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"Come writers and critics who prophesy with your pen. And keep your eyes wide the chance won't come again. And don't speak too soon for the wheel's still in spin. And there's no tellin' who that it's namin. For the loser now will be later to win." So wrote Robert Allen Zimmerman -- better known as Bob Dylan, in The Times They Are a-Changing. And indeed the times changed once again as Dylan just got the nod to receive this year's Nobel Prize in Literature. His lyrics are poetic to be sure. But, perhaps it's even more important that his words were political, especially during an American moment that calls for protest singers -- but when most contemporary songwriters have left us blowin' in the wind.
+ While there's some controversy over the pick, New Yorker editor David Remnick argues we should embrace the moment: The wheel turns and sometimes it stops right on the nose. (It's about time a rock star won a prize. Novelists have been getting all the fame, money, groupies and sex for long enough...)
+ CNN: A few Bob Dylan songs that changed the course of history. And from USA Today, seven (of the many) literary Bob Dylan songs.
+ Rolling Stone: 100 Greatest Bob Dylan Songs. (When it's hard to narrow down your setlist to the top 100, you know it's been a pretty good career.)
Facebook just launched a version of its service aimed at hooking you and your team at work. As Quartz reports, Facebook's Workplace is coming for the last part of your life that it doesn't dominate. Of course, Facebook already dominates your workday, but up until now, it's been used to avoid the job you're supposed to be doing. This story is important for two key reasons. First, it marks another time that a mega-tech company is coming after a business sector increasingly being dominated by an upstart (Slack). Second, it represents a further blurring of the (all but erased) line between your work and the rest of your life. In The New Yorker Anna Weiner argues that "there is something confounding about the idea of signing into Facebook to do business, rather than to be distracted from it." I remain confident that Facebook will not be able to draw me away from my real work (which I do on Twitter).
"Adderall wiped away the question of willpower. Now I could study all night, then run 10 miles, then breeze through that week's New Yorker, all without pausing to consider whether I might prefer to chat with classmates or go to the movies. It was fantastic. I lost weight. That was nice, too." In the NYT Magazine, Casey Schwartz describes her years using prescription stimulants to get through school and start her career. Then she tried to get off them.
+ Also from the NYT: Marijuana arrests outnumber those for violent crimes. (Either we're arresting too many people for pot, or we need more violent criminals...)
"These vicious claims about me of inappropriate conduct with women are totally and absolutely false." So said Donald Trump after four women described moments when he groped or kissed them without their consent. He also suggested that one of this accusers, a former People writer, was too unattractive for her story to be true: "You take a look. Look at her. Look at her words. You tell me what you think. I don't think so." According to the claims, Trump once looked at a 10-year-old girl and said he'd be dating her in 10 years.
+Here are my (sort of viral) Sixteen Quick Thoughts on Pussy Gate.
+ Digg has a running (and updating) list of the allegations.
+ Trump has blamed a biased media for the controversy, and (via a letter from his lawyers) threatened to sue the NY Times. The paper's lawyer responded with a letter that almost immediately went viral: "Nothing in our article has had the slightest effect on the reputation that Mr. Trump, through his own words and actions, has already created for himself." (Bob Dylan is lucky he won his Nobel prize before the NYT lawyer wrote his response to Trump.)
+ Like most current political controversies, this one is being waged on social and mainstream media. Here's the LA Times on why Trump and Clinton sleep in their own beds most nights even though they're on the campaign trail.
+ The Economist: Some Americans are getting rich by pushing politics to extremes. (To put it mildly, business is good.)
+ Google Searches for Write In have spiked 2,800 percent.
+ What if all of this stress and all of these Tweets were for nothing? Well, that's a strong possibility. From Quartz: The boring truth about the 2016 election is that it didn't change anyone's mind.
"These companies lobbied against public health intervention in 97 percent of cases, calling into question a sincere commitment to improving the public's health. By accepting funding from these companies, health organizations are inadvertently participating in their marketing plans." Maybe having big food, big beverage, and big tobacco fund health studies isn't such a good idea. (Keep an eye on this one. It's gonna be Tobacco all over again ... but bigger.)
According to the latest Pew numbers, most Americans say children are better off with a parent at home. My kids literally cheer when my wife and I say we're both going to be out of the house.
"He noticed that protesters had taken to using a technique called the human megaphone, a call-and-answer chant in which one person would say something, and everyone within earshot would repeat it until it echoed throughout the crowd. He decided to replicate this system for the internet." From The Ringer: If you thought luck was any part of these viral social media moments, you were wrong.
"TripAdvisor's new booking policy and education effort is designed as a means to do our part in helping improve the health and safety standards of animals, especially in markets with limited regulatory protections." TripAdvisor has halted all ticket sales to cruel wildlife attractions. And that means calling out many attractions for being what they are.
"Do not make eye contact. They don't need to know about your lifelong string of rejections or your secret need for approval. Just keep looking down at your practical shoes like the shame-filled, frightened adult you are." The New Yorker on how to walk past a group of teens without drawing attention.
+ Of course, there's a competitive pinball scene. And of course, it's in Portland.
+ MentalFloss examines the rise (and dramatic fall) of school lunches over the last several decades. Here's a look at where we started, and why we probably should have stopped at Lunchables.
+ I know 2016 has been a weird year when it comes to politics, news, and culture. But I really don't think anyone saw this headline coming.
+ TNR: Twitter made Ken Bone, and Twitter will destroy Ken Bone.
+ Death Cab for Cutieplays the first track on 30 Days, 30 Songs. Tunes written and recorded by artists for a Trump-free America.
+ WIRED: Let's all obsess over this intricate map of alt music history.
This is a weekly best-of version of the NextDraft newsletter. For daily updates and to get the NextDraft app, go here. (Original story reprinted with permission from NextDraft.)
