American Spirits by Russell Banks

On By Rick McIn books, economics, ethics, firearms, governmentLeave a comment

Russell Banks died in 2023 at age-82.

His novels are known for “detailed accounts of domestic strife and the daily struggles of ordinary often-marginalized characters” …

Banks was the 1985 recipient of the John Dos Passos Prize for fiction. 

Continental Drift and Cloudsplitter were finalists for the 1986 and 1999 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction respectively …

I only knew the name as the author of The Sweet Hereafter (1991).

American Spirits (2024) is his last publication.

Grim but compelling narratives from this fine writer.

Three stories unearth the bitterness and violence seething in a working-class American town.

These long narratives by the late Banks are all set in the northern New York village of Sam Dent that featured in The Sweet Hereafter (1991). But where that story dealt with a tragedy that affected the whole town, these explore the welter of pain that can afflict a single house. …

Kirkus Reviews – American Spirits

He based these stories on chatter he heard from strangers while sitting in a bar in Keene, New York. Some wearing MAGA hats. 😀

He was watching sports on TV while listening in to the conversations of drunk patrons.

Russell Banks writes to be a better person.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Right Wing – Wants to Destroy Public Education

On By Rick McIn bad news, books, economics, education, ethics, GOP USA, government, things getting worseLeave a comment

Recall one of Trump’s worst appointees — billionaire donor Betsy DeVos?

She wanted to disband public schools, giving those tax dollars to parents to spend on whatever they want ➙  school choice, school voucher programs, or charter schools, for example.

Those are programs used mostly by the rich.

IF you want to send your children to Muslim school, Jewish school, Christian school, or SPORT school — great! So long as they meet minimum standards, your child should be credentialed.

That decided … should the taxpayer subsidize your special education?

My short answer is NO.

Like health care, IF you want special treatment, pay for it yourself.

Government should ensure that BASIC education and health care are made available to EVERYONE.

PUBLIC SCHOOLS and PUBLIC HEALTH CARE.

If you choose to have the Mayo Clinic treat you for cancer, pay for it yourself.

That’s my short answer.

My longer answer is that governments with plenty of money should be allowed to subsidize special education IF it doesn’t lower the quality of public school.

The best discussion I’ve heard on this was on my favourite PODCAST ➙ ON THE MEDIA.

The Real Mission Behind Moms for Liberty

As an example, here’s the GOP nominee for the top job running public schools in North Carolina. An $11 billion budget.

In the past she’s called for executing top Democrats. Endorsed QAnon and other conspiracy theories. Anti-Muslim. Anti-LBGTQ.

She marched for Trump on Jan. 6th.

Michele Morrow is about as rightwing kooky as they get.

No educational experience other than homeschooling her own kids.

Three-Inch Teeth by C.J. Box

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The 24th book (2024) in the Joe Pickett series is Three-Inch Teeth.

Excellent. As are all the rest.

A rogue grizzly bear has gone on a rampage—killing, among others, the potential fiancé of Joe’s daughter.

At the same time, Dallas Cates, who Joe helped lock up years ago, is released from prison with a special list tattooed on his skin. He wants revenge on the people who sent him away: the six people he blames for the deaths of his entire family and the loss of his reputation and property.

Visiting Port Townsend 2024

On By Rick McIn food, friends, travelLeave a comment

Due to the pandemic, I hadn’t made it back to Port Townsend, Washington since 2019.

Since then, Doug and Diana had built a new house on one of their properties.

I was both 3rd and 4th in the guestbook, visiting both going to and coming from Coeur d’Alene.

Carrie came up from Vancouver WA to videotape a chat with myself and Doug about the start of the Tumbl Trak Ambassador Program. Actually, she drove MANY hours in the dark and rain to pick me up in Port Angeles.

I was the first Ambassador, we think, when Doug gave me an inflatable tumbling mat to take to my Gymnastics tour of Australia in 2007. I did clinics in 5 different States.

The other BIG news of my visit was that Diana was getting packed for a trip to Europe with a friend.

Also — Doug bought a new car. A Nissan Leaf.

It was my fault. I took the ferry from Seattle to Bremerton WA by mistake — and there happened to be a Nissan dealership there. 😀

As always in Port Townsend, we enjoyed some terrific meals.

My favourite was Finistère.

Carrie’s oysters with horse radish

As always, I got out running and hiking.

This is dawn down close to Fort Worden.

If you’ve never been, Port Townsend is a tourist gem hidden away off the main highway in northern Washington State.

Yellowface by R. F. Kuang

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Yellowface (2023) written by R. F. Kuang is a satire of racial diversity in the publishing industry as well as a metafiction about social media, particularly Twitter.

Super popular, it sounded right up my alley.

The first quarter of the book was engaging. An interesting plot.

June Hayward, an unsuccessful young author, finds herself the only witness to the death of her former classmate and casual friend, Athena Liu, a Chinese-American author who is an industry darling.

She decides to position herself as best friend of the author and begins to edit and re-write Athena’s manuscript, a novel about Chinese laborers in World War I.

As she changes more and more of the draft, June begins to feel ownership over the novel and decides to publish it as her original work.  …

It started to drag. Too much doom scrolling on Twitter. Too repetitious.

Finally — I quit about half way through the book.

I don’t like Instagram

On By Rick McIn blogs, Facebook, humour, photos, product complaintsLeave a comment

I’d avoided this Facebook social media alternative — until the pandemic. It’s very popular with outdoor recreation folks so I started posting near daily on @BestHikeVisuals.

This parody nails it. 😀

Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.

Day 1 for me on Instagram was November 9, 2020.

It’s shocking how limited Instagram is compared with Facebook. For example:

  • until recently, it was super difficult to post from a computer
  • Instagram images sometimes don’t show on browsers with ad blockers installed
  • you have no control over the sizes of thumbnails. They often look stupid.
  • Instagram videos are often poor quality and look bad when viewed from a computer rather than a phone

I’m up to over 600 posts now. And it IS rewarding to quickly scan all of those. And there are some very good photos.

But many of the coolest influencers are posting less to Instagram. Looking to TikTok and other social media.

The Sweet Hereafter – book & film

On By Rick McIn books, moviesLeave a comment

Both are excellent.

The Sweet Hereafter is a 1991 novel by American author Russell Banks. It is set in a small town in the aftermath of a deadly school bus accident that has killed most of the town’s children.

The novel was adapted into an award-winning 1997 film of the same name by Canadian director Atom Egoyan. …

The novel was based on an actual bus crash in Alton, Texas and its aftermath just before the book was written. …

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

My Cycling “Pogie Lites”

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To keep my hands warmer and dryer, I’m now carrying Pogie Lites from BikeIowa.

What’s a Pogie?

An over-sized “wind-breaker-like mitten“.

Here I’m riding in the cold and rain. They work surprisingly well. I’m bare handed underneath, making it very easy to work brakes and gear changes.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Pogie Lites are so flexible, they SHOULD fit on any kind of handlebar.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

I’m riding my brother’s Ebgo electric purchased at Costco.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Burn Book by Kara Swisher

On By Rick McIn Amazon, Apple, audiocasts, books, economics, education, ethics, Facebook, government, internet, TwitterLeave a comment

Kara Swisher is today the #1 reporter covering the business of the internet.

Her mentor, Walt Mossberg.

The first of her 2-book memoir is a hit.

An entertaining read, even if you care nothing about the history of the internet.

Burn Book: A Tech Love Story by Kara Swisher

Almost everyone in Tech picks up the phone when Kara calls.

She’s a pugnacious interviewer who won’t back down to anyone.

I only follow Swisher because she launched Pivot, a semi-weekly news commentary podcast co-hosted by Swisher and Scott Galloway.

She’s a very hard worker. Extremely well connected. And a competent interviewer.

But Prof. Galloway is my guru in ALL things business. Swisher was smart — as well — to sign up Galloway.

In her new book, Swisher reflects back on some of the biggest stories she’s covered. And her opinions of some of the Tech giants.

John McLaughlin comes across worst. Also, Rupert Murdoch, her long time boss.

Mark Zuckerberg stories are embarrassing. Facebook evil.

She’s fascinated by Elon Musk — but entirely disappointed since he bought Twitter and made his legacy being something of a right wing troll.

I was surprised how much she admired Steve Jobs. A well known asshole, but one who slung less B.S. than the rest.

Burma Sahib by Paul Theroux

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Paul Theroux is a jerk — but I’d rank him one of the top wordsmiths working today.

This man can write.

Now age-82, Theroux’s 2024 book is as sharp and insightful as ever.

Burma Sahib is the story of George Orwell’s Burmese days. Back when he was in his snivelling early 20s.

A fictional rewriting of young Eric Blair’s years with the police in Burma. Eric Blair is Orwell’s real name.

He arrived Mandalay 1922, age-19, fresh out of Eton.

As unimpressive and pitiable as any Brit in the Raj.

His story is depressing. Mostly colonial bigotry and hateful racism.

Sunburned officer smoking and drinking their lives away.

… the young probationary policeman, bookish and too tall, is plagued not only by the vicious mosquitoes of the river delta but by a pathological awkwardness. …

Theroux, like Orwell, is the sharpest observer of the nonsenses of the class system …

Guardian – Burma Sahib by Paul Theroux review – George Orwell’s Burmese days vibrantly brought to life