First Derivative [53]
Russia—liberalism—Chinese authoritarianism—self-driving trucks—India—medical marijuana
first Derivative [53]
March 9, 2018
Russia—liberalism—Chinese authoritarianism—self-driving trucks—India—medical marijuana
Christopher Steele, the Man Behind the Trump Dossier
by Jane Mayer (The New Yorker)
A good comprehensive overview of the Steel Dossier and the larger intelligence work behind the investigations into Russian interference in the US.—TK
You can fight for liberal values without being liberal on immigration
by James Kirchick (The Washington Post)
“The conflation of liberal values… with a liberal stance on immigration mistakes a policy preference… for a first principle…if every move to restrict immigration… is portrayed as a concession to fascism, then the only people who benefit will be fascists.”
The Good Liberal
by Shadi Hamid (The American Interest)
“Rather than simply sounding the warning on illiberal democrats — the Trumps, Le Pens, and Orbans — Mounk, to his credit, also pays considerable attention to ‘undemocratic liberalism.’ He identifies, correctly, that the former are partly a response to the latter.”
China Presses Its Internet Censorship Efforts Across the Globe
by Paul Mozur (The New York Times)
Good companion piece in WSJ . Deeply troubling on many levels. Part of the widespread corporate hypocrisy of supporting progressive causes back home and illiberal policies abroad. Whichever is more profotiable.
China’s ‘bad emperor’ returns
by Francis Fukuyama (The Washington Post)
“The rules that have just been tossed out the window were the result of China’s own painful experience during the Cultural Revolution… The seemingly casual abolition of term limits in China shows whyconstitutional government is a good thing.”
Uber’s Self-Driving Trucks Hit the Highway, but Not Local Roads
by Daisuke Wakabayashi (The New York Times)
Is India’s Growth Bounce Big Enough?
by Mihir Sharma (Bloomberg View)
The GANfather: The man who's given machines the gift of imagination
by Martin Giles (MIT Technology Review)
By pitting neural networks against one another, Ian Goodfellow has created a powerful AI tool.
McMaster’s Problem Isn’t Trump. It’s Mattis and Kelly
by Mark Perry (Foreign Policy)
America Is Giving Away the $30 Billion Medical Marijuana Industry
by Josh Dean (Bloomberg)
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fD is a weekly newsletter focusing on signal insights and deep trends in ideas, technology, politics, economics, foreign affairs, culture, philosophy, and more. The goal is to deliver content and analyses that matter beyond the present moment.
I hope you enjoy. Questions and comments always welcome (just respond to this email)—TK
EPHEMERA
The Only Living Boy in New York (2017): Like The Graduate meets Finding Forrester directed by Woody Allen. I really enjoyed it