Back at this following the festive break.
Currently reading Omar El Akkad’s novel American War. Far too many themes to go into here (oh just a couple then – fragmentation of ‘sides’ in a civil war, the dangers of climate change, biological warfare, and drones – to name just a few). By taking the point of view of a family, rather than of politicians and generals, it shows the real impact, and horror, of war and what it does to people – both combatants and non-combatants come away from it scarred in many different ways.
Links below to articles and blogs which have caught my interest this week.
- Well this is a word that I hope we never need – autocoup
- This is an interesting article about the impact of algorithms on lobbying, primarily from a US perspective (although equally valid in other countries). Similar to much that has been written about automation, I think this may be overstating the case. However, there is likely to be automation of some tasks which will transform the way they operate.
- The shortcomings of GDP – an important discussion.
- ‘Hard to reach’ or ‘easy to ignore’? Promoting equality in community engagement – Evidence review by What Works Scotland. Well worth a read. This line stood out for me “Effective partnerships are based on trust and reciprocity”.
- Another great books of the year post.
- and talking about books, this essay in Chronicles magazine is worth a read – practically a love letter to books.
Brian's Blog 