Mid-July: Articles of Interest

Tuesday, 12 July 2011

Greetings Upper School Community:

As prophesized in the New York Times back on 3 July in Never An Empty Seat, professional sporting history was made at our beloved Fifth Third Field, citing the extreme loyalty of Dayton fans for our Dragons. Well done, Dayton!

Film contributor A. O. Scott’s article “Did You Catch That Reference? There’ll Be a Quiz” reveals the abundance of “cinematic homage” paid in this summer’s film offerings.

While covering the Wimbledon tennis tournament, Karen Crouse penned an intriguing article, titled “Uneasy Role of Parent/Coach,” retelling Marion Bartoli’s fiery relationship with her father. Food for thought.

NYTimes OP-ED Columnist David Brooks provides a thoughtful analysis of the current budget and debt limit debates occurring in Washington: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/12/opinion/12brooks.html?src=mv&ref=general . Relatedly, I am currently finishing-up David Brooks’ non-fiction book The Social Animal, finding a number of connections to teaching, parenting, and the grand journey we call life. A review of The Social Animal can be read at: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/13/books/review/book-review-the-social-animal-by-david-brooks.html If you have the time or interest, I highly recommend it as an insightful summer read.

The Atlantic Magazine presents a quick analysis of the start-up community of “Kickstarter,” highlighting the 20 Most Successful Projects (thus far, anyway).

And finally, Boston Globe writer Billy Baker, Jr’s article on “How to Lose the Boston Accent” [ http://www.billybaker.net/newspaper ] has received all sorts of coverage. After reading the original article, I heard an interview yesterday on NPR, including the writer attempting to “de-Southie the accent” from of his father: http://www.npr.org/2011/07/11/137773357/bostonians-take-class-to-ditch-their-accent. Having spent many-a summer amongst Bostonians while out-East, I laughed-out-loud!

Happy reading, don’t forget to apply ample sunscreen, and best wishes towards an exuberant July.

Best regards,


Sam Wagner
Head of Upper School