The Weekly Roundup (week of 3/13)
More bank trouble! A new interview with Bret Easton Ellis. Balenciaga x Adidas. And finally an essay from 1964 about American Paranoia.
1. Banking in Uncertain Times
This essay from Patrick McKenzie provides an excellent analysis of the current financial situation. As someone with an admittedly infantile knowledge of finance, I was able to gain a much better understanding of the banking environment and financial conditions that led to the situation.
“If you recall the ancient history of *checks notes* the past 15 months, we went from a regime where prevailing interest rates were just above zero to almost 5%. This was the most aggressive hike in rates since World War II, or to put it another way, in the history of the modern economic order.”
Every bone in our body wants to point fingers at some kind of villain, and I felt that Patrick’s reading of the situation paints a much more complex painting than one might gather if you were to look at the takes from social media.
2. The Paranoid Style in American Politics
A prophetic essay from Richard Hofstadter. Here, the famous intellectual and American historian describes the historical roots of paranoia and its often pervasive role in American politics.
“I call it the paranoid style simply because no other word adequately evokes the sense of heated exaggeration, suspiciousness, and conspiratorial fantasy that I have in mind.”
3. An interview with legendary author Bret Easton Ellis
As a fellow Los Angeles native, I have a soft spot for B.E.E. His reaction to the societal forces that shaped his environment and upbringing was represented in a unique, sardonic way and led to some of the most iconic modern literature still relevant today. He hasn’t lost his touch, watch his interview with Wolfgang Wee in which they discuss his reaction to the Patrick Bateman memes, literary bad-boy Michel Houellebecq, writing in today’s political environment, and much more…
4. Balenciaga x Adidas may be coming sooner than you think.
Balenciaga’s reputational cleansing may be happening faster than I initially thought. I thought collaborators would wait a little bit longer but I may be wrong. Though this is just a leak and speculation remains purely unsubstantiated, they may be back for another round of sneakers sooner than one may think. Personally, I am not surprised. Read more here.