The Weird Times
Inner Monologues and Desultory Reporting from Outer Spaces: Issue 199, March 3, 2024 (V4 #43)
Freedom is pitted against slavery; lightness against the dark. The faith we hold belongs not to us alone but to the free of all the world.—Dwight Eisenhower
We cannot interfere in other countries’ elections, but we would very much like to see President Donald Trump return to the White House.— Viktor Orbán
Books, Music, Art, Culture
‘Kish Mir in Tuchus!’ Before his violent early death at twenty-five, the Jewish Belgian artist Stéphane Mandelbaum assembled a body of confrontational drawings, J. Hoberman, NY Review of Books, 2/25/24
Betty Smith enchanted a generation of readers with ‘A Tree Grows in Brooklyn’ − even as she groused that she hoped Williamsburg would be flattened, Rachel Gordan, The Conversation, 2/27/24: “The novel affirmed the desire to move beyond poverty, as the protagonist, Francie, had done, and Betty Smith, too.”
In Short Measures Life May Perfect Be: In an age overrun by our relentless desire for more—whether more wealth or more productivity from limited soil—Wendell Berry’s writings offer a way to find wholeness in life’s finitude, David Barr, Barn Raiser, 2/26/24: “We are, according to Berry, ‘condemned to the life of a fragment, forever unfinished and incomplete, forever greedy.’”
Laurie Anderson on making an AI chatbot of Lou Reed: ‘I’m totally, 100%, sadly addicted: Anderson’s experiments with language-based AI predated ChatGPT – with one machine modelled on her dead husband that her friends ‘just can’t stand,’ Walter Marsh, The Guardian, 2/29/24
The Freaks Came Out to Write review – how the Village Voice changed American journalism, Peter Conrad, The Guardian, 2/27/24: “Tricia Romano’s entertaining oral history of the radical New York newspaper is an elegy to a rough and ready era of punch-ups and passion.” Book: The Freaks Came Out to Write: The Definitive History of the Village Voice, the Radical Paper That Changed American Culture
Did novels stop mattering in the 2010s? Searching for literature's missing impact, Erik Hoel, Intrinsic Perspective, 3/1/24: “What was the last literary novel where its publication was a big cultural event?”
The Kinsey Institute, the world’s top sex research center, faces existential threat from conservative attacks: What happens to the institute may signal if conservative US lawmakers can dictate the bounds of research on sexuality, Carter Sherman, The Guardian, 2/28/24
Fears of witch hunts over Utah ban on trans athletes in girls’ sports, Karin Brulliard, Washington Post, 2/26/24: “Transgender rights advocates see a witch-hunt type atmosphere spreading as states enact a flurry of laws seeking to restrain trans people”
The Last, Improbable Refuge for the World’s Endangered Languages: Deep linguistic diversity is among the least explored but possibly most consequential factors in New York City's history and makeup, Ross Perlin, The Atlantic, 2/26/24 Book: Language City - The Fight to Preserve Endangered Mother Tongues in New York
The Haudenosaunee Nationals’ quest to play under their own flag at the Olympics: Joe Biden has backed a Native American lacrosse team’s bid to compete at the Los Angeles Games in 2028. But IOC rules stand in their way, Matthew Foresta, The Guardian, 2/28/24: “It’s about who we are, so it’s absolutely important for us to contribute this game to the rest of the world.”
Can literature move the needle in an election year? Also, I just saw the movie American Fiction so I'm thinking about that, too, Dolen Perkins-Valdez, Dolen, 2/28/24: “In this election year, we can host our own kitchen table conversations. Using ordinary speech. Talking about these extraordinary times.”
UNESCO’s Quest to Save the World’s Intangible Heritage: For decades, the organization has maintained a system that protects everything from Ukrainian borscht to Jamaican reggae. But what does it mean to “safeguard” living culture? Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 3/2/24: “You won’t find New York bagels, Navajo sandpainting, or—despite the lobbying of Herbie Hancock—jazz on the I.C.H. lists, because the United States has never ratified the 2003 convention.”
A Betrayal of Instinct: What Happens to Human Body When It Stops Eating: on the Scientific and Biological Processes Behind Fasting, John Oakes, LitHub, 2/26/24: “The spirit is leading an insurrection, and the body responds by calling for a return to unthinking habit.” Book: The Fast: The History, Science, Philosophy, and Promise of Doing Without. Note: I interviewed John Oakes about his book – you can listen on Spotify, Apple or at Writerscast.com
‘My first death was the weirdest …’ Ministry’s Al Jourgensen, metal’s great survivor: The industrial pioneer’s heart stopped three times during addiction and serious illness. Now, before a planned split, his new album takes on Trump – even if it means disowning his mother, Matt Mills, The Guardian, 2/29/24
After Trugoy: Reflections on De La Soul: Celebrating, remembering, mourning the legacy and music of De La Soul after Trugoy the Dove's untimely death in 2023, Ross Gay, Orion, 2/16/24: “That appealed to me in eighth grade, and it appeals to me now: being backward in a world so much of whose forward trajectory is horrific. Let me try it backward.”
A meteor has more right than my people
Who be wastin' time screamin' who they've hated (Word)
That's why the Native Tongues has officially been reinstated
—From “Stakes Is High,” De La Soul
Politics, Economics
The apocalypse we choose: Mike Johnson's record as Speaker of the House, Timothy Snyder, Thinking About, 3/3/24: “In four months as Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson has given Russia a chance to win its war in Ukraine, and thereby turn the world towards tyranny.”
This Swirling Mess of Political Uncertainty: How are we supposed to survive it? A small proposal, Elizabeth Cronise McLaughlin, ECM, 2/28/24: “The doom cycle is endless, and it’s on us to end it. But we can’t do that if we don’t recognize the terror, and give ourselves a moment to process it, feel it, seek relief, and get grounded. Take your Radical Pause. The work will be there when you return, and we will keep moving forward to save democracy, together.”
Democracy Is Not a Spectator Sport: 2024 Is a De Facto Constitutional Referendum, Michael Podhorzer, Weekend Reading, 2/28/24: “The dangerous mistake here is to take for granted that the ordinary voters who will decide this election will invariably make their decisions based on whether they judge Biden or Trump better able to perform the presidency, rather than on what they and their families have to lose if Trump and MAGA wins.”
Is It Time to Hold Possible Co-Conspirator Ginni Thomas Accountable? Will Jack Smith & the Department of Justice do battle against Ginni Thomas & a group of people who are openly working to manipulate our system to the benefit of Trump and his fascist cronies? Thom Hartmann, Hartmann Report, 3/1/24
‘He believes in power and chaos’: alarm as Steve Bannon plots to propel Trump: The ex-White House chief strategist is no longer in daily contact with Trump, but his influence on the Maga right remains total, David Smith, The Guardian, 3/3/24
The most ridiculous 'story' I saw last week: And, as an antidote, a reminder of some excellent journalism, Margaret Sullivan, American Crisis, 2/26/24: “I try to be a constructive media critic, not a mocking one. But sometimes I get pushed too far. This was the case last week with an Axios story titled ‘Biden’s reliance on notecards at fundraisers worries donors.’”
More Aftershocks Out of Russia’s Long Hunter Biden Disinfo Campaign, Josh Marshall, Talking Points Memo, 2/26/24: “At every stage of the Hunter Biden and Burisma/Biden/Ukraine bribes stories the fingerprints of Russian intelligence have been there.”
Here lies the internet, murdered by generative AI: Corruption everywhere, even in YouTube's kids content, Erik Hoel, Intrinsic Perspective, 2/27/24: “Now that generative AI has dropped the cost of producing bullshit to near zero, we see clearly the future of the internet: a garbage dump.”
Generative AI Is Challenging a 234-Year-Old Law: The technology might finally bend copyright past the breaking point, upending what it means to have a creative society in the process, Alex Reisner, The Atlantic, 2/29/24: “Contrary to popular belief, copyright does not exist for the benefit of creators. Its purpose, according to founding documents and recent interpretations, is to foster a culture that produces great works of science, art, literature, and music.”
New technologies, new totalitarians: Thanks to smartphones, social media, and globalization, liberalism faces a new and terrifying kind of opponent, Noah Smith, Noahpinion, 2/27/24: “…the rise of smartphones and social media means that the internet is now a powerful centralizer of both personal information and public discussion, rather than the decentralizing force that the creators of the Web intended it to be. And centralization plays into the hands of those who seek to control every aspect of other people’s lives — i.e., totalitarians.”
The Future Is a Dupe: Sora, Vision Pro, and the Blurred Lines Between Truth & Fiction, Rex Woodbury, Digital Native, 2/28/24: “As Sora and Vision Pro illustrate, we’re in the early innings of multiple, interlinking eras in technology.”
The man who tricked Nazi Germany: lessons from the past on how to beat disinformation: The story of the British man who took on Hitler’s information machine offers valuable insights into the fight against the rise of authoritarianism, Peter Pomerantsev, The Guardian, 3/2/24: “Delmer wanted to alienate people from Nazi propaganda by pushing Nazi propaganda ‘one step further into the ridiculous.’” Book: How to Win an Information War
‘Medical colonialism’: midwives sue Hawaii over law regulating Native birth workers: Native Hawaiian midwives say new law criminalizes Indigenous birthing customs and will deal blow to maternal health, Ava Sasani, The Guardian, 2/27/24
Implicit Feudalism: My discussion with Nathan Schneider on democratic design for online life, Douglas Rushkoff, Newsletter, 2/28/24: “…the bias to build our online and real communities as fiefdoms, and how this has made us more tolerant of similarly autocratic CEOs and politicians.”
The US as defender of democracy won’t win votes. Donald Trump gets it, but Joe Biden doesn’t: Despite concerns about the state of the world, Americans have soured on their global policing role, Simon Tisdall, The Guardian, 3/2/24: “This warped and ugly “other America” is no trusted friend, no ally, no partner for the democratic world. Shining city upon a hill no more, it’s an enemy in the making.”
The Zionist case for a ceasefire, Isaac Saul, Tangle, 3/1/24: “There should be a ceasefire not just to alleviate the humanitarian disaster Palestinians are experiencing, but to create a safer present and future for Israelis and the global Jewry, too. And I think it's worth making the case for a ceasefire on both of those grounds — not one or the other.”
The two state solution: an idea whose time has come? Lawrence Freedman, Comment is Freed, 3/2/24: “There is not going to be peace … not going to be sustainable security for Israel unless the Palestinians have a clear political prospect to build their own state.” (Anthony Blinken)
I hope,
after all, seclusion will be permitted for the completion
Of high-priority tasks,
slyly,
completely imperceptibly
to love one another.
—from “Poems of Wartime Kyiv” by Stanislav Belsky, Translated by Olga Mikolaivna, LitHub, 3/1/24
Science, Environment
We Finally Know What Turned The Lights on at The Dawn of Time, Michelle Starr, Science Alert, 3/2/24: “According to data from the Hubbles and James Webb Space Telescopes, the origins of the free-flying photons in the early cosmic dawn were small dwarf galaxies that flared to life, clearing the fog of murky hydrogen that filled intergalactic space.”
‘Quite radical’: the feeling of exhaustion is key to tackling climate change, says author: Exhausted of the Earth author Ajay Singh Chaudhary says how we feel and the state of the earth are connected, Maya Goodfellow, The Guardian, 2/28/24: “Under capitalism, we are not all in it together.” Book: The Exhausted of the Earth
Did a marine heatwave cause 7,000 humpback whales to starve to death? Populations were recovering, but a new study reveals that numbers dropped by 20% coinciding with a period of record temperatures in the North Pacific, Brianna Randall, The Guardian, 2/28/24
The Butterfly Redemption: How scientists, volunteers, and incarcerated women are finding hope and metamorphosis through supporting a struggling butterfly, Brian Payton, Hakai, 2/27/24: “I just didn’t think you could form a bond with an insect like that.”
Cover crops could be the key to cleaner water in rural areas, Brian DeVore, Environmental Health News, 2/28/24: “This approach not only benefits the environment but also supports farmers financially, encouraging a shift away from traditional, input-intensive agriculture.”
Massachusetts' offshore wind farm starts powering homes, Steve LeBlanc, Daily Climate, 2/26/24: “Vineyard Wind, the first large-scale offshore wind farm in the U.S., has begun supplying power to the Massachusetts grid, marking a significant step in renewable energy.”
Electric vehicles and the debate over air quality: In a deep dive into the environmental impact of electric vehicles, Jasper Jolly for the Guardian explores the complex issue of whether the shift to electric could worsen air pollution due to particulate emissions from brakes and tires, Jasper Jolly, Daily Climate, 2/28/24
El Niño May Have Kicked Off Thwaites Glacier Retreat: Antarctica’s “Doomsday Glacier” started losing mass midcentury, around the same time as its neighboring glacier, Grace van Deelan, Eos, 2/26/24: “Once the system is kicked out of balance, the retreat is ongoing.”
When biodiversity and human cuisine collide, even lentils and rice take a toll: Researchers painstakingly analyzed the biodiversity footprint of 151 dishes. They found that even the vegetarian ones can exact a high price, Warren Cornwall, Anthropocene, 2/28/24: “Transitioning to a flexitarian, vegetarian or vegan diet is the most important recommendation. Even simpler, I would avoid beef and lamb.”
Mollusk Eyes Reveal How Future Evolution Depends on the Past: The visual systems of an obscure group of mollusks provide a rare natural example of path-dependent evolution, in which a critical fork in the creatures’ past determined their evolutionary futures, Viviane Callier, Quanta, 2/29/24
How did life on Earth begin? The chemical puzzle just became clearer, Kasha Patel, Washington Post, 2/29/24: “This is another beautiful example of how the molecules of life, even more complex ones like coenzymes, are predisposed to form.”
As Winter Melts Away: Notes toward a eulogy for something I love, Bill McKibben, The Crucial Years, 2/28/24: “The fight to slow the warming of the planet is the fight to save billions of people and millions of species, but it’s also the fight to hold on to profound beauty and profound meaning, not to mention sheer gorgeous powdery magic.”
“The white man will freeze to death in the arctic,
if left to himself,” the elder said
after translation, “but now with schooling
some Inuit too have frozen.”
—from “On Whether or Not the Pig is Indigenous to the New World,” John Moritz
Health, Wellness
Mounting research shows that COVID-19 leaves its mark on the brain, including with significant drops in IQ scores, Ziyad Al-Aly, The Conversation, 2/28/24
Ultra-processed foods linked to 32 health problems in review: What to know, Rachel Pannett, Washington Post, 2/29/24: “…higher ultra-processed food intake was associated with about a 50 percent increased risk of cardiovascular disease-related death, a 48 to 53 percent higher risk of anxiety and common mental disorders, and a 12 percent greater risk of Type 2 diabetes.”
For thousands of common chemicals, there is ‘no safe level,’ says report, Saul Elbein, The Hill, 2/27/24: “This is a problem scientists connect to the rising production from the fossil fuel and petrochemical industries.”
Birds, Birds, Birds
Avian Teachers: On What We Can Learn from Birds: the Myriad Ways Our Feathered Friends Can Show Us Smarter, More Compassionate Ways of Living, Trish O'Kane, LitHub, 2/27/24: “We may have learned to build our own nests, weave, sing, and group together to drive away a predator all from our feathered friends.”
Gone barely a month, migrating birds are making their way back to Wisconsin already, Paul Smith, Aol.com, 2/29/24: “We've never had them here this early. We need to recalibrate our expectations, apparently.”
I am happy to report that articles from The Guardian are no longer paywalled, as well as selected stories from The Atlantic, the NY Times and Wall Street Journal I can share with gift links. Click through to read the original stories in full.
This has been another incredibly busy week. I try to focus on what seems to matter most, ignoring the news headlines you’ve probably already seen in favor of stories you might not have seen, and those that help make sense of what we are traversing every day. It’s often unclear to me what to feature here, and I am certain I am missing stories that matter. Let me know what you think!
So much of the news of our world is upsetting, depressing, daunting. Despite all, I have to believe we will get through this if we work together.
Wherever you are, whoever you are with, whatever you are doing — thanks for who you are and what you do. Please continue to keep in touch. Send messages and news.
Above all, stay well; share love; work for good. We need each other, now more than ever.
Love from here—David