(Part 2) Reddit mentions: The best human geography books

There's a fantastic book about that called Prisoners of Geography.

Yup. That's urban sociology to a T. It happened in Wicker Park during the 90s, which you can read about if you're interested: http://www.amazon.com/Neo-Bohemia-Art-Commerce-Postindustrial-City/dp/0415870976

See Ostrom's Governing the Commons, this article, National Geographic's Book of Peoples of the World: A Guide to Cultures, George Peter Murdock's Atlas of World Cultures, and Marriage and Inequality in Classless Societies by Jane Fishburne Collier to open your mind to the different social arrangements which can exist with different material conditions. The tragedy of the commons is a purely theoretical exercise. In reality, all pre-class societies have developed cultural practices and means of organising society to reconcile individual interests with collective interests. If you're interested in the Marxist perspective on the development of capitalism, familiarise yourself with the concept of private accumulation. You can do this through reading Engels' The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State, but also Rethinking Capitalist Development by Kalyan Sanyal and The Invention of Capitalism by Michael Perelman.

Looking for:

Twenty Lessons in Environmental Sociology, preferably 2nd edition (the one I have below)

https://www.amazon.com/Twenty-Lessons-Environmental-Sociology-Kenneth/dp/0199325928

$5, Venmo or PayPal!

Even books written about this kind of xenophobia: https://www.amazon.com/Japan-Bashing-Anti-Japanism-since-Routledge-Contemporary/dp/0415499348

> The ongoing influence of ‘Japan-bashing’ also has parallels in other ‘bashing’ phenomena, such as ‘China-bashing’.

Relevant reading.

while these students may be unaware of the philosophies behind Occupying, they make some valid points that align with a turn towards spatial consciousness in the social sciences.

did anyone else notice that they're at a school named after Paul Robeson...and the diversity of the student representatives?

>One of the most disheartening experiences for those who grew up in the years when Martin Luther King Jr. and Thurgood Marshall were alive is to visit public schools today that bear their names, or names of other honored leaders of the integration struggles that produced the temporary progress that took place in the three decades after Brown v. Board of Education, and to find out how many of these schools are bastions of contemporary segregation. (Jonathon Kozol)

spatial justice, the right to the city, inclusive/dialogical democracy. these kids know what's up--even if they don't. ...and it's even sadder if they don't.

>How men and women act in the world is largely related to how they perceive themselves in the world, and … the existent potential to transform our internal neocolonial condition will remain unrealized if we fail to appropriately perceive and develop a consciousness of this condition and its possible undoing. (Tejeda et al.)

i would have cited this in my thesis about the need for spatial praxis in schools, if i hadn't finally turned it in yesterday.

I suggest reading a meta analysis of Iranian nationalism, to give you a more complete picture of how different, competing nationalisms formed Iran throughout the modern period.


Imaging Iran: The Tragedy of Subaltern Nationalism delves into this, and explains why despite there being a romantic nationalism that has existed since the time of Mirza Fath Ali Akhundzadeh, it has never been able to hegemonize itself with any ruling Iranian state. No Iranian government has yet been able to create a government that fully matches the desires, culture, and mythologies of Iranians. The IR has come close, but if it fails to pursue reforms, it'll go down the same path as other governments.


Since you already have some familiarity with nationalist writers, I think you'll appreciate this analysis.


Edit: Added book link

The Power of Place by Harm de Blij is in the same vein and really interesting. It discusses how geography is still impeding globalization not just in Africa, but across the world. Isn't as historical as Guns, Germs and Steel, but it shows you how a region's religion, culture, and nature can trap its people.

There's a book about Robert Ho Tung, Irene Cheng, Jean Gittins & Joyce Symons based on their memoirs. Haven't read it, found out about it because the author quotes Sui Sin Far.

Being Eurasian: Memories Across Racial Divides, Vicky Lee

>This book is a description and analysis of the lives of three famous Hong Kong Eurasian memoirists, Joyce Symons, Irene Cheng and Jean Gittins, and explores their very different ways of constructing and looking at their own ethnic identity.

https://www.amazon.com/Being-Eurasian-Memories-Across-Divides/dp/9622096719

>>It is not capitalism's fault if people fail to save.
>
>
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> It is if they can't afford to.

Only if there is an alternative system which produces more wealth than capitalism, which there isn't.

We live in a world where some people have accumulated million-dollar fortunes by retirement by saving a quarter a week and investing it. Literally.

The biggest problem of most poor people is not that they do not make enough money, that is a symptom of the real problem. The biggest problem is a high time-preference mindset that causes them to make different choices than people with a low time-preference mindset, the former is strongly correlated with poverty, for obvious reasons once you study the mindset, and the latter mindset with wealth.

Banfield wrong a book called "the Unheavenly City" where he goes into these concepts.

Another good one is "Life at the Bottom" by Dalrymple, where he explains the themes and outcomes of a high time-preference culture in the British underclass poor, which are primarily white (thus removing racial elements that could muddy such a study).

> raising or lowering minimum wage will not and cannot solve the problems that socialists have with capitalism.

True enough, and the ideal MW is also no MW.

Thanks, this was really interesting! I had heard of burakumin before, but I didn't know a lot of this other context. Other articles about them tend to focus a lot on the marriage issue too, rather than the unemployment and poverty levels, which I always wondered about.

A book I've had on my to-read list forever: Japan's Minorities: The illusion of homogeneity

Quite informed. I'm a Catalan :-)

Suggestions:

• Barcelona, Catalonia: A View from the Inside by Matthew Tree an English guy who has been living here for many years and is a writer (in both Catalan and English).
  
  
• What's up with Catalonia?: The causes which impel them to the separation cured by Liz Castro, from the US, but a compilation of texts mostly written by Catalans.
  
  
• What Catalans Want (B&W): Could Catalonia be Europe's Next State? by Toni Strubell, a pro independence activist. Take a look at the reviews.
  
  
• The deplorable history of the Catalans, from their first engaging in the war, to the time of their reduction. With the motives, declarations, and engagements, on which they first took arms written in the 18th century, about the succession war and how the Brittish betrayed us.
  
  
• Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell. Just an episode of history, 1936-1939, and not really centered in Catalonia, but worth reading.
  
  
• Homage to Barcelona same title, but nothing to do with the previous one. By Irish writer Colm Tóibín, an introduction to Catalan culture and history.

>You have never once proposed anything that would improve the lives of "all people".

Incorrect.

> Your entire viewpoint suffers from the absurd belief that the "entrepreneur creative" class is somehow going to be enriched at the expense of Detroit's poor. There is zero basis for that conclusion.

There is a lot of basis for that conclusion. Wicker Park, Chicago; East English Village, NY. Try reading this book while you're at it. Try reading the whole backlash against Richard Florida and his theories that have been shown to fail the poor. Or maybe look at this book about exactly how creatives can make the lives of the poor way worse. Or maybe pick up a book on these subjects instead of just spouting what the media narrative is, because guess what, smarter people than me have looked at these issues for a number of years and written far more than what your average "Spotlight on Slow's" is going to produce.

>Your entire worldview is rooted in jealousy, incompetence, and a nasty inferiority complex. You contribute nothing.

Dude, never have I ever called you a name or used an ad hom toward you personally. I attack arguments, not people. (Except LDTA, but he certainly unloaded on me way before I unloaded on him.) What is the matter with you today? That's just out of line and hurts your own line of argumentation. Your worldview is based in faith in failed models, oh wait, I have no idea your worldview because I don't know you. Amazing that you'd have the audacity to make such assumptions about me. You don't know me.

>Do you think that's who is going to be cooking the burgers in the back of Michael Symon's new place

LOL. The problem with this argument is that the "job creation" by this "boom" is stuff like this. Flipping Burgers to serve to high end clientele. Your example exactly proves what's wrong with your hopes. That is the trickle-down dream.

EDIT: Also, this assumption that I hate businesses opening in Detroit is absolutely without merit. I critique the idea that it will somehow "Save Detroit" when the benefits seldom are seen here. Frankly, I miss this thread way more than what yours turned into here.

Yeah, the sheer amount of countries the U.S. and Co. have destabilised is astounding.

Blair and Bush waddling into Iraq and Afghanistan for an illegal and pointless war that replaced Hussein with something far worse, 20 years of bloodshed from innocent civilians caught up in it in the afflicted countries as well as retaliatory terror attacks abroad, however many thousands on both sides that have died fighting a pointless war.

Then going back you’ve got Panama/Guatemala/Iran/Venezuela/Vietnam and probably plenty others I’ve missed where the U.S. has either tried or successfully destabilised the existing government worth something that’s often far worse.

You’re right though, Crimea used to be Russian and the fact that a lot of ethnic Russians still reside there was one of the reasons cited as justification for the annexation. If you’re interested, Tim Marshall did a great book that covered this (main focus is geopolitics and problems in the world today that exist because of artificial borders like in the Middle East, East/West tensions, rise of China as a superpower and the outward pressure its exerting in SEA, Pakistan/Indian tensions and of course plenty on the U.S. Highly recommend it if you want to get more clued in, his writing style is brilliant as well).

As for Trump, I was referring to the election meddling. Russians saw an opportunity and took it. Same with Brexit.

There are lots of more sources to confirm Israel's assistance to Iran during the war. But like always, you chose to be in denial.
These are dozens of other sources confirming the deals between Iran and Israel through different perspectives. You're more than welcome to red-pill yourself out of the category of "poorly informed people":

• Mark Phythian's Arming Iraq also points out the details of how Reagan permitted Israel to sell arms to Iran, to prevent a fast Iraqi victory. This of course goes to tell the arm sells wasn't for the goodwill of Iranians, but rather to prolong Saddam's victory. Regardless, it confirms Israel's arms deal with Iran, which after 8 years 'did' result in 'goodwill' of Iranian people.
  
  
  
• The book The secret war with Iran jumps into details of Israel's assistance to Iran during the war and even post war.
  
  
• Tita Parsi's treacherous alliance goes into the details of what was bought and sold during the war, and how the treaties and sales were conducted. Don't hit me with "he's a well known anti-Iranian author, unless you have the resources to back it up.
  
  
  
• The Iran-contra sources confirm the same story, in addition to bringing more evident light to the rumoured claims that "Israel supplied more than half of all of Iran's arms" (search for "Irangatc: The Israel Connection" in the document to get you straight to the paragraphs I'm addressing. If you think it's curropted and you want to read the book, buy it from here).
  
  
• Another book, Israel's quest for acceptance in Asia also confirms this story, in addition to highlighting Khomeini himself approved the arm deal, in exchange for recognising Israel after the war. Classic IRI living up to promises (ツ).
  
  
• A notable figure of these deals was [Marc Rich[(http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/-king-of-oil--discloses-his--secret-lives-/7657620). A Mossad agent who conducted these sales. His side of the story is also quite interestingly in detail.
  
  
• John Bulloch's Gulf War Documentation is another source that confirms such deals; but also bring up the perspective of how Israelis not only sold arms to Iran, but also provided strong military logistical assistance, during and even after the war (during the Gulf War, for the sake of ensuring safety of Jewish communities in Abadan, and Kuwait). But there you have your kinsman bitching about how MOSSAD trained SAVAK.
  
  
• Other sources confirm Israel not only sold weapons to Iran, but also conducted strikes on Saddam's chemical arsenal during Iran-Iraq War.
  
  
• Even Pro-Palestinian resources confirm Israel's assistance to Iran.
  
  The other side of the story is just Khomeini's utter denial, which was contagious for the ones who blindly followed him. In despite of all the evidences to support Israel's assistance to Iran, you can be entitled to your opinion regardless of how true or false it is.
  
  PS: I have a bias against the "show sympathy towards Palestine and hate 8 million ordinary jews zionists" dogma that IRI has been trying to shove down everyone's throat. Rationally there is no point for anyone to want to back Palestinians. If they really wanted peace, they'd do more to oust Doofus Abbas for the sake of electing someone more responsive.