Our second cat, Tilly, who is still missing her dear departed sister.
A message from the Publisher
In what can only be described as an outrageous act of pure self-indulgence, this blogger proposes to take a week off in order to stomp around the Peak District hoping to avoid a mobile phone signal. His devoted readers (Whom God Preserve) may therefore also have a week off, and can feel liberated from the obligation to peruse the Long Read of the Day when they have better things to do! Normal service will be resumed on September 6.
Charlie Watts RIP
Nice and revealing 1966 interview, now fortunately on YouTube. I love his reply to the question of how being a success has influenced him as a person. “I no longer think, unfortunately, about spending £5”. It’s the ‘unfortunately’ that signals his intrinsic good sense and humanity.
Many thanks to James Miller for pointing that the interview was 30 years earlier than I had originally claimed!
Quote of the Day
”A celebrity is one who is known to many persons he is glad he doesn’t know.”
- H.L. Mencken
Musical alternative to the morning’s radio news
Jeff Lynne, Dhani Harrison and Joe Walsh | Something
There’s something moving about this. Maybe it’s the presence of George Harrison’s son on stage.
Long Read of the Day
Dead Marxists Society
Lovely New Statesman essay by Stuart Jeffries on how Theodor Adorno and the Frankfurt School failed to change the world.
Video of the Day
How the U.S. military response to the 9/11 attacks led to decades of war.
Sobering NYT video. Summed up by Einstein’s famous definition of insanity: continually doing the same thing and expecting different outcomes.
Worth the 12 minutes.
Electrifying a bike can be electrifyingly easy
Nice DIY guide by David Schneider. Before trying it at home, though, it’d be worth noting that it was published in IEEE Spectrum, a journal of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
This blog is also available as a daily newsletter. If you think this might suit you better why not sign up? One email a day, Monday through Friday, delivered to your inbox at 7am UK time. It’s free, and there’s a one-button unsubscribe if you conclude that your inbox is full enough already!