Don Hall 2/7/23 Don Hall 2/7/23

Please Harass Me (If This is What Harassment Looks Like)

I'm less certain the new-ish protocol is more respectful but it is definitely more careful and maybe that's enough. I've never really understood the catcalling type of guy but I'm not Italian.

Don Hall 2/6/23 Don Hall 2/6/23

I Believe... [Adopting the Sexual Habits of Your Pets]

...that ‘sex positive’ is just another way of excusing your neighbor’s chihuahua when he humps your leg incessantly.

Don Hall 2/3/23 Don Hall 2/3/23

Fifty-Seven Years and Still On My Feet

If you nearly drown wading in the ocean, is it better to learn to simply avoid the ocean in the future or learn to swim?

Don Hall 1/30/23 Don Hall 1/30/23

I Believe... [Pol Pot Wasn't a Nazi]

...that the claim that the five black officers charged with murdering another black man are agents of white supremacy is just goofy. As bad as Hitler was, you can’t pin the The Khmer Rouge on him.

Don Hall 1/28/23 Don Hall 1/28/23

Is Hashtag Activism a Failure?

These hashtag campaigns have absolutely created international awareness of the issues at hand but seem to have backfired in the implementation of change.

Don Hall 1/26/23 Don Hall 1/26/23

The Price of a Gun

What sets the Baldwin case apart is that not only he, the shooter, is being charged but both his armorer and the guy who handed him the gun are being held to pay

Don Hall 1/24/23 Don Hall 1/24/23

The Bizarre Inflation of Crises Via Platform

Respectively, each of these horrors of the modern world can be found on: CNN, MSNBC, FOX, Faceborg, Twitter, TikTok, and a coupla podcasts. Each platform seems to prioritize a different threat to us all but none of them are what I’d call big issues.

Don Hall 1/23/23 Don Hall 1/23/23

I Believe... [Did You Really Live Your Experience?]

I believe... that the difference between experience and lived experience is the shift from that which all people have to branding for perceived authority.

Don Hall 1/19/23 Don Hall 1/19/23

I Like to Watch | TÁR

The discovery of my years is that when you refuse to take sides in a dispute that has little to do with you, you present a litmus test for those with perceived skin in the game unintended.

Don Hall 1/16/23 Don Hall 1/16/23

I Believe... ['Spare' Me]

I believe... that Prince Harry is merely an avatar for an entire cohort clamoring to declare “See? I’m a victim, too! Look over here! I’m truly traumatized! Follow me on my platforms.”

Don Hall 1/12/23 Don Hall 1/12/23

The Overdue but Perfect Response to the Outrage of the Minority

Disrespectful outcry will never, ever affect our actions.

Don Hall 1/10/23 Don Hall 1/10/23

Controlling Anxiety is All About Perspective

I get the anxiety some now. Not in any 'deer in the headlights' sort of way but a low-grade mumble in the back of my every interaction that asks Are you sure this isn't bullshit?

Don Hall 1/9/23 Don Hall 1/9/23

I Believe... [TikTok Illness]

...that when being austistic is somehow considered a thing of pride rather than affliction, TikTok has gone too far.

Don Hall 1/5/23 Don Hall 1/5/23

I Like to Watch | Babylon (2022)

It's rare to meet a genius.

The term is overused like hero or trauma or dangerous. To meet a bona fide groundbreaker, a genius in his own right, someone who created something that history has dictated is important scientifically or culturally, is rare.

Don Hall 1/2/23 Don Hall 1/2/23

I Believe... [AI Hypocrisy]

...that design artists up in arms about the AI art programs need to check their Spotify and BandCamp app libraries.

Don Hall 12/31/22 Don Hall 12/31/22

The Last Roll of the Dice Not Taken

There is that hope with feathers but my hope looks a bit like a scraggly chicken, one eye pecked out and a mangy rash on its neck, desperately foraging for seed amongst the rubble.

Don Hall 12/29/22 Don Hall 12/29/22

The Best of Literate Ape 2022

Like the Blockbuster's of old or any hip bookstore, I think I'll go the route of the Staff Recommendations this year and serve up a list for you to read that reflects my personal favorites for 2022.

Don Hall 12/26/22 Don Hall 12/26/22

I Believe... [Santa Brought a Job]

...that the best Christmas gift I got in 2022 was a freaking job that included PTO and benefits. Hell, I might even be able to save some cash that won’t be stolen by an ex-wife in 2023.

Don Hall 12/25/22 Don Hall 12/25/22

Unforging Marley's Chain: The Enduring Affect We Have on the Lives of Others

I don't see myself in Scrooge much—not wealthy or particularly skin-flinty with dough—and I'm not Republican in any way yet I'm finding a bit more appreciation for Bill Clinton-style centrism. For me, it's those fucking chains of Marley that give me pause.

Don Hall 12/21/22 Don Hall 12/21/22

A Merry Christmas Punch/CounterPunch On the Sensitive Topic of One Mr. George Bailey, Part One

But did that room full of people really know George Bailey? Did they fully grasp his horrible failure as a human being before throwing down the money he lost?

Who was George Bailey and why do we in the Age of Cancel Culture want to see him escape his tragic fall?