Bill Gates: the best books I read in 2014

[hi_endian]

@Engineer

The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein - This book had sat on my shelf mocking me for not reading it since I bought it a few years ago. I finally sat down on weekend and plowed through it. Glad I did. Though I had already heard bits and pieces of what she presents, she brought it together as a cohesive whole to show the forces at work to expand their power and influence during times of disaster when we are at our weakest.

Woa, weird. This was literally the first book that popped into my head when I started reading your post. I have it on audiobook, so it randomly pops up in my iTunes playlist for a while. It has mocked me as well, although hearing the occasional snippets of it never really make me want to listen – not because it’s bad, but because it’s, frankly, a bit of a downer and not completely surprising to me. That said, I don’t claim to know everything in the book. Maybe it’s time to give it a listen.

[Engineer]

Your impression is correct, it is a downer of a book. It is terribly disheartening to see so many examples of how humans are not only willing to take advantage of the suffering of others to push their agenda but actively laying in wait for their moment to strike. But it’s good to know the information it contains if for no other reason to see through the BS these vultures spew when they “come to the rescue”. Rent a couple of comedies you like or arrange to hang out with some fun friends after reading it as a palette cleanser.

[milliefink]

@Engineer

But it’s good to know the information it contains if for no other reason to see through the BS these vultures spew when they “come to the rescue”.

Yes. And in that sense, it’s not at all a downer. It’s a big, big upper. And so is Klein herself. Information is power, even when it’s depressing information.

[grimloki]

I love me some Bill Gates. In my mind he went from the dastardly monster that destroyed personal computing (my adolescent viewpoint) to a philanthropic hero. I never saw that coming.

I was going to criticize the leftier-than-thou labeling and namecalling… but really who cares. Its safely contained in a tiny little echo chamber. Its not hurting anyone.

[hi_endian]

Your adolescent viewpoint wasn’t completely off, but nor is your adult viewpoint. That said, while Andrew Carnegie has left one greatest philanthropic legacies in the US, he was also at the heart of one of the nastiest labor disputes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_Strike

My understanding is that towards the end of his life, his religious (Calvinist?) upbringing kind of kicked in and freaked him out. His Wikipedia article doesn’t touch on this very much, so forgive me if my memory of his A&E biography I saw twenty or so years ago is a bit hazy.