Andrew Batson
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10 October
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1 August
From one piece Real talk about the exchange rate 3 beliefs, in the piece's order there
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korrents.com
China's tolerance of deflation has caused widespread underemployment and unemployment among its youth.Their words
Policy decisions have condemned a generation of Chinese youth to widespread under- and un-employment.
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korrents.com
Complaining about China's trade surpluses and excess capacity has not worked and will not work.Their words
I think complaining about trade surpluses and excess capacity has not worked, and is not going to work.
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korrents.com
China's real exchange rate should appreciate through higher domestic inflation, not currency revaluation.Their words
My view is that an appreciation of China's REER is very much to be desired, but the real (haha) way to get there is through higher inflation domestically, and that means different macro policies.
30 July
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28 December 2025
16 December 2025
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Lovedrcmnd.app
Red HarvestTheir words
I re-read all of Hammett's novels this year, and this, his first, held up the best.
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Likedrcmnd.app
The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnTheir words
Twain's original is, still, the better book.
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Lovedrcmnd.app
OrbitalTheir words
One of the most perfectly crafted pieces of prose I've ever read; short, basically plotless, almost unbearably intense.
+ 11 more
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Likedrcmnd.app
Cahokia JazzTheir words
A hard-boiled mystery set in an alternative 1920s America, by turns familiar and strange.
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Lovedrcmnd.app
Crossing to SafetyTheir words
Stegner's last, great work is an understated, closely observed portrait of the relationship between two couples.
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Recommendsrcmnd.app
The Ebb-TideTheir words
Stevenson's last published novel is not particularly famous but deserves to be better known.
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Lovedrcmnd.app
The Lantern-Bearers and Other EssaysTheir words
Stevenson is best known as a novelist, but I think I prefer his nonfiction: he had an interesting life and was interested in lots of things, and the sentences are marvelous and daring.
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Likedrcmnd.app
The Lumumba PlotTheir words
Nominally a biography of Patrice Lumumba, this book is actually a gripping, blow-by-blow account of how the Congo stumbled to independence from Belgian rule.
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Lovedrcmnd.app
The Indian IdeologyTheir words
Out of all the reading on India I did this year to prepare for my first visit, this was my favorite: compact, punchy, and argumentative, packed with erudition and information.
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Likedrcmnd.app
Specimen DaysTheir words
Tying them all together is Whitman's love for the American landscape and people, and his unique voice, so fresh he still seems like a contemporary.
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Likedrcmnd.app
The Secret of Our SuccessTheir words
Not every plank in his argument is convincing, and the research has evolved since the book first came out a decade ago, but the ambition is impressive and the framework holds up.
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Likedrcmnd.app
The Wide Wide SeaTheir words
The causes and meaning of those events have been debated ever since, and Sides delivers a careful, sympathetic and engaging account of the entirety of Cook's final expedition.
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Likedrcmnd.app
I Deliver Parcels in BeijingTheir words
Perhaps the best of the various gig-worker memoirs published in recent years.
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Likedrcmnd.app
Disputing Disaster: A Sextet on the Great WarTheir words
I also enjoyed Anderson's Disputing Disaster: A Sextet on the Great War
23 November 2025
From one piece China bows to de-industrialization 2 beliefs, in the piece's order there
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Their words
There's even a case to be made that those policies actually depressed the manufacturing share of GDP: by boosting output and capacity above where they would have been otherwise, subsidies probably contributed to the sustained decline in prices for China's manufactured goods over the past few years, weighing on their share of nominal output.
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korrents.com
A declining manufacturing share of GDP as an economy matures reflects economic success rather than decline.Their words
Both of these trends are a consequence of economic success, in terms of higher output and productivity: at least some of what is decried as "de-industrialization" is good actually. It is also good for China's planners to recognize that reality and not distort the economy in pursuit of an impossible outcome.
19 October 2025
From one piece Exams are everything in China 2 beliefs, in the piece's order there
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korrents.com
Centralized, hierarchical competitive tournaments are effective at creating strong incentives.Their words
Also, centralized hierarchical tournaments seem to be good at creating very effective incentives.
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korrents.com
A government's political legitimacy depends on providing a fair, merit-based channel for social advancement.Their words
One possible reading of the last century or so of political history in China, therefore, is that governments who provide a meritocratic channel for social advancement have legitimacy and popular support, and governments who do not provide one, do not.
12 October 2025
From one piece First explorations in Indian classical music 2 beliefs, in the piece's order there
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korrents.com
For listeners, shorter pieces are usually more enjoyable than long, unedited improvisationsTheir words
Improvisers can be prolix and reluctant to edit themselves, but for listeners shorter is usually better.
First explorations in Indian classical musicandrewbatson.com
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Their words
modern instruments generally have more reliable tone, wider range, and better projection than traditional instruments-they are better as instruments.
First explorations in Indian classical musicandrewbatson.com
29 August 2025
From one piece Historical trajectories of local government in India and China 2 beliefs, in the piece's order there
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korrents.com
Competition and experimentation among local officials has been a major driver of China's economic growth.Their words
China does much better in basic service delivery-and its local governments have also played a very obvious and important in driving growth, thanks to the competition and experimentation among local officials driven to develop their jurisdictions.
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korrents.com
China's stronger local-level state capacity than India's helps explain their diverging long-run economic performance.Their words
On this measure, state capacity at the local level looks much stronger in China than in India, which helps explain some of the long-running economic differences between them.
13 August 2025
From one piece Who believes in China’s output gap? 2 beliefs, in the piece's order there
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Their words
But for a variety of reasons I think it makes more sense to stay agnostic about forecasts of potential GDP growth, and focus more on the signals the current performance of the economy is sending.
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korrents.com
China faces a genuine, sizable output gap right now, not just a lower structural growth ceiling.Their words
I'm with the markets here: I believe in the output gap. The structural slowdown of the Chinese economy is an incredibly consensus view, and I believe in it too.
5 August 2025
28 July 2025
Nothing matches.
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