Thorstein Veblen’s The Theory of the Leisure Class (1899) critiques conspicuous consumption and leisure, exploring how affluent social strata display status through nonproductive wealth and class-based leisure. His work remains foundational in sociology and economics for its enduring insight into consumerism, social stratification, and cultural evolution.
Baseball in St. Louis during the nineteenth century was a dynamic and evolving phenomenon that played a significant role in the development of the game in the United States. The sport gained popularity in St. Louis in the 1860s, as clubs began forming and competing against each other in informal games. 1874St. Charles Browns Baseball... Continue Reading →
The St. Louis Stars were a professional baseball team in the Negro Leagues, active from 1922 to 1931 and then again from 1937 to 1945. While they are the most remembered Negro League organization based in St. Louis, they were not the first. The St. Louis Giants were the first St. Louis based professional baseball... Continue Reading →
What many overlook about George Sisler is not only was he one of the game’s early great hitters, but he was also a two way player out of the University of Michigan, pitching somewhat regularly his first two pro seasons. 1917 He was born on March 24, 1893, in Manchester, Ohio and played for the... Continue Reading →
I am not from St. Louis I’m actually a transplant. I arrived here in 1999 for an academic job. I was always a Dodgers fan, but when I moved away from California, my connection to the Dodgers slowly eroded over the many years. While I was in graduate school, I kinda hopped around from teams.... Continue Reading →
This is a painting comprised of three panel canvas. I haven’t painted in a while so to get the rust off I asked my wife what colors to start with. She recommended grey because I think both of us are going through seasonal affective disorder. As she left what I call my studio she added... Continue Reading →
"The interesting dynamic of social media's contribution to conspiracy theories is not only its amplification of existing or emergent theories, but also how it has exponentially added to their commodification," said Bausman. — Read on http://www.forbes.com/sites/petersuciu/2023/02/04/social-media-has-an-answer-for-everything--unfortunately-most-are-conspiracy-theories-you-shouldnt-believe/
For whatever reason, and I haven’t the slightest idea why, Bonnie Raitt’s music has been in my head.. It has been on constant rotation for at a least 2 weeks. I am one of those individuals that always has a tune in their head. Brushing my teeth in the morning, taking out the trash, or... Continue Reading →
The pandemic appears to have awakened a new form of worker consciousness that social media is tapping into and helping to amplify. — Read on thehill.com/opinion/technology/3719960-whether-its-soft-lifers-or-quiet-quitters-covid-created-a-new-workforce/
Had an interesting conversation with the authors on the implications of these forms and directions of public pressure as a new check and balance on the operation of our justice system Prosecutors dropped the charges against Adnan Syed, the subject of the "Serial" podcast. We’re answering your questions about what may happen next. — Read... Continue Reading →
This week and I had the opportunity to take a few photographs in our backyard. I am truly loving the camera on my #iPhone11. I’ve hardly touched my Canon camera in ages. I planted these flowers on my own this summer. The seeds cost a buck. The flowers were a favorite of my mother. If... Continue Reading →
I was invited to write my thoughts about the implications of a recent policy change Airbnb made this summer. The piece discusses how listings can be destabilizing for a neighborhood’s oversight of public safety. I feel I should note that I have used such services in lodging myself, and have preferred the experience compared to... Continue Reading →
My wife and daughter served as recent volunteers at the “Japanese Festival” this past weekend, which gave me plenty of photo opportunities. I took these with an iPhone 11. The only reason I seem to pull out my Canon anymore is for filming. And, that is only because of the conversion issues with iPhone video... Continue Reading →
This summer we went down to the gulf and stayed in the panhandle of Florida along the Alabama border in a place called Perdido Key. It’s the second time we came and stayed in this area. We have found this place nearly perfect for our annual beach fix. Wonderful white sand and water temperatures, with... Continue Reading →
This summer we went down to visit my brother’s family in Oklahoma. I first moved Oklahoma when I was nine years old. I’m originally from Los Angeles but my mother divorced my father, and her subsequent boyfriend’s job moved us to Oklahoma. I would live in Oklahoma for the next 15 years until I was... Continue Reading →
We decided to drive down and stop for a couple days in Memphis Tennessee to introduce our daughter to the Civil Rights Museum. As I have written in other areas, my daughter was the impetus for this stop. She is a passionate soul and unbeknownst to her my photographic muse. I think Memphis is a... Continue Reading →
I was recently at my sister in law’s house. They moved out of the Phoenix metro and I found myself with plenty to photograph. Because deserts are frequently associated with the death of living things, I thought it would be nice to shoot these images in black and white. I love how the black and... Continue Reading →
A friend and his daughter came through town last week. He has serious photography skills, and each time he passes through we make treks through the city photographing the remnants of St. Louis’ historical built environments. As is the case with most of my guests to the city is their noting the remarkable underuse and... Continue Reading →
We (you) are the state. We are the arbitrators of collective affairs. Without us there is anarchy and no possibility of enduring happiness. The state is our collective voice, our contribution to the definition of a life of liberty in this shared world. Our individual pursuits of happiness and their resulting successes and failure are... Continue Reading →
I think this is one of the most beautiful songs. It has been in my head for a while since we had a string of thunderstorms. https://youtu.be/87Z2CdbHpZQ The prettiest thingI ever did seeWas lightning from the top of a cloudMoving through the dark a million miles an hourWith somewhere to be So why does it... Continue Reading →
I am trying to get back into the swing of painting again, I kind of lost my rhythms over the winter and this past academic year. I’m starting back up on paper using acrylics, topping off with a polyacrylic finish. To get inspired I’ve been playing with overlaying color fields in different geometric shapes kind... Continue Reading →
The semester has finally ended. The pandemic has taken its toll on my time to paint. As I was finishing grading last week, I decided to start putting paint to paper in between grading papers. I had this set of 28 x 22“ posterboard paper laying around all semester. I couldn’t bring myself to open... Continue Reading →
I love baseball! Not in the fanatic sense, but more of a purist love for the game. Baseball for me is like a comfortable blanket. I fell in love with it when I was nine years old and have never let go. The game has pissed me off a time or two, but I keep... Continue Reading →
My daughter and I had our first true shared musical exchange. What I mean is that as she’s grown up, I have exposed her to my musical interests in hopes of cultivating an eclectic musical palate in her. The development of her own tastes has to this point been influenced by her preoccupation with a... Continue Reading →
My recent by-line in The Crime Report: For the last three decades, at least until recently, the U.S. has been experiencing a steady decline in overall violent crime and homicide rates. Nevertheless, over that same period, there has been a steady increase in the frequency of mass shooting events, like the incident that left six... Continue Reading →
Bausman continued. "Social media and its variety of platforms has yet to establish some type of equivalent set of filters. Without these de-facto gatekeepers of information, bad actors now have platforms to disseminate misinformation and shape the narrative of events on the ground." https://www.forbes.com/sites/petersuciu/2022/03/31/social-media-has-provided-a-skewed-account-of-the-war-in-ukraine/?sh=e93fb9d7826e
“They were making all these kinds of psychological arguments that this music was having incredibly damaging effects to our generation," Bausman said.
“The dangers of misinformation could release a powder keg of conflict in the region, but its use for relating real time information and galvanizing support may just prove to be Putin's Achilles heel."
I stumbled upon this artist originally watching the tail end of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. @genesisowusu was performing Gold Chains. I was intrigued by the performance, but the song only felt secondary in my head. Next morning, the chorus of Gold Chains was stuck in my head. I went to YouTube to search... Continue Reading →
"A recognized paid endorsement by a customer – not a celebrity or public figure – or employee diminishes the authority of the positive review and thereby diminishes its intended influence," explained Bausman. "It is one thing to use paid reviews to bring attention to a business' product and its quality; it's quite telling however to use paid... Continue Reading →
This song has been on a continual loop in my head of late. We’ve passed daylight savings and winter is a coming. Seasonal affective disorder is not far behind. As I feel its shadow slowly coming over me, I resist it with a steady drumbeat of the great Stewart Copeland and the most awesome trio... Continue Reading →
I was invited recently to share my understanding of the school to prison pipeline for “The Hill” Here is the link https://thehill.com/changing-america/opinion/577843-busting-the-school-to-prison-pipeline-takes-more-than-diversity
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2021/10/14/tv-violence-squid-game-watch/ I was recently interviewed by a reporter from the Washington Post. We talked about the social phenomenon that is Netflix popular series “The Squid Game.” I shared with her my sociological thoughts on the cultural importance of artifacts within society to bond around. When earlier generations were glued around the radio, only to be... Continue Reading →
I don’t know what it is but lately this Aretha Franklin song has been stuck in my head for two weeks. I love the lyrics but it is the music, the beat, the rhythm that I think I am most in love with. I’m curious as to whether anybody has done a jazz instrumental version... Continue Reading →
A recent study suggests a possible link between Airbnb's and the occurrence of crime. Here is my recently requested inference of that study and those like it. — Read on thecrimereport.org/2021/08/06/is-there-a-link-between-airbnb-and-neighborhood-crime-rates/
This summer out of the blue, my daughter took up an interest in my childhood skateboard. I heavily WD-40’ed the hell out of the genuine polyurethane wheels and the bushings for the trucks. I also needed to do some repairs to the board to fix the holes from the trucks over the years. It cleaned... Continue Reading →
These are the remaining shots I felt like sharing. They add further evidence of the wonderful ascetics of the Western part of the state. We avoided sight of wildfires, but we did drive through some burnt out areas attempting to rebuild from the last series of wildfires.
I was recently driving down the 101 south along the Oregon Coast. We were taking my daughter to see the Seal caves, and of course I had to snap some shots along the way. These are some that caught my eye.
https://youtu.be/HcyT1Nb5H3s?si=_1N4xXo0OtFGmaQQ I was introduced to the Biz through MTV as a college student in the Midwest. To this day my favorite track off of “The Biz Never Sleeps” is “It’s Spring Again.” I got to introduce him anew to my daughter through “Yo Gabba Gabba.” He was just 57. Bless his soul.
I live to be near water. During our recent visit to the Oregon Coast I snapped a few landscapes that caught my eye. One of these also includes a glimpse at my photographic muse the past 10 years.
