Sunday Morning Reading

It’s been quite a week. Lots going on with work. Lots going on politically in the US and the world. People are dying. So is a country. A new granddaughter is about to be born. I’m deep into work as we begin rehearsals for The Lehman Trilogy at Playhouse on the Square. Virtually at first. Deep enough to be tossing and turning in my sleep searching and grasping for questions, much less answers. Regardless, discovery never stops and that means reading. At times it feels like discovery yields a collection of whatever carcasses and stuff are randomly caught in a spider’s web. Out of the randomness it seems everything is pointed towards the work I’m doing. Either way here’s a web of Sunday Morning Reading to share.

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First You Have to Row A Little Boat. It’s a piece by David Todd McCarty that cribs its title from Richard Bode’s memoir of the same name. Words resonating at the moment far beyond the original and McCarty’s riff. Happiness, perhaps should not be a life’s goal and the curiouser you are might lead to acceptance of that. Enjoy the stumbles and the mistakes as much as you enjoy the moments that seem like victories. If you can.

When historians write about the tumult and chaos of this political moment in the United States this past week’s ascension of Mike Johnson to the role of Speaker of the House will be one of, if not the key moments. Everything changed if not during that culmination. Ruth Graham and Annie Karni in the New York Times give us For Mike Johnson, Religion Is At The Forefront of Politics and Policy, sketching a sketchy biography pulled from what little is known about the man, even as some of it is quickly disappearing from the Internet. But let’s get real. We may not well know this man’s bio. We well know this man and this moment.

One of the strands that allow me to discover is the Internet. Remember when we referred to it as the World Wide Web? It’s going through a moment of chaos and re-examination. Katie Notopoulos in the MIT Technology Review offers up How to Fix The Internet. She’s pointing to what feels like a change in the air. I think we have to fix humans first. Good luck with that.

This piece from January popped up twice in my Internet surfing this week. I believe in serendipitous discoveries, but I do not believe in coincidences. Louis Menard examines When Americans Lost Faith in the News.

Fran Lebowitz. You’ve got an opinion just from the name, assuming you’re aware. Constance Grady gives us an interview with Lebowitz that contains this nugget: “Art should be useless.” Read the interview.

And briefly back to the Internet, Casey Newton gives us Twitter Is Dead and Threads Is Thriving. I’ll agree with the first part. I’ll say this about the second. Threads may be thriving at the moment. But we’re in the moment before Threads becomes what we all know it will be. Two words. Mark Zuckerberg. All of our kids are adorable until they’re not.

Natasha MH writes about Letting Go of Perfection and the prisions we create for ourselves. A quote: “It’s art. You can’t ruin an artwork. It just becomes something else than what you started with. That’s the whole point. That’s where the fun is. If you ask me, I have no idea what I’m doing. I’m doing this because it feels great. Liberating.”

And closing out this week, Spiders Might be Quietly Diisappearing. Betsy Mason takes a look beyond the ick. If they are disappearing, here’s hoping the webs, world wide and otherwise don’t and continue to catch things.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

Photo by Raldugina Oksana

Sunday Morning Reading

Fall’s shadows deepen daily, so too do troubling clouds darkening our skies. And yet another Sunday morning dawns. With that here’s some Sunday Morning Reading to share featuring a mix of interesting writing and topics unveiling a few writers looking into some of their own and the world’s shadows.

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The United States is consumed with what pretends to be politics but discerning eyes are on the difficulties in the Middle East. Wherever you cast your gaze you can find hatred fuelling conflict. But you can still discern moments of hope. Natasha MH looks in on that struggle in The Highland Between Conflict and Peace. Here’s a quote: “So much absence of truth is robbed by our ego, our vanity, our obsession for power and control.”

And on the western shores of Lake Michigan Greg Jaffe and Patrick Marley rack focus from the larger world view down to the local, yet still revealing the same challenges in The Pandemic Is Over In This Michigan County. The Mistrust Never Ended.

Speaking of smaller views into smaller pictures, Daniel Immerwahr in his piece Beyond The Myth of Rural America takes a look at Steven Conn’s The LIes of the Land: Seeing Rural America for What It Is —and Isn’t.

Nitin Dangwal takes a look at The Language Of War and the stories it tells. Over and over again.

Robert Sapolsky doesn’t think Free Will is a thing. Scary concept given all that’s going on in the world currently. Corrine Purtill takes a look at his thinking in Stanford Scientist, After Decades of Study, Concludes We Don’t Have Free Will.

John Gruber of Daring Fireball links to a Washington Free Beacon piece, NYU Law Students Say Classmate Losing Job Offer Over Pro-Hamas Statement Is ‘Violence.’ John chimes in with his thoughts on this and I’m linking to Gruber’s link for his comment on that article. Well said.

There certainly seems to be a lot of bad news, fake news, news news, and it’s all tough to discern what’s what. (I’m bordering on depression just sharing these links). Annie Lowery takes a look at how frustrating it is for consumers these days in The Annoyance Economy.

And to close out this week’s edition David Todd McCarty takes a look at the discerning difference between discerning and difficult in A Difficult Man.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

Sunday Morning Reading

Time for another edition of Sunday Morning Reading. Today’s collection is a scattered selection of topics some of which might feel a bit dark. But it is a dark time scattering many of us into our corners or maybe to have an extra drink or two.

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For reasons, other than stupidity, we’re steal dealing with forces that want to ban books in America. This sadly isn’t a new thing, and Chris Klimek gives us A Brief History of Banned Books in America in this podcast transcript from the Smithsonian magazine podcast “There’s More To That.”

What’s happening and about to happen in the Middle East has the world on edge. Technology brings these moments to us in moments. Joanna Stern in the Wall St. Journal gives us a look in When Our Smartphones Became Windows to a War.

Continuing with that news of the moment Anne Applebaum in the Atlantic gives us There Are No Rules. As she describes it, our norms and values define how the world ought to work. We continually learn that’s not the reality.

Here’s a pallet cleanser with the first of a couple of tech topics. Jared Newman in Fast Company takes a look at the note-taking app Obsidian in The Cult of Obsidian: Why People Are Obssesed With The Note-Taking App.

If you’ve paid attention to my tech writings here you’ll know I’m having some challenges with Apple’s iCloud failings and flailings. I’m not the only one and my challenge isn’t the only iCloud issue. In TidBits Glenn Fleishman describes his in Cloudy With A Chance of Insanity: Unsticking iCloud Drive.

And back on the politics and follies of mankind beat, this piece by Michael Tomasky, I Never Thought I’d Live to See Democracy Die. But Now I Wonder is worth a look. He’s not alone in his wondering if Democracy is just a phase.

And after all of that, if you think you might need a drink, here’s a look at The Bad Law That Made Good Bars, from Peter Suderman on The Raines Law. Never heard of it? Pour yourself a beverage of choice and take a read.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

Sunday Morning Reading

Fall’s cooler temperatures are settling in and it’s a Sunday, so time for some Sunday Morning Reading to share with a mix of topics covering a range of interests. Enjoy!

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Leading off is a bit of politics because, well, US politicians seem to be knocking each other over in their quest for who can do the most damage to their so-called profession. First up is an excellent piece from Will Bunch, America Needs to Talk About the Right’s ‘Red Caesar’ plan for U.S. Dictatorship. This is happening. Don’t say you haven’t been warned.

And continuing in the poltiical vein, David Todd McCarty says We’ve Seen the Best Republicans Have to Offer. Sad. But true.

Off Camera is a terrfic piece by John Paul Scotto about his visits through his memories as seen through old home videos.

And speaking of things through lenses, the debate about over what exactly is a photo is heating up as Google (and others) keep moving the goal posts on doing things in post. Check out The Pixel 8 and the What-Is-A-Photo Apocalypse by Jay Peters.

Live theatre and the arts in general are going through some tough times. Spaced Out in Chicago: When Storefront Theatres Run Out of Storefronts by Amanda Finn in American Theatre Magazine focuses on the once thriving storefront theatre scene in Chicago and the challenges when real estate becomes less real.

James Parker in The Atlantic wonders what comedy is for in Comedians Only Care About Comedy. It’s a piece on the new Comedy Book: How Comedy Conquered Culture-and the Magic That Makes it Work. The joke’s on all of us if you ask me.

And David Todd McCarty gets a second hit this Sunday with his excellent The Myth of Fingerprints. As his subhead describes it “In which I explore the wisdom and efficacy of investing emotionally in the long-term outcome of America.” Read it.

And to close out this week, the week that brought us the anniversary of Steve Jobs’ death, take a read of this piece from Lisa Melton, simply titled Memories of Steve. She republished this April 2014 piece. It’s not just terrific. It’s an amazing memory from someone who was there.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

Sunday Morning Reading

It’s Sunday and that means Sunday Morning Reading to share. This week was new iPhone week so I’m sharing some great coverage of the new iPhones and the operating system that runs them, as well as macOS Sonoma. In addition, excellent writing on lying and other topics will lead the list.

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First up is the always excellent Natasha MH with Our Panche for Lies, Art and Storytelling. Using comedian and storyteller Hasan Minhaj as her point of entry she wonders why we get so upset when comedians do the same thing those less funny do: Lie.

Speaking of lying, Jeff Kosseff has a neat piece on Why The First Amendment Protects Liars.

I’m not a fan of giving up meat. This dog is too old to learn any new tricks. But Matthew Clapham does have a good piece of writing about just that in Rewording the Golden Rule to Cause No Suffering.

Kenneth L. Warner uses the occasion of Diane Feinstin’s passing to talk about age requirements for holdiing office in “When I Leave Elected Office, I’m Going Feet First.”

Much of the US political focus is on the gamesmanship over keeping the government open and some washed up TV reality star that got lucky and appointed too many Supreme Court Justices. Well, that Supreme Court is going to take up a few cases that might, or might not, have profound implications for the Internet. Take a look at Caroline Mimbs Nyce’s piece The Supreme Court Cases That Could Redfine The Internet to see why.

And as for those writers about Apple things I’ll lead that off with the always excellent Federico Vitcci and his review of iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 on MacStories. I highly advise keeping this one in your bookmarks or read later app of choice to refer back to now and again.

His partner in crime, John Vorhees, does a great job of tackling macOS Sonoma. Again, hang on to this one as a reference.

And for a companion to Vorhees’ post check out Andrew Cunningham’s macOS review on Ars Technica.

Samuel Axon in Ars Technica says we may have reached the “final form” with the iPhone 15 and 15 Pro. I think he’s correct.

Matthew Panzarino always gives us a good look into the cameras on new iPhones and this year’s trip to Disneyland is no different.

Last up is John Gruber’s iPhone 15 Pro review. John’s writing on all things Apple is always worth your time.

Ok, I lied. If you’d like to check out my thoughts on the iPhone 15 Pro and the Apple Watch Series 9, you can do so here.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

Sunday Morning Reading

As summer transitons into Fall we’re back at lovely Lake LuLu for the last weekend of the season. So lake time takes precedence over reading. But with cooler climes ahead that will change, much like the seasons. Nevertheless here’s a few Sunday Morning Reading topics to share. Enjoy.

The world of politics seems crazier and crazier by the moment. Much of the current focus in on, well you know what and who it is on. There’s also focus on the Supreme Court for the cauldron of corruption that place is, leading us to often overlook some of the cases. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v Community Financial Services Association is one we should keep an eye on. Essentially, if the plantiff prevails much of the Federal Government would be declared unconstitutional. Ian Millhiser has a good luck at the case in A New Supreme Court Case Could Trigger A Second Great Depression. On the one hand it seems seems silly, but on the other quite dangerous, given the climate we’re in.

Is the American Dream still a dream or a nightmare. Belen Fernandez tackles that in On the Road Towards the American Nightmare. Excellent piece.

The Man Who Trapped Us in Databases by McKenize Funk tells us a bit about Hank Asher, the ‘King of Databrokers.’ He’s had and his legacy continues to have more influence on our lives than most of us realize. Did you know you have a Shadow SSN?

David Todd McCarthy takes on the legacy of Jimmy Buffet and the culture he created and the business he crafted from it in The Lost Shaker of Salt Has a Dark Side.

Is there such a thing as children having a Nature Deficit Disorder? Chris Thompson tackles that while Sliding Down Hills on Cardboard.

Ron Grossman digs into the Chicago Tribune archives and pulls out fascinating stuff in this piece about Black and Tan nightclubs in Chicago. Check out In Segregated Chicago, Black and Tans Provided Lively NIghtlife in the Early 20th Century.

And lastly, this Atlantic piece, The Patriot, by Jeffrery Goldberg on retiring Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mark Milley is worth a read.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

Sunday Morning Reading

It’s Sunday morning. So here’s some Sunday Morning Reading to share. There’s no theme. Just a collection of topics and writers that caught my eye and tugged a bit on the heartstrings.

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Chris Welch on The Verge lets us know that Samsung and NYC’s Metropolitan Museum of Art are collaborating and expanding the collection of art that is available to view in your home on Samsung’s Frame TVs. I didn’t know this was a thing. I’m sure some art lovers are glad it is. Would be nice to see this picked up by other museums and Smart TV makers. Check out Samsung Is Bringing Artwork From The Met Museum To Its Frame TVs.

On the politics beat, Susan Glaser pens The Rage of The Toddler Caucus On Capitol Hill. If they title doesn’t tell you what it’s about, you’re not paying attention.

When and why does time matter? Check out Philip Ogley’s The Clock Watcher. Make the time.

What happens if turbulence in the brain’s waves can carve indentations and pathways over time in the same way that water does in stone? Check out Newly Discovered Spirals of Brain Activity May Help Explain Cognition by Shelly Fan.

David Todd McCarty penned an excellent and very personal piece this week about his family coping with drug addiction and its aftermath entitled Bear With Me, I Want To Tell You Something. Beautiful stuff. Tough. Coconuts and plungers.

These are tough times to wade through. Ana Marie Cox says We Are Not Just Polarized. We Are Traumatized. I think she’s correct. And remember, cynicism is a trauma response.

A devilishly good piece by Natasha MH, In Bed With the Devil.

Mark Jacob in Courier Newsroom let’s us in on The Republican Trick To Spin Straw Into Gold. There are no surprises. But we all need to recognize it when it’s happening.

Changing the channel, M.G. Siegler takes a look at the end of the Cable TV bundle in Cable Bites the Dust, and predicts that we’re going to be bundling again as we continue down the path into streaming entertainment consolidation.

And as we head into a week when new iPhones are arriving around the world, finally equipped for USB-C charging, Jay Peters on The Verge writes an almost mournful obituary for the Lightning Connector in Lightning was Great Actually.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

Sunday Morning Reading

Celebrating the grandson’s second birthday this weekend but there’s still a bit of Sunday Morning Reading to share. As usual it’s a myriad collection of writing on different topics featuring some history, some politics, some Shakespeare, and some writers with some personal things to share.

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First up are a couple of interesting pieces about Shakespeare. In August Drew Lichtenberg wrote a provoking piece in the New York Times about the latest attempts to cancel Shakespeare in the wake of all of the current nonsense going on in educational and political circles. The title, Cancel Shakespeare, might turn you off. Don’t let it. It’s worth a read for the turn.

In a follow up to that piece, Shakespeare’s ‘Sublimely, Disturbingly Smutty Effect’ Must Endure, Lichtenbeg lists some Shakespearean passages that readers say “got their blood flowing.”

And while I’m sharing pieces on how politicians think banning and banishing books, topics and history can change the future, this Politico piece by James Traub, Virginia Went to War Over History. And Students Actually Came Out on Top is worth considering. This in depth piece is worth hanging on to if we ever come to our senses and someone chronicles this period of insanity for future generations.

And speaking of history, you might not (or might) be sipping some whiskey with your Sunday Morning Reading, but this piece from Jason Willick on What a 1790’s Rebellion Shows About the Campaign to Disqualify Trump takes us back to the Whisky Rebellion. It’s worth considering in light of all the talk about the 14th Amendment disqualifying Trump from holding office again. FWIW I wrote a little something about that here.

And one thing follows another. Nate White, a British writer, delivers a terrific takedown of the orange guy in British Writer Pens The Best Description of Trump I’ve Read.

Jay Rosen is always worth following if you’re interested in what’s going on in journalism. This sketch of a lecture he was going to give in 2013 resurfaced in my feeds and I thought “Old Testatment and New Testatment Journalism” was worth sharing.

And on a somewhat personal note, I’ve contributed a few pieces to a Medium publiciation Ellemeno, thanks to the prodding of David Todd McCarty. The publication hosts some excellent writers with fantastic writing from a personal perspective.

I recommend two such pieces here if you want to get a taste. First up is McCarty’s All On My Own. As he describes it: “The art of being alone without being lonely, or one man’s semi-solitary adventure through time and space.”

Next up is Natasha MH with Why Are You Obssesed With Me? I’m thinking it has something to do with her writing.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

Sunday Morning Reading

Summer is inching its way to fall. So here’s some Sunday Morning Reading to share for a long sleepy Labor Day weekend here in the US. Grab some coffee.

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Speaking of sleepy, here’s A Look Into the REM Dreams of the Animal Kingdom from Carolyn Wilke at Ars Technica.

And following that theme, Amanda Gefter explores What Are Dreams For?

There’s lots of words being written about the shaky state of theatre in the US at the moment. (I expect I’ll spill out a few this week.) MIchael Paulson has a good take about the challenges of the subscription model and what that might mean for the industry in Hitting Theater Hard: The Loss of Subscribers Who Went To Everything.

David Todd McCarty takes a look at Why Sports Matter.

Proust. Yeah, that guy. There’s seemingly a Proust for everybody and Adam Gopnik takes a look into what might be the real one in What We Find When We Get Lost in Proust.

ProPublica has a an excellent piece from Cheryl Clark about the crazy challenge you might have if you have to appeal to your health insurance company for a denial of benefits in I Set Out To Create a Simple Map for How To Appeal Your Insurance Denial. Instead, I found a Mind-Boggling Labyrinth. Call it a horror story.

And since my wife and I are celebrating our 23rd Wedding Anniversary this weekend here are two pieces that caught my eye this week.

In The Day The Circus Came to Town Natasha MH isn’t clowning around as she takes along for a very personal story.

Max Meroni takes us on a bride’s One Way Ticket train ride into a voyage of self-discovery.

And if you’re enjoying a cup of coffee with your Sunday Morning Reading don’t toss out the coffee grounds when you’re done. Check out Scientists Discovered How To Make Concrete 30% Strong With Used Coffee Grounds by Joshua Hawkins.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

Sunday Morning Reading

Summer is heading towards Fall and we’re on lake time this weekend. So a shorter list of things to share. As usual it’s a potpourri of topics and great writing. Enjoy!

Mug shots were the talk of all the towns this week. David Todd McCarty takes a look at a bit of of mug shot shooting history in The Lost Art of Shooting Criminals.

Always fun to look back on the history of old school Chicago politics. Edward Robert McClelland takes just such a look back as he looks ahead in The Machine Has Given Way to Organizing.

This piece is a real pleasure from Natasha MH. Worth lingering over for more than two minutes. Check out A Two-Minute Pleasure.

In this world where the reliance on facts keeps diminishing Jonathan Taplin takes a look at How Musk, Thiel, Zuckerberg and Andresseen-Four Billionaire Techno-Oligarchs- Are Creating an Autocratic Reality.

And if Autumn is approaching so too is football. David. K. Li takes a look back at the Supreme Court case that changed the game (or rather the money behind the game), in Meet The Man Who Thinks He’s Screwed Up College Football With A Supreme Court Win.

An another harbinger of Fall is the build up and anticipation of new Apple gear. Jason Snell takes yet another look at the never ending debate surrounding the purpose of the iPad in Giving Up The iPad-only Travel Dream.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.