Worth Reading
359 articles filed under Worth Reading.
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Worth Reading
Monkeypox and the Monkeypox Vaccine: A Brief History
In the Aug. 19 issue, I wrote briefly about Monkeypox, a virus that some health officials are predicting might spread as fast as COVID-19 but with a lethality rate 10 times as high. There was a time – and not…
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Antisemitism Watch: Inside the Campaign to Blacklist “Zionist” Therapists
A therapist on a professional listserv in Chicago posted a request for a therapist who was a Zionist because the potential patient was dealing with feelings about the “current geopolitical climate.”…
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Terrible Racists
Joel Bowman, an acquaintance and colleague who writes Notes from the End of the World, recently attended a family reunion in Pigeon Forge, TN, a town of just over 6,000 people. Spending an evening in town one…
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Escaping the Madness: Two Hikes into the Wilderness
It’s been a crazy few weeks after three years of drama cooked up by Big Medicine, Big Government, and aided and abetted by Big Media. As a mental dip into a refreshing mountain stream, The Free Press published…
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Eight Quick Bites
Since K and I set off to Japan on June 24, I’ve not read a single book or watched a movie. Now that my speeches and meetings here are done, I’m hoping to get back to writing movie and book reviews. In the…
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By Percival Everett
By Percival Everett 320 pages Published March 19, 2024 James – a reimagining of Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the perspective of Jim, the runaway slave – was The Mules book selection for…
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How Meta Studies Distort Medical Research Findings
What I learned about medical “meta studies” in this essay by Toby Rogers obliterated the naïve trust I’ve had in them. “All people of good faith should be troubled by the information I lay out below,” he…
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In What World Is Gender-Transition Surgery Gender-Affirming Care?
A study from the University of Texas Medical Branch found that the risk of suicide increased 12 times following gender-transition surgery compared to those who did not undergo the procedure. Click here.
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The Hemingway Stories
A new collection selected and introduced by Tobias Wolff Published March 2, 2021 320 pages There’s a reason why so many writers of Hemingway’s generation are no longer read much, but he still is. One of my…
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An Exercise Program That Works Miracles
“Butterbean” showing off his new-found mobility Sent in by BW: In his 50s, long after he should have retired from boxing, Eric “Butterbean” Esch continued, even entering several mixed martial arts bouts. He…
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Freddie deBoer Gets Ruthless with His Critics
Freddie deBoer occasionally self-identifies as a Communist. I’m not big on Communism. Nor am I a fan of Communists. And yet deBoer is someone I quote from and link to all the time. That is because he is a very…
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A Purple Place for Dying
By John D. MacDonald First published Jan. 1, 1964 240 pages After several months of serious books about controversial topics, A Purple Place for Dying was a welcome selection for the April meeting of The Mules…
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Political Tribes: Group Instinct and the Fate of Nations
By Amy Chua 304 pages First edition Feb. 20, 2018 This is the second of two Amy Chua books recommended to me by SL. The first, The Triple Package, which I reviewed here, was about why some immigrants to the US…
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Guns, Germs, and Steel
By Jared Diamond 480 pages First published March 1997 I meant to read this 26 years ago when it was first recommended to me. (The title is a reference to the means by which farm-based societies conquered…
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Alex Berenson on the First Amendment, Part Two
Alex Berenson Last week, I gave you a link to Part One of Alex Berenson’s lecture on why he fears for the future of the First Amendment. If you missed it, here it is again. Now, here is Part Two.
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Alex Berenson on Why the First Amendment Matters
Alex Berenson Alex Berenson is not a right-wing radical. He’s not even a card-carrying conservative. He’s a thoughtful and well-educated researcher and writer who has developed a following by challenging large…
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Something Rich and Strange
By Ron Rash 448 pages Published Nov. 4, 2014 This is one of two short story collections The Mules read for our February meeting. It was the second book of short stories we read by Ron Rash, who is indisputably…
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How Money Walks
By Alexander Ward 368 pages Published Feb. 20, 2024 The WSJ recommended The Internationalists last week. I have at least 60 books piled up in various corners of my house and office that I’ve promised myself I…
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1. Night at the Fiestas: Stories
By Kristin Valdez Quade 304 pages Originally published March 16, 2015 I don’t remember how this got onto my to-read list. I half-liked the title – a collection of possibly good, possibly literary short stories…
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1. The Triple Package
By Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld 352 pages Originally published Feb. 4, 2014 SL, founder of The Mules (my book club), gave me this book to read. He had recently interviewed Amy Chua on his podcast about…
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Einstein in Time and Space
A Life in 99 Particles By Samuel Graydon 368 pages Published Dec. 14, 2023 I’ve read a few books about Einstein before. No genuine biographies, but books that promised to help me understand a bit about his…
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Can the US Fight Three Major Wars Simultaneously?
Can the US Fight Three Major Wars Simultaneously? Read Time: 8 minutes Michael Snyder believes that 2024 will be a “year of war.” In the Jan. 1 issue of his blog, he says, “In recent years our military has…
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AI Resurrects The Beatles For Digital Immortality
“On the one hand, it’s amazing to think that the artists we love will never die. But on the other hand, it can start to feel like a scene from the movie Weekend at Bernie’s.” In this essay, Andrew Zucker talks…
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Robert De Niro at 80: The career of an indelible movie icon
“Robert De Niro at 80: The career of an indelible movie icon” By Calum Russell in Far Out Magazine Read Time: 10 minutes (20 minutes with clips) “After rising to public consciousness in the 1970s, De Niro has…
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All the Sinners Bleed
All the Sinners Bleed By S.A. Cosby Published June 6, 2023 352 pages This is S.A. Cosby’s 6th novel – and I think just about every one of them was a bestseller and/or won some sort of award. It was The Mules’…
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A Billion-Dollar David vs. a Trillion-Dollar Goliath
Read Time: 11 minutes Joe Kiani Joe Kiani emigrated to the US from Iran when he was nine. Thirteen years later, he had a master’s degree in electrical engineering. Two years after that, he began working on a…
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Why I Am Now a Christian
“I was born a Muslim in Somalia. Then I became an atheist. But secular tools alone can’t equip us for civilizational war.” – Ayaan Hirsi Ali [italics] Ayaan Hirsi Ali is a refugee from Somalia that became a…
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Killers of the Flower Moon
Killers of the Flower Moon By David Grann 338 pages Originally published April 18, 2017 It was my book club’s November’s selection. I’m grateful to the committee for recommending it because it’s about an…
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Congress: From Canings and Stabbings to Murder
It’s happened several times now. AOC, that adorable nitwit representing New York’s 14th Congressional District since 2019, has several times complained publicly (and twice, hysterically) about being accosted…
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Ayn Rand
In the early 1960s, Ayn Rand was one of the most influential intellectuals in America. Today, her first name appears now and then in crossword puzzles. If you don’t know who she is, here’s a brief…
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Words of Wisdom on Life, Happiness, and Investing
In this short essay – a letter to his son on his 16th birthday – my partner Porter Stansberry provides some good advice about making important life decisions. Click here.
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For Investors Only: Current-Day Scams to Watch Out For
Sir Gregor MacGregor Have you heard of Sir Gregor MacGregor, the early 19th century Scottish mercenary and shyster? In this essay, my colleague Garrett Baldwin tells the story of how MacGregor came to Florida…
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Inside Comedy: The Soul, Wit, and Bite of Comedy and Comedians of the Last Five Decades
Inside Comedy: The Soul, Wit, and Bite of Comedy and Comedians of the Last Five Decades By David Steinberg 352 pages Published July 13, 2021 “Insecurity combined with arrogance is good DNA for a comedian. So…
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The Great Taki on the War in Ukraine
“What’s frustrating as hell,” writes Taki in his latest essay, “is the inability, or unwillingness, of Uncle Sam to stop the slaughter.” Click here to read the entire thing.
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No, Freddie. This Is One Problem We Don’t Need to Worry About
In this piece, Freddie deBoer joins a conversation about whether America’s elite college students may be hurting themselves by being too competitive. So… this is a problem? Something that needs to be fixed? No…
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Myth and BS: Tales of Monetary Manipulation from Pharaohs to Fed Heads
If you think America’s $34 trillion debt can be managed by smart people, read this essay by Bill Bonner.
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Dating Dynamics Today and Why It Matters
I’ve been looking at YouTube discussions lately on the subject of how relationships between the sexes are changing. It’s unsettling. Even disturbing. There is, for example, a surprising percentage of young…
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Paris Was Yesterday” by Taki in Taki’s Magazine
The opening paragraph: “A reader’s inquiry as to why I think Paris was yesterday has me remembering times past. When did the party end? According to the point of view of many night owls, the party ended when…
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Freddie deBoer’s Latest Book
Freddie DeBoer The Washington Post does not pretend to be impartial – neither in its reportage, its editorial, or even its book reviews. So you’d you think it would write a nice, left-leaning piece on Freddie…
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Shipping Out
By David Foster Wallace David Foster Wallace in 2006 On Tuesday, I posted David Foster Wallace’s 2005 commencement address at Kenyon College. His reputation by that time – secured primarily by his 1996 magnum…
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He: Understanding Masculine Psychology
He: Understanding Masculine Psychology By Robert A. Johnson 83 pages First published Jan. 1, 1974 It was sitting inconspicuously on the built-in bookcase behind the headboard, along with several hundred other…
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The Geetar Revolution
Oliver Anthony Music You’ve probably heard about this fellow Oliver Anthony Music and his recording of “Rich Men North of Richmond.” It shot to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart when it was released last…
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Art, History, and Race
If you saw the movie Oppenheimer (reviewed by me in the Aug. 4 issue), you probably noticed that there was just the smallest sprinkling of people of color in the cast. That generated a fair amount of criticism…
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Feed the Kids, Tax the Rich
Massachusetts has passed a new tax designed to provide all public school students with free breakfasts and lunches, regardless of their need. It’s a 4% income tax that is projected to generate $1 billion a…
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A Cold Email Got Me My Job
“Everyone says networking is the route to success,” writes Olivia Reingold in The Free Press. “But I’ve always been a strong believer that any door can open if you score the right invitation. My advice? Don’t…
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Bring Up the Bodies
Bring Up the Bodies By Hilary Mantel 432 pages Published May 8, 2012 For the month of August, the Elder Mules selected Hilary Mantel’s Bring Up the Bodies. Mantel’s name was familiar to me, but I knew nothing…
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I Keep Writing the Same Poptimism Piece Because Nothing Ever Changes
An interesting article by Freddie deBoer on the political popularity of Taylor Swift and how it represents another regrettable stage in the morbidity of American culture. Click here.
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How Lewis Strauss Orchestrated Robert Oppenheimer’s Downfall
Oppenheimer, the movie, was, as I said above, a good movie, but not a great one. It suggested all sorts of historical and scientific questions it didn’t even try to answer. But one question it did answer was…
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AOC Is Just a Regular Democrat Now
An insightful essay by Freddie DeBoer, my favorite Communist, on AOC’s disappointing (to him) failure to support the leftist ideas she associated herself with in the early months of her political career. Click…
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Welcome to the MAGA Hamptons!
“Every summer, the haute bourgeoisie of Middle America descend on Lake of the Ozarks to jet ski, barbecue ribs, and (until 2023) drink a shit-ton of Budweiser,” writes Max Meyer, in The Free Press. Click here…
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