The Junk Drawer, Vol. III

[This blog will always be free to read, but it’s also how I pay my bills. So, if you like what you read, please consider a paid subscription.] The Junk Drawer is back! This is a feature of my blog I intended to do regularly when I began it last year, and things just got terribly busy with the midterms. So, it’s become one of my goals this year to reignite the feature. It’s about odds and ends: random musings, things I’m reading and watching, stuff I found interesting, and updates on my work. Enjoy! The Ballad of the Nosey Balloon The surveillance balloon fiasco over the past week has been embarrassing for pretty much everyone involved. Embarrassing for China in their clumsy espionage and laughable response. Embarrassing for the U.S. government in the revelation that, apparently, several of these were tracked during the Trump Administration, and Trump declined to do anything about them. Embarrassing for political media’s inability to clarify the situation for Americans, instead leaning into a framing of partisan jousting. Per usual, on matters of national security, the smartest voices seem to be the peripheral of cable news. I found this Twitter thread by NatSec expert William Kim particularly insightful. If nothing else, with the successful shoot-down of the balloon by an air-to-air missile from an F-22 Raptor (the first such recorded kill by the fighter jet model), notch this as a victory in President Biden’s war on inflation. Another Award Show You Probably Don’t Care About But Here’s Why You Should The 65th Annual Grammy Awards are being broadcast this evening. Most of you probably don’t care about it. I will admit that I love awards shows; from the fashion to the high drama, I find them delicious. But this year’s Grammys have a particularly sharp significance. Beyoncé leads with nine nominations for her album Renaissance, an instant cultural landmark that is widely considered her most complete record. It also lifted her to 88 career nominations, tying her with husband Jay-Z for the most Grammy nominations by an artist ever. And with 28 Grammy wins under her belt already, she’s the most awarded singer in the Academy’s history. Here’s the problem: Beyoncé rarely wins the big general awards (Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year). She’s been previously nominated six times for Record of the Year, winning none; five times for Song of the Year, winning once; and most glaringly, three times for Album of the Year as a lead artist and once as a featured artist, winning none. She wasn’t even nominated for Best New Artist during her time with Destiny’s Child or after her solo debut, which was a stunning critical and commercial success. The Grammys have always been suspect, and there’s long been debate over how much critical favor is weighed against sales and certifications. What makes Beyoncé a point of considerable debate is that she’s been consistently both: highly praised for her artistry and highly lucrative as an entertainer. Her Album of the Year losses have occurred in years in which she found near-universal favor among reviewers and near-universal adulation among listeners. So, which is it? That’s not to say the artists to whom she lost were undeserving, but it’s become a highly suspect pattern in which Beyoncé releases a beloved album that’s critically and commercially successful, only to lose to a white artist whose album would not be assessed similarly, at least to that degree. Tonight, if Beyoncé doesn’t win at least one of the three major awards, there’s gonna be a lot of understandable chatter about misogynoir among Academy voters. What I’m Reading “The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams” by Stacy Schiff — One of the most interesting biographies I’ve read in a while. Schiff has a hell of a bibliography, with classics like “Vera (Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov)” (winner of the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography) and “The Witches: Salem, 1692”, and her latest work on forgotten founding father Sam Adams is thoroughly fascinating. (https://bit.ly/SamAdamsBook) “Dyscalculia: A Love Story of Epic Miscalculation” by Camonghne Felix — I was lucky enough to score an advance copy of Felix’ latest work, set for release this Valentine’s Day. She won rave reviews for “Build Yourself a Boat” (2017), which was longlisted for the National Book Award, among other recognitions. She’s one of those writers that makes me wanna write. (preorder here: https://bit.ly/PreorderDyscalculia) “Master of the Senate” by Robert A. Caro — This is the second time I’ve read Caro’s third work in the LBJ biography quintet (the fifth part, we are told, will eventually be published when he’s damn good and ready). If you want to understand how the Senate got to be so thoroughly complicated and counterproductive (to put it mildly), Caro’s history of the chamber is, alone, worth reading this. It’s a big one, I won’t lie. You’ll need to dedicate at least a few weeks to it. But the understanding you’ll glean about American politics is indispensable. What I’m Watching “Fleishman Is in Trouble” (Hulu) — Adapted from the book of the same name by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (who also executive produces). It’s a great miniseries. Lizzy Kaplan and Claire Danes give exceptional performances, and the writing is brilliant. It's a bit dark but in the best way. “The Last of Us” (HBO) — I’ll be real with you: as much as I love Pedro Pascal, I wasn’t especially motivated to start watching this. I’ve kinda had my fill with post-apocalyptic narratives. But then, the third episode, centered around guest actors Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett, was released last weekend to rave reviews, so I finally watched it. I’m glad I did. The love story between these two men is one of the finest episodes of television I’ve ever seen. Absolutely brilliant. “80 for Brady” (Paramount) — Oh god, I so wanted to hate this damn movie. Metro Weekly offered to pay me to review it, and when I realized it would give me a chance to trash Tom Brady, I gladly accepted their commission. And then, must to my surprise, I quite enjoyed it. Ugh, I hate it when that happens. To read my review, click here. What I’m Writing The week before last, I published this essay on an interview Pope Francis did with the Associated Press, in which he called for homosexuality to be decriminalized. My take is this simple: it’s very good news when a global religious figure takes an LGBTQ-affirming stance, especially right now, and it should be encouraged. Last week, I wrote a satirical article about Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announcing a statewide ban on Pink Floyd. I honestly thought it was a bit over-the-top and wouldn’t gain much attention. I was wrong. It went super viral. It’s one of the most widely-read pieces I’ve written for my blog, mostly because a lot of folks readily believed that DeSantis would do something like this. In fact, it gained so much traction that Snopes published an article in response, confirming that its satire. And, of course, the aforementioned review of “80 for Brady,” which you should definitely read. Where I’m Gonna Be 3/2/23: “Gabrielle Blair, In Conversation with Charlotte Clymer” at D.C.’s historic Sixth & I Synagogue — When my friend Gabrielle Blair asked me to join her for a one-on-one discussion on her bestselling book “Ejaculate Responsibly: A Whole New Way to Think About Abortion,” I thought I might be dreaming. For those who aren’t in D.C., Sixth & I is considered one of the premiere venues for book events. This will be my first event on the stage instead of in the audience, and I am so damn excited to talk about Gabrielle’s brilliant book. (Tickets here: https://bit.ly/GabrielleBlairEvent) 3/9/23: 2nd Annual Democracy Solutions Summit — RepresentWomen is hosting its second annual virtual summit on how to safeguard democracy. On its final day, I’ll be moderating a fantastic panel on the Fair Representation Act. It’s free! (Register: https://bit.ly/DemocracySolutionsSummit) 4/28/23: 17t… Get full access to Charlotte's Web Thoughts at charlotteclymer.substack.com/subscribe