Tuesday evening reading - January 7, 2025
More goodies from the stack of stuff I read on a daily basis here on Substack.
When I get to between six and eight posts (or so) I think are worth sharing, you’ll get Tuesday evening reading. It won’t be every week, but likely about once or twice a month. There’s nothing wrong with link love!
We’re starting 2025 with an edition bursting at the seams; my “six to eight” was more like “eleven or twelve.” I culled a couple off to my last odds and ends and realized a couple others were behind a paywall, but most remain as I crammed all but one of my 2024 remainders into this issue. Read them first then come back and see what I have to say.
While Judd Garrett disables his mentions, I’m going to link to this anyway because it needed to be said.
People by nature are good. Most take the Biblical admonishment, “thou shalt not kill” seriously.
But there seems to be a growing number who believe the ends of murder justify the means, and Garrett points a few out: Luigi Mangione, Thomas Crooks, and Audrey Hale - respectively, the accused murderer of UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson, would-be assassin of Donald Trump, and Tennessee school shooter. You could add the Madison school shooter to the list, who assumed room temperature by her own hand.
As he says:
the far-left… spread their hate anyway because they want someone like Mangione to commit this murder. They’ll speak out against the murder, but deep down they’re glad that it happened. And the people who commit these heinous acts are the useful idiots. They are tools that the left uses to continue to push their agenda through intimidation and violence.
When people don’t have the concept of right and wrong reinforced by a moral society, you get a bumper crop of useful idiots.
And perhaps this piece by was meant to be the companion piece to Judd’s above, even if they’re from totally different backgrounds and perspectives.
One good excerpt:
We who seek to “understand the times” recognize that the elites who control the Democrat Party and corrupt members of the Republican Party (and unelected operatives and financiers) do not want Trump to take office and are already engaged in efforts to sabotage the agenda of our President-elect and his incoming Administration. We also know that the rule of law means nothing to them, and they will lie and do whatever evil deeds they think they can to keep power. They care nothing about what is best for the American people but only desire to retain their power and the incredible wealth that comes with their current positions.
When people don’t have the concept of right and wrong reinforced by a moral society, you get a bumper crop of elites and corrupt members of a political party.
At least Pastor Tim comes to a better resolution, one grounded in Scripture.
Now let’s review a bit of history with my friend , shall we?
All you need to know about this is what I commented:
Personal conduct is only a disqualifier for Republicans, don't you know? A tour de force over the last 20 years of poor leadership.
David doesn’t put up something on a daily basis, but when he does it’s worth the wait.
Next, we have a little bit of criticism of the once and future president, and a good reminder that we have to take him seriously but not literally.
worries that Donald Trump might be a little too wed to the city life in this piece talking about “freedom cities.”
Can you imagine how ugly this could potentially get for we commoners, those of us who wish to live local, live rural, live Natural… and just want to be left alone? Said-blueprint could be implemented on a mass scale, and many of those who would ordinarily stand against them might waver, because of who initially created them.
It’s good to be a visionary, but let’s keep a bit of perspective. On the other hand, there are writers like who find the optimism contagious.
As he notes, “For the past four years, my only priority was survival. Now, I am allowing myself to think about what I want to do with my future. I hope that’s true for you as well. It’s a great feeling.”
Maybe we can have big dreams again in America. There seems to be an optimism we haven’t seen since…2016.
Now, let’s change course.
I have Spotify, but I seldom listen to it. And maybe that’s a good thing because their background noise has an interesting source (of profit for them), according to :
Spotify apparently targeted genres where they could promote passive consumption. They identified situations in which listeners use playlists for background music. That’s why I noticed the fake artists problem first in my jazz listening.
Yep, fake artists. Not necessarily AI, but artists who give up part of their proceeds for plays. As he adds:
a huge amount of streaming music originates from just 20 people, who operate under 500 different names.
I can assure you that this post is all me except where I quote, block or otherwise. And my idea of success is helping a lot of good writers out.
While talks about how Big Pharma basically owns The Price is Right, I can vouch that they pretty much keep the Game Show Network afloat, too. (Come to think of it, the same is true for the network nightly news.)
When it comes to mindless entertainment, nothing beats hours and hours straight of Family Feud reruns. (He’s your man, Steve Harvey!) But my wife likes them, so that is on our TV. Add to that a few spins of the Wheel of Fortune along with the chance to Press Your Luck and you get a primetime block that’s been successful at being the bricks mortared together by commercials for Pharma success stories like Ozempic, Wegovy, Jardiance, Rinvoq, Farxiga (I think that’s the one Bill was trying to think of), and Miebo, among several others.
It’s too bad in a way because I do like GSN’s original trivia quiz show Split Second, but I could see a scenario where their original shows are axed because the money from Big Pharma stops coming in and there are not enough Medicare providers, insurance companies, or nonprofits with a sob story you can help solve for $19 a month (that’s just 63 cents a day!) so you can get a trinket from them to make up the difference. (Ever wonder how many forgetful seniors are donating to them 3 or 4 times a month because they keep buying the tale?)
But then I think of how much it costs me at the pharmacy, and I get over it. However, the leftovers we occasionally get because a drug rep stops by my wife’s place of work and brings lunch - well, that’s another story.
It makes you wonder whether it’s contributing to inflation, as Bill ponders in another piece:
Anyone who eats at Mickey D’s (I probably haven’t in a couple years) knows that what used to be their Dollar Menu is now more like $2-3 apiece. What I liked about Bill’s article was how he went more in-depth with the concept.
Back in the day I used to do something like this on a semi-annual basis with the grocery store, comparing four regional and national chains with a store in Salisbury. (Thanks to consolidation and closures, they now have just three chains.) Walmart used to be the big winner, with Food Lion generally coming in number 2. But in doing this for three or four years, I saw both the price increases and shrinkflation do their dirty work on the grocery bill. My comparison days were back in the 2006-10 era, but what used to cost us $200 just a half-decade ago now comes out at $250 to $300. So it’s not just McFlation.
Anyway, all that should keep a good reader going and thinking for awhile. Now I’ll keep collecting for next time as I’ve cleared out the 2024 shelf except for one promoted item you’ll see Saturday.
In the meantime, though, you can Buy Me a Coffee, since I have a page there now.
Another good selection Michael. And thanks for the mention.