I’ve just written a couple of angry rants: one about work, and one about reproduction.

In my most recent column, I critique a recent business book in the so-called GTD genre: you know, self-help tomes about “getting things done,” being productive, and making tons of money. Unlike the usual GTD screed, however, Tim Ferriss’ The 4-Hour Work Week is so extreme that it reveals the dark side of productivity worship. Ferriss proposes, in various ways, that the best way to live the good life and work smart is to outsource your life to the developing world. You can live more cheaply if you spend most of the year traveling in countries like Thailand on your US dollars; and you can work more effectively if you pay service workers in Bangalore to answer your e-mail for you. I’m not sure it really counts as “productivity” when all you’re doing is making somebody do your dirty work for you. Read more about the freakiness that is extreme GTD.

Last week, I was as mystified and weirded out by the Supreme Court decision on partial-birth abortions. That’s why I wrote my column about another female reproductive issue — pills that stop periods. Lybrel, a pill for women who don’t want to menstruate, may soon be approved by the FDA, though it’s been quite controversial. Many women say that it’s unnatural to stop having the annoying “little visitor” who leaves stains on your underwear. But I say let’s take charge of our own bodies and not endure something as constant and irritating as periods if we don’t have to do it. I think women’s reluctance to try Lybrel can be traced to a fear of controlling our own bodies — the same fear that undermines our fight for abortion rights, as well as the right to share the burdens of childcare equally with men. Read more about taking charge of our bodies by refusing to bleed.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 1st, 2007 at 9:48 pm.
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