LongReads Round-Up Volume Twenty

"It Was Nice While It Lasted," by Rosa Brooks for Foreign Policy. This charming piece of dystopian satire comes from the year 2060. America is now a lawless land, bereft of government since the Tea Party shutdown of 2013. Canada has built a wall to keep out the hungry, uneducated Americans, as the wealthiest fled the country long ago. Hardworking American laborers in major cities can still find work at Chinese military bases, at least.  "In 2013, the new Tea Party wanted to put a stop to a government run by their own fellow citizens. Well, they got what they wanted: Now it's the Chinese who make the rules for Americans."

"White Girls," by Hilton Als for Guernica. Excerpted from Als's new essay collection on media and literature, race and relationships, this piece follows the story of a friendship he formed with another black man. Its a sprawling meditation on the intersections of race, privilege, and art. Als reflects on the character of a man he deeply loved and admired, and the lessons he learned from their friendship."Standing above me and around me I see how we are all the same, that none of us are white women or black men; rather, we’re a series of mouths, and that every mouth needs filling: with something wet or dry, like love, or unfamiliar and savory, like love."

"Den of the Dominatrix," by Maria Smilios for Narratively. Fascinating account of a woman's work as a fetish dominatrix in New York. From Catholic school girl to vegan activist to dominatrix, "Mistress Josie," as she is called in the article, has blasted boundaries and taboos from her childhood. Not for the squeamish, this article features some of the stranger kinks Mistress Josie deals out to her clients. "Everyone deserves kindness and nurturing, even the person with a most extreme or unusual fantasy."

"Jezebel Founding Editor Anna Holmes On Her New Book -- And How She Changed Women's Media," by Lori Leibovich for The Huffington Post. The pop culture and feminist politics website Jezebel has shaped the way women engage with the news over the past six years. With its range of subject matter, from celebrity gossip to serious reporting on issues such as rape culture and racism, Jezebel has pushed feminist discourse into the mainstream. In this interview Anna Holmes reveals some of the biggest challenges she faced as the editor, including the life-suck that working in social media causes. "We talked about feminism in a very matter-of-fact way, without apology, and hoped that the readers who were kind of like “eh” about it would come to regard it as a un-scary thing."

"Why I Stopped Writing Recommendation Letters for Teach for America," by Catherine Michna for Slate. Humanities professor Michna writes a scathing reproach of Teach for America and untrained young teachers entering underprivileged classrooms. Her critique of the program is similar in many ways to critiques of Peace Corps- how effective can it be to send generally young and inexperienced adults to a disenfranchised area for relatively short term work? She also explores the effects of charter schools on the education quality, and the way TFA furthers those negative aspects of charter schools. For once, I recommend reading the comments, which were overall insightful and provided a variety of viewpoints. "[TFA teachers] work in service of a corporate reform agenda that rids communities of veteran teachers, privatizes public schools, and forces a corporatized, data-driven culture upon unique low-income communities with unique dynamics and unique challenges."

"Love in the Gardens," by Zadie Smith for The New York Review of Books. Smith writes this beautiful essay on her love of public gardens for NYRB, that follows a parallel of her relationship with her father and his passing. Seeking the public gardens in Italy and France let her escape from some of the cross cultural confusions and conflicts faced during travel. A public garden offers a chance for a peaceful experience of space. "In Italy, where so many kinds of gates are closed to so many people, there is something especially beautiful in the freedom of a garden."

"Two-Hit Wonder," by D.T. Max for The New Yorker. This profile on Jack Dorsey, a co-founder of Twitter, tracks the rise of the social media tech maven since 2006. The particular and at times peculiar personalities of tech geniuses is a modern fascination. Dorsey does not disappoint, with his love of bare minimalism and public transportation. Charting Dorsey's interests and talents, with the knowledge that they will ultimately result in Twitter, is an intriguing game of foreshadowing. "Twitter—inspired by the text message—is all about immediacy and mobility, and so is Dorsey. "

"The Facebook divorce," by Amanda Fortini for Salon. Social media has impacted the way we express ourselves in all kinds of situations, including the end of relationships. Fortini explores the way divorcées rant, rave, and regret their dissolving marriages on the internet. She also discusses how Facebook and social media can affect legalities during divorce proceedings."Facebook is not like Las Vegas: What happens there rarely stays there."

"Meet the Fantasically Bejeweled Skeletons of Catholicism's Forgotten Martyrs," by Rachel Nuwer for Smithsonian's Past Imperfect blog. Just in time to inspire your glamorous Halloween dreams, this post on the new book Heavenly Bodies offers plenty of bejeweled skeletons that would be an excellent addition to a fabulous haunted house. Paul Koudounaris discovered the practice of bedazzling deceased Catholic saints while he was travelling in Germany. As a historian and photographer, the subject was fascinating, and he began to hunt down the catacombs and shrines that held these blinged out remains. "Each martyr’s skeleton represented the splendors that awaited the faithful in the afterlife."

LongReads Round-Up Volume Seventeen

"Gone Home: A Brilliant Example of How Less Can Be More in Video Games," by Leigh Alexander for The Atlantic. A new, quiet paced computer game is garnering critical acclaim. The small budget, narrative based game is being hailed as a step in a new frontier of popular gaming, focused on story telling and world building instead of extensive graphics or action. "Many developers have longed to incorporate literary storytelling elements into video games for a while now—but they often stick to the formulas of commercial action thrillers anyway." http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/09/-em-gone-home-em-a-brilliant-example-of-how-less-can-be-more-in-video-games/279464/

"America's Most Popular Podcast: What the Internet Did to Welcome to Night Vale," by Adam Carlson for The Awl. The strangest little podcast on the web exploded in popularity thanks to fervent fans on Tumblr spreading the viral word. The creators of 'Welcome to Night Vale' talk about the rise to being the number one podcast on iTunes, and if it fills The Void. "The "Night Vale" fan community is, as Cecil once described the condition of life itself, both 'proud and terrified.'" http://www.theawl.com/2013/07/americas-most-popular-podcast-what-the-internet-did-to-welcome-to-night-vale

"Anti-Rape Activist Group FORCE Was Behind the Fake Playboy Party List," by Tyler Kingkade for The Huffington Post. FORCE is doing modern age grassroot activism right. Last year they were leaving Consent Panties in drawers at Victoria's Secret and making a fake VS Pink website, and earlier this year they used Kickstarter to fund a memorial quilt (to cover the National Mall) for rape survivors. Check out the fake Playboy website they hosted to spread the word about consensual sex on college campuses. "'The world is safe for bros to be feminists too,' wrote BroBible's Andy Moore after the hoax was uncovered."  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/18/force-anti-rape-playboy-party_n_3944751.html

"Eat, Pray, Love, Get Rich, Write a Novel No One Expects," by Steve Almond for The New York Times. Elizabeth Gilbert criticizes the "chick lit ghetto" mentality, proves how hard she's hustled for her position as one of the best known American writers of the day, and takes us gardening. While she has written novels in the past, Gilbert is navigating the transition from blockbuster memoirs to historical adventure fiction. "The challenge she faces now is how to sell the pleasures of old-fashioned storytelling to masses who hunger for more personal disclosure. Millions of readers love Elizabeth Gilbert. The question is: Will they love her imagination?" http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/22/magazine/eat-pray-love-get-rich-write-a-novel-no-one-expects.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&

"CrossFit's Dirty Little Secret," by Eric Robertson for Medium. CrossFit is not just an exercise and fitness regime, its also an ethos and lifestyle. Sometimes, trying to meet the "maxed out" exercise goals runs intense physical risks to trainers' health. A physical therapist reviews the dangers of rhabdomyolysis caused by excessive CrossFit activities. "Still entrenched in the CrossFit culture of deplete, endure, repeat, she quieted the alarms and stoically pressed on to go to work. It didn’t take long to realize she not only couldn’t bend her arms, they also had no strength." https://medium.com/health-fitness-1/97bcce70356d

"How Much Are They Paying You for This Shit," by Alice Hines for n + 1. Hines sits through Wal-Mart's annual Shareholders Meeting, where fourteen thousand employees of the corporation gather for a healthy dose of company indoctrination. She captures the heady loyalty the employees hold for the company, while illuminating some of the less savory aspects of the Wal-Mart culture. "Given the world outside their stores, it’s likely that associates aren’t so much brainwashed by Walmart as they are grateful to have any job, whether or not it includes a free vacation."  http://nplusonemag.com/how-much-are-they-paying-you-for-this-shit

"Sex trade victims struggle to reintegrate," by Maher Sattar for Al Jazeera. Truly heartbreaking, this brief article offers the difficulties so many child victims encounter trying to reenter normal life after escaping sex trafficking in South East Asia. The sad reality is that for many victims, sex trafficking is a vicious circle perpetuated by family members, poverty, and lack of resources to successfully rehabilitate and assist those most vulnerable."[Victims] face a massive struggle to reintegrate into a social structure that stigmatises them, and in many cases treats them like criminals and illegal immigrants." http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2013/09/2013918102223875988.html

"Angie the Revolutionary," by Paul Hockenos for Foreign Policy. Surveying Chancellor Angela Merkel's rise to power in Germany, and how she has shaped and steered the country into new frontiers. Her contributions to family and work policies are nothing short of revolutionary, especially coming from Germany's conservative party, while she has managed to insulate the country during a massive economic crash. Entering a third term on the wave of a rapidly mordernizing CDU party, Merkel is being observed around the world. " A woman in the chancellery, taking over from a daunting pantheon of ego-driven alpha males, was a coup of vast proportions and one that resonated positively with the German public -- especially women." http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2013/09/18/angie_the_revolutionary_germany_angela_merkel?page=full

"A Big Heart Open to God," by Antionio Spadaro for America. Pope Francis has been making headlines around the world with his open, progressive views of humanity. As the first Jesuit priest ever to be made Pope, he gave an exclusive interview to Jesuit publications, including America magazine. He speaks about the influence of the Jesuit Society in his theology, his thoughts on the future of the church, and mentions loving the films of Fellini and corresponding with Borges. "I have a dogmatic certainty: God is in every person’s life... You can, you must try to seek God in every human life."  http://www.americamagazine.org/pope-interview