I read a lot. I didn’t known that I did until I realized how much others don’t. (Another trait of mine, having no idea that everyone is not like me.) If a book I am reading is good, I am overly influenced by it and can’t stop telling everyone to read it. Antifragile is the latest from the ’Black Swan’ (no not the one about ballerinas) author Nicholas Nasim Taleb. He continues on his ideas of probabilities and the risks of prediction in every day life. Its really just a book about logic and philosophy. He’s a huge fan of stoics and common sense.
He is also a critic of academics, social science statistics and specifically, economists. Along the way he makes the reader want to read classic works. He makes you feel that like in antiquity, they dealt with all the bullshit we are going through today. He is a staunch critic of modernity for modernities sake. He is fundamentally an arrogant asshole, but any good writer handing difficult topics as deftly as Taleb is always going to be a dick.
I don’t agree with everything we’re asked to believe but he does a great job of explaining why he feels the way he does. It is an enlightening read with great anecdotes that will leave a reader with big and important questions to think about. He challenges you to think about your beliefs and forces us to ponder whether they hold true.
I recommend the book and would love to talk about it!
