Wrigley Field Saturday, where the Cubs won a purely moral victory

Man, Chicago is a lot of fun, except in the mornings. There’s some sort of atmospheric effect that makes you wake up with a headache, and my best efforts to investigate it by staying up until dawn recording my observations aloud have, somehow, not unraveled the mystery. I need more time. Fortunately, I’m here until tomorrow night, so I’ve got plenty of time to experiment with different combinations of supplements to keep my mind limber and free my body from unnecessary attachments, e.g. hygiene. While I continue my sense journey, how about you read this controversial article about the rhetoric of trauma in contemporary gender activism? The whole internet is made and/or excited about it. We’ll be back Wednesday, cross-eyed with glee.

Democracy

Two fun ballot initiatives for the 2014 Montana elections met untimely ends last week. The Healthy Montana Initiative, which would have accepted federal funds for Medicaid expansion after the state legislature refused them, fell just short of the required 25,000 signatures after a series of legal challenges. Meanwhile, Charter Communications’ I-172—which would have reclassified the telecommunications outfit as a cable company, reducing by approximately half the $34 million they owed in back property taxes—was withdrawn after Charter settled with the state. These two initiatives dropped out of contention before balloting season even began: one to reverse legislators’ decision to refuse to implement federal Medicaid expansion, and one to reverse a court’s decision to make the cable company pay its taxes. It was a classic David and Goliath story, and you can read all about it in my column for the Missoula Independent. Now if you’ll excuse me, I must watch the United States thwart Germany on the field of international contest, again. We’ll be back tomorrow with Friday links.

Only partly because why you’re not writing is the easiest subject, there is no Combat! blog today. I have to overcome this hangover, fly back to Missoula and—I am not joking here—prep for my colonoscopy. I guess it’s an endoscopy, too, but either way I’m going to have doctors in both ends like a best-case JDate. While I give offense, how about you enjoy this installment of Combat! Blog Classic from three years ago, when we were all enjoying unboxing videos. Oh, how young we were.

Deceptaconned!

Remember yesterday, when I was like “we’ll see you tomorrow for Friday links?” I was just trying to end the conversation. There are no links today, because I am busier than a shithouse mouse in a model airplane-building contest—in that I’m definitely going to lose, but I’m taking it really seriously anyway. While I build a fool’s fortress, how about you read this essay I wrote for the Indy about how getting what we wanted from the music industry means we don’t have an identity anymore? I’m paraphrasing. You’ll just have to follow the link. But only a fool would trust me now.