intervene in World War I. Mussolini didn't want egalitarianism like his commuinist and socialist counterparts, but advocated for class collaboration, which is probably the most defining difference between national socialism and communism, as the latter defines itself on class struggle with the goal of classless society.
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Halfway through book one and there is quite a bit of faggotry afoot. For me, it detracts from the story which otherwise is pretty solid. Being a 2018 book it makes me wonder if it was forced in due to pressure at the time and would push books up various lists for promotion/publishing.
Springbok
Karen
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INTHEMIDSTOFLIONS
Trakanon Raider
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Finished 1984 yesterday. Bleak and dreadful, but glad I read it.
Then started Shibumi by Trevanian. It was terrible so I DNF it.
Then started Shogun. Currently about 35 pages in and digging it so far. Thanks for the rec!
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INTHEMIDSTOFLIONS
Trakanon Raider
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Clicked on this expecting the usual suspects but she is surprisingly based.
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Springbok
Karen
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Started Red Rising at the behest of a guy I work with after wrapping up Sun Eater.
Yikes, big mistake. This guy is a very mediocre writer - good premise, a few interesting characters, but he doesn't give any character, arc, set piece the space and time it deserves to flesh anything interesting out. I'm into book 3 now and none of the deaths, love interests, political maneuverings have managed to make me care one iota. It's a bit like Hunger Games - I see the audience for the books but it just isn't me. Gave the series a good effort but the world building and characters just never get enough time to develop and it feels like he's writing high on cocaine or something.
Yikes, big mistake. This guy is a very mediocre writer - good premise, a few interesting characters, but he doesn't give any character, arc, set piece the space and time it deserves to flesh anything interesting out. I'm into book 3 now and none of the deaths, love interests, political maneuverings have managed to make me care one iota. It's a bit like Hunger Games - I see the audience for the books but it just isn't me. Gave the series a good effort but the world building and characters just never get enough time to develop and it feels like he's writing high on cocaine or something.
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Intrinsic
Person of Whiteness
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I felt the same way at the end of the 3 books and am not sure I even started book 4… maybe, definitely didn’t finish it. I can understand why it has mass appeal and has garnered so much attention, but it is very mediocre. Something about the scale and impact of everything just never resonated with me. Discussions about the ground assaults and these millions or whatever of soldiers fighting and dying, none of it had any weight.
But man people go gaga for the series and I’ve got rights to the Lettered editions Curious King is releasing. Hoping I can make a bit of profit off that if the series popularity stays high.
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Glad it's not just me. This series gets so much "Oh my god it's the best you have to read it!" and it just falls flat for me for similar reasons. Book 1 is carried enough by the fact that it's an interesting enough premise and story, but after that I couldn't get far. I think I forced myself to finish book 2, and only made it a handful of chapters into 3. Which is pretty rare for me, if I start a book I almost always finish it, so for me to put it down a few chapters in says a lot.
INTHEMIDSTOFLIONS
Trakanon Raider
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Nothing about it caught my interest to give it a shot, seemed like more YA slop. I've had it recommended to me by a few people who I know do not regularly read and don't know any better.
This past week I've continued reading through Shōgun and read Robert E Howard's first Conan story: The Sword in the Phoenix. Conan is awesome, but the dialogue suffers from "show don't tell." Shōgun is awesome, I'm really liking it, but I realistically won't be able to finish this book before the end of February. This book is like 440,000 words long. It's a big boy.
Duckliver
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Crime and punishment.
Interesting concepts. Psychologically gripping.
things like the weight of the axe, the realization he has a horrible secret and the loss of honest relationships, the madness that can overcome people.
ultimately didn’t enjoy the read overall, kinda felt like a chore.
war and peace.
brilliant writing, always a pleasure to read. I think I enjoyed Dostoevsky prose more than Tolstoy, but I found Tolstoy to be more philosophically grounded and less psychologically felt. Tolstoy is able to describe concepts and illuminations of life in a very brilliant well thought out manner. And the bitter ironies on display through actions/scene vs characters perception of things is 10/10.
Thoroughly enjoyable book, can confidently say it’s the best book I’ve ever read, already have the rest of his works lined up.
candide, voltaire
funny as fuck. Philosophically balanced and pangloss ends up “right” in the end.
Interesting concepts. Psychologically gripping.
things like the weight of the axe, the realization he has a horrible secret and the loss of honest relationships, the madness that can overcome people.
ultimately didn’t enjoy the read overall, kinda felt like a chore.
war and peace.
brilliant writing, always a pleasure to read. I think I enjoyed Dostoevsky prose more than Tolstoy, but I found Tolstoy to be more philosophically grounded and less psychologically felt. Tolstoy is able to describe concepts and illuminations of life in a very brilliant well thought out manner. And the bitter ironies on display through actions/scene vs characters perception of things is 10/10.
Thoroughly enjoyable book, can confidently say it’s the best book I’ve ever read, already have the rest of his works lined up.
candide, voltaire
funny as fuck. Philosophically balanced and pangloss ends up “right” in the end.
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