Category Archives: Zeitgeist Movement

Cancel Culture: Even India's independence struggle has been cancelled by an actress who hasnt figured out the difference between speaking right and leaning right Image Credit: Seyyed Llata

Legend has it that an apple once fell on Isaac Newtons head and changed scientific thinking. It also says to each their own. Centuries later, Cancel Culture- an extreme means of boycott, fell into the lap of a majoritarian India who made their own discovery -- of how to cancel a peoples faith, the cricket captain for supporting another players faith, a son because they felt he was more his fathers than his mothers faith and inclusive advertisements because these days, we have little faith.

Cancel Culture is a fairly recent phenomenon that originated in the West, but we are what the West was and today, our support for it puts even IPL cheerleaders to shame. It all began as a medium to call-out people- whether celebrities or students in school corridors to show dislike and also somewhere tilt- perceived or real- the winds of social injustice. Some say, it has also been intrinsic to the #MeToo movement.

But instead, powered by social media it became a means to shun people quicker than you could say woke and gave a free rein to online mobs- who in India are in a close finish with offline mobs- to ruin careers and send children to a therapists chair.

Globally, the backlash against this instant ostracism that cuts off people like even writer J K Rowling from the social milieu has made leaders including Obama and Trump speak out against how the ethos has been lost. Back home, it is flourishing by playing on a societys deep polarisation.

Paid trolls on social media

Today not just a Covid variant, cancel culture has also mutated into its own and is ubiquitous by its presence or in Covid parlance, has entered the endemic stage. The convenience of dispensing bigotry was never so mainstream and the ease of doing this business - paid trolls on social media will soon put even influencers out of business- means choice is just as dispensable as truth.

Cancel culture or the guise that it comes in, is a hard knock for a society that has always been proud of its secular credentials, realigning kismet through the stars may be easier.

Corporates are the new kids on the block facing a blackout. A snaking line of advertisements havent pleased the couch activists even though ironically these commercials showed inclusiveness. By withdrawing them after a social media outrage, corporates lost to intolerance and consumerism.

Dealing with a wrongdoing when the medium is all skewed is like believing a smog tower will solve Delhis pollution. The witch-hunt needs no broom to fly especially when hurting sentiments is almost as convenient as the cancel culture itself. We are living in an age of cancel creativity.

People find new reasons to cancel what was a left liberal kind of tactic in America and many other markets and societies and has moved self- consciously to the right here. Giving yourself a voice is lot easier now but what adds to the menace is that you have lot of rabble rousers on the sidelines waiting to pounce, brand and image guru Dilip Cherian tells me.

Changed body politic

He agrees that things could get worse before they get better. We havent seen the end of it, and we are some distance from the peak, and have to buckle in for a rough ride for a while more. Much like a virus will run its course through the body, this too will run its course through the body politic but the body politic may be changed forever.

The biggest name to be cancelled - there has been no lack of trying to erase his very existence - has been the countrys first prime minister, Jawahar Lal Nehru. At his birth anniversary recently, no top ministers were present in the halls of Parliament where Nehru had historically promised, when the world sleeps, India will awake to light and freedom. Nehru would never have imagined the distance covered from building institutions like IIT to structuring hate.

Author Aravind Adiga in the book The White Tiger writes, India is two countries in one. An India of Light and an India of Darkness. His inference was different, but the outcome could not have been more real.

It is not just the tall identity of Indias first PM that makes people short, but also the dismissal of the zeitgeist of a period that he spearheaded and rebuilt so that we could partake in the now. A past viewed through the senseless blinkers of a present does not leave a future legacy, history is not just in the pages erased.

Even the independence struggle has been cancelled by an actress who hasnt figured out the difference between speaking right and leaning right. The loss of nuance is incredibly tragic for us as a society. We have repeatedly gone back to what kind of debates shaped India and there were such wonderful debates.

They brought us here and the reason we are still not a failed state or society is because those debates could happen. There was so much nuance, acceptability, diversity and intellectual rigour. Today we have lost that as a society. We cant debate without triggering each other and to me that is the worse fallout of the cancel culture, says Pragya Tiwari, Creative Director Oijo Media.

As Pragya also points out, if we cancelled baby Taimur at birth (Son of actors Saif and Kareena) for his name, then on this slippery slope the twists and tweaks to facts can put a ballerinas moves to shame. People like actor Rhea Chakravarty are victims who in this parallel system of justice have no recourse.

Where ideology trumps blood

Family WhatsApp groups- that bastion of good morning forwards also changed genre overnight. It was like watching a Charlie Chaplin movie suddenly with sound where ideology trumped blood or rather almost drew blood. Fuelling the show has been a section of media that has been responsible for cancelling the profession itself.

Some would say though that we were always like this. Despite being called out again and again, our caste system has stood the test of time and we have been cancelling the Dalits for centuries. Ours is a country where #BlackLivesMatter will trend but not the lives of Dalits.

Women and girls have been cancelled in their subjugation by patriarchy, add faith into the mix, put in on social media and you have cancel culture 2.0 a tool to name and shame, publicly. Unlike the West, in our ecosystem there is no real agenda except in the belief that freedom of expression is a my, way or highway kind of street. The pillars of democracy are now binary.

There is still one final piece of the puzzle. Those who spew and spread this culture need to look inward. Have they unknowingly only cancelled themselves?

Jyotsna Mohan

@jyotsnamohan

The writer is the author of the investigative book 'Stoned, Shamed, Depressed'. She was also a journalist with NDTV for 15 years.

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The Rise of Indias Cancel Culture - Gulf News

Amitav Ghosh opens The Nutmegs Curse with soldiers from the Dutch East India Company unleashing their savagery on the people of the Banda Islands in the 17th century. Bandanese chiefs were mercilessly massacred, and the extermination of the people lasted 18 years, with not a vestige of their language or peculiar customs remaining.

Ghosh then moves from Indonesia to the heinous crimes of genocide of Native Americans in North America. His polemic links settler colonialism and its barbaric values to the sustained culture of domination and destruction of the land and people. For over three centuries, Europeans and Native Americans fought a total war in which races, cultures, worldviews and ecosystems were pitted against each other. In 1550, Charles V of Spain held a conference at Valladolid to resolve whether Amerindians had souls, but the question remained unsettled.

White mans burden

Colonialists claim to the savage, wild and vacant land laid the seeds of climate change, believes Ghosh.

Since the 16th century, the ideology of conquest has been built on the belief that white Europeans are superior to the natives in intelligence, culture, and language; these theories have been strengthened and celebrated by poets, philosophers and thinkers (e.g., Alfred Lord Tennyson, Francis Bacon, Francis Galton) and manifested as part of the colonial zeitgeist.

Ghosh describes all this in his now familiar lyrical, slightly melancholic, picaresque style. In this gripping read, a tour de force, his words are sharp, avenging, and often find their mark. The terraforming colonial project has been extended across the planet, which has become a resource to be devoured. What would it be like to live on earth as if it were Gaia, a living, vital entity, Ghosh wonders? Native Americans lived like that and believed that their landscapes were alive.

Ghosh seeks a global politics of vitalism the belief that living beings have a vital force. With storytelling at the core, vitalism is built around the landscape, imbued with meaning, and its politics encompasses different elements of performance and participation, occupation and alternative modes of dwelling (as in Gandhis ashram). Recent examples of vitalist politics are the Occupy Movement, Black Lives Matter, and protests at the Dakota Pipeline.

Science and reason

Ghoshs thesis can stand on its own without some of his gratuitous potshots at science and scientists. Interpreting nature requires varied language, including that of science. The articles and reviews by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change include papers about local global warming experiences by farmers and fishers, which are not being ignored in the pursuit of climate models. But numbers too are crucial, not a fog. Ignore them, and you will silence reason along with the voices of nature and landscapes. We also know that vitalism gone overboard can sink into superstition and we must be well aware of the dangers of that.

Ghosh writes, there exists no other sphere of contemporary life in which there is so great an overlap between a phenomenon and the credentialed literature that frames it. He goes on to say that not just economists but ordinary people speak and write about the economy. Presumably, he might add that both farmers and scientists have views about growing crops. Why dont ordinary people play a more prominent role in climate conversations? But he seems to forget that climate change will express itself over multiple generations well into the future and we are barely beginning to see its impacts.

He follows the story of migrants who have been undertaking the arduous journey to Europe in increasing numbers.

Surprisingly, he finds that a good proportion of them are from Bangladesh and tries to uncover the reasons for their migration. He follows the life of one young man, Khokon from Kishoreganj district, who he meets in Parma, Italy. Khokon describes his oppressive life, which was overlaid with one disaster after the other. He undertook a nightmare of a journey, having to pay large sums to traffickers for their arrangements. But when asked why he had migrated, was it climate change, he resolutely points to other troubles: political violence, the bad job scene, family problems and aspirations for better living standards. And the new communications technologies made it convenient for him to connect with traffickers.

Polarised view

Ghosh falls into the familiar but now dated polarised thinking on the social and the natural sciences. Assuming that natural scientists are positivists, that they equate their models with reality, is a common mistake. True, the natural sciences originated with a view to gain mastery over nature, but even anthropology has dubious origins as a knowledge-collecting enterprise to spy for colonial powers.

The prevailing social constructivist tendency in the social sciences has pivoted around an obsession with epistemology. While thumbing ones nose at scientism might be valid, when the planet is facing climate change, we cannot dismiss scientists understanding and their estimates. Ghosh and some in the humanities and social sciences now try to perform the indelicate dance of mistakenly accusing climate scientists and their scientism, but he personally, perhaps condescendingly, admires scientists for their courage! While the upswell of vitalism has lifted Greta Thunberg, her success, he believes, is despite her mantra, listen to the scientists. Harken to the words spoken by nature, Ghosh says. Therein lies the wisdom to address climate change.

The Nutmegs Curse; Amitav Ghosh, Penguin Random House, 599.

The reviewer is a scientist who lives in Chennai.

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The Nutmegs Curse review: Listening to natures voice - The Hindu

WHEN: Today, Thursday, October 21

WHERE: CNBC Disruptor 50 Summit

Following is the unofficial transcript of a CNBC interview with Vlad Tenev, Robinhood Co-Founder & CEO, live during the CNBC Disruptor 50 Summit today.

All references must be sourced to CNBC Disruptor 50 Summit.

JIM CRAMER: Thank you so much, Vlad. I am so glad you're with us. How have you been?

VLAD TENEV: I'm glad to be with you, Jim. Good to see you again.

CRAMER: Alright, so let's get the zeitgeist of Robinhood. When I first met you, had a great app, you thought that people would be attracted to, it younger people. Younger people have been completely turned off from the market for years. Where are we now between when I saw you as a disruptor multiple years ago and your current status of business?

TENEV: Well I think it's fair to say that investing has become culturally relevant. It's everywhere. People are talking about investing like they do their other financial needs spending and saving. And Robinhood has grown tremendously. Over 22 million customers use the platform as of Q2 and, you know, despite the growth, we still feel like we're just at the beginning and there's so many people out there that are still not investing. Over half of Americans don't have any investments outside of their individual retirement accounts or 401ks. And nearly 70% of 18 to 29 year-olds have no investments whatsoever, not to mention a lot of people globally who lack access to a functional banking system. So I think the trends are going in the right direction and we see a huge opportunity to continue democratizing and democratizing safely. And we see a world where nearly everyone is investing in some form or fashion.

CRAMER: You and I have both agreed that democratization is the greatest force in finance in this period, but I want to be sure it's democratizing correctly. You mentioned people are investing. If you looked at your book of business, we learned from Gary Gensler, the Chairman of the SEC, this week average customer 31 years old, median account balance $240. How much of that money, and it's all hard earned of course, is in option trading, in crypto trading, or investing in common stocks?

TENEV: Yeah, so the bulk of the activity has been investing in common stocks in terms of assets on the platform. Relatively few customers are pattern day traders, I think the number is 2% or so. We have customers trading options, but that's a relatively small percentage as well. A little bit over 10% on a typical month. So, the bulk of the activity is equities. And, you know, we definitely see an increasing interest this year in cryptos as well as that asset has become a little bit more mainstream. And the philosophy is to allow access to these assets at the lowest possible cost, make it available to people on a level playing field, but also do that safely. You know, it's incredibly important to provide the customer support, the stability, the high quality infrastructure and the educational content to make sure that the people that are investing, a large portion of whom are first time investors, are in the best possible position to succeed. So we absolutely believe in democratization. And you've heard me say this a bunch of times, but it has to be done safely and we recognize that responsibility. We've actually spent a lot of effort this year, and all the way through the pandemic, in making sure that we make lots and lots of investments to put our customers in the best possible position to succeed. In fact, just a couple of weeks ago, we announced rolling out 24/7 customer support via voice for everyone using the app and doing that across every issue for logged in customers. And I think it's hard to overstate how challenging it is to do that at scale, and do it in a high quality way. And I believe we also became one of the first, if not the first, in the cryptocurrency market to offer 24/7 voice support to all customers.

CRAMER: Well let's talk about, before we talk about the single source of truth and safety, which I know you have adopted to because you had to after what happened in the events in January. We'll get to those in a moment. How do we, you and I, if we were brainstorming, keep people doing responsible things when it comes to crypto? We've got some cryptos that are named after dogs and then we have actually dog variations. There's mutts, I mean, there's some of this stuff you put to sleep? I'm against that, I own a lot of adopted dogs. But I am concerned that you and I both know that a market itself could be irresponsible and there's nothing you can do. You can't tell people, I don't want you to buy a slice of crypto. How are you engaged in trying to make people more wise and how much of what you see in crypto would you describe as speculation as opposed to investment?

TENEV: Yeah, I think this is a tricky balance in the business, right. And, you know, a lot of things that end up being quite serious in a bigger and bigger part of the financial system started out being underestimated and, you know, made fun of and ridiculed in some sense. So I think it's important to have that perspective and be balanced. And the way that we approach it is of course by clearly articulating what our values are. And you've heard me mentioned, our value of safety first, our top value. And, you know, the way we operationalize that through the product is to make sure that of the assets we list, we make it clear to customers what the asset is, in certain cases, this year earlier, we launched information labels on certain assets like volatile, exchange traded products, or companies that have entered bankruptcy or companies or products that are undergoing volatility. So it's important to inform people of what's going on and give people that information and it's a delicate balance because some people, a lot of people, actually do understand what they're doing and they know exactly what these products are, and they'd like to have exposure to them, alongside their other investments. And we have to make sure we allow that and sort of make sure the happy path of people who are responsibly interested in diversifying and having exposure to cryptocurrencies and different assets have the ability to do that through our product and have an excellent experience doing it as well.

CRAMER: Alright, I know that is definitely your duty and you're fulfilling it. Let's talk about the report that came out. This is the staff report on equity and options market structuring conditions early 2021. I'm calling it the report. You and I have both read it. I want to dive into my first takeaway is that a lot of people who felt that there was a vast conspiracy of people Citadel, for instance. You, me. That we were all somehow in on it to hurt people. I think that this report represents a complete vindication of that and if you feel that way, tell me why you think so.

TENEV: Well, of course. You and I probably already knew that. And there's a lot of people on the internet that are going to be difficult to convince one way or another. I think, misinformation on the internet has been a big issue of our time. Of course, as I said and a bunch of TV interviews around that time and I know you and I have made it into some memes together on the internet over the last couple of months as well. Which, you know, has it's good and it's bad, as I'm sure you know. But the sort of cause for these restrictions that we had to impose, along with other brokers, was crystal clear. It was an unprecedented time where you had lots and lots of people that wanted to invest in a small handful of stocks at around the same time. And you know, the market wasn't really built for that. If you look at the core infrastructure of the market and the clearing and settlement system, and the way that everything works, I'm sure that when everything was built over the course of the past few decades, they just didn't anticipate social media people getting together and funneling money into a small number of stocks. So, I actually, I'm not really making a value judgment on whether that's good or bad. I think people should be allowed to communicate with each other and buy the stocks that they're interested in buying. And moreover I think what's interesting is a lot of these companies a lot of these meme stocks are companies that have been hit hard by the pandemic. You have, you know, retailers, brick and mortar stores. You had the airlines getting the attention of retail customers in the early part of the pandemic. And you could argue, you know, the government hasn't stepped in to help them in this difficult time, and retail investors have come in and supplied them with capital and allowed them to grow their management teams. So it is a very interesting thing that I don't think we've entirely unpacked. But I did appreciate that the report mentioned my policy suggestion of shortening the settlement time. I think regardless, that's the right move for the industry, and the right way to move forward our financial system and reduce systemic risk. So, I was really happy to see that, alongside a number of other policy proposals that Robinhood and myself personally have made.

CRAMER: Now they didn't really when I spoke to Chairman Gensler it was clear that he is concerned about two issues we have to speak about. One is payment for order flow and whether people know about it and the other is the game like features. Now I was out last night with a big Robinhood fan. 19 year old gentleman. And I said what draws you to Robinhood? And he said, because the app is so much like Candy Crush. It was not the answer I expected. Is the app too much like Candy Crush, Vlad?

TENEV: No, I think that's as someone who played Candy Crush maybe 10 years ago or so, I can tell you that I don't see any similarities whatsoever. And I will say this

CRAMER: But the customer can't always be right. Maybe something needs to be done to dissuade people from thinking this is as easy and as fun as Candy Crush because I've not seen people borrow money and lose money on Candy Crush.

TENEV: I think it's important for it to be easy and accessible, and there's a big difference between that and so called gamification. And if you look at Robinhood right now, we do pride ourselves on having a simple onboarding, on having pioneered a cost structure and a business model with no account minimums and no commissions that has brought in a ton of new investors, a lot of whom are from diverse backgrounds that otherwise wouldn't have been even thinking about investing. And that's something we're incredibly proud of and we stand behind. I think it's a very, very powerful force. And there is this notion that you hear thrown around that, you know, when wealthy people or institutions are buying stocks, then that's investing. But when poor people do it, it's gambling. And I think we just have to move away from that. I think we reject that. We're proud of bringing all these new customers in. We're also proud of the educational content and a lot of the recent features. You know, not just the 24/7 support, but improvements we've made in app learning modules.

CRAMER: I could not agree with you more.

TENEV: Go ahead.

CRAMER: I have spent an inordinate amount of time in my life trying to explain to people that just when someone just because someone who doesn't have any money is trying to make something of themselves in the stock market does not mean they are fools. That does not mean they don't know what they're doing. And until you came along, I felt no one in the industry believed in me. And that's one of the reasons why I've supported you from the day I met you. Because you do want to give people a chance. You do not discourage. Now shouldn't it be celebratory? I don't know. Should confetti go down?

TENEV: Amen.

CRAMER: What matters is that you have you do not look down upon people who aren't that wealthy. Now sometimes I think, and my wife does too since she met you, think that perhaps it's because it's your immigrant upbringing. Some of it is because I think you're just a good guy trying to get people involved. And some of it is because you realize technology can a lot of barriers. At the same time, there are issues that the Commission brings up. Issues about like payment for order flow, where to me, it would seem like you're willing to tell anybody anything. I mean, you're willing to inform. You have become a person involved with safety and truth. Should you just give everybody a caveat that just says look, you know, there's other ways to trade, you can pay commission, some people think you get better. I don't know if you get better. We think you can get better. Something that indicates that the Commission's issues about this payment for order flow could go away and instead we focus on the fact that there are 22 million people who are trying to make something of themselves.

TENEV: Well, I'll put it this way. I think that payment for order flow and digital engagement practices are what you call gamification in the report. It was a little bit confusing to me to see it in there because first of all, it had nothing to do with restricting the handful of stocks that were restricted in January. So it was sort of like a policy position that was kind of thrown in there a little bit as an aside with no connection to the restrictions or the underlying issues and I think the rest of the report supported that. I think some of the criticisms of payment for order flow, and the business model, frankly, don't make sense to me. I mean, you look at what the industry was like three years ago, pretty much all of the large brokerages were charging commissions and making revenue from payment for order flow as an addition, right. And Robinhood forced that to zero. Forced Commission's to zero and the payment for order flow model has become kind of the standard transaction base model for offering brokerage services in that space. And alongside that, you've had the best conditions for being a retail investor ever. By far the lowest cost of execution, across the board, whose spreads have been have been tighter. And I think it's a great time to be a retail investor in America and there's actually a lot of competition. Now I will say, I do support I came out with a policy proposal a couple of months ago about the Sub-Penny Rule, and there has been some criticism about whether our exchanges can fairly compete with off exchange market makers like Citadel securities and Virtu. And I think there are opportunities to make the system better and to encourage more flow to go to the exchanges, and to strengthen the NBBO, and I think we should look at doing that. But I think the

CRAMER: Well, remember, we don't want people running ahead. We don't want rich people running ahead of the people who are trying to make something of themselves, correct?

TENEV: We certainly don't want to do that, but I think by and large, this business model has helped pioneer commission free trading and make it possible. And certainly what we wouldn't want is the return to a commission structure in the industry that'll just keep people out especially those people of lower incomes and less means.

CRAMER: Now how if you were to look at the breakdown of what kind of common stocks people are buying, how much are these stocks that are say jumping 50% in one day more than even GameStop and how much are these days because we don't get to see them run like we used to. And I used to love that run. Where people are buying the great American industrials or they're buying the FAANGs, or buying fractions of the FAANGs because they cost too much. What is your just if you want to break up the mosaic of what you're seeing, how many people are really investing in America?

TENEV: Well I think a lot of people are interested in buying the stock of companies that they believe in. You know, companies that make products that they use and understand. So you'll have, you know, the big technology companies, the consumer companies that are among the 100 most popular at Robinhood at any given time. And that's actually, you know, some information that we provide for customers within the app. There's also, you know, certain events that happen, so cryptocurrency entering the mainstream this year I think got a lot of people interested in cryptocurrencies and we offer seven different coins on our platform. And from time to time, you will see sort of shifts from one sector to another. When I was on your show last year

CRAMER: Is bitcoin the most popular? Or are they starting to buy like the dogecoin? The cocker spaniel coin, whatever it is. I mean, where are they are they buying like the most steady of them? Or you're seeing people buying whatever is the least -- lowest value? Lowest dollar value.

TENEV: You will have a range of activity. I think, generally speaking, people do buy larger companies, especially with fractional shares now making those companies more accessible, you'll see people investing smaller amounts into these companies, and with some of the tools that we've rolled out like recurring investments and drip, you'll see people automating a lot more of that activity, and actually dollar cost averaging into these names so that they don't have to watch day to day and keep track of the prices so closely.

CRAMER: Okay, we like that. Are they dollar cost averaging into things like what people are chatting about Shiba. Now I feel somewhat embarrassed to say that they're talking about Shiba, but that's what they're doing. Are you seeing Shiba being traded? Is it on your platform? Or will you recognize it on your platform?

TENEV: Well, I've heard a lot of people in that community

CRAMER: Are you thinking about adding it?

TENEV: We actually don't offer.

CRAMER: You don't.

TENEV: We only offer seven coins currently. And I think it goes back to safety first, right. So we're not generally going to be the first to add any new asset. We want to make sure that it goes through a stringent set of criteria. And, you know, we're very proud of our cryptocurrency platform, and giving people more utility with the coins they have. As a matter of fact, we rolled out our wallets waitlist. A lot of people have been asking us for the ability to send and receive cryptocurrencies, transfer them to hardware wallets, transfer them onto the platform to consolidate. And you know, the crypto wallets waitlist is well over a million people now, which is very exciting. We see an opportunity to continue growing that business.

CRAMER: There was this bad old days period that fortunately did not last long, where there was kind of a, let's call it a hate Vlad movement. And I'd like to think that the hate Vlad movement actually peaked on the night that you were willing to go on Twitter and debate Dave Portnoy. Where people thought you would be a no show. People thought that you didn't feel that safety had become paramount. That you were gamifying or whatever. And you showed. And it pretty much ended. Do you see that the way I did?

TENEV: Well, it's been certainly an adventure over the past nine months, you know, to put it mildly

CRAMER: What do you mean? What are you, a diplomat? Give me some old Vlad, will you? Give me some old Vlad. Like the pre-Marc Benioff Vlad. I mean the guy who says yeah well I showed up I was willing to take the heat because I knew I did nothing wrong. What happened to that Vlad?

TENEV: I'm surprised my hair is still dark and I don't have I don't have grays or it hasn't fallen out, put it that way.

CRAMER: Watch yourself. You know, we don't like that our show. But no I mean, it did peak. And I think it peaked because you recognized that things you didn't want things to get out of hand. I remember in the midst in the darkest moment, you were saying, look, no system was built for this. Which is true. That was one of the things that came out in the report. But I think that your democratization got challenged. And you never wavered, but you did have to change what was the most important value. And since you've done that Vlad have you noticed that Vlad Tenev has become and Robinhood have become major I don't want to say you're, I hate to say this, but you're not a disruptor anymore. You're the norm. Do you mind being the norm?

TENEV: I think there's always opportunities to continue along our mission, and, you know, I know that a lot of people talk about Robinhood as being a disruptor, and we certainly have been. We changed the industry and people used to be paying commissions and now we're not anymore, but I don't think that's done by any means. I think that, you look at cryptocurrencies, for instance, people are still paying 3%, 4% fees to access that market. You see a lot of opportunities to serve more customers that have even less money, who are even more underserved than the people we have now. So I think the mission has always been to democratize finance for all and to do that safely. And, you know, in some cases that might require disruption, in other cases is just going to be continual improvements to the product and just getting, you know, getting better and better each and every day with things like 24/7 support, improving our educational content, and really just helping customers be successful on the platform. I think that's a big part of it and we have really made incredible strides. I mean, the team has been working very, very hard to make the platform as reliable as possible for it to stand up to heavy volume and days where customers need us most. And to be there for customers if they need help, specifically for the first timers who can benefit the most.

CRAMER: If you've got this set up you've got the robust system, you've got 24/7 help, which most people don't. Is it time to start thinking bigger? For instance, right now we're hearing that perhaps PayPal is going to merge with Pinterest. But we see what some of the companies are doing Square is doing. Not willing to be bound by the initial mission. I think that you have 22 million people who want more from Robinhood. Maybe they want to get some of the things that SoFi has, some of the things that Square has, is it time to be thinking about the next big leg up for Robinhood?

TENEV: Well I think that there's always an opportunity to keep serving our customers and we have been expanding quite a bit over the past few years, especially getting into becoming one of the first to offer cryptocurrency trading, sort of, alongside traditional asset as a brokerage, our cash management product which allows customers to earn high yield and spend. And then, with cryptocurrencies, getting more into cryptocurrencies as a means of transacting with our new wallets waitlist that we announced and are rolling out shortly. So we're going to continue to do these things. I do think that investing and making people owners of our global economy is an incredibly powerful thing. And despite all the progress that we've made, there's still a lot of people that don't invest, and we see it as being very, very important to serve those people. I think it's not just good for them in their wealth building but also important for society. A society where more of us feel like owners in the common enterprise is one that's just going to be healthier. And I think, you know, we started this company in the wake of the financial crisis, there were a lot of protests, a lot of people were unhappy at the status quo, and just felt like the financial system wasn't working for them. And hopefully, bit by bit we can improve that and make it an inclusive system and one that really serve the needs of the people, as well as it possibly can.

CRAMER: I know Chairman Gensler was very concerned about suitability. You have 1 million people who are 19. What do we tell the 19 year-olds to be sure that they understand that they're doing something that is in keeping with their suitability which by the way Vlad, they may not even know the word. How do we get 19 year-olds to be investing what you and I would say responsibly and not blow their heads off on shorting calls?

TENEV: I think it's the things that we've been building and of course suitability is there's very strict rules by FINRA and brokerages have to follow them, and Robinhood is always committed to following the rules of the road there. There's also educational content. You know, I think, investment products are not suitable for everyone. They involve risk, especially when you're talking about options, and having people understand the risks and understand all of the information of how they work, assuming they're willing to take those risks and are suitable is something that's incredibly important as well. So we are continuing to do a lot more in product and through Robinhood Learn to educate people.

CRAMER: Yeah, that's why we started our investing club here. Right because people don't get enough. I think that, you know, we do investment club basically just to be able to teach. And I think that you're doing teaching now and I think it's absolutely terrific because we need to do that because we don't, as much as we're thrilled that you have the average customers age 31, we've got to get this median account balance up to 240. Now how do we do that? And do these people own mutual funds away or index funds which I think is a very responsible way to start investing. And then they use their so called Mad Money $240 with you. Have you seen that grow? I mean, because you know that's not enough. And we all work hard. I started with $200. I know you started with nothing, which it is terrific to start with nothing. But I do believe that we need to get that balance up and I'm trying to figure out how to make people wealthier. How do we make people wealthy?

TENEV: I think the best way to do it is to have a long term perspective and put aside a little bit at a time and really start young and you'll see kind of the magic of compounding and compound returns happen over a longer period of time. And I think there's ways we can continue to make that process easier with recurring, with drip, with fractional shares, we have a lot of the building blocks. And, you know, we're excited to see more and more people adopting those products and we believe that in the future, they'll be a larger and growing percentage of the activity on the platform.

CRAMER: Now is the average investor, making I don't want to call it necessarily progress, but I would like to see the average investor not just suddenly go crypto. I mean are you saying people people used to be say 90% stock, now 90% crypto?

TENEV: It's certainly an interesting trend. I think there's certain advantages that crypto has for especially interoperability, and the ability to be global by default. So, you know, regardless of where you are in the world whether you're in the U.S. or overseas, you can have a wallet, you can send people cryptocurrencies from that wallet to their wallet. And so there there's certain advantages that are in the technology that make it kind of global and accessible by default and that makes it very interesting. Now of course, we also have, you know, the equities market in the US has really been where the best companies list over time. It's been a tremendous source of wealth creation, and there is an opportunity to kind of make that easier and make that more accessible as well. So I, generally agree with you, I think it's important for people to be diversified, for them to build up portfolios over time and invest for the long term. And you know what that specific mix is, I think, you know, we can probably debate, but crypto certainly is here to stay as an asset class, and the ease of use and the global nature of it, I think, has made it attractive to lots of people, not just in the U.S. but overseas in particular what you are seeing is very interesting.

CRAMER: But Vlad, people are starting to come back to work. It's also football season, which is a DraftKings FanDuel situation. Are you seeing fewer people sign up? Is the app going down in popularity at all? As people then switch to football gambling, we know that we're not saying that they're doing Robinhood gambling with the football game, but these are various ways that people want to be able to make money. And the return to work means that most people can't sit there and trade or invest during the day. Are you seeing those two trends which is gambling and back to work, cutting into the growth of Robinhood?

TENEV: What I've always said and, you know, I think in our last conversation you've heard me say this as well. We're not paying too much attention to short term trends. The way that we're going to make progress and serve our customers and go after this opportunity of making as many people long term investors as possible is by focusing on the products. And so we're going to continue to roll out new products, improve the service, make sure that it's as easy as possible for first time investors to become long term investors and get all the support that they need. So, you know, whether short term fluctuations, Covid, reopening not something that we're going to spend too much time commenting on.

CRAMER: By the way, did you see former President Trump's SPAC today? Up 40 points. Do you follow any of these trends that some of the younger people really get a kick out of, too?

TENEV: I heard about the product, the new social media platform. But I haven't been watching the stock too closely.

CRAMER: No, no, it's a what I call a newer public offering, so to speak. Definitely newer. Well Vlad, look. I think you've come through Hades and back. I love the theme that I know you do care about passionately is safety. Any last words for people who are young who are watching who are thinking about taking the so called plunge into common stocks?

TENEV: Yeah look I think that it's important to invest for the long term and to be educated. And we want to make sure to meet our customers where they are, and especially for young people, a lot of that educational content has to be contextual. It has to be in the form that customers expect. And we're going to continue to provide that through Snacks, on Snap and in in-product, which is our podcast and newsletter. We're going to continue to increase the tools and the functionality and the support that's available to customers. And we're going to continue to roll out products that democratize finance safely by giving you the lowest possible cost that we can offer, and the lowest barriers to entry with a great experience. So that's what Robinhood is all about and over the coming decades, I think we'd like to see more and more people globally become investors and we'd like to be a part of that and really driving that transition to where everyone becomes an owner of our economy and our society.

CRAMER: Well I want to congratulate you for everything. For being 2021's top disruptor, for the journey you have taken, for the maturity that we all had to have because so many new people have come in. And for your advice and counsel, particularly as far as I am concerned, in light of what happened at the end of January, shows that you never lost the flame. Some people thought you did. The report vindicates you. And I'm thrilled that you came to our Disruptor conference and to Mad Money. And it's always good to see you, Vlad.

TENEV: It's always a pleasure. Thank you. Thank you for the time, Jim.

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CNBC Transcript: Robinhood Co-Founder and CEO Vlad Tenev Speaks with CNBCs Jim Cramer Live During the CNBC Disruptor 50 Summit Today - CNBC

International Artists Day commemorates the importance of art as a creative human expression and as a chronicler of human life, nature, and communities.

A cubist female bust by the Spanish painter Picasso, left, and a 1905 representational oil painting of a riverside windmill by the Dutch painter Mondrian are displayed by police officers, in Athens during a press conference. AP

October 25th marks the celebration of International Artists Day around the globe to honour artists and their contribution to society. The day commemorates the importance of art as an important medium of human expression and honours its impact on human life, nature, and communities.

History

Canadian artist, Chris MacClure, founded International Artists Day in 2014 to give working artists a special day to revel in the allure, impact, and splendidness of their creations. The day also pays homage to one of the most celebrated artists of the last century, Pablo Picasso, whose birthday is celebrated on the same date.

Significance

International Artists Day is a celebration of all kinds of art. It elevates the credibility of artists among common folk and aims to increase the visibility of their craft. Furthermore, it reconnects creators with their audience through various art shows, exhibitions, and other events.

How To Celebrate International Artists Day 2021

The International Artists Day website recommends celebrating the day by taking an artist out for lunch, buying the painting thats haunting you for weeks, or learning more about art. Thus, we curated a brief account of a few of the most prominent artists of the 20th century to give you a tour of art history.

The Most Prominent Artists of the 20th Century

Dubbed as the most influential artist of his generation, Pablo Picasso revolutionised art by creating the most distinct representation of emotions and impressions in his works. He rejected traditional ideas that emphasised the importance of colour and depicted subject matter with geometrical shapes and lines instead of proportions and perspective. He took Cubism to its extremes, invented collage, and made a major contribution to Surrealism. He also explored sculpture, ceramics, and printmaking. However, Pablo considered himself a painter before anything, and his works embody the spirit of Bohemian art in the modern era.

No other work of art chronicles the tragedy of life, its despair, trauma, and hardships more poignantly than Frida Kahlo. The Mexico City-born artist is widely remembered as a surrealist. However, she rejected the label and its misogyny of Freudian male-centric depictions of women. Instead, the legendary painter expressed the complexity of female experience through her work, inextricably intertwined with her childhood trauma and emotional distress, and asserted the validity of her vision paintings such as The Two Fridas, Frida and George Rivera, and The Broken Column, among others.

Best known for her canvasses of magnified flowers, Mexican landscapes, and animal skulls, Georgia OKeeffe, was one of the first painters to claim public fanfare and critical acclaim. Considered a cornerstone of the American Modernist movement, OKeeffe excelled at painting and sculpting and epitomised the expression of its zeitgeist in works such as Black Iris, Oriental Poppies, Jimson Weed, and others. However, OKeeffes works remained independent of shifting trends and focused on metamorphosising natural objects into abstract geometry instead, highlighting her elusive personality as well as perennial love for nature.

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International Artists Day 2021: Celebrate occasion ..earning about these legendary painters of 20th Century - Firstpost

When you hit your 30s, you notice a distinct change come over you. The evidence accumulates gradually: Youre baffled by a new fashion trend. You learn about a new social media outlet...in a New York Times article. Your parents refer to each other by their first names and talk about sex in front of you. Conversations with your friends inevitably lead to bathroom renovations. You hum along to Alejandro by Lady Gaga and realize that album debuted 12 years ago. You catch yourself boring a teenager with an inane college story which is at least 50 percent apocryphal. You are getting old.

Well, you arent old per se. But you are no longer young or cool. The zeitgeist has passed you by. Youre outside the targeted 18-34 advertising demographic. It seems like yesterday you were a rising Millennial ruining the world with your penchant for avocado toast. Now youre a potentially geriatric millennial getting zinged by Gen Z. You dont know what "cheugy" means, whether you are cheugy or whether cheugy has ever demonstrably been a thing outside of media articles.

This realization that youre aging can be daunting youve never not been young before. But it can also be liberating: Youre more grounded in your 30s. Youve got disposable income and a retirement account. Consider it a time to grow relationships, shed excess baggage, discover the world, invest in timeless quality and lay the foundations for the future life you want.

Here are 30 products to help you on your way through your 30s.

Moleskine Classic 12-Month Daily Planner

$33.34

Youve got a lot of shit going on, personally and professionally. Keeping tabs on everything in your head only compounds the stress. Your electronic devices do come with virtual organization tools, but they also bring a whirlwind of distractions. Wed suggest writing everything down in an old-fashioned daily planner. Checking off tasks as you go feels gratifying. And you can close the book on your day literally when its time to unwind. We love the feel of this one from Moleskine.

BABYBJRN Baby Carrier Mini

$79.99

Having your first kid can be a rude adjustment parenting can be profoundly exhausting. Your halcyon days of rolling out of bed after 6:45 AM and easing into your day with a cup of coffee are gone. But its important not to lose your sense of adventure even if adventure is just doing everyday things out in the world. The Baby Bjorn carrier allows you to do a modicum of adulting while watching the baby. And on the not insignificant chance that your outing gets ruined by some inopportune fluid expenditure, its machine-washable.

iRobot Roomba 694 Robot Vacuum

$235.00

Keeping your home clean is vital, especially during the pandemic where your residence is likely serving as a home office, restaurant, and childcare facility. You may not have the time to do it. Paying someone to come out frequently can get expensive. Just take the plunge, get a Roomba and make sure to capture your cats reaction on video.

Topo Designs Rover Pack Classic

$99.00

Maybe youre finally hiking the Appalachian Trail. Maybe youre just commuting in to work with your laptop. Perhaps your partner flagrantly ignored your pleas to buy a reasonably gender-neutral diaper bag. Whatever the activity, a high-quality, versatile backpack just makes life easier. Our Outdoors and Fitness editor recommends the Topo Rover. Its durable, affordable and stylish. It also comes in a wide range of colors to suit your personality.

You yes, you spend too much time on social media. Its a time suck. Its addictive. It provides no joy in your life. And it stops you from enjoying experiences with the people who love you. You still need your smartphone to function in modern life as much as you want to take a hammer to it. Getting a secondary phone like the Light Phone 2 is probably too much effort. Heres a trick: Wrap a rubber band around your phone. It wont stop you from using it. But it will make doing so just annoying enough to have to disengage autopilot before doing so. Dont worry about losing one. The package you buy will have at least 200 extra.

Chuck Taylor All Star 70 High Tops

$63.75

Being a sneakerhead has gone mainstream. The kids seem to be wearing them with everything. Theres a lot of variety and confusion out there Jerry Seinfelds white Nikes now make him a prescient fashion maven? Your best bet is to avoid the avant-garde options and stick to the classics. Gear Patrols Style desk suggests a good pair of Converse Chuck 70s. They look like the timeless Chuck Taylors. But for an extra $30, you get a bit more of an upscale finish with tougher canvas, a bigger toe box and outsole and a more comfortable insole.

Corded Velveteen Hat

$50.00

Sure, there are a few glorious Alec Baldwin types walking around out there, but the rest of us can fall prey to some hair pitfalls. Maybe youre having some coverage issues. That combination of salt and pepper and sun bleaching in the summer can also look a little weird. Or perhaps youve just been too busy to book a haircut. A baseball hat can be a great casual cure-all. (Just dont try a flat cap unless you own a Morgan.) You can rep your favorite sports team or beer purveyor. However, GP Style editors recommend choosing a plain hat with texture think corduroy suede or wool to avoid looking like an undercover cop or a delivery driver.

J.Crew Ludlow Slim-Fit Suit Jacket

Yes, your current suit has been a glorified closet ornament during the pandemic. And youre probably expecting us to tell you this is the time to invest in a high-quality suit made from the finest materials on offer. But you dont need to do that. The secret is to find an excellent tailor who can make that decent suit you bought from J.Crew look like you paid much more for it.

Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight

You've been working for a decade now, you've got some money put aside so let's skip the "value plays" and get right down to it: The Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight is a no-brainer of a watch for an adult. It's versatile, robust, comes in several colors and materials, and can absolutely be worn to work or a night out on the town. Is it inexpensive? No it costs real money. But it's by no means outrageous considering the in-house movement from Rolex's sister brand; the perfect sizing; the incredible looks; and the fact that you can positively beat the shit out of it without a care in the world. And the best part? When your grandkid inherits it from your kid one day, it'll still be just as cool as the day you bought it, and just as useful.

501 '93 Straight Men's Jeans

Jeans are a utilitarian dream. They go well with everything. But its easy to wear the wrong ones. Wide ones are in, but dont drown in denim. Stick to regular-fit or slimmer, meaning pants that flatter the legs rather than overwhelm them with fabric. Selvedge ones are a smart bet for someone who can dedicate decades to the same pair, but youre probably better off buying a washed pair. 501s will never let you down.

Conair Turbo Extreme Steamer

Youre an adult. Everyone on your last Zoom call noticed that wrinkled shirt and judged you for it. Its time to take care of your clothing and buy a clothes steamer. Heres a handheld model from Conair that heats up in 40 seconds, provides up to 15 minutes of continuous steaming, kills germs and will keep you from looking like a rumpled schlub.

Ursa Major Natural Moisturizer with SPF 18

$56.00

Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunscreen Lotion

$28.89

Youre getting older the last thing you want to look is even older than you are. Its time to take care of your skin. One of the best ways to do that is to wear sunscreen daily. You can splurge on an expensive formula designed for your face like Ursa Majors Daily Defense Lotion or go with your more budget-friendly bottle of Neutrogena. Adjust the SPF as needed.

Ekrin B37 Percussion Massager

$229.99

Yes, you can still do your Armageddon workouts and Ultramarathons in your 30s. The differences are how terrible youre going to feel afterward and how long that feeling is going to last. A percussion massage gun can offer targeted therapy deep into your muscles to help improve blood flow and recovery. You can shell out for a big name like the Theragun or opt for the top GP pick Ekrin B37, which is a bit cheaper. Its a significant investment either way, but it'll be cheaper than keeping a massage therapist on speed dial.

Spindrift Sparkling Water

$17.97

Drinking remains a pleasant pastime in your 30s. But you dont spring back to "fully functional" as quickly afterward. And if you drink too often, youll find your t-shirts fitting more snugly than youd like. Spindrift can be a great alternative to that cocktail you dont need. It uses natural ingredients to pack a bit more flavor than your typical sparkling water. And popping a slice of lemon into that can of the half iced tea/half lemon flavor which is only five calories will feel like an event.

Kiehl's Facial Fuel Eye De-Puffer

$22.00

Youre not sleeping enough. It could be persistent stress, or it could be your son having nightmares after his aunt and uncle decided to show him Ghostbusters. Either way, coffee consumption cant hide your eyes broadcasting your actual state of exhaustion. Shoehorning a skincare routine into your life can be daunting. Kiehls makes it easy with their Facial Fuel Eye De-Puffer. It comes as a stick, which you can apply easily at any time of day. Youll still be tired, but people will stop asking about it.

State Bicycle 4130 Road

$589.99

Priority Continuum Onyx

$1,299.00

You could use some more fresh air, and running short errands by gasoline-powered vehicle feels wasteful. Youve been wondering whether youd look absurd zooming around on an e-scooter at your age. (And the answer is, yes, you absolutely would.) Consider a lower-tech option: a bicycle. Your legs dont produce any emissions. You get a little extra exercise. Its an activity you can do with kids. And there are some great options out there, whether youre looking for some affordable vintage style or want to throw a little more money at the project.

Lululemon Reversible Mat

$88.00

Yoga is great exercise and a powerful restorer for the body and mind. We wholeheartedly recommend it, especially if you think youre too inflexible. But even if you arent a budding yogi, a yoga mat is a versatile, easy-to-store necessity for any home gym. You can use it for crunches, push-ups and squats. (It can also be a great place for your dog to chill.) Lululemons 5mm Reversible mat is super-grippy, comfortable and durable.

Baby Foot Exfoliation Foot Peel

$24.99

Maybe the first part of your body to unduly age in your 30s is your feet. One day youre heedlessly wearing flip-flops. The next day you wake up and realize your feet look like they belong to a hobbit a hobbit who has been through every battle in Lord of the Rings. You probably want to go to a beach again at some point, so, its time to address whats going on down there. Try Baby Foot, sort of a face mask for your feet. It gets rid of the dead skin and callouses without needing to painfully self-flagellate with a pumice stone.

Alka Seltzer

$8.42

Some days, youre going to wake up feeling like shit. You could be hungover. You could be dehydrated. Your heartburn may be going haywire after you hit the pizza and buffalo wings a bit too hard. Did you catch your kids cold? Allergies acting up? The possibilities are endless. And you dont have time to figure out the right cure. Alka Seltzer covers all options. The tablets come in neat little portable packets that can be stuffed pretty much anywhere. And they're fizzy.

Sony WH-1000XM4 Noise-Cancelling Headphones

Your life has gotten noisier. Household members and their noise-making devices have multiplied. Perhaps youve moved to the burbs, and at least one person is blowing leaves or mowing a lawn at all hours of the day. Before you go full-on Mr. Grinch about the NOISE, NOISE, NOISE, NOISE, consider a good pair of noise-canceling headphones. Sonys WH-1000MX4 headphones kill the noise, deliver high-quality sound and are comfortable even if you dont quite understand how all of the touch controls work.

Rosetta Stone Language Learning Software

$35.97

Your brain changes as you develop, and after about age 25 your fully developed prefrontal cortex takes over. On the plus side, you become more proficient and focused, make more responsible decisions and stop wearing puka shell necklaces. But you can also be prone to settling into established routines and viewpoints. We say break that routine and broaden your horizons by learning another language. It'll take some extra effort at this age, but if youve always wanted to learn Japanese or Mandarin, theres no better time to do so than right now with Rosetta Stone.

Audible 1-Month Gift Subscription

$15.00

We get it youve been home a lot during the pandemic. Youve consumed a lot of streaming shows and podcasts. But so has everyone else, and talking about them swiftly gets insufferable. Its time to bring books back into your life. You may not have time to sit down to read, but you definitely have time to listen while youre commuting or plowing through some dishes. Audible has a huge selection of Audiobooks, and you can use Whispersync to go back and forth between the Audiobook and your Kindle.

Dad Grass Hemp CBD Pre Rolled Joints

Weed may be legal in your state. Huzzah! The trouble is you have grown-up shit to do. Getting stoned off your face and leaving your friends protracted, rambling voicemails lamenting humanitys lack of progress exploring outer space can't be an everyday occurrence anymore. Dad Grass is smokable hemp. It provides a relaxing hit of CBD without the mind-bending THC. And because its not weed, its legal in all 50 states.

Urban Stems The Firecracker

$70.00

To quote Ted Lassos Roy Kent quoting Nikki Sixx from Mtley Cre: Behind the Music: date your wife. Flowers for a partner are always thoughtful, whether celebrating a special occasion or not. Have them delivered from Urban Stems. (Or save some money, show up to your local florist, ask for fewer than a dozen roses and pay by the flower.) Florists are also incapable of letting you leave without throwing a few garnishes in there, so it looks like an arrangement.

Lodge 6.5 Inch Cast Iron Skillet

Butter Pat Industries Estee 8-Inch

$145.00

Yes, you are ordering too much takeout. And everyone in your life knows about that cupboard of shame where you stash the single-use plastic bags, extra utensils and soy sauce packets. Whether youre a beleaguered dad or flying solo, feeding yourself and others is an essential life skill. Also, it would violate the Gear Patrol buying guide bylaws if we did not recommend a cast-iron skillet. Owning one offers a wide range of dinner options for cooks of every skill level. And while you can certainly plunk down for a fancy model, you can also score a decent American-made Lodge skillet starting at around $10.

Saatva Classic Mattress

$1,595.00

Its easy to overlook your mattress. But even if you arent sleeping as much as you would like, youre still spending a significant portion of your day lying down on it. And that sinking spot is wreaking havoc on your neck and lower back alignment. Upgrading to a new, higher quality and hey, why not? bigger mattress is a worthwhile investment. Saatvas classic mattress is a hybrid with a mix of springs and foam and a plush European pillow top.

You may not write for a living. But your job still likely involves sitting at a desk and staring at a screen for long hours. Youve been doing it almost every day for years, and you feel it in your back and neck daily. You can get by with a supportive seat cushion and some targeted foam rolling. But if your home office is now your de facto office, it may be worth leveling up to an adjustable ergonomic desk chair like the Ergochair Pro from Autonomous.

The Sill Plant Parent Set

$48.00

Plants are a great, low-cost way to brighten up a room and project that a normal, mature person lives there. (Nothing says Im not a serial killer better than having a few plants sprinkled around your residence.) Whether you want to go all-in on some indoor cultivation or just want a great-looking faux plant strategically placed in the Zoom meeting background, the Sill should have you covered.

2022 Kia Telluride

America's new favorite adventurous midsize crossover makes a $40,000 SUV feel like a $60,000 one.

2022 Kia Sorento

The Kia Sorento does the few things the Telluride can't, such as providing a sportier vibe or fuel-efficient hybrid powertrains.

2021 Genesis GV80

Genesis is the best value luxury car brand. And they now offer an SUV, the GV80.

You may not be buying your first new car in your 30s, but it may be the first time youre putting significant money down on one. Its 2021 so odds are you probably want an SUV. You need something spacious. You want something that feels premium and pleasant to drive with a bit of capability. You dont want to get ripped off. Hyundai and Kia are offering de facto luxury SUVs for mass-market money. The Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade are both excellent three-row options. The Kia Sorento and Hyundai Santa Fe are a little smaller but offer both sporty and hybrid options. Have a little cash to play with? Want something that looks kind of like a Bentley? Check out the new SUV offering from Hyundais luxury brand, the Genesis GV80.

Block Nomad Sofa

$1,395.00

BenchMade Modern Catwalk Sofa

$2,794.00

HGTV will try to sell you on open concepts and kitchen islands. But the couch is always the central gathering point of your home. You cant own a futon as a functional adult. And its time to explore the world beyond that threadbare Ikea sofa and invest in a quality couch. Our Home desk writers recommend you check out the offerings at BenchMade Modern or if youre a packaging enthusiast who prefers that things arrive at your house in a tidy box Burrow.

See the article here:

The Art of No Longer Being Cool: How to Survive Your 30s - gearpatrol.com

Capturing the zeitgeist of the communities around them, artists often reflect back on the state of their world through their art.

These explorations into cultures and communities can take place through a variety of mediums, be it a carefully placed brushstroke, a powerful strike of a pen or the hands-on manipulation of a pottery piece.

SUBMITTED

Holmfield artist Katharine Bruce works in her studio.

However, one of the most powerful interactions a creation can have is helping people find their unique artistic voice and reinvigorating their passion for the arts, said Holmfield artist Katharine Bruce.

As a creator, one of her greatest opportunities has been the chance to help others find their artistic expression. Bruce has hosted art workshops in the past and hopes to organize more in the future at her home base, Holmfield ART Farm. She is also involved with the Westman womens art group, Drawn Together.

"I love the workshop that I have created, how energized it helps everyone feel, to help people see and feel that they can be creative," Bruce said.

Drawn Together is a great group of incredibly talented ladies, she said. Its amazing to see strong Westman women unite and explore each others studios and find connections in a rural setting each month.

"Some of these women, they were often going into Winnipeg to do workshops and connect with other artists," Bruce said. "They created their own club."

Bruce said she appreciates sharing space with people who are passionate about being creative, too.

She added many of the people who have come to her workshops have not been artists and creating helps them find their voice.

SUBMITTED

Holmfield artist Katharine Bruce with a painting she did in Mexico.

"They love it," Bruce said. "Its energizing and fun. I enjoy getting people together."

Bruces first foray into art was as a potter. She enjoyed the hands-on process of working with clay. This passion for hands-on creation has held true for her over the years, even as she has explored different mediums.

Bruce later began to play with handmade papers and spent years creating sculptures and teaching workshops.

Now, Bruce mainly works with paint and canvas a turbulent process that involves the use of her entire body.

Vibrant movements play a role in each painting, she said, and often her canvas will be laid on the floor where she can experiment with the process of capturing movement through colourful paints.

"Being on the floor gives me the liberty of dancing as Im moving and growing and rolling and moving my paintbrush around on the canvas," Bruce said.

Her studio is a place to recharge and embrace inspiration and creativity.

Collaging is often brought into her work and she gently adds tiny details that can be discovered upon closer viewing. The collage details serve as little surprises for people, she said, drawing them into her world as they carefully study her pieces.

"Theyre little gems for when you get up close," Bruce said with a chuckle.

While she was born in New York, Bruce grew up in Winnipeg with her artist parents.

SUBMITTED

A creation by fabric-dyeing artist Carol Reimer of Killarney.

She said she enjoyed urban life but was always drawn to the country. For her, being able to call Holmfield home has been a dream come true.

She discovered the tiny town while visiting a friend and immediately fell in love. She later found a place of her own in 2012.

She saw potential in an old house and worked to rejuvenate the space to create a hub for artistic knowledge seekers.

"I love being in the country, and its a huge part of my process as a creator," Bruce said. "I really need the spaciousness of being out here and the quietness and the beauty of nature itself being all around me."

She hopes to see the town one day become a creative enclave for artists.

She is currently creating a piece centred on a large cityscape, passionately working to bring the vision in her head to reality. The piece is a beautiful combination of masterful perspective with vibrant, abstract expression.

It is therapeutic working on pieces, as each creation serves as an opportunity to subconsciously work through questions about the greater culture and community with each stroke of her paintbrush and movement of her hand.

Its a joy when another person sees a piece she has created and can relate to the thoughts transcribed to canvas and feel the joy that went into a piece, the artist said.

Like Bruce, Killarney-based artist Carol Reimer helps people find their artistic expression by providing the tools to create.

Reimer is a fabric hand-dyer, using Procion Dyes to create rich, energetic and one-of-a-kind creations.

SUBMITTED

A creation by fabric-dyeing artist Carol Reimer of Killarney.

"Ive always been interested in fabric and sewing and crafting; fabric has always been my passion," Reimer said. "Its just built inside me."

Over the years she has picked up various tips and tricks to create her fabrics, each action creating different results.

Her path to fabric dyeing has been one of mediation and commitment. She has attended in-person demonstrations, watched online tutorials on YouTube, read books, listened to CDs and done other things to perfect her art.

Reimer added trial and error has also been an invaluable teacher, along with sharing tales with other dyers.

Around 20 years ago she learned artists could dye their own fabric and she was immediately interested while watching a demonstration hosted by the Nifty Needlers at the Killarney Fair.

"From there I was just inspired," Reimer said. "Ive been playing with it on and off ever since."

Over the last few years, she has had the time to embrace her craft with the full force of her passion. Fabric-dyeing is a spark of life, she said, filling her days with delight because she can focus on pursuing her passion.

While she does sell her hand-dyed fabric, Reimer also uses the material to create unique art pieces carefully stitched together. The small pieces tap into her abilities as a fabric artist.

"I dont use a pattern; I just cut and feel it out," Reimer said. "It has been a wonderful experience to express myself."

While dyeing her fabrics, Reimer first decides on the colours she wants to use and the technique she is looking to explore.

"I do some gradient dyeing, where you start off really, really dark and then several pieces later its really, really light, but all the pieces are in the same colour tone," Reimer said.

One of her favourite dyeing techniques is Shibori dyeing which allows her to create beautiful, delicate patterns through patience and a gentle touch folding, twisting, stitching or binding the fabric to create unique looks.

"Youre doing something to the fabric before you dye it to produce a pattern on it after its finished," Reimer said.

Crafting the colour she envisions can take anywhere from a couple of hours to two days, some techniques even last two weeks.

"I sort of try to envision the end product and I often will mix colours to get different colours. You just wonder if its going to turn out like you wanted or how its going to turn out," Reimer said with a light chuckle. "Even if its not what you wanted, its usually something pretty spectacular."

Fabric dyeing is a meditative, yet exciting process because the end product can be just what she planned or a spectacular surprise.

She cited a piece of fabric she recently dyed where she threw a mix of colours together. When she washed it out there was a piece reminiscent of a stormy sea.

"I just cut that piece out and I plan on making a stormy sea picture out of that," Reimer said.

It is exciting when a new piece is revealed because the finished fabric can inspire her next art piece. Her work has included fabric landscape images inspired by Gros Morne National Park in Newfoundland, and another one capturing a beautiful photo she took of a lone tree in Saskatchewan.

Reimer is branching out her skills and has embraced upcycling and repurposing white-lined table cloths. She recently started making aprons out of them.

"I try to upcycle or repurpose fabrics so that they become useful again once they are dyed," Reimer said.

For now, Reimer is grateful she gets to do what she loves each day and is diligently spending every spare minute she has on fabric dyeing.

"Im not in it for glory or money; Im just in it because I love it," Reimer said.

ckemp@brandonsun.com

Twitter: @The_ChelseaKemp

Originally posted here:

Westman artists helping others craft their creative voice - Brandon Sun

The Pakistan-Afghanistan border in Chaman on 2/24/2017. Asianet-Pakistan / Shutterstock

It is now well known that younger officers in the Pakistani army are no longer members of the Scotch-swilling elite. To understand the growing radicalization in Pakistan, it is instructive to read Nadeem F. Paracha, a noted columnist in Dawn, Pakistans most reputed newspaper.

In 2013, he wrote a tour de force about alcohol in his country. Pakistanis, especially in Punjab and Sindh, might have a love for the bottle, but they have to pay obeisance to hardline clerics who have now defined the state. Instead of Scotch, army messes now serve Rooh Afza, a sugary syrup popular across the Indian subcontinent.

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More importantly, the Pakistani army has created a Frankensteins monster that is increasingly out of control. In 2013, the Small Wars Journal identified the growing Islamization of the army as a security threat for the United States. Starting with the first Indo-Pakistani War of 1947-48, Pakistan used militant Islamists to mobilize Pashtun tribesmen against Kashmir.

This began the patron-client relationship between the Pakistani army and militant Islamists that has become deeper with time. The journal correctly predicted that the army would again support a Taliban takeover of Kabul, the Afghan capital. Once Kabul fell, the journal took the view that Afghanistan and Pakistan [would] again become places that jihadis [could] freely roam.

My family has vivid memories of the first Pakistan-supported Pashtun jihad in 1947 in Kashmir. My great-grandfather was the first Kashmiri Pandit killed in the town of Varahamula, now known as Baramulla. The Pashtuns tied his dead body to a horse and dragged it through the streets to terrorize the local population into submission.

It was not only Pandits who suffered at the hands of the tribesmen. Fellow Muslim Kashmiris and even Europeans were subjected to murder, robbery and rape. In a haunting account, noted British journalist Andrew Whitehead has documented the massacre at St. Josephs Mission in Baramulla during that invasion.

After 1948, members of my community suffered from growing Islamization in Kashmir aided and abetted by Pakistan and eventually became victims of jihadi ethnic cleansing in January 1990. The indigenous Kashmiri Pandits had to flee their homeland to the plains of India after millennia of continuous habitation in the beautiful Himalayan valley. They have now become refugees in their own country and have yet to get justice, reparation or rehabilitation.

Like Kashmiri Pandits, Afghans have also had to flee their ancestral lands. This trend kicked off when the Soviets moved into Afghanistan in 1979. In June 1985, National Geographic published the photograph of Sharbat Gula, a 12-year-old-refugee from Afghanistan. Her haunting green eyes aroused the compassion of the world. Once described as the Third Worlds Mona Lisa, Gula did not go on to have an easy life. In 2016, she was arrested for using a forged Pakistani identity carda common practice among the 1 million Afghan refugees who live in the country without legal status.

If Gula provided the striking image for Afghanistan during the endgame of the Cold War, the photograph of Taliban fighters standing in front of the iconic painting of Ahmad Khan Abdali with their weapons in full view defines the new era unveiling before our eyes. In that painting, a Sufi saint anoints Abdali as the shah of Afghanistan by touching his forehead with a chaff of wheat. Culturally, the authority and legitimacy of Ahmad Shah Durrani, the founder of the Durrani dynasty, the last of the Afghan empires, came from a Sufi saint.

Today, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has seized power through the barrel of the gun. The Sufi chaff of wheat be damned. With the Talibans takeover of Afghanistan, death and devastation will stalk the land, leaving little alternative for the likes of Gula to flee for their lives despite grim prospects across the border.

In contrast to the divinely ordained shah, an emir is a military commander, governor of a province, or a high military official. The fact that the Taliban have proclaimed Afghanistan to be an emirate demonstrates their nakedly militaristic worldview. Their authority and legitimacy derive from unabated conquest. The Taliban is running a fundamentally anachronistic anti-democratic regime with little regard to the rights of women or minorities, whether ethnic or religious.

The victory of the Taliban is a great boost for Pakistan, a state that has used terror as an instrument of state policy for decades on both its eastern and western fronts. In the early 1990s, some members of the Afghan mujahideen who had fought the Soviets and younger Pashtun tribesmen who studied in Pakistani madrassas came together to found the Taliban. From the early days, Pakistans Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) played a key role in their spectacular success.

In November 1994, the Taliban captured Kandahar and, in September 1996, its fighters seized Kabul. Burhanuddin Rabbani, the Tajik president at the time, fled for his life. Later in 1996, the Taliban declared Afghanistan an Islamic emirate. This time around, they are better trained and better equipped than in the past. They have announced that executions and amputations will be back. The Taliban have hung bodies in public squares of the historic city of Herat, a little over 120 kilometers from Iran. The Taliban are unleashing a reign of terror in Afghanistan thanks both to the ruthlessness of their fighters and the backing of Pakistan. Intelligence officials from many countries have said that Pakistan has deployed ISI agents, special forces and Chinese-built drones in Panjshir Valley.

Pakistans current reputation as the worlds global breeding ground for jihad is a result of disastrous decisions by both populist and fanatical leaders. In 1974, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto brought in a constitutional amendment that declared the Ahmadiyya community to be non-Muslim. In another 2013 piece, Paracha identified this act as the starting point of what began to mutate into a sectarian and religious monstrosity in the next three decades.

General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq ousted Bhutto through a military coup and had him hanged on the gallows. The generals first move as the army chief was to change Muhammad Ali Jinnahs original army motto from Unity, Faith, and Discipline to Faith, Piety, and Jihad for the sake of Allah, a change that has come to define the army today. With more religious lower-middle-class young men joining the officer class, there is not even a hairline separation between elements of the Taliban and the Pakistani army. The Taliban-controlled Afghanistan will not just be Pakistans strategic depth but instead its sword arm.

The Taliban inspire not only Pakistanis but also many Indian Muslims. They are Deobandi, a Sunni Islamic revivalist movement that was founded in 1866, eight years after the bloody 1857-58 Indian rebellion that shook the British Empire to its core. In 1858, the indirect rule of the British East India Company ended. The Mughal Empire was formally dissolved and the Crown took over. Many Muslims regarded the end of Mughal rule as a catastrophe and some charismatic preachers began the Darul Uloom Islamic seminary in Deoband, a town in the northwestern region of Indias most populous state of Uttar Pradesh close to Delhi.

In a recent feature article, American journalist Lauren Frayer of the National Public Radio covers the roots of the Taliban. She notes that Maulana Arshad Madani, the 80-year-old head of Deobands Darul Uloom, expressed admiration for the Taliban kicking out the Americans from Afghanistan. She quotes the cleric as saying, Im weak and old, but if given the chance, I would go to Afghanistan. More worryingly, Madani has supported the Taliban policy to completely segregate men and women in educational institutions. He thinks women should wear hijab and not participate in sports. Madani has also warned of another partition if the Hindu right tampers with Indian secularism.

Like Madani, many Pakistanis are inspired by the victory of the Taliban and some see it as a divine sign of Gods will. Religious extremists are already demanding greater Islamization and the imposition of sharia. Already, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has capitulated to the mullahs, abandoning the domestic violence and forced conversion bills. Hardline clerics argue that these bills contradict Islamic teachings. Given such a zeitgeist, it is little surprise that many analysts predict that terrorist attacks will increase.

India fears increased infiltration by Pakistan of Taliban Pashtuns into Kashmir and yet another cycle of violence. What is emboldening the Pakistanis is support from Turkey. Amalendu Misra, writing for The National Interest, argues that there is already a tacit working relationship between these two countries to establish a borderless Islamic imperium. Khan has championed the superhit Turkish action-adventure series called Dirilis: Ertugrul about Muslim Oghuz Turks fighting invading Mongols, Christian Byzantines and the fanatic Knights Templar Crusaders in Anatolia (now modern-day Turkey) of the 12th century. After turning to Saudi Arabia in the 1980s and 1990s, Pakistan is now turning to Turkey for its cultural identity.

It is also important to note that the current Pakistani government is led by a Pashtun and is far more pro-Taliban than its predecessors. This increasing radicalization of Pakistan is making intelligence officials worry about Pakistan as a potential source for nuclear proliferation. Marvin Kalb, a nonresident senior fellow at Brookings, has just written about the agonizing problem of Pakistans nukes. The specter of jihadis taking control of a nuclear weapons arsenal of about 200 warheads is a very real one. There is also the scenario of mid-level officers conspiring to release or sell warheads to militant groups.

The international community has been worrying about the security of nuclear facilities for over a decade. In 2008, Mohamed El Baradei, then head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, feared that nuclear weapons could fall into the hands of an extremist group in Pakistan or in Afghanistan. Later that year, Ken Berry, a senior analyst of the EastWest Institute, observed that an increasingly overstretched military and rising Islamic extremism was increasing the risk of Pakistani nuclear weapons falling into the wrong hands.

Over the last 75 years, the steady spread of Islamic extremism in Pakistan and then Afghanistan has left the international community confused at best and paralyzed at worst. Leaders in world capitals have ignored long-term trend lines that began with the use of Pashtun tribesmen to invade Kashmir in 1947. Now, the 20-year war on terror has ended in an ignominious American retreat even more dangerous than Vietnam, giving a shot in the arm to the likes of Madani in Pakistan, Afghanistan and India.

In the light of the debacle in Afghanistan, US senators are seeking an assessment of Pakistans role in Afghanistan. Some are proposing sanctions. This has caused stock market prices to fall and the Pakistani rupee to drop to a record low. Pakistans economic woes are expected to boost radicalization further. Vikram Sood, the former chief of Indias intelligence agency R&AW, has repeatedly warned about Pakistan becoming a center of a new global jihad. He is not alone. US General Mark Milley is worried about rising regional instability along with the security of Pakistan and its nuclear arsenals.

Many senior American military and intelligence officials estimate that the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan has increased risks not only to the region but also to the US. Europeans are worrying about terror threats and yet another flood of refugees. The world faces a clear, present and unprecedented danger that will only grow with time. A rogue nuclear strike would make the 9/11 attacks of 2001 look like insignificant firecrackers.

Washingtons decades-long fixation with Iran and North Korea has obscured the reality that the Taliban and Pakistan present the greatest global security threat. Therefore, the major powers and the international community must come together to contain both the Taliban and their patron Pakistan before millions of innocents lose their lives.

*[This article is the first of a three-part series analyzing the fallout of the Talibans takeover of Afghanistan.]

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observers editorial policy.

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Taliban-Controlled Afghanistan Will Further Radicalize Pakistan - Fair Observer

Facebook lost an important friend when its former employee, Frances Haugen, broke ranks to turn whistleblower and reveal the dangerous reality of the company today. Her testimony captured attention across the world, but hers has not been the only one. Less famous is the story of a Dubai-based employee, who in May shared documents showing a sharp decline in trust for Facebook among its users in the Middle East.

In a bid to contain the fallout from such cases, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's chief executive, is rumoured to be considering a rebranding, including a name change, for the company at its annual developer conference, to be held this year on October 28.

It may be little more than a superficial gesture. Similar moves in the past have failed to address core issues that today make not only Facebook, but other social media companies appear to be a growing threat to societal well-being.

And anyway, users are unlikely to be fooled. Global data show that, year on year, Facebooks social networking platform has been falling out of favour. What makes the Dubai employee's revelations important is that it showed quite how much confidence is being lost in a part of the world that should be its biggest fan. The Middle East has a large young, connected and entrepreneurial population. So why are people switching off?

Facebook whistleblower, Frances Haugen, appears before the US Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee. EPA

One reason is that social media-savvy youth are good at spotting hypocrisy. Accusations that Facebook and its sister company Instagram unfairly censored pro-Palestinian material throughout May's violence in Palestine and Israel caused, according to the report, a major dent to the organisation's reputation. And earlier this week, a major study found that nearly half of 18-20-year-olds in the Mena region have suffered online abuse and exploitation, much of which will have been funnelled through social media.

Editorials from The National

Ten years ago, the status of these platforms in the region was very different. Iran's Green Movement in 2009 was dubbed the "Twitter Revolution", and images of women refusing to abide by government-imposed dress codes garnered support across the globe on Facebook. Many still believe that the speed and breadth of social media was central to the Arab uprisings of 2011.

It is this simple purpose, built around enabling easy communication, that Facebook should return to if it wants to rebuild trust. The early zeitgeist of the social media movement was a forward-looking one, which looked as though it would be at the heart of creating a better future. Those days are over, for now, but they should be revisited. Doing this will require Mr Zuckerberg ditching name changes and rediscovering the good of which his technologies are capable.

In reality, Facebook is likely to go ahead with the rebrand and is even rumoured to be announcing a new "metaverse" concept, in which it would seek to fully hybridise the physical and virtual worlds, embedding itself even more intimately into users personal lives.

Very little of Facebooks power lies in the name. Rather, it is in the increasingly unaccountable, and monopolising character that the platform is taking on. Still, in the real world, consumers prefer simplicity at least, for now. For example, in the Middle East, trust in WhatsApp, Facebooks most straightforward product, remains persistently high. Facebook has succeeded in connecting the world and should work to regain its trust. Until social media giants do this, people with the most to gain from the technology may simply log off.

Published: October 22nd 2021, 3:00 AM

Original post:

The Middle East is unfriending Facebook - The National

Showrunners Michelle and Robert King. Photo: Elizabeth Fisher/CBS

At first blush, Evil is a sort of Catholic-inflected X-Files. The blisteringly entertaining supernatural drama, which concluded its second season this month, is filled with imagery and moments that pierce the imagination: Brains splattered on a gilded pop-up book. A decaying body, split at the center, pulling herself along the floor by scraping fingernails. A sleep demon, with gnarled skin cast in inky blue shadow, taking out her retainer before going down on a man.

But then there are moments like the one in this seasons C Is for Cop, in which an officer shoots a Black mother in her car when she reaches for her cell phone. Shes dead before a word can escape her lips. Panicked, Officer Jim Turley (Corey Cott) turns to the Catholic church for help he wants to plead temporary insanity before the grand jury. The reason? He believes he was momentarily possessed by a demonic influence that warped his vision, making him see a gun where there was a cell phone.

At the center of Evil is Dr. Kristen Bouchard (Katja Herbers), a forensic psychologist who is hired by David Acosta (Mike Colter), a former journalist studying to be a priest, to help him distinguish between actual instances of demonic possession and insanity. Kristen is skeptical, but finds herself in situations that science cannot explain. She works alongside Ben (Aasif Mandvi) a lapsed Muslim tech contractor who shares Kristens cynicism to investigate supernatural occurrences for the Catholic church.

The cop scene is nestled in the more pivotal plot of the episode: Kristen is freed from her own, season-long struggle to evade the police after killing a serial killer named LeRoux (Darren Pettie). Shes able to escape repercussions despite being found in her backyard holding the murder weapon after calling her cop buddy Detective Mira Byrd (Kristen Connolly) for a single reason: Shes a white woman. The episode leaves her crying in her backyard, looking diminished and small. Something about this image got under my skin. It simultaneously harkened toward the apocalyptically biased systems in effect in this country and handily let its lead off the hook for her transgression. The Kristen and officer story lines play off one another, gesturing at the ways in which white identity protects itself.Its the kind of gamble showrunners Michelle and Robert King, who have been married since 1987, have grown increasingly adept at over their tenure as producers and writers of television particularly since The Good Wife began in 2009, and its 2017 spinoff, The Good Fight, starring Christine Baranski as Diane Lockhart, a white lawyer who lands at a Chicago-based, Black law firm after losing her life savings, launched.

The Kings use the procedural form to tell urgent stories about the structures of power that shape our lives. At their best, they fold topical discussions into propulsively structured, highly entertaining episodes that play with expectations in form, style, and narrative. Robert says their attraction to the procedural was at first a matter of circumstance. When the writers strike happened, going way back then to 2008, we were force-majeured at the studio we were at and CBS was interested, he said from their home in California last year. (The Kings returned to New York this year, where their writers rooms are based.) Michelle adds, Television just lends itself to procedural storytelling. If youre going to tell a purely serialized story, its hard to do it over that many episodes and not become melodrama. She points to Scandal, a series that frequently left reality behind. We have been unwilling to leave reality behind.

Robert has the rumpled mien of a passionate but kindly college professor; he is a staunch Catholic and to the center politically. Michelle comes from a Jewish background and is further to the left. Shes the more exacting of the two. Behind the scenes, Michelle is the structuralist, while Robert homes in on the visuals and dialogue. When I would ask questions, they would look at one another, holding each others gaze for several seconds, as if silently communicating before shaping an answer. The sharpness of their intellect and curiosity comes through clearly in conversation. Robert name-checks David Lynch and the visuals of the Charles Laughtondirected 1955 noir masterpiece The Night of the Hunter as influences on Evil. Robert directed the shows mostly silent episode this season, which takes place in a monastery. He discusses the choice to pay attention to vertical space in the frame, a way for the show to always be considering and pointing toward the heavens.

The Kings absorb the news voraciously through written outlets like the Washington Post and the New York Times, but they dont typically watch it. Every day in the room on The Good Fight, we spend between 30 and 60 minutes just talking about what weve been reading in the news the night before, Michelle explains. Robert subscribes to the National Review in order to get a sense of where things are headed. He thrives when hes thinking through tangled ideas the more polarizing, the better. Michelle is the peacemaker, the one who raises questions about their most audacious decisions. One of the ways that expresses itself on the page is in the power of two people with opposite points of view expressing them, and the audience hopefully coming out of it not knowing which one necessarily is true, Robert says.

Even then, there are stories they wont touch. I dont like rape stories because theyre binary, Michelle says. Its typically, She was raped or she was lying, and Im not interested in telling stories about women that lie about rape. We also stay away from immigration stories because they tend to be earnest and earnest is not our sweet spot. An episode they could never wrangle into the proper shape involved Israel and the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement to end the occupation of Palestine. It would have seen a clash between the Jewish and Black lawyers at Reddick, Boseman, & Lockhart, while also involving a famous singer character trying to back out of her contract to perform in Israel.

It was a very interesting story and heres the problem, Robert says. Our writers room was ready to rip each others throats out over this subject.

People were just screaming at each other, Michelle says. We like to live in the gray, and it didnt feel like we were living in the gray. It doesnt mean we wont tell that story eventually, but we didnt find the nuanced version.

I was probably the most pro-Israel, Robert adds.

When I spoke with Nialla LeBouef, the youngest writer in Evils room who is credited with this seasons U Is for UFO episode, she described the writers room as a classroom of sorts, with Robert at the head; writers raise their hands and are called on to throw out story ideas.Every draft is group-written, Robert explains. The writer of record does a polish of that, then it goes to us, and typically, its drastically rewritten, Robert adds. That isnt the case on every show.

Sometimes their writers and actors push back. On Evil last season, Michael Emerson, who plays the conniving and demonically aligned antagonist Leland Townsend, wanted to downplay the extremities of an incel story line, which originally contained a high body count, worrying about what it might inspire. During the first season, they planned to do an episode inspired by Nate Parker, the embattled director of 2016s Birth of Nation; a rape accusation from his college years resurfaced and derailed what seemed to be a sure critical hit. Lead actor Delroy Lindo (who has since left the series) voiced his concerns. Delroy was worried that kind of plot hurts Black men, especially Black young men, Robert recalls. He was showing that there was another implication of it that I think was us going maybe a little too far out on the limb. Michelle adds, Its one of the few times weve had to junk an episode written.

L-R: Robert King, Christine Baranski (Diane Lockhart), and Gary Cole (Kurt McVeigh) on the set of The Good Fight. Photo: ELIZABETH FISHER/ Paramount+

This past season of The Good Fight, Baranski didnt agree with a major plot turn for her character. Baranski isnt just close to the Kings as collaborators; she counts them as friends: She often sees Robert at Catholic mass on Sunday afternoons, and they walk back to their nearby homes together. On the show, the Kings had planned to sever the marriage between liberal feminist Diane and her intensely conservative but loving husband Kurt (Gary Cole). The plot would see Diane deem the political differences with Kurt too glaring to bridge, leading her to also leave the firm and start a new one with Julius (Michael Boatman), a Black conservative. I was shocked by that, she tells me. And because Im so close to the character, it hit me emotionally. I did not want to lose that marriage. I said, Thats kind of simple, isnt it? And then where do we go? The Kings listened and rewrote the episode, leading to a scene where Diane goes to an imaginary Ruth Bader Ginsburg for advice on Kurt and her position at the firm. Imagine if I could talk to the person I most admire, Baranski says, what would she say?

The Good Fight premiered at the start of the Trump era, and in its early seasons, it felt like a direct reflection of the surreality of the moment. It started with this idea that the news was becoming so absurd because of all the traditions broken in the White House, Robert said. The only way to attack your understanding of the news cycle is to use the surreal because thats now the world were in. The Kings nudged the storytelling into frequently experimental areas. Characters broke into song. Memory and dream sequences unfurled, becoming tools to explore the dark recesses of the characters psyches. In the third-season opener, Trump appeared in the form of a bruise on Dianes husbands shoulder. Characters contended with a possibly fake Melania Trump as she mulled a divorce. Cush Jumbos Lucca Quinn is harassed by a white woman who doesnt believe her light-skinned baby is actually hers, and she ends up becoming a meme about mothering while Black. The Kings approach feels so novel because no one else on television has the gumption to so forcefully lean into the granular textures of the Zeitgeist.

There are limits to their approach. Their topicality works best when theyre able to balance their tonal high-wire act with a gimlet-eyed perspective on the interior lives of their characters. During the latest, fifth season of The Good Fight, they werent always able to find the right balance. (The RBG scene was less revealing than it was ridiculous and arch.) And in many ways, a show like The Good Fight was easier to make in the Trump era because the political figures were so outsize in their villainy. In recent years, both series have taken a thematic interest in interrogating whiteness, primarily through their female leads, to varying degrees of success. Consider the season-four opening of The Good Fight: Diane imagines a world in which Hillary Clinton won the election. As a result, Me Too never happened; progress, it was assumed, had already arrived for women. Season five takes things further. After the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, Dianes place as a leader of a Black firm is called into question. Diane is the kind of liberal white woman who praised Hillary Clinton and is assured of her own place in the halls of power. Associates openly wonder why this white woman is a name partner, while Diane believes she worked hard to earn her spot. We arent wholly privy to the interior lives of the Black people who critique her position. By the end of the season, Diane realizes the errors in her thinking and chooses to let go of her name-partner status and corner office, while remaining at the firm. I think I need to prove myself, she tells Liz in the closing moments of the finale. The plotline tries to skewer white feminism, but never fully implicates its lead; instead, it suggests, shes an underdog again. After all, Diane isnt a Trojan horse character, a means to explore the interior lives of the Black people shes surrounded by in the firm. She is the shows engine and guiding principle, and she is written as an essentially good person fighting the good fight from the inside.

The season was also hobbled by the loss of its two most prominent Black actors, Delroy Lindos Adrian Boseman and Jumbo, who get a truncated send-off in the premiere of the fifth season. Over time, the central premise of the show becomes harder to thread without stronger Black characters and story lines. When I ask about their approach to race, the Kings defer. I dont think of the show so much as interrogating whiteness as interrogating liberalism, Michelle says. Robert points me to the shows Black writers. I would basically throw to Davita Scarlett and Aurin Squire, our African American writers in the room, who really grab hold of this, Robert says. (The Good Fight writers room has two Black writers; the Evil room has four.) He admits that he struggles with the question. Well throw up our hands and say, youre right, he says. I dont know what to do about it. Just know the show is struggling with it because the more things we experience in real life is all brought into the show kicking and screaming. Theres a lot about having white showrunners run a show that deals with African American issues that is complex and troubling.

Like Diane is to The Good Fight, Kristen is Evils engine. In C Is for Cop, when Detective Mira Byrd decides to let Kristen go instead of bringing her in for the murder of LeRoux, she tells her, Youre a good person. Youre a nice suburban mom. What happened to LeRoux was justice. Some people deserve to die. Cops know that better than anyone. Kristen doesnt face external repercussions beyond her own self-destructive impulses. The show makes her atonement an interior process: Her guilt manifests physically, through self-flagellation; she burns her torso with a rosary cross repeatedly. Like Diane, Kristen isnt framed as an anti-hero, but a flawed hero were meant to care for.

L-R: Aasif Mandvi (Ben Shakir), Katja Herbers (Kristen Bouchard), Robert King, and Mike Colter (David Acosta) on the set of Evil. Photo: Elizabeth Fisher/CBS

Its interesting to look at Evil and The Good Fight side by side. While Evil has the same limitations when it comes to race, it has become the stronger show of the two. The writers never lose sight of the foibles that make the characters human. And while Evil has touched on topical issues, its not restricted by them. If The Good Fight has occasionally been hamstrung by its commitment to exploring the events of present American life, Evil is more free to wander, to probe revealing, primal questions about human nature, sin, and desire.

In the closing scene of the finale, David, now officially ordained a priest, listens as Kristen tearily confesses that she murdered LeRoux. God forgives, he advises. She hesitates. I killed a man I did LeRoux. I killed him and I got away with it, she chokes out between sobs before they go through the acts of contrition. Then the scene turns from weepy fearfulness to lustful. After two seasons of teasing their desires for one another, they finally act upon their attraction with a full-bodied kiss. The finale ends before were able to witness how far they go. I couldnt help but gasp.

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Writing Through the Moment - Vulture

Now more than ever, Hollywood loves IP, also known as intellectual property that can range from TV and streaming series based on a book to the frequent practice of rebooting familiar TV and movie titles.

The latest example: 4400, premiering at 9 p.m. Monday on The CW and based on the 2004-07 USA Network series The 4400 which counted Pittsburgh native Craig Sweeny (Elementary, Limitless) among its writers (hes not involved in this remake). This time, the reboot seems warranted.

In her 2020 book Why We Remake: The Politics, Economics and Emotions of Film and TV Remakes, author Lauren Rosewarne outlines six rationales for remaking existing entertainment: bigger and better, economic, nostalgic, Americanized, creative and fashionable.

Rosewarne argues, and I agree, that not all remakes are bad. While some viewers bemoan a lack of originality in TV and film, no one makes the same argument when a classic Broadway musical gets revived. No one looks askance at the 500th production of Shakespeares The Taming of the Shrew.

There is a difference between the third spin-off/knock-off of a hit (think: NCIS: Hawaii) and a complete reinvention (think: the 2004-09 Battlestar Galactica). The CWs 4400 is more the latter, falling into a few of Rosewarnes categories as this iteration expands on an existing property while addressing racial justice concerns that are in the zeitgeist.

Like the original, The CWs reboot is about 4,400 people who disappeared from the planet at various points in history only to be returned in one fell swoop.

The new 4400 doesnt attempt to reuse any characters from the original show, recycling just the premise and building a new world of characters, including Shanice (Brittany Adebumola), a lawyer and young mother who disappeared in 2005 and returns in 2021 to find her daughter grown into a teen while her husband (Cory Jeacoma) has moved on.

Theres also a World War I Army surgeon (TL Thompson), a D-list reality star from 2015 (Khailah Johnson) and a 60s Civil Rights movement participant (Jaye Ladymore), among others. Theyre an interesting bunch, and only Shanice gets a decent amount of development in the pilot but that just means the others will come to the fore in future episodes. The pilot made me interested to see how these time-traveling characters will fare in the present.

In this version of the show, those who disappeared were all overlooked, undervalued or marginalized members of society. With a largely African-American cast the original series had a mostly white cast with the notable exception of Mahershala Ali this iteration of the series has something new to say, similar to ABCs new Wonder Years reboot, which also features a Black cast.

In a recent virtual press conference for the show, executive producer Ariana Jackson (Riverdale, Lethal Weapon, UnReal) said she was intrigued by the opportunity to retell the story from a Black American perspective.

The story we actually get to tell is about Black America, about racism in America about how we have this history of white supremacy in this country that we just keep repeating, and thats what we see in these characters, she said. Weve dealt with white supremacy in our past, and now were in 2021, and look, there it is again!

Original titles still work look at Netflixs monster hit Squid Game but media conglomerates love to hedge their bets with an existing title because launching a show with a familiar name often will draw a larger initial tune-in from longtime fans.

Its the reason HBO Max is going all-in on DC Comics shows, including the recent renewal of Doom Patrol and Titans for their fourth seasons, the Suicide Squad spin-off Peacemaker (Jan. 13) starring John Cena and poaching Batman prequel Pennyworth from Epix for a third season that will debut on HBO Max in 2022 (seasons one and two also will stream on HBO Max next year).

HBO Max also has a sequel series to 1980s sitcom Head of the Class, featuring original series star Robin Givens, ready to stream Nov. 5. And this week, Hulu ordered History of the World Part II, a sequel to the 1981 Mel Brooks movie that Brooks will write and executive-produce with Nick Kroll, Wanda Sykes and Ike Barinholtz, among others.

IP is why AMC expanded The Walking Dead from one show to a whole universe of programs, including Tales of the Walking Dead, the fourth spin-off that will debut with a six-episode first season next summer, with each one-hour episode focused on new and established franchise characters. And its why ABC ordered a pilot for a continuation of L.A. Law starring original cast members Corbin Bernsen and Carnegie Mellon University grad Blair Underwood.

We can even see the emphasis of IP in childrens TV titles, like the live-action holiday movie A Loud House Christmas (7 p.m. Nov. 26 on Nickelodeon and on Paramount+ the same day), based on the animated series.

Even when it doesnt make a lot of sense who among The CWs target audience of adults 18-49 really remembers The Waltons, that venerable 1970s family drama? networks are in the mood for remakes such as The CW holiday film reboot The Waltons Homecoming, premiering Nov. 28 on WPCW-TV and available on digital and DVD on Dec. 14.

A love for IP even extends to nonfiction, which explains discovery+s spin-off of Netflix hit Tiger King, Carole Baskins Cage Fight (Nov. 13, discovery+), featuring the woman from Tiger King investigating the treatment of big cats held in captivity.

This IP trend shows no sign of abating anytime soon.

Added to Rustin

Netflixs Rustin, now filming in Western Pennsylvania and telling the story of gay civil rights activist Bayard Rustin (Colman Domingo) added to its cast, including a third actor from filmed-in-Pittsburgh Ma Raineys Black Bottom.

Michael Potts, who played Slow Drag in Ma Raineys, joins actors Domingo and Glynn Turman and director George C. Wolfe for another film in Pittsburgh. Potts will play labor organizer and civil rights activist Cleveland Robinson in Rustin.

More Rustin cast additions include Aml Ameen (I May Destroy You) as Martin Luther King Jr. and Carra Patterson (Turner & Hooch) as Coretta Scott King. CCH Pounder (NCIS: New Orleans) will play civil rights leader, politician, educator and writer Dr. Anna Hedgeman. Bill Irwin (Legion) plays clergyman and activist A.J. Muste. Adrienne Warren (The Woman King) and Johnny Ramey (Poz Roz) also have joined Rustin, the first scripted feature film from Barack and Michelle Obamas Higher Ground production company.

Kept/canceled

Netflix renewed You for a fourth season and sitcom Family Reunion for a third and final season.

Starz renewed Blindspotting for a second season.

Amazon renewed Jack Ryan for season four even though season three still has no premiere date (season two streamed its last episode in October 2019).

FX on Hulu canceled Y: The Last Man after a single season.

The CW canceled reality competition Killer Camp two episodes into its low-rated second season.

WPXI reporter moves up

Michele Newell, who grew up in Pittsburgh and joined WPXI-TV as a reporter in 2018, is jumping to a reporter position in the larger Atlanta TV market at a station thats part of the same ownership group as Channel 11.

I can confirm Michele is moving to Atlanta to take a great position at our sister station, WSB-TV, Channel 11 news director Scott Trabandt said via email. Were all excited for Michele and her incredible opportunity, although we will certainly miss her and know many in the community will as well.

You can reach TV writer Rob Owen at rowen@triblive.com or 412-380-8559. Follow Rob on Twitter or Facebook. Ask TV questions by email or phone. Please include your first name and location.

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TV Talk: '4400' is the latest in TV's remake/reboot trend - TribLIVE