Thoughts on production, alienation, and ideology
These are posts about books from the blog Base and Superstructure. Occasionally I’ll read a book worth talking about, and write some thoughts on it. These cover a wide range of topics from the blog.
While I’m not sure I can compete with the sci-fi and radical politics of last month’s reading list, I do have some interesting things on tap for this month! After reading the quadruple bio of classic sci-fi authors, I decided to return to Heinlein.
Read on to see what I’ve mixed in with classic Heinlein.
Now that we’re into an actual spring, rather than that wave of snow we got in March, let’s take a look at some spring reading!
This month’s list features everything from comedy to sci-fi and radical politics. I hope you enjoy, and let me know what you’ve been reading lately!
I focus a great deal on the corporate world in this blog, notably on the special brand of ennui that cuts through that world. Given my focus in past posts on the need to organize workers in white collar industries, you might think I recommend the David Graeber book Bullshit Jobs whenever I get the chance. After all, it’s the best known popular critique of leadership and fluff in corporate land. It especially aims at pointless and/or socially negative elements, such as HR leaders, PR types, and lobbyists.
But you’d be wrong.
As I’ve mentioned before, Graeber’s best work is The Utopia of Rules. Recently, Matteo Tiratelli published an article in Catalyst that goes a long way toward explaining why. He effectively criticizes Graeber’s notion of ‘bullshit jobs‘ and points toward a better alternative.
I took a look at this month’s reading list and saw right away that it’s all about politics. I guess that’s not such a surprise for a political blog! But it’s actually not the case in most months. So, this month hits at the core issues we discuss here at the blog.
Read on, enjoy, and let me know what you’ve been reading lately!
Hello, and welcome to the second edition of the 2023 reading list series! It’s still winter in Iowa. And I’ve been reading a wide variety of things as of late. Only 4 books in this edition. But they cover everything from Roman history to the history of philosophy to American history to physics and race.
Enjoy, and let me know in the comments what you’ve been reading lately!
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