By Tony Russo

I don’t know if “Opus” is a clarion call, but at the very least, the work puts people who still are willing to see religion as a putative force for good on notice. Very little stands between the theocrats and the kind of social and economic hegemony that could forever change what it means to be a law-abiding citizen. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or...

It's easy to learn from nature, as long as you know what you want to learn. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

Observations from my notebook about junk shopping. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

I tried to identify a parable by asking Gemini. Instead, the AI composed one for me. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

This is the podcasted version of this story . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

It’s been a busy couple of weeks. Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. Here’s the video I mention in the podcast. Here’s the video version of the podcast: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

I see a lot of obituaries. Take it from me, it’s worth getting a good headshot. No video this week. If you listen you’ll here me go on and on about overcoming vanity, but the sweater I grabbed to record this was distractingly stained, and stained is a bridge too far for me. Here’s a reminder and appeal that if you’re more a listener than a reader, you can buy my audiobook on Spotify . It’s on Amaz...

I’ve recently realized I’ll never get to all the stories I want to write, so I’m telling some of them out loud. This is about Steve McQueen, or, more appropriately, Georg Stanford Brown , who had a supporting role in the (overrated) movie Bullitt. Here’s a video version, if that’s your bag. I also put them on YouTube . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers...

I’m back with audio (and now video!) for short Friday dives into my notebook. Show notes: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

Wherein I complain about air travel. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

Here’s a link to the book review . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

I wanted to talk about accepting that being a white guy no longer is the only qualification you need. Then James Patterson started blathering. Show notes: On Validation Based on “ At Least I’m Better Than James Patterson ” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

Instead of the normal show, this week I’ve shared the introduction and first three chapters of Dragged Into the Light. The book recently took silver in the Independent Publishers Book Awards. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

It's important to remember that, while there are two sides to every story, each side has a bad guy. One of them is probably you. Referenced link Full text This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

Here’s to opening day! I recorded this last week to make sure I didn’t forget to post it. That worked out swell because I’ve got a nasty head cold now. I wrote a bunch of stuff over the last few weeks that I’d like to share as well. I’ve started doing the occasional bookstore profile for a bookshop website. This week it was Main Street Books in Frostburg, Md. My angle is to talk about before durin...

Conspiracy theory people aren’t nuts. They’re just folks who think they’re right in the same way you think you’re right. Still, it’s getting harder and harder to empathize. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

With mandates coming to an end living together may not get any easier. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

Based on How Long Can We Sustain Permanent Outrage Culture? on Medium . Transcription: Hi. I’m Tony Russo and this is A Bagel Manifesto, where I share stories about coming to terms with belief, culture, and the profound sense of loss that no one really cares about bagels anymore. In this episode, I want to talk about allies, or the weird lack thereof. Sometimes I worry that people of good conscien...

A look into the attitude that makes these two phenomena similar and an explanation of why they’re radically different. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

Orgone is supposedly a kind of energy, but it is completely made up. Of course, lots of things are and that’s the point. Click here for the story I mentioned in the episode. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

What if the alternative to being wrong was to wish an alternate reality into being? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe

Stories about coming to terms with belief, culture, and the profound sense of loss that no one really cares about bagels anymore. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tonyrusso.substack.com/subscribe