The Moral Case for Drones — Oral History of the first 24/7 Sports Radio Station – California and the Perfect Bagel – How to deal with China and Russia —
Politics
How should liberal democracies deal with China and Russia? – Michael Ignatieff, Reuters
Russia and China depend for their stability, not on institutions, since there are none that are independent of the ruling elite, but on growth itself … They are regimes whose legitimacy is akin to that of a bicyclist on a bicycle. As long as they keep pedaling, they keep moving; if they stop, they fall off.
The Moral Case for Drones – Scott Shane, New York Times
One rough comparison has found that even if the highest estimates of collateral deaths are accurate, the drones kill fewer civilians than other modes of warfare.
Why the Euro Baffles America – Russell A. Berman, Defining Ideas
The American refusal to recognize the cultural complexities within Europe—or, for that matter, elsewhere—is the price it pays for an education system that minimizes the opportunities students have to study other languages, cultures, and histories.
Sports
Paterno Won Sweeter Deal Even as Scandal Played Out – Jo Becker, New York Times
The details of Mr. Paterno and his family’s fight for money seem to deepen one of the lasting truths of the Sandusky scandal: the significant power that Mr. Paterno exerted on the state institution, its officials, its alumni and its purse strings.
Note: It has been reported that Paterno’s sons, Jay and Scott, were not contacted for this report regarding the Paternos “family demands” for perks. It raises questions over the credibility of Becker’s argument.
The Sound and the Fury – Alex French and Howie Kahn, Grantland.com
Anyway, once Lampley had to go on the air at 1:05, or whatever, and he raced into the studio with no time to go to the bathroom. He’s signaling to give him a cup. And we give him a large cup and he proceeds to take a leak right there while he’s doing the monologue. I thought it was one of the greatest broadcasting feats I’ve ever seen.
Will you still medal in the morning? – Sam Alipour, ESPN The Magazine
The challenge athletes face is what to do with their urges and when. “If you don’t have discipline, the [Olympic] village can be a huge distraction,” Solo admits. Some swear off sex until their events are done; others make it part of their pre-event routine.
The British Open: Which Tiger will show up? – Jeff Shain, Orlando Sentinel
In theatrical parlance, it’s called the Greek chorus. And in the tale of two extremes that has defined Tiger Woods’ season, the voices from the periphery at times have been nearly as entertaining as the drama it accompanies.
Culture
When computers listen to music, what do they hear? – Leon Neyfakh, The Boston Globe
By translating a song into a string of numbers, and identifying what made it different from every other song ever written, Shazam forced us to confront the fact that a computer could hear and process music in a way that we humans simply can’t.
What really happened at the Pulitzer Fiction Jury this year – Michael Cunningham, The New Yorker
A proper respect for the mysterious aspects of fiction is encouraged by the Pulitzer’s guidelines, which are gratifyingly loose. The winning book, be it a novel or short-story collection, must have been written by an American, and should, ideally, be in some way about American life.
America’s Zoloft Problem – Cara Spitalewitz, The Daily Beast
While adults can make an informed decision about whether they want to subscribe to the narrative that SSRIs [Antidepressants] will restore them to their pre-depression selves, adolescents have not yet fully developed the personalities that could serve as points of comparison. The self on antidepressants becomes the only self they know.
California: Home of the perfect bagel – Ryan Tate, Wired
“There’s a whole wealth of technology and applied science out there that is not being used in the culinary field,” Graf says …”As people start to realize that you don’t need to be rooted as deeply in tradition, that there are other ways of doing things, there will be more people who are trying to kind of push the boundaries of what a specific food product is — that change it and tweak it.”
Seven Hour Smoke 