How’s everyone’s weekend going? Thanks for spending a portion of it with the Six.
Busy holiday weekend. Hope everyone is out and enjoying the good weather.
I’m dusting off the golf clubs and mourning the end of “Succession” (wishing for Cousin Greg to get the throne but betting on Kendall).
Let’s get right to the Six.
1. How BLM Got Police Violence Wrong.
At the conclusion of Barack Obama’s first term, the terms “reparations” or “restorative justice” were not part of our every day lives. The data showed that police shootings were not that common and polling revealed that blacks and whites believed that racial relations were better. But that all shifted about a decade ago. “The Great Awokening” occurred in the trail of the Ferguson riots and “hands up, don’t shoot.” Since then, phrases like “systematic racism” are repeated daily in various forms of media and the Art of the Race Hustle is a thriving business. Yet the numbers tell a different story, how there is no evidence of things getting worse since 2013 and 2014. What’s different is the marketing and acceptance by segments of the population that racial oppression is an institutionalized apparatus throughout American culture. Real Clear Investigations with an excellent piece on how organizations Black Lives Matter, with assistance from progressive media outlets, were successful in attempts to “promote pessimistic narratives that are not well-grounded in data” and thus, extort millions from corporations and white progressives.
2. Rise, Fall and Potential Political Resurrection of Ron DeSantis.
After months and months of anticipation, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis made it official this week: he’s running for president. He did so in the most 2023 way, by talking to Elon Musk on Twitter (a few technical glitches aside). Polls show that Trump is way ahead of DeSantis and there’s some chatter that Trump has all-but-sewn up the GOP 2024 nomination. Is there time for the former naval officer and Ivy League law school grad to defeat Trumpism once and for all and win the hearts and minds of conservatives in the heartland and urban moderates? Yes, according to the newsletter 538.
3. Football Bonded Them. It’s Violence Tore Them Apart.
Chris Nowinski and Chris Eitzmann were Harvard roommates and Crimson teammates. They bonded over their love of football––and soon came to love each other. But a trailblazing national campaign about concussions, CTE and the game’s safety, led in large part by Nowinski, tested their friendship––and the nostalgic bonds they shared with their teammates. Then Eitzmann died a year ago after being diagnosed with severe Stage 2 CTE. Now Nowinski can’t help wonder whether his friend’s fate awaits him. A fantastic piece of narrative storytelling by the always terrific Kent Babb of the Washington Post.
4. In Debate Competition, Debate No Longer Allowed.
A really good personal essay from The Free Press on the stifling of speech in high school debate competitions. The irony of that statement shouldn’t be all that unsurprising when considering the seemingly weekly incidents on college campuses as it pertains to interpreting the First Amendment. From the article, one judge admonishes debaters with this demand: “If you are discussing immigrants in a round and describe the person as ‘illegal,’ I will immediately stop the round, give you the loss with low speaks”—low speaker points—“give you a stern lecture, and then talk to your coach. . . I will not have you making the debate space unsafe.” Add the National Speech and Debate Association to the long list of public institutions that should be burned to the ground.
5. The Dave Matthews Guide to Living and Dying.
A singer profile from GQ on the life and times of Dave Matthews, now 56 years old. Matthews, the founder of the Dave Matthews Band, talks candidly about work, life, popularity, mortality, you name it. It’s a deep burrowed piece, full of wonderful insights on a musician who doesn’t quite understand his own fame and success and doesn’t seem to spend all that much time naval gazing about it. That’s for the best; just keep plugging away, Dave, and sing “Jimi Thing” all summer long to massive crowds countrywide. I’ve attended well over a dozen DMB shows over the years but don’t consider myself a Dave Head (rarely stream his music). He’s an experience one must take in live to understand. Totally worth it if haven’t gone to a DMB show. But pack for the long haul. It’s an endurance test.
6. Rest In Peace, Tina Turner.
What a life, Tina Turner. The 1980’s is when she became a pop icon and one of the most successful touring acts of all time. But Turner had another career well before “What’s Love Got To Do With It.” This clip is her performing in her 1970’s neo-colored glory. #RIPTina. The music lives on.
Thanks for reading everybody and enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Have a suggestion for The Sunday Six? Send email to jonjkerr@gmail.com.