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Defector

<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-kelly-180886217/"><span style="font-weight: 400">Christopher “Kit” Kelly</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400"> is a professor of criminal justice at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia.</span></p>


Kit Kelly

<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ray-spraggins-49638227b/"><span style="font-weight: 400">Ray Spraggins</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400"> graduated in 2024 from Saint Joseph’s University with a Bachelor of Science degree in criminal justice.</span></p>


Ray Spraggins

Lady Justice, wearing an Eagles helmet and weighing a football and some alcohol.

Eagles Court Could Only Have Existed In Philadelphia

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<div><a href="http://lillianstone.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://lillianstone.com&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1718218980346000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2u5kEh7Ge04YvIIiNqdkoU">Lillian Stone</a> is a culture writer and the author of the humorous essay collection <i>Everybody&#8217;s Favorite.</i></div>
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Lillian Stone

Los Angeles Kings music director, Dieter Ruehle, plays a 1941 Wurlitzer organ during the ribbon cutting and reopening of the LA Kings Iceland at Paramount on October 26, 2022 in Paramount California.

The Stadium Organ Is Alive And As Goofy As Ever

<p>Nicholas Russell is a writer from Las Vegas.</p>


Nicholas Russell

Conner O'Malley performing in his latest stand-up special

Arts And Culture

Conner O’Malley’s New Special Exposes The Dark Heart Of Techno-Optimism

Amos Barshad

Actress Tiffani Thiessen hosts the Grand Opening of Bowlero on March 12, 2016 in Woodland Hills, California.

Bowling

The Rise Of Bowlero Has Put Bowling In The Jaws Of Private Equity

Alex Belth

Journalist Grant Wahl (right) works in the FIFA Media Center before a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group B match between Wales and USMNT at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium on November 21, 2022 in Al Rayyan, Qatar. He had been detained earlier by stadium security for wearing a rainbow-colored t-shirt before later being allowed to enter the stadium.

Soccer

Remembering Grant Wahl, America’s Greatest Soccer Writer


<p>Michael is a writer who has worked with The Atlantic, The New Yorker, WIRED, Vox, The New York Times, and other publications. His first book, <em>The Other Olympians</em>, which uncovers the stories of several European athletes who transitioned gender in the 1930s, is now available for purchase.</p>


Michael Waters

Helen Stephens running in the 1936 Olympics

Olympics

Olympian Helen Stephens Suffered Through An Anti-Queer Panic That Still Reverberates

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<div dir="auto">Corbin Smith is a writer and photographer from Vancouver, Washington. His work has appeared in Deadspin, The Daily Beast, and <em>Rolling Stone</em>. He is also the host of <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-pacific-northwest-insurance-corporation-moviefilm/id1712416222"><em>The Pacific Northwest Insurance Corporation Moviefilm Podcast,</em></a> a podcast about movies.</div>
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Corbin Smith

People riding bikes around in a very small loop at the Ladd's 500 relay in Portland, Oregon.

Life's Rich Pageant

The Beauty And Boredom Of 500 Laps Around The Same .148-Mile Loop

Ruairí McCann

Still image from the movie The Canticle of the Stones.

Defector At The Movies

‘Canticle Of The Stones’ Grapples With The Difficulty Of Artistic Representation Inside Occupied Palestine

End of life petrol and diesel cars and vans are piled on top of one another as they wait to be recycled in a car scrapyard on November 29, 2022 in Glastonbury, England. The UK scraps over one million cars a year and many more petrol and diesel cars will need to be taken off the road if the Government is to reach its target for the number of electric cars to be reached.

Mods Asleep

I Will Drive This Fucked-Up Car Until One Of Us Dies

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<div class="p-rich_text_section">Tom Scocca is the editor of <a href="http://indignity.net">Indignity</a>, a subscription-supported newsletter of news, essays, and commentary.</div>
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Tom Scocca

Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump attends the NASCAR Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 26, 2024 in Concord, North Carolina. He is wearing a make American Great Again hat.

Margin Of Error

The Doubts Were Not Reasonable


<p>Corey Atad is a freelancer writer based in Toronto with an unhealthy Air Bud obsession.</p>


Corey Atad

The Decemberists Take Me Back And Forth

<p>B.D. McClay is an essayist and critic.</p>


B.D. McClay

11 February 2020, Berlin: Bottles of the brand "Coca Cola" are lined up in the cinema Zoo Palast.

I Will Never Abandon My Special Little Drink

<p>Mitch Therieau is a writer living in Virginia.</p>


Mitch Therieau

American singer Rob Thomas, of the American rock band Matchbox Twenty, sings on stage during a concert in Los Angeles, California, circa 1996. (Photo by Lester Cohen/Getty Images)

In Defense Of That Whole Weird ’90s Rock Marble-Mouthed Thing

<p><span style="font-weight: 400">Madeleine Baker is a historian and an associate editor at </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400">The Drift.</span></i></p>


Madeleine Baker

Professor Richard Dawkins next to a bus displaying an atheist message in Kensington Gardens, London.

The Ghosts Of New Atheism Still Haunt Us

<p>Fran Hoepfner is a writer and teacher.</p>


Fran Hoepfner

US actor Kevin Costner attends a press conference for the film "Horizon: An American Saga" during the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 20, 2024.

Why Do I Keep Rooting For Kevin Costner?

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<p>Charles P. Pierce is a writer at <em>Esquire</em> and the author of four books, most recently <em>Idiot America</em>, and has been a working journalist since 1976. He lives near Boston with his wife but no longer his three children.</p>
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Charles P. Pierce

Portland Trail Blazers' Bill Walton, who received many accolades for his performance on the court, is depicted here. Walton would later go on to pursue a career off the court as a sports broadcaster and an actor in feature films.

Bill Walton Let His Joy Flourish

<p><i><span style="font-weight: 400">Dan Brooks writes essays and fiction from Missoula, Montana.</span></i></p>


Dan Brooks

Taylor Swift performs onstage during the Taylor Swift reputation Stadium Tour at MetLife Stadium on July 21, 2018 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Culture Needs More Jerks

Brandy Jensen

Woman Reclining at Desk Next to Typewriter (Photo by William H. Rau/Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images)

I’m In Charge Now

<p>Libby Watson is a writer, <a href="https://www.twitch.tv/libtron">streamer</a> and <a href="https://www.patreon.com/whatsallthisthen">podcaster</a>.</p>


Libby Watson

A tabletop laden with various delicious salads and some roasted potatoes and spreads, with a cartoon logo.

Perfectly Fine Dinner Party Club

Dazzle Your Dinner-Party Friends With Bread

Soraya Roberts

Two characters from I Saw The Tv Glow sit side by side

How Many Times Is Too Many Times?

U.S. Senator JD Vance takes pictures as Former President Donald Trump speaks to reporters at Manhattan criminal court, Monday, May 13, 2024, in New York.

Dress For The Job You Want

<p>Annie Howard is a journalist and historian based in Chicago. She is currently at work on her debut manuscript, <em>The City Made Me Trans</em><i>.</i></p>


Annie Howard

‘I Saw The TV Glow’ Unfurls The Great Trans Unknown

<p>Nick Zarzycki is a Toronto-based writer whose work has appeared in the <i data-stringify-type="italic">Washington Post</i>, <i data-stringify-type="italic">Deadspin</i> and <i data-stringify-type="italic">Toronto Life</i>.</p>


Nick Zarzycki

A wizard dressed in a suit looks upon a fortress on a hill as lightning bolts and dollar bills dot the sky

Games

The Creator Of ‘Magic: The Gathering’ Knows Exactly Where It All Went Wrong

<p>Puja Changoiwala is an award-winning journalist and author based in Mumbai. <a href="https://www.pujachangoiwala.com/">This</a> is her website.</p>


Puja Changoiwala

An image of the frontline in the Russia/Ukraine war, with an image of Mohammed Sufiyan, who was lured into that conflict by an Indian YouTube influencer.

Politics

How A YouTuber Duped Indians Into The Russia-Ukraine War

Joe Montana attends the FanDuel Fantasy Golf Classic on July 11, 2017 in New York City.

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