The next Nobel?

I was thinking during the week-end, following a discussion about a former laureate, who will be the next Nobel prize winner in literature? It is one of the categories I am always interested in. For the rest, I am not highly qualify to judge and utter too many opinions. Another one, the "Peace", I am convinced it is mostly politicized and don't have too many expectations. But literature...

And basically, I was thinking, what if...it will be Amos Oz? Because it is about politics here too, even the quality of the works are going far beyond the temporary divisions.

I love Oz's writings, from the children stories to the love novels. And the poetry. The contact was mostly mediated by translations, with the exception of some poetries accompanied with the English version, but still was able to fully feel the force of his words. As in the case of David Grossman, another favorite of mine, I was often disaponted by the incongruence of the political statements. Too late, too contextual, too stereotypical and biased for not being disappointed enough. Because I was expecting more intellectual strength and coherence, and the force to tell the truth and nothing but the truth. A force that I was always rely on in their writings.

Wait and see.

Was Paul Dirac so strange?

I don't think Paul Dirac was strange. In a way, he was having the normal life of a scientist, keeping himself on purpose or not away of his (very troubled) times. Lacking the glamour, extravaganza and mistery of another personality of 20st century physics, Oppenheimer (whose biography I am reading right now) Dirac was rather an autist - the dialogues between he and his wife are offering various examples in this sense. His political statements, on the side of communism, but lacking any direct involvement against the Nazis, including by sending a wake-up call to his colleagues and friends, were weak. His religious option was an understatement. I was expecting to find more scientifical background of his works. Instead, the book is a lengthy focus on various episodes of his life - with psychoanalitical interpretations. Maybe it is hard to write about scientists' lives.

The book about Madoff

Since the very beginning of the scandal, I was passionate about the "Madoff case": how it was possible to dump so many (important) people for years? What I found in this book is very simple: overexploitation of trust and of the power of networks. Not a genius, rather a very simple mind in many respects - the description of his obsession about order disclosing his ridiculous side of life - but a very abile networker. Having at its disposal an impressive pool of people keen to trust him, without reserve. Don't blame capitalism, but the human nature! As simple as that.

Kissinger bringing more matzah into the Soviet Union

A recently published document from 1976 is revealing a small part of the intense diplomatic activity during the Cold War for rescueing the Jews from the other part of the Iron Curtain. When disclosed, in the coming decades, it will offer, I am sure, an impressive amount of information about successes and changing shifts, about the diplomacy of the times and its changing benchmarks as well as about betrayals and failures.