
On Friday, many of us awoke to the news that Anthony Bourdain, the rock star of the culinary world, had died by suicide. It was devastating news for millions of people from around the world and I must admit it made me tear-up. I was a fan of Bourdain, and referred to him on my Facebook post about his death as “Brother Anthony Bourdain”. I did so because while I enjoyed his blogs, and television shows where he documented his explorations of international culture and cuisine – it was his sensitivity for the human condition and his fierce advocacy for the less appreciated heroes of the food and dining world that made him so unique. In particular, Bourdain championed the “industrious Spanish-speaking immigrants” from Mexico, Nicaragua etc., who are cooks and chefs in many U.S. eateries, including upscale restaurants, regardless of cuisine. He wrote about how he considered them talented chefs and cooks who are underpaid and unrecognized even though they are the “backbone of the U.S. restaurant industry”. I loved that about him, but it was his storytelling that made him the celebrity that he was. Bourdain traveled around the world sampling and writing about food. He favored “peasant” foods over “haute cuisine”. He avoided Michelin rated restaurants in favor of street food — especially from developing countries. He was brash and outspoken and memorialized some of his travels with tattoos on his arms. He was also not afraid of controversy and shunned political correctness when it conflicted with his personal value system. While acknowledging that Americans eat too much meat, he was critical of activist vegetarians and vegans — saying that their lifestyle is rude to many of the inhabitants of the countries he visits. He called vegetarianism a “first world luxury”, but also admired vegetarians who did so for religious reasons or who put aside their vegetarianism when they travel in order to be respectful to their hosts. Agree with him or not, there was a consistent thread in everything he did — above all else, he was a human being who enjoyed, respected and appreciated the cultures and customs of other human beings. He was also insanely talented. Anthony Bourdain was the real deal and I, along with millions of other people, am a better and more adventurous person because he lived. #RIPAnthonyBourdain
Elon Musk dropped by the Real Time with Bill Maher show recently for an interview with the host. Maher, who considers himself a liberal is an obvious fan of the CEO of Tesla and Space X. The centerpiece of their conversation was their discussion regarding what Musk called the “woke mind virus” or what I prefer to call “cancel culture”.
Ye, the entertainer and fashion designer formally known as Kanye West had a disastrous week. Always outrageous, his recent antisemitic comments were apparently the last straw; prompting practically everyone to sever ties with him, from his bank, JP Morgan Chase, to his billion-dollar shoe partnership with Adidas.
Regardless of where you live you have probably heard about Nury Martinez and the circumstances that led to her resignation from Los Angeles City Council. The short story is Martinez, who was the first Latina to hold the position of president of the Los Angeles City Council was secretly recorded in a private conversation with other council members where she was heard making disparaging remarks about her colleagues and the two-year old...