As a former English major, professional writer, and fan of books, I was happy to read in The New York Times that "small booksellers not only survived the pandemic, but many are thriving." More than 300 new independent bookstores have sprouted across the United States in the past couple of years. Given how bookstore sales fell nearly 30 percent in 2020, things could have turned out differently. “It’s kind of …
In A New Kia Sportage, You’ll Have the Power to Make More Good
Buying a new vehicle is a big financial decision. People shopping for cars weigh the monthly outlay expected of them, the insurance costs, gas and maintenance costs, and how much the dealer is going to make on the purchase. There's also the emotional buyer and the emotive purchase. People sometimes "fall in love" with a car. They like the way it handles, the way it looks, and the way it makes them feel. Feel Good …
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How Much Do You Really Know About Monosodium Glutamate?
Americans pour mountains of salt onto their food. We also reflexively say, "No, thank you," to Monosodium Glutamate, which could lower one's salt intake. We've been saying no to MSG for decades, but why? According to one of MSG's leading manufacturers—Ajinomoto—MSG's bad reputation is both undeserved and rooted in racism. In the 1960s, a wave of anti‐Asian xenophobia created a nationwide panic about MSG. This …
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No Slavery. No Exceptions.
S L A V E R Y. The very word sends chills. Along with genocide, slavery is one of two original sins and a bloody stain on the history of the United States. There are "hear no evil" people who do not want to hear about it, and people who can't see how it matters today. Thankfully, we have before us a campaign that connects the dots and helps to address centuries of racial injustice and the need for prison …
Civil Lawsuits Start to Penetrate the Gun Lobby’s Legal Armor
Despite appearances to the contrary, American gun makers and sellers are not untouchable, unreachable, or above and beyond the law. Typically, when legislators fail to act to protect people, the makers of dangerous products and perpetrators of dangerous industry practices are held in check by the threat of civil litigation. But this principle does not apply to the gun industry, because it has obtained …
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Leo Burnett Receives Four Grand Clios for their Gun Control Work
Since 1963, nearly 193,000 children and teens have been killed with guns on American soil—more than four times the number of U.S. soldiers killed in action in the Vietnam, Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, and Iraq wars combined, according to Children's Defense Fund. According to the gun control advocacy group Change The Ref, last year alone 3,044 more students did not get the chance to graduate because they were killed …
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Keep Bastrop Boring
Bastrop County is a fast-growing neighbor to Travis County—the home of Austin, the University of Texas, the state capitol, Austin FC, Austin City Limits, Oracle, Tesla, and so on. Bastrop is also directly downriver from Tesla's new world headquarters and car-making factory. When Elon Musk moved from California to Texas, his Boring Company quickly set up shop in rural Bastrop County, and currently has a permit to …
Cannabis Brand Develops New Show for VICE TV
Weedmaps is producing a new, original cannabis-centric docuseries called Tumbleweeds with Killer Mike. Hosted by rapper and activist Killer Mike, the series was produced by Wheelhouse DNA and Wheelhouse Labs and distributed through VICE Media Group. The first two episodes of the four-part series will air on VICE TV on April 20 starting at 10 P.M ET. Tumbleweeds with Killer Mike challenges existing …
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