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Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

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Re: Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

#131

Post by mike978 »

teleforce wrote: post #94
mike978 wrote: post #91

A couple of my favorites from this year, I read a lot (50 to 100 a year) Fiction: - What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver - Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky - A Man with One of Those Faces by Caimh Mcdonnell - Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro - A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine - Antimatter Blues by Edward Ashton - Where the Body Was by Ed Brubaker and Sean Philips Nonfiction: - E…

Asking for myself, is there any trick or strategy to achieve reading 100 books per year, are you retired, or part-time employee. Is hard to imagine a full-time employee to read that many books in one single year?

I'll do audiobooks while I do the grocery shopping or drive. And some of the books are kind of cheating as there are always a few graphic novels or 90 or 150 page books. But even as a parent I can find some time by cutting down screen time.

Also even though I enjoy reading a lot, I find more isn't always better, but I've been trying to survey some topics - fascism, Christian Nationalism, etc. If I really want to get something out of what I'm reading or if it is a complex topic I have to slow down.

Re: Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

#132

Post by basementcat »

dispin wrote: post #129
aaomidi wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Dictating to trans people about _how they get to live_ is the process of saying they can't co-exist in this world. It is the insinuation that they are _separate but equal_. We've been through this ride before. We're going through this ride again. Bigots, like that author, will lose and history will not look kindly upon them. However, for now, they get to act as an "enlightened rationalist", and sell books to people s…

"Dictating to trans people about _how they get to live_ is the process of saying they can't co-exist in this world. It is the insinuation that they are _separate but equal_." This isn't about "how they get to live". For instance, if a male wants to dress in clothing designed for female wearers and adopt a name more commonly used by women and girls then the vast majority of people will live and let live, and happily c…

> There's a significant amount of evidence that indicates Imane Khelif is actually male, with the athletic advantage that brings.

Would it be possible to provide links to some of this evidence in a respectful way?

Re: Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

#133

Post by dispin »

basementcat wrote: post #132
dispin wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Dictating to trans people about _how they get to live_ is the process of saying they can't co-exist in this world. It is the insinuation that they are _separate but equal_." This isn't about "how they get to live". For instance, if a male wants to dress in clothing designed for female wearers and adopt a name more commonly used by women and girls then the vast majority of people will live and let live, and happily c…

> There's a significant amount of evidence that indicates Imane Khelif is actually male, with the athletic advantage that brings. Would it be possible to provide links to some of this evidence in a respectful way?

As I understand it, these are the major pieces of evidence:

- Karotype testing of Khelif (and the other disqualified boxer, Lin) showing XY chromosomes, reported by sports journalist Alan Abrahamson who's seen the lab reports and covering letter that was received by the IOC from the IBA: https://www.3wiresports.com/articles/2024/8/5/fa9lt6ypbwx5su...

- A member of Khelif's training team, Georges Cazorla, revealing in interview that Khelif has problems with chromosomes and hormones, and has been under testosterone suppression to bring levels into the female range: https://www.lepoint.fr/monde/2024-olympics-imane-khelif-was-...

- Extracts from a medical report leaked to French journalist Djaffer Ait Aoudia, which state that Khelif has a disorder of sex development, 5-alpha reductase deficiency, which exists only in males: https://lecorrespondant.net/imane-khelif-ni-ovaires-ni-uteru...

There are other oddities as well, like Khelif choosing not to pursue a case at the Court of Arbitration for Sport after being deemed ineligible to compete in IBA events. And the head of the Spanish national team, Rafael Lozano, saying that when the Algerian team visited to train, they ended up matching Khelif with a male boxer to spar, as the upper body strength and punching power was too much for the female boxers.

Worth noting also that all this is consistent with Khelif competing at the Olympics in the women's boxing category, as they only ask for identity documentation and do not verify sex, unlike weight classes which are strictly controlled.

Re: Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

#134

Post by aaomidi »

lofenfew wrote: post #125
aaomidi wrote: post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is extremely similar what anti LGB people were also saying in how they were contrasting it to the civil rights movement. Also similar to what the anti-civil rights movement were saying when contrasting it to the end of slavery. Here, let me show it: "This also highlights the huge difference between the "Abolitionist Movement" and "Civil Rights". The abolitionist movement just asked society to leave them alone. N…

Everything is the same as everything else if you rewrite all the words to different words. Regardless, "right to exist in the world" is a patently disingenuous description of the rights in question.

No. This just shows that I know how rhetoric like this evolves.

This is why I kept lamenting how important learning history, especially the history of bigotry is.

Re: Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

#135

Post by aaomidi »

dispin wrote: post #128
aaomidi wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then, simply, don't use Mr with them. You're going to be called bigoted because that's simply where culture is heading. You either own up to that judgement others have of you, or you realize you live in a society and certain behaviors are _not okay_. You have the freedom to be _subjectively_ a bigot.

Culture seems to be heading away from this, not towards. At least according to polling of public opinion.

Clearly not given the number of green usernames on this thread.

Re: Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

#136

Post by dispin »

aaomidi wrote: post #135
dispin wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Culture seems to be heading away from this, not towards. At least according to polling of public opinion.

Clearly not given the number of green usernames on this thread.

That is a non sequitur.

Re: Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

#137

Post by computerdork »

MarcelOlsz wrote: post #100
computerdork wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Catch 22 is one of the funniest (while still having depth) books ever! Have never looked into his other books, will have to check it out

If you thought Catch 22 was funny this book will split you in half. I had to take it at only a few pages a day and re-read them a few times. I will say though, I might be misremembering how good it was, it's been a few years. I'm going to make a go of it again. I remember feeling at the time that I was reading the diary of a sort of "4chan patient zero".

Looking forward to it!

Re: Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

#138

Post by WorkerBee28474 »

max_ wrote: post #108

The Pocket Oracle and the Art of Prudence by Baltasar Gracion This is going to be a life time companion for me. It's a book of 300 maxims. If you want be be better person, wiser. Get a copy.

Another title (possible more common in English) for the book is 'The Art Of Worldly Wisdom'.

It's a great little book.

Re: Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?

#140

Post by lofenfew »

aaomidi wrote: post #134
lofenfew wrote: post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everything is the same as everything else if you rewrite all the words to different words. Regardless, "right to exist in the world" is a patently disingenuous description of the rights in question.

No. This just shows that I know how rhetoric like this evolves. This is why I kept lamenting how important learning history, especially the history of bigotry is.

Other people are similarly reading and reacting to your rhetoric. Lying about what your opponents say, regardless of what you think it might evolve into, does not reflect well on you.
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