I've been thinking about your post all day. I think everything you said applies to just about everyone I know who is 40+. But when it comes to all my relatives, friends, and acquaintances under 40, I don't think much applies. They don't want to live the lives we've lead, any more than we wanted to live our parents' lives. They go to concerts and movies - but to those we would hate. They communicate in person, but have zero interest in phone calls - and that is just fine.i can tell you from hanging out in the high school atrium or cafeteria, that when teenagers are together, the noise is deafening. They are talking non-stop. (They text DURING class 😂)
I spend a few days a week with elementary school kids, too, and have never met a single one who didn't love reading and who wasn't excited going to the "library class." I know this is also true of my many great nieces and nephews in Colorado. I stay away from middle school, but even in high school, they read a lot. Yes the books are online, but so what? Isn't the objective to absorb the content? And I've never seen little kids more excited about math then when the lessons are on their iPads.
It kills me sometimes when I realize most young people are not that interested in learning from my experiences, or want to avail themselves of my hard-fought wisdom. But that's perfectly normal and perfectly fine. We already lived our youth - they deserve the same opportunity. Their ideas about what makes a well-rounded adult are going to be different from ours. And as difficult as it is, we can't keep telling them we know what's best for them - they aren't going to listen. Did we? What we can do is lead by example and trust the best of what we have to offer will make a meaningful impression upon them.
My post related to things that relate to ME -- I care about human interaction, reading, plays, etc. But the larger point of the overall column (and I hope you read Douthat's piece) was far more expansive. He wrote of saving what matters because so many things face extinction due to technology and people tuning out of interaction.
For example, he looks at the amount of young people who are not having children - and he rightly writes about how birthrates need to increase. Now, statistically, birthrates in Africa are multiple times higher than those in Europe, Asia and North America and you could contend that the human species itself is not in danger of dying out. But those countries that will end up without progeny WILL end up losing culture, language, and other markers of their civilization.
I just wanted to get the overall thesis out before I addressed your specific points. Different people value different things, and it will take a lot of intention to save what technology is going to cost us.
I don't doubt your experience with high school kids, grade school kids, and your own relatives. I assume (correct me if I'm wrong) that the school kids are local to our geography. If so, the tend to come from homes where their parents have degrees and professional jobs, made sure they had everything they needed when they were little (enough food to eat, clothes to wear, toys, educational toys AND they were read to at bedtime.)
It's not like that everywhere.
My personal experience is that I have one niece who is MENSA material, learned Japanese on her iPad at the age of 4, is currently in college, reads everything she can. She complains about her classmates who rely on AI, and look to skate through things. Because of her age, and the ravages of Covid when she was in high school - a lot of her friends at school lack certain abilities - like being able to plan an outing. Her sister is a few years older, successful in a financial career and has hated reading since she was a kid. I am related to other kids, and within families, there are also great differences.
In researching previous posts that I've written, I know (and if you want me to, I can go dig out sources) that Penn did a study about math students at Penn and found out that those who did math with pencils and paper learned far more than kids who relied on both AI and doing math on computers and tablets. There is learning that comes from the physical doing that cannot be learned any other way.
Reading on an eReader or a computer? In the post from today, I have a link to a study (and there are others) that show conclusively that reading comprehension is far higher when paper books are used.
I chuckled at "It kills me sometimes when I realize most young people are not that interested in learning from my experiences, or want to avail themselves of my hard-fought wisdom." I know the feeling.
I lead a team at work - these are bright people, educated. We have a daily standup wherein we review the work from the previous day, what people are doing this day, and how everything fits with out plan, so that our work is delivered on time, on budget, and meets the requirements of our business clients (we are an IT development team). To make it fun, every day I do "what is today?" where I find out what is celebrated that day (and food of the day).
When something is historical, most of them know NOTHING. They develop, they code, they come up with elegant technical solutions, but outside of that -- NOTHING. A few things that I had to explain in the last few weeks: who Winston Churchill was, what the Alamo was, the Harlem Globetrotters, staplers and switchboard operators. You can contend that Winston Churchill has been dead a long time, but not knowing about WW2 shows a lack of understanding of what can happen if the whole world is at war. They did find a lot of humor in staplers. NONE has EVER owned one - they see no need for paper. You can say that it's okay if everything is on the computer and there are no paper records, but it's dangerous.
For example, when a hospital has a ransomware attack, they cannot treat patients because they know NOTHING without computer access. (This has happened multiple times). Without a paper copy, we really can't discuss the potential of the potentially missing comma in the Declaration of Independence, which would cause a change in meaning.
When kids don't what to know your experiences and wisdom, that is a true gap. And it shows a lack of curiosity. Why wouldn't someone be fascinated about other people?
SORRY -- this has been SOOO long, and sadly, I could go on. There is so much worth saving.
A side note: When I was teaching an AP Comp Sci class month, the seniors were using AI-assisted tools to write code. Since I have a comp Sci background, I found it all very fascinating. I asked one student to explain what he was doing, and then said "Very cool. Now how can you use this to help our world?" He said "That's what I'm hoping someone will pay me to find out." In my book, the kids are alright 👍
Ah... my fervent dream would be for religions - all religions - to disappear. 'Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished...
We have season tickets to our local Musical Theatre Company - saw "Grease" last week - and a local "Immersive Theatre" - seen some great shows there, as well - Clue, Misery, The Mousetrap, to name a few. We had season tickets to Footlighters in Berwyn when we lived east. LOVE live theatre!
We don't do movie theatres much, anymore... There's really no bang for the buck. I'll see a live performance in a heartbeat. Movies, at home.
And I read... My local library has a ton of digital books out and I download them onto my Kindle. Yes, I like holding an actual book, but I have access to bazillions of books whenever I want - I can read on my phone, my Kindle, iPad or computer and have each sync to where I left off on the last. That is some positive computer usage.
And, yes, I go to the physical library, as well. And we just donated six boxes of books to them!
Victor was a Travel Agent! Ah... the perks we used to get with his IATA card! I never knew the back of the plane existed!
When I was in the Hotel Biz, we would host "Fam Trips" - Familiarization Trips - for Travel Agents. We would wine and dine them, and entertain and schmooze the living shit out of them to get them to sell our property. They were over-the-top extravaganzas.
Hotels paid commissions to them. When Travelocity, et al, first came into existence, hotels switched to them - less commissions paid. Then, when they realized they could save even more money, they brought it in-house.
Today, it is generally less expensive for the consumer to book directly with hotel/air/car than use an online or independent agent.
Automation has led to the demise of jobs since automation first came into being. We no longer have elevator operators, switchboard operators (I've run a plug-in PBX board in my youth!), pin boys... Milkmen and breadmen are now niche jobs for niche dairies and bakeries.
I kinda get what Douthat is saying - Zager and Evans immediately comes to mind - but I think he's also giving the human race a lot more credit to fight the changes than we deserve. My first thought was about smallpox. A Vaccine was developed in 1796, but in 1850 New York City, there were so many smallpox cases that they actually built a hospital for them on Roosevelt Island. People wouldn't take the vaccine because they thought it would deform babies, people would grow hooves, personal liberty, and any number of ludicrous reasons... Notice how far we haven't evolved?!?
Shopping Malls destroyed Downtown. Barnes and Noble destroyed the independent bookseller, Amazon destroyed shopping malls, Barnes and Noble, and everything else.
The common thread in all of this is - besides mere technology - is corporate greed. Monopolies controlling our newspapers and airwaves. Controlling travel choices, availability, and pricing. Controlling our politics. Controlling. Everything.
The Earth's population is projected to reach 9 billion people by 2037 - 12 years from now - and 10 billion people by 2058. It seems as if Douthat's idea of reproduction is a bit off - unless, of course, he just means white, European-types.
I'll be 85 in 2037 when we reach 9 billion - and I plan on still being around because there are just too many people I haven't yet annoyed. 2058?!? Probably not. But I can guarantee you that I won't be in a plot in the ground with a headstone.
And I will continue to buy real books for my great-nieces and nephews - as I did for their parents before them. And continue our vegetable garden - we redid the raised beds this year, already! And I will continue to find joy with Victor, in cooking and baking, in travel when we can (we're off to Vancouver, BC tomorrow for a week!), and all the new babies in our family - last one born early March, next one due late May.
We have fucked up this planet so badly, that maybe a complete reboot wouldn't be such a bad idea...
Hopefully, not tomorrow, though. There's a particular Canadian Whisky that I want to revisit...
And is it bad that languages disappear and, at some point, we all speak a similar language that we all understand? Is it bad that artificial lines drawn on a map disappear and people migrate freely as we once did?
I made all my own travel arrangements when I was working as a consultant, and still do. I love the research process and have never seen the need for a travel agent. I help others, too - I've always been the go-to person, probably because I've lived so many different places and have traveled extensively.
Yes, automation has led to the demise of many occupations, but it has also created new ones. Such is the nature of life and progress.
FYI I just read that Barnes and Noble is now thriving and planning to open dozens of new bookstores. They are smart enough to realize that customers go there as much for the atmosphere and experience, as for the books.
This is how things are different for different people. When I was on the road, I was on the road a minimum of 40 weeks a year, after 9/11 for 3 years, I was only home Thanksgiving week and Christmas week. And because my work was military, conditions often called for changing on a dime, for example, I'm supposed to be at Tinker AFB all week, but in on Tuesday, it becomes imperative that I go to Hill AFB on Wednesday night -- I was completely dependent on my agent's ability to move things around quickly, and arrange for everything because I didn't have the time. She was great at finding things I needed -- like a 1-hour dry cleaner close to the hotel, reservations for a "special" restaurant to take clients to, even once a personal shopper when my luggage was lost and I needed clothes immediately. She was a GEM.
Thanks for the info. I had no idea that Boreham was employed by China. That knowledge casts a different shade on what I believed to be a satirical commentary on Trump's attacks and retreats in his trade war with China. Not so funny a video when used as disguised propaganda.
That you were aware of this contretemps is impressive.
I found your video interesting, Andy Boreham is an employee of the Chinese government. He's interesting in that he interspersed facts (like those about Boeing) with propaganda (like the way China "treats other countries, no matter how small". If you look at his body of work, you'll see that his information SEEMS valid, but the purpose is to present China in a light that is not always accurate.
I believe we need to be intentional at working to save the things that matter -- and a lot of that comes from interacting with one another....it's why I call you so often, unc.
I didn't think WHICH books mattered -- only that BOOKS mattered. I certainly read Fahrenheit 451 (what a classic!) but I don't know Caste -- but I'll definitely take a look at it.
The first was "The Peculiar Institution: Slavery in the Ante-Bellum South" by Kenneth Stampp. It was part of the collection of 20+ books in my high school American history class. What I learned was that there was something called "revisionist history" -- and that just because something was a "fact" in a textbook, didn't mean it was definitely true -- that it was important to do research and learn all aspects. It changed my entire perspective on how to learn about history -- that there were MULTIPLE stories from MANY people and I needed to consider multiple perspectives to get a full picture.
The second was "The Power Broker" by Robert Caro -- at the time, I was studying urban planning, and Robert Moses was "they guy" and this was "the book" -- and what I learned is that power corrupts, and changes people, and even if one starts out with the best of intentions, there are forces that can make them do things that are not in the public good. It has informed (to this day) how I evaluate the actions of people in the public sphere, and pushes me to research what forces are weighing on them, and who might be the power behind the frontman/woman.
Finally -- "The Cider House Rules" by John Irving. Abortion was legal when I read it in the 80's, but the book provided a perspective on the choices that women, and doctors, made prior to legalization. The nuances of decision-making. The idea that there was a lot more grey than black and white in how to approach difficult decisions, and the impacts of various outcomes.
Combined -- those books influenced how I approach everything I do -- to see from other's eyes, to listen to what is really being said/written, and to be certain that I do my research.
And the Band Played On by Randy Shiltz regarding the onset of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s and how government indifference allowed untold numbers of people to die. (many, many of them my friends) It radicalized me.
I was also very touched by Randy Shilts' book, although it didn't in any way radicalize me - at the time the book was published, I was studying to be a doctor. While it was too early to be seeing patients, I had lost friends (dear friends) and I read everything I could get my hands on to learn if there was something ANYTHING coming down the pike that could help patients -- people who in a few years would be my patients.
Like you, I was appalled at the government response. But reading about Tony Fauci's work, and the work of those in the French lab (I forget their names) was inspiring.
I'm glad that the book radicalized you, and led you to action.
Because you noted this book, I thought back to Act Up, and the San Francisco bathhouse discussions, and Patient zero, and all the rest. And how, while I'm fundamentally a political person, EVERY thought I had back then related to public health, drug development, and how to save lives.
Thank you for reminding me about And the Band Played On...it is in my permanent book collection, in the medical section.
I've been thinking about your post all day. I think everything you said applies to just about everyone I know who is 40+. But when it comes to all my relatives, friends, and acquaintances under 40, I don't think much applies. They don't want to live the lives we've lead, any more than we wanted to live our parents' lives. They go to concerts and movies - but to those we would hate. They communicate in person, but have zero interest in phone calls - and that is just fine.i can tell you from hanging out in the high school atrium or cafeteria, that when teenagers are together, the noise is deafening. They are talking non-stop. (They text DURING class 😂)
I spend a few days a week with elementary school kids, too, and have never met a single one who didn't love reading and who wasn't excited going to the "library class." I know this is also true of my many great nieces and nephews in Colorado. I stay away from middle school, but even in high school, they read a lot. Yes the books are online, but so what? Isn't the objective to absorb the content? And I've never seen little kids more excited about math then when the lessons are on their iPads.
It kills me sometimes when I realize most young people are not that interested in learning from my experiences, or want to avail themselves of my hard-fought wisdom. But that's perfectly normal and perfectly fine. We already lived our youth - they deserve the same opportunity. Their ideas about what makes a well-rounded adult are going to be different from ours. And as difficult as it is, we can't keep telling them we know what's best for them - they aren't going to listen. Did we? What we can do is lead by example and trust the best of what we have to offer will make a meaningful impression upon them.
My post related to things that relate to ME -- I care about human interaction, reading, plays, etc. But the larger point of the overall column (and I hope you read Douthat's piece) was far more expansive. He wrote of saving what matters because so many things face extinction due to technology and people tuning out of interaction.
For example, he looks at the amount of young people who are not having children - and he rightly writes about how birthrates need to increase. Now, statistically, birthrates in Africa are multiple times higher than those in Europe, Asia and North America and you could contend that the human species itself is not in danger of dying out. But those countries that will end up without progeny WILL end up losing culture, language, and other markers of their civilization.
I just wanted to get the overall thesis out before I addressed your specific points. Different people value different things, and it will take a lot of intention to save what technology is going to cost us.
I don't doubt your experience with high school kids, grade school kids, and your own relatives. I assume (correct me if I'm wrong) that the school kids are local to our geography. If so, the tend to come from homes where their parents have degrees and professional jobs, made sure they had everything they needed when they were little (enough food to eat, clothes to wear, toys, educational toys AND they were read to at bedtime.)
It's not like that everywhere.
My personal experience is that I have one niece who is MENSA material, learned Japanese on her iPad at the age of 4, is currently in college, reads everything she can. She complains about her classmates who rely on AI, and look to skate through things. Because of her age, and the ravages of Covid when she was in high school - a lot of her friends at school lack certain abilities - like being able to plan an outing. Her sister is a few years older, successful in a financial career and has hated reading since she was a kid. I am related to other kids, and within families, there are also great differences.
In researching previous posts that I've written, I know (and if you want me to, I can go dig out sources) that Penn did a study about math students at Penn and found out that those who did math with pencils and paper learned far more than kids who relied on both AI and doing math on computers and tablets. There is learning that comes from the physical doing that cannot be learned any other way.
Reading on an eReader or a computer? In the post from today, I have a link to a study (and there are others) that show conclusively that reading comprehension is far higher when paper books are used.
I chuckled at "It kills me sometimes when I realize most young people are not that interested in learning from my experiences, or want to avail themselves of my hard-fought wisdom." I know the feeling.
I lead a team at work - these are bright people, educated. We have a daily standup wherein we review the work from the previous day, what people are doing this day, and how everything fits with out plan, so that our work is delivered on time, on budget, and meets the requirements of our business clients (we are an IT development team). To make it fun, every day I do "what is today?" where I find out what is celebrated that day (and food of the day).
When something is historical, most of them know NOTHING. They develop, they code, they come up with elegant technical solutions, but outside of that -- NOTHING. A few things that I had to explain in the last few weeks: who Winston Churchill was, what the Alamo was, the Harlem Globetrotters, staplers and switchboard operators. You can contend that Winston Churchill has been dead a long time, but not knowing about WW2 shows a lack of understanding of what can happen if the whole world is at war. They did find a lot of humor in staplers. NONE has EVER owned one - they see no need for paper. You can say that it's okay if everything is on the computer and there are no paper records, but it's dangerous.
For example, when a hospital has a ransomware attack, they cannot treat patients because they know NOTHING without computer access. (This has happened multiple times). Without a paper copy, we really can't discuss the potential of the potentially missing comma in the Declaration of Independence, which would cause a change in meaning.
When kids don't what to know your experiences and wisdom, that is a true gap. And it shows a lack of curiosity. Why wouldn't someone be fascinated about other people?
SORRY -- this has been SOOO long, and sadly, I could go on. There is so much worth saving.
A side note: When I was teaching an AP Comp Sci class month, the seniors were using AI-assisted tools to write code. Since I have a comp Sci background, I found it all very fascinating. I asked one student to explain what he was doing, and then said "Very cool. Now how can you use this to help our world?" He said "That's what I'm hoping someone will pay me to find out." In my book, the kids are alright 👍
Ah... my fervent dream would be for religions - all religions - to disappear. 'Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished...
We have season tickets to our local Musical Theatre Company - saw "Grease" last week - and a local "Immersive Theatre" - seen some great shows there, as well - Clue, Misery, The Mousetrap, to name a few. We had season tickets to Footlighters in Berwyn when we lived east. LOVE live theatre!
We don't do movie theatres much, anymore... There's really no bang for the buck. I'll see a live performance in a heartbeat. Movies, at home.
And I read... My local library has a ton of digital books out and I download them onto my Kindle. Yes, I like holding an actual book, but I have access to bazillions of books whenever I want - I can read on my phone, my Kindle, iPad or computer and have each sync to where I left off on the last. That is some positive computer usage.
And, yes, I go to the physical library, as well. And we just donated six boxes of books to them!
Victor was a Travel Agent! Ah... the perks we used to get with his IATA card! I never knew the back of the plane existed!
When I was in the Hotel Biz, we would host "Fam Trips" - Familiarization Trips - for Travel Agents. We would wine and dine them, and entertain and schmooze the living shit out of them to get them to sell our property. They were over-the-top extravaganzas.
Hotels paid commissions to them. When Travelocity, et al, first came into existence, hotels switched to them - less commissions paid. Then, when they realized they could save even more money, they brought it in-house.
Today, it is generally less expensive for the consumer to book directly with hotel/air/car than use an online or independent agent.
Automation has led to the demise of jobs since automation first came into being. We no longer have elevator operators, switchboard operators (I've run a plug-in PBX board in my youth!), pin boys... Milkmen and breadmen are now niche jobs for niche dairies and bakeries.
I kinda get what Douthat is saying - Zager and Evans immediately comes to mind - but I think he's also giving the human race a lot more credit to fight the changes than we deserve. My first thought was about smallpox. A Vaccine was developed in 1796, but in 1850 New York City, there were so many smallpox cases that they actually built a hospital for them on Roosevelt Island. People wouldn't take the vaccine because they thought it would deform babies, people would grow hooves, personal liberty, and any number of ludicrous reasons... Notice how far we haven't evolved?!?
Shopping Malls destroyed Downtown. Barnes and Noble destroyed the independent bookseller, Amazon destroyed shopping malls, Barnes and Noble, and everything else.
The common thread in all of this is - besides mere technology - is corporate greed. Monopolies controlling our newspapers and airwaves. Controlling travel choices, availability, and pricing. Controlling our politics. Controlling. Everything.
The Earth's population is projected to reach 9 billion people by 2037 - 12 years from now - and 10 billion people by 2058. It seems as if Douthat's idea of reproduction is a bit off - unless, of course, he just means white, European-types.
I'll be 85 in 2037 when we reach 9 billion - and I plan on still being around because there are just too many people I haven't yet annoyed. 2058?!? Probably not. But I can guarantee you that I won't be in a plot in the ground with a headstone.
And I will continue to buy real books for my great-nieces and nephews - as I did for their parents before them. And continue our vegetable garden - we redid the raised beds this year, already! And I will continue to find joy with Victor, in cooking and baking, in travel when we can (we're off to Vancouver, BC tomorrow for a week!), and all the new babies in our family - last one born early March, next one due late May.
We have fucked up this planet so badly, that maybe a complete reboot wouldn't be such a bad idea...
Hopefully, not tomorrow, though. There's a particular Canadian Whisky that I want to revisit...
And is it bad that languages disappear and, at some point, we all speak a similar language that we all understand? Is it bad that artificial lines drawn on a map disappear and people migrate freely as we once did?
Religion is the single most divisive force the earth ever saw, until the Orange Menace came on the scene.
I didn't like your comment -- I LOVE your comment! Have a great trip.
I made all my own travel arrangements when I was working as a consultant, and still do. I love the research process and have never seen the need for a travel agent. I help others, too - I've always been the go-to person, probably because I've lived so many different places and have traveled extensively.
Yes, automation has led to the demise of many occupations, but it has also created new ones. Such is the nature of life and progress.
FYI I just read that Barnes and Noble is now thriving and planning to open dozens of new bookstores. They are smart enough to realize that customers go there as much for the atmosphere and experience, as for the books.
This is how things are different for different people. When I was on the road, I was on the road a minimum of 40 weeks a year, after 9/11 for 3 years, I was only home Thanksgiving week and Christmas week. And because my work was military, conditions often called for changing on a dime, for example, I'm supposed to be at Tinker AFB all week, but in on Tuesday, it becomes imperative that I go to Hill AFB on Wednesday night -- I was completely dependent on my agent's ability to move things around quickly, and arrange for everything because I didn't have the time. She was great at finding things I needed -- like a 1-hour dry cleaner close to the hotel, reservations for a "special" restaurant to take clients to, even once a personal shopper when my luggage was lost and I needed clothes immediately. She was a GEM.
Thanks for the info. I had no idea that Boreham was employed by China. That knowledge casts a different shade on what I believed to be a satirical commentary on Trump's attacks and retreats in his trade war with China. Not so funny a video when used as disguised propaganda.
That you were aware of this contretemps is impressive.
Pleased to be on the team. Just emailed you an 8 minute video you would enjoy watching and might want to include it on one of your Substacks.
I found your video interesting, Andy Boreham is an employee of the Chinese government. He's interesting in that he interspersed facts (like those about Boeing) with propaganda (like the way China "treats other countries, no matter how small". If you look at his body of work, you'll see that his information SEEMS valid, but the purpose is to present China in a light that is not always accurate.
This Substack says it all. The real danger that lurks below the surface of the present turmoil and can lead to worldwide physical destruction.
I believe we need to be intentional at working to save the things that matter -- and a lot of that comes from interacting with one another....it's why I call you so often, unc.
I cant believe you left us hanging about the 3 books! Thanks for answering in the comments.
Not sure they were life-changing but
Fahrenheit 451 and Caste immediately come to mind.
I didn't think WHICH books mattered -- only that BOOKS mattered. I certainly read Fahrenheit 451 (what a classic!) but I don't know Caste -- but I'll definitely take a look at it.
Another excellent article. Thank you. What are the 3 books that changed your life?
The first was "The Peculiar Institution: Slavery in the Ante-Bellum South" by Kenneth Stampp. It was part of the collection of 20+ books in my high school American history class. What I learned was that there was something called "revisionist history" -- and that just because something was a "fact" in a textbook, didn't mean it was definitely true -- that it was important to do research and learn all aspects. It changed my entire perspective on how to learn about history -- that there were MULTIPLE stories from MANY people and I needed to consider multiple perspectives to get a full picture.
The second was "The Power Broker" by Robert Caro -- at the time, I was studying urban planning, and Robert Moses was "they guy" and this was "the book" -- and what I learned is that power corrupts, and changes people, and even if one starts out with the best of intentions, there are forces that can make them do things that are not in the public good. It has informed (to this day) how I evaluate the actions of people in the public sphere, and pushes me to research what forces are weighing on them, and who might be the power behind the frontman/woman.
Finally -- "The Cider House Rules" by John Irving. Abortion was legal when I read it in the 80's, but the book provided a perspective on the choices that women, and doctors, made prior to legalization. The nuances of decision-making. The idea that there was a lot more grey than black and white in how to approach difficult decisions, and the impacts of various outcomes.
Combined -- those books influenced how I approach everything I do -- to see from other's eyes, to listen to what is really being said/written, and to be certain that I do my research.
Do you have any books that changed your life?
And the Band Played On by Randy Shiltz regarding the onset of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s and how government indifference allowed untold numbers of people to die. (many, many of them my friends) It radicalized me.
I was also very touched by Randy Shilts' book, although it didn't in any way radicalize me - at the time the book was published, I was studying to be a doctor. While it was too early to be seeing patients, I had lost friends (dear friends) and I read everything I could get my hands on to learn if there was something ANYTHING coming down the pike that could help patients -- people who in a few years would be my patients.
Like you, I was appalled at the government response. But reading about Tony Fauci's work, and the work of those in the French lab (I forget their names) was inspiring.
I'm glad that the book radicalized you, and led you to action.
Because you noted this book, I thought back to Act Up, and the San Francisco bathhouse discussions, and Patient zero, and all the rest. And how, while I'm fundamentally a political person, EVERY thought I had back then related to public health, drug development, and how to save lives.
Thank you for reminding me about And the Band Played On...it is in my permanent book collection, in the medical section.