tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039434.post6889441693947578581..comments2024-02-26T06:46:53.171-05:00Comments on Rajiv Sethi: Claiming AncestorsRajivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13667685126282705505noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039434.post-35992245822581826562010-05-10T12:22:16.275-04:002010-05-10T12:22:16.275-04:00Jimmi Bagbo, about thirty miles south of Bo, on th...Jimmi Bagbo, about thirty miles south of Bo, on the Bo-Pujehun road. I was teaching Mathematics at the Government Secondary School there and the book was lent to me by Ibrahim Dabor, the school principal.Rajivhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13667685126282705505noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039434.post-87479211883680710932010-05-10T12:08:03.376-04:002010-05-10T12:08:03.376-04:00"I too claim Baldwin, whose Notes of a Native..."I too claim Baldwin, whose Notes of a Native Son I first read with choking emotion in a village in Sierra Leone at the age of twenty-one ..."<br />Do you remember the village in Sierra Leone?. It must have been Long Ago. I am from Sierra Leone and I your posts are must read for me.<br />M. BahBah, Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18172531606365444791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039434.post-16778041192194761552010-04-16T13:36:38.230-04:002010-04-16T13:36:38.230-04:00Kevin, Stergios, thanks to you both.Kevin, Stergios, thanks to you both.Rajivhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13667685126282705505noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039434.post-343368355713419562010-04-16T11:51:49.827-04:002010-04-16T11:51:49.827-04:00I'm sure it can be hard to write about topics ...I'm sure it can be hard to write about topics that resonate on an emotional level. The internet is a difficult medium in that regard.<br /><br />Still, much like yourself, the readers of this blog have other concerns in life besides economics and finance. So it's nice to read articulate, thoughtful posts on a variety of topics. The essays you linked to are pretty profound in their understanding of american culture. <br /><br />From a personal standpoint, it is especially rewarding to read about Baldwin, a topic that strays from the hyper-rational mathematical world we work in, from someone who I know can think in that rigorous a way, and appreciates other people who do.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00263026838165166976noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039434.post-88090085797956456072010-04-16T11:42:23.531-04:002010-04-16T11:42:23.531-04:00Wonderful post, Rajiv.Wonderful post, Rajiv.kevin quinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04880872194080353414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039434.post-52345936947745025452010-04-16T10:38:46.569-04:002010-04-16T10:38:46.569-04:00Thanks Stergios. I've spent a lot of time in E...Thanks Stergios. I've spent a lot of time in Europe, including ten formative years growing up in England and two later on in Germany, and did occasionally encounter the reflexive anti-Americanism and cultural condescension to which you refer. But this was not an easy post to write, perhaps I should stick to topics in economics and finance where I can maintain some emotional distance.Rajivhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13667685126282705505noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039434.post-54015728845922846372010-04-15T17:33:59.636-04:002010-04-15T17:33:59.636-04:00A wonderful post, Rajiv. To tell the truth, I am ...A wonderful post, Rajiv. To tell the truth, I am slightly aghast at Saul Bellow's quote. Especially b/c he is a contemporary writer. I wonder if the context is a forgiving one. <br /><br />Still, it is always jarring to see revered intellectual figures slip into questionable moral territory. Europeans are especially bad at this. I recall reading some awful stuff in Steppenwolf.<br /><br />As a foreigner, I can relate to your statement about Baldwin. It's strange what this country can do to you, if you allow yourself to be receptive to its complexities. <br /><br />That's why I get so annoyed when European elites dismiss Americans as a bunch of fat Jesus freaks who "don't even have passports!". These people have obviously never bothered to read Baldwin, or listen to Neil Young, or watch Short Cuts. Theirs is just such an impoverished view of this incredibly rich country.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00263026838165166976noreply@blogger.com