Some links I love this week:
1. Macaron recipes at Canille et Vanille because good macarons are hard to find in this country.
2. An article about the London riots by a Filipina expat Carla Montemayor, explaining that "the violence is directed toward innocent, ordinary people also struggling to keep their heads above water in these difficult times". My favorite part of the article:
"Still, I refuse to valorize the thuggery and callousness of these rioters with these pretexts. They robbed big retail chains and corner shops with equal gusto. Struggling families have lost their livelihoods. I’ve heard it said that this is part of a “resistance,” and that rioters were sending a message to the elites.
And what message would that be, exactly? That they love iPads and hate everyone?"
3. Post-Conflict Potter: How Harry Potter and the magical world of J.K. Rowling might begin the long process of reconciliation and reform at Foreign Policy. My old professor (who teaches a very enlightening and engaging Harry Potter elective at university) said this is an excellent article on social and political life post-Battle of Hogwarts. I completely agree (plus, Harry Potter and Foreign Policy: two of my favorite things).
4. Pissing Off China in Twenty Tweets or Less at Thought Catalog.
5. The Politics of Russia and Surreal Politik. As the March presidential elections draw near, Medvedev and Putin participate in a bizzare political campaign with bikini carwashes, music videos, arm-wrestling and synchronized dance moves.
6. Jay-Z and Kanye West's video for Otis (ft. Otis Redding), a track from their joint album, Watch the Throne. SO. MUCH. SWAG. Otis Redding's Try a Little Tenderness is one of my favorites so I'm glad they sampled from the track. There were also tracks with samples from James Brown and Quincy Jones, which makes this album so sick.
7. Sad guys on trading floors: turning the economic crisis (and the frightening dip of the Dow) into one of those clever internet memes.
8. Dissent in China: Of development and dictators at The Economist. A train crash in Wenzhou highlights how breakneck economic development in China has cut corners, distorted priorities and created big conflicts of interest.
9. Pictures of Polytheism by Mideo Cruz. The aim of Polytheism was to explain how religion has supposedly been commodified and how capitalist commerce has become the new religion. The series 'Polytheism' was exhibited at CCP before it caused public outcry of sacrilege and blasphemy. Our country is largely influenced by religion, thus this exhibit caused much offense to the Philippine public.
10. Anthony Bourdain's tumblr. I'm currently devouring his Kitchen Confidential: Tales from the Culinary Underbelly (What took me so long? I know, right!) and it's fantastic, so I'm really glad he's brought his punk rock cooking/writing style on the internet.
Rounding up my favorites for the week is the official website for Your Highness, a movie produced by Natalie Portman with Zooey Deschanel, James Franco (!!!) and Danny McBride. I really enjoyed watching this.
