History – Page 8 – Life on the Wicked Stage: Act 3

Shortcutting History for the Sake of a Headline

Context like facts can be a stubborn thing.

Context like facts can be a stubborn thing. Headlines on the other hand often move beyond stubborn into stupid. Jamelle Bouie in the New York Times provides a very good piece of context on the Electoral College in The Founding Fathers Don’t Have the Answer to Every Question. It’s worth your time to give it a read. But please, skip the headline.

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Bouie provides very good context on the evolution of the Electoral College, tracing many of the changes it has undergone. That evolution is the key to understanding how much we rely and avoid relying on what the Framers intended. Depending on context.

I don’t take any of Bouie’s history or his opinions on the subject into question. As I understand history he’s pretty accurate and on point. What I take issue with is how the headline, and how summaries or attention getters like it, diminish and impede our understanding of issues both simple and complex. It’s pretty easy to toss the blame onto a bunch of wig-wearing old white men sweating it out in Philadelphia. But it’s ultimately reductive and insulting.

The Founding Fathers did indeed have an answer to every question. It’s called the amendment process they enshrined in Article 5 of the U.S. Constitution. It’s not an easy answer because it requires moving political Heaven and Earth to amend the Constitution and it’s become an increasingly heavy lift over the years.

I’m reasonably sure the Framers made the process cumbersome for the purposes of trying to avoid moments like we’re in now. They had a pretty good understanding of human nature, our strengths and our weaknesses. I believe they knew we would struggle with great change as evidenced by our original sin of slavery that resulted in compromise in order to bring the document into being.

What they missed, and missed badly, are two things:

1. Our growing capacity for avarice and that we’d turn all of this into a money making machine instead of poltical debate over differing opinions.

2. Our seemingly endless capacity for embracing and extending stupidity.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Profiles in Cowardice with the Caucus of the Craven

The Atlantic has a good piece out called A Study in Senate Cowardice. It’s worth a read for those who haven’t been paying attention, and I hope some do. But it’s old news and much like saying water is wet.

Perhaps they’ve removed all of the mirrors in their homes, because I don’t know how these Senators can bear seeing their own reflections. We’re surrounded and governed by cowards. But it’s not just the politicians who are cowards.

Journalists could hang some of their own mugshots on this cover artwork from the Atlantic pictured above. There was an election in 2022 and some pictured above stood for office at the time. Where was this article then? It could have been written at any point since the Senate voted not to convict Trump after January 6th. Most know it. Too many don’t seem to care. And yet, here we are.

Go-along-to-get-along is the age-old anthem sung by cowards and should be the new motto of the U.S. Senate.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Confrontation Nation

The intimidation tactics and strategy have worked far too well.

Judges. Pastors. Politicians. Every day Joe and every day Jane. People feel threatened by rhetoric spewing out of mouths like lava out of a volcano. It’s an insult to the concept of rhetoric, just another in the long list of “life as we knew it” torched by the angry mob.

The threats multiply daily and there’s no system or institution that can contain them so we might as well quit pretending and waiting around for the fire brigade. Like it or not the decaying orange turd and his worshippers are taking everything down with them. Scorched earth. It’s only going to get worse and there’s no “before it gets better” on the horizon.

The intimidation tactics and strategy have worked far too well. Judges can toss down a gag order, but they’re doing so behind security details and burdened by a judicial system that’s melting under the heat and buckling under its own burden. Pastors can preach for patience and penitence, but those that follow the lessons of scripture are being overwhelmed and overmatched by their own brethren who’ve reduced to ashes the messages of the Gospel, or any other good book, while profiting from the pulpit. As for politicians, let’s just say I don’t think there are anymore feet remaining worth holding to the fire.

This approaching calamity too many are trying to avoid is coming one way or the other. It’s just a matter of when.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Sunday Morning Reading

The price of chocolate is through the roof and even ideas seem to be melting away in some fashion or the other in this Easter edition of Sunday Morning Reading.

The price of chocolate is through the roof and even ideas seem to be melting away in some fashion or the other in this Easter edition of Sunday Morning Reading.

Leading off this Easter Sunday morning it appears the price of cocoa is soaring leading to worry for chocolate makers and chocolate lovers. Aliina Selyukh covers it in Pricier Easter Bunnies and Eggs. Half-Dipped Kit Kats. What’s Up with Chocolate?

Much of this week’s news was dominated by the Baltimore maritime disaster at the Francis Scott Key Bridge. This is an fascinating take from Will Bunch: A Ship Crashed Into a Baltimore Bridge and Demolished the Lies About Immigration.

Less fascinating perhaps, but also timely, A.W Ohlheiser says The Slow Death of Twitter Is Measured in Disasters Like the Baltimore Bridge Collapse.

David Todd McCarty tackles the power and the mystery of ideas in The Idea of Things.

Moving into the poltical world Marc O. De Girolami may be late to the party but he’s correct when he says Something Other Than Originalism Explains This Supreme Court.

Perhaps the most important political piece written this week comes from Chris Quinn, editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Check out Our Tump Reporting Upsets Some Reades But There Aren’t Two Sides To Facts: Letter From the Editor. Better yet, forward it on to the editor, publishers, and programmers of your local media sources.

Andres Marantz wonders Why We Can’t Stop Arguing About Whether Trump Is A Facist. It begs the question as to who is arguing this anymore, but it’s a good read.

Will Knight takes a look Inside The Creation of the World’s Most Powerful Open Source AI Model.

Meanwhile Erik Hoel says A.I.-Generated Garbage Is Polluting Our Culture.

And to round out this week’s edition, Catherine Rampbell tells us The Internet Was Supposed To Make Humanity Smarter. It’s Failing.

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. You can also find more of my writings on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Supreme Betrayal Is a Must Read

At times it feels like we’re uncontrollably tumbling downhill in our attempts to stave off the end of our American Experiment. At every pause in the tumble or reach for an anchor to stop our descent, it seems like more and more ground gives way threatening to bury us all if we ever reach a bottom.

If we somehow survive what’s ahead of us and historians are able to do what historians have historically done, this article, Supreme Betrayal, by J. Michael Lutting and Laurence Tribe, will be an excellent chronicle of what just happened when the Supreme Court of the United States helped the often shaky, but always resilent foundation of our democracy slip its moorings like many of the other fabled institutions we used to rely on.

I strongly encourage you read the entire piece but this excerpt is both damning and telling:

What ought to have been, as a matter of the Constitution’s design and purpose, the climax of the struggle for the survival of America’s democracy and the rule of law instead turned out to be its nadir, delivered by a Court unwilling to perform its duty to interpret the Constitution as written.

It’s much too late in the game for this to have any impact in the current election. That decision has been rendered. Let’s hope it’s not to late for the historians who will need to understand what this moment means long after most of us are gone to consider this in their chronicles. If they’re allowed to.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Sunday Morning Reading

Some Sunday Morning Reading as the time shifts and some are racing against the clock to turn back the hands of time in our political and social lives. Yes, some politics but also some history and some tech today.

Laughter may be the best medicine, but not when it can be used against us. Fintain O’Toole in the New York Review of Books takes a look at how cruel humor can be used as a weapon. Laugh Riot is an excellent if not troubling (also long) read.

(Side note: some folks get upset at links I offer here that are behind paywalls or require registration. I get it. Two thoughts: Writers deserve to get paid. Also, there are only a gazillion ways around circumventing these kinds of things on the Internet. Use your smarts.)

Taylor Lorenz offers up The Word ‘Viral’ Has Lost Its Meaning. I think she’s correct.

The use of Artificial Intelligence continues to baffle. Charles Bethea takes a look at The Terrifying A.I. Scam That Uses Your Loved One’s Voice.

Speaking of baffling tech, Steven Aquino takes a look at How Smart Home Technology Made My Home More Accessible. Why do I say baffling? Steven’s post isn’t, but in the potential gold mine and boon for those with accessibility issues that is Smart Home Tech, no one has gotten this right yet. When it works it’s great. When it doesn’t it’s a mess.

Apparently back in 2022 the US was quite nervous that Putin would launch a nuke towards Ukraine. Check out Jim Sciutto’s piece Exclusive: US Prepared ‘Rigoursly’ for potential Russian Nuclear Strike in Ukraine in 2022. It’s a good read, although I’m not sure why it’s an exclusive as I recall most of us being worried about this.

Josh Kovensky in Talking Points Memo takes us Inside A Secret Society of Prominent Right-Wing Christian Men Prepping for a ‘National Divorce.’

Sascha Pare tells us that Scientists Just Discovered A Massive Reservoir Of Helium Beneath Minnesota. Sounds like the Iron Range might be getting a new nickname.

And returning back to time, David Todd McCarty is searching for answers. I think we all are. Well worth your time to read Frittering Away What’s Left of Eternity.

Sunday Morning Reading

Playing a bit of catch up after a week off due to some health issues and travel to visit the grandkids, so here’s some Sunday Morning Reading to catch up on and share as the world continues its wobbly spin.

Context is Everything. I concur with NatashaMH. Cat piss and all.

Trigger me this: John Mellencamp says that one way to combat our US problem with guns is to start showing the carange on the news. Daniel Kreps tells us about it in John Mellencamp on How To End Gun Violence: ‘Show America the Carnage.’ I think Mellencamp is right.

Teri Kanefield has a nice rundown on Why Some Prefer Oligarchy and What’s Russia Got To Do, Got To Do With It? If you don’t follow Teri’s stuff, you should.

Michel Schwirtz and Adam Entous writing for The New York Times put out an explosive piece on The Spy War: How The CIA Secretly Helps Ukraine Fight Putin. It’s not explosive for the content because those who need to know these things already do. What’s intriguing is that when info like this hits the Main Stream Media, there’s always a motive. The question is whose?

James Carville writes a piece for The Bulwark entitled A Crusade for Something Noble. If the title triggers you, read the article. If the subject matter doesn’t trigger you, well… let’s just say don’t say you weren’t warned.

Christopher Mims says AI means It’s The End of the Web As We Know It. I think he’s right, but have we ever really known this moving target?

David Dreams of Everything is a nice piece of introspection from David Todd McCarthy. Also check out his piece Fish Or Cut Bait.

Sunday Morning Reading

Here’s some Sunday Morning Reading to share on a day when the political world is fixated on diatribes about age, infirmity, and a tottering judicial system that’s too long in the tooth and already rotted out with decay. Meanwhile a majority of eyeballs are getting ready to tune all of that out and watch some talented young athletes bash each other’s brains out on a playing field, hoping for a moment of glory. But hey, you can always do some reading.

First up, Clare Malone wonders Is The Media Prepared for An Extinction Level Event? The short answer is no. But read the article. It’s good.

And speaking of bordering on extinction, David Brooks in The New York Times pens an interesting piece titled Trump Came for Their Party But Took Over Their Souls.A bit like that old axiom about shutting barn doors after the horses have galloped away, but worth a read.

Smart Is Not Always Wise, says David Todd McCarty. He’s right. I may have linked to this already, but it’s worth you catching up to if you haven’t yet. Also check out The Scale of Evil Things. Smart and wise.

One of the mysteries of our time is how so many got suckered into so much bullshit thinking about things that used to feel like touchstones in our lives. In this piece, Reed Galen is talking about religion. The scary thing is how spot on the title is: Hiding in Plain Sight.

NatashaMH thinks she needs to be fucked up in order to be creative in her piece The Fucked Up Creative. Here’s to being fucked up if that’s the case.

Back on the politics beat, but also the fucked up beat, Ronald Brownstein talks about the non-secret plans the decaying orange turd has if he gets elected again in Trump’s ‘Knock on the Door’. We can’t say we didn’t see it coming this time around.

The Apple Vision Pro continues to dominate tech talk and here are a couple of interesting takes from this second week of that beta project’s life in the wild. Apple Vision Pro Review: Eyes on the Future by Jason Snell of Six Colors and Christopher Mim’s analysis that Apple’s New Face Computer Is For Work.

And finally to close out the morning here’s a look at How Steinbeck Used The Diary as a Tool of Discipline, A Hedge Against Self Doubt, and a Pacemaker for the Heartbeat of Creative Work by Maria Popova. No AI or fancy tech required.

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. You can also find more of my writings on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

SCOTUS Hearing Marks The Middle of the Ending

Today is not the beginning of the end. It’s not anywhere close to the end. It’s smack dab in the middle. The US Supreme Court will hear a case on disqualifying everyone’s, including many of his supporters, most detested human from running for the presidency of the United States. As we’ve gotten closer to the moment the back and forth has been backed and forthed enough to make the Veritigo episodes I’m currently experiencing seem like I’m firmly rooted and well balanced on solid ground.

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For what it’s worth I don’t have a middle ground. I think the guy should be tossed out on his oversized orange keister, and that the well compromised Supreme Court should take a flyer to cover their asses in a few blankets shy of complete ignominy. Sure that might lead to violence, but I think that’s coming regardless. Just a matter of when. Call me cynical. But you’ll call me right before we get to the end.

What’s going to happen today? No one knows. That’s why this is such a fraught moment. The drama and the stakes don’t get any higher. The only problem with this drama is that no self-respecting writer would populate it with such transparently screwed up characters and motivations. Hell, even farceurs wouldn’t touch this list of characters. If you believe, as I do, that we’ve already done irreparable damage to what was the United States and all it stood for, today is the middle act of a tragedy heading to its conclusion.

I’m linking here to a good rundown of what the arguments in the court may be about today. For those interested in placing bets on the outcome here’s a link to what the oddsmakers are thinking. I’m mean if the ship of state is going down, you might as well try to make a buck or two on how long it’s going to take.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome and check out The Lehman Trilogy Diaries here.

Sunday Morning Reading

From deep in the heart of the frozen South here’s some Sunday Morning Reading to share. A slimmer list of links this weekend as we head into the final week of rehearsals for The Lehman Trilogy fighting the cold, burst water pipes and other winter wonders. Looking forward to putting the tech touches to this show and heading home to Chicago. Oh, wait. It’s winter there too. Meanwhile stay warm and enjoy this week’s Sunday Morning Reading.

As someone who wakes early, even in the crazy late night weeks of directing a play, Scott-Ryan Abt’s What Do You Do at 3am? feels very familiar.

Richard Zoglin takes on all the pre-movie promotional stuff tossed at movie goers in When Is This Movie Really Going To Start? I’ve Been Here Half an Hour. My going to the movies habit began changing long before the pandemic because of this.

NatashaMH takes us on a tour of life through a visit to a bookstore in Small Wonders In A Big World.Wonderful.

David Todd McCarty takes us the long way around in telling this story about story telling in ‘Round The Outside. He’s also wondering Where Have All The Hitmen Gone?

Steven Levy takes us through the evolution of the Mac in Apple Shares The Secret Of Why The 40-Year-Old Mac Still Rules.

Lulu Garcia-Navarro interviews Kevin D. Roberts the head of the Hertiage Foundation in Inside The Heritage Foundation’s Plans for ‘Institutionalizing Trumpism.’ If you want to know where the crazy comes from on the right, talk to Kevin.