the only good coffee is bad coffee by Helena Fitzgerald Although I am also a devotee of brews of high quality, my belief system is also aligned with the gospel truth about the considerable pleasures of bad coffee detailed by … Continue reading Outside Reading — Night Coffee edition
The Grammys Are Built on a Delusion by Spencer Kornhaber It’s been ages since I cared about the selections made for the Grammy Awards (my obsessive tendencies are directed at a different showbiz trophy), but even I can acknowledge that … Continue reading Outside Reading — Tarnished edition
When Public Money Becomes Private by Lyz Lenz Writing in her own newsletter, Men Yell at Me, Lyz Lenz details how the longstanding right-wing crusade to divert public education funds towards charter schools has other private institutions does irreparable damage … Continue reading Outside Reading — Be Cruel to Your School
Gaining Accolades While Covering War Victims in Burkina Faso by Clair MacDougall In the regular Saturday Profile section of The New York Times, Clair MacDougall spotlight another journalist. Mariam Ouédraogo has earned several awards, including recently one the most prestigious, … Continue reading Outside Reading — The Truth Is Coming edition
I’m a Scientist Who Spoke Up About Climate Change. My Employer Fired Me. by Rose Abramoff Writing for The New York Times, Rose Abramoff recounts her experience engaging in wholly understandable — if deliberately disruptive — activism informed by her … Continue reading Outside Reading — Hostile Climate edition
What Growing Up on a Farm Taught Me About Humility by Sarah Smarsh This typically powerful piece by Sarah Smarsh details a portion of her experience growing up on a family farm in rural Kansas. She effectively maps out the … Continue reading Outside Reading — In the Heart of the Heart Country edition
Saturdays are when I use my little corner of the digital world to excitedly redirect eyes to the recent writing of others. As the year comes to a close, I’ll offer encore hyperlinks to the following six pieces, presented more … Continue reading Outside Reading — Six from 2022
The New Number One Film On Sight And Sound’s Greatest Movie List Is A Step Forward, But More Needs To Be Done by Erin Brady Writing for /Film, Erin Brady considers the latest Sight and Sound list of the one … Continue reading Outside Reading — Canon Fire edition
THE DIRT ON PIG-PEN by Elif Batuman Writing for Astra, Elif Batuman explores the history of the Peanuts character who travels with his own trailing cloud. I’m always fond of cultural commentary that convincingly applies broader social theory to seemingly … Continue reading Outside Reading — The Human Dust-Bowl edition
“VOTERS ARE SMARTER THAN THE MEDIA”: THE PUNDIT CLASS MISJUDGED THE AMERICAN PEOPLE by Molly Jong-Fast Another election cycle, another abject failure of political reporters. Prompted by the blundered predictions of broadcast and print pundits, Molly Jong-Fast correctly heaps scorn … Continue reading Outside Reading —People Have the Power edition
Coffee for Two 