Category Archives: Hedonism

Anna is in her late mothers attic brandishing a book. It is called Grief and Grieving and she has two more copies in her bag. They are for her wayward sister Maia and kid sister Chloe, the one who stayed at home as a carer, hanging on while Anna forged a career abroad and Maia lived it up in the city.

None of them seems interested in the book. They dont need any lessons in grief. In Matthew Bulgos play, created with directors Jonnie Riordan and Jess Williams for ThickSkin, grieving is pretty much all they do. Having got the funeral over, they relive childhood memories, air old arguments and wallow in a state of inertia.

Feels like the beginning, says Chloe when the play is very nearly at an end. Perhaps it would have been a better place to start, because Blood Harmony is a play in which almost nothing happens.

How could it? Grief is an emotion that is backward looking. It is a denial of the present-tense movement on which drama thrives. It is a state to be experienced, not a dilemma to be resolved. Bulgo tries to spice things up with a standard-issue pregnancy plot and some interplay about the women being at a turning point in their lives, but it is not enough to bring any sense of urgency.

Tellingly, the songs scattered through the show do nothing to forward the plot. There isnt a plot to forward. Instead, they strike an elegiac note and luxuriate in it. Written by indie folksters the Staves, they are pretty and melodic and, with the harmonic arrangements of Kate Marlais, strikingly sung by actors Eve De Leon Allen, Keshini Misha and Philippa Hogg.

The three performers fight their corners with feeling: De Leon Allens sweet-natured Chloe contrasting with the hedonism of Mishas Maia and the narcissism of Hoggs Anna. They are attractive performances but the show really finds its theatrical life when they turn the struts of Hayley Grindles attic set into a climbing frame and stand silhouetted against the strip lights concealed by lighting designer Charly Dunford. Grief might be no friend of drama, but in moments like these, it is not bad for visual poetry.

At the Lowry, Salford, until 18 June. Then touring until 28 August.

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Blood Harmony review sombre three-hander mourns a lost mother - The Guardian

It had to happen sometime. Thursday nights Rolling Stones show at Anfield was their first in the UK for four years, their first in Liverpool since 1971, but most importantly, their first since the death of Charlie Watts, who spent an uninterrupted 58 years as their drummer.

The quiet man of the group, he wouldnt have been the bookies favourite to be the first of the gang to die; not given the superhuman appetites for hedonism of bandmates Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood, and not given that time appeared to briefly catch up with Mick Jagger in 2019, when a routine insurance physical flagged up the need for urgent heart surgery.

But still, Watts passing last August threatened to upend the Stones decades-long run together, and in particular, their Dylanesque commitment to annual touring since they returned to the road to mark their 50th anniversary in 2012.

His bandmates had often talked of him not just as a human metronome, but as the bedrock of the outfit, his unflappable demeanour helping to anchor things on and off the stage. And yet Watts, a life-long straight talker, knew the reality; I think they could get another drummer, he told NME in February of 2018.

And so its proved. Watts long-time understudy, Steve Jordan, was already confirmed to step in on last years run of US dates when he was first taken ill; now, hes ensconced as full-time replacement. His first UK gig in the role, last night, opened with a moving two-minute montage of Watts, and its a testament to how many years he served in the band that they were able to find so much footage of the normally stoic sticksman smiling and laughing.

And then, the opening strains of Street Fighting Man rang out, Jagger exploded down the runway in time-honoured fashion, and it was very much business as usual. The frontman took a few moments, three songs in, to pay a brief tribute to Watts, but afterwards, it was full Stones steam ahead, in a fashion that will be familiar to anybody who caught them on the UK leg of the No Filter tour in 2018; first half carefully curated odds and ends, second half sheer greatest hits.

Watts absence is conspicuous in subtler ways. Jordan is a terrific player, and one in keeping with the rest of the groups bombast; thunderous drum fills and an innate physicality define his style, which itself serves to remind us of how endearingly incongruous the un-showy Watts always was as a member of the Stones.

The left-field decision to add the 1966 deep cut Out of Time to the setlist last nights airing was its first-ever in the UK perhaps also hints at the group looking back wistfully to their formative years. Jagger, for his part, turned it into a surprisingly breezy singalong, before tipping his hat to one-time rivals The Beatles by covering I Wanna Be Your Man for the first time in 100 years. Wed been practicing Youll Never Walk Alone, he joked, but we thought wed do one by some local lads instead.

He remains the consummate showman. On last nights evidence, you begin to wonder quite what itll take to stop the Stones. Wood, the baby of the remaining three-piece core line-up at just 75, has bounced back from a battle with lung cancer, and looked as sprightly as ever as he engaged in his signature guitar-weaving with the evergreen Richards, about whom we should still worry, in terms of the kind of world were going to leave behind for him.

And then, theres Jagger, who continues to defy the understood laws of time and physiology. He was a symphony in perpetual motion last night, racing up and down a runway that reached to roughly where the centre circle would be on the Anfield pitch, his pelvis as elastic as ever, cajoling audience members half his age into matching his moves. His devout adherence to a gruelling fitness regime is well-documented, and it clearly continues to work its magic, but its worth noting that his voice, too, remains freakishly untouched by the ravages of 60 years on the road.

The second half of the set was blockbuster stuff, regardless of how many times youve heard these ones before. The highlight was Midnight Rambler, which perhaps would more accurately have been titled Bohemian Rhapsody in Blues; between Richards six-string mastery and Jaggers virtuoso harmonica playing, it encapsulates everything the pair love about the genre that first brought them together as teenagers on platform two at Dartford station in 1961.

Elsewhere, Paint It Black is still thunderous, a raw-nerve reflection of Vietnam-era tensions that, sadly, feels as relevant as ever today, as does Gimme Shelter, with its refrain of war, children, its just a shot away. They closed with (I Cant Get No) Satisfaction, which Jagger famously said he didnt still want to be singing when he was 40. Hes now 78, and looks like he could go on until hes 100.

Without Watts, they are not quite the same; not diminished, exactly, but different. Hes missed. Still, the Stones keep on rolling, into an astonishing seventh decade together as a band.

See the article here:

Rolling Stones still astonish in their first gig since the death of Charlie Watts - iNews

We are thrilled to reveal the winners of the 2022 Drinks Business Awards, which were announced yesterday at a packed ceremony at the London Wine Fair.

The Drinks Business Awards were conceived 19 years ago to celebrate outstanding achievements in drinks in an array of categories, from on-trade champions to pioneering PR companies.

A full report on each winning person, brand and business will appear in the July issue of db, while today we bring you a list of the winners in each category, starting with our awards for the leaders in drinks design.

Best Design & Packaging for Wine

Winner:Denominationfor Wild Folk

Special commendation: Ehrmanns Winefor Beefsteak The Beast

Shortlist

Denomination for Wild Folk

Ehrmanns Winefor Beefsteak The Beast

Piccini for Pinnochi

Best Design & Packaging for Spirits

Winner: Denomination for Battery Point Single Malt Whisky

Special commendation: StrangerNature New Zealand Gin

Shortlist

Stranger & Stranger for Italicus Rosolio di Bergamotto

Denomination for Battery Point Single Malt Whisky

Stranger & Stranger for Santa Ana Gin

Stranger & Stranger for Savoia Americano Rosso

Strange Nature Gin

Best Design & Packaging for Alternative Formats

Winner: Ed Wright Creative for Laylo

Special commendation: Accolade Wines for Vino Societ

Shortlist

Accolade Wines for Vino Societ

Ed Wright Creative for Laylo

House of Canvino for Canvino

The Sparflex Award for Best English and Welsh Sparkling Wine Packaging

Winner:Coolhurst Vineyards

Special Commendation: Dunleavy for Bottom

Shorlist

Coolhurst Vineyards

Dunleavy for Bottom

Flint Vineyard

Tuffon Hall

Best launch of the Year

Winner:Dutch Barn Orchard Vodka

Special commendation: PepperBox Shiraz

Shortlist

PepperBox Shiraz

Taylors Chip Dry & Tonic/ White Port

Dutch Barn Orchard Vodka

Savoia Americano Rosso

PR Company of the Year

Winner: Phipps Relations

Shortlist

Clarion Communications

Crate Communications

May Fox Communications

Phipps Relations

Trade Campaign of the Year

Winner: Slam Communications for Alsace Wines

Consumer Campaign of the Year

Winner: The Hidden Sea for its Ocean Clean-up

Special commendation: Beefsteak for Beef up your BBQ

Shortlist

The Hidden Sea for its Ocean Clean-up

Casillero del Diablo for Worlds Greatest Thief

PinotPinot for its Toni & Guy initiative

Beefsteak for Beef up your BBQ

Phipps Relations for Majestic Wines Nationwide Cork Recycling

Social Media Campaign of the Year

Winner: FirstPour,360 Degrees of Cava

Special commendation: Master of Malt for Whisky Icons

Shortlist

Master of Malt, Whisky Icons

FirstPour,360 Degrees of Cava

Hobgoblin, Best Sipped in the Dark

Whisky Exchange, Drinks 101

Echo Falls, Perfect Night In Challenge

Drinks Event of the Year

Winner: Clarion Communications for Aldi Champagne Bar

Special commendation:Whisky Show 2021

Shortlist

Aldi Champagne Bar

Mud House x Nomadic

Whisky Show 2021

The Hidden Sea

Best Contribution to Wine and Spirits Tourism

Winner wine:The Three Drinkers in Ireland

Special commendation: The Whisky Exchange, Barbados

Shortlist

The Three Drinkers in Ireland

Cognac Frapin

The Whisky Exchange, Barbados

Independent Retailer of the Year

Winner: Drop Wines

Special commendation:Hedonism Wines

Shortlist

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Awards 2022 winners - The Drinks Business - The Drinks Business

Review at a glanceT

he legend of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and their magnetic frontwoman, Karen O, has been sustained over the last decade, despite the bands hiatus from both touring and making new music. Known for bringing an explosive injection of riotous hedonism to the garage-rock revival in the noughties, it was unclear whether they could convey the same magic on their return to the stage. But be in no doubt, this band proved their credentials as some of the most electrifying performers of the present moment, as well as the past.

The element of nostalgia was felt keenly by O as she addressed the crowd at the sold-out Brixton Academy, where she last played with her band almost exactly 20 years ago. Was anybody there? she asked. You were there. You were there. Yes! she shrieked, overjoyed to be reunited with her long-parted fandom.

Breathtakingly charismatic, O leaped, head-banged and lunged through her bands greatest hits. For Heads Will Roll, disco backbeats and expansive synths provided the driving force as O whirled around the stage, activating confetti cannons with a gleeful kick. Occasionally, she would swig from a beer and spray it, geyser-like, over the audience. She sung with her trademark shrieks and whoops during the chorus of Gold Lion, backed by a soaring guitar riff from Nick Zinner and intricate drumming from Brian Chase. It wasnt always dialled up to the max, however, and there was a collective misty-eyed sigh from the audience as the band played Maps, a power ballad about love and coming to terms with its potential loss.

But there was another the reason the band have returned to the stage after all these years, aside from sensing an opportune moment of indie revival. They were also there to debut songs from their fifth album, Cool It Down, which releases later this year. Alongside two unreleased songs, they played Spitting Off the Edge of the World, a ballad where O seems fragile yet defiant in the face of the climate emergency. Clearly this is a band that is not afraid to face the modern moment head-on.

The shows close had the potential to trigger further separation anxiety for fans, but thankfully, the band returned for a stomping encore to play Date With the Night, during which O plunged her microphone into her pants before smashing it repeatedly against the stage floor. It is comforting to know that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are back to their old tricks this time, hopefully, for good.

yeahyeahyeahs.com

Excerpt from:

Yeah Yeah Yeahs at Brixton Academy gig review: Karen O and co are back at last and as electrifying as ever - Evening Standard

Martin Scorsese has mastered the art of the needle drop. From the use of Jumpin Jack Flash in Mean Streets to the languid piano outro of Layla in Goodfellas, Scorsese always seemed to have an innate ability to pair the perfect track to the mood of a scene.

As hes aged, however, some of those instincts have gotten slightly less sharp. For all its intoxicating drama, The Departed does start to become a parody of Scorseses style once Gimme Shelter gets played not once but twice during the film. For detractors, the overstuffed approach to Scorseses favourite songs reaches its apex in The Wolf of Wall Street, a film thats practically allergic to restraint.

The rapid changes in pace, plot, and performance make The Wolf of Wall Street a singular movie-going experience, and part of what makes the film so aggressively unique is the whiplash-inducing cuts in music. One moment, a punk rock version of The Beach Boys Sloop John B is blasting out of the speakers, and the next, its the chorus to Foo Fighters track Everlong. All genres and all styles make appearances throughout the film, but one recurring motif is pure Scorsese: the use of Howlin Wolfs Smokestack Lightning.

Like Gimme Shelter in The Departed, Smokestack Lightning makes two appearances throughout The Wolf of Wall Street, both of which come when the lines between reality and fantasy get blurred. The amount of excess on screen can be absolutely wild, but when the hedonism gets taken to the highest of highs, thats when Scorsese drops the needle on Smokestack Lighting.

The first comes when Leonardo DiCaprios Jordan Belfort has successfully built up his penny stock company into a legitimate (or semi-legitimate) Wall Street powerhouse, Stratton Oakmont. During a meeting that involves shaving heads, naked marching bands, fighting strippers, and copious amounts of public sex, the lights begin to flicker and the haunting tones of Smokestack Lightning fill the air.

Then, when Belfort is mid-air en route to his bachelor party, a sudden bit of midair turbulence sends hookers and drugs flying. As the plane jolts, the film turns to slow motion as Wolfs voice returns to underscore the impossible amounts of excess on screen. As Belfort rummages through his completely burned-out hotel room like a scene from Sodom and Gomorrah, the otherworldly sounds of Wolfs voice and harmonica are right there with him.

Perhaps The Wolf of Wall Street needed some proper Wolf representation on its soundtrack. Perhaps Scorsese felt that the song perfectly encapsulated the sounds of pure evil, from Wolfs gritty bark to the ghostly one-chord chug that never wavers. Whatever he might have been thinking, Scorsese officially made Smokestack Lightning the harbinger of doom throughout The Wolf of Wall Street.

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How Martin Scorsese used Howlin Wolf to perfection in 'Wolf of Wall Street' - Far Out Magazine

Cam Landis grew up in Madison, Ohio, a very quintessential, small-town U.S.A., he says. Its north of Cleveland, on the south shore of Lake Erie. People know each other, show up to the football game on a Friday night. The recession hit the town hard, says Landis; employment hovers at about 60%. Still, the community works to embody the Midwestern spirit, he says everything you have you work for; your word is your bond; family comes first.

As of the 2020 Census, there were 18,492 people living in Madison. More than 90% of them were white, mostly of German and Irish ancestry, some Italian like Landis maternal grandfather. As an Ashkenazi Jew, his mothers mother was something of an anomaly in the region, says Landis. Nothing Jewish about Madison, Ohio, except for a couple of lake homeowners, he says.

Growing up, Landis went to an all-boys Catholic high school in Erie, Pennsylvania, driving an hour each way. In his senior year, he was the captain of the football team when they won the 2016 state championship for Pennsylvania, which is funny for an Ohio boy to say, Landis says. I still feel like Ive carried Madison wherever Ive gone.

His academic journey brought him to the University of Pennsylvania, where Landis graduated this May. At Penn, he majored in biological anthropology, played on the offensive line for Penns football team, walked on to the mens track and field team as a thrower, and delved into his Jewish roots at Hillel.

Honestly, what really took me to Hillel was that I heard the food was good, says Landis. The organization rents out its bottom floor to Penn Dining, which hosts Falk Dining Caf, a kosher/halal cafeteria serving everything from chicken wraps to traditional Shabbat fare like gelfite fish and kugel.

We routinely hear that the food at Hillel is the best food on campus, says Gabe Greenberg, executive director at Penn Hillel. I personally eat there all the time. Many students who come to the dining hall either dont know its kosher or its not relevant to them, Greenberg says. It lets Jewish students be themselves without having to choose between honoring different parts of their identity, he says.

When Landis would go into Hillel to eat, he says others asked if he was Jewish. Hed answered, No, but I guess technically, yeah. There was this weird kind of push-pull like, well, I dont identify as Jewish, but I guess I am, Landis says.

Traditionally, Jewish descendancy travels through the matriarchal line. If your mother is Jewish; youre Jewish. If youre mothers mothers mothers mother is Jewish, youre Jewish. Landis, a half-Irish, quarter-Italian, and quarter-Jewish kid who grew up in a secular Christian environment, celebrating Christmas and Easter but not once lighting Shabbat candles, says he was conflicted.

But Landis says he always felt welcomed. When he gave his no/yes/kind of answer, students in the Jewish Orthodox community would respond, No, you are. Dont let anyone ever tell you youre not, Landis says. I just kind of was empowered by that.

In the spring semester of his sophomore year, just before the onset of the pandemic, Landis suffered a debilitating injury, tearing his rectus abdominus and two adductors in his hip. Suddenly, the excuse that he was too busy training to learn about Judaism was gone, he says.

So, Landis went to back Hillel, this time he says not to eat but to ask if there was anyone there who could guide him as a Jew who knows nothing about being Jewish.

For Landis, that person was Gabriel Greenberg, then the rabbi and director of Hillels Jewish Renaissance Project. Landis began devoting five, six hours a week to reading, contemplation, and debate. He met with Greenberg, along with rabbis through the Jewish mentorship organization Meor, and started learning about Jewish texts.

Landis connected with the scholarly aspect of Judaism, he says. Then COVID hit, and he was still interested, even over Zoom. So, I kept kind of chugging along, he says. The spiritual inquiry, coupled with his surgery recovery, was how Landis stayed grounded during the pandemic, he says. I just kept pushing.

As a Jewish educator, it was exciting and refreshing to work with Landis, Greenberg says, a student who grew up with little association but is eager and seeking to learn more.

Landis is a deep thinker, says Greenberg. He really engages intellectually and personally and culturally and academically. He went all in, really grappling with, what can this 4,000-year old faith tradition mean to him? How can and should it look in his life? So it was really a pleasure to help support him in that journey.

Cam Grey, associate professor of classical studies and one of Landis early mentors, advised him to cast a wide net. Dont pick a destination and make yourself into that ideal candidate for a job or next step in life, but just follow your interests, he advised, and Landis applied this philosophy not only to his academic career but to his life and spiritual seeking.

This fall, Landis will start an MBA program at North Dakota State University in Fargo, a very athletically-driven decision, he says. Because of the pandemic, along with his injury, Landis has two more years of eligibility in NCAA track and field, where he will compete in discus and shot put.

I see this as the way for me to take this as far as I can and then move on in life, says Landis. I feel like I just have more to do more to give.

He spent his junior year taking classes remotely and training hard, with the goal of competing in the 2021 Israeli national championship for shot put, where Landis ultimately won bronze.

He spent the summer in Israel, working in in the Knesset, Israels parliamentary body, living in a yeshiva in Har Nof, a religious community built into the hillside on the western edge of Jerusalem, and going to clubs in Tel Aviv. He wanted to experience it all, observance and orthodoxy along with hedonism and modernity.

The fact that I was willing to let myself do that was what made the difference, Landis says. Theres always tension between these kinds of groups within Israel, he says. I felt really, honestly blessed to be able to talk and shake hands and experience both sides and feel welcomed by everybody.

Landis then had his bar mitzvah at the Western Wall, a holy site in the Old City of Jerusalem traditionally used for prayer, with his Israeli friends and a distant cousin in attendance.

I have a Jewish soul, says Landis, referencing the neshamah, described in holy texts as divine breath. He says the neshamah, the soul, is more important than any ritual or observance. Its part of him and will remain, regardless of the path his life takes. Landis says his commitment to the Jewish faith has become as much a part of his identity as his relentless curiosity and drive.

I came to Penn probably not willing to even admit to anybody I was Jewish, Landis says. Now, its hard for me to imagine a life without it.

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Faith, athletic drive, and the Midwestern spirit | Penn Today - Penn Today

Everything I Know About Love | Show review

This BBC Three series has been adapted from journalist Dolly Aldertons 2018 memoir of the same name, written in her late 20s about her early 20s. It has been wholeheartedly embraced by the Fleabag generation. The book charts Aldertons dalliances with some terrible men and flips the idea of the love of your life from romance to friends. Its a sweet feminist idea and it clearly struck a chord. Alderton, who has also written the TV series, is a warm-hearted soul as her agony aunt column in the Sunday Times Style magazine attests.

Maggie is the fictionalised version of Alderton, played with charisma by Emma Appleton. Her best friend since school, Birdy, is the fussy yin to Maggies uninhibited yang. Bel Powley (who is excellent in most things, especially Diary of a Teenage Girl) is given a character who is annoyingly earnest, designed to be adorable but is really just a bit of a whinger. The show follows Maggie, Birdy and their two other flatmates, Nell (MarliSiu) and Amara (Aliyah Odoffin), as they navigate early adulthood. These four share an unfeasibly chic and spacious Camden flat. A montage scene of their first night out ends with dawn over Primrose Hill, with Maggie suggesting they all roll down the hill, which they do with abandon. This scene could be a metaphor for the whole series, as not one of them manages to roll in dog poop. The show is meant to be messy but does it in quite a picturesque way hedonism forupper middle class ladies who have the luxury of deferring adulthood. They are typical millennial characters in that they are utterly obsessed with themselves and lack much self awareness; whether they are deliberately written that way is a matter for debate.

And yet, despite this, they are charming in their way. One of the best scenes in the opening episode is where Maggie gets home and does some insouciant naked dancing. Alderton says this was directly lifted from a habit she likes to indulge in; her friends call it strange and say her dancing is akin to a drunken jellyfish, but it was actually very cool and funny.

This show is not groundbreaking but it is charming and watchable.

Jessica Wall

Everything I Know About Love is released on 10th June 2022.

Watch the trailer for Everything I Know About Love here:

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Everything I Know About Love | Show review - The Upcoming

No one can accuse the promoters of Pride Month of subtlety. When you do a Google search about it, your screen blows up in confetti and rainbow flags. There are pride parades in just about every major city in the country. Major brands honor the LGBTQI+ community with special, rainbow-styled promotions to the extent that it can be difficult to not buy something celebrating Pride. Libraries, baseball teams, celebrities, and public schools all join in on the fun.

But is there really all that much to be proud of?

Health authorities assess that the recent spread of monkeypox can be traced to a May pride event in the Canary Islands that drew 80,000 people, as well as a gay sauna in Madrid. Three cases in Belgium were also linked to a large fetish festival in Antwerp, according to event organizers. According to the CDC, its not clear how the people were exposed to monkeypox, but early data suggest that gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men make up a high number of cases.

The Associated Press cited a senior adviser to the World Health Organization who described the unprecedented outbreak of monkeypox in developed countries as a random event that appears to have been caused by sexual activity at two recent raves in Europe. Most known cases in Europe have been among men who have sex with men. CNBC noted that monkeypox appears to be spreading in the [gay and bisexual] community globally. Even The Atlantic carried an article with the provocative headline: Gay Men Need a Specific Warning About Monkeypox.

This isnt exactly the kind of messaging that aligns with the family-friendly, children-friendly narrative of Pride promoters. Unlike the early days of the radical, avant-garde movement, which wanted to smash the bourgeois prisons of monogamy, capitalistic enterprise and patriotic values and bask in the warm sun of bohemian free love, Pride is now supposed to be associated with bourgeois, family values. As Rod Dreher observes, This is the dark side of this culture of freedom we have created. Monkeypox, anarchy, and the destruction of the human. If you dont think the legitimization of the sexual exploitation of children isnt coming next, you are living a fairy tale.

Speaking of which, that is exactly what the attempts to normalize the trans movement are doing. The now ubiquitous Drag Queen Story Hour (DQSH) gives trans persons the opportunity to perform borderline pornographic acts in front of young children. DQSHs own website explicitly says its goal is to capture the imagination and play of the gender fluidity of childhood and gives kids glamorous, positive, and unabashedly queer role models. As I noted in an article at The Federalist, these events often involve encouraging young children to play with drag queens and their bodies.

Incidents across the country are confirming the connection between DQSH and sexual grooming. The examples we know about include the former president of an organization that served as a sponsor for the Milwaukee Drag Queen Story Hour who was charged with possessing child pornography depicting the sexual abuse of underage boys and the Houston Public Library admitting a registered child sex offender to read to kids in a DQSH event. But its not just DQSH: Pride parade participants, liberal corporate media, liberal academics, and even schools have all been seeking to normalize pedophilia.

Add to that the aggressive media and school campaigns to encourage children to explore alternative gender identities, while hiding these programs from parents. The percentage of young Americans who identify as transgender is twenty times higher than that of the baby boomer generation. The number of school-aged children who say they are experiencing gender dysphoria has dramatically increased just in the last decade. As Abigail Shrier documents in her must-read book Irreversible Damage, an entire generation of young American females are being misled by educators and other school officials into pursuing hormone treatment and/or sexual reassignment surgery that have devastating lifelong consequences.

Yet our establishment elites are actively trying to silence voices like Shrier. Her book was removed by booksellers for its dangerous content. Ethics and Public Policy Center president Ryan T. Andersons book When Harry Became Sally was delisted from Amazon, which wont sell books framing any LGBTQ+ identities as mental illnesses. Many liberals have attempted to cancel and silence author J.K. Rowling because of her comments regarding transgenderism.

Leftist-dominated academia has also evinced an intolerance toward any concern or criticism regarding LGBTQI+ ideology. An LGBTQI+ student group at the University of London a few years ago suggested sending bigots to the gulags. Brown University distanced itself from a then-assistant-professor at their School of Public Health whose research discussed the role of social factors in the rise of gender dysphoria, following widespread backlash. When research by University of Texas sociologist Mark Regnerus showed that children of gay parents fared worse than children raised by married, opposite-sex parents, UT Austin initiated an inquiry to determine whether a formal investigation is needed. (The university found no plausible grounds for an investigation and closed the inquiry.)

In effect, the LGBTQI+ community and its supporters across all elite institutionsthe media, academia, the entertainment industry, woke capitalists, federal agencieshave created an intellectual climate that is fundamentally hostile to free speech and inquiry. Research and literature, no matter how carefully nuanced, that questions these sexual dogmas is immediately and mercilessly impugned for undermining the progress of the sexual revolution. For a movement purporting to support diversity and inclusion, the record suggests otherwise.

And its not just free speech that is under threat. As Ryan Anderson explained last year, the Equality Act, if passed, would enable the federal government to use the Civil Rights Act as a sword against any establishment that provides a good, service, or program, including religious institutions and medical professionals, that refuses to cooperate with the latest dictates of sexual orientation and gender identity. And lets not forget that in 2019 Democrat Beto ORourke, now running for governor in Texas, threatened to remove the tax-exempt status from any religious institution opposed to gay marriage.

Self-destructive hedonism, sexual grooming of children, and an intolerance that seeks to coerce opponents into subjection. These are the kinds of things that define the LGBTQI+ movement. It leads one to wonder: whats there to be proud of?

[Photo Credit: Unsplash]

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The Pride Movement Has Nothing to Be Proud Of - Crisis Magazine

David Bowie world fan convention, Clean Air Day ride along, High School Musical quiz, scary ghost hunt, Dionne Warwick live and more...

The sun is shining, the weather is sweet. Get out there and enjoy yourself. Heres a selection of activities on offer in the city for the weekend June 10 to June 13 and beyond.

Grease vs Dirty Dancing tribute cruise - Mersey Ferries

Ready for the time of your life? This is the one that you want! Sing and dance the night away to all of your favourite songs from both iconic movies, sung live by a group of talented performers. While blasting out the high notes of Summer Nights, you get to enjoy the spectacular views of Wirral and Liverpools world-famous waterfront, and theres a licensed bar serving up hot and cold food along the way. Thats on Friday, June 10. Tickets are priced at 20, and can be bought online.

Dionne Warwick - The Philharmonic

Legendary six-time Grammy award-winning recording artist Dionne Warwick is coming to the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall on Sunday, 12 June. Including a selection of classic songs such as 'I Say A Little Prayer', 'Do You Know The Way To San Jose', 'Anyone Who Had A Heart' and 'Walk On By'. She is one of the most-charted female vocalists of all time, with 56 of her singles making the Billboard Hot 100 between 1962 and 1998.

High School Musical quiz - Camp and Furnace

A High School Musical quiz is coming to Camp and Furnace on Saturday 11 June. Wildcats! Getcha head in the quiz! Are you ready to bop to the top of the leader board? Pop and lock and jam and break the record in HSM trivia? Then this is your moment to climb the ladder of success. Themed cocktails, loads of prizes and sing-alongs!

Ghost Hunt - abandoned Newsham Park Asylum and Orphanage

If you like to be scared, then this really is the place for you! Dusk Till Dawn Events invites you to spend the night ghost hunting at this extreme and terrifying location. This ghost hunt is sure to tick all the boxes for avid ghost hunters and anyone looking for the ultimate fear factor experience! More information on visitliverpool.com.

Clean Air Day ride along - Sefton Park

Voi e-scooters, national inclusive cycling charity, Wheels for All and Clean Cities Campaign, which campaigns for the zero-emission mobility, are coming together to celebrate Clean Air Day with a ride-along event, taking place on Thursday 16 June at Liverpools iconic Palm House in Sefton Park. According to the World Health Organisation and the UK government, air pollution is the largest environmental health risk communities face today, as it kills up to36,000people in the UK every year. The problem that can be tackled by replacing short car rides with active and greener modes of transport. New Voi riders offered 15 mins of free rides to celebrate Clean Air Day.

The George Harrison Story - Epstein Theatre

Something about George: The George Harrison Story is coming to The Epstein Theatre on Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 June. It tells the truly remarkable tale of one of music's most understated stars. Featuring beautiful songs like My Sweet Lord, Something, and Handle With Care, the show includes incredible solo material and music from rock 'n' roll's greatest supergroup. From heartbreak to hedonism and songwriting to success, Something About George will show you a life that was anything but quiet. It stars actor and musician Daniel Taylor.

David Bowie World Fan Convention - St Georges Hall

Sound City and David Bowie Glamour presents the David Bowie World Fan Convention! Coming to venues across Liverpool from 17-19 June, over the 50th Anniversary weekend of the release of Ziggy Stardust, an all-star line-up of David Bowies closest friends and collaborators come together exclusively to celebrate the Man Who Fell To Earth. Taking place in Liverpools iconic St Georges Hall, the weekend culminates in the Bowie Ball.

The Tudors: Passion, Power and Politics - Walker Art Gallery

Discover the conflict, scandal, and secrets at The Tudors: Passion, Power and Politics at The Walker Art Gallery. Featuring around one hundred objects with almost seventy works from the National Portrait Gallery. It is the first time such a significant number of these renowned portraits have been lent for exhibition. Presenting Henry VII, Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I, some of the most familiar figures from English history and instantly recognisable in the portraits that have preserved their likenesses for five hundred years. That runs until Monday August 29.

Radical Landscapes - Tate Liverpool

Tate Liverpools latest exhibition looks at climate emergency, activism and trespass. Radical Landscapes is a collection of over 150 paintings, sculptures, photographs, and films, taking a fresh look at the British Landscape and the art it inspires. Ruth Ewans Back to the Fields, brings live plants and trees into the heart of the exhibition. Thats open now and runs right through until September 4.

Kunichika: Japanese prints - Lady Lever

Kunichika: Japanese Prints is now on display at The Lady Lever Art Gallery. One of the most important 19th-century print makers in Japan, he was born in Tokyo. He was best known for his depictions of the Kabuki theatre, capturing the drama and excitement of scenes from popular plays and famous actors. More than 60 of Kunichikas hand-printed single, double and triptych prints feature in this exhibition, which is the first in a national gallery outside of Japan to focus on his work. Runs until September 4.

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What's on guide: from Dionne Warwick and ghost hunts to free e-scooter rides - LiverpoolWorld

Summer 2022 has already been deemed tepid vax summer and you could say its trends are following suit. The season seems to be dominated by one idea: party time. Gone are the tie-dye hoodies, sweatpants and shorts paired with slippers. In are the Y2K-tinged looks that offer a more dressed up point of view but with a side of slick sportif and a healthy dose of irreverent, look-at-me styling (think halter necks with minis and Western boots, cargo pants and corset tops, platform sandals and mini skirt sets).

The season still offers a slice of sleepiness, however, with the nap dress carrying over to its third summer (its smocked bodices and puffy sleeves being features that many of its ardent fans refuse to give up just yet plus the allure of cottagecore remains strong). And Birkenstocks two-strap Arizona sandal (and all of its knockoffs) remains a quiet must-have for any and everyone. Its followed up by its cousin, the more evergreen Boston clog, and a whole market of sensible clogs that continue to receive a glow up from fashion brands looking to strike a balance between style and a newfound sense of comfort that even die-hard trend followers dont want to give up.

Life may be back to a tentative sense of normal this summer and people are definitely getting dressed and dressed up again. But most are still trying to figure out what their post-pandemic personal style really is. Should they lean into the Y2K revival, with all of its chaotic trends (which are also defining some of the years bad fashion)? Or step out in something ultra sexy, with cutouts, glitz and platforms galore? Or play it safe with quieter trends that allude to a sense of hesitation in the push for normalcy (or perhaps just make more sense in a work-from-home environment)?

Whatever the reason, this summer plays into an overall duality of hedonism and caution that is defining life in 2022. Herewith, a look at eight of of the top fashion and footwear trends set to dominate the summer 22 season.

Yes, this is the summer of the cutout. For spring 22 collections, designers (including LaQuan Smith, the trends ruler) werent just dreaming of freedom from pandemic living. They were dreaming of a sense of sexuality on display, bound up in a trend that aims to free the body by restricting it with bands of fabric and strategic strips of flesh.

Cutouts at Paris Fashion Week in September 2021.

CREDIT: Kuba Dabrowski for WWD

Blame it on those Versaces. The Italian fashion houses Medusa Aevitas ankle strap platforms, done in a series of saturated, vibrant satins for fall 21 and now spring 22, have given way to a whole slew of like-minded heels, done in a slip-on mule style for summer ease and a pedestal or fluted heel for extra drama.

Versaces Medusa platforms on the street during Paris Fashion Week in October 2021. The style has morphed into a platform mule trend for summer 2022.

CREDIT: Kuba Dabrowski for WWD

Here comes the Y2K, full force. This slow-burning trend may have started with Buzzfeed-style jokes about the Abercrombie & Fitch styles worn in the early aughts. But a series of street style snaps of Hailey Bieber in her own low-rise, baggy cargos mean that everyone probably has a pair of these pants in their carts right now.

Bieber in Brooklyn on June 3, wearing a pair of low-rise, baggy cargo pants that are becoming a defining trend of summer 22 that is sure to continue into the fall.

CREDIT: WavyPeter / SplashNews.com

The living is supposed to be easy in the summer, as the famous lyric goes. Which is probably why no one wants to give up the nap dress just yet. Its smocked bodice and loose shape is brilliantly designed to hide sweat and general discomfort from the heat, while a puffed sleeve or ruffler shoulder gives just a hint of flair. The OG Nap Dress comes from Hill House Home, but plenty of brands have riffed on a similar idea of breeziness, from Ganni and Cecilie Bahnsen in Copenhagen to Batshevas Laura Ashley collaboration. The best part about the trend? No one really cares if its a few seasons old.

A puff-sleeved dress from Ganni at Copenhagen Fashion Week 2021. The romantic, relaxed fit of the dress is reminiscent of the nap dress trend, which continues into summer 2022.

CREDIT: Kuba Dabrowski for WWD

Another Y2K piece (whose origins go back much further), the corsets currency depends on its styling. The garment can act as a layering piece or be worn alone, but peak summer 22 is pairing it with those low-rise, baggy cargo pants, a look that Versace perfected on the runway for its fall 21 collection. Expect to see more of it on the red carpet this fall.

A corset layered on top of a dress at Ulla Johnson spring 22. The corset has become a key top silhouette for summer 22.

CREDIT: Rodin Banica.-2020

What goes around comes around, again and again, and the Western boot will likely always find a space in the fashion cycle. This time its less about the early aughts (when the boot found its niche with tiered, eyelet mini skirts, denim cutoffs and low-slung hip belts for a country-lite look a l Jessica Simpson, Britney Spears and Carrie Underwood). Instead, theres an 80s edge to the trend, paired with leather, stirrup leggings, sleeker minis and blazers.

Western boots with leather trousers at Milan Fashion Week in September 2021.

CREDIT: WWD

A holdover from the pandemic knitwear trend, crochet is the cozy sweaters wild-child cousin, its loose weave destined to make a statement by revealing more skin than its silhouette or hemline suggests. This summer, its done in everything from full-on midi and maxi dresses that evoke beachwear to mini and midi skirts (with or without panels underneath) and vintage-style crop tops. Expect crochet to carry over to next year, as resort collections such as Moschinos are already highlighting the knitwear.

Street style crochet at Copenhagen Fashion Week in August 2021.

CREDIT: Kuba Dabrowski for WWD

Like the platform heel, the coordinated set is a long-running trend that has come to define the era. Its details and silhouettes have shifted each season, from the pantsuit to the pajama set and everything in between. This spring and summer, its the mini skirt set no doubt inspired by a summer 21 photo opp from Olivia Rodrigo in a vintage Chanel suit (complete with those towering Versace Medusas). The mini comes with a matching bra top or cropped tank and a cardigan-style jacket thats all proof of the enduring influence of Cher Horowitz from Clueless.

Olivia Rodrigo at the White House in July 2021 wearing a vintage Chanel skirt suit (with platforms) that has kept the coordinated mini set trend going through this summer.

CREDIT: AP

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8 Fashion and Shoe Trends For Summer 2022 - Footwear News