In the late 19th Century, a British historian named John Emerich Edward Dalberg wrote a series of letters to a Catholic bishop.
In one of those letters, Dalberg (also known as Lord Acton) made the argument that moral standards should be applied to all men, regardless of political or religious affiliation. He penned this famous quote:
power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely
If only the good Lord were around today to witness what we are seeing in the state of Illinois.
Fast forward to the 21st century and we have an Evil Lord gobbling up power as if he were Super Pac-Man in the action maze.
The excellent Wood House newsletter wrote about the state of the state in an essay this week. The article outlines the misdeeds of Governor J.B. Pritzker in concise fashion. What’s frightening is how we are seeing all of this unfold in the year 2022. We have centuries before us to study the impact on populations under unchecked political rule. It never ends well for citizens of the state.
Yet in Illinois, we are seeing oppressive government rule right before our eyes. And an electorate that in the majority, appears to prefer that type of governance.
In 1887, Lord Acton first wrote of the corruptive nature of absolute power.
Almost a century and a half later, his words could not have been more prescient.
Let’s proceed with the Six.
1. Pritzker Suffocates Free Speech.
The pandemic may be “over” as our dull-witted president said a few weeks ago but the Pandemic Era remains. Pritzker used Covid to seize power and now, less than two months from mid-term elections, hopes of retention. This excellent piece from Real Clear Politics analyzes Pritzker’s bullying of the Daily Herald newspaper (shame on them for caving) in order to stifle criticism of his policies.
2. How YouTube Got Swamped With Creepy Content For Kids.
This is an excerpt published in The Guardian taken from a new book on YouTube where the author, Mark Bergen, chronicles the platform’s fraught relationship with children’s content – much of it strange, amateurish, or extremely creepy. How creepy? Some videos intended for kids fell into a category that YouTube staff called “borderline fetish.” A hair-raising piece.
3. The Disappearing Art of Maintenance.
A 21st century inclination towards built-in obsolescence is creating a world that is hard to maintain. As a result, we are losing the art of good maintenance, which – although expensive – can head off the need for repairs down the road. I was reminded of this when I had “descale” my coffee maker a few weeks ago and, until the descaling liquid arrived via Amazon, endured consecutive drive thru trips to Starbucks and about $22 lighter in my wallet. "Repair is when you fix something that’s already broken. Maintenance is about making something last,” says the article from the publication NOEMA. Eloquently written, but not always practical in practice.
4. MLS Franchise Evaluations Approach 1 Billion.
I was blown away by this stat – the average Major League Soccer team in the United States is worth $582 million. These are not Euro franchises, strictly American. The total market value of the 28 franchises in the league is $16.3 billion, and this year they’ll make a projected $1.6 billion in revenue. A bunch of that money is in Los Angeles – the L.A. Galaxy is worth $865 million and LAFC is worth $900 million – with other big metros including Atlanta ($855 million for the United) and Seattle ($725 million for the Sounders). One issue for the league is that big cities like New York, Chicago and Boston aren’t pulling their weight, and are all among the 12 least valuable teams. The Chicago MLS team has a bad stadium situation, which the Bears understand and are attempting to eradicate.
5. Stop Trying to Sleep. It Will Help You Sleep.
A sleep coach authors this story on The Guardian website (there are ‘sleep’ coaches?) She outlines the central contradiction of insomnia: the harder you try to sleep, the less likely you are to be able to do it. Creating elaborate rituals around bedtime contributes to a "frustrating cycle" of effort and failure. The only thing that truly works is to ignore the problem and thus reduce the fear of being awake. Essentially, the lesson of the article is to do the opposite of what instinct is telling you. I found that eliminating cups of Peet’s Major Dickason’s after 8 p.m. greatly contributes to sound sleep.
6. Street Shark During Hurricane Ian or Hoax?
Quite a bit of surreal video shot in the midst of Hurricane Ian this past week. One particular video went viral over the mystery of its legitimacy. This shows what appears to be a shark swimming in floodwaters near Ft. Myers, one coastal area ransacked by the storm. The video received over 12M views with numerous “Sharknado” references. Turns out, a real estate developer filmed the video and confirmed it with the Associated Press. No hoax after all.
Thanks for reading everybody and enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Have a suggestion for The Sunday Six? Send email to jonjkerr@gmail.com.