Monday Medley

What we read while the government spying- NEVERMIND EVERYTHING’S FINE!

• So you may have heard about a few government leaks last weak, including a court order to Verizon for millions of phone records of American citizens, a program called PRISM that allows the NSA to monitor computer activity, and a government order of possible targets for a cyber attack. They caused a bit of a kerfuffle: Though elected representatives think anything goes when it comes to terrorism, many citizens for some reason think the ability to monitor who calls whom, when, and from where might be a breach of privacy and not just troubling but even “obscenely outrageous,” since it is exactly what a totalitarian dictator would want. David Simon, who wrote a whole television series about government surveillance, thinks we should have seen this all coming.

• The Internet companies implicated in the leaked documents rushed to issue denials, though they were carefully worded and other evidence points to their complicity. The result is a massive surveillance system built by Bush and Obama that spans the entire globe. In a quirk of timing, Julian Assange had just penned an attack on Google’s stated “Don’t Be Evil” mission. Meanwhile, the claims that these programs save lives seem dubious.

• All of this only underscores the importance of whistleblowers in this era of government secrecy. The hero who leaked all this information actually came forward: His name is Edward Snowden (“There, there”) and, though he will likely face extreme punishment if he is not granted asylum, he felt the public’s right to know trumped his personal well-being.

• Speaking of invasions of privacy, the MLB is looking to suspend up to 20 players based on the dubious evidence obtained in the investigation of Biogenesis. Why baseball continues to go so vigilantly after suspected steroid users is a little puzzling, but probably has to do with Bud Selig’s concern for his own legacy. And it’s important to remember that not everyone involved is as hated as A-Rod.

• People in other parts of the country talk weird.

• An absolutely crushing story from Eli Saslow on mourning in Newtown.

• Is recycling actually bad?

• This week in oral histories: The sexual history of the UCB Theatre. And did ESPN kill oral histories with this instant oral history of Tony Parker’s shot at the end of Game 1 of the NBA Finals?

• Everything you need to know about Pretty Little Liars in advance of Tuesday’s season premiere.

Monday Medley

What we read while Aaron Craft took a “charge”… 

• Last Wednesday marked the ten-year anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. A dying veteran wrote a letter to President Bush. How our perceptions of the war’s opponents (including Republicans) has changed…

• The sabermetricians who run New York City.

• The Tonight Show will move back to New York when Jimmy Fallon replaces Jay Leno next year. But who will replace Fallon at Late Night?

• 20 things you didn’t know about Bob Dylan’s debut album.

• How Barrett Brown of Anonymous became a government target. In other tech law news: the awful Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

• Will Leitch makes the case for the Yankees winning the AL East in 2013.

• How old is Paul Rudd?

Monday Medley

What we read while North Korea tried to book Toni Kukoc next…

• Larissa MacFarquhar’s comprehensive account of the life and tragic death of Aaron Swartz.

• Rand Paul spoke for 13 hours on the floor of the Senate, filibustering John Brenna’s confirmation to protest the Obama Administration’s use of drones and bringing attention to the country’s drone policy. Though Attorney General Eric Holder wrote a response to Senator Paul, there are still unanswered questions (as well as the unreleased report on CIA torture) about the program and Paul vowed to keep fighting. Meanwhile, the NYT ran a story on the killing of Anwar al-Awlaki, which was condemned by the ACLU for selective disclosure.

• A Mila Kunis interview went viral for showing why the actress is so beloved.

• Vulture is now trying to determine the best sitcom of the past 30 years. Will Leitch picked Cheers over Arrested Development.

• Speaking of bracketology, an account of Dick Vitale’s love for Duke.

• Longtime Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez died. What does that mean for Venezuela?

• David Foster Wallace on five common usage errors.

• On Jerry Brown’s second term as California Governor.

• Reflections on the 10 year anniversary of the Iraq War.

• Can one woman change the nature of Internet porn?

 

Monday Medley

What we read after knocking out Manny Pacquiao…

• Some great lists of the year’s best photographs, as well as an illustrated deck of cards for The Wire characters.

• The leaked audio of Fox News’ Kathleen McFarland talking to David Petraeus last year is sickening and revealing.

• Judd Apatow edited the first comedy issue of Vanity Fair, which featured, among other things, this oral history of Freaks and Geeks.

• The ongoing persecution of Bradley Manning continues, but most of the media, including The New York Times which benefited from his leaks, is still ignoring him.

• Joe Posnanski on breaking down the baseball Hall of Fame. Also, Will Leitch on Bob Costas.

• Everything you ever wanted to know about New York City candy shops.

• The militarization of America’s police forces, and some moral questions about the military itself.

• What happened to Google Reader?

• Why significant credit card bonuses are here to stay.

• Noam Chomsky celebrated his birthday this weekend.

• Why the fiscal cliff doesn’t really matter.

• Jay-Z on the subway.

• The worst free throw of all time.

Monday Medley

What we read while waiting in line for gas…

• So, there was some kind of storm last week. Hurricane Sandy made landfall last Monday, cutting off power to millions along the East Coast and killing over 100 people. New York City and New Jersey were hit the hardest, as public transportation was down for days and is still not fully operational. Images from the storm were harrowing, including these from Coney Island and two different amusement park rides caught in the water. Power in lower Manhattan was gone for days, leaving it a kind of ghost town. And, of course, the storm left behind stories of tragedy, but also amazing stories of survival.

• Of course, in the wake of the storm, there were other concerns: What was the role of global warming in the hurricane? Will any politicians, besides NYC Mayor Bloomberg that is, talk about the issue now? What is the proper role of FEMA? Has Occupy Wall Street outperformed the Red Cross in its recovery efforts? Will local businesses recover or sink in debt? How can New Yorkers get gas? How long with the recovery last? How could the flooding have been prevented? Did Twitter spread false information or not? Is this a victory for “Big Government”? Will people need to use vacation days if they work for James Dolan? How did New York’s talk shows go on? And what happened to all of New York City’s rats?!

• New Jersey’s own Star-Ledger delivered remarkable covers throughout the week.

• “By midnight, the worst is over. By dawn, it is visible.”

• Now for some non-Sandy stuff: Louis C.K. hosted Saturday Night Live!

• Joe Posnanski on the baseball playoffs.

• Disney bought LucasFilm and announced plans for a new Star Wars movie. Here’s an old look at the original film. At least some good will come out of it…

• Chris Hedges endorsed Jill Stein for President.

• Will Leitch endorsed the Knicks.

• The government appears to be winging it at Guantanamo Bay.

• Did the press cover up important facts about Benghazi?

• Will college football decide tomorrow’s election?

Monday Medley

What we read while Adele gave acceptance speeches… 

• In case you missed it, Austin Rivers beat UNC with a buzzer-beating three last week. Yeah, it was awesome. Shane Ryan, of Seth Curry Saves Duke and Grantland, broke down the evening’s greatness. In other Duke-related news, Deadspin discovered Cook Out.

• With Whitney Houston’s passing, it’s a fitting time to look back at her life, from her early rise, to her mega-fame in the early ’90s, and even her tabloid-fueling relationship with Bobby Brown. Patrick Bateman, for one, will surely miss her…

• What happened to the antiwar movement? Conor Friedersdorf suggests that secret wars have killed it.

• James Fallows breaks down Obama’s presidency in a giant piece for The Atlantic. (If you don’t have time, just read the last line.)

• The Washington Post takes on the adult single life. Speaking of single adults, Justice Sotomayor resolved a trespass/property dispute on Sesame Street.

• Josh isn’t the only one against the (solo) lecture.

• It may seem like blasphemy, but Will Leitch presents a pretty compelling case against Gus Johnson.

• Sasha Pasulka wonders why punching women in the face is okay if you’re really good at singing.

• Finally, someone says what we’re all thinking: Chipotle is the Apple of Mexican fast-casual dining!

• How not to write about female musicians.

• The Internet has finally put its two favorite NBC shows together in a Tumblr!

• Apparently 90% of people don’t know about Ctrl+F searches.

Monday Medley

What we read while turning down the Donald Trump debate…

• Tim Tebow keeps engineering miraculous comebacks (it’s almost making John S believe in God) and last week two of NPI’s favorite writers tried to figure out why so many hate him: Paul Shirley analyzed the racial aspect of the Tebow phenomenon, while Chuck Klosterman thinks it’s all about religion.

• Speaking of Klosterman, he ranked his favorite hair metal albums of the 1980s.

• You’re never going to guess who’s comedy album is ranked as the best of 2011 (unless you guessed Louis C.K., because it’s Louis C.K.). C.K. also released his new special at his website for $5. In other comedy news, Ron Swanson was named the best TV character of the year and David Wain returned with more episodes of Wainy Days!

• Perhaps the biggest sports story of last week was Albert Pujols signing with the Los Angeles Angels for $254 million. Friend of the blog Will Leitch was obviously distraught, though Pujols will always have a place in Cardinals history. As usual, Jonah Keri tried to break down the numbers.

• While Pujols was the biggest on-field story, John Branch’s three-part exploration of late Rangers’ enforcer Derek Boogaard may have been the most important off-field story done all year.

• This building may evoke images of 9/11 but still, doesn’t it look really cool?

• Oh potential of high-speed rail, we hardly knew ye.

• The Millions kicks off its always entertaining and enlightening “Year in Reading” series.

• Serious Eats’ on Bad Good and Good Bad pizza.

• So, um, this is pretty racist. And so is this.

• ESPN’s Tim Keown laments the ossification of the sports interview.

Monday Medley

What we read while being thankful for the stuff we bought on Black Friday…

• Our long national nightmare is over: Players and owners have reached a deal and the NBA will resume again on Christmas, probably! Players were so excited they took to Twitter. It should be no surprise, though, that the deal benefits the Miami Heat, the villains of the league.

• In other sports labor news, Jonah Keri is not a fan of the new MLB CBA. 

• We’ve been following the Occupy Wall Street story in the wake of the galvanizing pepper spray incidents, which Fox News, of course, tried to downplay. New York magazine tried to analyze Mayor Bloomberg’s confusing response to the protests, and The New Yorker had a great story on the movement’s origins.

• In other stories of political disillusionment, David Frum bemoans the current state of the Republican Party, while Conor Friedersdorf wonders why liberals keep making excuses for Obama.

• The recent PBS documentary on Woody Allen led Will Leitch and Tim Grierson to rank every Woody film.

• In college basketball news, the relationship between Alex Oriakhi and his coach keeps getting testier.

• Another professor analyzes the syllabi of David Foster Wallace.

Monday Medley

What we read while–BOO!

• A great World Series concluded Friday night. As usual, the great series caused a lot of debate. Jonah Keri listed the 21 craziest things about Game 5 (only one of which was Bullpengate). That game alone was so fraught that Will Leitch needed an extra day to get over it. Of course, things got better for him in Game 6, with the Cardinals TWICE pulling off shocking comebacks, leading Tim McCarver of all people to come up with the call of the postseason. Plenty of writers tried to put the game into perspective, but perhaps Roger Angell’s scorecard sums it up best. Of course, St. Louis ended up coming out on top, and Keri tried to determine if the Cardinals were the most unlikely champion ever. Meanwhile, Joe Poz called all this back in August…

• Where did the seven-game series come from, anyway?

• In non-World Series news, Aaron Sorkin is writing a Steve Jobs biopic (“You know what’s cooler than an iPod? An iPod Nano!”), but has everyone forgotten his true masterpiece, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip?

• This satire of The Mentalist is funny even if you’ve never seen a second of the show.

• Matt Taibbi continued his coverage of the Occupy Wall Street protests, while also exposing Rick Perry’s ignoble reign in Texas.

• Don’t read this if you enjoy seafood.

 

Talkin’ Baseball: Wrapping Up the World Series

TIM: Well, John, another baseball season has come to an end and, as is custom, the ritualistic falling of snow in late October in the northeast has commenced the off-season. As we look back on the World Series, I believe you owe me several units of Cassandran kudos.

JOHN S: Yeah, I believe you are due several Cassandra units. After all, I recall a few conversations we had throughout the season:

March 27: “You know, John, I don’t think Lance Berkman is done. He’s going to have a big year in St. Louis.”

May 13: “The Red Sox may have rebounded from that slow start, but you have to question their ability to perform in months with 30 days…”

May 28: “Pay attention to Nelson Cruz”