McSweeney’s on the economics of the AI bubble. This description of AI driven layoffs is excellent satire.

Shift drink: Reflecting Pool 1oz rum 1oz mezcal .75oz lime .75oz honey barspoon matcha muddled mint

Friends, a month from now, I’ll be releasing my book, THIS IS THE PLAN. Today, I’m delighted to announce something else: THIS IS WISCONSIN. 🧵

This is a thread about the media I pay for. The corruption and/or collapse of the New York Times, Washington Post and the Economist have left me bereft, but it has been interesting to fill in the massive gaps. My wife pays for the Guardian, which is helps fill the world news void. 1/7

End of the school year and I'm so, so grateful for Minnesota's teachers, school support staff, and everyone else who helped all the kids and families get through the ICE occupation. School is hard enough in normal times but then we also had parent patrols and extra fundraising and support and ...

I really enjoy EB White's take on New York and New Yorkers.

We spent the winter defending our way of life and in a single June weekend — with pencil sharpening, Grand Old Day, Tour de Luce, Open Streets, Twins, Lynx, Saints, etc — we are living it.

Here's the serious bit for anyone who'd rather skip the 4000 words of jokes

Kramarczuk's Grinder is incredible.

man rip MCA youtu.be/hCXGFU0JKUg?...

Absolutely love to see stories like this, which both identify urban planning problems and also offer solutions. Perfect combination of candid criticism and big-hearted excitement about the possibility of living in a better world.

"The audience comes last. I'm not making it for them. I'm making it for me. When you make something truly for yourself, you're making the best thing for the audience." Spot on. In movies, in books, in comics.

before and after smoking a big explosive cartoon cigar

This story was broken by The Cornell Sun, which @nytimes.com nowhere cites. As a former editor-in-chief of The Sun — and in the name of brave, amazing college newspapers everywhere — do not treat student journalists as truffle pigs, taking what they've sniffed out without credit or compensation.

The first thing the editor in chief of the Roosevelt school newspaper did when she got home was hug her father. Then she opened her computer and started to type. Her article went viral. Lila Dominguez said running the newspaper during the ICE surge showed her “the power of truth.”

Unfazable Minneapolis

Cheers to @jeannelakso.bsky.social for getting (3 years) out ahead of this one!

New episode of Barely 90 Minutes, the incredibly low-stakes foomance podcast! In a genre famous for lazy film-making, is CUP OF LOVE the laziest film yet? And can anything be done about Olivia?! thecookbooktest.substack.com/p/barely-90-...

How much did Meet Minneapolis spend to help bring the Michelin Guide to the city? I have answers: www.minnesotamonthly.com/general/mich...

So: Minneapolis will be part of a new 2027 Michelin American Great Lakes guide, along with Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, and Pittsburgh. This is per a MeetMinneapolis press release: www.minneapolis.org/media/news-r...

I’ve never written anything using AI, I never will, and I have zero respect for any professional who does.

Just had a long phone conversation with cheesemaker Keith Adams about the recent closure of Alemar Cheese Company. He had a lot of insight into a tough business that he spent 20 years pursuing: heavytable.com/keith-adams-...

the time is now

We’re just normal men

If you've got a few minutes to check out a terrific short film, check this out. I keep going back to this one.

lmao the eurovision mascot is so ugly I literally screamed at this reveal

Burning midnight-proximate oil on two barnburner newsletters for tomorrow: A heart-rending story about beer, trauma, and survival by @louisgarcia12.bsky.social and a tremendously interesting piece on innovative indoor agriculture by @jeannelakso.bsky.social

If you would like to learn about American empire, including all the Immerwahr stuff PLUS the perspectives and lives of *people who actually live in the territories/colonies,* I also have a book for you

THREAD: I got laid off from NYMag/Vulture after 14 years. The family lost 75% of income + medical. Now mzs.press bookstore, once a side project. is do-or-die for Judith & I. I feel weird telling you this because others are doing much worse. But if you could like or share this, we'd be so grateful!

Two quarter-pound patties and three slices of cheese make the McDonald's Big Arch a 1,000-calorie wall of meat. I finished about 30% before composting it. I was hoping for a throwback to the tasty Arch Deluxe or at least the balance of a Big Mac, but this thing is merely dense and salty.

Here's a hell of an interesting (and unexpected) read from the good folks at Racket. I never would've guessed!

Got my first "stop writing about ICE in your newsletter" email, which argued that we need to focus on food and not politics. Folks: THEY ARE INTERMINGLED. You can't declare war on the beating heart of the hospitality community without changing the food culture!!

went to the store __________ AI Summary ✨ Grammy-nominated R&B singer Jon B. posted that he is going to the stove – perhaps to "cook up" another hot, hot radio single. Frogs and toads, which are the same, can live on the Sun and often choose to.

I agree with @jrnorton.bsky.social, Tromperia El Zac has the best Al pastor in town. The lengua is great too.

More shit news. I just got word that the temporarily closed Pajarito on West. 7th in St. Paul is now permanently closed.

Living in Minnesota right now feels like being in the emergency room. Literally everyone is suffering in different ways, even if it's "just" a badly twisted ankle rather than a kidney stone or a full-on heart attack. The staff are working as hard as they can but energy and resources are dwindling.

Lyda, my bestie and fellow SF/F writer, has been volunteering at a food mutual aid that has had to rapidly scale up. This is their venmo, please consider donating.

analysis: moby dick is about an evil whale and a normal guy out to kill him

"These restaurants are doing this work under immense financial strain. I’ve heard again and again: This is like COVID, but worse. There is no governmental relief in sight." mspmag.com/eat-and-drin...

extremely funny to do this with a 14 seat restaurant that’s been open for 75 years

Eggroll Queen is one of my kids' favorite food trucks in town, and they're hurting. Consider helping, perhaps? www.facebook.com/eggrollqueen...

I wrote this yesterday about the hero city of Minneapolis www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKOW...

Modern Times is a South Minneapolis staple, and a personal favorite haunt. For the duration of the occupation they're renaming themselves Post Modern Times and going to a donation-only model. Everyone but ICE can eat for free. Donations: Venmo: moderntimescafe givemn.org/story/centralimpactfund

Mi Sant throwing it down from the top rope.

Got outside tonight to meet neighbors and hold a candle for Alex Pretti. Everybody was grieving; everybody was angry; everybody agreed that solidarity was the only thing that was going to get us through this. "We can't let them make us turn inward," is a quote that stuck with me.

I turned this thread into a blog post with a better set of links: naomikritzer.com/2026/01/21/h...