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In my history in February 2025

Published on 28 February 2025 in In my history - Lire en français

I've run out of superlatives to describe what Trump and Musk have (un)done in just a few weeks. And above all to describe the general apathy, the lack of reaction to the fascism that is on the rise, everywhere, all the time. It would be more comfortable to just let it go, to tell ourselves that it can't be that bad, that there are safeguards, institutional locks… but that would also be wrong.

I had started to list articles about all the outrageous things that have happened in the US in recent weeks, about women and minorities being erased (sometimes literally, with paint on walls) from institutions, about websites being taken down because they are linked to minorities, about hasty (to put it politely) political decisions and their direct consequences on the lives of thousands of Americans. And then I changed my mind, because just listing the ignominies of Trump/Musk and getting depressed about the situation won't help. I don’t mind talking about it, of course, but I don’t want my interests to be dictated for the next 4 years at least by the obsessions of fascists.

So rather than just reacting to the political news, I'm going to try to focus on in-depth articles that put things into perspective, or trying to highlight words, or points of view from people we usually don't listen to. I don’t want to fall into the trap of showing the « small gestures » in a « this optimistic family has decided to make a good atmosphere their daily routine and it works! » way, as if fascism could be defeated with good humour and a bit of personal development. Of course, I don't forbid myself from reacting to certain news items, and from venting my frustrations in ways that aren't very productive, because sometimes that's the only possible reaction, but I've had my fill of performative indignation; and I have the impression that sometimes that's the reaction the far right wants, because if you put all your energy into that, there's no energy left for anything else.

Anyway, I digress, enjoy your reading!

Let's start with my ‘top 10’, the gems you shouldn't miss if you don't have the time to read everything!

#1

Music – In McCartney 3,2,1, we can see 3 hours of discussion between Paul McCartney and infamous producer Rick Rubin, and it’s absolutely fascinating. Together, they break down the Beatles’ greatest songs, McCartney explains how they came up with the idea of using this or that effect, how the people they worked with influenced them…

I really like the format, which is very simple: put two people passionate about music in a room full of instruments and mixing desks, and let them talk with all the passion that drives them. If you like the Beatles, or if you like to know how music is made, this is a must !

Watching this docuseries, I discovered a few Beatles' songs I didn't know yet, and reminded me of some I hadn't listen to in a long time, so if you're looking for me in the next few weeks, I'll probably be lost in their discography!

#2

Marketing – Another great video from Bolchegeek et Le Fils de pub

#3

Taking responsabilities – Safety concerns raised after Air Canada had no record these passengers were on its flights.

In short, Air Canada cancelled return tickets from Europe to Canada because they had no record of passengers on outbound flights, even though passengers had plenty of proof that they had taken the outbound flight (boarding passes, security passes, airport till receipts, and even selfies and till receipts on the plane). It took a court case for Air Canada to reverse its position.

This is just the latest example of ‘but the computer said so’. Because, of course, if the computer says so, it must be true. It can't be the result of an input error, a programme bug, or even a poor design choice, a bias on the part of the programme's creators.

I find this absolute confidence in computer technology, even in the face of irrefutable evidence, absolutely frightening. It's a mixture of ignorance of computing (with this image of the computer as neutral and necessarily right, when it's absolutely not), and a desire to place the responsibility on everyone but oneself.

And in the meantime, it's the users who suffer, sometimes with dramatic consequences, especially when it comes to public administrations.

And if we start adding AI to the mix, when its great speciality is to announce false things with great aplomb, I don't need to tell you the mess that will ensue.

#4

Typography – Typographer Rocco Barbaro has 2 websites, one personal and the other for his foundry / studio / shop, that he has with another typographer, Joseph Miceli. Both this websites are amongst the best websites I've seen recently. I especially like the interactions on the personal site.

#5

Rape culture –
« We talk about how many women were raped last year, not how many men raped women. We talk about how many girls in a school district were harassed last year, not about how many boys harassed girls. We talk about how many teenage girls in the state of Texas got pregnant last year, rather than how many boys and men impregnated teenage girls.
So you can see how the use of passive voice has political effect. It shifts the focus off of men and boys and onto girls and women. Even the term "violence against women" is problematic. It’s a passive construction; there’s no active agent in the sentence. It’s a bad thing that happens to women, but when you look at that term "violence against women," nobody is doing it to them. It just happens to them. Men aren’t even a part of it. »
Jackson Katz

#6

Library – One article wouldn't be enough to say all the good things I think about libraries. Because you can read or borrow books there, of course; but also because it's one of the few public places where you can spend time comfortably sheltered from the elements, free of charge. Because it is possible to access computers and the Internet, when these two things are taken for granted by all administrations despite the digital divide. Because the library staff are invaluable for all your research needs. The list is long.

And in Lyon, all subscriptions, including the ‘connexion’ which is free for everyone, give access to the library's ‘digital resources’, which include language courses, tutoring, video sports lessons (admittedly of rather variable quality, where the language course platform is very good), training for the highway code…

The paid library subscription (€18 per year full price) also includes :
  • online press (Cafeyn, Europresse & Mediapart)
  • the Arte & UniversCiné digital media library, with 3 film credits offered per month (and a significant number of films at 0 credits on the platform), with a very nice and varied catalogue
  • access to Tënk, a platform dedicated to documentaries, with a very good selection that changes a lot (6 new films and releases per week)

Last but not least, with the « carte culture » (38€ per year full price) you also have:

#7

Museum – Thanks to my carte culture, I visited the Museum of Fine-Arts, and as usual I indulged in my favorite thing to do in a museum: finding silly captions for the works or art. You can read my almost guided tour, guaranteed without any useful info on the paintings and sculptures here.

#8

Accessibility – Léonie Watson's conference at FFConf 2024, AI and Accessibility: the Good, the Bad, and the Bollocks, is really good:

#9

Teenage years – I've finally had a chance to watch all 10 episodes of Growing up. It's a documentary series, produced by Brie Larson, in which we listen to 10 young people talk about their teenage years, and what it was like for them to grow up. It's very sweet, sometimes sad, sometimes angry, but always tender. I really recommend it, especially if you need to make peace with your teenage self.

#10

Economy – If, like me, you're at a loss when it comes to economic issues and don't really know where to start, Heu7reka and Stupid Economics have launched a new format on Blast, L'Argent magique. I already recommended their video « Qui veut tuer les services publics? » (Who wants to kill public services?) last month, and this month I'm insisting on « Qui va rembourser la dette ? (spoiler alert : pas vos enfants) » (Who's going to pay off the debt? (spoiler alert: not your children)), because it's really important to understand all these concepts and their explanations are crystal clear.
  1. Ponzi – In The "exciting business opportunity" that ruined our lives, Andrea Pitzer looks back at Amway, and how their promises destroyed her mother.
  2. Mastodon – Wondering why Quote Posts take so long to arrive on Mastodon? Here's an explanation. I'd also recommend reading Renchap's interview with Mediapart, which is very clear on the current issues and risks: « Rien n’empêche Elon Musk de supprimer le compte X d’Emmanuel Macron » (litt.: ‘There's nothing to stop Elon Musk deleting Emmanuel Macron's X account’).
  3. Hype – I gave in and tried the « Marry me chicken », and I must admit the hype is well-earned — it's delicious!
  4. Typo – Bricolage grotesque, a nice variable font
  5. Musique – As someone who loves bass, of course I loved David Kushner the moment I heard the first impossibly low note:
  6. Recipe – I can't wait to try this! Keema (Spiced Ground Meat)
  7. Linguistique – There's a rule in spoken english which states that « fuckin’ » can only be inserted in a word before an accented syllable. For example:
    • fanTAstic => fan-fuckin-tastic
    • absoLUTEly => abso-fuckin-lutely
    • PhilaDELphia => phila-fuckin-delphia
    There you go, now you can be vulgar and grammatically correct!
  8. Rencontre – I believe in annoyed at first sight.
  9. Urbanism – This month, I watched two HuffPost videos on « La France moche » (litt. ‘Ugly France’), which I thought were a very good introduction to the subject: how shopping areas have invaded us in half a century and Saint-Brieuc, the town where ‘we've gone too far’ with shopping areas.
  10. Knitting – Designer Audrey Borrego has stopped making patterns professionally, and so has decided to give away all her patterns for free 👀
  11. Bakchich – France has fallen five places in Transparency International's annual Corruption Perceptions Index. For the first time, the country is classified as ‘at risk of losing control of corruption’.
  12. OISAUR ✊ – A fantastic thread on bird banding in the Jardin des plantes in Paris.
  13. Cinema – What if Oscars depended on Letterbox ratings?
  14. Lecture – I recognize myself a bit too much in this Tumblr exchange:

    inbetweenfictionandreality: "I waited too long to read the sequel, and now I can’t even remember the characters." A novel by me
    haliasjane: "I read the whole series in less than two days, and now can’t separate the events of individual books" the thrilling sequel

  15. Political exploitation – Murder of Louise: when far right medias reveal the full name of a suspect who was finally cleared. Those rapacious assholes are dangerous.
  16. Nerds – Um, actually is the perfect game for all the nerds who love to nitpick on the smallest details. The difference with the reply guys we hate so much in real life? In Um, actually, everyone present is absolutely delighted to hear about it! Episodes with Brennan Lee Mulligan are the best.
  17. Racism – « I was mistaken for an inmate » : three lawyers talk about the racism in their profession
  18. Links – Cool people link to text fragments, thanks to the syntax « #:~:text= ».
  19. Design – I really like this cassette support and player designed by Love Hultén!

Funny pics

Small pleasures

dried figs ♥ rediscovering a song I thought I knew by heart ♥ Lausanne ♥ chicken pot pie ♥ waking up to the sound of birds ♥ getting feedback on my articles ♥ blueberries ♥ going to a concert with some friends ♥ taking two naps in one day, just because I can ♥ Fantasy Realms ♥ decorating my living room ♥ oat milk latte ♥

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