Category: HUMANITY

GENDER, RACE, LIFE

There is something interesting about Oyeyemi’s story, but its fundamental value is in its creativity, not its revelations about race and gender or America’s failure to equitably deal with social dysfunction.

Audio-book Review
By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

Boy, Snow, Bird

By: Helen Oyeyemi

Narrated by: Susan Bennett, Carra Patterson

Nigerian author raised in London since the age of four.

Helen Oyeyemi tells the complicated life of a 20-year-old woman who chooses to run away from home. In the 20th century, running away from home was a child of 13 to 17, not 20. Today, being 20 and running away from home implies a 21st century economic reality. Every run-away has their own reason for leaving home. It can be a social, economic, emotional, or a combination of reasons. Oyeyemi’s main character, Boy, seems a combination. However, societal dysfunction seems at the heart of her story.

Robert Jones addresses America’s “equal rights” failures in “White Too Long”. Oyeyemi’s story exemplifies that observation.

Boy is a young white woman who is unhappy with her father who abuses her emotionally with a trace of physical abuse. Boy in preparation for her flight secrets enough money to take a bus ride from New York City to the Boston area. Something is odd about Oyeyemi’s main character. Why would a parent name their daughter “Boy”?

Boy explains her father demands participation in his rat catching business that supports their family. Her father explains Boy’s mother is dead and that this is their life now. The story drags a bit in its first chapters because Boy seems a typical run-away looking for whatever work she can find to pay her rent and eat.

Boy meets her future husband whom she commits to but not for love but an undefined need that may be as simple as security or companionship.

Boy’s future husband is an educated historian who chooses to leave a professorship to become an artisan who makes odd jewelry. He has a young daughter from a former marriage and has disappointed his family by abandoning his professorship. His daughter’s name is Snow. Snow is characterized as a blond grade school age beauty with excellent social skills that endears her to others.

With this character introduction, the story takes a dramatic turn. Boy becomes pregnant. Her child is black rather than white.

Her new husband, who appears white, is of mixed parentage. He has an obviously black sister who is estranged from their mother though he stays in touch with her. Boy names her newborn “Bird”. Boy decides to send Snow to live with her husband’s sister while she raises Bird. The separation of Snow from her father and Boy estranges her from her stepmother. However, she manages to become a private detective in her new home with her father’s sister.

Oyeyemi further complicates her unusual story with a reveal about Boy’s life with her father. Her father is a transgender woman who cared for Snow’s mother after she had been raped by a black man. She became pregnant with Boy.

An author in Oyeyemi’s epilogue becomes interested in Boy’s life. The author begins researching Boy’s life. She finds Boy’s mother’s death had left her to the care of a transgender “father”. The dynamics of these many relationships reveal the complications of gender and race in American society. There is something interesting about Oyeyemi’s story, but its fundamental value is in its creativity, not its revelations about race and gender or America’s failure to equitably deal with social dysfunction.

SEPARATE NOT EQUAL

Reflecting on “Blood Brothers”, a listener understands America is a long way from the ideal of equality. Being equal does not mean everyone can be the greatest heavy-weight boxer in the world. Equality means every citizen can choose to be the best version of themselves without being repressed by the society in which they live.

Audio-book Review
By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

Blood Brothers (The Fatal Friendship Between Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X)

By: Randy Roberts Johnny Smith

Narrated by: David Drummond

Randy Roberts (Professor of History at Purdue)
Johnny Smith (Asst. Professor of History specializing in Sports at Georgia Tech.)

Randy Roberts and Johnny Smith offer a nuanced and well-written view of Muhammed Ali, his fame, his skill as a heavy weight boxing champion, and figure head for the Nation of Islam (NOI). The author’s juxtapose Ali and Malcolm X as “Blood Brothers” who shed light on the unquestionable value and horrendous harm religious belief can impose on society.

Roberts and Smith show human nature is an unconquerable beast that both leads and misleads humanity. The maturity and personal growth of Muhammed Ali and Malcolm X is revealed in “Blood Brothers”. They both become members of NOI, an American faction of Islam, that preaches Black America can only be equal through separation from non-black people. Elijah Muhammed, a self-proclaimed Messenger of Allah, creates a fellowship of Black Muslims (NOI) who insist on a Black American nation, independent of American governance. Elijah Muhammed insists–in order to become democratically free and equal to non-Black American citizens, an independent Black American nation must be formed.

What Roberts’ and Smith’s history shows is NOI’s flaw is in belief that separate can ever be equal based on race, religion, or color.

Though self-worth and pride can be immeasurably enhanced by exclusionary race, religion, or difference what is missed is the truth of human nature. Human nature is riven with self-interest based on money, power, and/or prestige. Elijah Muhammed and other leaders of religion are human. Religious leader’s self-interest drains the life out of Divinities force. In one sense, NOI offers a sense of pride and equality for Black Americans but in another, it creates further discrimination and inequality with separation and distinction from others.

Malcolm X assassinated in 1965
Ali and Elijah Muhammed

Roberts’ and Smith’s story of Malcolm X, and to a lesser extent, Muhammed Ali’s friendship, show how religion can bring people together, but also tear them apart. Malcolm X evolves from an intelligent street punk to an insightful leader of the Muslim religion. Malcolm becomes a favorite of NOI until he challenges its leader (Elijah Muhammed) for abandoning what he believes is a fundamental tenant of the faith, marriage chastity. Malcolm X exposes extra-marital affairs of Elijah Muhammed as evidence of the leader’s fall from faith. As his disaffection grows, Malcolm X begins to believe separate cannot be equal and that NOI’s belief in separation of the races is a violation of a faith that says Allah or God created all humankind.

Elijah Muhammad (Leader of NOI 1934-1975, Born in 1897 as Elijah Robert Poole, Died at age 77 in 1975.)

Malcolm X is a teacher of Ali before his break with the leader of NOI. Malcolm X appeals to Ali’s innate ability as a fighter and doggerel actor for truth and justice. Ali is put in the position of following Malcolm’s differences with Elijah Muhammed or staying within the Nation of Islam. The authors infer Ali looks at Elijah Muhammed as the father he wishes he had while Malcolm X as a brother who has been led astray.

To the authors, the assassination of Malcolm X by NOI’s followers is inferred by Ali to be a threat to his life if he forsakes NOI’ beliefs. When Elijah Muhammed dies, some years after Malcolm’s assassination, Ali revises his view of NOI and leans more toward the teachings of his former friend, Malcolm X. Ali moderates NOI’s anti-white sentiment.

Reflecting on “Blood Brothers”, a listener understands America is a long way from the ideal of equality. Being equal does not mean everyone can be the greatest heavy-weight boxer in the world. Equality means every citizen can choose to be the best version of themselves without being repressed by the society in which they live.

SOCIETIES’ EVOLUTION

Audio-book Review
By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

The WEIRDest People in the World (How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous)

By: Joseph Henrich

Narrated by: Korey Jackson

Joseph Henrich (American author, professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard, former professor of psychology and economics at the University of British Columbia.)

Joseph Henrich writes an explosive book focusing on social evolution. The explosion is in the first half of the book. The remainder has a few firecrackers but no explosions. His erudite research infers much of the world will either evolve in a western world way or degrade into an economically and politically poorer and disruptive society that distrusts the western world and foments military and political opposition. If Henrich’s analysis carries some truth, one hopes the western world will persist within a more secular religious belief system that will preserve the earth’s environment.

Henrich’s argument is that the rise of religion and the concept of gods and God changed the world from tribalist, kinship’ enclaves to nation-state societies. In the early days of human habitation, Henrich’s research suggests tribes of people developed society based on kinship. However, societies evolution into larger communities is burdened by the limitations of kinship. Henrich suggests history shows political and economic relationships fall apart when kinship is the sole cohesive force of society. Both kinship and religion remain important, but religion became the more significant and cohesive part of society. Kinship’s weakness is that it limits the size of community. The growth of religion incorporated kinship to provide greater social cohesion for larger political and economic systems. Rather than kinship as the only cohesive force of society, people began to believe in something more than familial relationships. With the creation of religion, the idea of a supreme being and a moral center for “the-many-rather-than-the-one” offers a concept of societal cohesion beyond kinship.

TRIBES OF THE WORLD

The big five religions, Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism became a cohesive force for nation-state development. (Of course, there are more religions than these five, but they account for 78% of the world’s population.) Religious belief provides a societal force that expands the concept of tribal communities to nation-state and, to a degree, eastern and western hemispheric cohesiveness.

However, it seems the world (particularly the western hemisphere) is becoming more secular.

One may argue advances in science erode religious beliefs. However, Henrich infers that erosion became a landslide in the western world with Martin Luther’s posting of the 95 Thesis on the Castle Church on October 31, 1517. Luther’s posting marks the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. Henrich argues the power of religion evolves with the church’s holiness, social objectivity, and political fairness being challenged by the public. Luther exposes the perfidy of the church for selling indulgences for parishioners to erase their sins to pave their way to heaven.

Henrich notes how the general public’s literacy increases after Martin Luther’s 1517 posting on the Wittenberg church.

Whether the motivation is the posting, innate human curiosity, or the invention of the Guttenberg press (1440), history shows the public began to learn how to read and write. The public wishes to understand the world as it is, rather than how leaders of the church report their interpretation of God and the Bible.

Henrich goes on to reveal many sociological studies that show the measure of time by watches, and the rise of competition increase productivity of society.

The consequence of these two sociological conclusions benefited the western hemisphere more than the eastern hemisphere. One concludes that may be related to the way religion is viewed in the west versus the east, with the caveat that such a generalization ignores the reality that many eastern hemisphere countries have predated, if not exceeded, the economic and social growth of the west.

It seems those eastern hemisphere countries that have emphasized religion over secular human interests have lagged behind western economic and social growth.

However, it seems those eastern hemisphere countries that have emphasized religion over secular human interests have lagged behind western economic and social growth. Henrich’s sociological studies imply a balance is needed between religious and secular belief for economic and social growth to achieve peace among nations. It seems nations of the world need to reconcile belief in religion with the social needs of society for earth to survive as the home of humanity.

Henrich ends his sociological analysis with two fundamental requirements for civilizations’ continued advancement. Contrary to an oft assumed cause being the lone genius that invents something new or discovers some unknown truth of science, Henrich suggests interconnectedness and diversity are the foundation of civilizations’ advance.

If Henrich’s theory of society is correct, humans need to quit killing each other and embrace diversity with the tools of technological communication and innovation that will come from respect for different cultures. From that foundation, innovation will change the world and earth will have a chance to become a place of peace and prosperity.

ECONOMIC EVOLUTION

The demographics of life demand better care of the human population and the environment. Power, whether from individual wealth or ruling authority, needs to be refocused on service.

Audio-book Review
 By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight)
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants

By: Robin Wall Kimmerer

Narrated by: Robin Wall Kimmerer

Robin Wall Kimmerer (Author, Professor of Environmental and Forest Biology, PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.)

Robin Wall Kimmerer’s “Braiding Sweetgrass” channels a movement for economic change around the world. Capitalism and socialism are evolving in similar ways to respond to the world’s ecological crises. Neither economic system is capable of dealing with the crises because of the governing weaknesses of their evolution. Capitalism, like socialism, is driven by human nature’s self-interests. With capitalism, unbridled self-interest views individual wealth as a measure of success. Socialism views unbridled power as a measure of success. Neither freedom of capitalism nor the power exercised in socialism will stop earths’ despoliation.

Kimmerer tries to convince listeners to recognize their self-interest is in caring for the ecology of earth and its environmental and human diversity.

This is not a new argument. Sir David Attenborough, Jonnie Hughes, Joseph Marshall III, Charles Mann, Barry Lopez and others make similar arguments. Even though they may be right, human’ interest in balancing ecology and diversity will only happen with governance that is neither purely capitalist nor purely socialist.

Kimmerer, as a scientist and descendent of the Potawatomi Indian nation, has dedicated her life to nurturing the earth with her education as a botanist. She reflects on her spiritual beliefs, historic values of her heritage, and her education to change the direction of earth’s despoilation. Attenborough and Hughes write about the importance of rewilding the world. Joseph Marshall III argues science offers the opportunity to rebalance the relationship between humanity and nature. Charles Mann recalls the history of William Vogt and Norman Borlaug with Vogt arguing for conservation while Borlaug argues for scientific research to deal with overpopulation and hunger. A more sanguine view is taken by Barry Lopez who simply catalogues and implies the demise of earth because of human habitation.

At times, Kimmerer’s solutions are too mystical and spiritual. Some of her tales will dispirit listeners. On the other hand, some of the mythology she writes about is entertaining, if not actionable.

The character of “Windigo” is a representation of the weakness of capitalism and its extremity that entails the growth of greed. Her tales of the creation of humanity reflect on the strengths and weaknesses of human nature.

What Kimmerer offers listener’s is contemplation, if not realistic solutions for earth’s despoilation.

What is wrong with capitalism and/or socialism that can be corrected to stop earth’s deterioration? It is in a middle way where money and power are not ends in themselves but tools for improvement. Service to all species of life is an objective that can only be achieved with money and power. A cultural shift is required to understand what can be done. There needs to be a shift from manufacturing and industrial growth to a service-based economy. With the advent of technology, particularly A.I. that shift is happening.

INDUSTRIAL POLLUTION ON A BAD DAY IN BEJING,, CHINA

Homelessness, hunger, disease, natural disasters, pollution, mental dysfunction, failing public education, racial and religious discrimination are all solvable problems in the world. Money and power are the tools that can be used to solve those problems, but it requires the will of governments to manage those tools to focus on service to society, not manufacture of things that do not conserve the environment. This is evident in the too-long story written by Kimmerer. There is an element of irony in her book because that is what her Indian heritage practiced hundreds of years ago. Indian tribes had no need for money, but their Chiefs used their power to care for land and its diversity that served their people’s needs.

Money has become synonymous with power in both capitalist and socialist economies.

Even Indian societies in America have adopted that reality with the building of Casinos. What is missing is how that power is being used. Kimmerer explains power should be used to serve the earth’s rebirth and the needs of all life. The obvious point is that without earth’s rebirth, human society ends. The future of the world is dependent on service, not manufacturing. The demographics of life demand better care of the human population and the environment. That job can be fulfilled with a reorientation of the world’s economic rewards and punishments. Power, whether from individual wealth or ruling authority, needs to be refocused on service.

BROKEN

Laurel Snyder’s story is as interesting and satisfying in its end as in its beginning.

Audio-book Review
 By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight)
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

My Jasper June

By: Laurel Snyder

Narrated by: Imani Parks

Laurel Snyder (American Author, Poet, writer of children’s books, and PBS commentator.)

“My Jasper June” is a beautifully rendered story of life by Laurel Snyder. Snyder shows different ways of coping with life’s broken parts. It takes place in Atlanta, Georgia, but it could be in Anywhere, America. It is a story of a 13-year-old girl, her friend, and her family. Every parent who has a teenage child will be entranced by Snyder’s tale.

Having lived long, older reader/listeners know every life has broken parts. We either recover from the broken parts or we lose our way.

Snyder’s novel of a family who loses a son from drowning may be at the extreme end of life’s broken parts, but every life is touched by loss and hardship.

Snyder shows how a mother, father, and daughter respond to a child’s loss in their family.

Snyder’s story explains a broken part in life is suffered individually. Being broken comes in many forms. It may be a death of a loved one, failure in work, failure as a mother-father-daughter-son, failure in intellect, failure in physical health, so on, and on. Every person is broken in their own way. Care for broken parts is often lost in a fog of grief and despair. That grief and despair only disappears with time, understanding, and action.

Snyder’s novel shows grief is ameliorated with acceptance and reworking of one’s perspective.

Snyder’s story is not just about a death in the family. There are many ways Snyder’s story resonates with its reader/listeners. The most significant is in ways of coping with broken parts of one’s life. Some run from problems, but as the boxer Joe Louis famously said, “You can run but you can’t hide.” Snyder shows healing from broken parts can only begin with being honest with yourself and those around you. Understand how you are broken and explain the broken parts to those who are important to you. Snyder shows with understanding of what is broken, plans can be made, and actions taken.

Snyder’s novel shows–only with honesty of explanation can one’s relationship with another be restored.

Laurel Snyder’s story is as interesting and satisfying in its end as in its beginning.

POLITICAL EVOLUTION

The evolution of political governance offers a kernel of hope for world peace.

Audio-book Review
 By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight)
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

The Long Game: China’s Grand Strategy to Displace American Order

By: Rush Doshi

Narrated by: Kyle Tait

Rush Doshi (Author, founding director of the Brookings China Strategy Initiative and a fellow in Brookings Foreign Policy, fellow at Yale’s Paul Tsai China Center.

Rush Doshi’s review of China’s history in “The Long Game” is enlightening. One cannot deny the truth and logic of Doshi’s explanation of China’s commitment and success in returning to international prominence. Doshi’s proficiency in Mandarin Chinese and his thorough review of China’s history give credibility and gravitas to his assessment.

Doshi explains China’s socialist belief is grounded in Leninist communist theory. Lenin believed in the Marxist principles of history and society that show materialism leads to human exploitation.

As the Marxist/Leninist argument goes, exploitation (materialist self-interest) will alienate the majority of society which will revolt against a capitalist ruling class. The belief is that a different form of leadership will rise from the ashes of a revolution that will more fairly distribute the riches of life. In China’s history, Mao is the leader of that revolution. The key to Mao’s, and now President Xi’s belief, is top-down leadership by an enlightened ruling class will raise China’s role in the world. Doshi infers President Xi and his 20th century predecessors believe a communist party’s domination will be the basis upon which a fair distribution of life’s riches can be achieved.

Doshi implies the fundamental conflict between China and the U.S. is political.

China believes in Leninist communism. America believes in democracy. The irony is that human self-interest defeats the idealist intent of both political beliefs. Top-down management of a communist party is potentially as damaging to the public as a democratically elected representative government because of self-interest. No communist or democratic government in the history of the world has resisted the lure of money, power, and prestige that accompanies political leadership. This is not to diminish the relevance and importance of Doshi’s book but to disabuse listeners of an undeserved idealization of any form of government.

Doshi gives a clear explanation of why China is suspicious and wary of American power and influence in the world.

Doshi identifies a trifecta of world events in the twentieth century that influence China/American relations; making it unlikely they will ever become allies. The trifecta is the Tiananmen Square massacre, the collapse of the U.S.S.R., and the invasion of Iraq.

Tiananmen Square is widely condemned by the western world and nowhere more loudly than by the American public.

Deng Xiaoping was the Chairman of the Central Military Commission at the time. A secret mission by Brent Scowcroft, President George H.W. Bush’s National Security Advisor, made an effort to calm China/American relations but Doshi explains it failed. China objected to America’s interference and public rebuke of China in their response to the Tiananmen square demonstration.

The second blow to America’s relationship with China is the collapse of the U.S.S.R.

Doshi notes that China and America secretly cooperated in America’s U.S.S.R.’ containment policy that was recommended by American diplomat George Kennan in 1947. When the U.S.S.R. collapsed in 1991, China reassessed their relationship with America. Without a common enemy, China perceived America’s intent is to be hegemon of the world, not just the West. Doshi explains, China’s view of America becomes an imminent threat to its sphere of influence.

With President George W. Bush’s defeat of Saddam Hussein’s army in less than a month and a half, China recognizes how far they were from being the hegemon they wished to be. Doshi suggests this became the third blow of the trifecta that China perceived as an imminent threat to China’s position as hegemon of Asia, if not sole hegemon, of the world.

The irony of Doshi’s history is that no form of government has been found that fairly mitigates self-interest inherent in human beings.

Just as American leaders who have put their personal interest above the interests of their country, Chinese communist leaders have been found to be corrupt and more concerned about themselves than the lives of their country’s people. Both China and America have a history of discrimination and unfair treatment of their citizens.

History has many examples of the graft and corruption that exists in both communist and democratic forms of government.

China’s history and society is unique and much older than America’s. However, each country is struggling with their governments to be better stewards of their citizens. What all national governments of the world forget is that we live on one space ship. Without better international relations, the ship is headed for oblivion. Governments can continue to argue and fight over who is captaining the ship but no government seems to know how to steer.

Sadly, Doshi ends his scholarly work with details of how America can use the same methods as China to block its hegemonic ambition. Perceived self-interest, once again, chooses opposition over cooperation to achieve comity, not peace.

The evolution of political governance offers a kernel of hope for world peace. Until a form of government equitably manages human self-interest, periodic wars and social unrest will continue. Neither China nor America have found an answer. The answer is neither “Big Brother” nor unregulated freedom.

A FORENSIC’S LIFE

Forensic science is a valuable tool in the search for truth, and hopefully, justice.

Audio-book Review
 By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight)
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

The Nature of Life and Death

By: Patricia Wiltshire

Narrated by: Patricia Wiltshire

Patricia Wiltshire (Welsh Author, forensic ecologist, botanist and palynologist.)

Patricia Wiltshire details the magic of forensic analysis while revealing the history of her life. Wiltshire bluntly and forthrightly reveals as much about her life as she does about the details of victims of crime. Her forensic analysis aids law enforcement in indicting and arresting murderers and rapists. Wiltshire explains her forensic evidence often leads to admissions of guilt or, at least, a trail of evidence for courts to judge.

Wiltshire’s gathering of evidence is gruesome and will be off-putting to some but, as she notes, the body is a chemical construct that lives, dies, and returns to the earth from which it came.

Wiltshire’s belief is that there is no heaven or hell but only being and nothingness for a life that is either well or poorly lived. Wiltshire intersperses facts of her life that help one understand why she became a scientist who eschews God but appreciates life. The implied view Wiltshire has is that society is comprised of humans who think and act rationally and irrationally, with good and bad intent.

Wiltshire reflects on a tumultuous relationship with her mother, the care of her grandmother, and the philandering nature of her father. Her remembrances give weight to why she became a scientist and why she views life as a journey filled with both hardship and satisfaction, if not necessarily joy.

Wiltshire eventually reconciles with her mother and notes, before her mother’s death, that her mother loves and respects her accomplishment. Wiltshire reflects on the hardship of her deceased grandmother and how much of an influence both had on her chosen profession.

The evidence gathered by a competent forensic scientist from a dead and discarded body are precisely explained by Wiltshire. Because of her education as a palynologist (one who studies pollen grains and other spores), Wiltshire shows that human hair, a nasal swab, and the remains of intestine, gut, and internal organs can lead to the location, cause, and details of a victim’s death. With that evidence, the law may be led to the perpetrator of the crime.

A cautionary point made by Wiltshire is that law enforcement must not bias their search for evidence to corroborate presumed guilt. The objective of forensic investigations is to reveal truth, not to confirm preconceived notions of guilt.

The collection of evidence from a deceased human requires an objectivity and dissociation that makes Wiltshire’s book enlightening but brutal.

Wilshire’s biographic notes help explain how she is able to cope with life and an important profession. Her story may not be every book-listener’s cup of tea, but it clearly explains how forensic science is a valuable tool in the search for truth, and hopefully, justice.

FOSSIL FUELS

Audio-book Review
 By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight)
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

Windfall (How the New Energy Abundance Upends Global Politics and Strengthens American Power.)

By: Meghan L. O’Sullivan

Narrated by: Eliza Foss

Meghan L. O’Sullivan (Author, Harvard professor, Former deputy national security adviser on Iraq and Afghanistan, worked in the George Bush administration.)

Meghan O’Sullivan offers an intelligent but flawed view of today’s world. It is true that energy is critical for economic growth and improved human life. It is also true that energy need and development cause international conflicts in the post-industrial world. O’Sullivan does a masterful job explaining the role of energy, noting its cost while explaining fossil fuels are at a turning point in history.

Fossil fuel prices fluctuated dramatically in the 20th century but O’Sullivan suggests the trend in the 21st century, despite the rise between 2000 and 2008, will trend downward for three reasons.

One is the recognition of energy’s environmental consequence and conservationists’ political response; two, energy’s extraction is becoming less costly for most fossil fuels. And three, technological advancement offers alternative sources of energy.

What O’Sullivan correctly notes is that energy will remain a driving force behind international relations.

However, her argument is flawed by suggesting governmental restrictions on discovery and growth of fossil fuels should be weakened. Even in the few years since publication of O’Sullivan’s book, the science of fossil fuel pollution is showing accelerating global warming with potential for a “no-return” human’ consequence. Global warming seems self-evident. That evidence does not change O’Sullivan’s insight to the outsize role energy plays in the real-politic world of today, yesterday, and tomorrow.

O’Sullivan loses a bet with a colleague that Russia would challenge world peace within five years of 2013. She was right, but it took a couple years longer for Russia’s re-invasion of Ukraine.

O’Sullivan correctly foretold Putin’s kleptocratic government’s intent to re-establish Russia’s place in the world by using its fossil fuel abundance to lure Europe and Asia with their need for energy. Putin’s drive to offer oil and/or gas pipelines to Germany, China, and Turkiye are meant to assuage their opposition to Ukraine’s invasion. Though China is somewhat supportive of Putin, it has little to do with its energy need but more to do with China’s opposition to U.S. involvement in their sphere of influence. In response to the Ukraine invasion, Germany found alternative sources for Putin’s pipelined energy with imported LNG (liquified natural gas). To some extent, Putin’s energy ploy worked. China, India, and Turkiye continue to buy oil from Russia despite its invasion of Ukraine. Their national interests outweigh their concern about Russia’s invasion, just as Putin undoubtedly calculated.

Energy’s role in the modern world is well documented by O’Sullivan. She notes the history and future of energy and how it will continue to roil international relations.

The cost of energy influences world leaders to exploit the environment despite its harm to society.

Exxon Valdez Oil Spill.

Coal continues to be burned for energy around the world because it is the least expensive.

Malaysia coal fire plant.

Technological innovation is decreasing natural gas costs which, though less environmental damaging than oil or coal, is becoming more widely used. Natural gas remains a pollutant. It is estimated to be 50-60 percent less polluting than coal and 20-30 percent less polluting than oil. (A caveat to the less pollution from natural gas is that it is being used in newer and more efficient energy producing facilities.) This argument does not change O’Sullivan’s flawed argument that restrictions should be removed, weakened, or moderated for further fossil fuel technological development and extraction.

Weather around the world, forest fires, and northern arctic warming are dramatic 21st century proof of continuing global warming. Science and nature tells us the world is warming. That warming is, at the least, greater because of fossil fuel use.

O’Sullivan remains correct in noting how energy is key to peace in the world. The vast natural gas find by Israel, called the Leviathan Reservoir, makes Israel’s influence in the Middle East much greater. Israelis use their natural gas’ find to improve their relationship with Middle East powers. On the other hand, it seems to give license to Israel to repress dislocated Palestinians as irreconcilable enemies.

Energy is both a weapon and tool of peace.

Where O’Sullivan’s book is less convincing is in its inference that the energy industry should be given free rein to continue developing fossil fuels. Even if energy is critical to the sovereign right of every country in the world, degradation of today’s environment makes fools of us all.

HAPPY,HEALTHY,OR DEAD

Breaking the genetic code becomes a matter of human volition rather than nature’s decree. In whose hands will humans choose to be?

Audio-book Review
 By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight)
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

The Code Breaker

By: Walter Isaacson

Narrated by: Kathe Mazur, Walter Isaacson

Walter Isaacson (American author, journalist, and professor.)

Walter Isaacson is an interesting and thorough historian as shown in his biographies of Steve Jobs and Leonardo DaVinci. “The Code Breaker” is a history of the human genetic code’s discovery and its societal importance. The stories of Francis Crick, and James Watson are fairly well known because of their discovery of the structure of DNA. They received the Nobel Prize for their discovery in 1962. Less well known are Rosalind Franklin, and Maurice Wilkins.

There are three avenues of knowledge in the book’s title “The Code Breaker”. One is the brief bios of the human genetic code breakers, two, the monumental risk in genetic code’s discovery and three, the potential reward of its discovery.

Maurice Wilkins (1916-2004)

In the late ’40s and early ’50s, as a biophysicist, Maurice Wilkins did diffraction studies of DNA.

Isaacson suggests Wilkins’ studies aided Crick’s and Watson’s discovery of DNA’s structure in 1953. However, Crick and Watson were at a standstill and may never have discovered the structure of DNA if Rosalind Franklin had not introduced X-ray crystallography to their search. Isaacson implies Franklin would have received the Nobel Prize for DNA’s structure but she died at age 37 in 1958. Isaacson notes the Nobel is not given posthumously. (That is not quite true because the Nobel Prize had been awarded posthumously, twice, i.e., once for literature and once for physiology. One wonders if inequality may not have had something to do with the Nobel decision. Isaacson notes Ms. Franklin was somewhat prickly in her relationship with others, not that it would be a reason for Franklin’s lack of Nobel recognition.)

Beyond the syllabus: The discovery of the double helix. Erwin Chargaff (1951): Rule of Base pairing. Rosalind Franklin & Maurice Wilkins (1953): X-ray diffraction pattern of DNA. James Watson & Francis Crick (1953): Molecular structure of DNA.

After discovery of the structure of DNA, the next great advance in science is made by a Spanish microbiologist, Francisco Mojica. Mojica discovers what becomes known as CRISPR in 1993. CRISPR is an acronym for “clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats”. It is the arrangement of the genetic code letters in the structure of DNA that can be read forward and backward. It is a written code for the description of a single gene.

Jennifer Doudna in 2o21 @ age of 59.
Emmanuelle Charpentier in 1968 @ age of 54

Isaacson introduces Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier to his biographic history of DNA. They are co-discoverers of what becomes known as CRISPR-Cas9. This is a gene editing tool discovered by Doudna’s team of scientists that could find anomalies in a gene’s genetic code and, with the aid of a virus, implant a revised code or modify a gene that causes harm to its host. That discovery opens a door to human control of genetic code. In principle, CRISPR-Cas9 takes the place of nature’s random selection of who or what a living thing becomes. It is a tool that can change the course of life for all living things; more particularly the lives of human beings who suffer from diagnosed diseases or illnesses.

Doudna and her scientific team’s work is with prokaryotic cells rather than eukaryotic cells.

Eukaryotic cells have a nucleus with genetic material while prokaryotic cells have no nucleus with free floating genetic material. Humans have many prokaryotes but they are not enclosed within a nucleus. That leaves a door open to other scientists to claim precedent over Doudna’s pioneering work on the genetic code.

Feng Zhang (Chinese American biochemist.)

Zhang opens the door to eukaryotic cell modification with CRISPR-Cas9 which suggests he becomes the discover of human genetic code breaking before Doudna.

Doudna takes Zhang to court over a patent issue on CRISPR-Cas9 and eventually wins the patent right for genetic code breaking and its medical potential. There are a number of other scientists involved in Isaacson’s book but Doudna, Charpentier, and Zhang seem most consequential for understanding the significance of genetic code breaking.

CRISPR-Cas 9’s discovery and use gives science a tool for human’ control of evolution rather than Darwinian natural selection’s control .

The remainder of Isaacson’s history is an exploration of the good and bad potential of that discovery for the human race. Without doubt, the world’s recovery from Covid19 is due to CRISPR Cas9’s use in finding a vaccine for the pandemic. On the other hand, Cas9 opens the door to indiscriminate gene modification.

This brings up the story of Jiankui He who modified the genetic code of one of the twins of a Chinese family whose husband had AIDs.

Jiankui’s medical intervention violated Chinese law and ethics rules set by the Academic Committee of the Department of Biology. At the same time, it was found that Jiankui botched the use of the CRISPR Cas9 tool. He was sentenced to three years in prison and the equivalent of a $430,000 fine.

James Watson is now in his 90s.

The last chapters of Isaacson’s book address the controversial comments of James Watson about race and intelligence and his fall from grace despite being co-discoverer of the structure of DNA.

At a visit by Isaacson and Doudna to Watson’s home when he is 90, one cannot forget nor forgive Watson’s blind spot about race but understand his unshakable belief in the value human modification of genes to cure disease and his admittedly controversial ideas of enhancing human looks and intelligence.

Is behavioral hope a genetically identifiable characteristic by CRISPR-Cas9? Is it possible to modify human genes to create a more empathetic world? Or is gene manipulation a Mary Shelley nightmare with societies’ death like Dr. Frankenstein’s monster that dies from sorrow and guilt from the death of its creator?

The final significant note of “The Code Breaker” is Doudna’s and Emmanuelle Charpentier’s receipt of Nobel Prizes in 2020 for their discovery of CRISPR-Cas 9. By the end of “The Code Breaker”, a listener understands how the human race may become happy, healthy, or dead with control of the genetic code. Breaking the genetic code becomes a matter of human volition rather than nature’s decree. In whose hands will humans choose to be?

BEHAVIORAL HOPE

Audio-book Review
 By Chet Yarbrough

Blog: awalkingdelight)
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

Of Fear and Strangers (A History of Xenophobia)

By: George Makari

Narrated by: Paul Heitsch

George Jack Makari (American author, psychiatrist and historian, professor at Weill Cornell Medical College.)

George Makari notes his family emigrated from Lebanon to the United States when he was a young boy. This is an interesting note because of the diverse cosmopolitan history of Lebanon that reaches back more than 5,000 years. Lebanon is a country of many cultural, religious, and ethnic groups including Arabs & Syriac, Armenians, Kurds, Turks, and others.

Makari’s education and family background are well-suited for his explanation and history of the psychology of race and ethnicity. For Beirut to have become a cultural center for a period of time must have required high tolerance for difference among its residents.

Beirut got the name “Paris of the Middle East” following WWII when it became a vibrant cultural and intellectual center, largely influenced by the French.

Makari notes WWII’s end and implies society’s relief ameliorated conflict between Lebanon’s disparate cultures. However, that relief falls away in the 1970’s Lebanese civil war.

Beirut, Lebanon’s capitol, is a city some 40 miles from Makari’s hometown. It became a graveyard and failed state after the Lebanese civil war.

As Franklin Delano Roosevelt said in his 1933 inauguration, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Roosevelt is, of course, referring to fear felt by Americans during the Great Depression.

In “Of Fear and Strangers”, Makari suggests fear is at the heart of race and ethnic discrimination. Undoubtedly, the end of WWII reduced fear in the people of Lebanon. Reduction in fear might be the motivation for Beirut’s acceptance of cultural diversity, peace, and prosperity between 1945 and the 70s.

As a psychiatrist and historian, Makari offers a theory of how and why people become xenophobic.

He suggests it begins early in life. Makari argues the rise of Hitler and the horrid reality of the Holocaust lay at the feet of an authoritarian culture that suppressed freedom, demanded conformity, and used vilification of the “other” to reinforce a false belief in superiority.

Makari explains discrimination is largely based on fear of those who are different from us, i.e., us being anyone of a different race or ethnicity.

Makari’s history is about xenophobia, i.e., the fear or hatred of people who are different. The definition of xenophobia is first noted in 1880 with the combination of two ancient Greek words, i.e., “Xenos” meaning stranger and “Phobos” meaning fight or fear.

Makari argues the key to ameliorate fear of strangers or the “other” lies in the way parents raise their children.

Realigning fear of the stranger will not change the past and seems unlikely to change the future. However, Makari argues the key to ameliorate fear of strangers or the “other” lies in the way parents raise their children. He argues parenting that is less authoritarian and more open and nurturing will fundamentally change society to be more empathetic. Makari persuasively argues the rise of Hitler is partially related to German culture and the relationship between parents and their offspring. He suggests only with childhood experience of freedom will equal rights and equal opportunities be realized by society.

Makari suggests that family dynamic before WWII created German psychological projections for distrust of “others” and displacement that exhibits itself as anger and sometimes rage.

Makari suggests German family’ dynamics are culturally stricter and more demanding than those of many countries. He implies relationship change between parents and children would create a more empathetic generation in Germany.

Makari’s theory goes beyond individual psychological projection (an ego defense mechanism against unconscious impulses) by explaining how group psychology works to heighten rage against the “other”. Displacement (a redirection of a negative emotion) takes the form of rage against the “other”. Makari argues distrust of the “other” and rage is magnified by group hysteria. That hysteria is exhibited by Hitler’s followers. German rage led to the genocidal murder of Jews. Makari suggests one who is empathetic no longer fears the stranger and welcomes others as fellow humans–living lives, both different and the same as themselves. There is no motivation for displacement rage among those who are empathetic.

(Before this book was published, America experienced group rage in the January 6, 2021 attack on the capitol.)

The last chapters of Makari’s history of xenophobia explain how psychiatric and philosophical theories of mostly men (like Kraepelin, Freud, Adorno, Marx, Locke, Sartre, Camus, Foucault, and Simone de Beauvoir) provide a basis for his beliefs about histories’ recurrence of xenophobia.

Humanity will never become egalitarian without a common purpose.

What is ironic about Makari’s theory of the history of xenophobia is that it offers hope for the future. The experience of Lebanon after WWII suggests global warming, like WWII, may give common purpose to many, if not all, peoples of the world. (An exception would be those nations that insist on adherence to myths of hegemonic power and religious zealotry.)

The negative consequence of authoritarianism will not be eliminated but it may be reduced.

According to Kamari’s theory, it begins with parenting. If he is right, change will begin with how future generations are raised. Might does not make right. Less authoritarianism will allow the world to more constructively address global warming’s world-wide risk.

Of course, this book was written before Russia invaded Ukraine. Kamari notes the rise of Trump, and his supporters implies group rage and xenophobia remain a clear and present danger in America.

In listening/reading Kamari’s book, one chooses to either be a pessimist or optimist about our world’s future.

The hope is that an interregnum (a gap in government and social order) is created to allow Makari’s theory of improving parental care of children is implemented. If Makari is right about how parents should raise their children, a more empathetic society may emerge to proffer a more egalitarian society. On the other hand, humanity may continue down the road of self-destruction, fueled by unregulated self-interest and diminishing human empathy.