The Weird Times
Inner Monologues and Desultory Reporting from Outer Spaces
The Weird Times: Issue 114, July 17, 2022 (V3 #10)
“Our country has been turned into an insane asylum run in large part by particularly cruel religious fanatics.”—Dave Pell
"People have lived and died, businesses have prospered and failed, and nations have risen to world power and declined, all over energy challenges." —Richard Rhodes, Energy: A Human History
“I view Elon Musk as being the figurehead for a business culture that has just gone completely off the rails. We’ve gotten into this mode in Silicon Valley that we use technology to exploit human weakness rather than empower people, and we’ve supported a management culture that is so self-centered it has no respect for the people who are touched by the product, has no respect for the rules. And in the long run, that’s bad for investors, bad for the economy, and bad for the country.”—Roger McNamee
Books, Culture, Art
Bobby Byrd, El Paso poet and publisher, dies at 80, Robert Moore, Elida S. Perez, El Paso Matters, 7/12/22: “Byrd was a poet and with his wife, Lee Merrill Byrd, co-founded Cinco Puntos Press, an independent publisher that helped develop numerous Hispanic and border authors over the years. “This poetics of mine is like a three-legged donkey. A goofy-looking pack animal that stumbles along beside me. Damn thing just materialized haphazardly when I was growing up.”
When I was two years old
We lived in Mississippi—
And now I’m 79...
I still want my big brother
To take me fishing
And I want my father
To get out of his airplane
And come back home.
Cálida despedida, Bobby. Journey onward, we will miss you.
Rage Against the Machine’s Message at First Show in 11 Years: “Abort the Supreme Court” On the first date of a long-awaited reunion tour, the band shared a pointed message about “forced birth” in the United States, Evan Minsker, Pitchfork, 7/10/22. Watch here.
10 Must-Read Books by Indigenous Authors: From propulsive fantasies to family sagas, mysteries, and more, Indigenous authors are creating the most noteworthy books of the year, Sarah Neilson, Shondaland, 7/12/22
Life Has a Way of Taking That Out of You: A Conversation with Tom Perrotta, Elizabeth Gonzalez James, The Rumpus, 7/12/22
Ada Limón Named U.S. Poet Laureate, John Maher, Maya Popa, Publishers Weekly, 7/12/22
Salvage
On the top of Mount Pisgah, on the western
slope of the Mayacamas, there’s a madrone
tree that’s half-burned from the fires, half-alive
from nature’s need to propagate. One side
of her is black ash and at her root is what
looks like a cavity that was hollowed out
by flame. On the other side, silvery green
broadleaf shoots ascend toward the winter
light and her bark is a cross between a bay
horse and a chestnut horse, red and velvety
like the animal’s neck she resembles. I have
been staring at the tree for a long time now.
I am reminded of the righteousness I had
before the scorch of time. I miss who I was.
I miss who we all were, before we were this: half
alive to the brightening sky, half dead already.
I place my hand on the unscarred bark that is cool
and unsullied, and because I cannot apologize
to the tree, to my own self I say, I am sorry.
I am sorry I have been so reckless with your life.
—Ada Limon (published by Greenpeace)
Authors for Abortion Access Launch Auction, PW Staff, Publishers Weekly, 7/11/22: Learn more here.
Frank Zappa on CNN Crossfire, 3/28/86 (Ed Note: yes – 1986! It is remarkable to see how little the arguments from the right have changed, and how calmly Zappa dealt with the frantic Robert Novak, Tom Braden and two other conservative idiots. "The biggest threat to America today is not communism, it is moving America towards a fascist theocracy.”
On Finding Solace Among Nature’s Gentlest of Giants, the Gray Whale: "Even in the constant darkness of the polar winter, each aġviq finds plenty to sing about,” Doreen Cunningham, LitHub, 7/14/22: “The sea, which is now a jagged industrial gray, withholds judgment, unlike me. It could drown me without it being anything personal.”
In Praise of the Greatest Book About Swimming Ever Written: on Charles Sprawson’s Haunts of the Black Masseur: The Swimmer as Hero, Daniel Shailer, LitHub, 7/11/22: “Throughout Haunts, Sprawson nurtures an underlying melancholy, which comes to the surface when he describes those particular haunts which have been destroyed.”
Victoria’s Secret irreparably damaged our culture: A new documentary follows billionaire Leslie Wexner and his iconic brand’s influence, Jordan Calhoun, The Atlantic,7/16/22
Literary news: The great Sonia Sanchez received the Edward MacDowell Medal at the MacDowell artist’s residency program in Peterborough, N.H. on July 10.
where is that young man born lonely?
and the ancestors' voices will reply:
he is home tattooing his skin with
white butterflies.—From “For Tupac Amaru Shakur”
Science, Environment
James Webb Space Telescope: An astronomer explains the stunning, newly released first images, Silas Laycock, The Conversation, 7/12/22
Stop for a minute. These space images are worth your time, Sergio Peçanha, Washington Post, 7/12/22: “Everything about the Webb telescope is mind-boggling. Ponder this: Humans sent a telescope the size of a tennis court into space and parked it four times farther away than the moon.”
Scientists have picked up a radio signal 'heartbeat' billions of light-years away, Ayana Archie, NPR, 7/15/22
Edits to a cholesterol gene could stop the biggest killer on earth: In a first, a patient in New Zealand has undergone gene-editing to lower their cholesterol. It could be the beginning of new era in disease prevention, Antonio Regalado, MIT Technology Review, 7/12/22
New dating method shatters our understanding of human evolution: Fossils of Australopithecus in a South African cave are one million years older than previously thought. This challenges the consensus that humans first evolved in East Africa, Jasna Hodžić, Big Think, 7/7/22
Once nearly extinct, bison are now climate heroes: Indigenous tribes are leading the effort to bring back the bison — a victory not only for the sake of biodiversity, but for the entire ecosystem they nurture, Jess McHugh, Washington Post, 7/13/22
As drought shrivels Lake Powell, millions face power crisis: With water levels falling ‘lower than thought possible’ at Glen Canyon Dam, energy production could halt as soon as July 2023, Peter Yeung, The Guardian, 7/13/22
Five Things to Know About Drought in the American West: A new climate is re-writing the story of America’s drylands, Brett Walton, Circle of Blue, 7/14/22: “Extreme heat bakes the land surface. Warmer, drier air holds more water. Parched soils then gobble rain and melting snow before the water reaches rivers and reservoirs. A thirsty atmosphere evaporates or sublimates its share. Together, they are a powerful one-two punch.”
Persistent farmer whose cows died from a mysterious disease helped unravel the origin of toxic chemicals, Michael Hawthorne, Chicago Tribune, 7/11/22
To help cotton survive climate change, scientists are breeding better genes: Not exactly genetic modification, a new approach combines plant breeding and insights into cotton’s genome to help ensure you can have jeans in the future, Selena Taluya, Fast Company, 7/10/22
Urban Waters: Discovering the Hidden Beauty of a Jersey River: Flowing through hard-pressed Camden, New Jersey’s Cooper River was long abused and ignored by area residents. Now, following the example of other urban restoration efforts, a campaign is underway to encourage more use of the Cooper and an appreciation of its natural assets, Jon Hurdle, Yale Environment 360, 7/12/22
The Controversial Plan to Unleash the Mississippi: Our long history of constraining the river through levees has led to massive land loss in its delta. Can we engineer our way out? And at what cost? Boyce Upholt, Hakai, 7/12/22
The Surprising Consequences of a Seaweed Switcheroo: In the ocean off southwest England, cold-water kelp is being replaced by a warm-water species, with profound effects for the local ecosystem, Rebecca Dzombak, Hakai, 7/11/22
Scientists Had Never Seen This Elusive Whale Alive—Until Now: With DNA evidence, scientists confirm the first live sighting of the Sato’s beaked whale, which they previously knew only from whalers’ reports and carcasses, Devon Bidal, Hakai, 7/14/22
The BA.5 Wave Is What COVID Normal Looks Like: The endless churn of variants may not stop anytime soon, unless we do something about it, Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 7/14/22: “The speed at which a virus shape-shifts hinges on two main factors: the microbe’s inherent capacity for change, and the frequency with which it interacts with hospitable hosts.” Ed. Note: it’s time for us all to wear our masks indoor again.
There’s a BA.5 Covid wave in the US – should you be worried? Everything you need to know: The newest challenge hits the nation at a time the leadership has largely moved on from the coronavirus discourse, Melody Schreiber, The Guardian, 7/15/22: “It’s not magic; it’s still a virus.”
Politics Politics Politics (Don’t Turn Away)
When Did It Become Acceptable To Oppose Democracy? Marc Elias, Democracy Docket, 7/15/22: “We are heading towards a potential election crisis in 2022 or 2024 because, so far, we have failed to act.”
The right-wing smear campaign against a doctor who helped a 10-year-old rape victim, Judd Legum, Popular Information, 7/14/22
“They Should Be Ashamed of Themselves:” Child-Rape Case Shines a Harsh Light on Ohio’s Draconian Abortion Restrictions: The arrest of a man in the rape of a 10-year-old girl, who had an abortion in neighboring Indiana, is squashing doubts about the veracity of a local story thrust into the national consciousness. The case is also clarifying the stakes of Ohio’s governor’s race, where abortion rights are effectively on the ballot, Abigail Tracy, Vanity Fair, 7/14/22
These corporations wrote 6-figure checks to elect governors who will ban abortion, Judd Legum, Rebecca Crosby, Popular Information, 7/11/22
Secret Service’s January 6 text messages story has shifted several times, panel is told: Explanation for how the messages from 5 and 6 January 2021 were deleted has gone from software upgrades to device replacements, Hugo Lowell, The Guardian, 7/16/22
America Is Headed For Disaster: Donald Trump is on course to reconquer the White House. To save the republic, we need a radical change of direction, Yascha Mounk, Persuasion, 7/1/22
Biden is trying to rebuild America’s middle class. Our lopsided economy needs it: The Republican promise is to cut taxes and regulation. But the numbers show just how badly that argument has failed, Heather Cox Richardson, The Guardian, 7/11/22
Tim Ryan Is Throwing Out the Democratic Playbook in Ohio: In his campaign against J.D. Vance, the Ohio rep. has distanced himself from national party leaders, applauded Donald Trump’s trade policies, and is now boasting of the praise he’s received on…Fox News. Could this unusual strategy help flip a Senate seat? Caleb Ecarma, Vanity Fair, 7/13/22
May Build Back Better Never Be Spoken Of Again: Negotiations with Joe Manchin are over. Let’s keep it that way, David Dayen, American Prospect, 7/15/22
Joe Manchin’s Fickleness Is a Needless Catastrophe: The senator just worsened climate change—and inflation, Robinson Meyer, The Atlantic, 7/15/22
On Bullshit in Investing, Benn Eifert, Noahpinion, 7/12/22: “The investing industry is ridden with bullshit. The most common and insidious form is over-optimism: offers of tantalizing risk/reward that defy any notion of reality, often based on misinformation or deception. Less common but even more dangerous are outright frauds. The problem is inherent to the product.”
Toward a Post-Capitalist Future: On the Growth of “Degrowth” The Emancipatory Potential of Going Smaller, Matthias Schmelzer, Aaron Vansintjan, Andrea Vetter, LitHub, 7/15/22
Recommended reading: Limits and Beyond: 50 years on from The Limits to Growth, what did we learn and what's next? Ugo Bardi, Carlos Alvarez Pereira, Exapt Press, 5/10/22
“It said that Nothing Ever Happened, so don’t worry. It’s all like a dream. Everything is ecstasy, inside. We just don’t know it because of our thinking-minds. But in our true blissful essence of mind is known that everything is alright forever and forever and forever. Close your eyes, let your hands and nerve-ends drop, stop breathing for 3 seconds, listen to the silence inside the illusion of the world, and you will remember the lesson you forgot, which was taught in immense milky way soft cloud innumerable worlds long ago and not even at all. It is all one vast awakened thing. I call it the golden eternity. It is perfect.”—Jack Kerouac, 1957
Birdland
The Bizarre Bird That’s Breaking the Tree of Life: Darwin thought that family trees could explain evolution. The hoatzin suggests otherwise, Ben Crair, The New Yorker, 7/15/22: “The hoatzin may be more than a missing piece of the evolutionary puzzle. It may be a sphinx with a riddle that many biologists are reluctant to consider: What if the pattern of evolution is not actually a tree?”
Peril overcome, an American Oystercatcher returns home to Milford Point, Connecticut Audubon Society, 7/12/22
Here’s What To Feed Your Summer Bird Feeder Visitors: Summertime brings the chance to branch out with your bird food offerings. Here's how to go beyond sunflower seeds and suet, to nectar, oranges, jelly, mealworms, and more, Gustave Axelson, All About Birds, 7/11/22
Research suggests that change in bird coloration is due to climate change, Univ of the Basque Country, Phys.org, 7/14/22
A woodpecker's brain takes a big hit with every peck: study, Jon Hamilton, NPR, 7/14/22
Black Swifts Fly High To Forage During The Full Moon, Gustave Axelson, All About Birds, 6/13/22
Extinct, endangered native birds spotlighted in poem collection, UH News, University of Hawaii, 7/14/22: Prevailing Winds, by Joseph Stanton
Last week, I mentioned Michael Wolfe’s outstanding documentary - this link will let you stream the first two episodes whenever you like: The Great Muslim American Road Trip | PBS
William Hart, Delfonics Lead Singer and Songwriter, Dies at 77, Andrew Unterberger, Yahoo News, 7/15/22. Didn’t I Blow Your Mind This Time?
Midsummer, it’s hot everywhere. Climate change is now self-evident, yet the US is unable to make meaningful progress toward change. Blocked by a single coal-state senator and a fossil fuel selected Supreme Court. Fifty years ago, I read The Limits to Growth which influenced many of us at the time. We’ve known for all these years where the unfettered extraction economy was taking us. The Dobbs decision was a wake up call and the case limiting the EPA was another. Manchin’s craven “no” to even modest climate change legislation should be another. As Marc Elias said about the threat to democracy: we have failed to act. It’s time to fight.
Despite everything, stay well all, be safe, enjoy each moment. Thanks for reading and being there. Love — David
Either way, we're not alone
I'll find a new place to be from
A haunted house with a picket fence
To float around and ghost my friends
No, I'm not afraid to disappear
The billboard said, "The end is near"
I turned around, there was nothing there
Yeah, I guess the end is here—Phoebe Bridgers, from “I Know the End”