Ram Mukul Fishman (Columbia): Gross National Happiness: A Real Alternative or a Romantic Wish? Impressions From the Fourth International Conference on Gross National Happiness in Bhutan. From Frieze, an interview with Simon Critchley on community, collaboration, avant-garde rituals and being "religious without religion". The religious excuse for barbarity: Why are we sitting silently while our treatment of many of our animals regresses to the standard of the sixth century? The rise of the lazy locavore: Why grow your own food when you can kick your feet up and watch somebody else farm your backyard? At serious restaurants all over town, carrots, peas, and the like are no longer just the supporting cast, they’re the stars — move over locavores, here come the vegivores. 10 traditions you never thought needed protecting: An article on UNESCO's oddest intangible national treasures. Should we stop wasting time on housework? In an age of fast living and a culture of convenience, do we still care about keeping up appearances? Freaks, Geeks, and Economists: A study confirms every suspicion you ever had about high-school dating. What King James wrought: How the Bible still shapes the language. From Vice, meet the Gregory Brothers, the Double Rainbow Bed Intruder guys. Welcome to the new world of shaming, in which the ancient fear of public humiliation and ostracism (once a homely, low-tech business of the stocks and pillories) has become a high-tech tool to motivate and incentivize. Good for goodness' sake: Are secularists Scrooges? Governmental Marks: Malla Pollack on what souvenirs say about speech and sovereignty. Is ballet really dying? Don't believe the diagnosis in Apollo's Angels: A History of Ballet by Jennifer Homans. Every day's a holiday at the UN — including today.
