"Remember, this is not a fair world," Judge Maya Guerra Gamble said to Alex Jones at trial this week. "I can interrupt you; you can’t interrupt me." The thrill I felt when I heard this! The inherent unfairness of the world? That's a sentiment so familiar I don't need any prompting to remember. I'm accustomed to feeling it when I learn about hate-mongering anti-trans legislation, or the end of federally protected abortion rights, or WNBA players incarcerated in Russia. Hearing Judge Gamble say declare the world's unfairness to Alex Jones, though, felt like flipping the pillow over to the cool side. I'm not used to seeing a figure like Alex Jones have to answer for his behavior. It felt like a little bit of accountability. A little bit of justice. A little bit of fairness.

There were other tastes of accountability this week: Federal charges against the cops who killed Breonna Taylor. Kansas voters affirming, by a wide margin, that abortion is health care. The climate bill moving forward, at last. It's still not a fair world. But these little bits of justice? I'll take them. For now, I'll take them.

"Everything in America is getting older these days," writes Derek Thompson. "In practically every field of human endeavor—politics, business, academia, science, sports, pop culture—the average age of achievement and power is rising." And Claire Suddath on "on all the ways this country has shunted onto women the responsibility of keeping its society and economy running."

Allison P. Davis chronicles her decade of swiping on Tinder.

"When you enter my Brooklyn apartment now, it’s the antithesis of the Mexican-Chinese house I grew up in." Ian Kumamoto on what happens when the children of immigrants grow up to embrace minimalism. And on a related note, can a design reporter please do a deeper dive into how (and why!) color is disappearing from the world? 

Stephanie Mencimer on the right-wing conference circuit, "a stew of nationalist ideas and conspiracy theories served to the movement’s most enthusiastic base, priming them for future election battles. And oh, the merch!"

On the catastrophic flooding in Kentucky, and the "second disaster" caused by an influx of "enormous quantities of unproductive relief supplies."

What are you supposed to do with clothes you don't want anymore? Amanda Mull on resale apps, thrift-store charity mega-chains, and why most items end up in the landfill anyway. 

I always brake for Wesley Morris, but I come to an immediate screeching halt for Wesley Morris on Beyoncé. And I loved hearing 90s dance music icon Crystal Waters' take on the new album, too. 

Lulu Miller on the mystery of the diabolical ironclad beetle, and what it can teach us about self-protection.

Related: This timeless (and, frankly, genderless) tweet.
Also kind of related: "Corn sweat." 
 

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Women Who Rock, a documentary series about the art and legacy of Nancy Wilson, Shania Twain, Chaka Khan, Pat Benatar, Mavis Staples, Sheryl Crow, Sheila E. and more, brought to you by the inimitable Jessica Hopper. And speaking of women with fascinating lives and legacies, there's a new season of The Last Bohemians out now! Plus, the left-behind letters that fans wrote to their favorite bands. 

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Hugimals. I sent one of these weighted stuffed animals to a dear friend who loves a weighted blanket, but who also runs hot. (I mean, who doesn't run hot in the northern hemisphere right now?!) She and her three-year-old are both obsessed with it.

Aug 17, virtual: I'm in conversation with Nona Willis Aronowitz about her new book, Bad Sex: Truth, Pleasure and an Unfinished Revolution.