Draconian things are happening in India. Such a regressive idea. Nothing short of lunacy. Our young and "progressive" politicians, supposedly the vanguard of the future, are cheerleading this madness. And these are the people we are supposed to trust.

The first table is from Averting a Great Divergence: State and economy in Japan,1868-1937. The second graph from @ourworldindata.org compares the % of military personnel w.r.t total population from 1816-2016 in Japan, UK, US, France, Germany and Russia.

Quite pleased (and shocked) to share that I just got an interview invite for History at Oxford! Not the course I originally applied for, which does sting a little, but I'm still glad. I really hope the interview goes well!

I'm always amused by the fact that most of India's education investment flowed toward higher education, disproportionately benefiting urban elites. Both China and Japan did the opposite. And we didn't even bother with investing in teachers. Our student-to-teacher ratios were abysmal compared.

This is a concise demographic breakdown of China, highlighting key trends and interesting regional differences. www.china-briefing.com/news/china-d... Pekingology did an excellent podcast this week on the demographic shift & its implications: podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/pek…

I'm not sure if I'll actually be able to go, given the tuition fees and living costs, but it did feel good to get an offer from King's.

now reading. looks at how postwar america's age of mass consumption reshaped the idea of citizenship & how consumers emerged as a political catg from the new-deal era. any other works that explore similar dynamics of consumerism and citizenship outside the american context?

Spent the morning shifting my books from all the random corners of the house. Good to see all of them in one place now. Here's the non-fic sec. Need more space for the 10 or so I ordered this week :⁠,)

Currently reading.

Got my copy today. First impressions have already piqued my curiosity, and I'm looking forward to it.

Reading Hindu Nationalism and the Language of Politics in Late Colonial India by William Gould. Interesting so far. Detailed study, particularly in how it dissects the dynamics of UP Congress during the late colonial era and the complex interaction between religion, language, and politics.