3 Magazines

Every once in awhile I will pick up a copy of People--y'know, one of the special issues, the most beautiful people in the world ones.

So the 100 most beautiful people in the world is headed by--Kate Hudson? Really? I mean, don't get me wrong, I think she is really cute, perky, seems sweet enough etc. But the MOST beautiful person in the world this year? OoooooKaaaay. Anyway, just fun gossipy reading.

On the other hand...Playboy's June issue was GREAT! A very good interview with Steve Carell about The Office and his upcoming movie Get Smart. An article by Jason Whitlock about the prevalence of gang related violence and how it is perpetuated by the prison system. He talks about how the prison guard union in California is so strong, the shoot down any talk of prisons actually trying to rehabilitate people. And i remember a few years ago, they laid millions of dollars into advertising to fight a proposition that would make people arrested for small pot charges go to rehab, not prison. A central point of the article is until we reform how prisons are run, we will not be able to stop violence and other societal ills that come directly from prison culture.

Jane Smiley (winner of the Pulitzer Price) wrote this months fiction. Its about a woman who convince her husband to go green by steaming up their sex life every time he made a new step in preserving the environment. Witty and well written. And amusing in the green sense too!

Another really good article was an analysis of the oft predicted end of newspapers as a medium of information. This article takes an different view and opposes that idea while talking to Rupert Murdock and other media empire-men who are buying up newspapers all over. Very thought provoking, and really made me think of it another way. And the 20 questions are with Harry Levin, the creator of the gossipy TMZ show.
One thing he said really made me laugh. he said there are thousands of restaurants in L.A., so how come Britney and Paris only go to 3 or 4 of them. You don't see people like Julia Roberts there or Tom Hanks or Helen Mirren. Believe me, he says, the Skyy vodka does not taste better at those 3 restaurants. So why do these tabloid fodder keep coming---because they want to be followed by paparazzi.

The third magazine was Plenty. And this month it was OK, but not great.