Video: Tyehimba Jess reads “Negro Migration”
Tyehimba Jess, winner of the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for his collection Olio, was born in Detroit and earned his BA from the University of Chicago and his MFA from New York University. Jess is the rare poet who bridges slam and academic poetry, weaving elements of jazz, blues, history, and biography into his intensely lyrical verse.
Taison Bell, M.D.: Stop Playing Politics With People’s Lives
When people ask me what kind of physician I am, I simply say, “I’m the kind you hope to never have to meet.” I’m an intensivist, which means I deliver … Continue reading
Emily Dickinson: A Light Exists in Spring
A Light exists in Spring Not present on the Year At any other period – When March is scarcely here . A Color stands abroad On Solitary Fields That Science … Continue reading
Video: Karim Sulayman — I trust you
. Karim Sulayman is an Arab-American tenor from Chicago. Ten days after the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Sulayman teamed up with filmmaker Meredith Kaufman Younger to perform a trust experiment. … Continue reading
George Lakoff: Trump Tweets, Press Leaps.
. George Lakoff: Now that we understand how Trump uses Twitter to divert and distract, many of you have asked how we can respond. This handy chart by Greg Gibilisco … Continue reading
Hannah Arendt: On the use of lies as a political strategy
In an ever-changing, incomprehensible world the masses had reached the point where they would, at the same time, believe everything and nothing, think that everything was possible and that nothing … Continue reading
Doug Anderson: Live Myth
I would believe in the unicorn if it stood heaving and slathered, snapping flies off its flank with its tail. It does not smell of sweat and stable, does not … Continue reading
Michael Simms: The Very American Poetry of Jose Padua
What are poets for in destitute times? — Hölderlin . Every poem is a subversive act. In an age when our senses are benumbed by competing media screaming for our … Continue reading
Video: The Moth — Janna Levin “Life on a Möbius Strip”
In this performance from The Moth, a young astrophysicist tells a story about an improbable love affair and its parallels with her research into black holes and finite mathematics.
Audio: Leon Redbone & Zooey Deschanel — “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”
Leon Redbone and Zooey Deschanel have fun covering this American classic written by Frank Loesser in 1944. Although a perennial holiday favorite, the song has become controversial in recent years.
Edna St. Vincent Millay: First Fig
My candle burns at both ends; It will not last the night; But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends— It gives a lovely light! . Edna St. Vincent Millay … Continue reading
Video: Women Wage Peace — “Prayer of the Mothers”
. First Published on Nov 15, 2016. Yael Deckelbaum, Lubna Salame, Daniel Rubin, Miriam Tukan, Rana choir, the Hebrews of Dimona and singers from all sectors and religions of Israeli society. … Continue reading
Stephen Dobyns: Napatree Point
A mile from where I live is a beach where in winter I walk the dog, console myself with the ocean’s beauty and ponder the imponderables, like what to do … Continue reading
Video: Leonard Cohen — “Hallelujah” sung in English and Hebrew
. Leonard Cohen’s official video for his live performance of Hallelujah. Email subscribers may click on the title of this post to watch the videos. . Hallelujah Now, I’ve heard … Continue reading
