Davos Newbies

Fifty-three

I’d better get my skates on. I scraped a bare majority of the 100 greatest books of all time, according to a poll conducted by the Norwegian Book Clubs. They surveyed writers around the world, so the list isn’t as biased as some to western literature (although two-thirds of the titles are by Europeans).

I thought the contemporary selections didn’t stand up to a lot of scrutiny, and it’s a sign of our times that Dostoevsky had more books selected (four) than any other author. On a personal level, I also thought it bizarre that Don Quixote was the top-ranked book, ahead of The Iliad. But it’s fun, and I’ve certainly found some titles that I’ll add to my reading list.

A messy, but real democracy

Tom Friedman poses some difficult questions from Indonesia. As one writer tells him, “Indonesia, instead of being seen as a weak democracy that needs support, gets looked at as a weak country that protects terrorists, and Malaysia is seen as superior because it arrests more terrorists than we do.”

Tom’s conclusion: “[Indonesia's] greatest contribution to us would be to show the Arab Muslim states that it is possible to develop a successful Muslim democracy, with a modern economy and a moderate religious outlook. Setting that example is a lot more in America’s long-term interest than arresting a few stray Qaeda fighters in the jungles of Borneo.”