#5SmartReads - January 12, 2023
Hitha on Naatu Naatu, life in Kyiv, and embracing a #softlife
Lawsuit pushes addiction case against social media firms (Axios)
Is social media as addictive as drugs and other controlled substances?
Plaintiffs from over 100 cases seem to think so, and have consolidated in a single master compliant to federal court.
I’ll leave it to lawyers like Lisa Rubin to provide the full breakdown on this forthcoming case, but I find the central question to be the most interesting:
“An essential question in this case is whether the sites named in the suits and their algorithms can be considered "products" — and if so, whether the companies can be held liable for product designs that are charged with causing or contributing to harm.”
Are these companies’ apps, websites, and algorithms actual products that the companies can be held liable for? Or are they a utility for the First Amendment (freedom of speech and the right to assembly)? Or will Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in California’s Northern District rule somewhere in between?
Like so many things in modern life, our founders could not fathom the world we live in today that the Constitution - ratified over 200 years ago - could not proactively opine on. We will see what happens, but I think some common sense regulation of these apps that exist in Europe would be the right move. And since that’s unlikely to happen, we file lawsuits.
It’s the American way.
How #Softlife Saved Me from Myself (ZORA)
“The term “soft life” originated in the Nigerian influencer community as slang for living a life of comfort and low stress. Specifically meant for Black women to counter the “ Strong Black Woman” trope that is just as harmful as it is untrue. Black women were taking a stand, collectively saying, “Strong who? I don’t know her! And I don’t want to be her!” Black women are tired of having to be strong. For decades this unrealistic expectation came at the cost of sacrificing ourselves for the greater good of everyone around us. So the whole concept of abandoning this trope was quite revolutionary.”
First and foremost, let’s properly attribute the term #SoftLife to its creators, and why the term was coined by them. A lot of folks who aren’t Black likely yearn for a softer life themselves, but crediting the creators and honoring why they created this term needs to come first.
Thank you for sharing this origin story, Mishel. And for the detailed tips you outline in how to build a #softlife for yourself.
While you’ve heard this advice before, Mishel’s commentary about each tip does a fantastic job of connecting practices and habits with your why (and I encourage you to ask yourself what your #softlife looks like - it’s a great prompt for a vision board!).
The Profound Defiance of Daily Life in Kyiv (The New Yorker)
“The technology is now so advanced that Ukrainian citizens can know, more or less in real time, where the Russian missiles are coming from and generally where they’re going. In this case, Russia had just launched some seventy missiles, headed to sites all over Ukraine. The assumption was that they were directed at power substations, meant to cripple the country’s electrical grid. Vladimir Putin’s recent strategy has been to knock out the power in the depth of winter in hopes of breaking the spirits of everyday Ukrainians.
So far this strategy has not worked.”
This is a lengthy piece that is well worth your time, so save it (I like to use the Pocket app) and come back when you have a solid 20 minutes to read it. Detailed features like these are important to preserve a historical record of what war looks like in our present day.
That said, I wish the same coverage would be extended to other countries and people who have lived under siege for decades - the people of Somalia, Afghanistan, and Iraq come to mind.
You can stand with Ukraine (and you should!), and also highlight the inequity of coverage provided by media companies, especially publications like the New Yorker who publishes detailed pieces like these.
Both/and, my friend.
Intro for January 11, 2023 (Lainey Gossip)
After Naatu Naatu deservedly won the Best Original Song award at the Golden Globes, I went deep in Google to see how the Western press was talking about it.
This is my favorite reflection, both of the song and the impact of its win (and I’m in full agreement that a live performance of the song at The Oscars would be EPIC).
I’ve talked about RRR before (both its importance and some of the troubling messaging in the film), but it makes me cry to see the language I grew up speaking and singing along to be not just recognized, but CELEBRATED outside of the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana). That non-Telugu people (because India is a large country with its own regional and even neighboring state drama) celebrate SS Rajamouli’s films, that streaming platforms like Netflix and social media apps like TikTok amplify the reach of these films and songs for the world to enjoy and celebrate, makes me cry.
This Telugu bidda is very, very proud of her hometown (Hyderabad is the only consistent home I had my entire life, spending every summer there as a kid no matter where we were living). And I have to say that I’m honored to call these fellow Telugu trailblazers in being the change we’ve want to see: Annika, Aditya, Deepica, Rajakumari, and Shilpa.
Also if you haven’t watched the full dance number yet (which was also a key moment in the film), make sure you do (it’s in the article!). It is 🔥🔥🔥.
(Eega is my favorite SS Rajamouli film - it’s so unique and unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Highly recommend it - it’s on Netflix).
NYC nurses are on strike, but the problems they face are seen nationwide (NPR)
“We definitely need more nurses. But what we've found [over] decades of research and programs is that when we have really good work environments for nurses — where nurses are valued, nurses are listened to and nurses can provide quality, safe care — those hospitals, those organizations, don't experience the shortages that other hospitals do. There are solutions that organizations can put in place to attract nurses and retain nurses. And nurses will go to those organizations where they feel valued and they feel like at the end of the day, at the end of this shift, that they were able to provide good quality care to people.”
That companies that operate as nonprofits (like Mount Sinai) report high executive compensation but can’t accommodate their essential workers’ requests for safer working conditions - conditions that are literally life and death - is something that frustrates me to no end.
The rest of the country is watching what will happen in the NYC nurses’ strike, and I wouldn’t be surprised if more follow. This isn’t just a New York problem, but yet another significant crack in this country’s extremely profitable disease management system.