Stream of Reading (Prepare to be Forwarded) – An Archive of What I'm Reading
There is a story—which is usually described as a poem but is more precisely a muddled version of a song written by the jazz singer Oscar Brown Jr.—that Donald Trump delights in reading to crowds at his campaign rallies. Trump refers to it as “The Snake” and his fans know it by that name. “Who…
Players from the Miami Dolphins protest during the national anthem before an NFL game against the Carolina Panthers, November 13, 2017. (AP Photo / Bob Leverone) In what has to rank among the worst ideas in the history of the National Football League—alongside decisions to cover up concussion research and ignore the issue of violence…
Since she was hired as CEO of Barstool Sports in July 2016, Erika Nardini has done countless interviews about the company’s growing revenue and “disruptive” business model of publishing misogyny because it’s fun. (Some greatest hits are in the video above.) In these press hits, Nardini shows herself to be a master of saying as little as…
As the dust has begun to settle following Conor McGregor’s bus attack at a UFC media event yesterday, it’s clear that UFC 223 is more or less ruined. McGregor has been charged with three misdemeanors and one criminal count of criminal mischief, and after spending the night in jail, he faces arraignment in a Brooklyn…
GIF When Ester Ledecká crossed the finish line of this morning’s run of the women’s Super-G a hundredth of a second ahead of reigning gold medalist Anna Veith, the Czech couldn’t believe she’d beaten the Austrian champ. Ledecká, after all, is best known for her achievements in a completely different event: snowboarding, where she’s won…
The French ice dancing team of Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron is our pick to win the event in Pyeongchang, but an unfortunate wardrobe malfunction today threatened to sink those chances, if not for Papadakis’s steely determination. IOC Papadakis told press after the performance that “it was pretty distracting… my worst nightmare happening at the…
There’s a premise built into the structure of the Olympics that pretty much every single Olympian, even those far down the standings, are elite athletes at the top of their game performing at a level most fans could only dream of. Freestyle skier Elizabeth Swaney is an affront to this notion, and her, um, laconic…
The run-up to this Winter Olympics has been beset by scandal, controversy, fights and cynicism, and none of that let up in the final hours before the opening ceremony on Friday. On a personal level, I was freezing cold and late on two deadlines. Also, I didn’t get dinner. In short, I was in no…
I’ve told a lot of stories about why I stopped hiking the Pacific Crest Trail at the 454 mile mark last summer, though I intended to hike the whole thing, all 2,650 miles from Mexico to Canada. They’re all versions of the truth. I missed my girlfriend, it’s true. I hurt my knee, yes,…
Updated | In the aftermath of the chaos that erupted in Philadelphia as Eagles fans tore through the streets celebrating their Super Bowl victory, many could not help but notice the difference in how the public and officials reacted to riots by fans compared to those prompted by civil unrest. “Somehow, it seems there’s a line drawn in…