Reading Log: November 2017
I’ve continued my reading habit for two months now. Congrats to me on that! I covered the last month’s books in a previous post.
In the Shadows of the American Century
This is a bad ass book. You may not be used to “bad ass” used to describe books. Here’s what I mean. The author is no joke. He has on the ground experience, written other books on American politics and global power. His opinion is extremely well thought out and backed by a plethora of citations (50% of the book is citations and end notes).
The book is divided into background history, understanding the current moment in the American century (1945 and beyond), and multiple scenarios for the demise of American global power. Nothing seem far fetched. It was the opposite. All scenarios were easy to extrapolate to or required no extrapolation at all.
World War III (for lack of a better term) is one scenario. The US embarrassingly falls to China due to their superior cyber weapons. I’m happy to see this included. I work with software. Cyber weapons are like biological weapons for society’s infrastructure. They are misunderstood and underestimated. Picture this. The US launches a missile in defense. Now imagine the control systems are compromised and the missile simply crashes into the ocean. How many weapons are computer controlled or guided? Imagine shutting down US drones (which is a differentiator in US global power) with press of a button. That’s real power.
Climate change problems is the last scenario. This follows the oft ignored geopolitical strategic elements discussed throughout the book. (You may not be familiar with geopolitics. This Caspian Report video introduces the subject via book review.) Climate change can drastically alter the global playing field. Luckily the Pentagon is (at least) prioritizing this scenario.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I recommend it to anyone interested in American history, how it came to be, understanding the relationship between American colonies, surveillance, terror, military might, and how it will all come down slowly.
P.S. You may be curious if Trump is accelerating the process. The author answered this on The Intercept podcast. He said “not really” so something to that affect. The transition is already in progress and he’s certainly not turning the tide. So “business as usual” in other words.
Win Bigly: Persuasion in a World where Facts don’t Matter
I picked up the book after hearing Scott Adams on the Waking Up podcast. I thought Scott Adams’ explanation of Trump’s actions was reasonable. The podcast episode discusses the “one screen two movies” scenario playing out in America. Imagine everyone sitting in a movie theater watching the same screen. Next imagine everyone is interpreting the movie differently. That’s how I felt when Trump was elected. I was confused how others would vote for the guy. Scott Adams provides a possible explanation though the persuasion filter (his word). The author states Trump is a master persuader and provides context and examples along with asides on persuation theory.
Consider Trump’s (in)famous wall. Do you think that wall would be physical? Do you think it would be policies? Do you think Mexico would pay for it by giving money directly? Trump never answered these questions. The persuasion filter says he did so deliberately. This forces everyone draw their own conclusion, thus rendering debate useless. It also keeps his options open so he can “negotiate back” from the position when it is policy time.
Scott Adam’s also describes the New York sense of humor and how people from California (or anywhere else really) may be genuinely offended. We understand that sense of humor does not land with everyone, so it follows that some of Trump’s comments were humorous to him and offensive to others. It may hurt some, but builds a connection with others. There are many more examples in the book on multiple topics.
The book helped me understand how some may interpret Trump’s words. It troubled me because book assumes that everyone lives in their own reality and pulls that assumption farther than I would like. I grant that each of us has our own filter and we interpret words and actions differently than others based on multiple factors. I’m troubled when we, as a society, spend more time trying to persuade others to accept our reality than objective reality.
You can skip this book if you’ve listened to Waking Up podcast episode. There are more examples in the book, but you can get the gist from podcast. This was my first Scott Adam’s book. I may read more, but am a tad weary of his style.
The Obstacle is the Way
I enjoyed this book so much that I wrote up my notes on it. “The Obstacle is the Way” is a practical introduction to stoic philosophy. I’ve applied the lessons in book to my life since finishing the. They’ve helped me be more positive, understanding, and supportive of those around me. The Stoic life operating system clicked immediately with me. This book is a great way to dip your feet and check for yourself. Practicing Buddhists or those familiar with the concepts will find overlap and common themes.
How to Meditate: A Practical Guide
I picked up this book because I want to start meditating. Meditation is a recurring theme in my life. It also relates to Stoic philosophy in that one must “perceive clearly” before acting. I figured this book would give me, a member of the unwashed masses, a guide to start meditating. I was wrong.
The book is not intended to help people start meditating. It best serves already meditating and desire help in their practice. The text covers four different meditation types in two categories. The two categories are stabilizing and analyzing. You may have overheard people discussing meditating on the breath. The idea is to stabilize your mind by focusing on something (the breath in this case). Use that to let the waters settle. Next turn your meditation towards one of the analytical meditations to expand your mind. Analytical mediations focus on an idea (such as emptiness), dealing with emotions, or relating to those around us. If you come to an intuitive understanding (her word, I took this as “a-ha! moment”) of the concept, do a stabilizing meditation on that idea for as long as possible for further insight. Repeat until done and close with a dedication.
The author describes different routes through many different meditations. There’s fantastic handbook material there for those in contemplative practice. Others may find interesting ideas to mull over. I’ll save this one for when I have some time under my belt.
The Manual: A Philosopher’s Guide to Life (Stoic Philosophy Book 1)
I picked up this one to continue my stoic education. I completed it in about an hour. This a quick read with a few nuggets. However there was nothing new after reading “The Obstacle is the Way”. I’m glad I got this for free during my Kindle Unlimited free trial.
The Lean Startup
It is about time I read this book. I’m vaguely familiar with lean ideas, but a proper introduction would be useful. I’m cheating a bit since I’ll finish this book in the next day or two. I’m not taking much new information away in this reading. I’m getting away more context instead. The context helps clarify my understanding and apply them to future ventures.
I did learn about two fundamental hypothesis all start-ups make. The value hypothesis (the product is valuable because X) and the growth hypothesis (the product will grow like X). Both hypothesis must be tested and verified continuously for the start up to succeed. The idea is effectively continuous deployment (e.g. a feedback loop) for start-up management.
The book is an easy read. Pick it up if you’re looking for different options to run a start up or want a clear description of lean principles.
In Progress
- Travel Writing 2.0 (Second Edition): It’s practically a no holds barred case against the profession. This is deliberate since most literature (especially blogs) makes this seem like an easy and care free life. It’s not. It requires discipline, hard work, and years of work. Readers may not want to hear that, but that’s what it takes to be successful at generally anything! If you accept that, then the author provides actionable advice for part time and full time travel writers. One last hint. Most people are not only authors, but have multiple income streams.
Queued Up
- Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment: The Waking Up podcast continues to fill my queue. I’m looking forward to seeing how evolutionary psychology connects with Buddhist fundamentals. Hopefully the author is a better writer than speaker. He was tough to listen up on the podcast, but the ideas were interesting!
- The Five Invitations: Thanks again Waking Up! I cannot stop picking up these books. I’m excited to read this book after catching the author on Waking Up. The episode was the best in months. Hopefully the book is as good. It fascinated me to listen to someone with so much experience being around death. The topic also connects with the Stoic/Buddhist practice of contemplating one’s death and what that means for one’s life.
