May 21

May 21 Weekly Roundup #29: Yanny vs. Laurel and a royal wedding

In case you missed it, Meghan and Harry got hitched this weekend. So that happened. In other news, MFM made The New York Times, ahhhhhhh!!

Reading

The Paris Wife, Paula McLain.

Bad Feminist, Roxane Gay.

Grisly Murders and Serial Killers? Ooh, Tell Me More, New York Times. “As she pet her three cats.” Dying. I fucking love them.

Millennials, Glossier, And The “Death” Of Drugstore Beauty, Nylon. They may well be repackaged drugstore products, but because said packaging is beautiful and appealing, you better believe I'll still be stocking up.

Japanese Rail Operator Says Sorry For 'Inexcusable' Departure 25 Seconds Early, NPR. Oh my god, if only the PATH and NJ Transit cared even a quarter this much, my life would be so much easier. They could honestly give two shits. No, one. One shit. I actually can't even fathom the life these Japanese commuters lead. My commute is filled with inner cursing, sweating, running, anger, frustration, it's a veritable cocktail of unhappiness.

Janelle Monae: How An Outsider Became a Visionary Superstar, Refinery29. Monae is such a beautiful, strong, creative essence that you can't quite put your finger on. I'm in awe of her.

Tom Wolfe, 88, ‘New Journalist’ With Electric Style and Acid Pen, Dies, The New York Times. He came up with "pushing the envelope." Can you even imagine coming up with such a phrase?? Your words living on through generations? Crazy.

Her Darkest Role: Actress Allison Mack's Descent From 'Smallville' to Sex Cult, The Hollywood Reporter. It's so sad to read the description of her at the beginning "a fan favorite with vivid green eyes and a bubbly charisma," and then cut to "12 years after that first meeting" when you know those years have not been good to her. But her actions are still inexcusable.

Loads of delicious cookie dough spilled onto a North Carolina highway, Mashable. I wouldn't mind rolling up on this accident...😛

Meet the Women Behind 7 of Our Favorite Start-Ups, PureWow. Uncharted Power sounds incredible.

Kristen Stewart Took Off Her Heels On The Cannes Red Carpet, Nylon. Girl, YES. I would do the same. I cannot do heels anymore.

Ryan Murphy Toys With a TV Show On #MeToo, COOLS. I would watch.

The Jaguar Is Made for the Age of Humans, The Atlantic. My brother used to be obsessed with jaguars, but I never appreciated what truly powerful and stunning creatures they are.

Mindfulness may have been over-hyped, BBC. Exactly what I've always thought, but I could just be relieved I don't necessarily have to learn to "quiet my mind" to lead a happy, healthy life. Basically, meditation is beneficial, but it may not be as important as people say. It certainly shouldn't replace things like therapy.

Multiple deaths in shooting at Texas' Santa Fe High School, sources say, CNN. You know what I did when seeing this notification pop up on my lock screen? I sighed, thinking "Seriously? Another one?" And then was immediately ashamed I've become so numb and desensitized to school shooting because I feel like I've seen so many in the news. We're oversaturated with tragedy and that, in itself, is a tragedy.

Starbucks faces more racism allegations after a barista wrote a slur on a Latino customer's cup, CNN. Holy shit, what kind of imbecile is that employee?! Are you fucking kidding?? You "couldn't understand what [name he] had told them" so you wrote that? Bullshit. So much bullshit. That employee is gone.

Joe Biden Urges Men To Confront Their Predatory Friends In New PSA, Nylon. I love Joe.

MTV Suspends ‘Catfish’ in Light of Sexual-Misconduct Claims, The Daily Beast. Okay, I'm actually shocked by this one. NEV! This better not be true because, ew, the story is vile.

Royal wedding: Meghan Markle, Prince Harry nuptials aren't cheered by everyone, NBC. I don't care if there's a monarchy or not, but I'm definitely in the "don't care about this wedding" bucket.

Groups sue to stop Iowa's 'fetal heartbeat' abortion ban, Reuters. What 👏🏼 the 👏🏼 fuck 👏🏼 Many (maybe MOST) women don't even know they're pregnant at six months. WHAT THE FUCK.

Expose Your Bra—It's the Next Big Thing in Female Empowerment, COOLS. Welp, I've already been doing this. Still not super into the PVC trend.

Dismembered human feet keep washing up on beaches in western Canada, CNN. I wish this was more interesting than it is. #murderino

Firms can't buy millennial loyalty, LinkedIn. "Factors like workplace diversity and flexible working arrangements are cited as ways to keep these workers loyal." Money can draw us in, but it won't keep us.

Almost half of US families can't afford basics like rent and food, CNN. And yet, our unemployment rate is at a 17-year low, so you would think we were doing okay, but a slow wage and job growth does not a successful economy make.

US births hit a 30-year low, despite good economy, ABC. Similar to above article. People can't afford children and women actually want to focus on their careers and *gasp* themselves (the horror!). I recently read an article that stated the best times to have children if women want to eventually (key word) close the wage gap is before 25 and after 35. Aka, your prime years should be spent focused on your career, not kids. Sooo...sorry, parents, guess you'll be grandparents a decade from now.

Mysterious rise in banned ozone-destroying chemical shocks scientists, The Guardian. Why. Why why WHY?! Why do people continue to not give two shits about our only planet. Yes, only. Until we discover some saving grace planet, this is the only one we have.

Scientists discover new evidence of plumes on Europa, a target in the search for life, The Washington Post. I find this so fascinating. And how cool would it be if there were lifeforms swimming around under that 15 mile thick ice?? The waiting space scientists have to do blows my mind. I do not have the patience they clearly possess. Also—"The tallest of the plumes was so powerful that it extended 120 miles above the moon's surface; Old Faithful, the famous geyser at Yellowstone, reaches 184 feet." 😱

Scientists 'transplant memories' between sea snails via injection, The Guardian. In other mind-blowing news, what?! If this really could lead to helping those with memory-related illnesses like Alzheimer's and PTSD, I'm all for it. If you've read Still Alice, you'll likely agree.

Senate passes measure repealing changes to net neutrality rules, CNN. YES!!! Too bad it doesn't really mean anything in the end.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Last Man Standing were saved from cancellation for the same reason, Vox. It's always about the money. Shocker.

Markle seeks respect for dad after report he’ll skip wedding, AP. I'll be the first to admit I don't get the whole uproar over a royal wedding. I like Meghan Markle, from what I know of her, but I'm certainly not waking up at a godforsaken hour to watch the wedding. Didn't do it for Kate Middleton either. So I don't get people prying, just let the family be, for god's sakes. Weddings are stressful enough as is without literally the entire world poking around and commenting on your private business.

New York politicians file formal complaint against lawyer whose racist rant went viral, NBC. More racist POSs. His office's landlord kicked him out. LOL.

Caged Tiger at Florida high school prom causes uproar, USA Today. " 'Upon reflection, we regret the decision to have live animals at our prom,' said Principal David Pugh in a statement sent to ABC affiliate WPLG." Yeah, no shit.

Cate Blanchett and Kristen Stewart join silent women's protest on Cannes red carpet, The Guardian. I love the symbolic climb up the ladder.

Time travelers invited to Stephen Hawking send-off, Reuters. Love this. Although capping date of birth at 2038 is an interesting choice.

Michigan State University Reaches $500 Million Settlement With Nassar Abuse Victims, NPR. Not that any amount will make up for the decades of abuse, but GOOD.

Democratic Lawmaker Gives Scott Pruitt Brutal Reality Check During Senate Hearing, Huffington Post. Lollll.

Trump says 'We'll see' on North Korea summit, to insist on denuclearization, Reuters. Is anyone surprised by North Korea? Anyone? Let me know if you honestly were, I want to converse with you and admire your innocence.

Amazon threatens to move jobs out of Seattle over new tax, The Guardian. Ah, yes, because you don't have the funds to pay for your part in increasingly impossible living costs.

Uber Will No Longer Force Sexual Assault Survivors Into Arbitration Or NDAs, NPR. Yeah...I'm not going to applaud Uber gaining some common decency.

'We vote!' North Carolina teachers walk out for higher pay, Reuters. And Teachers' Spring continues.

‘Major, major game-changer’: Ebola spreads to big Congo city, AP. Nope, nope, nope. Ebola terrifies me.

Revealed: Ecuador spent millions on spy operation for Julian Assange, The Guardian. I wonder if they think it was worth it?

U.S. identifies suspect in major leak of CIA hacking tools, The Washington Post. "A former CIA employee being held in a Manhattan jail on unrelated charges." Child porn. See ya in hell, Joshua Adam Schulte. 👋🏼

President Trump Just Acknowledged the Stormy Daniels Payoff in Campaign Paperwork, Time. Oh, I'm sorry. You mean Trump has been lying this whole time?? Who would've thought?!

Russian election meddling meant to help Trump, hurt Clinton, Senate Intelligence Committee finds, CNBC. Basically, it's what we've all known.

Supreme Court strikes down federal law prohibiting sports gambling, ESPN. I've been hearing about this while living in New Jersey, I'm not a big gambler personally, but I know some friends who are going to be psyched (while also wary of their future losses) about this.

White House says Trump ‘very clearly referring’ to MS-13 gang, not immigrants, PBS. Ehh, beg to differ on the clarity.

WH aide told Meghan McCain she would apologize publicly for morbid joke, but hasn't, CNN. What a disgusting excuse for a human. And McCain is right in wondering, what kind of environment is the White House that you can say something so despicable and not see any repercussions?

Senate votes to confirm Gina Haspel as next CIA director, ABC.

58 dead in Gaza protests as Israel fetes US Embassy move, AP. Including a baby... The Israeli military has continually gotten criticism for their excessive force, but the Cheeto in Chief's decision to move the embassy has only fanned the flames. More protestors = more violence, particularly against them. Meanwhile, the Trump administration throwing a party 50 miles away and Jared Kushner has to gall to put all the blame on the protestors.

Opening of US Embassy in Jerusalem: What to know, ABC. Basically, people are pissed.

Catalonia's lawmakers pick fervent separatist as new chief, ABC. By ONE vote, talk about stressful.

Palestinian president says U.S. can no longer broker peace, Reuters.

Trump Indonesia project is latest stop on China’s Belt and Road, South China Morning Post. Conflict of interest, anyone?

U.S. lawmakers push back on Trump talk of helping China's ZTE, Reuters. He's got an excuse for everything. 🙃

CBS sues Shari Redstone, its controlling shareholder, CNN. Those will be some awkward shareholder meetings...

Gap is the latest US company to apologize to China, but at the same time it's quietly protesting, Business Insider. I just keep thinking of all China's crazy sanctions and restrictions on its own citizens and I don't feel bad for them in this instance...