The sequel to last year’s presentation of good reads. I’ll comment on some I think need warnings that their contents may be distressing, or which I just want to explain or draw attention to. Please flick any recommendations of good articles or websites my way!
January
Al Jazeera [Qatar]: A teenager in Zimbabwe is using taekwondo to fight child marriage - efforts like this make me love Zimbabwe
The Spinoff: Simon Bridges: As Trump’s mob storms the Capitol, here’s the book which tells us how we got here - of all people, Bridges makes this excellent discussion of governmental institutions applicable to NZ
“ “ “ “: Prison worker 'ashamed' to have worked for Department of Corrections - these two articles help explore what the Waikeria riot could have drawn attention to, if the event got more coverage
The Guardian [UK]: 'Colonialism had never really ended': my life in the shadow of Cecil Rhodes - this is the single most nuanced and sophisticated perspective I’ve ever heard on my family’s home country
“ “ “ “: PMDD: the little-known condition having a big impact on women’s mental health - warning for anyone uncomfortable reading about depression & suicidal thoughts, or periods
Politico [US]: The Education of Josh Hawley
RNZ: John Banks' on-air comments: 'Why do we keep giving these people a platform?' - a straight-talking, no-nonsense defence of cancel culture
Politico: To Counter China’s Rise, the U.S. Should Focus on Xi - this is an accessible summary of the Longer Telegram, which sadly failed to make much of a splash but I may discuss this year
February
Politico: Nikki Haley’s Choice
March
TIME [US]: Elliot Page Is Ready for This Moment
VICE [Canada]: This Dad’s Emotional Defense of His Trans Daughter’s Rights Is Going Viral - the most moving video I’ve seen concerning trans rights
Noēma [US]: The Fantasy of Political Intimacy
April
Politico: Andrew Yang’s Asian American Superpower - while I’ve never been with the #YangGang, his final quote in this article lived rent-free in my head for weeks
“ “ “ “: Asia's isle of five separate genders
Quartz [US]: Forty years ago, Bob Marley paid his own way to play Zimbabwe’s iconic independence concert - mash it up in a Zimbabwe
Al Jazeera: Totalitarianism at 38th and Chicago: A Minnesotan lie - a horrifying piece that pulls no punch
The Guardian: The clitoris, pain and pap smears: how Our Bodies, Ourselves redefined women’s health - obviously, warning for a bunch of body stuff
Politico: ‘I’d Never Been Involved in Anything as Secret as This’ - “The plan to kill Osama bin Laden—from the spycraft to the assault to its bizarre political backdrop—as told by the people in the room.”
BBC: The 'Stomp Reflex': When governments abuse emergency powers - I typically dismiss paranoia about creeping authoritarianism in Western liberal democracies; this is a powerful counterargument against “she’ll be right” perspectives like mine
May
E-Tangata: Ōrewa’s ugly echoes
New Statesman [UK]: Tony Blair: Without total change Labour will die - it says something that this article has so many stupid lines, such as “A progressive party seeking power which looks askance at the likes of Trevor Phillips, Sara Khan or JK Rowling is not going to win”, yet I still found enough genuine insights in here to bookmark a piece by Tony “War Criminal” Blair
“ “ “ “: As a Jewish New Zealander I am ashamed by Israel's long history of inflaming tensions in the Mideast
June
Harper’s [US]: The Anxiety of Influencers: Educating the TikTok generation - bleakly, farcically uproarious; my favourite piece of the year
July
The Atlantic [US]: How America Fractured Into Four Parts - an accurate essay that encapsulates the state of modern society across much of the West
NZ Herald: Teacher makes 200 job applications, but still can't get permanent work: 'Is it because I'm Muslim?'
E-Tangata: They’re not worthy — they’re not ‘us’
August
Politico: Where Republicans Are Starting to Worry About Big Oil - an incredibly informative deep dive into oil extraction, and the interplay between geography and human society
Newsroom: Andrew Little’s hospital pass - the most bluntly honest I’ve heard a current minister be, whether you agree or disagree with him
The Guardian: In Pakistan we cultivated the Taliban, then turned on them. Now we can only hope they forgive us
September
The Guardian: ‘Like Game of Thrones’: how triple crisis on China’s borders will shape its global identity
E-Tangata: Solar power and forgiveness
Ms. Magazine [US]: Race, Disability and Coercive Control: One More Look at the Gabby Petito Case - terrifying stuff
October
Stuff: Patricia, at peace: the 79-year-old transgender woman who waited her whole life to be herself
RNZ: Why plain language is such an important skill - the attached podcast episode, interviewing Nelson Labour MP Rachel Boyack, is worth a listen
Stuff: Labour without Jacinda Ardern is unthinkable - but that's just what the party is doing - my own thoughts on this here
November
i [UK]: The secret court case 50 years ago that has robbed transgender people of their rights ever since
The Atlantic: The Bad Guys Are Winning - the fascinating, scary story of how dictatorships cooperate
Current Affairs [US]: A Contentious Conversation on Systemic Racism in America
December
The Guardian: When a far-right candidate has ‘le buzz’, France shouldn’t take young people for granted - an insightful study into what issues voters prioritise
The Ringer [US]: Coldplay—and Especially “Fix You”—Deserve a Better Legacy
Vox [US]: What we don’t know about OCD
And to round off the year, the sausage roll-gate saga:
The Spinoff: It was me. I ate all the sausage rolls
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