Reading Wednesday 27/01

[liv]

Recently read: I wanted to share two profiles of people I admire:

Rabbi Arthur Waskow, profiled by Ben Harris in the Jewish Telegraphic agency. CN: police violence.

Zeynep Tüfekçi, profiled by Antonio Garcia-Martinez. CN: pandemic.

Tüfekçi I think of as a sort of Cassandra of the pandemic. There's some incredible stuff in the article about how she took a stand against the WHO and the CDC to promote mask wearing when they opposed it, and taking precautions for airborne transmission when that was considered controversial, and just generally being repeatedly right when major authorities were wrong.

Actually that's an interesting question: who do you go to for good information about the pandemic? My list, apart from Tüfekçi, is:

• Ed Yong, always a favourite science / medicine journalist has done some really good pieces explaining both the science and the social impact.
• Muge Cevik explains the science at a good level of technical detail, and is particularly good at debunking rubbish on social media.
• Trisha Greenhalgh has both carried out and communicated a huge amount of research on how best to respond to the pandemic, masks are her big thing but also harm reduction and clinical management.
• Christina Pagel of Independent SAGE has been tirelessly informing the public and calling to account the politicians on society-level responses to the pandemic.
• Dominic Pimenta reports the reality on the ground of the impact of uncontrolled disease spread on hospitals, and has sensible, measured suggestions for how the public should behave to minimize transmission.
• And of course our own siderea who is creating a magnum opus on all aspects of coping with the pandemic, from keeping an eye on scientific developments, to political awareness, to the practicalities of living through the apocalypse. 185 posts and counting, and she's been right faster and more often than just about anyone else save Tüfekçi.

Currently reading: Emma by Jane Austen, mainly because it's Judith's set book and I'm interested in what she's learning. It's perhaps not as consistently hilarious as some of Austen's stuff, and sometimes verges on the cringey, but it's good to reread.

Up next: There's a sequel to The Goblin Emperor! I'm very very excited to read The witness for the dead by Katherine Addison, but I'm not sure when it's actually going to be available for me to rush to the internet and buy. so maybe I should pick something else first.

Comments

[seekingferret]

My primary source for pandemic info is freeradical42's newsletter Covid Transmissions.

[librarygeek]

I adore Rabbi Waskow. Yes, I have met him, and was the volunteer setting up chairs for one of his services at an Aleph Kallah in 2018. He's fiercely for all the human and environmental rights, and yet cheerful and amused with a twinkle in his eye. And he blessed *me* for volunteering as the thanks offering for surviving open heart surgery the previous year!

He's married to Rabbi Phyllis Berman and watching the 2 of them dissecting the people who would hurt others, and still supporting the underdogs and each other, is a wonderful thing to watch. ✡️💙😇

[to_do_list]

I've discovered Zeynep Tüfekçi several months ago, thank you for the profile!

Also, I just read the Goblin Emperor two weeks ago, after it's been on my list for several years. I LOVED it. And I am super excited about the other book but from what I have read, it is not a sequel, yet another standalone with focus on different characters. However, if it takes place after the events of the first book, I am still hoping for glimpses into what happened after.

Pandemic reporting

[(Anonymous)]

I place great store on New Scientist's coverage of the pandemic. As you know, the responsible Head of Features is Cathy de Lange.

I also like Tom Whipple's explanations in The Times.

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