Baffler

This magazine deserves a non-snarky review that gets to the point, so here goes.

I can't even recall when I first started subscribing to "The Baffler", but it was probably around the time I had finished reading Thomas Frank's "What's The Matter With Kansas?" (or maybe it was Naomi Klein's "Shock Doctrine" ?) when I received a subscription card in the mail from MIT Press. Something about cultural criticism and sociopolitical insight? I'm there. And two or three times a year this thick, dense book-like magazine arrives packed with thoughtful social, artistic and economic commentary, a tiny bit of poetry, almost no advertising, and the always insightful article from Thomas Frank (who edited the Baffler up until issue #18, although he still contributes.)

The Baffler is my choice for America's Best Magazine (no, not the New Yorker), although it's also America's Best Magazine Secret. With only a few issues per year, hard to find, an enigmatic title and sedate cover art (the exception being issue #19's relaunch cover seen here) this leaves me baffled why, why why? When a new issue comes in, time stops because the topics and issues about contemporary America are weighty and require my full attention. Rather than go into detail and generalize about who writes for the Baffler and about what, I'll say that if you're a fan of Thomas Frank, The Nation magazine, Foreign Affairs, Mother Jones, Naomi Klein, Adbusters, Slate (or yes, even the New Yorker), you are in its target demographic and will find reading "The Baffler" to be time well spent. As to why it's an MIT Press imprint, who knows? But I hope they continue to support more magazines like this.

Additional information about the background and history of the magazine can be found on Wikipedia.

To recap, just so you know where all this came from/comes from:

Back in the early '90s, a certain Jamison D., who was then: 19-yrs-old (or so); that year's Rock Program Director (at the Univ. of Chicago radio station, WHPK 88.5 FM); and speaking in a sort of "shorthand" to like-minded folks on the sticker on the case of the recently-released "Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain" had referred to it as: "slicker Pavement, but still pretty good" (or some such verbiage). No harm, no foul . . . just a bit a talk between indie-rock geeks, but . . .

[HALT!]

In swoops the no-longer-"Station-Manager"-but-still-hanging-around-for-another-year-anyway opportunist Greg ("G.Q") Lane, who offered advice both "TO JAMISON" on the 3" X 5" sticker ["Pavement's lyrics have ALWAYS made sense; 'Shoot the Singer' is about blah-blah-blah"] and "TO EVERYONE ELSE ADVICE" [basically amounting to the same thing Jamison said, but said again, with proper, ponderous, buzz-killing "gravitas": "yeah, this is 'slick'-sounding Pavement, etc."].

(*YAWN*!)

As a freshman friend of mine once said, quoting another freshman friend of his, in re: Greg's "home base," the gosh-we-noticed-something journal, "The Baffler":

"You mean ... McDonald's is BAD? Advertising is ... BAD???" [i.e., "No WAY!" (sarc.) "Really?" (sarc.) "Tell me MORE!" (sarc., sarc., sarc.!)]

OR:

To quote Ian McEwan[*] on a similarly-overrated blowhard:

"[William] James had the knack of fixing on the surprising commonplace--and in Perowne's humble view, wrote a better-honed prose than the fussy brother who rather run around a thing a dozen different ways than call it by its name ... What's an adult to conclude or feel about Daisy Miller's predictable decline? That the world can be unkind? It's not enough."

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[*] Saturday "This extraordinary book is not a political novel. It is a novel about consciousness that illuminates the sources of politics." (The Nation)

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OTHER WAYS TO GET MORE THAN JUST "A CLUE":

[1.] Superclass: The Global Power Elite and the World They Are Making

[2.] McMafia: A Journey Through the Global Criminal Underworld (Vintage)

[3.] Pattern Recognition

[4.] Vineland (Classic, 20th-Century, Penguin)

[5.] Bushworld

[6.] Family of Secrets: The Bush Dynasty, the Powerful Forces That Put It in the White House, and What Their Influence Means for America

[7.] Rule by Secrecy: The Hidden History That Connects the Trilateral Commission, the Freemasons, and the Great Pyramids

[8.] Secret Societies: Inside the Freemasons, the Yakuza, Skull and Bones, and the World's Most Notorious Secret Organizations

[9.] Everything Is Nice Matador Records

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Autocar - England

weekly news, reviews and previews of the most influential cars in Europe. Brilliant writing and photos by well respected staff. Especially like Chris Harris' editorials. Most magazines feature Ferrari's and Porsche's near exclusively but Autocar also delivers in depth reviews of the cars people actually buy like Peugeots and Fords. See also the Autocar podcast.

My son is an auto journalist and finds this the very best source of cutting edge info. Well worth the high price. Most comprehensive info on English and European trends.

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Art & Auction

Anyone involved in one way or another in the art market should be an Art & Auction reader. Each issue covers different areas of collectibles, from Asian art to contemporary painting, from old masters to wine, from XVIIIth century furniture to Art Deco, and so on. There is a monthly artist dossier, delivering valuable insight into his or her career, style, key periods, price level, etc, and a regular in-depth coverage of the major public sales. Contributors are all long-time experts (Souren Melikian, Judd Tully...)and the illustrations of the works of art are often of a very high quality. Undoubtedly the irreplaceable bible of the art market.

Cancelled my subscription after just a few issues. It just does not have enough bang to justify the cost. At $100 per year. Also felt rather impersonal and cold. Art is beauty and one should always feel at home in it's company. This magazine did not have that tone, it left me cold.

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Love the magazine. After 40 years working as a portrait painter it's the only art magazine I read. Plus carefully wrapped and delivered when and as described.

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Eugene Magazine

This magazine has all the goods on Eugene Oregon. I recommend it to anyone who lives in or will be visiting the area. Some of the topics includes local arts, music, sports, culture and dining. Enjoy!

Delaware Today (1-year auto-renewal)

Obviously it's impossible to capture all of the diversity and wonder of Delaware in 12 issues a year, but Delaware Today comes as close as is humanly possible. In the clutter of the northeast corridor, much of the attention Delaware merits is often snatched up by flashier states--like Maryland. But Delaware is America, through and through, from the working class neighborhoods of Dover to the unique sea-going atmosphere of Delaware Beach. Though I live far away, and have not been back to Delaware for many years, it continues to hold a special place in my heart. Hopefully Delaware Today will gain in popularity, and begin to show people what they're missing when they don't stop along the way to NYC.

Ordered for my Dad who owns a vacation house in Delaware. He likes it. He can input names of places featured into his GPS. The one drawback is that Delaware is bigsome places aren't fit for day trips but overall it is a nice magazine

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I have not received this yet. When I do I am certain I will like it as I purchased one magizine locally before ordering this.

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Bloomberg Businessweek (1-year auto-renewal)

I was a long-time and avid subscriber until last year. In fact, I started in 1989 while in business school. The aspect that I appreciated the most was the in-depth reporting that I couldn't get anywhere else. However starting in 2008, I noticed that the in-depth articles were getting fewer and more of the reporting seemed to be the same as any newspaper. That was about the same time I started hearing that the operation was for sale.

So, I canceled in early 2009. Recently I got an offer for a free issue of the relaunch under the new ownership of Bloomberg. I have to say I'm very impressed. The in-depth reporting is back. Also, there's a breadth of content that probably comes from the Bloomberg network that is also very welcome. So, I'm a fan again. Hope they keep it up.

After several years, I am giving up by BW subscription. The magazine is getting pretty light and reminds me more of USA Today than the New York Times. The articles are pretty general and lack depth. Additionally, the magazine is very US-centric and often limits global coverage. It is a good light read for US business news, and if you aren't looking for great depth, might be a good choice. For my money, I would rather pay up for the Economist and Fortune.

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First of all, I subscribe to Fast Company, Inc, Businessweek, and HBR. If you want to learn how to run a business than Bloomberg Businessweek is not the magazine for you, you need to maybe subscribe to HBR (Harvard Business Review) where they have awesome case studies and pretty much base their entire magazine on how CEOs run companies, how start ups succeed, and include non-stop in depth case studies detailing what statistically works and what doesnt in certain areas of business. There is no other magazine in print that will give you the know-how to learn everything, but Harvard Business Review will keep you sharp. They also have apps for the iphone with informational videos.

If you are in an online start up, the natural course would be to read "TechCrunch" everyday to keep up with what's going on in the online world (It is a web-based magazine).

"Website Magazine" which is free and highly advisable if you have a web-based business because you stay in tune with the very fast moving happenings of the internet. Website magazine covers SEO, Social Media, and Tools you need to know about. They have a PRO option for $22 a year that allows you to sift through all their issues and have access to premium info, I highly advise this as it will keep you in the loop of what available tools there are for you to succeed in the internet world and at the end of the day its completely free for a standard print subscription, so why not try it?

"Fast Company" magazine is just okay, let me tell you why. Everything covered in Fast Company you can find on TechCrunch for free. Fast Company has a free online magazine that is updated very often, and they do not do a good job of condensing all that info. into their printed monthly issues, so why not just go with the free route? Again, you will only find a few case studies in this magazine, but will have some info on what's going on in the start up world via its interviews with entrepreneurs and current articles about the tech world. Fast Company is more of a start up news magazine opposed to you learning anything crucial.

"Inc" Magazine is decent because it gives you resources that you can use for your current business. I believe it is from the same publishers/editors as Fast Company as the layout is exactly the same. INC is geared towards giving you information on how others are succeeding in their business opposed to just a news magazine.

And Finally "BusinessWeek". You need businessweek if you want to be "updated on business news" and cannot sift through cnn money online everyday or watch the news all the time and want to keep up with current happenings. It is a macro business magazine covering business related topics around the world. I love it because it is raw information mailed to my doorstep. The magazine is heavy and it never seems to end, this is good because you want information on current business events right? 5 stars.

I know this is a magazine review, but I figured if someone wants some advice on some good business literature, my favorite business books are Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki, Competing for the future by CK Prahalad, from Good to Great, and The Four Steps to the Epiphany by Stephen Gary Blank. You will definitely benefit from these books and I believe they are a must have for emerging entrepreneurs.

Hope this review helps.

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A good magazine for those of us with a short attention span that want more straightforward details on topics we are already familiar with.

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Business Week provides a very basic overview of business on a weekly basis. Articles are very low on sophisticated analysis (unlike The Economist), too many pictures, not enough macroeconomic coverage and too much story-by-analogy. Too geared towards business managers and business students (undergrands primarily). Needs much more sophisticated analyses regarding stories.

Update as of June 2010:

Now, about 2 months after Bloomberg has taken over the magazine, many of the changes implemented by Bloomberg have improved the quality of the magazine (i.e., primarily more in-depth and intelligent articles as opposed to the previous superficial articles) but, so far these have been relatively minor. The magazine is worthy of a 3.5 stars instead of a four at the moment. However, the changes being implemented by Bloomberg are being made in a relatively slow and incremental way so it is not difficult to believe that, in a few months time, this magazine will become a four star. A determination will be possible to make around the Fall of 2010 when Bloomberg fully implements all of its planned changes.

Update as of January 2012:

Not that Bloomberg has fully implemented its plans the quality of the magazine has dramatically improved.The magazine is written much more intelligently and now would benefit not just, primarily, lower level undergraduates but higher level and those in the working world. A big improvement over the years immediately proceeding the magazine's purchase by Bloomberg. The magazine can now be rated a solid four star.

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Ireland of the Welcomes

I was given a subscription as a gift back in 1995 and have been receiving this publication ever since.

The articles are varied and extremely well written. You'll find subjects as predictable as the life of St Patrick and how Waterford crystal is made to how bogs are formed and the treasures that lie within them. The photography will make you want to visit every square inch of the country and you'll think the colors have been enhanced by computer but, if you go, you'll find they are true to life!

One of my favorite regular articles is by Christopher Moriarty who suggests interesting travel on Ireland's lesser known roads in Byways rather than Highways. You can (and I do) use these ideas for trips around the country while finding out interesting facts about places most tour buses pass quickly by.

I look forward every other month to finding this magazine in the mail. Subscriptions for other magazines have come and gone but this is one I'll be getting for a long time coming.

My first introduction to Ireland of the Welcomes was a free copy of their magazine over a year ago. After receiving the magazine, it did not take me long to decide whether or not I wanted a subscription. It is a great magazine.

The photographs alone would sell me on this magazine. Is there a more picturesque place than Ireland? The first thing I do when I receive my magazine is flip through the pages looking at the pictures, usually more than once, then I settle down to read it.

Every issue contains a few regular features, one of my favorites is the one called Books. They recommend several books all of them having an Irish connection or theme. It brings my love of books and anything Irish together. There is a brief review of each book, the price and all the information you need to purchase it.

Each magazine starts out with letter to the editor, in which subscribers share stories of their experiences with the magazine and/or Ireland. Throughout the magazine there are several tips, guides and ideas to help those of us who wish to travel to Ireland, plan the best possible trip. I am planning a trip later this year and have gotten a lot of help from Ireland of the Welcomes.

Each issue focuses on a county or region of Ireland. This month's focus is the Midlands. They give some wonderful suggestions on exploring Louth, Meath, Longford and Westmeath. They point out some wonderful places to visit and a little detail on each one.

This magazine has a little something for everyone. The Irish people and their way of life are the heart of this publication; bringing a little bit of Ireland into your home. I have yet to be disappointed with my magazine or subscription.

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I received an "opinion poll" claiming I would be sent a free calendar if I filled it out (no mention of trial subscription or anything like that--I never accept such "offers.") I never received a free calendar, but instead started receiving invoices for my "subscription." Despite my contacting the company both by mail and by e-mail, I am continuing to receive the bogus invoices claiming I subscribed to this magazine. Watch out for any offers from or about this magazine.

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"Ireland of the Welcomes" brings a touch of Ireland into your home with every issue. It takes the reader to villages, provides a taste of cuisine and introduces us to the customs and culture of the Emerald Isle. It is on the touristy side, with no deep emersion into the literature on which Ireland prides itself. For anyone with a desire to keep the feel of the Irish in their hearts, "Ireland of the Welcomes" is a welcome sight in the mailbox.

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Re: " Ireland of the Welcomes" magazine.

I have taken this magazine several times so I am familier with it. I thoroughly enjoy it.

Betty McRae

Spokane, WA