November 14, 2016

A body-language expert analyzes Trump and Obama’s press conference. / dailymail.co.uk

“More Americans need to see more of the United States. They need to shake hands with a Muslim, or talk soccer with a middle aged lesbian, or attend a lecture by a female business executive.” An inadvertent case for a national service year, or really anything that would make sure that Americans have shared experiences and understand the breadth of our diversity. / Roll Call

Newt Gingrich said in June that he wanted to bring back the McCarthyist House Un-American Activities Committee. / CNN

A video worth revisiting, because it contains a totally real, 100% valid theory: President-elect Trump can’t read. / YouTube

“The values European humanists like to espouse belong just as easily to an African or an Asian who takes them up with enthusiasm as to a European. By that very logic, of course, they do not belong to a European who has not taken the trouble to understand and absorb them.” Kwame Anthony Appiah: “The West” is defined through a series of historical oppositions, each requiring oversimplification. Basically, there’s no such thing as “the West.” / Guardian

Cities “arise upon ground of their own making.” In most large cities we stand on several feet of our forebears’ trash, bones, and even bomb debris. But “it is rare for artificial ground to consist simply of the vertical accretion of historic layers, piled one upon another in situ,” because cities involve constant remixing and re-engineering of the ground beneath us. / placesjournal.org

In a series called L’Americaine, photographer Romaine Baro spent two years taking pictures of French cheerleaders. “For me it was a way to discover their world and who they really were. I met a lot of girls from different social backgrounds and few boys too. I asked them: what did you find in cheerleading? I’ve been captivated by their unique enthusiasm,” he said. / Romaine Baro, It’s Nice That

“While neoliberalism shifts the costs of its operations on the environment, workers, and their networks of care, platform cooperativism emphasizes the pleasures of cooperation and rejects the suggestion that the monopolistic adaptation of the Uber template is inevitable.” Wondering what the hell is “platform cooperativism?” A liveblog from a conference on the subject, as it’s realized in daycare, taxi, and microwork co-ops. / e-flux

1. A focus on some of the positive things that may come from Trump in the White House. / Marginal Revolution

2. “Moreover, there are signs Mr. Trump would like to focus on fiscal policy and leave the Fed to its devices,” which is very likely a good thing. / The New York Times

3. “What Drives Miss Ann? I’m Glad You Asked.” On the voting power of an overlooked bloc, the Miss Anns, a racist white female update to Bush’s vaunted “security moms.” / The Root

If your mood still isn’t there yet, perhaps take consolation in “Fuck Everything and Blame Everyone,” or a polemic against insular coastal media professionals (“If people didn’t listen to your reporting about Trump, if you couldn’t motivate voters to change despite his mountains of disqualifying baggage, it’s because no one likes you”), or the past week in wildlife photos. / Deadspin, fredrikdeboer.com, The Guardian

California was the first state to charge customers 10 cents for plastic bags, and now it is the first state to ban single-use plastic bags completely. / Los Angeles Times

In times of crisis, many turn to poetry for comfort—and also for galvanizing inspiration. The Guardian pulled together five poems to help counter despair—and apathy—in the days following Trump’s election. / The Guardian

“I was an illegitimate child and being picked to be a national poet is a pretty ‘legitimate’ thing.” Scotland’s first black national poet talks about adoption, belonging, and her country. / poetryfoundation.org

“We’ll see if we can reach some sort of consensus with our Democrat friends on how to make this repeal and replace. Clearly we don’t want to do any harm to people who are in the system now.” Congressional Republicans are divided over how far to go in repealing and/or replacing the Affordable Care Act. / The Hill

White House photographer Pete Souza has taken nearly two million pictures of President Obama. These are his favorite 50 from the last eight years. / The Sun

In no particular order, a list of things President Trump wants to do shortly after taking office, according to a deeply-reported September Evan Osnos feature: / The New Yorker

—Authorize the Keystone XL Pipeline (the new Canadian PM is a supporter) / The Guardian

—Follow through with his deportation promises—which he has already reaffirmed / cbsnews.com

Despite Trump’s rhetoric about the size of the government, many conservatives have rejected that notion in the face of his actual proposed policies. Altogether, it’s not difficult to make the argument that Trump wants to make his government even bigger. / Slate, The Atlantic

“People prefer warmer climates. They do better in them. People do better in Phoenix than they do in Buffalo. They feel better, they’re happier, they’re more productive. They live longer.” From a 2007 profile of Myron Ebell, the oil-funded professional climate skeptic who may very well be the next EPA administrator / Vanity Fair

“I actually have something I would use the Department of Education to do. It would be to monitor our institutions of higher education for extreme political bias and deny federal funding if it exists.” Potential Secretary of Education Ben Carson proposes turning the Department of Education into a spy agency to monitor lefty college kids. Sounds familiar. / The Glenn Beck Radio Program

President-elect Trump’s apparent desire for a huge government doesn’t jibe at all with House Speaker Paul Ryan’s agenda. / The Atlantic

“If one wanted to upend the whole [judicial] system, it would be foolish to do a full-frontal attack. Instead, go after a technical rule that’s so boring I don’t even teach it to my civil procedure class, but which affects everything.” A obscure change in the Supreme Court, with cascading consequences: Roberts’s rules will require plaintiffs to prove it isn’t burdensome for a company to provide information, regardless of materiality to a case. / American Prospect