Scathing. "His books are an oasis of boredom in a desert of horror."
The last thing we need is more dystopian hopelessness. The imbeciles who run the panopticon don't have the faintest idea what to do next, so they just do things that will hurt people they despise. This makes them feel like they are doing something about problems they don't understand, cannot fix, and in most cases which they created themselves, or which are imaginary. That does not feel long-term stable to me. On the other side of the inevitable bonfire of this garbage pile lies ... something else. It might even be good. It might be good if we think about what it might be. An oasis of boredom is at best a temporary rest stop, not a place to stay for long, and provides little guidance for the post-dystopian world.
BTW this essay was good enough to make me a paid subscriber, despite my desperately limited cash. Pat yourself on the back.
Infocracy was the final straw for me. As you noted, the redundancy of his texts — oscillating and self-referencing tautologically to the same five or six ideas, over and over and over again, but with slightly new, cool and detached window dressing — got old. I still adore Agony of Eros and Expulsion of the Other, though.
I do want to clarify, though: Han’s brevity shouldn’t be so criticized. There’s nothing intrinsically wrong with that. Terseness is characteristically German. It’s fitting. But inasmuch as Han’s brevity implicates his substance — yeah, I’m on the same page with that.
I am not familiar with Han, but this is excellently written, and it tracks very well with a lot of "safe" critics of modernity. Muh globalized alienation, but never dare defend anything vital or premodern against it.
There's no argument in Han that hasn't been made 100 times better, 30 and 50 years ago, by far superior thinkers. It's airport-reading social-philosophy slop.
His is typical modern German intellectual cowardice. Total submission to the establishment's "allowed thoughts", under a thin vereer of "independent thinking". Even someone like Malcom Gladwell would loom like an intellectual giant among them...
Psychopolitics hit a deeply depressing nail squarely on the head the head, but it is optimistic book in the most profound sense. It provides possible solutions from a an honest appraisal. There is true, nutritious hope in that book.
Scathing. "His books are an oasis of boredom in a desert of horror."
The last thing we need is more dystopian hopelessness. The imbeciles who run the panopticon don't have the faintest idea what to do next, so they just do things that will hurt people they despise. This makes them feel like they are doing something about problems they don't understand, cannot fix, and in most cases which they created themselves, or which are imaginary. That does not feel long-term stable to me. On the other side of the inevitable bonfire of this garbage pile lies ... something else. It might even be good. It might be good if we think about what it might be. An oasis of boredom is at best a temporary rest stop, not a place to stay for long, and provides little guidance for the post-dystopian world.
BTW this essay was good enough to make me a paid subscriber, despite my desperately limited cash. Pat yourself on the back.
Thank you. We're grateful. Will aim to keep the quality high.
Infocracy was the final straw for me. As you noted, the redundancy of his texts — oscillating and self-referencing tautologically to the same five or six ideas, over and over and over again, but with slightly new, cool and detached window dressing — got old. I still adore Agony of Eros and Expulsion of the Other, though.
I said terseness, not tenseness. And I meant precisely what I wrote.
I do want to clarify, though: Han’s brevity shouldn’t be so criticized. There’s nothing intrinsically wrong with that. Terseness is characteristically German. It’s fitting. But inasmuch as Han’s brevity implicates his substance — yeah, I’m on the same page with that.
Tenseness is characteristic of German? How does that account for Heidegger, etx?
Maybe you mean contemporary German?
I am not familiar with Han, but this is excellently written, and it tracks very well with a lot of "safe" critics of modernity. Muh globalized alienation, but never dare defend anything vital or premodern against it.
Trash. The author fails to understand Han’s argument that runs through his books which is the expulsion of the other. This critique is embarrassing.
There's no argument in Han that hasn't been made 100 times better, 30 and 50 years ago, by far superior thinkers. It's airport-reading social-philosophy slop.
You’re an idiot
Thank you for your second highly elaborate, argument-full, intellectual critique...
There was nothing in your comment to respond to
In that, it was a homage to Han's work.
This is the classic "I would have written a different book" book review.
His is typical modern German intellectual cowardice. Total submission to the establishment's "allowed thoughts", under a thin vereer of "independent thinking". Even someone like Malcom Gladwell would loom like an intellectual giant among them...
Oh God. This was, so poorly written. You haven't been able to understand the books and it shows.
Apparently Han doesn't shriek about immigration so why bother to understand anything beyond that?
These people are retarded.
Psychopolitics hit a deeply depressing nail squarely on the head the head, but it is optimistic book in the most profound sense. It provides possible solutions from a an honest appraisal. There is true, nutritious hope in that book.