A lump of reluctance
The Pentagon is said to be preparing for weeks of ground operations in Iran—which in turn threatens peace talks. / The Washington Post [$], USA Today
Also reportedly on the table: somehow seizing Iran’s uranium, or as Donald Trump calls it, “the nuclear dust.” / The Wall Street Journal [$]
A ground assault is considered a folly even by hawkish ex-generals. / Jacobin
Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen join the war. / BBC News
“Everybody runs back to energy security.” With the Strait of Hormuz closed, countries turn to coal. / Heatmap
Japanese automakers source 70% of their processed aluminum from the Middle East, but probably not for much longer. / rest of world
The global economy has become dependent on the AI industry, but will the war grind its build-out to a halt? / The Atlantic [$]
See also: Blaming the Iran school bombing on AI is part of the “charisma machine.” / The Guardian
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This past month was the warmest March on record for half or more of the continental US. / Weather West
A strike at a Colorado meatpacking plant continues into its third week as an immigrant-heavy workforce rallies around safety. / Colorado Public Radio, Labor Notes
A large study finds young people who are relatively heavy cannabis users are more likely to be diagnosed later with a psychiatric disorder. / Johns Hopkins University
“A lump of reluctance.” Some examples of translated non-English Wikipedia articles about slang and idioms. / Instagram
Jess Cartner-Morley: Reading, quoting, and learning are ways to signal seriousness and curiosity right now without inviting backlash. / The Guardian
Thieves steal paintings by Renoir, Cézanne, and Matisse from a private museum in a “three-minute heist.” / The Art Newspaper
Neal Stephenson, who originally coined the term “metaverse,” reflects on Meta pulling the plug on its own version. / Graphomane
Unrelated: Some thoughts on how homeostasis applies to going jogging in the morning. / Meditations in an Emergency
And now a brief chat with a new Sustaining Member, Michael F.!
Hi, Michael. Thank you for supporting! How did you find us? It was the Tournament of Books. In my case, last year’s tournament was my first. That led me to TMN.
Terrific! Anything in particular about TMN that works for you? Although I am a fairly broad reader of newspapers, magazines, and now Substacks, TMN impressed me because I kept finding things there that I had not found elsewhere. I could probably pick any issue at random and point out two or three articles that caught my eye and that I otherwise would not have seen. All that and good old-fashioned guilt prompted me to say I shouldn’t go through a second ToB as a freeloader.
Well, we really appreciate it. Thank you again! Thanks for the good work.
In the members area, unlocked links from the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, and the Atlantic ↓