America is producing fewer startups now than previous eras. Fewer jobs are being created by new businesses. And what new companies do exist are hopelessly concentrated among certain industries and geographies. Metros like Los Angeles and New York dominate the scene; most other cities are largely stagnant.
Author: Douglas McLennan
Hilary Mantel: Women Writers Should Stop Making Female Characters More Powerful Than They Are
“Many writers of historical fiction feel drawn to the untold tale. They want to give a voice to those who have been silenced. Fiction can do that, because it concentrates on what is not on the record. But we must be careful when we speak for others… If we write about the victims of history, are we reinforcing their status by detailing it? Or shall we rework history so victims are the winners?”
Global Super-Group Orchestra Convenes In Toronto
They’ve come from all over the globe — China, Pakistan, Mexico, Greece — to make music in a new world. Twelve musicians, many of them playing ancient instruments from their home countries, show off their talents Friday night as the New Canadian Global Music Orchestra in a concert at Koerner Hall.
A Show Of Fakes Makes Them Real As It Gets
Here is a Rothko that isn’t a Rothko, a Coco Chanel suit that isn’t a Chanel, a Babe Ruth baseball glove that the Babe never set eyes on, and let’s not forget all the silver by Alt-Paul Revere. You name it, and Treasures on Trial: The Art and Science of Detecting Fakes probably doesn’t have it, but it might have something that might be. In the immortal words of master forger Elmyr de Hory: “If my work hangs in a museum long enough, it becomes real.”
Why Indie Opera Is So Cool, Fun, And Interesting
Today’s “indie opera” outfits are making do with less money than what even our country’s regional-level companies enjoy, so it’s no surprise that chamber-size realizations are often necessary. But what’s so pleasing about Heartbeat Opera’s “Butterfly” is how well its artistic intentions dovetail with its limited means.
The Amazon Bookstore – Not Really Built For People Who Read
“It is reminiscent of an airport bookshop: big enough to be enticing from the outside but extremely limited once you’re inside.”
The Reassuring Comfort Of Pessimism
“Pessimistic essayists and philosophers may not cast the same narrative gloom as fiction writers, but the implications of their work tend toward the universal. Indeed, to believe that unhappiness was merely a question of immediate circumstance and particular character might be seen as a crass form of optimism.”
So A Robot Is Going To Steal Your Job? Maybe Not!
“Another story is emerging from several recent papers and columns by economists and economic writers. Instead of a world without work, they say, there is currently more evidence for a world with too much work—and not enough humans to do it all. Rather than high-flying investment in machines and similarly high unemployment, there is strangely low investment and happily low joblessness. How can anybody say robots are killing jobs when the killer is nowhere to be seen and the supposed victim isn’t even dead?”
Peter Oundjian To Step Down As Toronto Symphony Music Director; Andrew Davis Named Interim MD
“Over his 14-year directorship, Oundjian grew to be the energetic face of a revitalized TSO, steering the Orchestra out of deep financial ruin in the process – according to the TSO’s annual reports available from the 2006/07 season onwards, the organization ran yearly operational surpluses except for the 2009/10, 2011/12, and 2012/13 seasons. While the move isn’t surprising at all, the other news is that Sir Andrew Davis will return to fill in as Interim Artistic Director through 2020 until a permanent successor is found.”
Baltimore Book Festival Cancels Rachel Dolezal Appearance After Protests
“A top priority of the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts is to listen to our constituents, and after hearing from a cross-section of opinions on having Rachel Dolezal participate in this year’s festival, we had to consider how her appearance may affect both the audience and the other extraordinary authors we have planned for the Baltimore Book Festival. For that reason, we believe it would be appropriate to remove Ms. Dolezal from the festival line up.”