The nightmare of power without law

Weekend Reads for May 31, 2025

Happy Saturday, everyone! What a week. Elon Musk was chased out of Washington by democracy, Beyoncé taught a masterclass in how those who believe in freedom and democracy can engage in the “reclamation of America,” and Harvard fought back and, for now, won.

I’m so grateful to this community for your curiosity, moral passion, and love of democracy. We’re going to keep democracying here at The Ink, keep being the opposite of tyranny.

Here below are your Weekend Reads. We hope they make you think and help you make sense of it all and even spark some smiles. — Anand

---

Welcome to the weekend, Ink readers! As we do every Saturday, we’ve gathered below some of the most interesting, challenging, and thought-provoking writing we’ve come across this week, for the enjoyment and education of our supporting subscribers. Among the links you’ll find in today’s edition of Weekend Reads:

• What a child’s complaints about soup can tell us about resistance

• Resisting optimization — because the universe demands it

• Why purity tests still dominate our diets and our thinking

• Building the future when the powerful aim to tear it all down

• Who really wants to live forever?

• How the unpredictability of innovation shapes us

• And music! We’ve got music!

You won’t want to miss any of it. Thank you so much to our supporting subscribers for making this newsletter possible. If you haven’t yet joined our community, why not become part of this and help us build the future of independent media today?

---

In The Ink this week:

---

And now…your Weekend Reads

I’m the problem, it’s me

Selfishness and self-centeredness are everywhere, and we need to point that out more too. People and companies are rewarded for both. Even products and platforms that don't have algorithms can feel selfish and alienating. What gets a bigger response: Thoughtful analysis or a bad hot take? Engaging honestly with someone online or dunking on them? Encouraging people to ask questions and have challenging conversations or letting everyone get mad and yell at each other? It's easy to say "the Internet sucks" or "that's why we shouldn't be so online," but guys, we are the Internet, and the Internet has absolutely invaded real life too. [Meets Most]

In the soup