press play

by Karen Greenbaum-Maya

Conventional sparks flying but nothing catches fire. Perfunctory, they slap the audience around.

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by Tanya Visceglia

For a conflict-averse society, Taiwan certainly loves to roll around in high drama, both in art and life. Even a restaurant meal with friends is ripe with dramatic potential. We fight for the privilege of treating our companions, during which the bill is yanked back and forth with cries of protest: “No, you paid last time.” “You can pay next time!” The winner of the bill-grab then races to the cash register, slapping money onto the counter. The winner of the bill-grab then races to the cash register, slapping money onto the counter… This is a friendly game everyone understands.

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by Callie S. Blackstone

Soderbergh’s film offers a view of the mental health industry that goes beyond utilizing a straight jacket to signify either how terrifying a horror villain is or how traumatized one of his victims might be. Soderbergh’s movie examines how the mental health industry — one that is meant to ensure people’s safety during times of crisis — is driven by a societal need to silence women’s trauma.

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by Tracy Werth

I am glad to have grown up in the ‘60s trusting in my teachers’ lies that the only reason we rehearsed hiding under our desks was simply the danger of flying glass from our classroom windows. I am appreciative that our training never had to be utilized during an actual nuclear war. The drills ended in the 1980s about the time my son was born. How distressing to know that those old preparations for an envisioned event have now been replaced with active shooter drills due to the very real school shootings in this country, so common now that most do not make it into the news.

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