Monthly Archives: July 2022

Surfers all have different answers to the question why do you surf? Whether its to escape the mundane, to challenge oneself, or to immerse oneself in nature, the one common theme between all these answers is that, no matter what, the pursuit of surfing is done for oneself. The progression that occurs with each completed session benefits you alone, the best sessions are often the ones with the least people around, and the happy feelings one experiences when walking out of the ocean affect, well, that surfer alone. But the reality is that its very simple: people surf because surfing feels good.

But it seems as if surfing (along with most things that make people feel good) has been pitted as a waste of time since at least the sixties, even during surfings golden years. In one scene from Pacific Vibrations, an iconic film by none other than John Severson, a surfer lying on the beach laments: Surfings a far out thing. Its the only thing I like to do, but my parents know this and so if I dont get a good grade on my report card they wont let me surf until I bring it up, and if I dont get a job, theyll use it against me, I cant surf. If I didnt surf, I dont know what theyd do, they wouldnt have anything to hold against me! (Watch the clip here at 15:52)

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The oldest clich in the book is that surfing is hedonistic and selfish. Sessions are ruined by the presence of other people in the water, surfers throw everything away just to catch a few waves, and the most core surfers of all evade responsibility, never marry, never get a real job the list goes on, infinitely. One extreme example of this type of hedonism comes in the form of, perhaps, the most infamous rebel surfer of all time, Miki Dora, who embodied this notion to such an extent that he even earned the title The Black Knight and is often referred to as the ultimate non-conformist. Miki isnt exactly seen as a role model. In fact, hes kind of seen as a menace.

But anything done in excess can be harmful. So, just because some people, like Miki, throw it all away to surf, that doesnt mean surfing itself is the problem. But all of this just begs the question: should we feel guilty about surfing? Just because surfing has the tendency to pull us away from more traditional responsibilities, the way 9-5 work schedules pull us away from our families, hobbies, and leading healthy lives, it causes one to wonder: just because something is fun, does that make it bad?

On a flight to Australia, while pondering this question, I read the bookFlow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience,by the late psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. I thought I was just killing time on the plane, but, in doing so, I found my answer: we dont need to feel guilty about surfing at all. In fact, surfing is more than just a far out thing to do. Its a worthwhile pursuit.

In Flow, Csikszentmihalyi details the exact science of reaching optimal experience, or being in the flow state. At its core, the flow state is the mindset one has when totally and completely immersed in an activity to the point where all else fades away. The flow state is desirable, not only because it leads to greater happiness, but because it represents time where energy is exerted with intention and we are living life to the fullest. Most of our greatest memories involve the flow state the flow state moments are the ones well look back on and wish we had more of. So, surely these moments arent a waste of time.

And, no surprise here, but surfing checks all of the boxes of being in the flow state. A challenging activity that requires skills? Wave reading, balance, paddle strength, footwork. The merging of action and awareness? Surfing in a nutshell. Clear goals and feedback? Every time. Concentration on the task at hand? On a good day. The paradox of control? Check. The loss of self consciousness? If the waves are good. The transformationand lost track of time? Absolutely.

All of this makes surfing enjoyable, and not just pleasurable. Whats the difference? Enjoyment is something to aim for, while pleasure is just something thats, well, pleasurable. Pleasure is comparable to the feeling we get from eating a cookie. Or, to use a more risqu example, taking drugs. And when the cookies gone, or the chemicals wear off, the feelings gone too, and were no better off. Enjoyment, however, comes from the conscious cultivation of specific experiences, and when the experience is gone, we still benefit. Take your pick: a quick sugar rush or a lasting, elated mood from the memory of a great session? I know what Id choose.

This analysis from Csikszentmihalyi also helps us figure out why surfing makes us happy. Its not just because theres a chance to score every time we paddle out. Its because were devoting our attention to a specific goal, and, usually, making progress at it. Putting ones full effort into things feels good, especially when were doing it for ourselves, theres immediate feedback on our performance, and our concentration not only benefits us, but helps us forget the rest of our daily problems.

What Im trying to say is: go surf, and dont feel so guilty about it. Even if chasing perfect lefts makes you shirk a few responsibilities once in a while, as long as youre not dropping in on anyone, bringing a huge group of people to a local spot, or throwing your board, surfing is a great use of your time. And maybe, just maybe, surfing can even be a path to finding, and creating, happiness.

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Surfing is Enjoyable, Not Pleasurable Here's the Difference - TheInertia.com

By Bob Garver

Thor (Chris Hemsworth) hasnt been seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2019s Avengers: Endgame, where he decapitated Thanos, got really fat, and ultimately left to go have space adventures with the Guardians of the Galaxy. I remembered the first two parts just fine, but I had to be reminded of the third prior to Thor: Love and Thunder. It seems like the movie had to be reminded of that as well, like it only remembered at the last minute that it needed to include the Guardians. Chris Pratt and company pop up early in this movie, but they and Thor soon part ways. If you saw this movies advertising and thought you were in for a 50/50 Thor/Guardians split, you are in for a letdown.

Fortunately, the old-hat Guardians are replaced with something arguably even better: the return to the MCU of Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), Thors former lover from the Asgardian gods first two standalone films in 2011 and 2013. Janes mind is as sharp as ever, but her body is failing her. She travels to the city of New Asgard, now a tourist trap run by a bored Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), to see if she can be magically treated by the remnants of Thors hammer Mjolnir, which was destroyed in Thor: Ragnarok back in 2017. Due to a protection spell put on the hammer by Thor while he and Jane were dating, the hammer repairs itself with Jane as its new wielder.

Jane teams up with Thor, Valkyrie, and Korg (Taika Waititi, also the films director) to battle villain du jour Gorr (Christian Bale), a heartbroken former worshipper with a god-killing Necrosword and a grudge against all gods following the death of his daughter. Our heroes travel to Omnipotence City to ask Zeus (Russell Crowe, doing a Borat voice for some reason) for an army to battle the God Killer, but are met with mockery and refusal. It turns out Gorr has a point about gods caring more about indulging in hedonism than doing anything god-like. But hes kidnapped a pack of New Asgardian children to use as Thor-bait, so he needs to be stopped.

The writing of Gorr is probably the worst thing about the movie. Bale is acting his heart out, and the character is truly sympathetic at times, but hes just such an afterthought for all but about three scenes. And in between those scenes hes a sarcastic jerk, which isnt consistent with his overall tone or motivations. The movie really dropped the ball with this character.

But then theres the best thing about the film, which is Hemsworths effortless chemistry with everybody, especially Portman. The ups and downs of their relationship are much more exciting than any action sequence, which are pretty much whats to be expected from the MCU at this point. Its thanks to them that life and death seem consequential in the MCU again, which is refreshing after a few movies where Ive become convinced that characters can always be brought back via Infinity Stones or Multiverse shenanigans. Second to Portman is Hemsworths chemistry with new weapon Stormbreaker. Not since Joan Rivers has an old battle axe had this much personality.

Ill give Thor: Love and Thunder a mild recommendation, thanks mostly to the efforts of Hemsworth and Portman, and Bale in the few scenes where his characters pathos really comes through. The humor can be hit-or-miss (this movie thinks there is nothing funnier than screaming goats) and the action is memorable only for being set to the music of Guns N Roses. This movie isnt essential MCU viewing, but its okay for something on the second or third tier.

Grade: B-

Thor: Love and Thunder is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, language, some suggestive material and partial nudity. Its running time is 118 minutes.

Image credit: IMDB.com

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Watching Movies: Thor: Love and Thunder - thesuntimesnews.com

I'm really interested in glitz and glam and twinkles, says painter Louise Giovanelli. Things which dont have any sort of permanence in reality. Thanks to her seductively ethereal canvases, the Manchester-based artist is high in demand with the art crowd. Her works capture ephemeral moments, something you see [in] a flash, and give them permanence in painting. Wine glasses, soft ribboned curls of hair and a sequin, split-leg dress belonging to Mariah Carey are motifs that recur in a new body of works, currently on show at White Cube in Bermondsey.

As If, Almost takes over the two front rooms of the gallery, while fellow contemporary painters Danica Lundy and Ilana Savdie own the back of the space. Thematically, the works conjure a sense of glossy hedonism yet somethings a bit off. I paint beautiful things, Giovanelli says. But theyre beautiful things that are always on the verge of collapsing into something not beautiful.

Born in London, Giovanelli was drawing and painting from a young age. Contemporary pop culture moments caught her eye even then; portraits of Jimi Hendrix and Marilyn Monroe were her subjects. Now, when an image captures her, she closely crops the exact details she wants the audience to see, often reworking and warping it on her phone screen. While her current subjects cant always be directly identified, the sense arises that behind Giovanellis initial digital trickery and subsequent paintbrush, a scene on show may have been seen before. A painting seeming to represent the moment in Carrie (1973) when the bucket of pigs blood lands on the prom queens head has saturated hues, popping neons, while the image itself is stretched. The image is a starting point, Giovanelli says. Im not a painter who can just look at a blank canvas and just start.

Having received her BA from the Manchester School of Art in 2015, she studied under Amy Sillman at Stdelschule, Frankfurt (2018-20). Its prominent, the artist considers, that I came out of a German school. For some, the Stdelschule is revered for a conceptual approach to painting, a radical dissection of the medium, associated with the likes of artist Martin Kippenberger and his former assistants Michael Krebber and Merlin Carpenter. [There was] this cynicism with painting and as much as I respect those artists for me, its more about the joy, Giovanelli explains. Im trying to show viewers that its okay to love painting, its OK to love looking at beautiful things.

Fabric and hair are signature Giovanelli motifs, surfaces whose textures are notoriously tricky to render in oils. It is the challenge that inspires her to paint, as well as a desire to learn how artists before her have done it. If youre a painter, you really have to understand where your medium has come from, you have to understand history, she argues. Just to use the act of painting, to make a mark, is to hold all of that baggage of history with you. Once the image is ready to paint, Giovanelli uses thin layers at a time, waiting for each to dry, just as the Old Masters did, to achieve the luminosity that makes her work so compelling. You can see elements of Jan van Eyck and Rogier van der Weyden and all these Flemish painters, the Northern Renaissance painters that was the first period of influence that I was really struck by, she says. Those painters really dealt with fabric, and hair, and [I] was always fascinated with how they created those textures. Its a question she wants her audience to ask too how did she do that?

As If, Almost by Louise Giovanelli is on at White Cube Bermondsey in London until 11 September 2022.

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Louise Giovanelli, the Artist Fusing Old Masters and Digital Imagery - AnOther Magazine

The distance between very good and superb is actually quite far and it requires motivated teams, attention to detail, and above all creativity to break out of commodity service delivery. Here are a few brands, ideas, and services that deserve a tip of the hat.

Colin Nagy

The pace of travels resurgence means this recurring column feature feels right to do twice a year, as I have in the past. There has been a lot to take in, and crisis has been a forcing factor for interesting ideas born from constraint. There is also a bit of bad behavior in the market, with price gouging and formerly iconic names still trading on badge value though their service isnt up to snuff. Still, we opt for a more cheery outlook, giving airtime to the places and spaces that manage to stand out.

After all, the distance between very good, and superb is actually quite far. And it requires motivated teams, attention to detail, and above all creativity to break out of commodity service delivery.

Here are a few brands, ideas, and services that deserve a tip of the hat:

Ive heard a lot of rumblings about JSX, but just got around to trying it. And Im a convert. It takes the best part of private travel, the ability to turn up 20 minutes before your flight, and turns it into its brand superpower. They fly retrofitted Embraers which are perfectly nice, but the true appeal of the product is getting to skip the chaos of summer airports completely. Plus, the company is run by someone who knows brand and operations well: Alex Wilcox, who logged time at Virgin and Jetblue. Hes pragmatic, sharp, and the product has been delivering.

Ive been patiently watching Alila, born in Asia, and now part of Hyatt. The brand is starting to beautifully come together: it is focused on nature-centric experiences (think Big Sur and Oman). It takes awhile for a brand to find its footing, but my experiences with Alila Marea in San Diego as well as the Alila in Southern Oman showed me a brand that is going to be competing with the big players for luxury spend, set in interesting new areas around the globe. Theyve nicely built off of the hospitality and design of the brands Asian roots, and are starting to bring all elements together nicely.

If were being honest, there are really only a few chains operating at a hyper luxury space in terms of service, vision, consistency and the wow effect. Sharing airspace with Oetker, Aman, Nihi, and Soneva is Airelles, who have been on my radar lately thanks to some interesting openings and strong word-of-mouth from connected travelers. They are expanding their portfolio rapidly in France with two properties in Saint-Tropez, following their launch of their Chteau de Versailles property last year. The brands earlier properties, particularly Courchevel, have a cult-like following and it will be interesting to see if they can scale the touch and service as the brand grows. This is the true challenge at the highest level.

It gets a lot of airtime among the long haul set, but Qatars Al Safwa lounge has been getting better and better. It is museum-like in its tranquility, and service is polished and professional. The sleeping rooms have gotten me through many long layovers at Doha.

It says a lot about a brand to see who they aspire to hire as GMs. Ive been really inspired by the design and execution of Proper. Their downtown LA opening is manned by Stephane Lacroix, a luxury veteran who has the new property running crisply. Santa Monica is helmed by the superb Julien Laracine, a veteran of Nihi, who co-runs the hotel with his wife Carla Stoffel. Friends Ive referred his way come back raving with his attention to detail, warmth and overall vibe. The duo also managed to steward the property through the doldrums of Covid back into its thriving self.

Two openings caught my eye for their sheer ambition: Raffles London at the OWO and Passalacqua in Lake Como. The former, like the original in Singapore is epic in scale and will be a restaurant and bar destination as well as a hotel, transforming Whitehall in the same way the Ned did the financial district in London. It is manned by a superb hotelier, Philippe le Boeuf. Passalacqua, from the owners of Grand Hotel Tremezzo, has an anytime, anywhere approach to service and one of the best views of the lake, with a JJ Martin-designed pool.

The Rooster in Antiparos is labor of love, built within a 30-acre site of hills, ruins, rocks and sand dunes in Greece. The founder, Athanasia Comninos, created a small, perfectly formed property that feels private, unspoiled, and too good to be true. The fact it is a personal project is very apparent, though there are architectural nods to Aman with some of the room layouts, it also feels completely unique. And because of the friction required to get to Antiparos, it is unlikely to be overun by hedonistic hordes. The room design is tranquil, and fits beautifully with its environs. The roosters crowing nearby in the morning give you a clue as to the names origins.

I was in Amman, Jordan toward the end of the year, and was absolutely impressed by the recent re-fit of F&B at the Four Seasons Amman. The hotel has long been a place of diplomatic intrique and hushed conversations, which they playfully parlayed into Sirr, a secret bar with dark wood paneling and some of the best bartenders in the city. They were able to recreate one of my favorites from Employees Only, the Billionare, perfectly. Also, La Capitale was an absolute standout brasserie helmed by people who really loved their jobs. I found myself lured back because things were run so well.

I thought Auberges re-fit of the Mauna Lani on the big island of Hawaii was inspired. They did an incredible job with the design, F&B, and notably the experiences: where as I detailed in a longer column, they manage to thread Hawaiis cultural depth through their experiences, doing something more soulful and meaningful than the stock-standard island hedonism. Everything was considered, including retail (theres a Goop), as well as NYC-style deli items among the locally roasted Kona coffee. Its hard to make all elements come together, and they did.

Sanjiv Hulugalle, Pete Alles and Danny Akaka from Auberge lead with vibes, energy, and optimism. Stephanie Pournaras and Yasmin Natheer Al-Sati of Four Seasons are tight on the details and the craft of hospitality on every level. Rubina Gurung from Al Maha in Doha goes above and beyond. And finally, Im sending best wishes to the ever elegant Petar Krstic of Aman as he is poised to open the new property in New York.

For the longest time, I noticed an elegant signature on the welcome when Id check into the Park Hyatt Tokyo: Philippe Roux-Dessarps. Hes a legendary hotelier who I only knew by this signature, and by reputation. We got to spend some time at his new post, The Four Seasons Astir Palace on the Athenian Riviera and followed was a wide ranging conversation on Japan, detail, hospitality, and brand. It was a pleasure to spend time and see how hes bringing an international career to bear with one of the brands priority properties. And it was nice to put a signature to a person, finally.

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The Biggest Innovators in Travel and Hospitality: Summer Edition - Skift Travel News

Those visiting Chamonix last month might have been surprised to hear a reverberating pulse echoing from Planpraz apicturesque plateau just beneath a mountain summit that can be accessed via cable car. Under normal circumstances, such sound waves at 2,000m of elevation might come with an avalanche warning. But this time, the buzz was electric, not tectonic the echoes of a live stage line-up hosted by the Canadian outdoor brand Arcteryx.

The energy came from a 1,500-strong crowd of mountain enthusiasts who hadspent the previous week at the Arcteryx Alpine Academy a week-longmountain extravaganza thats bringing the hedonistic air of the musicfestival into the wellness arena. Asthe sun sets,festival-goers sunkissed, sweaty and ready to party ascended to the summit to let loose tohiphop and R&B from a roster ofinternational artists. Theyhad tiredmuscles, big smiles andbeer thirst, according to Stphane Tenailleau, a marketing director at Arcteryx and the brains behind the festival.DJs are on thedecks until 2am.Every night theres thechance to burnoff your last calories onthe dancefloor Were taking [the experience] to new heights.

Fitness holidays are undergoing a rebrand and in 2022 endorphins are the headline act. Forget the traditional yoga retreat theres no snoozy Eat, Pray, Love mood or matcha mornings here. This summer, those seeking a collective high canhead to the wilds of the Faroes (tjan Wild Islands Festival), the coasts of Devon (Above Below) orthe trails of Tring (Salomon) for a gorpcore-meets-Glastonbury experience.

For many, the festivals give access to a sense of community

Arcteryx, meanwhile, has rolled out itsconcept this year to include climbing academies in Vancouver and backcountry ski festivals in Wyoming punctuated byfilm screenings, photography workshops and gigs. Other labels are offering smaller iterations: Raphas Pennine Rally is a 500km point-to-point cycle from Edinburgh down the Pennines to Manchester, which culminates with beers and food, while Japanese outdoor brand Snow Peak and theOutdoors Store have teamed up withThe Good Life Society for a weekend of fly fishing, egg-and-spork racing andfirepit cooking.

Its about challenging stereotypes astowhat fitness and wellness can be,saysTheo Larn-Jones, founder of LoveTrails, a four-day running festival heldinWales that offers everything frompaddleboarding and surfing to banquetdinners hes launching it in Madeira later this year.

And outdoorsy activities have seen ahuge boom of late, says Will Watt, co-founder of Above Below, a three-day swimathon in Devon that sees attendees pack their possessions into a raft and breaststroke along estuaries and coastal bays before camping each night. People are starting to understand that challenging your body and your brain gives you anatural high instead ofother pursuits that leaveyou feeling less thangood afterwards.

Healthy hedonism is areal draw. Organisers arecareful to feed the moreconscious lifestyle: many on-site bars are now stocked with zero per cent abv beers and plant-based foods. Norway even plays host to Morning Beat, a booze-free yoga festival headlined by trance DJs. Its not all-or-nothing, says Henry Knock, a 42-year-old London-based freelance photographer who has shot campaigns for Adidas, Barbour and Manchester United. A self-professed party boy, he has spent decades dancing in fields. But this year, he has bought a ticket for Love Trails his first fitness festival. I can let my hair down but still indulge in my new passion for running, he says. As I approached my 40s, I became much more conscious of my health.

Knock, who usually runs in the city, is keen to try trail running for the first time. And many festivals offer a refreshing change of pace from the status quo: 10km road-runners are encouraged to try sprinting up a mountain; urban boulderers can get to grips with craggy rock faces; and lido swimmers can plunge into coastal waves.

Under the supervision of expert guides, festivals can provide experiences that one is unlikely to attempt alone. They give you the confidence to try something new, says Larn-Jones, who offers add-on adventure days where happy campers can run 20km routes before coasteering or abseiling alongthe Gower Peninsula. In Chamonix, meanwhile, Arcteryx attendees could bookinto more than 40 clinics from an overnight bivouac in the Mont Blanc massif with Slovenian climbing champion Luka Lindic to rescue training including how to haul your partner out of a crevasse. Its money-cant-buy events that cant easily be found on the market, says Tenailleau, who has enlisted the expertise of more than 30 world-class athletes and sponsored guides to host sessions.

Regular music festivals dont offer such experiences. According to research bythe Harris Poll, 78 per cent of millennialswould rather spend on an eventthan a possession. Arcteryx says younger clientele are attending 30 per cent this year are under 30, an increase on2019 while Love Trails says about 60 per cent of its campers are young women. The festival environment offers them relative safety in the outdoors, and the chance to make new friends.

People can come and find their tribe, says Larn-Jones, who notes that many campers turn up alone. In a similar vein to running or swimming clubs, which have surged in popularity, fitness festivals give access to a sense of community.

The epicly Instagrammable settings of these events are another USP. tjan Wild Islands trail-running playground in the Faroes boasts scenes that look straight out of a Tolkien novel, where wild mountain paths meet verdant valleys. The islands arent easily accessible, yet this year, 90 per cent of the festivals attendees are set to make the pilgrimage from overseas.

The scenery is neck-twisting, says Tenailleau of the Chamonix mountainscape that adds to the Arcteryx Academys appeal. Its Alpine village is flanked by jagged peaks. We could have just rented ahall but any first-timer is blown away bythe Bossons Glacier, which looks like a river of lava flowing towards the valley, and the radiant dome of Mont Blanc.

Envisage that scene on Planpraz when the sun sets. Body pulsing from the bass; newfound friends letting loose; Mont Blanc twinkling in the distance. Up there in the crisp air, flanked by the shadowy mountains, you feel insignificant. But spiritually, you belong. Moments flicker by. You lose yourself in the ethereal experience. Just as mother nature and the DJ intended.

Read more:

Highs on a hill inside the fitness festivals of 2022 - Financial Times

In a time with few literary works that are common knowledge, Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol remains widely known and often quoted. Ebenezer Scrooge is such a memorable miscreant, and he is so enjoyably villainous before his dramatic Christmas conversion.

When told that the poor would rather die than go to debtors prison, he responds callously, If they would rather die, they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population. The phrase decrease the surplus population is still widely recognized and universally ridiculed as an inhumane response to poverty.

Once abortion is on the table, however, it seems many of us sign on to decreasing the surplus population and view abortion as the means of achieving superior economic outcomes. The Supreme Courts overturning of Roe v. Wade in June has brought renewed attention to abortion. Far from the rallying cry of safe, legal, and rare, advocates for abortion claim that abortion is a social good and a necessary condition to ensure womens success.

In the upside-down world we now inhabit, proclaiming support for abortion is now seen as a sine qua non for a civilized person. The implication is that it is only those oppressive or brainwashed religious maniacs who would oppose the betterment of women. Many pro-lifers have used data and logical argument to counter this bias and to demonstrate that abortion is not the sole source of womens achievement in education and employment in the past 50 years

Yet, abortion advocates continue to trot out research purporting to show that the legalization of abortion in the 1970s led to a widespread decrease in violent crime in the 1990s, among other interesting claims. The question of how abortion affects future violent criminals is a strange one.

What actually happens in an abortion? A child in the womb is violently dismembered and extracted, lifeless, from his mothers womb. This could only be described honestly as violence. Though legal in all 50 states under Roe, and now still legal in many, abortion is a violent act that destroys a living being. Is such violence justified by some imagined future violence committed by an undesirable class of people? A just society must recognize that the individual is not determined by his circumstances and the surplus population is still worthy of life.

When it comes to economic outcomes, our culture is quick to assume that teenage mothers have ruined their lives and are now, as Planned Parenthoods favorite president put it, punished with a baby. Again, failing to see the individual, the swaths of humanity encompassed in all teen pregnancies everywhere are assumed to be disadvantaged, and abortion is offered as the solution to many unseen individuals problems. Yet, for individuals, an adverse event like out-of-wedlock pregnancy can be the catalyst for positive action. For some young parents, the reality of the child for whom they are responsible is the reason that they finish school, get married, join the military, and abandon hedonism in pursuit of the good of their family.

Thesemarriage and familyare social goods that benefit the individuals and their communities. The goods of family life, however, cannot be achieved without personal sacrifice. Pro-lifers, in their eagerness to defend the unborn child, can fall into a caricature of motherhood. Much of the marketing of motherhood can be reduced to a feel-good celebration of snuggles, and pregnant mothers are assured that they can achieve their dreams while having children. We should be wary of false advertising. Motherhood is by its nature sacrificial, and the sacrifices of mothers, by design, often go unseen. The idea that mothers, ill and drained from pregnancy and hampered by the needs of young children, will achieve everything they otherwise would in their education and professional careers is not true.

One of abortion activists favorite facts to cite is that the majority of mothers seeking an abortion already have children. In their view, this makes the situation more understandable. It certainly may seem understandable, but it is also much more disturbing. We cannot say that women seeking abortion do not know what they are doing because so many of them have already looked at an ultrasound and seen a child who was then born and displayed characteristics hinted at in utero, quirks of personality that stubbornly persist across the barrier of the womb. If women seeking abortions are already mothers, we cannot say that they choose the death of their children in ignorance. Thus, it is all the more disturbing that our culture has decided that they must choose abortion to advance.

When the pregnancy is discovered to be twins, the babies suddenly acquire relation to another person: a sibling. Once that relational quality is recognized, it can be much more difficult to end that human life. But every baby already has a direct, immediate, physical relationship with another person: his mother. When we deny this concrete reality in favor of abstractions about educational and professional achievement, criminality, and the meaning of life, we participate in the death of an innocent victim.

As unsatisfying as it may seem, the solution to abortion is for individual people to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable. When we reject Scrooges impersonal dismissal of the poor as a burden and address them as individuals, the Tiny Tims in our midst, we no longer see the poor as an abstract problem to be solved but as hungry and lonely people in need of food, community, and meaning.

Abortion is a false comfort to those who wish to solve the worlds problems. But it seems the poor really will always be with us, and trying to abort them all is a terrible mistake. Sacrificing children on the altar of achievement will never be a path forward. Willingly sacrificing ourselves in the service of others is the only way for civilization to thrive.

See more here:

Scrooge and the Economics of Abortion - Crisis Magazine

Whats the best year in hip-hop history? Four years ago, we floated 1988 in hip-hop as one possibility, a year that saw landmark albums from EPMD, Boogie Down Productions, Eric B and Rakim, N.W.A. and Public Enemy. Now, a few more years down the line, we have another candidate: 1992. A prolific early year in a consequential decade for hip-hop, 1992 might have been a shade early to catch the Wu-Tang phenomenon on the rise, or a few years late to get in on the ground floor of the Native Tongues movement, but its landmark albums are seemingly endless, from the Beasties artistic transformation to Eric B and Rakims swan song, a blockbuster debut from Dr. Dre and his prankster west coast peers in The Pharcyde. Ten certainly isnt enough albums to capture the entirety of what was happening in such a prolific and influential year, but these ten albums more than make the case for the hall of fame. Read our list of the best hip-hop albums of 1992 and listen to our companion playlist (with bonus tracks).

Released three years after Pauls Boutique defied expectations by not continuing the fight for the right to party, the Beastie Boys took another hard left turn by dropping an abundance of samples and picking up their instruments again to create a more organic take on hip-hop. Check Your Head stands the test of time in a way that many of its predecessors failed to; the production, largely featuring live instruments, bypasses the stiff snare/bass drum presets drum programming was limited to in the early 90s. Lyrically their previous album might be superior, yet the instrumentationand jammy feel of these compositions gave them an edge in terms of the disappearing boundaries of their songwriting. MTV, at long last,was ready to embrace them once again and this found the Beastie Boys back on top of the game after Pauls Boutique left the fight-for-your-right-to-party crowd scratching their heads. While songs like So Whatcha Want are among the decades best singles, the rest of the album is a moving testament to the groove their live instrumentation brings. Wil Lewellyn

A member of the Diggin in the Crates crew that also included Lord Finesse, O.C., Fat Joe, Showbiz & AG, Buckwild and the late Big L, Diamond D delivered one of the collectives strongest debut albums in 1992and given the number of classic albums among the lot of them, thats saying quite a bit. Stunts, Blunts & Hip-Hop is a showcase for Diamond D as both a producer and rapper, his confidence behind the mic matched and often bested by his abilities behind the mixing board. The album is alternately breezy and brash, gritty and playful, a product of the burgeoning hardcore rap renaissance in New York in the early to mid-90s but with the jazzy, summertime feel of Native Tongues at their bestsometimes all in the same song (see: I Went For Mine). That it still seems so hard to pin down 30 years later remains one of its greatest strengths; for an album thats a The Source all-timer, it still feels underappreciated. -Jeff Terich

Theres a niche of academic and pop-culture authorship that finds sociopolitical common ground struck between largely Black performers of rap and largely white performers of punk through the 1980s. As that decade became the next, the latter side seemed to shift from rebellious guitar-based rockers to industrial musicians. Not only could their anti-establishment politics line up with those of rappers, their sampling, production, and performance technologies could as well. No mere industrial act passing off an angry chant as a novelty rap, Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy constituted a great example of a rap act using the edgiest of electronics, pumping up the volume on global concerns from corporate media consolidation to environmental collapse. Adam Blyweiss

Divine Stylers Spiral Walls Containing Autumns Of Light completely upends any notions that hip-hop in 1992 was primitive or basic. Styler, a former member of Ice-Ts Rhyme Syndicate crew, followed his excellent, far more straightforward 1989 debut Word Power with this baffling work of outsider rap strangeness. Oddities like the synthscape slam poetry of Love, Lies & Lifetime Cries and the surreal industrial rock of Touch are just some of the wild turns taken, while album highlight Grey Matter feels like a direct influence on turn-of-the-millenium noise rappers Dlek and Clouddead. Its properly psychedelic, in the way that actual trips are rarely a wholly profound experience and are instead interspersed with as much awkwardness and nonsense as they are insight. However, despite its often-disarming eccentricities, Spiral Walls Containing Autumns Of Light holds up as a confrontational, singular work that undoubtedly opened the door for future hip-hop experimentalists. Tom Morgan

Ice Cubes solo break and 1991s Niggaz4Life notwithstanding, The Chronic is the true spiritual sequel to NWAs Straight Outta Compton. Crack it open and out spill endless commentaries on Black marginalization, tales of drug-and-booze-fueled hedonism and malevolence, and history lessons on funk music via seamless samples and interpolations. Even beyond its trio of classic rap singles (Fuck Wit Dre Day, Nuthin but a G Thang, Let Me Ride) Dr. Dres solo debut is a Pandoras box of an album, splintering his relations with NWA for good. It also shifted his reputation as a rhyme writer, producer, talent scout, and label executive suddenly upward, and arguably moved the center of the hip-hop universe significantly further west of New York City. Adam Blyweiss

The epochal duos last album, Technique shows why your GOATs GOAT went by Rakim Allah. Whether he was rapping about post Iraq War PTSD on Casualties Of War, weaving a stick up kids first person narrative on Know the Ledge or once again warning all the inferior MCs out there that he was to be respected instead of Xeroxed on the title track, Rakims unmatched lyricism over some slightly more aggressive grooves and scratches from his longtime DJ meant that any microphone he touched would be instantly blessed. Eric B. accented the work with some of the hardest hitting beats of his careertheres a reason Ledge fits in perfectly on the Juice soundtrack. Just like Bishop, Rakim killed so many tracks he was on that a generation later philosophers are still wondering whats next. Butch Rosser

By the time Gang Starr released Daily Operation in 1992, they were already seasoned pros two albums deep, having debuted in 1989 with No More Mr. Nice Guy followed by 1991s Step in the Arena. However, it was their third effort that would solidify Guru and DJ Premier as one of hip hops brightest MC/producer combos. Here they reach their stride, with songs like Take It Personal and Ex Girl to the Next Girl showing promise of future hit making potential. But the album also serves as a starting point, the opening chapter to a run of legendary projects that would be released by the duo throughout the rest of the decadea sonic statement of intent signifying they were indeed, in it for the long haul. -J. Smith

The cover art goes as hard as any 90s Memphis horrorcore tape, while the Godfather sample in the intro track suggests decades of gangster cliche to come, but Live and Let Die is neither supernatural terror nor MTV-ified mafioso myth. It is, however, hard as fuck. Queens, New Yorks Kool G Rap and DJ Polo had released two absolute classics prior to thistheir debut a necessary precursor to the Golden Age of 90s East Coast hip-hop. But Live and Let Die showed just how far theyd push their outlaw narratives and gritty funk boom-bap, threads of gunplay, robbery, and evading law enforcement against beats that range from the bone-chilling (Train Robbery) to the boisterous (#1 With a Bullet, featuring the same Chi-Lites sample as Beyonces Crazy in Love). Violent, profane and misanthropic, Live and Let Die makes grand entertainment of depravity. Jeff Terich

Because they zigged when the biggest names in hip hop zagged hardcore, the Pharcyde got semi dismissed as a sort of West Coast De La Soul, but any discerning listener knew that the Los Angeles quartet were entirely their own creation and their debut showed it off. Showcasing elements of horrorcore on 4 Better Or 4 Worse a track after the hilarious diss Its Jigaboo Time shouldve killed that argument, as well as their putting the wistful Otha Fish after standout Passin Me By to use the tracklist as a Before/After snapshot. They could Pack the Pipe as well as speak about law enforcements racism in the sadly timeless Officer and three decades later still pack the impact it did upon release. It may have been a bizarre one, but the ride was so glorious few even dared to imitate the edutainment one of the undisputed classics. Butch Rosser

Everyone & your mother knows the epochal T.R.O.Y. (They Reminisce Over You), but that doesnt mean you should sleep on the rest of Mecca; it features some of the most potent boom bap and soul ever committed to wax. Outside of one regrettably age-appropriate slur, its very easy to just put on Mecca and let it play, especially when theres so many disparate jams to choose from like Lots of Lovin, the Basement and Straighten It Out, which starts a five-track run ending in T.R.O.Y. that alone probably would have put Mecca close to if not on this list. Rock & Smooth operated as almost a nega version of Eric B. & Rakim where the DJ was spotlighted over the rapper, but relistens show Smooths dexteritysometimes suave, sometimes boastful, but always quietly insistent and willing to make people do what their biggest hit implored: just listen. Butch Rosser

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Apparently Brendon McCullum hates the term Bazball. This is, of course, exactly as it should be. One of the cardinal rules of Bazball, perhaps even its defining motif, is that no established narrative must be allowed to stand unchallenged. Anything you think you know about Bazball is wrong.

Everything ever spoken about it has been wrong. Bazball is about making up your own rationale as you go, and so any attempt to pin it down, to define it or even name it, must necessarily be doomed to failure.

Certainly in the six weeks since England first unveiled their new approach to mens Test cricket against New Zealand, Bazball has resisted all attempts to delimit it. Targets have been demolished: 277 at Lords, 299 at Trent Bridge, 296 at Headingley, 378 at Edgbaston against India. Crowds have been thrilled. Late-night kebabs have been eaten. Stuart Broad has been rechristened the Nighthawk. Countless words have been belched out and consequently re-eaten.

Is there any point in analysing any of this? Is it really worth delving into a phenomenon that seems to consist of nothing more than pure vibes? Statistics will tell you what England are doing differently attacking earlier with the bat, bowling fuller with the ball but wont remotely tell you why. Interviews have long since degenerated into a sort of passive-aggressive nonsense verse, in which various players make various claims of courage and bravado and challenge us to publish them.

Baz thinks we can change the face of cricket. Stokesy wants us to chase down 600 in a day. Leachy punched a swan at drinks. Popey threw a shoe over a pub. Its new, its nihilistic, its entertaining and its clearly working. But what is it exactly? Why this, why now and crucially why?

Perhaps the closest we have come to a clear motive for Bazball is from Jonny Bairstow. At Edgbaston first and then later again on the Tailenders podcast, he expressed the new freedom of this team not just in sporting but in physical terms. Sometimes you look back over the last couple of years, he said. Everyones been through it with Covid, some pretty dark moments. Isolation, bubbles, being away from family. I know there will be people in this room who have lost loved ones. But hopefully were through the worst: putting smiles back on faces and bums on seats.

One of the most striking elements of this England team is how serenely they deal with the certainty of failure. And for all the talk of tactical innovation or 360-degree strokeplay, it strikes me that Bazball is basically an emotional reaction to our times, an approach that for all its hedonism is ultimately inseparable from the desolation and introspection and immense sadness that generated it. On some level this is something we are all experiencing in various ways. Collectively something has changed in us since the pandemic, a restlessness and trepidation that we cant yet name or place. A sense of things changing, things that wont come back, a future that offers only more uncertainty, more entropy, more hurt.

Stokes lost his father Ged in December 2020, in between the second and third national lockdowns. Last year his mental health declined and he was forced to take a break from the game. Like many of us he has been forced to contemplate real desolation in the past couple of years, and knows that losing a game of cricket on a flat deck doesnt remotely touch the sides.

Perhaps this is why Stokes feels so personally invested in this style of play, his own way of honouring a man who when forced to choose between his rugby career and his middle finger chose to amputate the finger.

There is a generational element here, too. The New Yorker writer Jia Tolentino, in her essay collection Trick Mirror, examines the uniquely dark and nihilistic culture of young people on the internet: a world of memes and in-jokes where everything is transient and nothing is static, where absurdism feels like the only response to the precarity and pointlessness of our world. She describes the sensation of using social media as like a rat pressing the lever, like a woman repeatedly hitting myself on the forehead with a hammer, masturbating through the nightmare, until I finally catch the gasoline whiff of a good meme.

This is basically how England bat right now and, even if the current squad are spared the economic hopelessness that drives millennial culture, that innate nihilism remains, the sense of a future that has been mortgaged and built over. Bazball is the laughing crying emoji. Bazball is Amelia Dimoldenbergs deadpan jokes on Chicken Shop Date. Bazball is a pinkhaired egirl selling you her own bath water for $30 a pot. Bazball aint reading all that, but is happy for u tho, or sorry that happened.

Bazball hears the phrases building an innings or bowling dry and hears a boomer columnist telling them they too could earn the deposit for a house by cutting out avocado on toast.

And so to describe Bazball as a philosophy or a blueprint, or speculate how it might fare against Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood or on a Kanpur turner, is really to miss its gist. Which is not to dismiss it as a fad or an empty gesture. Rather, it feels like an entirely natural response to a game drowning in decay and confusion, formats upon formats, judgments upon judgments, wailing upon wailing: a little kernel of meaning in a world where nothing seems to matter very much.

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Bazball isnt a philosophy or blueprint it is a response to a game in decay - The Guardian

Back in the day, supposedly conservatives were the ones who cracked down on fun. The common knowledge went that liberals were focused on free expression and free speech, while the right tried to shut things down.

The modern left has abandoned its old principles of free expression, however, and become infamous for scolding Americans on not being 100% politically correct.

Noah Rothman, author of the new book The Rise of the New Puritans: Fighting Back Against Progressives War on Fun, says this new wave of woke censorship echoes the utopian push by the Puritans of old.

Rothman says the leftist utopia is a sort of messianic mission that views anything not directly pushing leftist ideology as not only worthless, but a threat [and] a menace.

He continues:

The ideal here, an unrealizable ideal, is the creation, insofar as it is possible, of the ideal society. This is a vision, a framework of social organization, that extirpates the maladies associated with human frailty. Its an unachievable objective.

Rothman joins the show to detail the lefts shift from free expression to wokescolding, and how the rest if us can best counter it.

We also cover these stories:

Listen to our interview or read a lightly edited transcript below.

Doug Blair: My guest today is Noah Rothman, author of the new book The Rise of the New Puritans: Fighting Back Against Progressives War on Fun, available now wherever books are sold. Noah, welcome to the show.

Noah Rothman: Thank you so much for having me, its a pleasure to be here.

Blair: I love the title of this book. Its so evocative and its such an apt comparison to the modern left. But the question is, how did we get to this point where the modern left has become the New Puritans?

Rothman: Right. Well, its all rather disorienting for anybody whos probably, I guess, older than 20. I mean, for most of our adult lives, an impulse to see in innocent cultural products corrupting influences, the stuff that degrades society, not just you as an individual, is typically found on the right. The left, by contrast, emphasized self-fulfillment, self-gratification, hedonism, to a degree that was even perhaps self-destructive.

And this was the dynamic that pertained our entire lives, up until about five, 10 years ago, when things began to change rather dramatically. And we started seeing moral crusades, and weve seen many of them led by left and left-leaning institutions, in pursuit of goals that render frivolous products, frivolous diversions, happy pastimes into something with a greater social value.

Weve seen entertainment companies impose on media products themes that are designed to advance a social purpose, and render it a little bit more valuable than something as trite as entertainment. Comedians emphasizing the pain that somebody had to endure so that you could enjoy something as trite as a punchline.

When you sit down to a meal, you have to be confronted with the environmental damage that youre doing. And when you sit down to watch some sports, youre confronted with the agonizing lamentable state of racial dynamics in America. And when fans protest, and as they often do, theyre admonished explicitly for saying that they want their diversion, they want their escapism, over their duty to dwell on the worlds horrors.

There is a real moral framework at work here, and its really native to progressivism. As liberals identify lefts with liberalism and more with progressivism, theyve adopted its habits of mind.

Utopianism, a sort of messianic mission, and a hatred and a fear of idleness, that which doesnt contribute to directly advance the progressive project and the progressive ideals is seen as not only worthless, but a threat, a menace, and a desire to impose conformity on their surroundings.

A lot of these are human traits, a lot of them are not native to America in general. But when you start pulling on these threads, you find the origins of this old morality finding itself in new voices, in the 19th century, in Victorian ethos and mainline Protestantism, and the origins of progressivism, which had a moral dimension as much as a political dimension.

And you pull on that thread a little further, and it doesnt take long before you get to the late 1600s, early 1700s, and a Puritanical ethos that had all of this, that had a fear of idleness, that had a mistrust of pastimes and diversions, and that sought to impose conformity on its surroundings.

Theres a lot to be said for this moral outlook, but one thing you can definitely say is it is an explicit rejection of their parents political philosophy, which was as licentious as possible. And what we have now is a younger generation that is upholding this moral framework, but, as a result, is less chill, is less open, is less adventurous than their grandparents.

Blair: Right. I mean, its funny becauseIm going to put my cards on the table here, Im kind of a nerd. It reminds me of back in the 90s where you had this push against Dungeons & Dragons from the right, where it was like a moral panic over these types of products. But now its the left thats pushing to ban these things. I see that a lot of people who are on the left are trying to get that taken down. Where does that shift occur? And how is it that the right gives up that territory where the left takes it on?

Rothman: So, as cultural crusades, conventional cultural crusades that the right tended to wage fell out of favor, there was a vacuum there, and the left took it up.

So again, going back to the 90s where probably you and I had our primary socialization, the conventional culture wars that the right waged was against lasciviousness in popular culture, divorce, gay marriage rights, and abortion. And weve since seen a burst of moral enthusiasm around the new legal environment that were now navigating as a result of Dobbs [v. Jackson Womens Health Organization].

But a lot of this stuff fell out of favor or just had less urgency around it, with shifting attitudes, cultural attitudes, and attitudes on the right. And a lot of it changed around the ascension of Donald Trump.

Donald Trump helped the right get over and typically toward divorce, for example. Donald Trump deemphasized transgenderism as an issue. If you remember, in 2016, he came out in favor of the North Carolina bathroom law, which was contravened traditional conservatives and what they were saying about that at the time. And abortion had declined dramatically in rates for years, up to this point.

So they didnt exactly win or lose per se, there were mixed results in the culture wars, but generally, the right fled the field.

And then you had then the left, as it began to mature in this marinate, in this idea of a moral covenant, an idealized society, and a theory of social organization that placed, that emphasized a moral conduct over the pursuit of self-gratification and self-pleasure, it began to take on a moral dimension and police public morality in ways that we traditionally associated with the right.

Now, this is a departure from what we expected to see in perpetuity after the triumph of the sexual revolution, but it turns out the sexual revolution was a passing phase. The history of progressivism in this country has a moral dimension to it. And as we have the return of progressivism on the left, we have a return of a moral code.

Blair: One of the things that always strikes me about this new wave of progressivism and wokeism is theres a religious element in the secular sense. So youve got this idea of original sinwhite privilege, male privilege, all of these things. Theres a way to be redeemed, which is you get your high priest, the diversity consultants, to come in and absolve you of it. But the weird thing is, there is no permanent absolution.

When you look at Christianity or a religion like that, there is a way to get redeemed. Whereas in wokeism, it doesnt really seem like there is. Is that an accurate assessment that there is this secular religion to it?

Rothman: It is. I take some qualified exception to the idea that this is wholly and entirely a secular faith. Thats the theory thats been advanced in a variety of ways by scholars, authors, and critics over the years. And thats not entirely wrong.

I maintain that because theres no pathway to absolution, there is no deism in this theory. It transcends the conduct of religious practice, and it certainly transcends politics.

What I maintain is that it is bigger than that, it is a theory of social organization, it is a way of life, which makes it much more similar to Puritanism, which wasnt just a way of life. It was a theory of how society should organize themselves, totally, wholly, and in every aspect of personal, interpersonal, and public conduct, that would advance their shared goal, which is the creation of this social covenant.

That, to me, seems a more apt description for what were witnessing than simply a substitute religion.

Blair: The very first chapter of your book goes into the story of a Palestinian-owned grocer, who, I mean, the story is horrific, but he gets destroyed by the mob. Could you go into that story a little bit and explain why this is such a good representation of what were looking at here?

Rothman: Yeah. I mean, its just one of several examples in the introduction. This is Majdi Wadi, who is a Palestinian by birth, a grocer in Minnesota, I believe, who was very popular, both locally and nationally. He was feted on the floor of the House by then-Rep. Keith Ellison, and he was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives with Guy Fieri. It was a popular place.

In fact, popularity was perhaps its downfall because it was soon discovered that his daughter, a low-level employee at this grocer, had made racially insensitive remarks on social media at the age of 14 and 18, respectively.

And he apologized profusely for his daughters conduct, he pledged money to causes, designed to give him some sort of indulgence from the mob. The mob did not relent, so he had to do the only thing he could do, which was to fire his child, divorce himself from his child.

But that itself was not enough. Eventually, the landlord canceled the lease on Holy Land Grocery. And this is a punishment that was befitting of the charge, which was the careless parentage of a willful daughter.

Likewise, throughout the first chapter, you had this midfielder with the Los Angeles Galaxy soccer team, Aleksandar Katai, whose wife, during the riots in 2020, made some really genuinely provocative and insensitive and racially inflammatory comments on Twitter.

She got in plenty of trouble, but he was the one who had to suffer, he had to denounce his own wife. And when that wasnt good enough, he lost his job, he lost his career because he had cavorted with a woman of ill repute.

These are some very old codes of conduct that were seeing restored and reimposed on society by the left in ways that, 20 years ago, we wouldve only seen in the right. And they wouldve been properly repulsed by what they have seen as not a justice that coordinates with and comports with the modern secular liberalism.

Its a sort of justice that is collective, that is spiritual in nature, and that requires you to find and seek redemption in quiet, contemplative penance for the sins of those around you, for the sins of your environment, because you cant distinguish between the sin, the sinner, and the environment in which the sin is committed. They are all part of the same continuum. That is a Puritanical outlook if Ive ever heard one and it is certainly being adopted again by the inheritors of that legacy.

Blair: Do we see that the end goal of this new Puritanism is the same as the old goal? I mean, do we see this utopic vision of the world pushed through this New Age faith? Or is it more just to destroy the opposition?

Rothman: Yeah, the goal of big P Puritans was the establishment of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth, a new Zion. And they were the chosen people. Yes, the ideal here, an unrealizable ideal is the creation, insofar as it is possible, of the ideal society.

This is a vision, a framework of social organization that extirpates the maladies associated with human frailty. Its an unachievable objective, its enough to drive you mad. But that is the objective, and theyre going to do everything they can in its pursuit, up to and including making themselves and everyone around them miserable.

Blair: Well, thats certainly the case. And Im curious, too, obviously, in your book, you attack this issue and you look into how its affecting the country, but how does the average American respond to this? Is this causing a pushback against the left from the average American who sees this as problematic?

Rothman: Its causing a pushback against the left from the left. Most of the people I spoke with describe themselves as liberal, vote Democratic, wouldnt vote for a Republican with a gun to their heads, but they absolutely resent the conditions that are sapping them of enthusiasm for their lifes work.

They used to get up every morning, happy to do what they wanted to do in life. Now, they get up every morning miserable because they dont get to do what they want to do in life. They have to conduct politics, they have to behave in a public fashion, and be in the public eye, and behave to comport with public scrutiny in ways that are just soul-sucking, that sap them of enthusiasm, again, for their conditions and their surroundings.

So yeah, there is a backlash forming and theres a backlash forming among average Americans, too. One of the ways I say and suggest that this cult of misery might collapse, as cults of misery tend to do, is embodied in the phrase Banned in Boston.

So when we think of stereotypes of a caricatured blue-nosed Puritan, we dont think of the big P Puritans in the 1600s, 1700s. Scholars of Puritanism get very frustrated by this. Our stereotypes, they get a bad rap.

Our stereotypes of Puritanism are really derived from the 19th century, from the second Great Awakening and the Victorian period, when progressivism was just coming to the fore, and was typified very much by a moralism that was native to mainline Protestantism.

And Boston was the epicenter of this. And in Boston, Comstockery and whatnot organized itself to combat the threats posed by licentious literature, most notably the evils of Walt Whitmans Leaves of Grass.

And this was very successful well into the 20th century. Plays were bowdlerized, books were banned, songs couldnt be played on the radio, etc., etc. But there was a backlash that developed around it, and it was commercial in nature because initially Banned in Boston was a warning against lude, lascivious literature. It soon became a powerful advertisement for it, for a titillating literary experience you just had to have for yourself.

Publishers actively sought to have their books banned in Boston to increase sales around the country. And the modern equivalent is banned on Amazon, banned on Facebook. When conservative books are targeted by these censorious mobs, and the ill-prepared 20-year-olds who have no idea what theyre doing, these sales of these products that are targeted explode, they do far better than the publisher and the PR campaign dedicated to them could possibly have imagined just because of the powerful advertisement for the something so taboo you just have to experience it for yourself.

So theyre sowing the seeds for their own destruction. Not only immiserating everyone around you, which is certainly not a sustainable condition in the absence of a coercive mechanism to enforce it, but also because theyre advertising the very things they seek to extirpate.

Blair: As we wrap-up, I want to emphasize that point. It sounds like what to do is basically just to continue to point out that this is not fun, its miserable and nobody wants to do it. And then also seek out the materials that the Puritanical left is pushing. Is that really the best way for us to get rid of this wokeness, is to just keep on trucking?

Rothman: Well, yes, and to lead a joyful life. And perhaps, if I have a prescription here, it is to give people a permission through this, what I hope is a very enjoyable read, a romp, I wanted this to be a quick and fun read, is to give you permission to be able to mock these people. They are mockable, they are hilarious in their conduct.

Theres a lot of fear about that on the left, but they understand the material that theyre being handed on a daily basis, and theyre just foregoing voluntarily out of fear.

And theres a bully aspect to this. There are bullies, and the prescription against bullies is just ignore them, theyll go away. If you give them attention, youre giving them what they want. Yeah. But if you give them attention and youre mocking them, you are giving them what they want, but youre giving a lot more people what they want, too, which is to see these people lampooned and pilloried, and to enjoy that, and to laugh at that.

Theres so much comedy fodder that is left on the table here. It is, first of all, an abdication of your responsibility as a comedian and as an entertainer. But second, its unnatural and unsustainable, theres only so long you can hold your tongue, and I hope that this book helps give permission to people who are inclined toward that to pursue it.

Blair: Well, I think thats a great strategy. I continue to laugh at the left every day, so hopefully this book will help people do that, too. That was Noah Rothman, author of the new book The Rise of the New Puritans: Fighting Back Against Progressives War on Fun, available now wherever books are sold. Noah, thank you so much. And lets keep on laughing.

Rothman: My pleasure. Thanks for having me.

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No Fun Allowed! How the Left Became the Fun Police. - Daily Signal