Monday Medley

What we read while acquiescing and finally going to rehab…

• For fans of Community, amazing news: Omar comin’! The show also presented at Comic-Con last week, and Dan Harmon previewed Season Three.

• On the other end of the TV quality spectrum, Chuck Klosterman and Molly Lambert debated Entourage.

• Felix Salmon offers Larry Summers some praise. Here is the interview that prompted the praise.

• An airline that may be able to dodge TSA regulations.

• Joe Posnanski on a critical moment for the Hall of Fame.

• Lady Gaga did an in-depth interview with Howard Stern, which is actually interesting even if you’re sick of her.

• An entire blog devoted to bringing down Michelle Bachmann (typical mainstream media!).

Monday Medley

What we read while dabbling in witchcraft….

• John S wasn’t the only one to review Jonathan Franzen’s new novel, Freedom (obvs); the book has been reviewed positively by Esquire, The Millions, The Guardian, and of course The New York Times (twice!). This in addition to appearing on the cover of Time. Ron Charles gave it a slightly (and I mean slightly) negative review, but that was not enough to curb massive backlash to the novel, and endless discussion of that backlash. Whatevs, NPI still loves him…

• ….but not as much as we love DFW.

• This Matt Taibbi piece is worth reading not only for its compelling pro-union stance, but for its description of Simon Cowell as “appalling American Idol douche-twat Simon Cowell.”

• Kid Cudi (unfortunately) denies the existence of “liquid cocaine,” instead saying, “I’m just fucking rich, and my blow comes in a jar. There was no liquid in it—that shit makes no sense.”

• Speaking of cocaine, possession of which is a crime, white-collar criminals are increasingly being offered a choice of which prison to enter as well as being offered time flexibility.

• Bill James doesn’t often write in free public forums, so when he opines on Slate about Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds, it’s a must-read — even if or especially because his take isn’t too dissimilar from our own John S’s.

• “Girls Kissing Girls: Explaining the Trend” is a mildly intriguing title, but it doesn’t come close to the actual web address for this Time story, which includes “girls-kissing-girls-whats-up-with-that.”

• How to eat a muffin while walking!