#i think i might like sir guy better than laurie

[fictionadventurer]

It's not like I know a lot about the publishing history of Little Women, but I'm still shocked that I only recently heard about The Heir of Redclyffe as an influence on it. Because the earlier book centers around an orphaned young man who inherited musical talent from his Italian mother, was raised by a strict grandfather, gets semi-adopted into a lively family circle, struggles with passionate emotions, and falls in love with their daughter Amy.

[havebell71-blog]

Manager With Perks By Lelani Black-- Evaluations, Conversation, Bookclubs, Lists.

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[writingsofawanderingwonderer]

Fixing “Genius Jerk” Characters

This is a follow up to this previous article I wrote.

Okay, so I've been seeing several articles, academic thesis essays, Twitter threads, and thought-pieces on the idea that TV geniuses in stories these days are smart, and use this as an excuse to act like a jerk. Works like BBC Sherlock, House MD, and Rick and Morty were mentioned.

What's disappointed me quite a bit is that I haven't really come across a piece that suggests solutions to this growing cliche. There's been (really good and thoughtful) explorations on why it started and why it's problematic, but nothing along the lines of, "Dear writers, this is how you avoid this writing pitfall."

So since a lot of great writers have covered the other aspects, I'll try to delve into this particular area.

First, some ground rules on my perspective on which genius-type characters fit into this trope, and where. Think of it like a spectrum or greys, rather than black-and-white:

- I can't judge House MD properly. I tried watching the series, but I couldn't get into in. It's super-weird to see Hugh Laurie play an American when I'm soooo used to seeing him in Jeeves & Wooster and A Bit of Fry & Laurie.

- I still stand by my idea that Sherlock is more of a grump than a jerk. He's anti-social, and I think the world needs such people. Grumps are honest. Brutally-honest. No one likes to be the first one to yell, "The Emperor has no clothes!" * but the grumps of the world do it for us.

*(Or in this case, "The police are useless!")

To me, Sherlock's case is not so much like "being stuck in line at the cashier w/ someone using a check," so much as "watching a healthy person throw their health away (and burn their money away) by smoking. Also, they're smoking next to a 'no smoking' sign, a baby carriage, a puppy, a person using a medical breathing apparatus, and seriously, why is no one else but the grump pointing out thatthere'ssomethingwrongwiththis?"

Is it a feeling of superiority? Yes, but it's a feeling placed on a character that should know better. Not a character who is "just not a genius."

Maybe it's also because I find Sherlock's comments funny, so I give it a pass (I'm pretty sure everyone in the audience laughed when he shouted at the police, "Where is her case?! Did she eat it?"). I like to think there's more to it than that, however.

As an example of what I mean, look at his interactions in an early scene in the first episode:

- Calls Sergant Donovan out on her unprofessional behaviour.

- Also, she calls Sherlock names first. In front of Watson. After being told that Lestrade (her boss) that Sherlock was called in to help her.

- Sherlock gets frustrated that the police are acting incompetent. It is, after all, their job to solve mysteries. Sherlock volunteers and is not paid by them.

When your police are these guys, there's a problem.

I don't think Sherlock ever crosses the line into being a jerk rather than an honest grump, but that might just be me.

- Rick crosses the line. He's a jerk just to be a jerk. He believes that being nice is what "less-smart people do to hedge their bets." If anything, Rick's attitude hinders him because (if you think about this logically) if you're nice to a person, they'll likely want to help you back. If you're rude to the person, they'll try to actively brick-wall you (like, you know when someone rudely asks you for directions, so instead of giving directions to them at your normal speed, you try to explain the directions in the slowest, most complicated way possible in the hopes that they'll be late for whatever they're trying to get to, and then they hopefully learn their lesson and ask for directions more politely next time? It's like that).

I'm getting a wee bit off-track. Moving on...

- Henry (from The Book of Henry) also crosses the line. Folded Ideas did a great postmortem video that touches upon why Henry comes off as unlikable in the film, even though the film tries to establish that he's popular at his school.

Okay, now that that's outta the way, I can give some suggestions on how to avoid this trope.

Actually, I'll have to quickly give some reasons why this trope exists, and why it feels recent.

A long time ago--we're talkin', fairytale-era of storytelling here--physical strength was seen as a more obvious strength. So to teach children/the audience that strengths of intelligence, the hero of a story would be a trickster who used their intelligence to get out of a dangerous situation and/or solve the main conflict.

However, with the Internet and modern-conveniences, it's now actually reversed: Being smart is seen as more important than having muscle. Even action films tend to have the hero save the day through some sort of "trick," using a plan, improvising a plan, or exercising intellectual strategy.

So, how would a writer remedy this? Well, having social skills is also very important, so instead of making the hero "smart by physically weak," make them "smart but socially-awkward."

However, this became a problem when people started to see social awkwardness as endearing and likeable. Even to other characters. Adorkable, you might say. I think the breaking-point for audiences across the globe was Bella Swan’s clumsiness being framed as her main flaw. Being awkward became a strength rather than a weakness.

So, what were writers' solution to this new problem? What was the next step in the evolution of the archetypal genius?

Make them smart, but also a jerk.

Ah. Here we are now.

"I am not good at people skills, but I'm smart and that should be rewarded."

Oh dear.

Now, some writers have gotten around this by implying that the hero will become less selfish and more selfless as the story progresses. It's their character arc. Rick and Morty and BBC Dirk Gently are examples of this, but it raises a possible problem: What will their weakness be if they lose this flaw? Will they turn into a flawless--and therefore, less deep--character?

But until I see these character arcs fully come into fruition (and since BBC Dirk Gently was cancelled, that seems unlikely), we won't know if they'll feel flawless and boring.

With genius jerks, there's also this sense of theme. Something like, "Everyone else is a sheep. I dance to the beat of a different drum, so I'm better than them." Which is something that, as I grow older, I find less and less... charming. (It's also a mindset that I'll hopefully explore more deeply in my upcoming detective games.)

I get why it's a popular idea. And I get why I loved it so much when I was a lot younger...

When you're in school, you feel different from other students because you all have different tastes and are forced to stay in close proximity to one another for several years. You feel like the only outsider because you feel like everyone else is hanging out with everyone else. "Everyone else is a sheep."

But as you get older, you realise that just about everyone else was feeling the exact same thing at the exact same time. It now becomes, "There's no such thing as a 'normal, average' human. We all have a story."

There are still jerks and idiots out there, but you'll find that just because you didn't see a stranger as eccentric or outstanding, that doesn't make them a sheep.

Oh, by the way, the above is also linked to a cliche I'm getting rather sick of where a writer/character automatically thinks that if they wear a kooky/colourful outfit, that automatically makes them an eccentric character. I'm sorry, but just trying to copy the Fourth Doctor's outfit does not make your character have a personality like him too. It's the equivalent of designers who think that just sticking some gears on something will automatically make it Steampunk. As Sir Terry Pratchett put it, "It takes more than heavy mascara and a pale complexion to cross the divide."

The Fourth Doctor. Not just a colourful scarf.

Okay, okay, I'll try to stay on-topic...

Ahem.

Another problem is that the detective/scientist/genius/etc can only be as smart as their writer. That's why you end up with episodes of 2016 MacGyver solving problems in really dumb illogical ways: The writers probably don't have a bachelor's degree in physics and chemistry.

You know, that thing MacGyver is supposed to have?

I really need to write a review for 2016 MacGyver, it was so disappointing compared to 1985 MacGyver.

Oh, right. Back to genius jerks.

So let's sum up the problems of writing genius jerks:

- It can make the character insufferably unlikable.

- It creates the theme, "I am not good at people skills, but I'm smart and that should be rewarded," into the story.

- It creates the theme, "Everyone else is a sheep."

- It's becoming overdone.

These are the reasons why it's hard to avoid the genius jerk trope:

- If they're a genius, them need to have a flaw to counter-balance that.

- Being socially-awkward (rather than a jerk) is no longer seen as a true character flaw.

- Fully-removing the "jerk" aspect from the character (through a character arc) makes them flawless (boring).

And now, for the writers out there, here are some ways to solve this problem:

- Go back to making the genius hero's flaw being not physically-strong:

-- The problem with this is that their foil character (read as: their partner) is usually the physically-strong one. So having the genius become physically-strong can wreck their relationship dynamic. They are meant to complete each other.

- Make the genius' flaw being a coward:

-- Wheatley's portrayal in "Blue Sky" (Portal 2) is a brilliant example of this. He's not the brightest bulb, but he can hack terminals very well and knows the workings of the lab facility better than Portal 2's protagonist, Chell. He's so cowardly, he tries to leave Chell to die near the beginning of the plot. But by the end, he becomes willing to give up everything for her. 

-- Johnny Powell (The Darkness II) is also a good example. He's an expert in darkness relics (magical objects you collect throughout the game so that he can identify them), but he's very meek (one of the early missions requires you to rescue him). However, near the end of the game, he actually gets to save you instead.

- Make the genius book-smart, but not street-smart:

-- Maybe they've studied in an academy in a safe, secluded part of the story's world, away from the main conflict of the plot. Maybe they're young and inexperienced, but have self-taught themselves some very useful knowledge. Either way, the genius is lacking in experience, so even though they're smart, they're not quiet cut-out for the dangerous situations they'll need to face.

- They're smart and nice, but evil-aligned:

-- You know how I've said that grumpy doesn't equal being a jerk? Well, being nice and polite doesn't equal being good.

-- Raven from my favourite noir film, This Gun For Hire is an example of this. He's a rare example of a noir protagonist who doesn't start out as a detective. He's a gun-for-hire assassin. He's introduced by shooting a man to steal documents for someone (who turns out to be a baddie). However, we also see Raven stop to help a little girl retrieve her toy ball before he leaves (which is very nice of him, considering that the police are coming and he has to get out of the building fast). He eventually not only brings justice by solving the mystery, but he also decided to switch to the good side.

Anything I’m missing? Let me know!

[imheresothedeadcanrestinpea-blog]

Do strong female characters still exists?

It’s me again. Been a while, right? well... this post has been created thanks to a random thought in my brain were I compared Sarah (from Labyrinth) and Tauriel (yes, her again, I know that many years have passed but I’m still pissed by her existence).

So what do we understand by “Strong Female Character” or, better yet, what do we want as one?

Lately the entertainment industry has placed in our brains that a Strong Woman is the one who can kick ass just as good as a man. Is it like that? My answer is no.

A Strong Character (male or female) is the one that doesn’t give up no matter if the odds are on it’s favor or not. Someone who literally has the world against but is still ready to fight in the name of whatever he or she protects because deep down he/she knows is the right thing to do according to his/her morals. It’s quite important to highlight the “ is the right thing to do according to his/her morals” so we don’t fall through the ilussion that everything this character does is good or in name of a greater good: no everybody is goodie-goodie, you know... a villain can -and should- be a strong character too. He/she must evolve by learning from his/her mistakes and assume the consecuences of his/her actions. Doesn’t it sounds more compelling than an “super awesome strong character”? It does to me.

Strong Female Character

In the field of “women inside fictional stories” you can find the typical “Damsel in Distress”, the (so feared) “Mary Sue” and, I’d like to believe, the “Strong Female”.

For several years the Damsel in Distress was the norm. That virginal, pure, sweet girl or princess that had to be rescued from the claws of evil so she could live happily ever after in the arms of her beloved was The Thing. She was a role model back on the day when girls had to marry beasts (that sometimes were kind of a good guy after all) like Belle, or “be nice” like Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and Snowhite. Beeing physically weak was (apparently) quite appealing in a young woman and it was even better if she was ill as well (nothing to serious,off course, but enough for her to lie in a couch all day suffering... and I’m not making this up, I’ve read it in Agatha Christie’s autobiography. She complains more than once of how her grandmother seemed to wanted her to embody Camille’s -or La Dame aux Camélias- lead character so she could get a husband). All of us has seen this girl at least once.

Time passed by and women became a little more powerful year after year. And no, I didn’t made a big jump from 1700′s to the final days of 2016. I’m talking about those women who started to write and, while doing it, creating a new place for women. Louisa May Alcott, the Brontë sisters, Jane Austen, Mary Shelley are the names that all of us know and many might have read -I didn’t, I’ve only read Shelley’s Frankenstein, the others are not my cup of tea- and I’m quite sure that there are many many more. With them Strong Females were born. I know, “all of them dressed in pretty dresses and had no violent action nor knew how to fight... how could they be Strong Females?” well... maybe because they were always fighting to have a voice? or because they were trying to break the tradition of beeing a daugther to become a wife and later a mother? Jo March, trying to be a writer and not caring if anyone said that she wasn’t feminine enough (when she cuts her hair to get some money or because she whistles!), not to mention certain sacrifices she (and her sisters) do to live day by day, is a strong character. Would you deny it? Maybe she’s not “the one” that will end an evil goverment, she won’t beat the crap out of her enemies nor will face the world alone holding nothing but a pocket-knife... but she’s strong and anyone can relate herself with her (and a young woman who doesn’t like “Little Women” and never could read beyond the chapter of the party at Laurie’s -after trying to read the book twice- is saying that!). Josephine March can kick some serious Strong Female’s asses today and she was “born” in 1868! Those were real Strong Females and that’s why nowdays they are still considerated role models -maybe-.

The All Mighty Mary Sue: now we found a big jump in time... times where women gotta be everything (good, pure and innocent at the same time that she’s a master assasin who can kill a hundred men blindfolded in the middle of the dark). I know that “Mary Sue” has becomed pretty much a curse word specially among those who write this type of characters -or at least enjoy them-. No-one likes to say that they like a token character that is as empty as the head of a Barbie doll and brings nothing to the story beyond her charming presence. Ok, there is another kind of Mary Sue, the Lead Character, she and her issues are the main reason why the story exists (Bella Swan from Twilight is a good example). In both roles (side character or main one) she’s worthless and depends A LOT of the men around her. Main Character Bella is nothing without her relationship with Edward, Jacob and her dad. Sure, she’s got some female friends but, in comparison with those three guys, she hardly talks to them. How do you think the book would’ve been without the love story and the differences with her dad? Side Character Tauriel (sorry, I can’t help it) is nothing without her relationships with Thranduil, Legolas and Kili. And she has NO female friends. What other version of this character could’ve existed without all of it?

Strong Females in movies

As I said, lately we had wave after wave of “strong female characters” that are just amaizing in everything they do and, sometimes, are even better than the men around them. Is it bad? No, but it could be a big “yes” depending on the story or in how often we get to see it.

All movies nowdays seem to believe that having a super-powerful woman is good and having a more “traditional” one is as bad as having a damsel in distress. Times have changed, I know, we do not need to “have” a man to be someone as it used to happen in the ‘50s... we can save ourselves, we can use guns, we can fight but does that mean that we are strong? Physically strong: sure... Strong-strong? not quite.

Of course it’s awesome to see a good fight on a movie (I quite enjoy them) but beyond the fantastic moves of this character we love is there anything to back it up? Is there a good reason to take that road? Was there a better choice? Here’s the random thought on my brain that made me write this article. Scene comparison ahead:

Labyrinth (1986):

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

Let’s see... In both cases the heroines (filled with anger while thinking of calling Tauriel like that) find themselves against someone who doesn’t let them go on or their journey to save a baby brother (Sarah) or hot dwarf  a bunch of dwarves (Tauriel). In both cases this obstacle is an authority figure, Sir Didymus -guardian of the bridge- and Thranduil, the Elvenking. It’s the same dilemma... but two different reactions. Sarah, a teenager, chooses to talk to the guardian, to be reasonable with him so she can get his permision... and she has it! Tauriel, an adult elf, chooses to shut up and threatens the King’s life.

“You idiot! Tauriel is trying to save the dwarves lifes, there’s no time to talk and be nice! It’s a war!” Oh, really? What if I tell you that Sarah only has 13 hours to save her baby brother before he turns into a goblin? Actually maybe she has less than three hours to save him in that scene, considerating that sometime later we see a 13 hours clock marking 11 sharp. She doesn’t have that much time does she? We saw that Ludo defeated Sir Didymus and that he’s also capable of holding him in his hand, Sarah could’ve easily asked Ludo to hold him until she crossed the bridge... heck! she could’ve kicked Sir Didymus out of her way and cross! But she didn’t because she didn’t needed another enemy behind her and she had no reasons to be a jerk. Tauriel decided that convincing her King to help her was a waste of time. After all why a man that knows her, raised her, gave her a job, and send his son to get her back to his kingdom (so she wouldn’t get into trouble) would care about her or her needs? He’s a  cold hearted King, after all (major eye roll).

Which one is the strongest (and again, we’re not talking about physical strength)? The one that chooses to be gentle and polite or the one that chooses brutal force? It can be resumed in this: wisdom or brutality?

It’s quite funny that the question of wisdom or brutalilty shows up since Tauriel is a Silvan Elf, and they are -as said by Tolkien- less wise and more dangerous. As I said before “less wise” doesn’t mean “stupid” nor means “savage” as everybody seems to believe. Tolkien was reffering to the way of living of this elves, who turned away from the Valar’s invitation to join them and decided to live in a more “natural” way. A possible paralel to our society would be the hippie movement... we wouldn’t call them savages, would we?

As a character that was created to show how merceful we are it’s quite shocking to see Tauriel taking such a violent turn to get what she wants. The worst thing now is that we (anti-Tauriel people) can’t even say that that’s how teenagers behave, since Sarah in her 15s has shown the opposite reaction.

I ask you: of all the movies you’ve seen this year... did all the women took the high road instead of the easy one -that one beeing beating the crap out of someone to get what they wanted-? If violence was used: was this choice the only option? Did them had a really good reason to do so? If the answer is a “yes” congratulations! you’ve watched a movie with a strong female character (or at least, a good try to be one).

Can a Female Strong Character fall in love?

Of course she can!

Many people believe that their favourite females are criticized because they’ve fallen in love. Once Upon a Time said it first: love is not weakness, it’s strength. Everything’s OK if the girl loves someone, the problem begins when this love is the only reason why she moves a finger or when there’s nothing more for her than it or when love blinds her and makes her take stupid choices (and even forget her awesome set of skills).

Believe it or not, there’s a title for those strong females that after falling in love became -pretty much- damsels in distress or that were never intended to be Strong Females: Trinity Syndrome (you can read more about it here)

A strong female who falls in love? Glad you ask. The first one that comes to my mind is Lisbeth Salander from the Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson, she goes through hell and yet falls in love but it never really affects her personality in a negative way (she was distant to people around her and opens up to Mikael -the guy she loves- but only with him and SPOILER ALERT once her heart breaks she’s still the same one). What about Princess Leia (RIP Carrie Fisher) she was tough, and smart and completly capable of comanding a group of rebels... but she falls in love anyway and it doesn’t change her at all. Any ot Tolkien’s women who fall in love are still the same and because of their love they push the boundaries and accomplish great deeds (Lúthien), others doesn’t need to fall in love to do so (Éowyn, Haleth). There are many more examples, sadly no so many from the last decade.

I’d like to do just one more comparison before finish this part.

Singin’ in the rain (1952)

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

Both of them ended up facing the love of their lives (yikes! in Tauriel’s case). Both men think that only because of their looks (probably) they got the girl and will live together happily ever after but first, they have to charm her and both go the wrong way with sexual innuendos, touches and glances. Kathy Selden (RIP Debbie Reynolds) knows what’s going on and thinks of the best way to get out of such situation, she even uses physical strength when it’s needed. She won’t let a men to get his way with her. Tauriel knows what’s going on and decides to go on with the game... say what? Girl, you hardly know him! He could be a dangerous prisioner... and you’re flirting with him? How did you get the title of Captain of the Guard? I wonder if any orc has pulled such a move on her and if she reacted the same way.

Again, we have a strong female and a female (I’ll even say that she’s how men would love to see women behave).

Conclussion

So? Do they still exists? Yes, I think. There aren’t many, but every now and then one shows up (Lisbeth Salander is the last one I’ve meet so far).

What about all the other women in the movies and books? They could be strong characters if the writers could put a little more effort. So far we have the male idealization of a woman (you know: super hot, awesome fighter, love-sick puppy, independent but not that much) and the female version of this male idealization (fighter, sometimes insecure, lives to love her man and protect him, etc). It’s quite scary if we see them like that. I wouldn’t be frightened if all girls grew up the way I did; I know, I’m not the best example out there, but I know that I was taught not to let anyone (male or female) to put me down or to “show me my place”. And this teaching came from my family, not movies, TV shows or books (at least not in my early years) this three tools were for entertainment purposes, nothing more.

Today we live in a different world were the image prevails and this is the same world were parents have no time to be with their kids or doesn’t know how to prepare them for the world out there or don’t want to be the kind of parents that smother their kids by controlling what they watch or read because that will make them “bad parents”. It’s not like that, kids depend on us all. WE have to be their role models, not a character or toy. How come that I grew up playing with my Barbie dolls and I don’t want to be a supermodel or blonde or super skinny? Because I had a good education at home. How is it possible that I grew up watching and admiring the Disney’s princesses and yet I’m not looking for Prince Charming nor I care if I look like them or not? Because I was taught the difference between a movie and the real life. I also learned, many years later, that gender doesn’t matter: if a character has a good set of morals we can apply them too... who cares if said character was a men or a woman?

I wish that newer generations could be able to learn that you have to be yourself, that makes you strong not your ability with the sword but the reason why you’re using it and the fears you’re facing.

I wish that newer generations wouldn’t need a Strong Female Character because they’ll be their own.

[vincentbuckles]

Weekend reading: Can we take back control from Brexit?

[A quick update on Brexit thoughts for those who want to reasonably discuss it. For those who don’t, please feel free to skip to the links.]

Imagine having anticipated something for 30 years, finally getting the freedom to do it, and then making a car crash out of it.

But enough about my life as a mid-life singleton. I’m thinking here of the Eurosceptic wing of the Conservative party.

You know – those 40-odd guys who can’t muster up enough votes to unseat the UK’s most ineffectual leader since Hugh Laurie’s Prince Regent in Blackadder the Third, and yet who’ve somehow managed to send 63 million of us towards an apparently imminent impoverished future.

You might think the World Class farce we’ve endured over the past 30 months would see me smiling.

After all a second referendum is looking ever more likely, if still not odds-on.

But unfortunately, I continue to read and hear abundant evidence that most of the Leave voting contingent still doesn’t get it.

And that means despite the demographic challenges of that faction (i.e. its original margin of victory is literally dying) it’s quite possible Leave could win again.

Especially if the Remain side sticks to the previous policy of dull facts over bus-splattering bullshit fabrications.

No wonder Leave voters seem almost as angry as Remainers:

I’ve seen a parade of #Brexit leaders on news programmes today. Their position boils down to this: We are absolutely sure voters knew exactly what they voted for and, as soon as we manage to agree among ourselves what that was, we will inform voters what it was they voted for.

— Alex Andreou (@sturdyAlex) December 6, 2018

A second referendum is a horrible solution to a stupid problem, with plenty of downsides.

However from my perspective it has the minor virtue of being less terrible than all the other alternatives.

Whose Brexit is it, anyway

Can we not stop this death march? Absolutely no one seems happy with the direction of travel.

Not even the Leave voters, that’s the most galling – if unsurprising – thing.

Blogger Ermine came close to capturing this contradiction at the heart of the Leave vote with a graphic this week. Leavers are represented here by the two Mickey Mouse ears on top of the smug metropolitan elite mug:

What @ermine’s Venn diagram is missing though is the set of people who voted either Leave or Remain to make us poorer.

Perhaps that’s because it doesn’t exist – despite even the Government admitting that’s what we face.

True, a tiny set of Brexiteers have belatedly conceded that a No Deal Brexit will hit us in the national nads.

That, they now say, is a price worth paying for sovereignty / blue passports / the right to negotiate trade deals with Madagascar and Kazakhstan.

But all the leading Leave-supporting players continue to lie to the electorate.

Theresa May herself rounded off her Deal Debate Dodge by harking back to the supposed ability of Brexit to reduce the inequalities and insecurities she spoke of in the aftermath of the vote – despite almost every single analysis of Brexit showing a net negative impact, economically-speaking.1

If you want sovereignty or fewer immigrants from Brexit, fair enough. Own that. Don’t claim the tooth fairy too.

But sadly, the very few Leavers I come across in real-life are still saying things like “The EU needs us more than we need them.”

The same EU that has run rings around us in negotiations.

The EU that has stuck firmly together, despite all forecasts to the contrary, and strangely believes more in its vision of togetherness than in the fantasies of Brexiteers.

The EU that takes 44% of our exports, while we take 8%2 of theirs.

The roughly 450 million of them versus the 63 million of us.

The UK vs the EU is a negotiating position that only looks attractive to Tories of a certain class raised to see greatness in the self-destruction of The Charge Of The Light Brigade.

“C’est magnifique, mais ce n’est pas la guerre; c’est de la folie”.3

Barry Barricades

What I missed when I created Barry Blimp – the archetypal Home Counties Leave voter of not inconsiderable means and more than a few years – was his zealotry.

Because I now see a big chunk of the Leave cohort want Brexit no matter what.

In fact I rather think some would enjoy it if we had ferries piled up outside Dover and food rationing at Tesco.

Obviously I feel vindicated when I think back to the insults hurled at me when I ventured my opinion on my own blog that many Leave voters didn’t know what they’d started, or that this would drag on for years.

But that’s about as satisfying as telling the person in the seat next to you that yes, you were right that the 747’s engine sounded a bit funny as the Captain shouts “Brace, brace!” over the tannoy.

There seems no good solution to this mess now. Revolutions have started over less.

(That may sound melodramatic if you don’t know your history. I suggest you Google the origins of the French Revolution, the English Civil War, or the American War of Independence before you jab your finger in my chest.)

To be clear I’m not predicting revolution – let alone hoping for it, from any perspective – but there’s got to be a non-zero chance.

Currently we are just living through a nationalist coup, and that’s bad enough.

The irony is for many on the right, Jeremy Corbyn is a revolutionary Marxist.

Politics has abandoned the center ground. As a result, lots of people are going to be very unhappy, however this turns out.

Our politicians need to get a grip, fast.

From Monevator

Money is power – Monevator

From the archive-ator: The characteristics of an entrepreneur – Monevator

News

Note: Some links are Google search results – in PC/desktop view you can click to read the piece without being a paid subscriber. Try privacy/incognito mode to avoid cookies. Consider subscribing if you read them a lot!4

UK economy slows as car sales fall – BBC

Property market at weakest since 2012 as Brexit takes toll, says RICS – Guardian

ECB ends €2.5tn eurozone QE stimulus programme – BBC

Luxury goods inflation running at nearly 6%, says Coutts – Guardian

Richest parts of London generate 30x cash of poorest parts of UK – ThisIsMoney

Scotland freezes threshold for higher-rate income tax – Guardian

Crowdcube investors threaten legal action after Emoov goes bust – ThisIsMoney

      Check out the collapse in the price of solar powered energy – Vox

Products and services

Are real or fake Christmas trees better for the planet? – Guardian

Small energy providers keep going bust. Is switching too risky? – ThisIsMoney

Investors flock to venture capital funds [Search result] – FT

Britain to force broadband providers to tell customers their best deals – Reuters

Ratesetter will pay you £100 [and me a cash bonus] if you invest £1,000 for a year – Ratesetter

Examining the risks and rewards of securities lending for funds – Morningstar

Investec’s new notice savings account allows 20% withdrawals – ThisIsMoney

Questioning the $1million retirement maths special

$1 million isn’t enough – Fat Tailed and Happy

The hardest problem in finance – The Irrelevant Investor

$1 million? Meh. [US but relevant] – The Belle Curve

Comment and opinion

Stellar take on the savings-versus-investment-returns debate – Get Rich Slowly

Situational spending – Seth Godin

Index-investing critic takes aim, fires, misses – Bloomberg

Rational versus reasonable – Morgan Housel

Financial planning – Indeedably

Three investing maths mistakes to drive you nuts – The IT Investor

The current danger for stocks: Fear itself – Morningstar

Why you need a money mentor – The Cut

The reason many billionaires aren’t satisfied with their wealth – The Atlantic

The wonderful Portfolio Charts has had a makeover – Portfolio Charts

How to measure a company’s growth rate – UK Value Investor

The best investing white papers of 2018 [For nerds/pros] – Savvy Investor

Crypto corner (December 2017 nostalgic edition)

Four days trapped at sea with crypto’s nouveau riche – Breaker Mag

Yes Bitcoin was a bubble. And it popped… – Bloomberg

…but is it time for believers to buy back into Ethereum? – AVC

Prices are down more than the ‘fundamentals’ [My quotes] – Chris Burniske

Brexit

The EU rebuffs Theresa May on Brexit — six takeaways [Search result] – FT

Lord Heseltine nails it on Brexit [Video] – via Facebook

“This was the second failed attempt to unseat May in three weeks, for a bunch of guys who’d be picked last for paintball and are led by rejected Paddington villain Jacob Rees-Mogg.” – Guardian

EU leaders scrap plans to help Theresa May pass deal after disastrous meeting in Brussels – Independent

Sir Ivan Rogers on Brexit [Full speech] – University of Liverpool

How Ireland outwitted Britain on Brexit – Bloomberg

Don’t know why people see a nasty, racist fringe to the Leave vote… – via Twitter

Kindle book bargains

The Barcelona Way: How to Create a High-performance Culture by Damian Hughes – £1.09 on Kindle

The 100-Year Life: Living and Working in an Age of Longevity by Lynda Gratton and Andrew Scott – £2.99 on Kindle

James Acaster’s Classic Scrapes by James Acaster – £0.99 on Kindle

Off our beat

Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement – Farnham Street

Population mountains [Striking 3D maps of global populations] – The Pudding

KFC debuts fried chicken-scented fire logs ahead of Christmas – Fox News

We need academic conferences about robots, love, and sex – Slate

And finally…

“For half a century the competition to produce the fastest stock price-printing machine was almost as frantic as the pursuit of the stocks and the shares. Indeed for many, the two were inseparable.” – Selwyn Parker, The Great Crash: How the Stock Market Crash of 1929 Plunged the World into Depression

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Yes, a couple of things might be made better for a tiny subset of the population. But as we’ve discussed before, almost every serious economist believes those benefits would be grossly outweighed by the economic negatives. They’d be far better addressed directly via redistribution or government investment.

Or 18%, in a certain light.

“It’s magnificent, but it’s not war; it’s madness” – General Pierre Bosquet.

Note some articles can only be accessed through the search results if you’re using PC/desktop view (from mobile/tablet view they bring up the firewall/subscription page). To circumvent, switch your mobile browser to use the desktop view. On Chrome for Android: press the menu button followed by “Request Desktop Site”.

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