A Pleasurable Headache: 14th June 2020
Links
The NYRB cover two recent (ish) books covering Britain's colonial reign in India, a dark period of rampant imperialism, starvation and profiteering. This was mostly driven by establishments such as the East India Company that took the extraction of wealth and resources from 'oversea territories' to horrid new levels:
"In 1756, after a spell back home, Clive’s taste for conquest and treasure took him to Bengal, whose production of silks and muslins made it the biggest supplier of Asian goods to Europe. In 1757 Clive led the company’s forces to victory against both the French and the uncooperative local nawab; from defeating the latter the company received what Dalrymple calls “one of the largest corporate windfalls in history”—in modern terms around £232 million. Clive himself pocketed an astronomical £22 million, with which he went on to acquire a string of desirable British properties, including an estate outside Limerick to go with his Irish peerage, while Lady Clive, as the Salisbury Journal informed its readers, garlanded her pet ferret with a diamond necklace worth more than £2,500."
A sidenote that this imperialism is heavily swept under the carpet here in Britain during primary and secondary education. In this way, and so many others, the stance of not removing statues as they 'teach us about history' is a laughable one.
Everything You Need to Know About Napoleon Bonaparte
A longform blog post (itself an adaptation of a three part Reddit post) that is essentially a mini-biography of one of the most famous men in history, Napoleon Bonaparte. The post is full of informative asides and tidbits.
"Over the course of 22 days, Napoleon walked from the French Mediterranean coast to Paris, and in the process, went from being an outlaw to the Emperor of France. Most random militias and military units he encountered along the way joined him on sight. The few who didn’t join him refused to oppose him. The French Bourbon King Louis XVIII repeatedly sent armies to stop Napoleon, and all immediately switched sides upon encountering their target. The last army was led by General Nay, Napoleon’s long-time lieutenant who publicly betrayed Napoleon upon his abdication by joining the Bourbons. Napoleon instantly forgave Nay, reinstated him as lieutenant, took his men, and they marched on Paris together."
George Floyd is Now a Household Name in Britain. Why Isn’t Jimmy Mubenga?
In the wake of worldwide protests against the killing of George Floyd, Novara asks why others suffering similar fates here in Britain are not as well known.
"In a striking similarity to Floyd’s death, one passenger claimed a G4S guard – one of three deporting Mubenga to Angola – “had his knee pressed against the deportee for about ten minutes”. Flight attendant Louise Graham said that after she conveyed her concerns to the flight’s captain, he said that Mubenga was “faking it”, joking that he might have attended RADA (the drama school)."
An interesting look at the planning aspects of writing a novel, from Psyche a new vertical from the folk at Aeon.
A look at the burgeoning crossover between New Age philosophies and far right conspiracy theories.
On the same tack, I'd also recommend the recent QAnon Anonymous Podcast episode on the same subject.
What to Do When Your Video Game Gets Co-opted by Neo-Nazis
Staying with the far right, Neo-Nazis often subvert or use elements and imagery in the game Crusader Kings 2 to prop up or act out some of their pet theories on racial superiority. The article above concentrates on what the developers are doing to prevent this for the game's upcoming sequel.
"Crusader Kings 3 also represents a wider range of nationalities and sexualities than its predecessor. Crusader Kings 2 relied on a finite number of fixed character portraits, meaning racial representation tended to divide the world into white, brown, and black populations. The latest version of Crusader Kings offers depictions of race and nationality that better reflect the dynamic reality, with populations mixing and evolving over time."
‘Hannibal’ Was a Miracle. Now It’s Back.
It's nice to see Hannibal reach a whole new audience over at Netflix. It means more pieces like the above, at The Ringer, will get written, and we may inch closer to that much promised fourth series. A man can dream, right?
Never Say You Can’t Survive: How To Get Through Hard Times By Making Up Stories
Charlie Jane Anders is writing a non-fiction book over at Tor.com a chapter at a time. Part anecdote, memoir, and a how-to book on storytelling craft, new chapters are being published every Tuesday. We're up to Chapter 4 as I write this.
Status
Currently working on: a new prose short about corporatism, trauma in communities and the hardiness of the human spirit. Lets call this one Project Sapling.
Currently consuming: Rewatching Community. We're currently on the worst part, Season 4, the 'gas leak year'. Other than that, I'm reading Six Four by Hideo Yokayama, a sprawling crime novel set in Japan, dealing with the inner political shenanigans of the police department. It's way more interesting than I'm making it sound.
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Off to patiently wait for Britain's Prime Minister to label the loutish, beer-swilling dickheads running riot in the capital this weekend as 'thugs'. I may be waiting some time. See you in two!