These days, I'd never quote a Woody Allen joke from his standup days, but if I did, it would be this one: "My father worked for the same firm for twelve years. They fired him. They replaced him with a tiny gadget - this big - that does everything my father does, only it does it much better. The depressing thing is, my mother ran out and bought one." For Gen X, this joke hits hard. But it doesn't quite get how bad some folks in creative fields feel. It's not just that they've been fired and replaced by technology. They were the generation that created the technologies that threaten their obsolescence. Steven Kurtz in the NYT (Gift Article): "It’s the end of work as we knew it ... and I feel... powerless to fight the technology that we pioneered ... nostalgic for a world that moved on without us ... after decades of paying our dues ... for a payday that never came ... so yeah, not exactly fine." The Gen X Career Meltdown. "Every generation has its burdens. The particular plight of Gen X is to have grown up in one world only to hit middle age in a strange new land. It’s as if they were making candlesticks when electricity came in. The market value of their skills plummeted." (And, of course, the pace of plummeting has reached escape velocity with the rise of AI. This is part of the reason why the only assistant I use is Siri. That way I still feel superior to the technology.)
+ Here at NextDraft HQ (my bed, next to my beagles), I still roll my own blunt takes on the day's news. And my longtime designer/friend Bryan Bell is still creating our T-shirts with a human touch. Our latest excellent offering, Fact Around and Find Out, is available as a shirt, hoodie, or pullover sweatshirt, and even a coffee tumbler. This and more is available in the NextDraft store.
+ I don't make any profit off the NextDraft store (in keeping with my newsletter writing revenue model). But for today, for every item you purchase, I will personally donate $25 to Protect Democracy, "a cross-ideological nonprofit group dedicated to defeating the authoritarian threat, building more resilient democratic institutions, and protecting our freedom and liberal democracy." That makes this a good time for you to learn more about them. After you've scored some new gear...
2
Lunch Breaking
In an interview with NBC, Trump wouldn't rule out seeking a third term in the White House. Hmm, I wonder if he'd cheat in an election, demand state officials find him thousands of votes, lie constantly about winning, lead an armed insurrection to keep his opponent's victory from being certified, pardon those insurrectionists, and then staff his new administration exclusively with loyalists, all of whom have repeated the Big Lie? Of course he's planning to stay in the White House, and of course no one in his current administration will try to stop him. The big question is how other government and corporate institutions will respond to threats to our democracy. The answers to that question so far have been decidedly mixed (at best). Politico: The Great Grovel: How Trump forced elite institutions to bend to his will. (As this article details, the word "forced" is not quite accurate.) "The details are varied but two themes are consistent. The first is an effort — far more organized and disciplined than any precedent from Trump’s first term — to bring institutions who have earned the president’s ire to heel. The second theme is even more surprising: The swiftness with which supposedly powerful and supposedly independent institutions have responded — with something akin to the trembling acquiescence of a child surrendering his lunch money to a big kid on the morning walk to school." (To hammer home the analogy, Trump is literally cutting school lunch funding.)
+ The New Yorker's David Remnick talks to Sen Chris Murphy about Trump's attacks on universities and law firms (and their responses): "This is how democracy dies. Everybody just gets scared. You make a few examples, and everyone else just decides to comply." We Are Sleepwalking Into Autocracy. (Not all of us. I haven't been able to sleep for weeks.)
+ "Lawyers and big firms: For God’s sake, stand up for the legal profession, and for the Constitution. Defend the oath you took when you became officers of the court. If we stand together and fight, we will win." NYT (Gift Article): Our Law Firm Won’t Cave to Trump. Who Will Join Us?
+ Ian Bassin: Why collective action is the only way. "Autocrats succeed when their targets stay isolated. They fail when people and institutions unite. The choice is stark. Stay silent and watch the system collapse — or stand together and survive."
+ The latest disappointment: The White House Correspondents Association Speaks Cowardice to Power. "The White House Correspondents’ Association has canceled plans to have comedian Amber Ruffin perform at its annual dinner on April 26."
3
Before the Partnership Sailed
"In the early days after Russia’s armies crossed into Ukraine, two Ukrainian generals journeyed from Kyiv under diplomatic cover on a secret mission. At the U.S. military garrison in Wiesbaden, Germany, they sealed a partnership that would bring America into the war far more intimately than previously known." Adam Entous in the NYT (Gift Article): The Partnership: The Secret History of the War in Ukraine. "This is the untold story of America’s hidden role in Ukrainian military operations against Russia’s invading armies." (And a bygone era when American leaders blamed Russia and Putin for the war they started.)
4
It's All About the Girth
"Early in the 2023 season, Aaron Leanhardt started asking New York Yankees hitters what they needed to perform better ... An MIT-educated physics professor at the University of Michigan for seven years, Leanhardt left academia for athletics specifically to solve these sorts of problems. And as he spoke with more players, the framework of a solution began to reveal itself. With strikeouts at an all-time high, hitters wanted to counter that by making more contact. And the easiest way to do so, Leanhardt surmised, was to increase the size of the barrel on their bat ... The bat had its big debut over the weekend, as the Yankees tied a major league record with 15 home runs over their first three games." ESPN: What is a torpedo bat? Inside MLB's next big thing. (Finally, an edge for the Yankees...)
5
Extra, Extra
Jet Lag: "The F-35, a fifth-generation fighter, was developed in partnership with eight countries, making it a model of international cooperation. When President Trump introduced its successor, the F-47, he praised its strengths — and said the version sold to allies would be deliberately downgraded. That made sense, Mr. Trump said last week, 'because someday, maybe they’re not our allies.'" (Nothing can make that happen quicker than relentless talk like that.) NYT (Gift Article): How Trump Supercharged Distrust, Driving U.S. Allies Away. No ally has been more offended than our closest one. WSJ (Gift Article): No More Mr. Nice Guy. In Fighting Trump, Canada Presents Mr. Elbows. "Nation draws inspiration from hockey legend Gordie Howe’s rough style of play; Gretzky to the penalty box."
+ Another Shot to the System: "The stock moves come as Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, submitted his resignation letter Friday ... He oversaw the approval of vaccines and other biologic drugs, including gene therapies." Moderna and other vaccines stocks are down after the FDA's top vaccine official resigns. Then there's this: "First he downplayed a measles outbreak in Texas. Then he reportedly hired a trial-lawyer ally to work on a government study of the link between vaccines and autism. Now he has pushed out a top Food and Drug Administration official because he helped accelerate approval of the Covid vaccines." And that's from the WSJ editorial board. The Wall Street Journal Rakes RFK Jr. Over the Coals for Anti-Vaccine Efforts at HHS: ‘Our Worst Fears’ Are ‘Coming True.' (To quote Dennis Green: "They are who we thought they were.")
+ Help Wanted: "A U.S. team has yet to appear at the scene of the quake in the Southeast Asian nation, which occurred the same day the State Department informed thousands of employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development, which administers civilian foreign aid, that nearly all of their roles were being eliminated." (It's not just the humanity that matters. Others will fill the leadership void.) As Trump guts foreign aid, China and others lead Myanmar earthquake response.
+ Cheddar for Cheeseheads: "Musk has a personal stake in the outcome, too. Last year, his car company, Tesla, filed an application with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to open four dealerships in the state." The New Yorker: Why Is Elon Musk Trying to Buy a Wisconsin Supreme Court Seat? And from AP: Elon Musk hands out $1 million payments after Wisconsin Supreme Court declines request to stop him.
+ Marine Layer: French court bars far-right leader Marine Le Pen from public office for embezzlement.
+ Inspiring Words: A stroke survivor speaks again with the help of an experimental brain-computer implant.
+ Adolescence and Sensibility: "The smash hit Netflix drama — which has already provoked widespread debate for tackling the subjects of knife crime, toxic masculinity and the danger of online content on children — will now be made available alongside guides and resources for teachers, parents and carers to help them navigate the conversations that are raised." Adolescence’ Available to Stream in All U.K. Secondary Schoolsin Initiative Backed by Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
6
Bottom of the News
"The ferry ride from Helsinki’s city center to the island of Pihlajasaari takes only 10 minutes and deposits visitors at a playground of beaches, trails and rocky shoals excellent for sunbathing. But I had a different mission: to speak to a tree." Finland Says It Can Teach Tourists to Be Happy. Challenge Accepted.
+ Old-school metal braces are making a comeback.