Genghis, Druids, Anarchy & India

I’ve read a few good books lately.

Shantaram is a fictionalised “authobiography” by Gregory David Roberts. In real life, Roberts was Australia’s most wanted man who escaped to live in Bombay and got involved with the mafia, a village health clinic and bollywood. In the book, Roberts was Australia’s most wanted man who escaped to live in Bombay and got involved with the mafia, a village health clinic and bollywood.

It’s a good read and made me want to go to India. After the book I had a look at Roberts’ website and a few interviews. The real him didn’t live up to the character, but perhaps that’s an unfair comparison. It’s easy for fictional characters to have more charm, humility and charisma. It also appears that he’s now disappeared again (but this time as a free man).

The next book was Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World by Jack Weatherford, which I thoroughly enjoyed. It was part history, part biography, part sociology and part philosophy. While the author obviously sees the world through Mongol-coloured glasses, he is correct that world history cannot be properly understood without understanding the impact of the Mongol centuries (1200-1400). And of course, Genghis inspired my new name.

While I was hiding at MVU I met another volunteer who happened to be an anarchist Ron Paul supporter. He lent me his In Defence of Anarchism by Robert Paul Wolff, which covers a basic philosophical argument against the State.

There are only three reasons why you would obey somebody: either (1) you agree with what they said; (2) they threaten you (ie coercion); or (3) you respect their authority over you. The book considers the last point, and concludes that the concept of State authority is incompatable with self-ownership. Fairly obvious in my opinion. Of course, this isn’t a complete defence of anarchy, because the book doesn’t consider the consequentialist argument that coercion can sometimes be justified by its consequences.

And finally, I got around to finishing A Brief History of the Druids by Peter Berresford Ellis, which explores the “intelligestia class” of the Celtic people pre-Christianity. Much like Greek philosophers or Hindu brahmins, the Druids played many roles in Celtic society — religious leader, teahers, philosophers, judges, historians, poets, physicians, astronomers, astrologers and magicians. Among others, it was these poor chaps that the clueless christians decided were devil worshipers and witches. While not particularly well written, the topic was interesting enough to save the book.