Havoc has a name — and a fixed-move-out-date-residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. The tendrils of ineptitude and turpitude slithering from out of there have already wrought devastation within and without cherished borders. Surely, the destruction is not done. On the bright side, most of what has been and will be done can be undone. On…
Google Arts and Culture, the site and the app, is technology in service of the human. Sadly, it’s little known and probably one of the most neglected of all Google’s properties. But since it is the best bi-product of your privacy-invading, data-mining, banner-ad-generating covenant with Google, it also (nearly) makes Google worth the price of admission.…
It was scribbled in these parts years ago that “it shall be known from here forward that music has the word’s power to communicate quintupled.” It was an awkward way of saying writing can’t connect human hearts the way music can. Now in NT Times Magazine Wyatt Mason has given word to that thought. He does so…
It’s pretty clear that from right around day one, the Bible was weaponized. That holds for some, not all, of its authors and editors, and most especially for some of its readers and preachers. A percentage of them have always put the word of the Lord in service of their goals, using the Good Book to…
Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk is an important story of war and media that falls short of its mighty ambitions. That’s OK. But it made news of Ang Lee’s interest in turning the story into a movie, um, surprising. Then the trailer disappointed. It looked like Lee’s idea to film in the 4K resolution at 120…
It’s a tech story and it’s a people story. Not about the downsides, the bad habits, the life sucking waste of time of games/apps/social media, nor the digital self help apps designed to make up for all of those. It’s about a company (Bell Canada) gathering men and women from sports and entertainment to use…
Things are looking down. Just take a gander at how our prospects have taken a turn since the inauguration. But the world is still in one piece, and now, before it splinters, is a good time to figure out how to turn this around. Where to start? How about with a gripping and oh so relevant…
Sublime creative forces are alive and well, and giving us all cause to celebrate — all the more because they are joining forces. Gorillaz, the brilliant love child of Damon Albarn and illustrator Jamie Hewlett, haven’t released a new track since 2011. But the wait is now over, as the band has in a stroke of…
Donald Trump’s tweets, disturbing on many levels, are a real treat. Isn’t it better to know what the man is thinking from moment to moment, than not? They’re also good for a laugh. Take the knee slapper of a picture he tweeted of himself writing his inaugural speech. Seriously, “deep thoughts” or what? This one alone…
On December 31st, it seemed that when most of the globe was ringing in the New Year, the celebrations were mainly about ringing out the Old Year. For most, 2016 was a year of huge losses on so many fronts. But thanks in part to the world of politics, where those of opposing views dug their entrenched…
The Washington Post reports that “Americans are dying from a rash of pathologies, sicknesses and addictions that experts call “diseases of despair.”” But don’t believe for a moment that this collection of disease is limited to the U.S. It’s a global thing. The question is, what’s at the source? What are so many people missing…
If you want to see what an epidemic actually looks like, you don’t have to go far. If you live in America, or Canada, it’s right around your corner. Don’t feel like going outside? The NY Times provides a great view you can enjoy from your armchair. Amazingly, when a terrorist wreaks havoc on a…
“He auctioned off the pistol that killed Trayvon Martin. She watched her child die in a mass shooting. Can they change each other’s minds about guns?” That’s the big question in the lead of a stellar read in NY Magazine. Whether minds were changed or not in this instance, you’ll have to find out. Missed, perhaps,…
Darwin's Gong Show