The Writer's Life 5/11 - Around the World

According to an article in today's NY Post, there's an interesting development in the music world, no doubt influenced by the metoo movement. Spotify is a digital service that lends users access to millions of songs. It has banned the music of R. Kelly and XXXTentacion because of harmful and hateful behavior. As a writer, I am against censorship. What I don't like is the double standard, free pass hip hop artists are allowed for language that would threaten the careers of members of other racial groups. I don't know much about rap. I learn of its lyrics secondhand from critics, particularly from Phil Mushnick of the Post, who calls out the owners of pro sports franchises who allow certain artists, such as JAYZ, a forum. Judging by the lyrics Mushnick has posted in his columns, Spotify will have to ban a lot of other artists - or be dubbed hypocritical.

The lead item on today's Post's Page Six provides a laugh. There's something missing so far from this year's Cannes Film Festival - hookers. It is being attributed to the absence of Harvey Weinstein and others of his ilk. I suppose the influence of metoo has extended to the iconic annual event.

Guess what this is:

No, it's not a resort. It's a hog hotel in southern China. That's right - as in pigs. A thousand head is kept per floor. A privately owned company is running two seven-floor sow breeding operations, and is building four more, including one with as many as 13 floors that will be the tallest of its kind. Hog farms of two or three floors have been tried in Europe. Some are still operating, others have been abandoned. Sooey. (From Yahoo's Odd News)

Toronto Raptors head coach Dwane Casey, 61, was just voted Coach of the Year by his peers. Management was not impressed and fired him after the team's pathetic performance against the Cavaliers in the playoffs, where they were swept. Outside of the post season, Casey has been as successful as a pro coach can be. He took the reins in 2011. His charges won only 23 games in his first season, then steadily improved. The Raptors have won 50+ games the past three seasons, including a franchise record 59 in 2017-'18. Even Casey's great pre-Raptors pedigree could not save his job. As a player at the University of Kentucky he was an NIT champion in 1976, an NCAA champion in 1978, and he was an assistant in Dallas when the Mavericks won the NBA title in 2011. As the cliché goes: "You can't fire the whole team." On the positive side, he should have no trouble landing another job.

My thanks to the kind folks who bought, donated and swapped wares on this gorgeous day. Special thanks to Marty, NYPD retired, who purchased Killing.

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