October 2022

This Week on the Lindy Newsletter

I was recently watching an interview with the actor Christian Bale, and he said something curious. The interviewer asked him why he took on the Batman role, Christian Bale says, “Because I could pay off my house if I take this role. Paying off my house was my dream.”

This is not a strange sentiment to hear these days. I solely “did it for the money” is ok for people to say, even artists and entertainers.

This is a recurring phenomenon in film. Actors openly discuss doing roles solely for financial interests. Obviously, this has gone on since film began. No surprise there. But stating it publicly? That has changed since the 90s.

The anxiety over selling out is completely gone, especially in music. This is a financial transaction. Like everything else.

Bob Dylan has sold his entire back catalog of recorded music to Sony Music Entertainment in a landmark deal that starts with his 1962 self-titled debut album, continues with 2020’s “Rough and Rowdy Ways” and includes rights to multiple future releases, according to the record company.

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Weekend Reads

Elon Musk describes how he caught a leaker at Tesla a few years ago. Really interesting way to catch a leaker.

Joe Biden recently decriminalized marijuana possession at the federal level. Recently, The Economist called for the legalization of cocaine. Legalizing pot doesn't really affect the commons, except for the smell in public. Cocaine, though, now that would cause a change in public that you would notice.

I'm always in awe of just how huge America is.

Byzantium was the most powerful and richest state in the Middle Ages. But really, it's more accurate to call them the Eastern Roman Empire.

I don't really think there is a way out of the obesity crisis without pharmaceutical intervention. Our environment is full of tasty food that is pretty cheap. Most people's lives are sedentary. It's difficult for people to fight their environment. Obesity is almost at 50 percent of the population.

That Snapper You’re Eating Might Be 80 Years Old. I don't think I had ever stopped to think about the age of the fish on my plate when it was caught. Thank you for sharing.

William Shatner on his Blue Origin flight to space: "It was among the strongest feelings of grief I have ever encountered."

I remember Adderall mostly a thing students did in school to study for tests. Now I see it as a regular part of white collar work. I wonder what changed?

Electricity has been so much more talked about regarding decarboning, because is was the easier part, that somehow some countries still screwed up.

Music