Thank you, Tim. The removal of books from libraries has been painful for me to read about and hear about. You explain the importance of books in our lives and to our society beautifully. This administration is trying to rewrite history by what they allow journalists to write and by the banning of books we see across the country. Thank you.
While reading, A World Apart: Books, Freedom and Captivity, along with the crucial survival and flourishing of Ukraine, I thought about the Americans, Russians, Chinese, Sudanese, Haitians ...and the Palestinians for whom language, voice and freedom are essential.
The following links provide lists of fiction, non-fiction and books of poetry about the Palestinian people. I recommend that you patiently dip in for a book or two that may start or continue your road to understanding.
Mosab Abu Toha is a Palestinian poet and founder of the Edward Said Library, Gaza’s only English-language library. He is a former visiting poet at Harvard’s department of comparative literature.
A wonderful and uplifting column, reminding us at once of the power of books and the nearly incomprehensible evil being faced by the Ukrainian people. A degree of evil that our own regime seeks to emulate. Stand up and speak out! Resist!
So many important insights into the nature and importance of the capacity for free choice. Thanks for sharing. It helped me appreciate the importance of browsing outside my initial choices of social media to ensure that not all my ideas have been constrained or curated.
The fact that this administration is forcing librarians to remove books from their shelves, forcing universities to cast aside DEI, shutting down medical procedures for trans persons, and banning reporters from the Pentagon indicates how fearful it is to allow us any choice. And this should fill the Bloated Yam's administration with guilt -- but somehow, they are impervious to anything the Bloated Yam doesn't command. Shame on them!
The Bloated Yam is following Putin’s Playbook to the T. Today’s topic reminded me of the wonderful Documentary by a former Russian teacher from a little village who sees what is happening and begins to document the changes he sees taking place. Name of Documentary is Mr. Nobody Against Putin. How he made it out of Russia and is still alive is beyond belief, specially now when he’s up for an Oscar for best foreign language documentary.
A book that came back to me while reading this post is "The Body in Pain" by Elaine Scarry. In succinct and eloquent prose, she explores the nexus of personhood and agency--and world--in the physical body and how all is undone at the extremes of pain and torture. The book affected me profoundly. Interestingly, Elaine Scarry was a professor of English. Her day job was teaching books.
I am reading Alexei Navalny's memoir, "Patriot." It is a compelling, amazing book, as is he. He reminds me of you, Timothy. His writing, and even his physical appearance, strike me as you and he being birds of a feather.
Would that there be more people like you both in this world.
Thank you, Professor Snyder. Your thoughtful, insightful comments on the importance of books have deep value. It is indeed of great importance to be able to read and read by choice about many subjects...even unpleasant and painful ones.' Knowledge is power!' and when citizens do not know or understand their own history, it diminishes their influence on their own freedom...as we daily experience at this time.
After further thought, I think may have stated the reverse of a term that’s applicable, since we need a term that expresses what is being annihilated, rather than how it is being annihilated via withholding books, algorithms, etc.
Annihilation of choice by book burning or withholding, through algorithms, etc is perhaps the annihilation of the right to life, liberty and pusuit of happiness.
I saw a statistic recenty that 40% of Americans don't read even one book a year. It means the fading of the spirit to me, but I read incessantly. I wonder what it really means? Is reading taught so poorly in schools that it's just too difficult for people to read without effort?
I don't get it either. Like you, I read a lot, always have. It's an enormous pleasure, for one thing. I, too, wonder how it is so many people (aside from those plagued with dyslexia) seem to choose not to. I'm sure poorly taught reading skills are part of the problem (there've been some very weird ideas out there) but other things could help. Personally, I think more "communal" reading would be useful. Read out loud. In school, at work, meetings, around the dinner table. Everywhere. When you think about it, reading's probably the most amazing thing humans have ever come up with. IMHO.
The full tactile experience of a book -- the smell, the rustle of pages turning, the colors of the art, the choice of fonts, the physical weight and heft, the sounds of the words, the feelings invoked, the first stirrings of empathy and the thrill of discovery. . . the awakening of mind, heart, imagination, and the joy of seeing within and without. Spend time in the children's section of any library and watch -- like petals unfolding -- the sheer wonder books invoke.
I’m not in prison but my world is limited as a caregiver to my husband. I have wondered why I don’t mind being at home most of the time, that my life doesn’t feel curtailed? Your post reminds me that I’m free because I have bookshelves full of books , many that have waited patiently for years for me to read. I’m not alone!!
Thinking about the removal of books. Has the "remover" made an informed choice? By informed choice are we saying they have a "philosophy" and seek removal of books that counter that "philosophical belief", contributing to the "brainwashing" of the masses. This seems to give the remover a credit for reading books, understanding their message and thinking. Or does the remover simply destroy in a "willy nilly" manner anything they hear they should fear, books supporters, say Christian nationalist hate? These thoughts ask if removers are stupid, mindlessly checking the box of the fascist playbook or informed autocrats. Sadly both are a danger.
Thank you Tim. A remarkable article with hard earned insight into how to fill the gaping cavities of our assumptive world, when we are visited by extreme evil, ego maniacs, and war/death.
Thank you, Tim. The removal of books from libraries has been painful for me to read about and hear about. You explain the importance of books in our lives and to our society beautifully. This administration is trying to rewrite history by what they allow journalists to write and by the banning of books we see across the country. Thank you.
While reading, A World Apart: Books, Freedom and Captivity, along with the crucial survival and flourishing of Ukraine, I thought about the Americans, Russians, Chinese, Sudanese, Haitians ...and the Palestinians for whom language, voice and freedom are essential.
The following links provide lists of fiction, non-fiction and books of poetry about the Palestinian people. I recommend that you patiently dip in for a book or two that may start or continue your road to understanding.
https://lithub.com/40-books-to-understand-palestine/#:~:text=%E2%80%93Hannah%20Lillith%20Assadi,Simply%20a%20must%20read
https://bpl.bibliocommons.com/v2/list/display/1734616909/2493187889
https://library.washu.edu/news/read-palestine-week-six-books-by-palestinian-authors/
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/15627.Best_Books_about_Palestine_fiction_and_nonfiction_
What is Home?
BY Mosab Abu Toha
What is home:
it is the shade of trees on my way to school
before they were uprooted.
It is my grandparents’ black-and-white wedding
photo before the walls crumbled.
It is my uncle’s prayer rug, where dozens of ants
slept on wintry nights, before it was looted and
put in a museum.
It is the oven my mother used to bake bread and
roast chicken before a bomb reduced our house
to ashes.
It is the café where I watched football matches
and played—
My child stops me: Can a four-letter word hold
all of these?
***
From Things You May Find Hidden in My Ear by Mosab Abu Toha. Copyright © 2022 by Mosab Abu Toha. Reprinted with the permission of The Permissions Company, LLC, on behalf of City Lights Publishers.
Mosab Abu Toha is a Palestinian poet and founder of the Edward Said Library, Gaza’s only English-language library. He is a former visiting poet at Harvard’s department of comparative literature.
A wonderful and uplifting column, reminding us at once of the power of books and the nearly incomprehensible evil being faced by the Ukrainian people. A degree of evil that our own regime seeks to emulate. Stand up and speak out! Resist!
So many important insights into the nature and importance of the capacity for free choice. Thanks for sharing. It helped me appreciate the importance of browsing outside my initial choices of social media to ensure that not all my ideas have been constrained or curated.
The fact that this administration is forcing librarians to remove books from their shelves, forcing universities to cast aside DEI, shutting down medical procedures for trans persons, and banning reporters from the Pentagon indicates how fearful it is to allow us any choice. And this should fill the Bloated Yam's administration with guilt -- but somehow, they are impervious to anything the Bloated Yam doesn't command. Shame on them!
The Bloated Yam is following Putin’s Playbook to the T. Today’s topic reminded me of the wonderful Documentary by a former Russian teacher from a little village who sees what is happening and begins to document the changes he sees taking place. Name of Documentary is Mr. Nobody Against Putin. How he made it out of Russia and is still alive is beyond belief, specially now when he’s up for an Oscar for best foreign language documentary.
And, of course, we all wonder what Putin has on The Bloated Yam.
Tons of Epstein Kompromat. Those missing or heavily redacted pages plus videos.
A book that came back to me while reading this post is "The Body in Pain" by Elaine Scarry. In succinct and eloquent prose, she explores the nexus of personhood and agency--and world--in the physical body and how all is undone at the extremes of pain and torture. The book affected me profoundly. Interestingly, Elaine Scarry was a professor of English. Her day job was teaching books.
Perhaps aside from murder and kidnapping and child rape, the purging of books and our history are this administrations’ greatest crimes💔🇺🇸
Don't forget anti-science a crime against all humanity past, present and future.
Yes Don. Very true💔🇺🇸
Yes, there is a very active war against human's astronomy and space exploration.
I am reading Alexei Navalny's memoir, "Patriot." It is a compelling, amazing book, as is he. He reminds me of you, Timothy. His writing, and even his physical appearance, strike me as you and he being birds of a feather.
Would that there be more people like you both in this world.
Thank you, Professor Snyder. Your thoughtful, insightful comments on the importance of books have deep value. It is indeed of great importance to be able to read and read by choice about many subjects...even unpleasant and painful ones.' Knowledge is power!' and when citizens do not know or understand their own history, it diminishes their influence on their own freedom...as we daily experience at this time.
Should the annihilation of choice have its own "cide"?
Algorithmocide
After further thought, I think may have stated the reverse of a term that’s applicable, since we need a term that expresses what is being annihilated, rather than how it is being annihilated via withholding books, algorithms, etc.
Annihilation of choice by book burning or withholding, through algorithms, etc is perhaps the annihilation of the right to life, liberty and pusuit of happiness.
Right. transferring my "like" to your revised comment.
"I am Envy...I cannot read and therefore wish all books burned."
Christopher Marlowe
Is Marlowe describing one djt?
I saw a statistic recenty that 40% of Americans don't read even one book a year. It means the fading of the spirit to me, but I read incessantly. I wonder what it really means? Is reading taught so poorly in schools that it's just too difficult for people to read without effort?
I don't get it either. Like you, I read a lot, always have. It's an enormous pleasure, for one thing. I, too, wonder how it is so many people (aside from those plagued with dyslexia) seem to choose not to. I'm sure poorly taught reading skills are part of the problem (there've been some very weird ideas out there) but other things could help. Personally, I think more "communal" reading would be useful. Read out loud. In school, at work, meetings, around the dinner table. Everywhere. When you think about it, reading's probably the most amazing thing humans have ever come up with. IMHO.
The full tactile experience of a book -- the smell, the rustle of pages turning, the colors of the art, the choice of fonts, the physical weight and heft, the sounds of the words, the feelings invoked, the first stirrings of empathy and the thrill of discovery. . . the awakening of mind, heart, imagination, and the joy of seeing within and without. Spend time in the children's section of any library and watch -- like petals unfolding -- the sheer wonder books invoke.
I’m not in prison but my world is limited as a caregiver to my husband. I have wondered why I don’t mind being at home most of the time, that my life doesn’t feel curtailed? Your post reminds me that I’m free because I have bookshelves full of books , many that have waited patiently for years for me to read. I’m not alone!!
Thinking about the removal of books. Has the "remover" made an informed choice? By informed choice are we saying they have a "philosophy" and seek removal of books that counter that "philosophical belief", contributing to the "brainwashing" of the masses. This seems to give the remover a credit for reading books, understanding their message and thinking. Or does the remover simply destroy in a "willy nilly" manner anything they hear they should fear, books supporters, say Christian nationalist hate? These thoughts ask if removers are stupid, mindlessly checking the box of the fascist playbook or informed autocrats. Sadly both are a danger.
Thank you Tim. A remarkable article with hard earned insight into how to fill the gaping cavities of our assumptive world, when we are visited by extreme evil, ego maniacs, and war/death.
🕯️🏭 The Oil-E President
The lantern shines directly on the leader of the land,
Who holds the dirty fossil fuels right in his open hand.
He proudly cuts the rules away to let the drillers loose,
And offers up the wilderness for corporate, dark abuse. 🌲
They call him the "Oil-e President," a title he adores,
As he unlocks the pipelines and the heavy, drilling doors.
He promised the executives that he would clear the way,
If they would fund his politics and keep the truth at bay. 🛢️
He took a hatchet to the rules that keep the water clean,
To satisfy the hunger of the massive oil machine.
The regulations crafted to protect the air we breathe,
Are canceled by a president so eager to deceive. 💧
He calls himself the champion of the fossil fuel elite,
And lays the nation's heritage directly at their feet.
The environmental standards are dismantled in the night,
To ensure the wealthy donors keep their profit margins bright. 🌙
This is the very definition of a bought-out throne,
Where policies are rented and the favors clearly shown.
The money in his politics dictates the steps he takes,
Regardless of the messes and the damages he makes. 👑
When leaders owe their power to the barons of the crude,
Their governance is naturally aggressive, harsh, and rude.
They sacrifice the safety of the working-class domain,
To guarantee the billionaires accumulate the gain. 🏙️
He proudly boasts of rolling back the atmospheric rules,
And treats the scientists and experts like a bunch of fools.
He lets them drill the sacred lands and tap the ocean floor,
Because the lobby always comes demanding something more. 🌊
The Iran war is just an arm of this polluted beast,
A way to keep the oil men attending at the feast.
When global crude is threatened by a sudden, foreign strike,
The "fossil fuel president" ensures the prices boldly hike. 📈
He doesn't care if local streams are ruined by the spill,
As long as corporate sponsors can manipulate the bill.
He measures the success of state by barrels in the tank,
And how much dark election cash is sitting in the bank. 🏦
A grand democracy cannot survive this dirty trade,
Where the protections of the land are permanently frayed.
We need a sober government that values health and life,
Not one that sells our future to perpetuate the strife. ⚖️
So gather 'round the lantern, folks, and see the toxic tie,
Between the cut regulations and the blackened, smoky sky.
The President has made a choice to serve the donor class,
And leaves the working citizens to breathe the choking gas. 😷
We’ll shine a light on every single environmental cut,
And drag the secret dealings from the bureaucratic rut.
We must elect the leaders who refuse the oily bribe,
And actually protect the lands of every state and tribe. 🏞️
I'll keep the lantern steady so the comment-crew can see,
The danger of a leader who is never truly free.
We'll stand against the Oil-e reign and vote to clean the slate,
And save the grand republic before it is too late. 🏮
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