politcs – Life on the Wicked Stage: Act 3

Sunday Morning Reading

Small acts

It’s only business they say. Nothing personal. That’s the way the world works. Well, what I share each week in Sunday Morning Reading always comes from a place of personal interest. That may not be how the world works, but it works for me and I hope it does for you. Call it a small act.

In the wake of the continuing and confounding ICE occupation of Chicago comes a terrific piece by Kyle Kingsbury called I Want You To Understand Chicago.

Follow that up with a ProPublica piece by Melissa Sanches, Jodi S. Cohen, T. Christian Miller, Sebastian Rotella and Mariam Elba about the nighttime raid on a Chicago apartment building that featured men rappelling from Black Hawk helicopters, and all of the residents emptied on to the streets with many of their belongings. The punchline is in the article’s title, “I Lost Everything”; Venezuelans Were Rounded Up In A Dramatic Midnight Raid But Never Charged With A Crime.

A Nation of Heroes, A Senate Of Cowards by Will Bunch calls it like it is and much the way I see things after last weekend’s actions in the U.S. Senate.

Growing up, I never understood the cliché, “it’s nothing personal, it’s only business.” Frankly I still don’t. It excuses too much that I find wrong about the way the world works. Charles Broskoski examines the personal side in Personal Business.

And speaking of the way the world works (or doesn’t) in the midst of the Epstein fever I don’t think we’ll ever shake, Sarah Lyons points out that the violence in his and others’ actions is something we all live with in This Is How The World Works. It shouldn’t be.

Corbin Trent says We Didn’t Kill American Manufacturing—We Let It Die. He’s spot on.

Mark Jacob tells us How News Coverage Eases Us Into Tyranny. However this saga we’re living through ends up, one thing is for certain. The media has killed any chance of returning to what it once was.

Hardly a day goes by that we don’t read of some nefarious business practice spilling out of Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta. Turns out Meta is knowingly leeching off of scammers to the tune of about 10 percent of its revenue. I guess that makes Meta and Zuckerberg a scammer too. Cath Virginia has the writeup with Meta Must Rein In Scammers — Or Face Consequences. I doubt they will.

The Internet Archive is under attack in the same way libraries, media organizations, and text book publishing is. It shouldn’t be. Mathew Ingram has the lowdown in The Internet Archive Should Be Protected Not Attacked.

On a more positive note, Jeff Veen tells us how Small Acts Build Great Cultures. Boy, do we need lots of small acts these days.

To close out, did you ever wonder where collective nouns like “a watch of nightingales” or “an ostentation of peacocks” come from? For many years it was assumed that the anonymous author of this collection of collective nouns was the work of a “gentleman of excellent gifts” written down in one of the first books printed after the invention of The Gutenberg Press, The Book of Hawking, Hunting, and Blazing of Arms. Turns out the author was a woman named Juliana Barnes. Maria Popova has the story in A Parliament of Owls And A Murder Of Crows: How Groups Of Birds Got Their Names, With Wondrous Vintage Illustrations By Brian Wordsmith.

(Image form Ganesh Narahanan on Unsplash)

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. If you’d like more click on the Sunday Morning Reading link in the category column to check out what’s been shared on Sunday’s past. You can also find more of my writings on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Sunday Morning Reading

Winter is coming. Or is it here?

It’s a Sunday and that means it’s time for Sunday Morning Reading. Fall is beginning its march towards Winter, but the chill in the unusually warm Chicago temperatures this weekend aren’t weather related. Some of that is reflected in today’s selections as well as other topics, some that feed the soul, while others fuel the fires.

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It’s tough to watch what’s going on in the streets of some of our cities and towns, and there’s no denying what Ian F. Blair points out That The United Police State of America Has Arrived.

Another Ian, this time Ian Dunt, discusses The Politics of Drawing a Moral Line, sketching a parallel between events in Britain and the Ezra Klein interview with Ta-Nehisi Coates. By the way, I encourage you to listen to that interview. It’s not easy, but nothing is these days.

Chicago’s Neil Steinberg comments that Next, Dyeing the River Green Will Be Cast As A Terrorist Act. I don’t think he’s far off.

On the Artificial Intelligence front, what was bound to happen happened when OpenAI released Sora, its tool for creating short movies, or better yet (worse yet?) putting yourself into one. That followed quickly on the heels of the uproar over the creation of Tilly Norwood, an AI actress created out of bits and bytes, and her creator seeking talent agent representation. Hollywood producers and bean counters are thirsting over better bottom lines ahead. Maureen Dowd has an interesting look at When A.I. Came For Hollywood.

Meanwhile one of the tech overlords, Peter Thiel, is obsessed with the antichrist and thinks tech is the only way to keep whatever that is from destroying us all. Laura Bullard takes a look at what’s behind Thiel’s obsession. Don’t be surprised at where Thiel drew some of his inspiration in The Real States, and Real Story, of Peter Thiel’s Antichrist Obsession.

Continuing on the Artificial Intelligence beat, Bullsh*t Warning from John Warner, examines how to think about writing in the age of AI.

Mathew Ingram asks So What’s So Great About Reading Books?

And to wrap things up this week, take a look at Christopher Michael Hefner’s On Letting Go Of The Idea Of The Tortured Artist.

I included the image above from Fotgraf Petrova Olga on Shutterstock of an empty playground because I noticed this week that Chicago’s parks and playgrounds are empty of the laughter and life we usually experience due to ICE activity throughout the city before Winter begins to set in. There’s a different chill in the air this Fall.

The Reason Trump Won’t Declare Martial Law

Follow the money

Drip, drip, drip. The daily dilly dallying on the margins that the Trump administration keeps doling out continues. Horror after horror is revealed on this fascist march into demolishing the world’s oldest democracy. But the money keeps rolling in.

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The ongoing debate as to whether or not these despicable actions are distractions is in and of itself a meaningless distraction. We’re essentially living under a dictatorship already, and yet the putzes with power can’t really go there. Doing so would cut their mother’s milk off at the teat.

There’s a reason for the pace of things. There’s a reason why Trump hasn’t just declared a full national emergency and implemented martial law and shut the place down. That reason is political fundraising. That’s where the money is. That’s where the suckers are.

Without elections the con men and women can’t shake down the public, corporations, and foreign countries for political donations. Cut off that cash flow and you cut the power, quicker than flipping a switch. It’s not just money for candidates and causes. It’s money for consultants, think tanks, and the advertising dependent media. Declare martial law and the spinning wheel stops.

In order to keep the money flowing there needs to be an opposition. Without one it would be all about selling meme coins, fake gold phones, and silly shoes. The shake downs would still continue, just on a different levels. Gifts, grifts and gunpoint.

Of course the silver lining is all of those fundraising emails would stop.

(Image from Freddie Colins on Unsplash)

You can also find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome. I can also be found on social media under my name as above.

Avoiding Thanksgiving Political Squabbles

A preemptive attempt at avoiding holiday harangues over politics.

Thanksgiving kicks off the end of year holiday season. Time to gather with family and friends and give thanks for our blessings. Time to get tied up in traffic or airports. Deal with weather delays. Pass illnesses around like we pass the potatoes, (hopefully not COVID), and either argue over our political differences or sit around the fire pretending that those chasms don’t exist.

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Yeah, it’s a time for anxiety and has been for almost a decade now. So much so that it has become a political cliché and a sad shortcut for what we’re all living through. Certainly there’s joy to be found in the warmth and good company of family and friends, but in my life those circles are smaller than they used to be.

In the early years of the first Trump administration I didn’t initially shy away from arguing politics at family gatherings. It was largely a fruitless endeavor. We knew less then than we do now. After a few bouts of that my wife and I agreed that we’d just keep our opinions to ourselves going forward to avoid the aggravation. We largely did, even in the face of being baited now again by Trump worshipping, Fox loving sycophants.

We’ve largely tried to adhere to that avoidance game in the wake of this year’s calamitous election. We’ve actually turned down an invitation or two and will probably do so again in the future. While we’ll avoid conflict and aggravation when we can, I’ve made it plain in our house that I won’t hold my tongue going forward if someone tosses out the bait.

This Thanksgiving we’re fortunate in that we’re going to a small celebration with family and friends who view the world much the way we do, so that should be anxiety free. This scheduling has nothing to do with the political situation and we’re thankful for that. But we know there will be other invitations forthcoming during the next month or so.

With that in mind I’ve developed my response in case those show up. Here it is:

Thanks for the invitation. We’d love to attend. Before we accept there a few things I want to make clear. We know we disagree on politics, and while we’ve largely avoided that topic at past gatherings, it is important for you to know that I feel I can no longer avoid doing so. Preemptively, I am sharing some feelings and beliefs important to me.

You may not believe it, but I feel we’re heading into a dangerous and difficult time that will see much of how we’ve both viewed the world come to a crashing end. I could go on and on about Donald Trump’s lack of character and disastrous policies, and the ignorance of those who elected him, but in the interest of brevity I’ll boil all of that down to the single, simplest reason why I don’t want to spend time with you pretending.

Donald Trump, among many things, is a rapist and a misogynist. He’s attempting to surround himself with others just like him, proving to me, and the world, just how insignificant and dispensable he thinks women are. Rape is a violent act, and shows tremendous disregard for every human being. If someone thinks rape can be overlooked, there’s not much else that they won’t do to hurt other human beings.

In my opinion, it’s beyond disqualifying someone from office and participation in society. Further, anyone who voted for him can’t overlook the fact that they are comfortable viewing rape and misogyny as acceptable as well. There are no trade-offs for some other policy or viewpoint that excuses that type of behavior.

I won’t argue the point with you. To me, it’s not debatable. I also have no respect for anyone might try and change my opinion on the matter.

I’m not asking you to change your views, they are already apparent and yours to own. But I believe it is important for you to have no doubt about mine.

Happy Holidays

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome. I can also be found on social media under my name as above.

Sunday Morning Reading

Tough reading for tough times in today’s Sunday Morning Reading.

It’s a Sunday. I’ve been reading. As usual I’ll share some of that with you in today’s Sunday Morning Reading.

I started out the week thinking I’d try to avoid politics. That didn’t work. Sort of like getting a cancer diagnosis and not wanting to know anything about the disease taking over your body. So, apologies if there isn’t much “light” reading today.

I’ll start of with an anonymous piece published in The Guardian. We all knew misogyny was a feature of the incoming frat party that will be the new administration. I don’t think anyone thought it would filter down so quickly to high schools. The Boys In Our Liberal School Are Different Now That Trump Has Won, tells that story. Woe be onto us and our children.

David Todd McCarty is working out how to get through the day these days. Check out We’re All Just Killing Time.

Sherrilyn Ifill calls her piece The Truth. It is. And it’s hard.

Joan Westenberg says the way to destroy a generation is to make them think the word runs on feelings and then use those feelings against them. Check out How To Destroy a Generation.

David French thinks Donald Trump Is Already Starting to Fail. Great. Too bad he’s going to take the rest of us down with him.

Norman Solomon is optimistic about Hope In A Time of Fascism.

Margaret Sullivan tries to debunk some of the lies rolling around this history changing moment in As Trump Plans Become Clearer, Reject These Four Dangerous Lies.

Life may feel too short to worry about some things. But it’s all a matter of perspective. Check out Natasha MH in Life’s Too Short for Matching Socks.

And to close things out, BlueSky is the latest social network to experience a burst of new users. This time the the burst is due largely in reaction against Musk’s rape of Twitter/X, and dissatisfaction with Zuckerberg’s Threads, which had been the darling for awhile. Mike Issac takes a look in Bluesky Is Growing Up. Maybe Too Fast.

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. You can also find me on social networks, including Bluesky, under my own name.

Chicago Bar Association Judicial Voters Guide 2024

A Voters Guide for Chicago Judicial Races

If you live in Chicago you know one of the almost overwhelming burdens of voting is the large number of judges that are always on the ballot. Some (very few) races are contested and many (too many) races you just get to decide to retain the judge or not.

Shutterstock 1731787453. Each election the Chicago Bar Association puts out the CBA Judicial Voter’s Guide which offers voters some guidance in the form of what the CBA is recommending in each race. The recommendations are based on independent screenings from CBA membership.

Ratings are listed as Highly Qualified, Qualified, or Not Recommended for some races, and just Qualified or Not Recommended for retentions. If you’re from Chicago you know that many of the contested races are not really contested at all.

You can visit the website at this link, and if you’re voting in person you can print out a Pocket Guide of the recommendations at the same link.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome. I can also be found on social media under my name as above.

Sunday Morning Reading

On the road this weekend, but regardless here’s some Sunday Morning Reading to share.

David Todd McCarty tells us that he felt the Earth move last weekend when Biden stepped away from his candidacy and endorsed Kamala Harris. He’s not the only one who felt the ground shifting under his feet.

Thomas Zimmer says Kamala Harris May Force A Reckoning. Here’s hoping she does and we do.

Joan Westenberg takes on the Macro-Morons with Micro-Vision. She’s talking about the VCs greedily bankrolling Trump. All I can say is at least they are being open about the destruction they hope to cause.

Politics is synonymous with lying. Actually for most living is synonymous with lying. Maria Popova dives into Lying In Politics by talking about Hannah Arendt On Deception, Self-Deception, and The Pyschology of Defactualizataion.

Perhaps you have, perhaps you haven’t heard of the Federal Theatre Project. Regardless you might not have heard of Martin Dies. Check out A Texas Congressman Wrote the Cuiture War Playbook When He Killed a 1930s Theater Program by Courtney Thomas. Yup, there’s nothing new under the sun.

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.You can also find me on social networks under my own name.