Your Mid-Week Experiment
In which we are visited by the ghost of Ann Richards
My favorite response to last weekend’s essay about Mary Beth Rogers’ excellent memoir Hope and Hard Truth: A Life in Texas Politics, came from Roanna Flowers, who wrote for a trade magazine in Dallas about addiction and recovery in the late ‘90s. She was given an impossible task: get an interview with Ann Richards about being a recovering alcoholic. She sent a letter to Ann’s assistant, and wouldn’t you know it, she got a call from Ann herself.
And she said: “Well, you got me. Give it your best shot.” Then she lectured me about some aspects of my business letter that wasn't up to snuff and THEN said she wasn't interested in talking about her battle with alcoholism. With a lightning wit that came from God only knows where I said: “That's good. Because I don't want to talk about your battle with alcoholism.” She said: “Then what do you want to know?” I said: “I just have one question: what keeps you sober?” SILENCE. I made Ann Richards speechless for a good 15 seconds. And then she said: “Honey, that's a real good question.” I don't even remember the rest of the interview.
Lord, but Roanna really captured her voice. It’s like she’s right here again. Thanks, Roanna.
Let’s get to it.
—> “We used to refer to an information economy. But economies are defined by scarcity, not abundance (scarcity = value), and in an age of information abundance, what’s scarce? A: Attention. The scale of the world’s largest companies, the wealth of its richest people, and the power of governments are all rooted in the extraction, monetization, and custody of attention.” (Scott Galloway)
At some point, AI will get good enough that we’re going to find out how often police are just faking it. (The New York Times)
I am not unpersuaded that friendship yields better journalism. (Washington Post)
Remember when I wrote that an early draft of the pamphlet from The 1836 Project was surprisingly accurate about the role of slavery in Texas’ secession from Mexico? Well, it was unanimously approved! (Yahoo!)
“Fear of a Black Hobbit” (Adam Serwer)
The latest season of Atlanta reminds me of its chief virtue, which is affording me the privilege of watching a Black TV show made for a Black audience. (The Grio)
One of my favorite things about Carl Hiaasen is there’s always another book of his to read. (Basket Case)
“Memories of Nonc Tom’s” (Ron Stanford)
An Officer and a Gentleman came out when I was 12. I watched it again recently, and was shocked at how good it is in depicting toxic masculinity decades before we knew what that was about.
OK, I may have cried a little at this movie.
Don’t come expecting the television adaptation of A League of Their Own to reach the same pleasure centers as the movie.
Thanks to Noom, I lost 40 pounds over 2020-21 and have kept most of it off since then. Click on the blue box to get 20% off. Seriously, this works. No, this isn’t an ad. Yes, I really lost all that weight with Noom.
We set up a merch table in the back where you can get T-shirts, coffee mugs, and even tote bags now. Show the world that you’re part of The Experiment.
We’ve also got a tip jar, and I promise to waste every cent you give me on having fun, because writing this newsletter for you is some