Caught my eye

1. Amartya Sen reviews Bill Easterly

2. Peter Leeson argues that anarchy is better for Somalia; most indicators of progress have gone up since the government fell.  This is an excellent paper but I wonder how much "the end of war" drives the results, and is the current situation of warlords really "anarchy"?

3. Unchosen: The Hidden Lives of Hasidic Rebels, the title says it all.  Some might find the text insulting ("…underneath the garb, Yossi was just a guy who liked Adam Sandler movies and country music…") but it offers a fascinating look at how small groups resist pressures for assimilation.  Try also Paul Kriwaczek’s new Yiddish Civilization for a broader historical perspective; Born to Kvetch rounds out the recent trilogy.

4. Which countries are most proud of themselves? Venezuela does well, or poorly, depending on your point of view.

5. Here is a map of where the world’s ships are located (NB: this link doesn’t always work), hat tip to kottke.org.

6. Chris Masse’s yearly Prediction Market Awards.

7. Dave Schmidtz on when inequality matters.  Here is Dave’s new book, Elements of Justice.

8. "Stichomancy," the art of fortune-telling through randomly-chosen book passages.  Check out Caterina’s blog more generally.  She links to this post on turning parking spaces into parks

9. Netbanging: street gangs who slug it out over the Web.

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