The Breads Roundup No. 111
Social Media Decentralization, Trusting Influencers and CEO Fall-Out Shelters
If this email was forwarded to you and you want to subscribe, you can do so here.
Hello Rube Goldberg Machinists,
Sorry for the gap between the last edition and this one. I’ve been traveling a bit and also trying to find a job that will pay me money. The former is fun, the latter is decidedly not fun.
Ok time for my faux-deep intro. I just finished reading Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson. It’s a fictional story that takes place in Vietnam during the war. I’ve been consuming media about the war recently, also watching Apocalypse Now, Platoon and Full Metal Jacket for the first time (I know blasphemous). They’re all towering works of cinema.
But the book. It’s long, winding, full of complex symbolism and of course, exceedingly dark. One passage and sentiment stood out to me enough to write it down in my notes. In this passage one of the main characters, Skip, gets word that his mother recently passed away back home in America (don’t worry this isn’t all that important to the plot of the book). The writing around how he processes the situation struck me like a bolt of divine clarity:
Skip watched the road beyond the gate. Not thinking about his mother at all. He supposed he’d think about her later. He couldn’t predict the order of these emotional events, his mother had never died before.
It’s that last sentence that really gets me. We live our lives assuming things will unfold in particular ways. Ways that are generally par for the course and ways that we hope will represent a favorable outcome for us. Of course that is never what happens, otherwise we would be living in a wonderful, satisfying simulation.
Everyday we experience things that have never happened to us before. They are not generally as impactful or devastating as the death of a loved one. But they shape us nonetheless. It is important to recognize, like Skip, that it is ok that we don’t always know how to respond. That no amount of planning can prepare us for what may or may not happen in our lives. However, we can always do our best in the moment to be aware of this fact. It will only help us for things that occur, both good and bad.
Maybe this passage struck me because I’ve been living my life assuming I will know how to handle a piece of devastating news. I’m an apathetic person, oftentimes to a fault. So was Skip. It put into perspective the idea that I have countless upcoming moments in my life that I am hopelessly unprepared for and I suppose knowing is half the battle.
I’m starting a Signal group if anyone ever wants to talk about their never-experienced life moments.
Also, mom please don’t read too much into this newsletter intro. It’s just a passage from a book.
Anyways time for the linkies.
The Great Social Media Decentralization
Just Give Me A Synopsis:
If you, like me, are becoming increasingly disenchanted with social media this is a great read to truly understand the mechanisms and trends that got us to where we are today. It accounts for all the cultural forces that have caused the beginnings of a great flight away from the major platforms.
And A Quote From The Article Please:
It was once novel features, like Facebook’s photo tagging or Twitter’s quote tweets, that drew users to social media sites. Now, it’s frequently ideological alignment that seduces users. People are decamping to platforms that they believe match their norms and values — and, in an increasingly polarized America, there is a chasm between the two sides.
And Tell Me Why I Should Care:
Social media is one of, if not THE, defining technologies of the century so far. Much like tobacco, plastics and EDM in the past we are only just beginning to understand the horrors that consistent use of this product has wrought upon us. As we leave the major social platforms for newer platforms (because we are too addicted to quit cold turkey) it is important to understand the structures by which new platforms operate and why they are (supposedly) better than the old ones. It is also important to be aware, as this article points out, that as we move to new platforms we are most likely entering an even more intense echo chamber for our beliefs.
Gen Z Teens Tell Us Why They Stopped Trusting Experts In Favor Of Influencers On TikTok
Just Give Me A Synopsis:
Essentially, Gen Zers trust influencers over experts because of three important factors: 1) They see influencers as their friends who are genuine and telling this information because they care about you, 2) they see an expert as someone who is just doing their job, and 3) the algorithms are built to keep you engaged by showing you information you already agree with, which is how echo chambers are formed and opinions start to feel like facts.
And A Quote From The Article Please:
It’s not that Gen Z doesn’t believe in experts. Rather, it’s that social media has rewired the way they think about credibility. TikTok influencers are now our “friends.” The algorithm repeats and reinforces what we already believe. And a well-edited, engaging video is much more convincing than a long, complicated explanation from a professional. Credibility today isn’t about expertise but about who tells the most compelling story. This change is slowly reshaping how an entire generation decides what is true and what is not—sometimes with demonstrably negative results.
And Tell Me Why I Should Care:
"Wait Eli!" I hear you shouting from your bedroom as you bathe in the bluelight doomscrolling for hours on end before sleep, "this sounds like it is applicable to most people on the internet, not just Gen Zers!" Well damn, we got a regular Dr. John H. Watson over here 'cause that's exactly what I thought when I read this article too! Societally our trust in traditional outlets and resources is crumbling. Even hardcore skeptics like myself have repeated something they saw someone say on the internet as fact without actually looking into it. In practice I try to at least do a cursory Google of proclamations I see on social media, especially from influencers, and see if any legitimate news sources are covering them before I send something around. This article paints the picture of the factors behind why we are so quick to believe what we see online and it is equally as horrifying as it is enlightening. Give this a read and use it as fuel to start thinking more critically about how you consume "expert" advice from the internet.
Corporations Dig Deeper: Using Bunkers To Secure Data (And Their CEOs)
Just Give Me A Synopsis:
In a move that is surprising to no one that carries any skepticism with regard to how our highly capitalistic society works, the things megacorporations are most concerned about protecting in the event of nuclear disaster are their executives and their data.
And A Quote From The Article Please:
Large corporations are shopping for underground bunkers that can survive a nuclear blast to protect their data centers and C-suite employees as geopolitical tensions rise. The first adopters are primarily cryptocurrency firms, companies that build the facilities told Semafor.
And Tell Me Why I Should Care:
You can look at this a few ways: 1) these people run some of the most successful companies in the world and if they think things are going way downhill then maybe they are and we should also be looking for bunkers, 2) As people become more successful and more wealthy they become increasingly isolationist and prone to the fear that they could lose everything at any moment or 3) Some people are super selfish and just want to protect themselves and their interests no matter the cost. It’s almost assuredly some combination of all three.
A Photo Of Mine For Your Viewing Pleasure
I’m a film photographer in addition to an internet link excavator. I wanted to start sharing some of my favorite photos from recent times. I also make prints if you’re ever interested.
Crime Waves
In Search Of The South Pacific Fugitive Who Crowned Himself King
This is some Apocalypse Now meets Bernie Madoff Ponzi Scheme type of vibes. It takes place in Melanesia, an area between Australia and Polynesia, and has all sorts of socio-political and economic intricacies. Plus it talks about Cargo Cults, which were essentially prophets foretelling of bounteous future goods that will arrive on the island in the form of cargo, all predicted by the prophet and only available for his followers — so basically Bezos and Amazon Prime. This is about some guy named Noah in Papua New Guinea who has set himself up in a no-go-zone in the center of a remote Papuan island. Movie about this surely incoming.Operation Atacama: The $1m Cactus Heist That Led To A Smuggler's Downfall
If you steal the cactus you will be caught. Succulents gotta be a bottom five item to try and smuggle via kiestering. Rounding out that list: grenades, biological/chemical weapons, hedgehogs and the complete Sopranos Blu-Ray disc box set collection .They Were Silicon Valley Overachievers. Then They Started Killing.
Heard of the Zizians? A bunch of Silicon Valley nerds who believed deeply in post-rationalism (basically believing a malevolent AI will wipe us all out) and wound up killing a buncha people.The Inside Story Of The British Gold Toilet Heist
An Italian artist made a solid gold, and functioning, toilet and named it ‘America’ as a conceptual art piece. This toilet/art was then put on display in Winston Churchill's palace and was then promptly stolen within a day of going on display.A Nuclear Bomb Sits Off The Coast Of Georgia
Well this is terrifying. A US training flight jettisoned a 7,600 nuke during a training flight in the 1950s. And the bomb is still there. Waiting. Plotting. Biding its time. Not exactly a crime, per se, but could be the setting for a catastrophic one!
We Sure Do Consume A Lot Of Media, Don’t We?
More Than 1B People Now Watch Podcasts On YouTube Every Month
Everything always comes full circle. Podcasts used to be radio talk shows where (usually) two white dudes talk to each other about their favorite movies. But now they're public access television talk shows where (usually) two white dudes talk to each other about their favorite movies.I Spent 24 Hours Watching The Clock
I went and saw The Clock at MOMA. I stood in the gallery for about 20 minutes. It feels like a feat of data engineering and fastidious content logging just as much as it does a work of art. If you are unfamiliar it is a 24-hour piece of video art made of over 12k clips from movies and tv where each clip corresponds to the local time, e.g., the scene where Doc Brown gets all excited about time travel happening at 1:20am shows in the theater at 1:20am. The psycho who wrote this article spent a full 24-hours watching. I can be a bit of an art cynic, which is exactly why I loved reading this, it shows how exceptional art is just as much about how it makes viewers think as it is about showing immense talent.Meet The Reporters Covering Pope Francis
If you've seen Conclave, or I guess really any piece of fictional media about the pope, you know that there is big time drama in Vatican City. Well, it turns out there is a whole corps of real life people whose entire job it is to cover the most holy man in all the land.
Other Interesting Things You May Or May Not Care About
Japan Perfected 7/11, Why Can't The US Get It Right?
Top of the list of places that I've never been but want to go to real, real bad is a 7-11 in Japan. They have all manner of food that if you bought it at the stateside establishment would almost certainly lead to death. Hopefully we start seeing some sweet, sweet onigiri over here instead of hot dogs which I can only assume are made from pig bootyhole.What Your Poo Says About You
Obviously as soon as I saw this headline I knew I had to put this article in here. The best thing I learned, and there is a lot, is that the urge to poop, scientifically speaking, is known as the "call to stool" and I think that is pretty damn great.The Household Item Turning Runners Into World Record Holders
I won't make you click the article to figure out what the household item is. It's baking soda. Apparently it helps you combat lactic acid better and all the elite distance runners are pumping themselves full of 'bicarb' as it is known. Time to start railing lines of Arm & Hammer before your leisurely neighborhood jogs!The 100 Best Sports Moments Of The Quarter Century
For me the most devastating part of this is that T-Mac scoring 13 points in 33 seconds isn't on this list. A travesty of the highest order.
Some Other Random Internet Things I’ve Found
Did Manute Bol Invent The Term My Bad?? (Probably Apocryphal, But Still)
Jane Elliot “Blue Eyes-Brown Eyes” Anti-Racism Class Experiment (1950s)
If You Enjoy This Email Newsletter Please Forward lt To Your Friends And Tell Them To Subscribe. It’s The Best Way To Help Me Grow.
“I love the smell of The Breads in the morning” — Lieutenant Colonel Kilgore
Please excuse any typos or mistakes. If you want to send me corrections to feel good about yourself feel free to do so but I can assure you they will only make me cry.
Any comments, questions, feedback send to info@thebreadsnewsletter.com or just reply to this email.