Every now and then I find myself looking for even a smidgen of self-awareness, contrition, and desire to make right what's been made wrong from A Certain Public Figure. It just hurts to see such a blatant spectacle of wasted time in the cosmos in our news media day in and day out.

The impulse comes out of empathy, and also the knowledge that no amount of earthly "justice" is ever going to atone for all the harm he's done.

The impulse comes and then... I have to find it a more productive home.

I'm really hoping our US friends are feeling even more relieved and confident about their future this morning.

May the momentum keep building to an election day and inauguration that spell the decisive end of so much nonsense and pain. The whole world's been waiting a good eight years for the circus to close up shop, and we're rooting for you every step of the way. #Politics #Democracy

But also... for laughs...
#Meme #Humour

Good morning, good morning, to you~!

An unusual but very good class.

I shan't be joining you nutters for your US debate, but I wish you strength and sanity!

#AmEditing

More beauties from the day. I'll write about a few related themes for either Substack or Patreon soon-ish.

Books as art objects, and (of course) a visit to the local anarchist press. One of their selections is a children's book of Kropotkin! 😅 #CoSoBooks #Colombia

Book fair time! 🥳

If you don't hear from me, IT'S FINE.

I HAVE GONE TO A BETTER PLACE!

Today, for Tough Times Tuesday, we discuss the recent Russian propaganda operation on right-wing social media... but a bit more holistically.

There are many ways in which we invite foreign influence to shape local democracy, and sometimes our fearmongering leaps ahead of the efficacy of foreign campaigns.

Do we have the slightest idea what kind of democratic practice we're actually trying to defend?

#Democracy #MediaLiteracy #Propaganda #International #Politics

https://open.substack.com/pub/mlclark/p/what-is-democratic-interference

The uphill battle for more robust local #journalism continues.

(Note the elements in this piece addressing the aggressive investment in #AI, too.)

"A 2023 working paper ... suggested Google owes U.S. publishers between $10 and $12 billion annually; one of the researchers, University of Houston assistant professor of finance Haaris Mateen, told More Perfect Union that Google owes California publishers alone at least $1.4 billion annually".

#MediaLiteracy #Technology
https://open.substack.com/pub/moreperfectus/p/the-fallout-of-californias-local

Four minutes to get out the rest of my sillies before workflow begins.

I hate to give Swifties any more media space than they already have, but "Shake It Off" is indeed stuck in my head while purging all but work thoughts for the day.

Have a glorious one, 'Nauts!

All right. One more work sprint before conk-out o'clock.

G'night, my fellow nutters!

Didn't forget you, US CoSo!

A few weeks back, some of us were tossing around ideas for refreshments to survive the next big event in the US presidential election campaign.

For those enduring tomorrow's three-ring-circus of a debate, please enjoy this silly drinks and snacks menu (ideas c/o @BrentSullivan and @JoyfullyDazed) with a "solidarity game" thrown in.

Here's to all of you reaching the polls in November with the remainder of your sanity intact!

Love,

A Canuck

#Debate #Politics #US

🤨 Why is it that when my schedule is packed packed packed, my brain is suddenly screaming about all the original fiction it wants to write?

Dollars to doughnuts it loses this urgency the next moment I *can* focus on fiction, both to fill up more submission queues and to plot the next novel to write in the hope of better luck with an agent and press. (*Not* SFF, possibly! The mind is percolating something else.)

But for now, this fool noggin needs to jump in the lake. 🙃

#QuietBrain #BackToWork

🧐 Jellyspoons of CoSo, do we need to have a talk? #Meme #Humour

(And here, yes, with you folks, I feel safe to say what I was thinking when writing about "Liberty Cones" - a.k.a. Giant Dildos of Justice. 😅 Oh, ancient Mesopotamia had some good laughs, I'm sure.)

Today, for #BetterWorldsTheory, we start a week of reflecting on more expansive (and messy) notions of society with a look at Sid Meier's Civilization, and a common myth of history that's embedded in series game-play.

Can we shake off such linear thinking now, and look at our history of knowledge acquisition more creatively?

#MediaLiteracy #History #Historiography #Gaming

https://open.substack.com/pub/mlclark/p/common-myths-about-human-history

Packed six-day work-week ahead, with no time for fiction - but one English class will take place at the book fair, as per student request, so that'll be a nice treat.

Going to slip into a different food plan for the rest of the month, too, in part for mood and energy-boosting purposes. This plan always deepens me in gratitude for what I have in life, too, so even though the rest of September looks hectic, it should be a good month - and street jerks aren't going to hold me back.

Night, CoSo. 🌒

#Poetry #WritersOfCoSo

Well I feel seen. 😂

Frank O'Hara's "As Planned"

(Read it slowly. The lines and their meaning intentionally jumble a bit by the end.)

In honour of how "philosophical" this Sunday is becoming, did anyone else ever read Piers Anthony's Xanth novels?

They imagined a fantasy realm where everyone had a magical power of some sort... but the range was extreme. Some people could talk to plants, or transform, or fly. Others could project dots on a far wall.

Let's say you got the short end of the stick in the world of Xanth. Knowing yourself as you do, what would your Not Really Useful, Maybe Even a Bit of a Nuisance magical skill be?