2 hours ago
Friday, December 11, 2009
Personal Note
For some reason the illustrious Harvard professor of Economics, Greg Mankiw, is starting to remind me of my brother, Jared. Maybe it has to do with surprising taste in music that he is both eager and reticent to admit?
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Perhaps he is both eager and reticent to admit his taste in music because he realizes there really is no right or wrong in taste, so why be burdened with other's opinions about something that ultimately doesn't matter? At the same time, perhaps he feels pressure from his "Harvard" associates to present himself in a certain manner and conform to an "accepted" parameter of dress, taste, style, etc. What a bunch of pathetic hogwash it all is: I am sure he feels the need to rebel against the churlish stupidity of the elite and wants to stand against it, but is somewhat reticent knowing they will not understand.
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ReplyDeleteI think that sounds about right. I don't want to bash Mankiw too much, but he definitely seems to have a taste for appearances. That's why I liked it awhile back when he posted a cartoon mocking Obama receiving the Nobel prize. He publicly dropped his carefully cultivated evenhandedness for a shocking moment.
My brother, in contrast with Mankiw, is the genuine article. He's just the type of guy who likes all kind of things - which is what makes him a surprising and interesting person. My own tastes in music, literature and film were shaped at an early age through exposure to the huge variety of things Jared was exploring.
I don't know. I can kind of relate to those occasional "guilty pleasures." They're simplistic but catchy. I probably wouldn't make as big a production of mine, though.
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