Let’s Not and Say We Did

Here’s a terrific article that seems to have generated quite a bit of attention in the Twitter/social media world.:  COVID-19 Broke the Economy. What if we Don’t Fix It?

A very Latour-ian analogy. Where do we land?  Or more accurately, we are going to land, how do we handle it?  What do we name the place where we land?  How will we behave towards each other?

While I’m citing articles and in case anyone out there is also a Latour-fascinated nerd, here are a couple of secondary pieces: One is constructively critical and useful to synthesize Latour’s complexities, the other is a a bit of a hatchet job of Latour’s whole deal from a traditional leftist perspective.  Also useful, though in my opinion, not entirely fair in its accusations of anti-intellectualism.

The Essential Latour

“It would certainly be a shame to lose too quickly all the benefit of what Covid-19 has revealed to be essential. In the midst of the chaos, of the world crisis that is to come, of the grief and suffering, there is at least one thing that everyone has been able to grasp: something is wrong with the economy.”

“Underneath the capitalists are the workers, and underneath the workers are living things!”

For a quick, painless intro to the relevance of Latour to the moment, he recently did a Guardian interview.  Even better is this essay just translated into English.

Also the Gedankenausstellungen (thought exhibition) “Critical Zones“.