The Weird Times
Inner Monologues and Desultory Reporting from Outer Spaces: Issue 177, October 1, 2023 (V4 #21)
The next time someone tells you Joe Biden is old, make sure they know Trump kept stacks of classified notecards that he used for list-writing and, according to reporting, appears to have instructed witnesses to lie about what they knew.—Joyce Vance
Chaos benefits Trump. Corruption benefits Trump. Robert Menendez benefits Trump. Lying benefits Trump. Hypocrisy benefits Trump. Indecency benefits Trump. He is going to run as a strongman to restore order. There is an enormous likelihood that it could succeed. This is the warning.—Steve Schmidt
Books and Culture
Jayne Anne Phillips on Uncovering the Hidden Aftermath of the Civil War, Jane Ciabattari, LitHub, 9/26/23: “I’m fascinated by consciousness itself, by simultaneous time as reflected in the floating mind, the blinkered mind.” Buy the novel: Night Watch
‘I’m not worried about fame or glory’: Lydia Davis, the author who has refused to sell her book on Amazon: The award-winning short story writer talks about her boycott of the world’s biggest marketplace, her love of languages and living with Paul Auster in Paris, Alex Clark, the Guardian, 9/30/23
Astra Taylor’s Age of Insecurity: The activist and writer sees capitalism as an insecurity-producing machine, Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 9/24/23: “Taylor’s lectures are being published as The Age of Insecurity. The book proposes insecurity as a framework for understanding a host of contemporary crises and explores both the psychology and the politics of our straits.”
‘His work seems endless’: music stars pay tribute to the incredible life of Moondog: The eccentric musician, dressed like a Viking playing songs on the streets of New York, is being celebrated by names such as Rufus Wainwright and Jarvis Cocker on a new album, Jim Farber, The Guardian, 9/26/23
Florida school district orders librarians to purge all books with LGBTQ characters, Judd Legum, Popular Information, 9/26/23: “A survey of Florida school districts by Popular Information revealed that at least 16 school districts in Florida have banned books with LGBTQ characters.”
Libya’s ‘City of Poets’ Pays a Heavy Price in Floods: Derna, which lost entire neighborhoods and thousands of residents in the deluge, has a history as a cultural and intellectual hub as well as a rebellious streak, Raja Abdulrahim, NY Times, 9/23/23
How Hollywood writers triumphed over AI – and why it matters: Observers hail a ‘smart’ deal that allows for artificial intelligence as a tool, not a replacement – and could be a model for other industries, Dani Anguiano, Lois Beckett, The Guardian, 10/1/23
Everything You Need to Know About the Right-Wing War on Books: Here’s your guide to the heroes and villains—plus a list of the 50 most banned books, Jasmine Liu, The New Republic, 9/26/23: “More books are being challenged—for possible restriction or removal from libraries and curricula—than have been in decades.”
Join PEN America in the Fight Against Book Bans: Banned Books Week
Send an email to your US Representative urging them to support House Resolution 733 introduced by Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-08) and Senator Brian Schatz (HI). This resolution puts members on the record in "Expressing concern about the spreading problem of book banning and the proliferation of threats to freedom of expression in the United States."
Enough about Human Rights!
What about Hog Rights? What about Frog Rights?
What about Kite Rights? What about Mite Rights?
What about Bee Rights? What about Flea Rights?
What about Stork Rights? What about, what about, what about
What about Bat Rights? What about Gnat Rights?
What about Mouse Rights? What about Louse Rights?
What about Cat Rights? What about Rat Rights?
What about Hawk Rights? What about, what about, what about
What about Bug Rights? What about Slug Rights?
What about Bass Rights? What about Ass Rights?
What about Worm Rights? What about Germ Rights?
What about Pork Rights?
—from “Enough About Human Rights,” Moondog
Politicks and Economicks
The election is about America, not Biden and Trump, Steve Schmidt, The Warning, 9/22/23: “Where does giving offense to Team Biden and bruising the president’s ego stack up in the hierarchy of importance around keeping Trump and his MAGA virus from seizing the American presidency?”
Working-Class Joe: Biden is truly helping working people. What will it take for more voters to get that? Robert Kuttner, American Prospect, 9/25/23
Does Jay Powell Want to Elect Trump? Most of the sources of inflation are either the result of the Fed’s own policy, or have nothing to do with domestic demand, such as the rising price of oil, Robert Kuttner, American Prospect, 9/29/23
Donald Trump is going to get someone killed, Lucian K. Truscott IV, Newsletter, 9/26/23: “We have entered the Putin-zone of American political life, where the endorsement of threats on the lives of political opponents has become the normal course of events in one of our two political parties.”
If anyone should be worried about Taylor Swift-Travis Kelce, it’s Trump, Rick Reilly, Washington Post, 9/29/23: “What if they decided a fun couples thing to do would be to … I don’t know … save democracy?”
The Biden Interview: The President Talks About the Supreme Court, Threats to Democracy and Trump’s Vow to Exact Retribution, John Harwood, ProPublica, 10/1/23: “In a sit-down conversation with ProPublica, Biden discusses Kevin McCarthy’s “terrible bargain,” the fear of change that drives threats to democracy and the Supreme Court’s need for an ethics policy.”
Bob Menendez, Al Franken, and the presumption of innocence, Judd Legum, Popular Information, 9/25/23: “How much longer will Menendez's Senate colleagues treat him with kid gloves?”
The McCarthy & Freedom Caucus Relationship is Working Just As Intended, Josh Marshall, Talking Points Memo, 9/29/23: “…maybe they really will oust Kevin McCarthy. But he can only be replaced by another Kevin McCarthy. That’s the system. And like most stable systems, that’s how they perpetuate themselves.”
How Libertarianism is a Poison that’s Crept into America (Part 1): Now that Robert Kennedy Jr. says, “I’ve always been aligned with libertarians on most issues” let’s look at how libertarianism would work out in America, and where it came from in the first place...Thom Hartmann, Hartmann Report, 9/26/23: “Libertarianism is a poison that’s crept into our society on the backs of rightwing billionaires like Libertarian David Koch.”
Can Biden Take On Trump & the MAGA Movement’s Threat to America? Can we rescue our nation from the treasonous Republicans, who are trying to shut down our government to help Putin while they continue to bow and scrape to The Rapist Who Would Be King? Thom Hartmann, Hartmann Report, 9/29/23
Violence is Trump's Brand: "Authoritarians conjure existential threats from an ever-expanding roster of enemies —immigrants, Jews, and leftists among them" so Trump's visit to a gun shop to admire a customized "Trump 45" Glock was inevitable, Ruth Ben-Ghiat, Resolute Square, 9/27/23: “Trump is a marketer…Now his brand is violence, and his rallies and other events sell that violence, presenting it as the preferred way to resolve differences in society and as the only way to move history forward.”
The mainstream media completely missed the story when reporting on Trump's visit to the South Carolina gun store, Lucian K. Truscott IV, Newsletter, 9/27/23: “Trump isn’t just dog-whistling, he is explicitly showing and telling racists that he is one of them, and it is time the mainstream media started listening to him and reporting the truth of what he does and says.”
‘No enemies to the right’: DeSantis ally hosts debate hedging white nationalism: Christopher Rufo’s Twitter space discussed conservatives cooperating with extremists ‘to destroy the power of the left,’ Jason Wilson, The Guardian, 9/30/23
Supreme Court supermajority will clarify its constitutional revolution this year, deciding cases on guns and regulations, Morgan Marietta, The Conversation, 9/26/23: “In these two core areas of constitutional conflict – gun rights and administrative powers – the court will determine this term whether its revolutionary doctrines will continue to expand or come to a resolution.”
Traditional downtowns are dead or dying in many US cities − what’s next for these zones? John Rennie Short, The Conversation, 9/25/23: “In my view, traditional downtowns are dead, dying or on life support across the U.S. and elsewhere. Local governments and urban residents urgently need to consider what the post-pandemic city will look like.”
Changing the Narrative: Disinformation campaigns and Social Media, Lawrence Freedman, Comment is Freed, 10/1/23: “There is no doubting the energy China puts into promoting misinformation in Western countries.”
What I Found in a Database Meta Uses to Train Generative AI: Nobel-winning authors, Dungeons and Dragons, Christian literature, and erotica all serve as datapoints for the machine, Alex Reisner, The Atlantic, 9/25/23: “As AI chatbots begin to replace traditional search engines, the tech industry’s power to constrain our access to information and manipulate our perspective increases exponentially.”
The Mobile Revolution vs. The AI Revolution: How AI Will Stack Up to Past Technology Revolutions, Rex Woodbury, Digital Native, 9/29/23: “AI is an even larger-scale technology shift—it’s the dawn of a new discrete revolution that’s built not around computers acting like calculators, but computers acting like the human brain.”
U.S., 17 states sue Amazon alleging monopolistic practices led to higher prices: In a sweeping lawsuit, the Federal Trade Commission alleges the e-commerce giant abused its powers to raise prices for shoppers and levy high fees against businesses that sell on its platform, Cat Zakrzewski, Will Oremus, Trisha Thadani, Washington Post, 9/26/23: “Amazon is a monopolist, and it is exploiting its monopolies in ways that leave shoppers and sellers paying more for worse services.”
Billionaires Have Gotten $2.2 Trillion Richer Since Trump-GOP Tax Cuts: Analysis: "The staggering runup of billionaire wealth since the passage of the Trump-GOP tax law is a sure indicator of who that law was meant to serve,” Jake Johnson, Common Dreams, 9/28/23
America’s Eyes Are on Unions: The UAW strike could energize labor activity in the U.S., but the stakes are high for union leaders, Lora Kelley, The Atlantic, 9/28/23
When Will All the States Look Like Michigan? Not Soon Enough, Michael Moore, MichaelMoore, 9/30/23: “So now my state is entirely run by women and people of color.”
The Eerie Normality of Life in Kyiv: With the war entering its second full winter season, there’s a temptation to look away. Don’t. Tim Mak, Persuasion, 9/29/23: “As the war enters its second full winter season, this is a time for both Ukrainian civilians and foreign supporters to redouble their interest and support.”
In the morning, I'm insecure
In the evening, I'm insecure
In the afternoon, I'm a rising Pisces and a fucked up moon
I'm insecure
In the morning, I'm insecure
In the evening, I'm insecure
But everybody get's insecure sometimes (that's right)
—from “I’m confident that I’m insecure,” Sung by Lawrence, written by Clyde Lawrence, Gracie Lawrence, Jon Bellion, Jonny Koh, Jordan Cohen
Science and Environment
This Fluffy Little Anteater May Very Well Be a New Species: Thousands of kilometers from their nearest relatives, these silky anteaters eke out a living in a pocket of mangroves on Brazil’s Atlantic coast, James Hall, Hakai, 9/27/23
How do we raise trillions of dollars to fight the climate crisis? The answer is staring us in the face: Petrostates like Saudi Arabia and Norway have made staggering oil and gas profits. A simple levy could funnel money to the countries that need it, Gordon Brown, The Guardian, 9/25/23
PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ harming wildlife the world over: Study, Sharon Guynup, MongaBay, 9/26/23: “Researchers documented serious PFAS-triggered conditions in wildlife, including suppressed immunity, liver damage, developmental and reproductive issues, nervous and endocrine system impacts, gut microbiome/bowel disease and more.”
A mission to protect thorn forests in the Rio Grande Valley: Less than 10% of the historical thorn forests are left — and what remains is vulnerable to climate change and other threats, YCC Team, Yale Climate Connections, 9/29/23
Antarctica just hit a record low in sea ice — by a lot: Sea ice extent around Arctic was the sixth lowest on record as well, Kasha Patel, Washington Post, 9/25/23: “There is some concern that this may be the beginning of a long-term trend of decline for Antarctic sea ice…”
Should we tear down dams, or use hydropower to fight climate change? Hydropower from dams is the primary source of clean energy in Idaho, whose major power company has pledged 100% clean energy by 2045. But when dams threaten natural rivers and fish, can hydropower really count as clean? Jessica Q. Chen, Maggie Beidelman, LA Times, 9/26/23
‘Staggering’ green growth gives hope for 1.5C, says global energy chief: IEA’s Fatih Birol says uptake of solar power and EVs is in line with net zero goal but rich countries must hasten their broader plans, Fiona Harvey, The Guardian, 9/26//23
‘We are just getting started’: the plastic-eating bacteria that could change the world: When a microbe was found munching on a plastic bottle in a rubbish dump, it promised a recycling revolution. Now scientists are attempting to turbocharge those powers in a bid to solve our waste crisis. But will it work? Stephen Buranyi, The Guardian, 9/28/23
A Revelation About Trees Is Messing With Climate Calculations: Trees make clouds by releasing small quantities of vapors called “sesquiterpenes.” Scientists are learning more—and it’s making climate models hazy, Max G. Levy, Wired, 9/29/23: “Maybe we’ve been undercounting the world’s aerosol population by overlooking a large portion of those that come from trees. If so, climate models will need retooling.”
Clouds now contain plastic, risking contamination of ‘everything we eat and drink:’Airborne plastic particles found in cloud water, Vishwam Sankaran, The Independent (UK), 9/29/23
In the race to pull carbon from the air, did rocks just overtake trees? Plants and animals are fast, ephemeral carbon sinks. Rocks are permanent and slow. But with some human help, geology is starting to speed up, Mark Harris, Anthropocene, 9/24/23
Carbon notes #6: America's auto strike and a century of transition in the US car industry, Adam Tooze, Chartbook, 9/30/23: “It is hard to exaggerate how closely the rise of US power In the 20th century was associated with the car.”
Oh Bother! Winnie, poo and deforestation, Elizabeth Blair, NPR, 9/28/23: “Winnie-the-Pooh: The Deforested Edition is a reimagining of the A.A. Milne classic created by the toilet paper company Who Gives A Crap.”
Is the Physics of Time Actually Changing? Days seem to be rushing ahead in a disturbing blur, or else slowing painfully down. Maybe it’s a tale as old as—well, you know, KC Cole, Wired, 9/27/23
In a dream I caressed you
and when I woke up
I caressed the memory
of the dream.—from “Caress,” Ron Padgett
Health and Wellness
The science of skin: everything you need to know about your body’s biggest organ – and how to protect it: It is the size of a bedsheet, an outward display of our mood, age and identity and replaces itself completely every month – here’s the lowdown on the skin you’re in, Ian Sample, The Guardian, 9/30/23
Distinct immune, hormone responses shed light on mysteries of long COVID: People who have experienced symptoms for months or longer after being infected exhibit different immune and hormonal responses to the virus, a new study finds, Bill Hathaway, Yale News, 9/25/23: “There is no ‘silver bullet’ for treating long COVID, because it is an illness that infiltrates complex systems such as the immune and hormonal regulation.”
Philips Kept Complaints About Dangerous Breathing Machines Secret While Company Profits Soared, Debbie Cenziper, Michael D. Sallah, Michael Korsh, Evan Robinson-Johnson, Monica Sager, ProPublica, 9/27/23: “Tainted CPAP machines and ventilators went to children, the elderly and at least 700,000 veterans despite internal warnings. Company insiders said the devices posed an “unacceptable” risk.”
Silent killer: How deadly is air pollution? It kills 7 million people a year. New research shows it also raises antibiotic resistance and is linked to cancer risks — while targeting already disadvantaged communities the most, Ian Graber-Stiehl, Aljazeera, 9/28/23
“One of the Single Most Expensive Substances on the Planet”: The Insulin Crisis of the 21st Century: On the Tragic Consequences of Unethical Profiteering, Stuart Bradwel, LitHub, 9/25/23: “Over the last hundred years, diabetes should have lost much of its bite. With effective treatment it is an unpleasant inconvenience and often a chore to deal with, but it should be little more than that.”
Birds
What drives our aesthetic attraction to birds? Andrea Santangeli et al, Nature, 9/27/23: “The features that make us attracted to a particular bird strongly align with broad human visual aesthetic preferences in modern society.”
Experts fear mass wipe-out of penguins as Antarctica braces for bird flu: Tourists could be ordered to stay on board cruise ships for the first time to prevent cross contamination, Harriet Barber, Telegraph (UK), 9/25/23
Yet another crazy week! I hope you all are hanging on through this bumpy ride. We know there’s more to come. I keep promising myself I will feature fewer links, more poems, art, and stories, but there’s so much to sift through, I barely keep up.
Best wishes and much love to all who are reading along with me. Do keep in touch—David