Day 2,128, Quasi-Quarantine: "Rebel Hearts" Features Painstaking Research Into The History And Impact Of The Troubles On Both Sides

“Ireland already suffers from too much history; in that country history is a disease, a canker from the past that poisons the present. History is a weapon, a poker you keep in your pocket to beat the present senseless and so reorder its alignment to the past and justify present murder.”

Kevin Toolis's emotional exploration of the Troubles spanned 10 years, documenting with precision the war between the Provisional IRA and the British Army. "Rebel Hearts" gets off to a slow start, as the author seemed to struggle to figure out what this book was supposed to be and how large a role he should play in the telling.

“Ten years of journeys within the Irish Republican Soul have made me weary of such political passion and the sacrifice of lives for ideals. But I remain a Republican, albeit a constitutional Republican, both for Ireland and for my adopted country, England. I am a product of my people, I too remain possessed of a rebel heart.”

Toolis eventually emerges as an ancillary character, forced to reckon with his Irish origins and his feelings about the IRA. Fortunately, he eventually moved mostly away from centering himself as part of the story.

“Clausewitz said that war is politics pursued by other means. In Ireland, murder was politics pursued by other means.”

Followers of current events will easily draw similarities between British and Ulster organizations and ICE. Similarly, the author was careful to point out that the parameters of the aggression are unique.

“The Troubles, and this is important to remember, were acts of rebellion rather than revolution. No one had a plan to proclaim a ‘liberated’ Northern Ireland a Marxist state.”

“The IRA were fighting to remove the British Crown from what they regarded as Irish soil and reunite Ireland. The British Government were fighting to defend the Northern Irish state and the desire of the 850,000 strong Northern-Irish-born Protestant population to remain separate from the rest of Ireland. It is the longest war the world has ever known.”

Published in 1995, right near the end of The Troubles, "Rebel Hearts" features a variety of acronyms, and the sprawling number of names and incidents can be difficult to follow. However, Toolis does a tremendous job of documenting the impact of the violence on families on both sides and tying in the lengthy history of the Troubles themselves.

“It was the final bitter contradiction of the Troubles; the justness of the political cause was invalidated by the cruelty of the murders carried out in its name.”

Day 2,114, Quasi-Quarantine: Promising "Stranger In A Strange Land" Loses Steam Due To Sheer Density

 

“Here, by the grace of God and an inside straight, we have a personality untouched by the psychotic taboos of our tribe–and you want to turn him into a carbon copy of every fourth-rate conformist in this frightened land! Why don’t you go whole hog? Get him a briefcase and make him carry it wherever he goes–make him feel shame if he doesn’t have it.”

This uncut version of Robert A. Heinlein's sci-fi novel is absorbing, if a victim of its own sprawl. Published in 1961, "Stranger in a Strange Land" is certainly a product of its time in its approach to religion, sexuality, and politics, but manages to challenge societal norms and conventions along the way.

“A confidence man knows that he’s lying; that limits his scope. But a successful shaman ropes himself first; he believes what he says – and such belief is contagious; there is no limit to his scope.”

Valentine Michael Smith is a human born and raised in a Martian community, and his arrival on Earth triggers a series of planet-defining events. As he connects with the hilarious Jubal Harshaw and a community of outsiders, Smith begins to "grok" the ways of humanity and naively point out the uncountable number of hypocrisies and inanities.

“He did not expect reasonable conduct from human beings; he considered most people fit candidates for protective restraint and wet packs.”

The novel begins to feel like simply a vehicle for Heinlein to question our underpinning beliefs in the guise of describing Earth to a newcomer, with the story losing steam as it devolves into commentary. A series of grammatical errors and bizarre punctuation can also slow the reader down at key moments, and the Ben-Jill dynamic got short shrift and deserved more airtime.

“He’s as weird as a snake's suspenders but sweet as a stolen kiss, too.”

Reporting indicates that Heinlein delayed the publication of "Stranger In A Strange Land" until he felt the culture had evolved enough to accept it, though it was later excluded from school reading lists. The author makes a number of bold plot choices that may bog down and confuse some readers, but the end product is a thought-provoking and worthwhile read.

“There was one field in which man was unsurpassed; he showed unlimited ingenuity in devising bigger and more efficient ways to kill off, enslave, harass, and in all ways make an unbearable nuisance of himself to himself. Man was his own grimmest joke on himself.”

Day 2,096, Quasi-Quarantine: "The Geek Way" Explores How Companies Embrace Change And Culture, But Omits The Pitfalls

 

“A company with the wrong norms generates bureaucracy, sclerosis, delays, hypocrisy, cultures full of undiscussable topics, and lousy jobs. A company with the right ones generates excellent performance and a healthy work environment.”

"The Geek Way" is all the rage in tech circles, and Andrew McAfee surfaces a number of unique concepts in the realm of process and project management. From "farming for dissent" to managing your internal press secretary to the perils of stack ranking, this book relies extensively on interviews with successful companies, case studies from failed companies, and anecdotes from inciting actions.

“As the saying goes, though, ‘Culture eats strategy for breakfast.’ Some companies can successfully execute the strategies they come up with. Some can’t. The differences between these two types are largely cultural.”

Though concepts like single-threaded managers and the role of the "prisoner's dilemma" in corporate decision-making are fascinating, the author permits little to no discussion of the risks and failures of this geek way.

“Excess bureaucracy is a bug for anyone who wants a company to run efficiently, but it’s a feature for the Homo ultrasocialis who seeks to gain status in the organization. They’ll invent work so that they can be part of it. They’ll want to participate in more and more activities over time. They’ll strive to be consulted on lots of decisions, and if possible, have veto power over them.”

As an employee of a company that has taken to viewing this book as something of a playbook, I'm seeing firsthand how some of the negative aspects of this approach are impacting culture and collaboration. As a result, I think some of the grandiose language McAfee uses vastly overestimate the viability of this "way" as an airtight solution.

“A bunch of geeks have figured out a better way to run a company. As a result, they’re taking over the economy. And they’re just getting started.”

McAfee explores why some companies have cultures that have become an integral part of their brands (Netflix, HubSpot), how the agile methodology can improve openness and ownership, and how a reliance on science and speed can foster the innovation that make a company both successful and attractive to work for. Though the work can border on the precious, the topics and approaches do bear close examination for the right kinds of companies and industries.

“Bureaucracy [is] … a heavy curtain drawn between the right thing to do and the right person to do it.”

~Honore de Balzac

Day 2,094, Quasi-Quarantine: Back On That Noel Puzzle Vibe

 

Galison has become our go-to holiday puzzler, and we kicked off the season with another 500-piecer recently.

"Winter Wonderland" was a bit on the easy side, with a few tricky parts (the starry night and the ridgeline). Throwing on some Christmas vinyls and working through another puzzle was as peaceful -- and needed -- as we remembered from previous years.

7.5 out of 10, would synergize with a Sam Smith again

Limerick Friday #648: That's Fan Sentiment The Mets Are Flushing -- Day 2,090

Sugar and Polar Bear out the door

And looking at maybe more

Not considering the fans

As part of offseason plans

That's the only thing that's for sure

Made more than one roster tweak

Went on a three-game winning streak

Grabbed a playoff spot

Way to go, Scott

Now's the time to be bold and not meek

Boasts were made

Players were paid

Even though it's early

The fanbase is getting surly

Time to produce, Will Wade

Every hard lesson he learns

The more vitriol he earns

When sentiment has gotten you zero

The Mets need some kind of hero

Would not want to be David Stearns

A reputation I protect

For teammates I don't respect

Roll in like asses

And piss off the masses

An approach I flatly reject

Last time ...

Limerick Friday #647: Make It Five In A Row Over UNC-Fraud -- Day 2,083

Bitching the Cheats

To the sound of hoarse bleats

Despite frigid cold

It'll never get old

Even when it repeats and repeats

Never a huge Nimmo fan

A brain-dead MAGA stan

Ship him anywhere

Let's get better there

And find good dudes where we can

Sports media's degradation

Both local and across the nation

Many factors at play

But you just have to say

Frauds and clowns on every station

Embarrassing the entire team

And coming apart at the seam

They make us all look bad

And don't care a tad

Them quitting would be a dream

Literally asleep on the job

Propped up by his pedo mob

A half-dead fatass felon

Without working cells in his melon

Wakes up only to lie, cheat, and rob

Last time ...

Day 2,080, Quasi-Quarantine: Formulaic "The Reappearance Of Rachel Price" Succumbs To Over-Reliance On Coincidence, Secrets

 

“People were temporary. It was the one thing you could count on: people always left, even Carter.”

Holly Jackson is back with a book that was high on intensity, but ultimately felt cut too closely to the formula she relied on for "Kill Joy," "As Good As Dead," "A Good Girl's Guide to Murder," and

"Good Girl, Bad Blood."

The protagonist of "The Reappearance of Rachel Price," Bel, shared perhaps too many similarities to Pippa -- the hero of the earlier books -- making it difficult for this tale to find its differentiator. The geography of the story was also brushed over entirely too much.

However, the mystery component was certainly compelling, and the documentary angle was a clever way to expose and interrogate truths and incidents.

While the ambition is admirable, the sheer number of coincidences and secrets shared in the final 50 pages or so may make for an overwhelming and cluttered conclusion for some readers.

“Some hurts were good: friends grew apart, people moved away, they left. It didn’t have to last forever to count. Things ended, this was ending, but that didn’t mean it never mattered.”