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In six days, one of the largest mass protests in American history will begin with an estimated 200,000 marchers on DC. For those who cannot travel to Washington, 386 simultaneous sister marches with an anticipated 735,000 marchers will be taking place on the same day in 50 US states and 53 additional countries. 1200 buses will park in the capitol on January 21 compared to a paltry 200 arriving for Trump's inauguration, and the related Pussy Hat Project (previously) is making efforts to ensure that every marcher has access to a handmade pink hat. The Women's March on Washington will unite a new cohort of American activists under the banner of an unapologetically progressive and explicitly intersectional platform.
comment posted at 12:11 PM on Jan-16-17
comment posted at 2:41 PM on Jan-16-17

The Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey Circus will have its last shows in May, after 146 years in the United States. It appears that many of the employees will be out of work and the animals will be going to shelters.
comment posted at 3:39 PM on Jan-15-17

LitHub suggests some top picks for "the" Great American Novel and offers rationales for each with links to articles arguing for them.
comment posted at 7:03 AM on Jan-15-17

In seven days, Donald J. Trump is due to be inaugurated as the 45th President of the United States of America. What happens next?
comment posted at 8:21 AM on Jan-14-17
comment posted at 12:37 PM on Jan-14-17

Officially known as the Naval Special Warfare Development Group, SEAL Team 6 is today the most celebrated of the U.S. military’s special mission units. But hidden behind the heroic narratives is a darker, more troubling story of “revenge ops,” unjustified killings, mutilations, and other atrocities — a pattern of criminal violence that emerged soon after the Afghan war began and was tolerated and covered up by the command’s leadership.
comment posted at 7:37 AM on Jan-11-17

“I’ve always considered myself a political prisoner. Not in the sense that I’m here for a political crime, but in the sense that I’m here because of a political system that has failed me terribly as an individual and citizen in this country.” How Albert Woodfox, a Black Panther and one of the Angola 3, survived 44 years in solitary confinement at the Louisiana State Penitentiary.
comment posted at 10:06 AM on Jan-10-17

"...in the New Year I worked out part of what Shakespeare’s Sonnets were about one day when I was sitting around doing nothing." A Crooked Timber commenter going by "ZM" shares a theory that includes William Herbert the 3rd Earl of Pembroke, Christopher Marlowe, Mary Sidney, infertility, and espionage.
comment posted at 1:56 PM on Jan-9-17

Tunnel trees are a thing. Created in the 19th and early 20th century to promote parks and inspire tourism. They're good for engagement, but bad for the tree. One of the last known sequoia tunnel trees was recently brought down by a storm in California. A sequoia drive-throughable tunnel log does still exist.
comment posted at 8:42 AM on Jan-9-17

"I wore men's clothes for a month and it changed my life": Motivated by Octieber and determined to combat the world of gendered clothing, Lucy Rycroft-Smith tries menswear for a month and documents her findings.
comment posted at 3:13 PM on Jan-8-17

A day after the release of the declassified report on Russian hacking during the 2016 election, the New York Times is reporting this morning on the business deals of Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner. In Washington, Congressional Republicans seem to be supporting Trump's campaign promise to build a border wall between the US and Mexico, even though it seems that American taxpayers will be the ones fronting the money to pay for it. Mr. Trump, with 13 days to go before he assumes the presidency, is tweeting about the "stupid" people, or fools, would think that [having a good relationship with Russia] is bad! He will purportedly give a press conference this week, on January 11, following President Obama's Farewell Address, on January 10. A number of confirmation hearings will also take place on the 11th.
comment posted at 7:44 AM on Jan-7-17

What is aluminium? It a silvery-white metal which is abundant in the Earth's crust. The Wright Brothers were early adopters of aluminium in engine construction. Now, aluminium is used to make cans, window frames, aircraft, fireworks and foil. Controversially, aluminium has also been used to make cricket bats. The ease of use of aluminium, and the flexibility properties especially when alloyed for strength or security for use in items such as coins, has helped make it the most widely used non-ferrous metal. Also, aluminium is often used to make kitchen utensils such as pots and pans. Finally, the sounds made by the manipulation of thin aluminium surfaces can have pleasing ASMR characteristics.
comment posted at 6:17 AM on Jan-6-17

There are now only two living members of the Shaker faith. In 2016, there were three.
comment posted at 12:44 PM on Jan-4-17

House Republicans voted in a closed-door meeting Monday night to strip the independent Office of Congressional Ethics of its powers to speak publicly, report crimes, get anonymous tips, and act independently. If this amendment is passed, the Office will now be under the control of the House Ethics Committee. The Ethics Committee is run by members of the House, the body that the Office was intended to investigate.
comment posted at 2:35 PM on Jan-3-17

PBS Frontline Powerful film using cell phone video and interviews following five stories of desperation and hope.
comment posted at 7:58 AM on Jan-2-17

More than 750 people have been murdered in Chicago in 2016. It has become dangerous enough that more than a fifth of Chicago’s 652 public schools have Safe Passage routes to help children travel safely.
comment posted at 7:49 AM on Dec-29-16

"One of the most enigmatic objects on display in the new Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture is "Ashley's Sack." On loan from South Carolina's Middleton Place, this unbleached cotton sack features an embroidered text recounting the slave sale of a nine-year-old girl named Ashley and the gift of the sack by her mother. Until now, Ashley's identity has been unknown. New research by Mark Auslander traces Ashley's Sack from the initial gift during the era of slavery to the present."
comment posted at 12:26 PM on Dec-27-16
comment posted at 12:58 PM on Dec-27-16

George S. Irving has died. Irving first appeared on Broadway in 1943 in Oklahoma!, only to be drafted into service two days later. He spent more than 60 years on stage, recently reprising a role he created in "So Long, 174th Street", which has been retitled, "Enter Laughing."
comment posted at 1:44 PM on Dec-26-16

In which Paapa Essiedu, Tim Minchin, Benedict Cumberbatch, Dame Harriet Walter, David Tennant, Rory Kinnear, Sir Ian McKellen, Dame Judi Dench and HRH the Prince of Wales get into a philosophical discussion involving Shakespeare. [6m25s]
comment posted at 9:33 AM on Dec-24-16

Watch the Most Painfully Awkward Interview of 2016: 7 Minutes With Jerry Lewis
comment posted at 1:18 PM on Dec-20-16
comment posted at 2:33 PM on Dec-20-16

Priceonomics and Digg combined to find out which websites and authors appeared most often on Digg's front page between 2013 and 2016.
comment posted at 3:07 PM on Dec-18-16

"The Soldier's Medal is awarded to Mr. Lawrence Colburn for heroic performance on March 16, 1968 in saving the lives of at least ten Vietnamese civilians during the unlawful massacre of noncombatants by American forces at My Lai, Quang Ngai Province, South Vietnam. Specialist Colburn was serving as a door gunner on a helicopter which landed in the line of fire between American ground troops and fleeing Vietnamese civilians to prevent their murder.
comment posted at 9:17 AM on Dec-18-16

In yet another week of "surely this...", Russia is accused of helping him win the US election to a Senator's dismay and possible retaliation, Mitt loses out to Tillerson, Rick Perry is nominated for can't remember oops, other people are nominated, and librarians and science come under attack, with net neutrality possibly next. The Electoral College is but a few days away, with lobbying, labels, opinions and angry celebrities. However, the chances of a shock are low. Elsewhere, the public vote gives Hillary a large lead with comparisons to previous elections, Louisiana voted, the 2018 midterms are underway, Barack is interviewed, contemporary capitalism, Putin's revenge, un-democracy in North Carolina, latest odds, and piñata.
comment posted at 11:25 AM on Dec-16-16

How news sites’ online comments helped build our hateful electorate.
On the heels of a presidential election that has been called unprecedented in terms of its incivility, the nonpartisan National Institute for Civil Discourse has an important message for the president-elect and Congress.
2014 PEW Research & Statistics
comment posted at 2:00 PM on Dec-16-16

The journalist AA Gill, who has died aged 62, less than a month after revealing he was seriously ill with cancer The Sunday Times journalist, who was regarded by many on Fleet Street as one of the great newspaper stylists, opened his restaurant column three weeks ago with the abrupt declaration he was suffering with “an embarrassment of cancer”. He went on: “There is barely a morsel of offal that is not included. I have a trucker’s gut-buster, gimpy, malevolent, meaty malignancy.” He wanted readers to know, he said, in case it affected his judgments about food.
comment posted at 8:55 AM on Dec-12-16

The CIA has concluded that Russia intervened to help Trump win the US election. It's part of a long game.
comment posted at 6:34 AM on Dec-10-16
comment posted at 11:44 AM on Dec-10-16

...is the Seattleites who drive in it. With the news that an actual measurable amount of snow fell in the Pacific Northwest, The Stranger is here with a few short films of low speed local failures to navigate a light dusting of the white stuff.
comment posted at 2:26 PM on Dec-9-16

House Bill 493, a so-called "heartbeat" abortion bill, has cleared Ohio's House and Senate.
comment posted at 9:43 AM on Dec-7-16
comment posted at 11:33 AM on Dec-7-16

"For reminding America that demagoguery feeds on despair and that truth is only as powerful as the trust in those who speak it, for empowering a hidden electorate by mainstreaming its furies and live-streaming its fears, and for framing tomorrow’s political culture by demolishing yesterday’s, Donald Trump is Time Magazine's 2016 Person of the Year."
comment posted at 7:01 AM on Dec-7-16
comment posted at 7:45 AM on Dec-7-16

After placing third in the October election (previously), and following the failure of talks between other parties to form a coalition, the Pirate Party of Iceland has been invited to form government.
comment posted at 3:26 PM on Dec-5-16

"Actually, Let's not Be in the Moment" "Mindfulness is . . . a special circle of self-improvement hell, striving not just for a Pinterest-worthy home, but a Pinterest-worthy mind." Ruth Whippman, The New York Times, 11/26/16.
comment posted at 9:59 AM on Dec-5-16

"Across 33 rich countries, only 5% of the population has high computer-related abilities, and only a third of people can complete medium-complexity tasks. "
comment posted at 12:10 PM on Dec-4-16

Men Dump Their Anger Into Women "Women are expected to regulate the emotions of men as well as themselves. They have to sharpen their emotional regulation skillz because they’ll be regulating for two even when they’re not pregnant. [...] This takes many forms, and at its most benign looks like listening, support and empathy. However, as it becomes more noxious, women are expected to read the emotions [of] men and proactively protect them from their own negative emotions.
comment posted at 6:57 AM on Dec-13-16

The interval between the 2016 US election and inauguration of POTUS #45 continues. Donald likes an avid reader, but claims many bogus votes were cast and others believe it. Romney (previous, post title, transcript) emerges full of chocolate cake and glowing praise. The "swamp" continues to be filled, and despite 'leaving business' there are conflicts (multiple, many) of interest. There's recount news in Michigan, Nevada and Wisconsin. Amongst voter suppression news (more, more, again), recent tactics arguably worked (more), Michigan is trying to pass tougher ID laws, legal issues continue in North Carolina, and the fight will be a hard and an unavoidable one.
comment posted at 1:38 PM on Dec-2-16

Neuroscience Says Listening to This Song Reduces Anxiety by Up to 65 Percent
comment posted at 3:45 PM on Nov-18-16

Twenty years ago this week, the Rock burst forth onto the nation's television screens in his first wrestling match, and nothing would ever be the same.
comment posted at 12:03 PM on Nov-18-16

A week since the post-truth 2016 US elections and Donald is attempting team selection with Reince Priebus becoming the Chief of Staff (Onion), while Steve Bannon is the Chief Strategist and Senior Counselor and Jeff Sessions could be the Attorney General. Election result analysis continues, including Barack's reaction, rural voters and insiders, as does consideration of the approaching 2018 mid-terms. Post-election, hate crimes have increased and a tally is being kept, while Black Lives Matter issues a statement. There are issues with fake news, and with vote counting in Arizona and Supreme Court control in North Carolina. Meanwhile, down ballot election results bring good news for liberals, Twitter does something, and voters swap media bubbles. Relevant events in the near future include the minority House elections, the Trump University litigation trial (maybe), the Louisiana Senate race runoff, the Electoral College vote and probable climate collapse.
comment posted at 10:40 AM on Nov-18-16
comment posted at 11:23 AM on Nov-18-16

In one respect, today’s emotional politics is the inverse of the 1960s. Back then, people were coming to define themselves by their pleasures: their sexual desires, consumer preferences, lifestyle choices. Today, many are coming to define themselves by their pains: past traumas, mental illnesses and chronic health conditions ... One culprit always stands out in public discussion of these trends: digital technology.

In The Age of Pain, New Statesman (15 November 2016), Will Davies (Goldsmith's, University of London) discusses the politics of pain and its intersection with digital technologies.
comment posted at 11:52 AM on Nov-17-16

Today’s American fascist youth is neither the strapping Aryan jock-patriot nor the skinheaded, jackbooted punk: The fascist millennial is a pasty nerd watching shitty meme videos on YouTube, listening to EDM, and harassing black women on Twitter. Self-styled “nerds” are the core youth vanguard of crypto-populist fascist movements. And they are the ones most likely to seize the opportunities presented by the Trump presidency.

Willie Osterweil identifies how "The myth of the bullied white outcast loner is helping fuel a fascist resurgence."
comment posted at 9:20 AM on Nov-16-16

Several days after the 2016 US election, president-elect Donald Trump is holding meetings, interviews and starting to build his administration team. His positions on issues such as mass deportation, tax and foreign policy are the cause of speculation; election positions on the ACA are possibly partially rolled back, but against bleak forecasts environmental positions seem to stay as they were, to the concern of scientists. Elsewhere there is discussion of why Hillary lost to Donald, such as James Comey's involvement, rural voting patterns, swing state perceptions or voter rights and suppression, while the Democratic Party consider who should lead them forwards. Meanwhile, protests occur in several US cities, there is speculation about Trump being impeached, the electoral college is under further scrutiny, and Kate McKinnon and Dave Chappelle on SNL.
comment posted at 3:19 PM on Nov-13-16

No amount of casting people of color disguises the fact that they’re erasing people of color from the actual narrative.
Hamilton: not as revolutionary as it seems
comment posted at 2:23 PM on Nov-12-16

The 2016 US election is over and most of the results are in. Barring incident, Barack Obama (#44) will hand over to Donald Trump (#45) at noon on January 20th 2017; transition activities are underway. Following a relentless campaign, Hillary Clinton conceded and called for unity. The Republican Party has also secured the Senate and the House of Representatives, as well as electing more governors. Voter suppression during the election continues to be an issue. Reaction to Trump's victory has ranged from protests to shock, and there are many questions about what he will do in office regarding issues such as Obamacare. Some are drawing parallels between the election result and Brexit. The press is also contemplating the future of the Democratic Party and their road ahead.
comment posted at 11:24 AM on Nov-10-16
comment posted at 1:24 PM on Nov-10-16