First Derivative [67] newsletter
first Derivative [67]
8.17.2018
Happy Friday!
Finally got around to watching The Young Pope this week, after a recommendation from a friend. I think it gets a little monotonous in the middle but it's full of bizarre moments, stunning visuals, and intriguing interactions that more than make up for its lulls. Jude Law is excellent. Also, if you haven't seen anything else from Paolo Sorrentino, I strongly recommend The Great Beauty.
Highlights from this week are the top article on activism in the valley of silicon, the Bloomberg piece on China, the two pieces from the Atlantic, and a double podcast special from Manifesto!, though if you have time for only one, I'd go with the higher one.
And if you have an interest in econ or finance, the Odd Lots podcast episode is definitely worth a listen.
Finally, if you like the newsletter, I'd really appreciate it if you could tweet it out, post on Facebook, or forward to a friend. Share the love.
—TK
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The Unlikely Activists Who Took On Silicon Valley — and Won
by Nicholas Confessore (NYT)
Just a really great piece and narrative brought together on an individual story of activism that touches on a lot of fD themes. One man's fight for reasonable data laws vs. the tech giants and the more obscure firms in the industry of collecting and reselling consumer data for targeted advertising.—TK
Soviet Collapse Echoes in China’s Belt and Road
by David Fickling (Bloomberg)
"Like the Soviet Union in the 1970s, China is coming to the end of a long labor-force boom, and hoping that an orgy of investment will keep the old magic going while stabilizing its fraying frontiers. The success or failure of its Belt and Road projects — and the still greater sums it’s spending domestically — will determine whether the nation achieves its dream of prosperity or succumbs to the same forces that doomed the U.S.S.R."
The Next Populist Revolution Will Be Latino
by Reihan Salam (Atlantic)
"Confident pronouncements about the coming triumph of the liberal coalition tend to neglect an awkward question, however. Who will be in control of this bloc when it finally achieves its inevitable victory... what if working-class Latinos aren’t especially interested in serving as junior partners in a coalition led by their self-proclaimed white allies? What if they instead support new forms of anti-establishment politics, rooted in grievances and vulnerabilities that place them at odds with liberal white elites?"
Good piece, worth reading—TK
Trump Made Socialism Great Again
by Shadi Hamid (Atlantic)
"Ideas once dismissed as radical are now gaining a hearing. Fights are raging within the Democratic Party, and on the political left. And that reinvigorated debate—and the other political conflicts Trump has inflamed—may be one of Trump’s more unlikely and ultimately positive contributions to American democracy."
Good, short piece from Shadi Hamid on the second-order effects of Trump—TK
🎧 SCUM, Intercourse, and Cat Person
with Jacob Siegel & Phil Klay (Manifesto!)
Really fun, easy, interesting listen. This episode is on sexuality and culture, with an edifiyng discussion of the NYer story "Cat Person". Check out the rest of the podcast, I binge-listened to it this weekend.—TK
🎧 How a Post-Keynesian Economist Sees the Markets Right Now
with Joe Wiesenthal & Srinivas Thiruvadanthai (Odd Lots)
The Decline of American Public Administration
by Francis Fukuyama (TAI)
🎧 Humanism and Bloody Myths
with Jacob Siegel & Phil Klay (Manifesto!)
U.N. says it has credible reports that China holds million Uighurs in secret camps
by Stephanie Nebehay (Reuters)
More Money for Endless Wars
by Jacob Siegel (Tablet)
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ABOUT fD
fD is a newsletter on what I think matters. I highlight signals, insights, and deep trends in ideas, technology, politics, economics, foreign affairs, culture, philosophy, and more. My goal is to give you content that will still matter beyond the present moment.
I hope you enjoy. Ask me anything here or just respond to this email—TK