Hi 👋 

Welcome back to The Lazy Reader, where we curate some of the best longform stories from across the web ✨

I want to open this week’s edition with a question. I’ve recently hit a wall in trying to grow the newsletter, and I want your advice. Aside from TLR, where else do you get your longform recommendations? And what social media platforms do you frequent?

Let me know by replying to this email, or by filling out this form:

In any case, here’s a quick snapshot of what you can expect in this week’s edition:

• A deep dive about diving deep—and the deadly consequences of human hubris.

• An intoxicating investigation about probably the biggest wine fraud in history.

• This unusual science story: drama, intrigue, and the possible end of the world.

• A real-life telling of the California caricature, complete with grifters, gurus, and a dead man.

Happy reading and see you again next Monday!

Story in Spotlight

This, I think, is probably one of the most important stories of our time. Particularly if you’re American (or live in the U.S.), but even if you aren’t.

For all the posturing from the U.S. (and more broadly from the Western world, whatever that means) about human rights and diversity and what-have-you, there are many deep, dark realities that directly counter this. Eugenics, for instance. As the story points out, much of Nazi Germany’s eugenics policies, it adapted from the U.S. If that ain’t damning enough, then I don’t know what is.

This isn’t ancient history, too. Many victims of America’s eugenicist policies are still alive. And while there are now legal safeguards in place, the article makes it clear that the practices continue nonetheless.

And perhaps most telling: The supremacist sensibilities that undergird eugenics are also still very strong in the U.S., purported bastion of democracy and human rights. Even among those who fervently deny being conservative or right-wing, it’s still easy to spot some slivers of superiority—in quips about being better, stereotyping jokes, uncontested claims that they should be (or are) the global standard.

Arguably minor. I’m overreacting, some might say. But also probably not. Maybe these are signs of some subconscious bias'; signs that, actually, under the right conditions and given enough prodding from people in power, America would most definitely be fine with a resurgence in eugenics. Maybe it’s even already happening right now.

And okay—this is all uncomfortable to hear. I get it. It might sound like an attack of some sort. But it’s either that or we just stay complacent and allow ourselves to slide back into the dark ages of social engineering. And I think the choice should be very clear.

Very long and can be difficult to read in some spots. But also very important. If you have an hour or so this week, please read this.

The Longform List

🤿 Raising the Dead | Outside Magazine, Free

One of the most enjoyable advantages of looking through archives is that I stumble upon fascinating gems that I somehow missed before. Like this one.

This is from 2005, but honestly it reads much better than many of the more recently published longreads. That’s a testament to how good the writer is and how incredible the story itself is. The depths are very terrifying for me, and this story captured that perfectly, with the writer layering the underwater world on top of a very tragic story of hubris.

Really long, but definitely worth the time sink. Set aside more than an hour for this.

🍷 A Vintage Crime | Vanity Fair, $

Yet another dated story that I only recently discovered after digging through archives. And this is something that’s more up my alley, too.

I’ve long identified as a wine enthusiast, but I concede that I don’t have quite the refined palate for it—at least not enough to appreciate the tiniest details in a sip. I used to think that that made me unqualified to participate in the culture, but apparently, and as this story illustrates, I seem to be more the norm than an exception.

Because for what other reason would troves of counterfeit wines become so prevalent and highly valued in even the most prestigious cellars all over the world? Clearly, aside from a small group of people with really sharp senses, most oenophiles can’t reliably differentiate a vintage from a mixed cheap red.

Pretty long, but I found it to be a fun read overall. I took around 40 minutes, with distractions.

👨‍🍳 A Restaurant Ruined My Life | Toronto Life, Free

Equal parts first-person essay and cautionary tale, this story is probably one of the most heart-wrenching ones I’ve read in recent years. And everytime I re-read it, I’m shocked that I consistently feel such pain and empathy for the writer.

Because don’t get me wrong. He made so many stupid (his word) and arrogant (my word) mistakes. And it was so easy to see all the wrong turns from miles ahead, yet he kept on taking them, one after the other. I’m normally not graceful enough to sympathize with someone like that. And yet I find myself feeling bad for the writer every single time. Maybe it’s because he was honest and equally unforgiving of himself and his foolishness, or maybe it’s because I’ve also been on entrepreneurial streak and understand the adrenaline of business. I can’t say, honestly.

Long and can be tough to read through in some spots. But if you enjoy emotional essays, you’ll enjoy this one. I took an hour, including the many breaks I needed.

🏙️ Cisco’s Big Bet on New Songdo: Creating Cities From Scratch | FastCompany, Free

I’ll be honest: When I first read this years ago, I wasn’t impressed. At the time, I had just gone to South Korea myself and had seen first-hand just how much tech uplifted the quality of life there. Smart cities, perfectly integrated and powered by the most cutting-edge technologies, seemed like the perfect next step for South Korea.

Needless to say, I’ve had a complete change of heart. I now also see the foolishness (if not outright greed) that undergirds these types of tech-centric sustainability solutions. Companies like Cisco and Gale aren’t really interested in saving the planet. They just want to chase after profits.

Not too long, but very interesting to read through and see how far off the companies were. Probably 20 minutes.

🪦 Cut Up and Leased Out, the Bodies of the Poor Suffer a Final Indignity in Texas | NBC News, Free

Remember that eugenics story from just a few scrolls up? Well, this one isn’t quite the same, but I think it reveals similar underlying supremacist sensibilities.

This story details the disrespect that certain institutions in Texas show toward the dead, choosing to label as many as they can as unclaimed and sell off the bodies or its parts to medical schools, companies or the army. But to be specific, this practice affects some people much more than others. I’ll let you figure that out.

Not excessively long, and honestly easy to read. Not too thick with details and the sentences are very active. Maybe 20 minutes?

🪱 The Parasites of Malibu | The Cut, $

There is a certain caricature of cosmopolitan California—needlessly expensive shakes and sandwiches, cartoonish yoga classes, useless crystals, founder-type chumps—that has become a pop-culture staple.

And I know that that must have come from something real, just blown cartoonishly out of proportion to elicit laughs. But apparently it isn’t as exaggerated as I assumed. Or at least, not according to this story, which ticks almost all the outlandish boxes and follows two grifters (allegedly)—who have the enviable talent of failing upwards—that found themselves in the company of an incredibly rich old man. The stuff of sitcoms, really, but only this time it’s real.

Long, but reads like one of those TV shows that inexplicably just won’t get cancelled. If you enjoy those, you’re going to love this. Maybe 15 minutes if you can stay focused.

🌊 How Soon Might the Atlantic Ocean Break? Two Sibling Scientists Found an Answer—and Shook the World | WIRED, $

I love a good science story, and I’d say this one has it all. Actually interesting and not-annoying characters? Check. High stakes (care of the climate crisis, in this case)? Check. Intrigue and drama? Silly squabbling scientists? Check and check.

It helps, too, that the actual science at the center of this—environmental history and ocean currents—is something that I personally find fascinating. If we share the same tastes then you’ll enjoy this story, too.

Very long. And very thick with details, which I concede can be off-putting to most people. If you decide to stick with it and read through the technicalities, it could take you more than an hour. Maybe 1 hour and 30 minutes, even.

🦜 Can the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker Be Found in Cuba? | Audubon, Free

This, I’d say, is a really fun and unique take on a reported essay. It gives a very up-close and personal look at the campaign to save the planet, revealing in sometimes very painful detail how difficult and uncomfortable and disappointing the work can be. It inspired in me a deep respect for the people who put their bodies on the line for the environment.

I’m sure that Audubon doesn’t have an immutable style guide that would have prevented the use of the first-person, so I assume that the writer made a stylistic choice to refer to herself in the third-person here. It can take some getting used to, but I think the payoff was worth it, with some really unexpectedly funny moments.

Long and might get boring in some spots. Probably 40 minutes at least.

💣 The Big Baltic Bomb Cleanup | Hakai Magazine, Free

Another unique take on the climate angle, this time focusing on the destruction and detritus of war. And it’s no big secret that I’m fervently anti-war in all of its forms, so it should also be no surprise that my experience reading through this was full of indignation—that these conflicts happened in the first place and that we were so stupid enough to dump our weapons in the ocean, where they are now poisoning not just the ecosystem but also eventually, us.

It’s all so stupid and pointless. And I appreciate these companies for starting the work of cleaning up the ocean, but forgive me for being jaded that we’re again taking a corporate approach to the environment. I’m not hopeful.

Long and, if it wasn’t obvious yet, frustrating. If that drives you then this will go really quickly. I, a rage reader, took 10 minutes.

🏛️ Why Are Museums So Afraid of This Artist? | The New York Times, $

I’ll admit: I started this story feeling very unimpressed with the titular artist. Big deal, I said, that an artist makes use of art to critique the powerful. Nothing original there 🙄

But then I slowly realized that this artist likely started it all. Or even if he didn’t, he was one of the very first ones (at least in the U.S.) to see the opportunity of the visibility of his art to bring attention to important social issues. And using his platform to call out the very establishment that hosts his creations? Absolutely based, as the kids these day say.

Plus points, too, because the artist conducts his research like a journalist does, digging through public filings and other documents as inspiration for his work.

So, needless to say, I was wrong. This artist was a trailblazer. And I respect his legacy.

Not too long, but also not the most gripping tale ever told. Maybe 30 to 40 minutes, depending on how focused you are.

Thanks for reading! Please, please reach out if you have feedback, suggestions, or questions. I know some of the stories I recommend might be behind paywalls, and maybe I can help you with access to those, too!

Also, I’d appreciate it so much if you help me grow by sharing The Lazy Reader with friends or family who you think might also enjoy a good longform story 🫶

Until next Monday! 👋