Things I've Been Reading
Dec. 11th, 2014 03:29 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
martasfic... and think you'd enjoy, too.
(1) Teaching Essay Writing in Pyongyang, by Suki Kim @ Slate. A really interesting look at working in a school for the children of North Korea's elite, a fascinating look at the culture and the teaching experience.
(2) On Immigration, Obama Fulfills His Promise to Progressives, by Peter Beinart @ The Atlantic. Don't let the political title fool you - this isn't just partisan hackery. Beinart gets into the two sides of Pres Obama's political background, the pragmatic side but also his more activism-driven ideological roots. The latter won out on immigration and it's a nice window to understand what makes him tick, or at least what Beinart thinks makes him tick.
(3) The Dutch Village Where Everyone Has Dementia, by Josh Planos @ The Atlantic. This will never happen in America -- or most places, really -- because it's not economic or even all that scalable. Still, it's a really interesting take on a group of people doing a lot of good over in The Netherlands. Also, it got me thinking about sickness and quality of life. How many of those problems are unavoidable, and how much is it that we're just not willing (or able) to provide the care needed to give people a proper life rather than just continued existence?
(4) In Which Sherlock Discovers the Truth, and Anthea is Helpful, by second_skin @ AO3. Pretty much exactly what it says on the tin, with one bonus word: Mystrade. And another two: Johnlock (eventually). A very short, flat-out hilarious and very endearing story told through text messages.
(5) The Old Jim Crow, by Ta-Nehisi Coates @ The Atlantic. This is a heartbreaking but really well-done introduction to how black Americans were treated under Jim Crow and its pre-Civil War predecessors, with a special focus on laws that criminalized harmless everyday things when done by black people like reading. Interesting as history, and pertinent to recent events in Ferguson and elsewhere as well.
Check them out, and let me know what you think.
(1) Teaching Essay Writing in Pyongyang, by Suki Kim @ Slate. A really interesting look at working in a school for the children of North Korea's elite, a fascinating look at the culture and the teaching experience.
(2) On Immigration, Obama Fulfills His Promise to Progressives, by Peter Beinart @ The Atlantic. Don't let the political title fool you - this isn't just partisan hackery. Beinart gets into the two sides of Pres Obama's political background, the pragmatic side but also his more activism-driven ideological roots. The latter won out on immigration and it's a nice window to understand what makes him tick, or at least what Beinart thinks makes him tick.
(3) The Dutch Village Where Everyone Has Dementia, by Josh Planos @ The Atlantic. This will never happen in America -- or most places, really -- because it's not economic or even all that scalable. Still, it's a really interesting take on a group of people doing a lot of good over in The Netherlands. Also, it got me thinking about sickness and quality of life. How many of those problems are unavoidable, and how much is it that we're just not willing (or able) to provide the care needed to give people a proper life rather than just continued existence?
(4) In Which Sherlock Discovers the Truth, and Anthea is Helpful, by second_skin @ AO3. Pretty much exactly what it says on the tin, with one bonus word: Mystrade. And another two: Johnlock (eventually). A very short, flat-out hilarious and very endearing story told through text messages.
(5) The Old Jim Crow, by Ta-Nehisi Coates @ The Atlantic. This is a heartbreaking but really well-done introduction to how black Americans were treated under Jim Crow and its pre-Civil War predecessors, with a special focus on laws that criminalized harmless everyday things when done by black people like reading. Interesting as history, and pertinent to recent events in Ferguson and elsewhere as well.
Check them out, and let me know what you think.
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Date: 2014-12-11 10:21 pm (UTC)That's WONDERFUL. My mom is experiencing very slowly building (but progressive) memory issues, and knowing about programs like this mean a great deal to me.
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Date: 2014-12-11 10:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-12-12 12:04 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-12-12 01:00 am (UTC)