Last week, Frontline turned its eye toward the music business. Titled “The Way the Music Died,” it was one of those shows that raised fascinating questions, making the viewer ponder the relation between industry economics and the cultural forms of popular culture. It was also a major piece of nostalgic Baby Boomer nonsense. For beneath […]
Gee, I hope the new proposed History Museum for the Big Dig Greenway will turn out less cheesy than it looks in the sketches. If not, I fear it could go the way of Dreams of Freedom.
But the accompanying article is what has me a little concerned:
The unusual Boston Museum Project…would fulfill seemingly conflicting […]
Is it just me, or do we have a dearth of glamor- and sun-infused reports from Cannes this year? Maybe it’s because Michael Moore is dominating the headlines and whatever you think of his politics, well, Moore just isn’t that glamorous. I did enjoy A.O. Scott’s dispatch pointing out the strong entries from Asia this […]
Gregg Easterbrook occasionally has one of those must-read articles. But he also floats some ridiculous ideas that perhaps see the light of day because they seem novel or contrarian or just curmudgeonly enough for the New Republic. I can’t help but think his new article on how singles are the next civil rights group is […]
Having read a lot of the press coverage of the Massachusetts gay marriages last week, one question arose in my mind. Where has Bay Windows been in all of this? Yes, I know they have covered the lawsuit, the court ruling, the Constitutional Convention, and the marriages. In fact, they have reported the developments […]
The Globe’s Rick Klein today has an article discussing the sudden shift in message for this summer’s Democratic Convention, from “join the party” to “stay at home”:
Now that the extent of road closings has been made public, an inherent tension is emerging for local convention planners. The desire to make the convention a community celebration […]
The anti-gay forces here in Massachusetts never cease to amaze with their surreal proclamations. Like a sign the Sunday night at Cambridge City Hall that read “God Blew up the Space Shuttle.” ?!?! But you don’t have to cite Fred Phelps-like crazies to find examples. Take this quote that Bay Windows has from Ron Crews, […]
I saw Andrew Sullivan on Greater Boston last night, making an appearance to promote his new (revised) book, Same-Sex Marriage: Pro & Con. I’m not sure he covered any territory not in his written articles, and in fact may have been polished by his role in editing the reader of arguments in the gay marriage […]
Over at the New Republic, Ryan Lizza asks,
Remember the Iraq Stabilization Group? Unveiled with much ballyhoo back in October, it was seen as Condi Rice’s attempt to tear Iraq policy-making away from the fumbling Pentagon and centralize things at the White House.
You know, I had totally forgotten about that. One of the striking aspects of […]
“Best man gets the job,” proclaims Brad Delong in response to the selection of economist Manmohan Singh as prime minister for the new coalition Indian government after recent elections. I’d recommend reading the comments to his post, which seem to offer more analysis than the American press has generally done. In sum, the story is […]
Has anyone noticed that Herbert Muschamp’s review of the Rem Koolhaas new building, Seattle’s Central Library, contains not one but three uses of the term bling-bling? He even adds an emphatic Bling! to one of the captions to the slide show. I know the Times is trying to be a little more current in their […]
Over at WestNorth, Payton wonders whether the critics of smart growth aren’t losing perspective:
“Innovation Briefs” has an editorial concluding (largely, it seems, on the basis of anecdotes and David Brooks’ awful generalizations) that “the most recent Census Bureau data, documenting demographic trends since the 2000 Census, suggest that the “smart growth” movement is having little […]
Coming into work today, I passed by City Hall and the queue of gay and lesbian couples lining up to fill out their application for a marriage license. It’s hard not to be struck by the momentous occasion. And it’s hard not to be impressed by the look of sheer glee on the faces (except […]
From Jonah Goldberg at the National Review:
I was reading through a very interesting discussion at Instapundit on how the media is obsessed with Abu Ghraib, while Americans are concerned with Nick Berg — and it got me thinking…. when I look at the coverage — or lack thereof — of Nick Berg’s murder versus […]
Both the New York Times and the Guardian are carrying word that David Reimer has died this week, having killed himself last Tuesday. If news has taken a while to reach the obit page - and if you’re wondering just who David Reimer is - it’s because he’s more famous under another name. Writes the […]