Atlantic Monthly Contributors's Blog, page 925

California Outlaws Revenge Porn

One of the various bills California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law on Tuesday made posting revenge porn online a misdemeanor crime. Posting revenge porn—when a jilted lover posts a former partner's indecent photos online—is now punishable in the state by up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

The author of Senate Bill 255, state senator Anthony Canella, said in a press release that "Until now, there was no tool for law enforcement to protect victims ... Too many have had their lives upended because of an action of another that they trusted." The lack of effective legal recourse for revenge porn has been a rising issue over the last few years.

The new law will most likely be contentious. While California joins New Jersey, which currently classifies the act as a felony, other states such as Florida and Missouri and organizations like the ACLU have argued that such laws violate the First Amendment and inhibit free speech.

In addition to the state's new revenge porn law, Brown also signed SB 568 into law, which requires websites to provide a way for minors to delete their data from the service. Uncertainty, however, could arise over what sites are covered by the bill. Counsel for the Center for Democracy & Technology told The Los Angeles Times that, "If the sites are unclear whether they are covered under the scope of the bill, the response could be to bar minors from the sites entirely."

       

Some Microsoft Investors Want to Get Rid of Bill Gates

Three of Microsoft's top investors would like outgoing CEO Steve Ballmer to make a farewell mixtape for the company's founder and chairman Bill Gates, according to a
    

U.N. Inspectors Begin Mission to Destroy Syrian Chemical Weapons

A team of international inspectors crossed over into Syria on Tuesday, marking the start of a mission to destroy the country's chemical weapons stockpile. The group currently in Syria will handle talks with the country's government regarding the task of working in the middle of Syria's civil war. 

The team includes both U.N. staffers and inspectors from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons watchdog group, who began their work on the international plan to rid Syria of its chemical weapons after a resolution authorizing it passed the U.N. Security Council unanimously. That plan, which doesn't authorize enforcement in the event of Syria's non-compliance, comes with a series of tight deadlines. So even as the situation in Syria is not like anything the OPCW is normally expected to handle, the organization will have to work quickly. The stockpile must fall under international control by November. And the weapons must be destroyed by the first half of 2014, about nine months from now. The New York Times explains that, after talks, inspectors will first verify the inventory of the country's stockpile, provided by the government of President Bashar al-Assad as part of the agreement. The Times explains: 

After the first week, the team is expected to expand and move to verify what is at those sites and to assist Syria with the destruction of equipment and facilities for mixing agents and producing chemical weapons, an official involved with planning the mission said.

The timeline is the tightest faced by the organization, ever. The OPCW must also ensure that the country's ability to manufacture chemical weapons is destroyed by the beginning of November, which seems to mean that the agency, assisting Syria, might use any means on hand to do that. The AP suggests that the equipment destruction might involve "smashing mixing equipment with sledgehammers, blowing up delivery missiles, driving tanks over empty shells or filling them with concrete, and running machines without lubricant so they seize up and become inoperable." Syrians are responsible for the security of the U.N. team, although Russia has extended an offer to assist. 

Meanwhile, some factions of the exiled opposition in Syria aren't to happy about the new diplomatic plan to disarm Assad, because of fears that the sudden co-operation by the Assad regime is merely a ploy to make the leader look "legitimate." 

This post has been updated for clarity. 

       

How Well Do You Know the People Who Shut Down Your Government?

If you've been watching C-SPAN during the government shutdown, you might have found yourself asking, Who are these guys? Most of us can't recognize most of the 535 members of Congress who make very important decisions about the most powerful nation on Earth.

So we created this little quiz to test your Congressional Knowledge™. See how you stack up against your fellow Americans.

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Which of these people is chair of the all-powerful House Appopriations Committee?

  What states are the following people from? [image error]   [image error]   [image error]   [image error]
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Which of these people is the most powerful?

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Which of these people has been serving the longest?

  Is this person a current member of Congress? [image error]   [image error]   [image error]  
       

Twitter Founder Jack Dorsey and Iran's President Connect on Twitter, of Course

Despite a slight glitch last week, the Internet in Iran remains heavily censored. But new president Hassan Rouhani, who's been winning friends and influencing people, called for more open Internet access again Tuesday at the behest of Twitter founder Jack Dorsey.* 

For some reason Dorsey decided to start a conversation with Rouhani on Tuesday morning, asking whether or not Iranian citizens could, you know, actually read his tweets. The short version is that, no, they can't, but Rouhani hopes they'll be able to soon: 

Evening, @Jack. As I told @camanpour, my efforts geared 2 ensure my ppl'll comfortably b able 2 access all info globally as is their #right.

— Hassan Rouhani (@HassanRouhani) October 1, 2013

"There are large social networks at a global level around today," Rouhani told Christine Amanpour last week during his historic trip to New York. "And I believe that all human beings have a right, and all nations have a right to use them." But he acknowledged that Iran's current mentality doesn't mesh will with those social networks:

Now, it is possible that a country might - a certain country might have a framework, an ethical and moral concern. And many countries do, in fact, have that, that they try to follow. And in Iran, there are certainly such frameworks in place, as well.

For a brief moment last week, Rouhani had his wish. Iranians were briefly able to access Facebook, Twitter and other social networks for about a day. But the government quickly nipped that mistake in the bud. "The lack of a filter on Facebook last night was apparently due to technical problems and the technological committee is investigating this issue," Abdolsamad Khoramabadi, the head of Iran’s filtering and monitoring committee, said, according to a translation by Haaretz. But some reports suggested the brief respite from censorship was caused by feuding politicians inside the Iranian government. Like, perhaps, the more liberal Rouhani vs. some more hardline Iranians. 

Unfortunately, Rouhani still doesn't have a verified account. 

*Correction: This story previously identified Jack Dorsey as the CEO of Twitter. While Dorsey is a founder and former CEO of the company, his role at the company is now as a board member. Dick Costolo is the current CEO. We regret the error.

       

'The Blacklist' Might Actually Be a Hit

Today in show business news: NBC actually has a new hit, The Simpsons is killing someone, and Hunger Games tickets are already going fast.

NBC must really be crossing its fingers hard now, because its new mystery-thriller series The Blacklist, about James Spader being a crook and catching all the other crooks, barely dropped in its second week. About 12 million people tuned in last night, down only 5 percent from the premiere. So that means people are interested! And you know what? I can't blame them. It's a fun premise and features just-smarter-than-you'd-think writing. Plus last night's episode had Jane Alexander AND Isabella Rossellini. You can't beat that. [Deadline]

Uh oh. The Simpsons producer Al Jean says that a major character is going to die either this year or the next. Who will it be?? Grampa? Mr. Burns? Moleman? One of the other old people? I doubt it. It'll probably be someone more random, like Carl. I mean, at this point who isn't a major character on The Simpsons? And really, who shouldn't die? Shouldn't they all? Look, I love that damn show like a third parent, but it's really been off its game for like... ten years now. It's time. It's time. [The Hollywood Reporter]

If you don't have your tickets to The Hunger Games: Catching Fire yet, what the hell is wrong with you? Everyone else does! Tickets went on sale today and, as of earlier this afternoon, sales for this ding-dang movie represented 35% of all sales on the entire MovieTickets.com website. Sheesh! (Though, hm, just 35%? What other things are people buying tickets to on a Tuesday afternoon? I guess maybe Gravity, but beyond that, there shouldn't be that many movie ticket sales on an autumn Tuesday afternoon. Unless it's all government workers on furlough, then by all means, go nuts. But if not? Get back to work!) This is going to be a big movie, so you gotta get your tickets. You should be ashamed that you haven't already. It's really embarrassing. [Deadline]

A writer and a production company are suing Warner Bros. and other parties claiming that the studio stole the idea for its Clint Eastwood baseball movie Trouble With the Curve. Which... Wait, people are fighting over credit for Trouble With the Curve?? [Entertainment Weekly]

Paramount laid off 110 staffers this morning. The studio was said to have about 2,400 employees back in 2011, when 120 staffers were laid off, so this latest reaping represents around 5 percent of the whole staff. Which is a lot! But don't worry, all those development execs who came up with things like Pain & Gain and Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters are fine. The layoffs only hit people in Finance, Human Resources, Information Technology, International Home Media Distribution, Legal and Marketing. So the non-cool jobs, basically. Phew. [Deadline]

       

China's 'Little Red Book' Reprint Will Be Neither Little Nor Red

In November, just a month shy of the 120th anniversary of Mao Zedong's birth, a controversial collection of the revolutionary Chairman's words will be republished in China for the first time in decades. Formally titled Quotations from Chairman Mao—but better known as the "Little Red Book," which is indeed how it appears—the manifesto was first published in 1966, at the height of Maoism.

So does it also mark a resurgence of the communist leader's ideology?

The Christian Science Monitor rather hesitantly suggests that it does, noting Communist Party General Secretary Xi's recent rectification campaign:

Some have likened China’s mass line rectification campaign—an attempt to disavow corruption and reinforce the Communist Party’s ties with the masses—to Mao’s “mass line” campaigns to purge the party of corrupt leaders.

While The Guardian additionally points to a recent "self-criticism session," borrowed from the Mao handbook:

The re-emergence of Quotations from Chairman Mao—better known as the Little Red Book—comes amid an official revival of the era's rhetoric. China's leader, Xi Jinping, has embraced Maoist terminology and concepts, launching a "mass line rectification campaign" and this week even presiding over a televised self-criticism session.

But researcher Chen Yu, who edited the volume, outright denies there's any political significance, noting that the new volume is different than the one in circulation decades ago:

"Linking the publication of this book with the Cultural Revolution is totally wrong," Chen said. "It is merely a publication of scientific research, not a re-publishing of the previous Quotations from Chairman Mao."

And, indeed, the book's physical properties reflect that much: according to one report, it is neither little nor red. Yu spent two years editing it and cobbling together Mao's "most inspiring" quotations.

       

New Yorkers Will Never Get the Perfect Taco Their Hearts Desire

Full disclosure: I am from Southern California. I don't like my tacos doused in guacamole, lettuce, sour cream, and cheese. I like taco trucks, and my idea taco is served on a corn tortilla and should only contain cilantro, meat, and onions. 

Here is the food world's greatest mystery: New York City is the food capital of the country—if you spend enough time on the subway you can find any cuisine you want. So why is it so freaking impossible to find a great taco in this city? Especially since the city is reaching peak taco. And further: why do so many New Yorkers recommend such crappy tacos here? It just doesn't make sense. 

The New York Times's Pete Wells attempts to figure out that mystery and has, perhaps, given us the most complete and satisfying answer to date: the basic idea of a taco is diametrically opposed to that of being a New Yorker. Ergo, in order for New Yorkers to find taco nirvana, they have to stop having the demands of a New Yorker. And in order for tacos to survive, they have to morph themselves into some mutant version of themselves. To put it simply: New Yorkers, it's you or the taco. 

The problem, as Wells points out, is that the taco is made to be eaten quickly and that the handoff from flat-top to tortilla to diner warrants an Olympic relay-like handoff. And that cannot happen when New Yorkers are having group dinners, are gabbing over gossip, and power-lunching. He writes:

The problem tacos, the underachieving tacos, are the ones assembled on a plate by an overworked line cook and then picked up by an overworked server and ferried across the dining room to your table, where they sit and wait until you and all the people you’re out with stop talking and drinking and begin to eat. All this time, the tortilla has been curling and going brittle like an autumn leaf and the filling has been nosing up toward room temperature.

The best tacos I have had in California were off of a truck. This one. Or they came from hole-in-the-walls where that served nothing but tacos. Like this one. The tacos I had were, if you will, alive. They weren't sitting around in their death spirals waiting for me and my friends to finish up our stories about lives. The only conversations we'd have were about waiting for the taco, and we were more than fine with any interruption. 

That just doesn't happen in New York City. The other half of his taco theorem is that New Yorkers have created market where only fancy tacos can survive. New York restaurants have to pay rent and can't charge what trucks do. "This puts pressure on chefs to work in what Mr. Stupak calls 'the ingredient ghetto.'" Wells explains, pointing to Chefs creating things like lobster, scallop, and shrimp tacos which come in at $18 for two — I'd argue could spend $18 at a throw-your-mom-into-traffic-good taco truck and feed three people. 

The solution (and possibly the next great concept) is a taco bar, like a sushi bar, where tacos are handed straight to you. Which, if you think about the logistics — waiting forever to be handed a $9+ taco— is just as sad a concept as killing the taco itself. 

       

John Boehner's Obama Impersonation Could Use Some Work

Hours from a government shutdown, GOP House Speaker John Boehner took to the floor to defend the latest attempt to pass a continuing resolution that would include provisions to defund or delay Obamacare. Boehner, who spoke to the president earlier Monday about the current Congressional negotiations (it was not a productive conversation), decided to address the Democrats' decision to not negotiate further on the bill by doing an impression of the president. It's...rough. 

"I talked to the president earlier tonight," Boehner said, and then dropped his voice into the impression. "'I'm not gonna negotiate. I'm not gonna negotiate. We're not gonna do this.' Well, I would say to the president, 'this is not about me. This is not about Republicans here in Congress. It's about fairness for the American people.'" Boehner was joined by Majority Leader Eric Cantor, who also spoke in support of the latest bill on the floor. That bill will almost certainly be sent back to the House by the Senate as soon as it gets its hands on it later tonight. 

To follow along with the rest of our coverage of the impending shutdown, head over to our liveblog. 

       

People Watched 'Homeland' Last Night Too

Today in showbiz news: Homeland was a ratings winner last night too, Cruella de Vil is getting her own movie, and Audrina Patridge returns from obscurity.

We almost forgot! Homeland was on last night too, at the same time as the Breaking Bad finale even. And it did pretty well! It attracted 2.6 million viewers over two broadcasts last night, its best premiere ratings yet. That number will undoubtedly get bigger when DVR and On Demand viewings are factored in. So Homeland is a hit. Though it still maybe would have been better for the show, buzz-wise, to wait a week to premiere. But how could Showtime have known when they scheduled this season that Breaking Bad would become the bonkers phenomenon that it did? Who saw that coming, besides everyone who wrote about the show for years? Oh well. Now it doesn't have any competition. It's clear sailing for Dana and the gang. But mostly for Dana, the show's most important character. [Entertainment Weekly]

Disney is pretty into doing live-action adaptations of its old animated properties these days. They've got Cinderella and Maleficent on the way, and now they've hired Cinderella's screenwriter to pen Cruella. As in Cruella de Vil. Which... Didn't we just have Glenn Close doing that? Do we need another one? Are there no new ideas? Don't answer that. [The Hollywood Reporter]

Audrina Patridge from The Hills has, rather improbably, landed a job. In this economy! She'll be the host of NBC's 1st Look, the show that airs in the middle of the night on Saturdays on ten channels around the country and sometimes in the back of taxis. So she will not be easy to find, but she will be on TV, somewhere... Patridge says she's excited because "It's one of my dream jobs because I love doing different adventures." She loves doing different adventures. Some people love doing the same adventure, over and over again. But she likes doing different adventures. That's just who Audrina Patridge is. [The Hollywood Reporter]

Tate Taylor, who directed The Help, is reteaming with actresses Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer to make a James Brown biopic. Unfortunately this isn't some amazing I'm Not There-type thing with Viola Davis playing Dylan. She's going to play his mother, while Octavia Spencer is his aunt. Oh well. [The Hollywood Reporter]

The guy who directed the wildly successful Hatfields & McCoys miniseries on the History channel will be directing a movie about the resurrection. As in, of Jesus. Jesus Christ from olden times. The plan is to release the movie around Easter 2015. Makes sense. Hatfields & McCoys did well, and so did that Bible miniseries, so this combines those two things, in a way. Should be a runaway boffo smash. Plus zombies are all the rage these days! [The Wrap]