humbugism

i've been thinking about gifts lately, as it is that inevitable time of the year again. the obligatory buying of gifts in december is one of the most dreaded traditions of the western world, in my humble opinion.

well, one of the top fifty most dreaded at least.

one of the best gifts i've gotten in the last few years has been an international subscription to the new yorker. maybe it's that i get less mail here, or maybe its just nice to have such a juicy package of high-quality english to read every week, or perhaps i'm just another pretentious new yorker reader who would equate the lack of said subscription with a crime against humanity. but meanwhile there have been some great articles lately.

here, from the financial page, is a quick analysis of the video game industry, pegging nintendo as a successful third place to sony and microsoft. did you know that playstation loses $240 on the sale of each $650 ps3?

then there was the incredible piece on the rise and fall of donald rumsfeld, how he reformed the military after what was apparently a confidence crisis following the clinton administration, rose to power, kept his blinders on to the counterinsurgency in iraq, and finally got shitcanned. fascinating read.

and a beautiful profile of olafur eliasson (excerpt here), the icelandic artist and former breakdancing champion of scandanavia who will have shows next year at sfmoma and ps1. yesterday i saw one of his pieces in the louis vuitton store in madrid, a giant reflective eye. i stood and looked for ten minutes, interacting as intended.

today's question: new yorker, love it or hate it?