In light of the VIDA count, and the LA Times’ snafu of posting a picture of Jonathan Franzen in an article re: the winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award, Jennifer Egan, under the heading “Egan Beats Franzen in National Book Critics Circle’s fiction prize,” I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what it [...]
Rebecca Lehmann
On Wednesday night, Republicans in the Wisconsin State Senate and Governor Scott Walker pushed through a portion of the Budget Repair Bill (perhaps illegally), effectively gutting the union rights of public workers in that state. I’ve been in communication with Morgan Harlow, a writer and photographer liv ing in Madison, who has been on the [...]
In between finishing my PhD, planning a wedding, and writing poetry, I’ve been trying my hardest to keep up on the pro-union rallies that have been happening in Madison, Wisconsin. I grew up in Wisconsin, and lived in Madison when I was an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin, and later for a year after [...]
For the past week and a half, protesters in Madison, Wisconsin, have been lined up outside and inside the state capitol building protesting Governor Scott Walker’s proposed budget and its attack on union rights. In addition to asking certain state workers to contribute more to their pensions and health insurance, the bill contains provisions which [...]
In the world of game shows, Jeopardy! is the closest Americans come to measuring genius in a tidy 30 minute Q&A format with a cash prize. In an attempt to make Jeopardy! seem as smarty-pants as chess, IBM has made a Jeopardy! playing computer named Watson, who will take on the two top Jeopardy! champions [...]
Florida’s recently (and narrowly) elected Governor Rick Scott has just unveiled his proposed state budget, which includes more than $3.3 billion in cuts to K-12 education. In addition to a $700 reduction in per-child funding, Scott intends to cut funding to after school clubs like Girl Scouts and Science Fair. One of the few places [...]