Excited to see the new format! Felt the same way about The Sympathizer. Loved the book, but then he sorta lost me toward the end. The show was meh. Sorta proves the main character’s thesis that Hollywood can’t do a good Vietnam war story.
The novel was cruising into my Top Five all-time until the structure/format/POV choices. Alas, still worth a read.
I did a little digging on the film adaptation and the rumor mill suggested RDJ had too much creative control and whiffed on the tone. The novel, while darkly funny, is still deeply serious. The show just felt ridiculous.
I love how you focus on Canadian currency being the biggest problem with Civil War 😂 It’s as if all the FOREX traders walked out of the theatre at the same time. I like this new format!
It was one of many, many issues, though it was the catalyst which caused me to pause the video and complain to my wife -- she studied economics in college and wholeheartedly agreed.
An earlier version of this post also included a critique of the lack of trucks on the roads, which would mean no food or supplies being delivered anywhere. People don't realize just how fast modern society would devolve into THE ROAD once the junk food stopped flowing. But, for space and sanity constraints I cut it from the final version.
Glad you like the new format! I'm excited to see how things evolve.
Loving this new format. If you're soliciting book recommendations for the newsletter, I think you would enjoy "Postcapitalism."
It essentially begins as a summary of every major left-wing political economist/political theorist from Marx and Engles onward and analyzed what they got right and what they got wrong. The conclusion is more or less that the left is broadly correct in their macroeconomic criticisms of capitalism, but have not refined their points to accommodate for developments in finance and tech, so their solutions are at best dated/out-of-touch and at worst impractical.
Then he argues that the development of automation will be so prevailing and rapid, it would essentially make free market economics entirely superfluous. This would either render capitalism obsolete or corporations backed by state violence will only grow more authoritarian to preserve wealth and control (this seems like the more likely outcome).
I haven't seen "Civil War" yet, but the premise seems flawed. Maybe I'm being too literalist/jaded, but Americans are far too individualistic and lazy to fight in a civil war. I doubt your average alt-right dipshit legitimately wants to die for the cause of racial IQ and skull shapes. Also, the NFL is on Sundays. It's more likely that if Trump were to lose, there will be more violence than there was in 2020, and domestic stochastic terrorism and mass shootings will only increase. I'd (regrettably) bet on America turning into the Troubles Redux more than a full-blown civil war.
Yea to all of this! I've been using the domestic terrorism parallel of The Troubles for a while as well. Zero chance the 1/6/21 cosplayers are gonna stop pounding Doritos and learn how to fly an F-18.
I'll look into that book -- sounds very interesting.
Thanks, Matthew! It's almost three decades old and still my favorite album.
My novel LEVERAGE has a lot of allusions to nineties hip hop and this new format/approach hides a lot of easter eggs for potential future readers. More to come...
I love the enthusiasm! Probably early next year for a pre-order link. The novel's slated for "Summer 2025" and I'll provide more details as they materialize.
Yeah, Shadowboxin' is an all-timer. I recently read an interview where GZA said the track was basically written for Meth and he just slotted a verse in between.
You're also right on time as I just rebranded and revised my newsletter and there will be more material in this vein going forward.
Finally, I'd love for you to check out the novel! It's slated to be published in Summer 2025 (publishing moves hella slow), and I'll have a pre-order link probably early next year. For now, looking forward to having you as Field Research reader!
Loved the new Vol 2 format! Read and enjoyed every single section and sub-section and was surprised by how fun the Jargon section was. Bravo!
Thanks, Mary! I'm really excited about the new direction and glad to hear it landed.
I'm starting to put together little "themes" for each issue, and I'm already working on pro wrestling, Wall Street, reality TV, etc. More to come!
Excited to see the new format! Felt the same way about The Sympathizer. Loved the book, but then he sorta lost me toward the end. The show was meh. Sorta proves the main character’s thesis that Hollywood can’t do a good Vietnam war story.
Thanks, Michael!
The novel was cruising into my Top Five all-time until the structure/format/POV choices. Alas, still worth a read.
I did a little digging on the film adaptation and the rumor mill suggested RDJ had too much creative control and whiffed on the tone. The novel, while darkly funny, is still deeply serious. The show just felt ridiculous.
Came here to say pretty much exactly all of this. Love the new format, Amran.
Thanks, Christian! I'm excited about the new approach and curious to see how things unfold. More to come!
I love how you focus on Canadian currency being the biggest problem with Civil War 😂 It’s as if all the FOREX traders walked out of the theatre at the same time. I like this new format!
Hahaha!
It was one of many, many issues, though it was the catalyst which caused me to pause the video and complain to my wife -- she studied economics in college and wholeheartedly agreed.
An earlier version of this post also included a critique of the lack of trucks on the roads, which would mean no food or supplies being delivered anywhere. People don't realize just how fast modern society would devolve into THE ROAD once the junk food stopped flowing. But, for space and sanity constraints I cut it from the final version.
Glad you like the new format! I'm excited to see how things evolve.
My main problem was: that actual film camera. THAT took me out of the film. I know Gen Z likes the retro look, but come on!!
Loving this new format. If you're soliciting book recommendations for the newsletter, I think you would enjoy "Postcapitalism."
It essentially begins as a summary of every major left-wing political economist/political theorist from Marx and Engles onward and analyzed what they got right and what they got wrong. The conclusion is more or less that the left is broadly correct in their macroeconomic criticisms of capitalism, but have not refined their points to accommodate for developments in finance and tech, so their solutions are at best dated/out-of-touch and at worst impractical.
Then he argues that the development of automation will be so prevailing and rapid, it would essentially make free market economics entirely superfluous. This would either render capitalism obsolete or corporations backed by state violence will only grow more authoritarian to preserve wealth and control (this seems like the more likely outcome).
https://www.amazon.ca/Postcapitalism-Guide-Future-Paul-Mason/dp/0374536732
I haven't seen "Civil War" yet, but the premise seems flawed. Maybe I'm being too literalist/jaded, but Americans are far too individualistic and lazy to fight in a civil war. I doubt your average alt-right dipshit legitimately wants to die for the cause of racial IQ and skull shapes. Also, the NFL is on Sundays. It's more likely that if Trump were to lose, there will be more violence than there was in 2020, and domestic stochastic terrorism and mass shootings will only increase. I'd (regrettably) bet on America turning into the Troubles Redux more than a full-blown civil war.
Looking forward to more!
Yea to all of this! I've been using the domestic terrorism parallel of The Troubles for a while as well. Zero chance the 1/6/21 cosplayers are gonna stop pounding Doritos and learn how to fly an F-18.
I'll look into that book -- sounds very interesting.
I think it’ll dovetail well with your business analysis.
That bubble is going to break with atomic force, and I’ll ride that explosion like Dr. Strangelove.
The tears alone could power the green revolution.
Great Liquid Swords track. 🔥
Thanks, Matthew! It's almost three decades old and still my favorite album.
My novel LEVERAGE has a lot of allusions to nineties hip hop and this new format/approach hides a lot of easter eggs for potential future readers. More to come...
Psst. Hey Amran. I can’t figure out how to preorder yet. Do you know a trick, or do I need to just put a reminder in my calendar to check back later?
I love the enthusiasm! Probably early next year for a pre-order link. The novel's slated for "Summer 2025" and I'll provide more details as they materialize.
I wrote a book once. I can appreciate the importance of pre-orders for launch.
I'll look forward to reading it.
I’m a pretty big fan of all things 90s-00s Wu-Tang.
Shadowboxin, even more than 36 Chambers, is the #1 reason I love Method Man so much.
This is my first newsletter of yours. Delighted to find it.
I’m adding your novel to my online cart immediately.
Thank you for your work. I’ll look forward to digesting a lot more.
Awesome! Welcome to the show.
Yeah, Shadowboxin' is an all-timer. I recently read an interview where GZA said the track was basically written for Meth and he just slotted a verse in between.
You're also right on time as I just rebranded and revised my newsletter and there will be more material in this vein going forward.
Finally, I'd love for you to check out the novel! It's slated to be published in Summer 2025 (publishing moves hella slow), and I'll have a pre-order link probably early next year. For now, looking forward to having you as Field Research reader!