{
"type": "event",
"name": "\ud83d\uddd3\ufe0f The Level Up",
"published": "2025-03-08T22:30:00-0400",
"start": "2025-03-08T22:30:00-0400",
"url": "https://martymcgui.re/2025/03/08/the-level-up/",
"featured": "https://res.cloudinary.com/schmarty/image/fetch/w_960,c_fill/https://media.martymcgui.re/18/c2/f5/ec/a054f44e92d9baa77a45abca345c8c7642995b16056a1d8b79de221d.jpg",
"category": [
"improv",
"show"
],
"location": {
"type": "card",
"name": "Magnet Theater",
"url": "https://magnettheater.com/"
},
"content": {
"text": "The Level Up is an indie improv showcase. Join us as we watch amazing New York indie improv talents gain XP on the Magnet stage, unlock new achievements, and reach new milestones. Or do comedy.\n\nCome support Michael as he dons his hosting-duties cap for three exciting indie teams:\nHalalrious\nIncognito\nThorn and Petal Stick\nI\u2019ll be playing in with Michael and the rest of the Level Up!\nLooking forward to it! And to seeing you there!! (Yes, you. Come on out!!!)\nSaturday March 8th, 2025 @ 10:30pm\n\nMagnet Theater\n\n254 West 29th St (btwn 7th and 8th Ave.)\n\nNew York City, NY 10001\n\nTickets $10: https://magnettheater.com/show/59432/",
"html": "<blockquote>\n<p>The Level Up is an indie improv showcase. Join us as we watch amazing New York indie improv talents gain XP on the Magnet stage, unlock new achievements, and reach new milestones. Or do comedy.</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>Come support Michael as he dons his hosting-duties cap for three exciting indie teams:</p>\n<ul><li>Halalrious</li>\n<li>Incognito</li>\n<li>Thorn and Petal Stick</li>\n</ul><p>I\u2019ll be playing in with Michael and the rest of the Level Up!</p>\n<p>Looking forward to it! And to seeing you there!! (Yes, you. Come on out!!!)</p>\n<p>Saturday March 8th, 2025 @ 10:30pm<br />\nMagnet Theater<br />\n254 West 29th St (btwn 7th and 8th Ave.)<br />\nNew York City, NY 10001<br />\nTickets $10: <a href=\"https://magnettheater.com/show/59432/\">https://magnettheater.com/show/59432/</a></p>"
},
"author": {
"type": "card",
"name": "Marty McGuire",
"url": "https://martymcgui.re/",
"photo": "https://martymcgui.re/images/logo.jpg"
},
"post-type": "event",
"_id": "44152684",
"_source": "175"
}
{
"type": "entry",
"author": {
"name": "Jared White",
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/",
"photo": null
},
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/links/20250308/car-loans-are-insane",
"published": "2025-03-08T19:46:58-08:00",
"content": {
"html": "<blockquote>\n <h2><a href=\"https://thehill.com/business/5183840-late-car-payments-record-high/\"></a></h2>\n\n <p>\u201cHigher car prices combined with higher interest rates have driven monthly payments upward and have put pressure on consumers across the income and credit score spectrum,\u201d researchers at the New York Fed wrote.</p>\n\n<p>The cost of buying a new car has risen more than $10,000 since the pandemic, from roughly $38,000 in January 2020 to more than $48,500 in January 2025, according to Cox Automotive data.</p>\n\n<p>Elevated interest rates have added to the pain, pushing up the cost of financing in recent years.</p>\n\n<p>The average monthly payment for a new car loan was $755 in January \u2014 down from the $795 peak in December 2022 but well above the $566 average in 2019, per Cox Automotive.</p>\n\n</blockquote>\n\n<p><strong>$755 a month?!</strong> \ud83e\udd2f</p>\n\n<p>I have absolutely no idea how anyone can afford that.</p>\n\n<p>The most I ever paid for a car payment was somewhere in the $300s\u2014and that wasn\u2019t even for a new car but a used (pre-owned from the dealer). And that was <em>quite</em> the stretch at times, let me tell you. I thankfully paid off the loan a few years ago and I thankfully still own the car. It\u2019s the second car I <em>ever</em> bought in my life. I will run this car straight into the ground (hopefully long into the future).</p>\n\n<p><strong>Car pricing has gone completely insane.</strong> We need <em>small, cheap EVs</em> (sub-$20,000) and we need them yesterday. (Also yet another plug for the miracle of <a href=\"https://jaredwhite.com/tag/micromobility\">#micromobility</a>.)</p>",
"text": "\u201cHigher car prices combined with higher interest rates have driven monthly payments upward and have put pressure on consumers across the income and credit score spectrum,\u201d researchers at the New York Fed wrote.\n\nThe cost of buying a new car has risen more than $10,000 since the pandemic, from roughly $38,000 in January 2020 to more than $48,500 in January 2025, according to Cox Automotive data.\n\nElevated interest rates have added to the pain, pushing up the cost of financing in recent years.\n\nThe average monthly payment for a new car loan was $755 in January \u2014 down from the $795 peak in December 2022 but well above the $566 average in 2019, per Cox Automotive.\n\n\n\n$755 a month?! \ud83e\udd2f\n\nI have absolutely no idea how anyone can afford that.\n\nThe most I ever paid for a car payment was somewhere in the $300s\u2014and that wasn\u2019t even for a new car but a used (pre-owned from the dealer). And that was quite the stretch at times, let me tell you. I thankfully paid off the loan a few years ago and I thankfully still own the car. It\u2019s the second car I ever bought in my life. I will run this car straight into the ground (hopefully long into the future).\n\nCar pricing has gone completely insane. We need small, cheap EVs (sub-$20,000) and we need them yesterday. (Also yet another plug for the miracle of #micromobility.)"
},
"name": "Link: There's Never Been a World in Which I Could Have Afforded This",
"post-type": "article",
"_id": "44138309",
"_source": "2783"
}
{
"type": "entry",
"author": {
"name": "Jared White",
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/",
"photo": null
},
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/links/20250307/dems-are-so-fucked",
"published": "2025-03-07T22:43:59-08:00",
"content": {
"html": "<blockquote>\n <h2><a href=\"https://www.axios.com/2025/03/06/trump-speech-congress-democrats-disrupt\"></a></h2>\n\n <p>House Democratic leadership is privately confronting members who disrupted President Trump\u2019s speech to Congress, Axios has learned.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Why it matters:</strong> Many progressives defied House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries\u2019 (D-N.Y.) request to avoid making themselves the story.</p>\n\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Serious question, has Hakeem Jeffries actually DONE <em>anything</em> useful lately? The guy seems like an empty suit to me. I find myself nodding off anytime he\u2019s being asked questions in an interview.</p>\n\n<p>Can we pleeeeuuzze just put AOC & Jasmine Crockett in charge of this party?! They\u2019re the <em>only people</em>* who have <em>any</em> star power whatsoever at this point. Everyone else is a <strong>snoozefest</strong>, and Trump goes through right through them like tinfoil. <a href=\"https://jaredwhite.com/tag/politics\">#politics</a></p>\n\n<p>* Or Pete Buttigieg, but he doesn\u2019t hold any elected office at the moment. That fella is <em>outrageously talented.</em></p>",
"text": "House Democratic leadership is privately confronting members who disrupted President Trump\u2019s speech to Congress, Axios has learned.\n\nWhy it matters: Many progressives defied House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries\u2019 (D-N.Y.) request to avoid making themselves the story.\n\n\n\nSerious question, has Hakeem Jeffries actually DONE anything useful lately? The guy seems like an empty suit to me. I find myself nodding off anytime he\u2019s being asked questions in an interview.\n\nCan we pleeeeuuzze just put AOC & Jasmine Crockett in charge of this party?! They\u2019re the only people* who have any star power whatsoever at this point. Everyone else is a snoozefest, and Trump goes through right through them like tinfoil. #politics\n\n* Or Pete Buttigieg, but he doesn\u2019t hold any elected office at the moment. That fella is outrageously talented."
},
"name": "Link: \u201cCome to Jesus Meeting\u201d to Keep House Dems in Line",
"post-type": "article",
"_id": "44131379",
"_source": "2783"
}
{
"type": "entry",
"published": "2025-03-07T22:35:08-08:00",
"url": "https://beesbuzz.biz/blog/8719-DuckDuckGo-has-DuckDuckWent-all-in-on-AI",
"category": [
"search",
"AI",
"enshittification"
],
"name": "DuckDuckGo has DuckDuckWent all-in on AI",
"content": {
"text": "DuckDuckGo has been slowly rolling out AI \u201cfeatures,\u201d and now they\u2019ve decided to triple down on them.\n\nSo now for me they\u2019re DuckDuckGone.\n\nI\u2019m using Startpage for now. The search results are Okay. Not as good as DDG\u2019s were, but, sigh.",
"html": "<p>DuckDuckGo has been slowly rolling out AI \u201cfeatures,\u201d and now they\u2019ve decided to <a href=\"https://spreadprivacy.com/ai-feature-upgrade/\">triple down on them</a>.</p><p>So now for me they\u2019re DuckDuckGone.</p><p>I\u2019m using <a href=\"https://startpage.com/\">Startpage</a> for now. The search results are Okay. Not as good as DDG\u2019s were, but, sigh.</p>"
},
"author": {
"type": "card",
"name": "fluffy",
"url": "https://beesbuzz.biz/",
"photo": "https://beesbuzz.biz/static/headshot.jpg"
},
"post-type": "article",
"_id": "44130509",
"_source": "2778"
}
I will never forgive the tech industry for what it has done to the world I was brought up into as a technologist.
I was literally raised by a programmer. My dad was a Unix guy long before I ever knew what Unix is. No joke, Iād heard of SGML before Iād heard of HTML. To this day I donāt consider myself much of a Vim whiz, but the reason I even know how to use it is because I first cut my teeth on Vi. I supposed if my dad had been into Emacs, I would have learned that instead!
I had already been a computer userāand budding programmer myselfāfor literally a decade before I even encountered the #OpenWeb on top of this newfangled thing called the Internet. I like to joke I was already using a computer when I was 2 years old. Iām not sure if thatās strictly speaking true, but close enough!
I say all this because you deserve the preamble to my pricipal statement: as someone in their 40s whoās been a hard-core computer nerd for nearly that long, I find the end result of the now vast corporations in control of said computer field to be deplorable, ghastly, boneheaded, ludicrous, and fucking absurd.
I can barely even stomach anything Apple is churning out these days, and theyāre one of the least disagreeable firms if you can believe it.
This isnāt āold man yells at cloudā. Because the truth is, thereās actually tons of awesome technology being worked on and demonstrated every day. And the Web itself is a marvel of engineering, better now than itās ever been and capable of oh so much.
So if thereās so much good tech available, how come there is so much bad tech thrown in our faces at the exact same time? We can all offer some plausible answers to that question, but in the end it doesnāt matter much. This is the world we now live in. Oodles of good tech, surrounded and nearly infected by a veritable flood of very bad tech.
{
"type": "entry",
"author": {
"name": "Jared White",
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/",
"photo": null
},
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/20250306/i-will-never-forgive-the-tech-industry",
"published": "2025-03-06T19:36:34-08:00",
"content": {
"html": "<p>I will <em>never forgive</em> the tech industry for what it has done to the world I was brought up into as a technologist.</p>\n\n<p><strong>I was literally raised by a programmer.</strong> My dad was a Unix guy long before I ever knew what Unix is. No joke, I\u2019d heard of <strong>SGML</strong> before I\u2019d heard of <strong>HTML</strong>. To this day I don\u2019t consider myself much of a Vim whiz, but the reason I even know how to use it is because I first cut my teeth on Vi. I supposed if my dad had been into Emacs, I would have learned that instead!</p>\n\n<p>I had already been a computer user\u2014and budding programmer myself\u2014for literally a decade before I even encountered the <a href=\"https://jaredwhite.com/tag/openweb\">#OpenWeb</a> on top of this newfangled thing called the Internet. I like to joke I was already using a computer when I was 2 years old. I\u2019m not sure if that\u2019s strictly speaking true, but <em>close enough!</em></p>\n\n<p>I say all this because you deserve the preamble to my pricipal statement: as someone in their 40s <em>who\u2019s been a hard-core computer nerd for nearly that long</em>, I find the end result of the now vast corporations in control of said computer field to be <strong>deplorable</strong>, <strong>ghastly</strong>, <strong>boneheaded</strong>, <strong>ludicrous</strong>, and <strong>fucking absurd</strong>.</p>\n\n<p>I can barely even stomach anything Apple is churning out these days, and they\u2019re one of the <em>least</em> disagreeable firms if you can believe it.</p>\n\n<p>This isn\u2019t \u201cold man yells at cloud\u201d. Because the truth is, there\u2019s actually <em>tons</em> of <strong>awesome technology</strong> being worked on and demonstrated every day. And the Web itself is a marvel of engineering, better now than it\u2019s ever been and capable of oh so much.</p>\n\n<p>So if there\u2019s so much <strong>good tech</strong> available, how come there is so much <strong>bad tech</strong> thrown in our faces at the exact same time? We can all offer some plausible answers to that question, but in the end it doesn\u2019t matter much. <strong>This is the world we now live in.</strong> Oodles of good tech, surrounded and nearly infected by a veritable flood of <em>very bad tech</em>.</p>\n\n<p>And I nearly can\u2019t stand it. \u2639\ufe0f</p>",
"text": "I will never forgive the tech industry for what it has done to the world I was brought up into as a technologist.\n\nI was literally raised by a programmer. My dad was a Unix guy long before I ever knew what Unix is. No joke, I\u2019d heard of SGML before I\u2019d heard of HTML. To this day I don\u2019t consider myself much of a Vim whiz, but the reason I even know how to use it is because I first cut my teeth on Vi. I supposed if my dad had been into Emacs, I would have learned that instead!\n\nI had already been a computer user\u2014and budding programmer myself\u2014for literally a decade before I even encountered the #OpenWeb on top of this newfangled thing called the Internet. I like to joke I was already using a computer when I was 2 years old. I\u2019m not sure if that\u2019s strictly speaking true, but close enough!\n\nI say all this because you deserve the preamble to my pricipal statement: as someone in their 40s who\u2019s been a hard-core computer nerd for nearly that long, I find the end result of the now vast corporations in control of said computer field to be deplorable, ghastly, boneheaded, ludicrous, and fucking absurd.\n\nI can barely even stomach anything Apple is churning out these days, and they\u2019re one of the least disagreeable firms if you can believe it.\n\nThis isn\u2019t \u201cold man yells at cloud\u201d. Because the truth is, there\u2019s actually tons of awesome technology being worked on and demonstrated every day. And the Web itself is a marvel of engineering, better now than it\u2019s ever been and capable of oh so much.\n\nSo if there\u2019s so much good tech available, how come there is so much bad tech thrown in our faces at the exact same time? We can all offer some plausible answers to that question, but in the end it doesn\u2019t matter much. This is the world we now live in. Oodles of good tech, surrounded and nearly infected by a veritable flood of very bad tech.\n\nAnd I nearly can\u2019t stand it. \u2639\ufe0f"
},
"post-type": "note",
"_id": "44118630",
"_source": "2783"
}
{
"type": "entry",
"author": {
"name": "Jared White",
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/",
"photo": null
},
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/links/20250305/who-has-the-agency",
"published": "2025-03-05T20:16:40-08:00",
"content": {
"html": "<blockquote>\n <h2><a href=\"https://peertube.dair-institute.org/w/nhZ4aDsAQ7z5giGKFcC9yS\"></a></h2>\n\n <p>In the weeks since January 20, the US information ecosystem has been unraveling fast. (We\u2019re looking at you Denali, Gulf of Mexico, and every holiday celebrating people of color and queer people that used to be on Google Calendar.) As the country\u2019s unelected South African tech billionaire continues to run previously secure government data through highly questionable LLMs, academic librarian Raina Bloom joins Emily and Alex for a talk about how we organize knowledge, and what happens when generative AI degrades or poison the systems that keep us all accurately \u2013 and contextually \u2013 informed.</p>\n\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I\u2019ve been wanting to link to an episode of <em>Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000</em> for some time now, and <strong>this one seemed particularly noteworthy</strong> as the hosts and their lively guest really dove down deep into questions of fact-finding, truth-telling, and what it means to have legitimate authority as a conveyer of educational and informative information.</p>\n\n<p>Why are the Big Tech companies behind today\u2019s <a href=\"https://jaredwhite.com/tag/generativeai\">#generativeAI</a> chatbots ascribing \u201cagency\u201d to technologies which cannot and will not ever posses such an attribute? And why do people credulously consider these \u201csynthetic text extruders\u201d (to use a phrase often heard on the show) to be conveying anything resembling a point of view wholly separate from the providers of such services?</p>\n\n<p><strong>Well worth the watch</strong> (<a href=\"https://www.buzzsprout.com/2126417/episodes/16735740-the-war-on-knowledge-with-raina-bloom-2025-02-24\">or the listen if you so prefer</a>).</p>",
"text": "In the weeks since January 20, the US information ecosystem has been unraveling fast. (We\u2019re looking at you Denali, Gulf of Mexico, and every holiday celebrating people of color and queer people that used to be on Google Calendar.) As the country\u2019s unelected South African tech billionaire continues to run previously secure government data through highly questionable LLMs, academic librarian Raina Bloom joins Emily and Alex for a talk about how we organize knowledge, and what happens when generative AI degrades or poison the systems that keep us all accurately \u2013 and contextually \u2013 informed.\n\n\n\nI\u2019ve been wanting to link to an episode of Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000 for some time now, and this one seemed particularly noteworthy as the hosts and their lively guest really dove down deep into questions of fact-finding, truth-telling, and what it means to have legitimate authority as a conveyer of educational and informative information.\n\nWhy are the Big Tech companies behind today\u2019s #generativeAI chatbots ascribing \u201cagency\u201d to technologies which cannot and will not ever posses such an attribute? And why do people credulously consider these \u201csynthetic text extruders\u201d (to use a phrase often heard on the show) to be conveying anything resembling a point of view wholly separate from the providers of such services?\n\nWell worth the watch (or the listen if you so prefer)."
},
"name": "Link: Agents: Uh, Who Actually Has the Agency?",
"post-type": "article",
"_id": "44109367",
"_source": "2783"
}
In case you missed it, our IPSIE webinar recording is now available! I had a great time chatting with Dean H. Saxe, George Fletcher, Gail Hodges, and Jeff Reich about what IPSIE is, why profiling existing specifications is so important, and the progress the working group has made so far! Thanks for the great conversation!
IPSIE: Interoperability Profile for Secure Identity in the Enterprise
{
"type": "entry",
"published": "2025-03-05T13:24:25-08:00",
"url": "https://aaronparecki.com/2025/03/05/8/ipsie",
"category": [
"ipsie",
"openid",
"okta"
],
"syndication": [
"https://www.linkedin.com/posts/aaronparecki_securing-the-future-of-identity-with-ipsie-activity-7303163432344657920-6bnX"
],
"content": {
"text": "In case you missed it, our IPSIE webinar recording is now available! I had a great time chatting with Dean H. Saxe, George Fletcher, Gail Hodges, and Jeff Reich about what IPSIE is, why profiling existing specifications is so important, and the progress the working group has made so far! Thanks for the great conversation! \n\nIPSIE: \nInteroperability \nProfile for \nSecure \nIdentity in the \nEnterprise \n\nhttps://www.brighttalk.com/webcast/18458/636068",
"html": "In case you missed it, our IPSIE webinar recording is now available! I had a great time chatting with Dean H. Saxe, George Fletcher, Gail Hodges, and Jeff Reich about what IPSIE is, why profiling existing specifications is so important, and the progress the working group has made so far! Thanks for the great conversation! <br /><br />IPSIE: <br />Interoperability <br />Profile for <br />Secure <br />Identity in the <br />Enterprise <br /><br /><a href=\"https://www.brighttalk.com/webcast/18458/636068\"><span>https://</span>www.brighttalk.com/webcast/18458/636068</a>"
},
"author": {
"type": "card",
"name": "Aaron Parecki",
"url": "https://aaronparecki.com/",
"photo": "https://aperture-media.p3k.io/aaronparecki.com/41061f9de825966faa22e9c42830e1d4a614a321213b4575b9488aa93f89817a.jpg"
},
"post-type": "note",
"_id": "44104595",
"_source": "16"
}
Coming up on the fifth anniversary of our ongoing pandemic. Iām feeling extra down about it this year. Thereās all the regular, complex feelings around people going āback to normalā but now with the added bonus of fash trying to decimate our already-weak public health. It all just feels so bleak.
{
"type": "entry",
"published": "2025-03-03 17:11-0800",
"url": "https://gregorlove.com/2025/03/coming-up-on-the/",
"category": [
"Covid"
],
"syndication": [
"https://bsky.app/profile/gregorlove.com/post/3ljjclljcqo2x"
],
"content": {
"text": "Coming up on the fifth anniversary of our ongoing pandemic. I\u2019m feeling extra down about it this year. There\u2019s all the regular, complex feelings around people going \u201cback to normal\u201d but now with the added bonus of fash trying to decimate our already-weak public health. It all just feels so bleak.",
"html": "<p>Coming up on the fifth anniversary of our ongoing pandemic. I\u2019m feeling extra down about it this year. There\u2019s all the regular, complex feelings around people going \u201cback to normal\u201d but now with the added bonus of fash trying to decimate our already-weak public health. It all just feels so bleak.</p>"
},
"author": {
"type": "card",
"name": "gRegor Morrill",
"url": "https://gregorlove.com/",
"photo": "https://gregorlove.com/site/assets/files/6268/profile-2021-square.300x0.jpg"
},
"post-type": "note",
"_id": "44104415",
"_source": "95"
}
I consider a lot of the art Iāve experienced (or made!) over the years and so much of it has trended towards the serene or the cerebral or the celebratory. Hell, my first solo album was literally called Garden Journey and was inpired by meditation & massage music.
And donāt get me wrong, Iām not saying art thatās romantic or relaxing or comical or whimsical or joyful or merely decorative is bad or ālesser thanā.
But Iām at a moment in my lifeāand a moment in the zeitgeistāwhen Iām longing for art that rattles. Art that shakes, confronts, confounds, and condemns. Art that is fearless, raw, offensive. Art that raises a fist and takes a stand.
Iām not saying we should all dye our hair purple, listen to death metal, or set cars on fire. Remember, capitalism has a way of absorbing even critques of its own system, leading you to āsell outā even as you decry being a sellout. Itās insidious in that way.
What I am saying is as people who believe in more than empty, self-absorbed materialism; who truly do care about a #spirituality which requiresānay, demandsāa deep and relentless drive to fight for social justice and leaving the world in better shape than how you found it; it is incumbent upon us to seek out as well as create artifacts which move the needle in some concrete manner and wake audiences the fuck up. (aka STAY WOKE! š )
Are you with me on this? Iām just not finding myself drawn to the typical pablum. I am expecting more from the creators I look up to and admireāand I am trying to push myself this year in the same way.
{
"type": "entry",
"author": {
"name": "Jared White",
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/",
"photo": null
},
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/20250304/sometimes-art-needs-to-be-angry",
"published": "2025-03-04T21:43:12-08:00",
"content": {
"html": "<p><strong>Sometimes art needs to be angry.</strong></p>\n\n<p>I consider a lot of the art I\u2019ve experienced (or made!) over the years and so much of it has trended towards the serene or the cerebral or the celebratory. Hell, my first solo album was literally called <a href=\"https://yarred.bandcamp.com/album/garden-journey\">Garden Journey</a> and was inpired by meditation & massage music.</p>\n\n<p>And don\u2019t get me wrong, I\u2019m not saying art that\u2019s romantic or relaxing or comical or whimsical or joyful or merely decorative is bad or \u201clesser than\u201d.</p>\n\n<p>But I\u2019m at a moment in my life\u2014and a moment in the <em>zeitgeist</em>\u2014when I\u2019m longing for art that <strong>rattles</strong>. Art that shakes, confronts, confounds, and condemns. Art that is fearless, raw, offensive. <strong>Art that raises a fist and takes a stand.</strong></p>\n\n<p>I\u2019m not saying we should all dye our hair purple, listen to death metal, or set cars on fire. Remember, capitalism has a way of absorbing even critques of its own system, leading you to \u201csell out\u201d even as you decry being a sellout. It\u2019s <em>insidious</em> in that way.</p>\n\n<p>What I <em>am</em> saying is as people who believe in more than empty, self-absorbed materialism; who truly do care about a <a href=\"https://jaredwhite.com/tag/spirituality\">#spirituality</a> which requires\u2014nay, <em>demands</em>\u2014a deep and relentless drive to fight for social justice and leaving the world in better shape than how you found it; it is <em>incumbent</em> upon us to seek out as well as create artifacts which <strong>move the needle</strong> in some concrete manner and <strong>wake</strong> audiences the <em>fuck up</em>. (aka STAY WOKE! \ud83d\ude05)</p>\n\n<p>Are you with me on this? I\u2019m just not finding myself drawn to the typical pablum. I am expecting more from the creators I look up to and admire\u2014<strong>and I am trying to push myself this year in the same way.</strong></p>",
"text": "Sometimes art needs to be angry.\n\nI consider a lot of the art I\u2019ve experienced (or made!) over the years and so much of it has trended towards the serene or the cerebral or the celebratory. Hell, my first solo album was literally called Garden Journey and was inpired by meditation & massage music.\n\nAnd don\u2019t get me wrong, I\u2019m not saying art that\u2019s romantic or relaxing or comical or whimsical or joyful or merely decorative is bad or \u201clesser than\u201d.\n\nBut I\u2019m at a moment in my life\u2014and a moment in the zeitgeist\u2014when I\u2019m longing for art that rattles. Art that shakes, confronts, confounds, and condemns. Art that is fearless, raw, offensive. Art that raises a fist and takes a stand.\n\nI\u2019m not saying we should all dye our hair purple, listen to death metal, or set cars on fire. Remember, capitalism has a way of absorbing even critques of its own system, leading you to \u201csell out\u201d even as you decry being a sellout. It\u2019s insidious in that way.\n\nWhat I am saying is as people who believe in more than empty, self-absorbed materialism; who truly do care about a #spirituality which requires\u2014nay, demands\u2014a deep and relentless drive to fight for social justice and leaving the world in better shape than how you found it; it is incumbent upon us to seek out as well as create artifacts which move the needle in some concrete manner and wake audiences the fuck up. (aka STAY WOKE! \ud83d\ude05)\n\nAre you with me on this? I\u2019m just not finding myself drawn to the typical pablum. I am expecting more from the creators I look up to and admire\u2014and I am trying to push myself this year in the same way."
},
"post-type": "note",
"_id": "44097317",
"_source": "2783"
}
{
"type": "entry",
"author": {
"name": "Jared White",
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/",
"photo": null
},
"url": "https://jaredwhite.com/links/20250303/putting-the-wars-in-star-wars",
"published": "2025-03-03T20:38:53-08:00",
"content": {
"html": "<blockquote>\n <h2><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AE4wxt70aUM\"></a></h2>\n\n <p>The critically acclaimed series returns.</p>\n\n<p>Watch the new trailer for season 2 of Andor, streaming April 22 on Disney+.</p>\n\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>The first season of <em>Star Wars: Andor</em> was a revelation. And that\u2019s only become more true in the years (!!) since its debut because let\u2019s face it, Disney+ Star Wars TV has mostly been a shitshow. I can hardly name <em>any</em> episodes of any of those shows I\u2019d want to subject myself to a second time. (I did enjoy <em>Skeleton Crew</em> quite a bit, as well as some of <em>The Mandalorian</em>\u2014and I might have at least enjoyed the \u201cpromise\u201d of <em>The Acolyte</em> had it not been unceremoniously canceled!)</p>\n\n<p><em>Andor</em> is <strong>clearly</strong> the standout example of the bunch, and it\u2019s not even close. I personally consider this show one of the best <a href=\"https://jaredwhite.com/tag/scifi\">#scifi</a> <a href=\"https://jaredwhite.com/tag/tvshows\">#tvshows</a> of all time\u2014and the fact that it\u2019s set in the <strong>Star Wars universe</strong> is essentially a footnote. <a href=\"https://jaredwhite.com/links/20221211/andor-is-the-best-star-wars-since-the-last-jedi\">As I wrote in 2022 when the first season concluded:</a></p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>With adult themes and expert world-building\u2014along with an amazing and awe-inspiring takedown of fascist ideology which speaks poignantly to the present zeitgeist\u2014this is a show that deserves to be taken seriously.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I am <strong>eagerly anticipating</strong>* the second and final season which purports to end exactly where <em>Rogue One</em> begins. I must admit, I didn\u2019t find that movie all that compelling when I originally watched it, but perhaps with the context of <em>Andor</em> applied, I\u2019ll get more out of it on a fresh watch.</p>\n\n<p>I\u2019m also quite ready to <strong>once again enjoy watching rebel factions take down fascist dickwads</strong>\u2026times being what they are and all. \ud83e\udee0</p>",
"text": "The critically acclaimed series returns.\n\nWatch the new trailer for season 2 of Andor, streaming April 22 on Disney+.\n\n\n\nThe first season of Star Wars: Andor was a revelation. And that\u2019s only become more true in the years (!!) since its debut because let\u2019s face it, Disney+ Star Wars TV has mostly been a shitshow. I can hardly name any episodes of any of those shows I\u2019d want to subject myself to a second time. (I did enjoy Skeleton Crew quite a bit, as well as some of The Mandalorian\u2014and I might have at least enjoyed the \u201cpromise\u201d of The Acolyte had it not been unceremoniously canceled!)\n\nAndor is clearly the standout example of the bunch, and it\u2019s not even close. I personally consider this show one of the best #scifi #tvshows of all time\u2014and the fact that it\u2019s set in the Star Wars universe is essentially a footnote. As I wrote in 2022 when the first season concluded:\n\n\n With adult themes and expert world-building\u2014along with an amazing and awe-inspiring takedown of fascist ideology which speaks poignantly to the present zeitgeist\u2014this is a show that deserves to be taken seriously.\n\n\nI am eagerly anticipating* the second and final season which purports to end exactly where Rogue One begins. I must admit, I didn\u2019t find that movie all that compelling when I originally watched it, but perhaps with the context of Andor applied, I\u2019ll get more out of it on a fresh watch.\n\nI\u2019m also quite ready to once again enjoy watching rebel factions take down fascist dickwads\u2026times being what they are and all. \ud83e\udee0"
},
"name": "Link: Andor S2: Putting the \u201cWars\u201d in Star Wars",
"post-type": "article",
"_id": "44085307",
"_source": "2783"
}
Coming up on the fifth anniversary of our ongoing pandemic. Iām feeling extra down about it this year. Thereās all the regular, complex feelings around people going āback to normalā but now with the added bonus of fash trying to decimate our already-weak public health. It all just feels so bleak.
{
"type": "entry",
"published": "2025-03-03 17:11-0800",
"url": "https://gregorlove.com/2025/02/coming-up-on-the/",
"category": [
"Covid"
],
"syndication": [
"https://bsky.app/profile/gregorlove.com/post/3ljjclljcqo2x"
],
"content": {
"text": "Coming up on the fifth anniversary of our ongoing pandemic. I\u2019m feeling extra down about it this year. There\u2019s all the regular, complex feelings around people going \u201cback to normal\u201d but now with the added bonus of fash trying to decimate our already-weak public health. It all just feels so bleak.",
"html": "<p>Coming up on the fifth anniversary of our ongoing pandemic. I\u2019m feeling extra down about it this year. There\u2019s all the regular, complex feelings around people going \u201cback to normal\u201d but now with the added bonus of fash trying to decimate our already-weak public health. It all just feels so bleak.</p>"
},
"author": {
"type": "card",
"name": "gRegor Morrill",
"url": "https://gregorlove.com/",
"photo": "https://gregorlove.com/site/assets/files/6268/profile-2021-square.300x0.jpg"
},
"post-type": "note",
"_id": "44082888",
"_source": "95"
}
