‘Anyone Ever Seen Cocaine?’ What We Found in the Archives of Bernie Sanders’s Long-Lost TV Show
Bernie looked ancient at 45
10-cent thrift shop record sends Toronto artist on a years-long reggae investigation
Netflix shares audience numbers for (some of) its TV shows and movies
And they are very large. 80 million worldwide for Bird Box, 40 mil each for You and Sex Education.
How to Talk about Impeachment: Preventing Harm to the Country
Convincing
The 20 best TV series of 2018
OK, I’m not going to link to every end-of-year list that comes my way, but this one is good.
If 2019’s best picture Oscar winner could talk…
I don’t agree with Rad’s take on Roma, but the optical politics of this year’s Oscar pick will be interesting to say the least. It’s extra-interesting because of the Netflix angle. Honestly I strongly doubt Roma will win, given that two of the four listed here are serious Oscar bait. Also, surely there are some other December releases that could slip in there.
Side note: Roma is the only one of these that I have seen, and I thought it was a masterpiece.
Literature Society: Garfield: Year One
Nathan Rabin:
When introduced to readers in the disco-crazed days of 1978, Garfield bore only a slight resemblance to the adorable icon of bland conformity we know today. His face was shaped like a giant pair of swollen testicles with ears and his eyes were tiny little marbles, as black, icy and death-like as the eyes of a shark about to strike.
Red Dead Redemption 2: The Kotaku Review
Exceptional review of what sounds like an exceptional game (thanks, Maggo)
TVAddons Is Being Sued by Bell, Rogers, and Others for Piracy in Canada
Who Killed the Billionaire Founder of a Generic Drug Empire?
Re: Barry and Honey Sherman. There’s a surprising amount of Frank D’Angelo in this article
I pulled a 1,500-year-old sword out of a lake
From an eight-year-old with the very cool name of Saga: “People are saying I am the queen of Sweden because of the legend of King Arthur.”
Recounts and Chaos Will Follow a Blue Wave in November
UN Says Climate Genocide Coming. But It’s Worse Than That.
The Teens Who Post the Same Thing Every Day on Instagram
How Russia Helped Swing the Election for Trump
A meticulous analysis of online activity during the 2016 campaign makes a powerful case that targeted cyberattacks by hackers and trolls were decisive.
The Socialist YouTuber Using Cities: Skylines To Explain Politics
Thanks Maggo!
Gambling industry eyes Toronto waterfront
“If the Premier decides he wants a casino, he’s going to get a casino.”
Sure, a great part of Doug Ford’s motivation for shrinking Toronto City Council is spite, but part of it is surely this. If he wants to have his way with Toronto, he needs a compliant Council, and the 25 wards tips the balance of power in favour of conservative, suburban, Ford-allied Councillors. I’m pretty sure I’ve read that gaming companies were major Ford campaign donors, although I can’t find the link now. Plus, there’s this article …
Oxford English Dictionary asks teenagers to explain modern slang
Toronto cyclists are using pool noodles to combat dangerous drivers
Japan’s Iga city ‘does not need ninjas’ after reports it was hiring
What a mixup!
NPR had posted a summary which said that Iga “is facing a serious problem, there aren’t enough people training to be ninjas, not even for $85k a year”.
“That characterisation was incorrect,” an NPR spokesman told the BBC.
…
But those reports led at least 115 ninja hopefuls from 23 countries to contact Iga officials, enquiring about possible jobs.
Who Just Beat the Bay Area in Tech Jobs? Toronto
If this is not treason, then what is it?
Dan Drezner:
A former CIA chief of Russian operations tweeted, “From a counterintelligence perspective, something is going on behind the scenes. Before Helsinki I was less sure; post Helsinki, I feel sick.”
Cambridge Analytica’s Facebook data was accessed from Russia, MP says
Innnnnteresting
Study: Drinking Alcohol More Important Than Exercise to Living Past 90
Great news, everyone!