The Weird Times
Inner Monologues and Desultory Reporting from Outer Spaces: Issue 190, December 31, 2023 (V4 #34)
Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.—Thomas Paine
Everyone must place their shoulders against the world and push for Peace.— E. Ethelbert Miller
I SALUTE YOU
There is nothing I can give which you
have not; but there is much that, while I
Can not give, you can take.
No heaven can come to us unless our hearts
Find rest in it today.
Take happiness.
No peace lies in the future, which is not somewhere hidden
in this present instant.
Take Peace
The sometime gloom of the world is but a shadow;
Behind it, yet within our reach, is joy.
Take joy
And so, at this holiday time, I greet you,
With the prayer that for you, now and forever
The days break with peace,
and all shadows flee from your path.
—Fra Giovanni (1513)
Books Music Culture
Tom Smothers, half of Smothers Brothers sibling comedy duo, dies at 86: Tom and Dick Smothers saw their CBS variety show canceled in 1969 after censors cut sketches that skewered politics and the Vietnam War, Fred A. Bernstein, Washington Post, 12/27/23
What Gen Z Is Finding at the Library: Young people really do read print books, Lora Kelley, The Atlantic, 12/28/23: “…the report found that younger members of Gen Z were reading more print books than older readers in their age cohort were, and print was the preferred format for the Gen Z respondents.”
Can You Learn to Hone Your Intuition? Yes, you can, Rob Brezsny, Astrology Newsletter, 12/27/23 “Meditate on the difference between your fearful fantasies and your accurate intuitions.”
A map to utopia: Studying the maps of Utopia, Cockaigne, Elysium, Anavatapta Lake, and Atlantis, M.E. Rothwell, The Elysian, 12/28/23: “ We once thought of this bountiful continent as an opportunity to create a better society for all. We should dare to dream again. How do we go about getting there?”
‘It’s a golden age’: poetry flourishes in Ukraine – but at a terrible price: Conflict has changed Ukrainian poetry and boosted interest at home and abroad, but several poets have died or disappeared, Luke Harding, The Guardian, 12/29/23: “In Kherson, the southern city recaptured by Ukraine last year, a poetry festival was held in an anonymous building.”
Uninhibited Questions: In Porn: An Oral History, Polly Barton argues that after decades of exhaustive debate there is still something lacking in the discourse on pornography, Elaine Blair, NY Review of Books, 12/21/23 issue: “Barton interviews nineteen friends and acquaintances of different ages, genders, and sexual identities about the place of pornography in their lives.”
The biting feminist satire of Reductress: ‘Comedy shows what we know deep down to be true:’ Staff are younger, and topics range from the climate crisis to #MeToo. After a decade, the magazine is as sharp as ever, Matthew Cantor, The Guardian, 12/28/23: “…as Jesus said before ascending into heaven: ‘Like and follow for part 2.’”
How Did Polyamory Become So Popular? Once the province of utopian free-love communities, consensual non-monogamy is now the stuff of Park Slope marriages and prestige television, Jennifer Wilson, New Yorker, 12/25/23
‘Hula is my church’: how Patrick Makuakāne is reinvigorating Hawaii’s traditional dance: Winner of the MacArthur ‘genius’ grant in 2023 has forged his own style in San Francisco while often subverting stereotypes of hula itself, Victoria Namkung, The Guardian, 12/31/23: “Makuakāne believes we need to reframe the conversation around tradition as being something immobile because “traditions morph and change depending on the environmental influence.”
The Secret Joys of Geriatric Rock: It’s a fine line between clever and stupid, Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 12/31/23: “Tonight, stay present, and celebrate with the music that moves you.”
Here’s a better way to make New Year’s resolutions, Lindsey Bever, Washington Post, 12/29/23: “…data shows that many people do benefit from making resolutions, and there are ways to improve your odds of success…resolutions are a prime example of a psychological phenomenon known as the fresh start effect.”
Bob Dylan’s Lost Decade, Dan Klees, Culture Sonar, 12/26/23: “To understand his work – not just in the 80s but also in general – it’s necessary to treat that material as an essential part of the larger story instead of an aberration.”
Lenny Bruce is dead but he didn't commit any crime
He just had the insight to rip off the lid before its time
I rode with him in a taxi once, only for a mile and a half
Seemed like it took a couple of months
Lenny Bruce moved on and like the ones that killed him, gone.—from “Lenny Bruce,” Bob Dylan
Politics Economics
Will Trump provoke a crisis of legitimacy for the US supreme court? The court can only rescue Trump from the Colorado ruling by shredding originalism and textualism. Will it? Sidney Blumenthal, The Guardian, 12/26/23: “Not a single one of the former Confederate leaders who were disqualified under section three were ever charged or tried, for insurrection or any other charge. Disqualification under the 14th amendment required no criminal conviction then and requires none now. It is a constitutional prerequisite for holding the presidency, no more or less than being 35 years old and native-born.”
Trump cannot run for office: According to the U.S. Constitution, Timothy Snyder, Thinking About, 12/29/23: “If we believe in the Constitution and in constitutional rule, the issue is clear. Donald Trump cannot run for any federal or state office. We might have strong feelings about this; but the reason we have a Constitution in the first place (and the rule of law in general) is to avoid government by strong feelings.”
Why is the GOP joining Putin, Xi, & MBS to Destroy Democracy? The world’s richest and most powerful oligarchs are depending on America’s Republican Party to make the world safe for their 21st century form of autocratic kleptocracy...Thom Hartmann, Hartmann Report, 12/27/23
The Year We Stopped Being Able to Pretend About Trump: The story of 2023 wasn’t the search for another Republican leader—but the Party’s embrace of the one it already has, Susan B. Glasser, New Yorker, 12/28/23
Do We Long for the Old School Terrible? Josh Marshall, Talking Points Memo, 12/28/23: “There’s no question that Trump ushered open revanchist nationalism into American politics. That was new but in many ways it simply brought the old reality out of the political closet.”
Will Trump's Violent Movement Conquer America? How would you react if one day you were sitting at home and the phone rang and when you picked it up you heard a man shout: “Kill yourself now so we can save ammo!” Thom Hartmann, Hartmann Report, 12/26/23: “This is how fascism takes over a nation from within: with violence and the fear of violence.”
Eldest Statesmen: As we enter an election year, can the Democrats prevent age from becoming a serious obstacle? Fintan O’Toole, NY Review of Books, 1/18/24 issue: “The baby boomers who sang along with Bob Dylan when he warned, ‘Senators, congressmen/Please heed the call/Don’t stand in the doorway/Don’t block up the hall,’ now linger in the lobbies.”
Blue states don't build: The cost of stasis: population loss, homelessness, and reliance on fossil fuels, Noah Smith, Noahpinion, 12/27/23: “If blue states are going to thrive in the 21st century, they need to relearn how to build, build, build.”
Leonard Leo Allies Lead Effort to Establish Publicly Funded Religious School: A legal clinic at University of Notre Dame has helped represent the school while its officials have maintained ties to right-wing Supreme Court justices, Julia Conley, Common Dreams, 12/29/23
They are so "pro-life", they'll starve kids to prove it: Several Republican-led states are declining federal funds meant to feed hungry kids...Jess Piper, Jess’s Substack, 12/27/23
Hispanics as the new Irish: A historical analogy to help us understand the present moment, Noah Smith, Noahpinion, 12/31/23: “I expect that the historians of the future will write about the great Hispanic immigration wave much as the historians of the present write about the Irish.”
What Comes Next in Gaza and Israel? Our writers think through the possible futures that await the region, Isabel Fattal, The Atlantic, 12/27/23
Even After Netanyahu Admits Goal Is Forcible Population Transfers, US Media Ignores Israel’s Ethnic Cleansing Aims: American reporters and pundits continue liberal delusions, even as Israel—and reality—move on without them, Adam Johnson, The Column, 12/27/23
A Palestinian Poet’s Perilous Journey Out of Gaza: Following Hamas’s October 7th attack and Israel’s invasion, Mosab Abu Toha fled his home with his wife and three children. Then I.D.F. soldiers took him into custody, Mosab Abu Toha, New Yorker, 12/25/23
Self-assessment: setting expectations on the Russo-Ukraine War, Lawrence Freedman, Comment is Freed, 12/28/23: “After a year in which both sides looked forward to military advances and were disappointed, this new year starts with expectations so low that the only way we can possibly be surprised is by developments that get us closer to a resolution.”
The Year We Embraced Our Destruction: In 2023, fears about AI run amok commingled with memes about an allegedly deadly lemonade, Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 12/29/23: “In 2023, I spent a lot of time listening to smart people talk about the end of the world.”
Remember the tenacity of 400,000 Welsh women a century ago. Then use your power to shape events today: As we celebrate the return to Wales of the peace petition sent to the US in the 1920s, we should also harness its spirit of togetherness, Rowan Williams, The Guardian, 12/30/23
A time to gain, a time to lose
A time to rain, a time of sow
A time for love, a time for hate
A time for peace, I swear it's not too late
—from “Turn, Turn, Turn,” Pete Seeger
Science Environment
New breed of climate protesters vows to take fight to ‘cowards’ of US politics: Climate Defiance, trying to make the climate crisis a top issue in 2024 election, isn’t afraid to anger ‘cowards’ and ‘criminals,’ Callum Jones, The Guardian, 12/26/23
Electric Cars are Already Upending America: After years of promise, a massive shift is under way, Saahil Desai, The Atlantic, 12/29/23: “Nearly 40 new EVs have debuted since the start of 2022, and they are far more advanced than their ancestors.”
Your Eco-Friendly Lifestyle Is a Big Lie: Eating organic and switching to low-energy light bulbs feels like the green thing to do, but are people missing the bigger opportunities right in front of them? Matt Reynolds, Wired, 12/29/23: “…there’s nothing wrong with doing things that have a small impact on the environment or help out in ways that are personally important to us, but we shouldn’t overlook the bigger changes we can make just because they don’t feel obvious to us.”
Spying on Beavers From Space Could Help Save California: A group of scientists taught an algorithm to spot beaver ponds in satellite imagery, which has the potential to help drought-ridden areas like California bounce back, Ben Goldfarb, Wired, 12/28/23
An odd silence at the end of humanity's hottest year...yet, Bill McKibben, The Crucial Years, 12/28/23: “The only really important question is, ‘How many more years like this we have to have before the reality of how bad climate change is breaks into the public's consciousness?’”
Biden Administration Takes Historic Step to Protect Old-Growth Forest: Environmental advocates say action is still needed to protect “mature” trees, while industry views the move as hindering timber harvests that provide wildfire protection, Marianne Lavelle, Inside Climate News, 12/27/23
Uruguay’s green power revolution: rapid shift to wind shows the world how it’s done: Stung by 2008’s oil price spike, Uruguay now produces up to 98% of its electricity from renewables. Can other countries follow suit? Sam Meadows, The Guardian, 12/27/23
Is climate change speeding up? Here’s what the science says: This year’s record temperatures have some scientists concerned that the pace of warming may be accelerating. But not everyone agrees, Chris Mooney, Shannon Osaka, Washington Post, 12/26/23
The Toxic Sands Threatening Fish in Lake Superior: The slow-motion destruction of Buffalo Reef, a critical spawning ground, offers lessons for new mining projects, Chantal Riley, Undark, 12/28/23: “It comes down to a question of whether mining companies can act more responsibly when extracting the world’s natural resources.”
The Foods the World Will Lose to Climate Change: Droughts, heat, and extreme weather are pushing crops to their limits. The race is on to innovate faster than the Earth warms, Maryn McKenna, Wired, 12/29/23: “Not only does that have implications for regional food security—it also has implications for the overall economy.”
Wales becomes first country to map important areas for insects, Stefan Messenger, BBC, 12/28/23
Billions of pounds of microplastics are entering the oceans every year. Researchers are trying to understand their impact, Ben Tracy, CBS News, 12/25/23
‘Grief is a rational response’: the 21 US species declared extinct this year: Hawaii hardest hit by loss of eight birds, with an Ohio catfish, a Pacific fruit bat and eight freshwater mussels also disappearing, Maanvi Singh, The Guardian, 12/29/23
Yes, the Climate Crisis Is Now ‘Gobsmacking.’ But So Is Some Progress: This is the year that “absolutely gobsmackingly bananas” summed up the climate emergency. But dramatic descriptors extend to the huge gains humanity has made too, Matt Simon, Wired, 12/27/23: “I am of the opinion that there is space for talking about the wins and the successes as a way to kind of continue to ground yourself.”
Scientists unravel the big mystery of a beached whale: A beached fin whale in San Diego was likely the latest victim of a pod of marauding orcas. But the orcas’ presence is actually a sign of a recovering ecosystem, Dino Grandoni, Washington Post, 12/30/23
Tech That Will Change Your Life in 2024: Generative AI will remain huge, and we’ll also see big moves with electric vehicles, Apple’s mixed-reality headset, password security and regulation around social media, Joanna Stern, Nicole Nguyen, Christopher Mims, Wall Street Journal, 12/29/23 (Gift Article)
Miners saw a flash of white in the rock. It was an Ice Age mammoth tusk, Daniel Wu, Washington Post, 12/27/23: “You don’t really expect to see this full curved tusk just laying there in perfect condition after being dumped out of the back of a dump truck.”
Health Wellness
Covid JN.1 Variant Is Driving Nearly Half of Cases: What to Know, Including Symptoms: A new Covid variant is spreading during the holiday season, Briana Abbott, Dominique Mosberger, Wall Street Journal, 12/29/23: “Covid is still one of the more serious bugs when we compare it to some of the others.” (Gift Article) DW: I know first hand about this variant.
Bolstering our sense of smell may reduce the risk of dementia: Scientists are studying how a decline in our olfactory abilities can signal conditions such as Alzheimer’s, Nicola Davis, The Guardian, 12/25/23: “…losing your sense of smell can be an early sign of dementia.”
Cold, frozen January next comes in,
Chilling the blood, and shrinking up the skin.
—from “Winter,” Anne Bradstreet
Birds Birds Birds
Buildings kill a billion US birds a year. These architects want to save them: Highly transparent glass can lead to devastating collisions. But innovations in design are creating safer skylines – without sacrificing beauty, Maanvi Singh, The Guardian, 12/27/23: “The huge challenge is that glass is everywhere.”
The race to save America’s birds, Anders and Beverly Gyllenhaal, CNN, 12/27/23: “About half our bird species are in some stage of decline.”
A shorebird with 'a lot of personality' makes a comeback, Barbara Moran, WBUR, 12/29/23: “Conservationists are reporting a 45% increase in the population of the American Oystercatcher.”
African Penguins Have Almost Been Wiped Out by Overfishing and Climate Change. Researchers Want to Orchestrate a Comeback: A hatchery in Cape Town breeds birds for release in a newly established sanctuary for penguins 146 miles east, where a few early signs suggest the penguins may have found a new home, Kiley Price, Inside Climate News, 12/25/23
What will survive of us is love—Philip Larkin
I’ve just celebrated 15 years of podcasting at Writerscast.com, posting a new interview with Jane Friedman about the book business. I hope you will give it a listen. Writerscast now features more than 400 episodes, an array of writers, poets, editors, publishers and technologists which I hope contributes to our understanding of modern literary culture. You can subscribe on Apple, Spotify and other podcast listening sites as well.
Thanks once again to all of you who take the time to read these weekly compendia, and special thanks to all of you who have written to me. I know these run long, I know they can be exhausting, but I am guessing (hoping) that most of you will choose what you want to read and scan the rest. I’m just providing the tasty crumbs you follow to find fuller meals.
It helps to know we are in this together and actively sharing what we learn and know about makes a difference.
Wherever you are, whoever you are with, whatever and however you are celebrating — or not — whatever you are doing — I send warm regards and thanks for who you are and what you do. Please keep in touch. Stay well. Share love. We need each other, now more than ever.—David
the cat finally came home last night —
spooked by so many fireworks barking,
he hid somewhere unsearchable for a while
no matter how I called and called.
He chose me, I like to say since the day
I found him starving on the porch.
I know the night is full of unsteady boats
on cold seas and horrible cages
and people far more alone than me.
I’m sorry for your loss, your cancer,
the accident you had no way to see coming
and the one you did have an inkling of,
I’ve learned how important it is to say
because of how difficult it is to say
and how loudly loneliness fills the silence
although, like anything, it depends —
for instance, I still can’t unhitch my breath
from even the softest whisper of your name.
—from “Happy New Year,” Lisa Olstein (in her new book Dream Apartment)