Sea Level & The Thin Purple Line

Featured Articles

Our Very Strange Search for “Sea Level”

The New Yorker • 19 Aug 2024 • ~3250 words • Archive Link

What does “sea level” really mean in a world where oceans constantly shift? This engaging piece delves into the historical and social constructs behind this measurement, revealing how our understanding of sea level is tied to human ingenuity, colonial ambitions, and the ongoing climate crisis. It’s a story that challenges our perceptions of stability in a dynamic world.

After decades of meetings, the effort to choose a single vertical datum for Europe quietly washed out. But height above sea level had by then become a common measure. It’s just that the specifics of what this meant continued to depend on where you were.

The Thin Purple Line

Harper's Magazine • 19 Aug 2024 • ~6700 words • Archive Link

This piece dives into the world of security guards, exploring their paradoxical roles in a society increasingly fraught with violence and fear. Through personal experience and societal commentary, this story reveals the tensions between their perceived authority and the reality of their training and responsibilities. It raises important questions about who truly protects us and the urgent need for reform in an often-overlooked industry.

Yet while guards lack the training and public oversight of cops, they are increasingly coming to resemble them. A few years ago, the industry went so far as to co-opt the “thin blue line” of the police, choosing the color purple to represent security guards. The “thin purple line” has unofficially upgraded the guard to the echelon of first responder.

Recommended Articles

Strange and wondrous creatures: plankton and the origins of life on Earth

the Guardian • 20 Aug 2024 • ~3350 words

Plankton may be tiny, but they play a colossal role in our planet's health and history. This article takes you on a journey into the world of these microscopic creatures, revealing how their existence shapes everything from ocean ecosystems to the very air we breathe. Dive in to discover the wonders of plankton and their indispensable contribution to life on Earth.

If plankton had not infused the sea and air with oxygen, modulated ocean chemistry and become key regulators of global climate, there would never have been forests, grasslands or wildflowers, nor dinosaurs, mammoths and whales . . . If plankton did not exist, Earth would have no complex life of any kind.

A Military School for Troubled Teens Became a “Living Nightmare”

The Walrus • 20 Aug 2024 • ~3850 words

In this investigation, Rachel Browne sheds light on Robert Land Academy, a military-style school that promised to reform troubled teens but has faced serious allegations from former students. Their harrowing accounts of abuse, humiliation, and a culture of fear raise critical questions about these types of institutions and the darker side beyond their promise of reform.

The former students’ stories, and their previously unreported lawsuits, echo growing concerns over North America’s largely unregulated “troubled teen industry” as mental health and behavioural issues among young people are on the rise, leaving many parents and caregivers desperate for what they are sold as a lifeline to help improve the lives of their children.

Public Ownership of Public Goods

hamiltonnolan.com • 17 Aug 2024 • ~2000 words

In this post, Hamilton Nolan challenges us to reconsider the boundaries between public and private ownership of essential services. He argues that, like fire departments, many vital goods should be publicly owned to prioritize community well-being over profit. This piece invites us to rethink the boundaries between public and private and imagine a future where the public good takes precedence over private profit.

Within the group of “Things that everyone needs more or less equally,” why is there such an arbitrary division between the publicly run things and the private ones? Why do we get firefighters, but not doctors? Why parks, but not stadiums?

Being Good Parents Means Having Hard Conversations

The MIT Press Reader • 19 Aug 2024 • ~2750 words

Parenting in the 21st century presents unique challenges as our children face complex issues like racism, sexism, and the climate crisis. In this excerpt from Elizabeth Cripps’ book, parenting experts share insights on balancing honesty and protection, emphasizing the importance of preparing children for the realities they'll face, while still nurturing their childhood.

But in presenting these unpalatable truths, it’s essential to distinguish between individual and collective responsibility. Harvey’s daughter, confused by another incident at school, asked her, “Am I racist?” But it’s the system we live in that’s racist. If your children are privileged — and mine are, I know — they must learn to understand that, without hating themselves for it.

The Case for a Clean Energy Marshall Plan

Foreign Affairs • 20 Aug 2024 • ~5150 words • Archive Link

What if the U.S. could leverage its clean energy innovations to reshape global markets while boosting domestic jobs? This piece from Foreign Affairs makes the case for a new Clean Energy Marshall Plan, drawing parallels with the original postwar initiative. It explores how such a plan could drive the global transition to clean energy and secure a more balanced trade system, benefiting both American industries and developing nations.

The Marshall Plan underscored the importance of using trade policy to advance U.S. interests: it required European countries to integrate their economies and to remove trade barriers as a means of expanding U.S. exports, promoting capitalism, and warding off communism. A Clean Energy Marshall Plan should help lead a coalition to elicit a more balanced global trading system.

‘The Blind Side’ Made Him Famous. But He Has a Different Story to Tell.

New York Times • 18 Aug 2024 • ~7000 words • Archive Link

Michael Oher, the football player whose life inspired “The Blind Side,” now shares his perspective on how the story was shaped around him. He discusses his complicated relationship with the Tuohy family and the misrepresentation of his childhood, highlighting the nuances often lost in the film's portrayal.

It was not always clear to me whether Oher felt betrayed more by the Tuohys or by the movie. This is understandable, given the extensive overlaps between the filmmakers and the Tuohy family. The movie was based on their friend’s book, produced by the company controlled by their daughter’s future father-in-law and executive-produced by his daughter.

'Little Guantánamo' Gets Bigger

The Nation • 19 Aug 2024 • ~4700 words • Archive Link

The Bureau of Prisons is quietly expanding its network of secretive "Communication Management Units" - often referred to as "Little Guantánamos." These highly restrictive units, which severely limit inmates' communication with the outside world, have been used to target and isolate Muslim prisoners, as well as other politically active individuals. This investigation sheds light on the troubling expansion of these controversial units and their troubling patterns of abuse.

. . . the units, sometimes called “Little Guantánamo” or “Guantánamo North,” were originally built to house people the federal government alleged had connections to international terrorism. The units, located as separate sections within two federal prisons in Marion, Illinois, and Terre Haute, Indiana, consist of single cells where people are held in isolation and subjected to intense surveillance and monitoring.

Foule’s Gold

n+1 • 18 Aug 2024 • ~4500 words

This piece dives into the "compact games" strategy used for the Olympics in Paris. It relies on existing venues and sustainable practices to minimize costs and environmental impact. It is an interesting look at how Paris may have redefined what it means to host the Olympics.

The key strategy at play is what Hidalgo called the “compact games.” To avoid overpromising on “legacy” architectural projects that would only add to the world’s surplus of single-use, single-sport stadiums, Paris would rely instead on existing spaces in the center-city.