April 25, 2021
Is the presidency a license to kill?
San Francisco journalist Paul W. Lovinger takes a hard look at the general failure of American presidents, since World War II, to get Congressional approval for military adventures including but not limited to Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Lebanon, Grenada, Afghanistan, Bosnia, Colombia, Haiti, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan and Syria. "While not king, [the President] has become a ruler with more war power than George III had." The power to declare war, Constitutionally vested solely in Congress, has effectively lost all meaning. "Do we elect a chief executive—or a chief executioner? No president is likely to maliciously shoot someone to death point-blank. That’s murder. But no president seems to mind ordering many people shot or bombed in a distant land. That’s war."
This isn't going to work out, Ryan
“Should we just fend?”: A vernacular for eating whatever
“Fending” is our household’s word for picking around the kitchen, seeing what’s there, and making a meal of it… I might have leftover chicken fried rice, some lox and cream cheese on Triscuits, and the end of a jar of pickles. He might use up the chicken salad, Tuesday’s chili, and the last of the roasted cauliflower, which, by the way, is still good.
Writing in The New Yorker, cartoonist Roz Chast describes how she asked around on Instagram about what other people call this practice and collected a moderately long list of vernacular.
Since people might not want to burn their clicks on this tiny li’l article, a list of many of the entries is inside. [more inside]
Writing in The New Yorker, cartoonist Roz Chast describes how she asked around on Instagram about what other people call this practice and collected a moderately long list of vernacular.
Since people might not want to burn their clicks on this tiny li’l article, a list of many of the entries is inside. [more inside]
The Girl in the Kent State Photo
The Girl in the Kent State Photo — In 1970, an image of a dead protester immediately became iconic. But what happened to the 14-year-old kneeling next to him? (alternate links: 1, 2, 3) [more inside]
Astronomia I: The Fall Of Saturn
Duran Duran keyboardist Nick Rhodes and artist/singer/violinist Wendy Bevin are releasing their Lockdown Project across the next year. [Variety] Astronomia [YT overview video with artists, ~9m] is a 52-song, 4-volume project being released as 4 albums. Astronomia I: The Fall Of Saturn [YT audio playlist] came out on March 20, 2021. It can be heard (or purchased) on these online services. [more inside]
This is just a tribute
Meet Aerospace Engineer Judith Love Cohen | Judith was, at various times in her fascinating life, an engineer who worked on the Pioneer, Apollo, and Hubble missions, an author & publisher of books about women in STEM and environmentalism in the 90s, a ballet dancer with the New York Metropolitan Opera Ballet Company, an advocate for better treatment of women in the workplace, and actor Jack Black’s mother. [more inside]
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