Thursday
A very death-centered issue. Markoff prostitute murders again, Freddie Mac suicide, Towson family suicide, transgender murder, NYC tax lawyer scheme that led to murder. It’s a little alarming, though each of the stories has a salacious, bizarre, or timely quality that makes it more than a gruesome, depressing episode. Still, seems like a lot for one A section.

Wednesday
The front photo does a nice job of creating the illusion that the indigenous Columbian women are half naked – or rather some of them actually are but the photo doesn’t actually show the private parts. A strategic blur that looks like it’s been added in the foreground covers up the only breast not hidden by the poses. It’s am intriguing front page picture that sent me to the story immediately. “Wider drug war threatens Columbian Indians” was the first story that brought what should have been obvious to my attention: there are still natives where drug cartels operate, they are in the way, and drug lords are not going to deal with them as we try to treat Native Americans in the US now. It is nice context to the frequent stories of drug violence.
The Philip Markoff story is a great reminder to anyone with smug ideas about American achievement – that so-and-so is a good person because they are well behaved when it counts, because they are a good student, because they seem to follow a pathway that is wholesome, or if not entirely wholesome, congenial and unobtrusive in departures from the ideal. Markoff, if he’s guilty, is a minor Dostoevsky character, the one that commits the crimes but without ideological crisis.
The obituary reminded me that Bertolt Brecht had a talented son, Stefan. I may look into his writings now thanks to the NYTs

Tuesday
I had to laugh when I read “Russia Serves as Musical Muse.” Russia is hosting a cheesy competition called Eurovision which it won last year, prompting Putin to proclaim “yet another triumph for all of Russia.”