#484: The Languages Lost To Climate Change
Plus: An invitation to join this month’s discussion on March 23
Dear Thoughtful Readers,
Welcome to March! Thank you for being here. As many of you know, my father passed away a long time ago, and ever since the beginning of this newsletter, 10 years ago, I’ve often shared articles with you about death, in part to grieve, in part to remember him, but also to remind us of this gift called life.
I’m very excited to announce a new feature that is coming to Article Club. It’s called Melinda’s Grief Corner. As some of you know, Melinda and I co-host a podcast in which we preview the article of the month. Now she will be sharing her reflections on grief, as well as a resource, for everyone who is interested. I’m looking forward to it, and I’m confident you’ll find the corner illuminating and supportive.
You’ll receive the first installment of Melinda’s Grief Corner this Sunday at 9:10 am PT as a separate email. Be on the lookout for it, and if it resonates with you, I warmly invite you to engage in whatever way that makes sense to you.
Now let’s get into this week’s articles. Even though I’ve been doing Article Club for a long time, I never can predict which topics will rise to the top. This week, it was climate change. Today’s lead article, “The Languages Lost to Climate Change,” elegantly helped me understand an additional impact of climate change without leaving me forlorn and paralyzed. I recommend the piece highly.
If the loss of linguistic diversity does not interest you, why not try one of the other outstanding articles in today’s issue? They’re about:
How our love of technology requires the constructon of data centers, which hog water and electricity, which means building power lines that devastate the landscape, and which widen the gap between the rich and poor
How the mother of a mass shooter has tried to make sense of the horror her son unleashed, and how she navigates her life, 10 years later
➕ In addition, check out my invitation to join this month’s discussion of “Radicalized,” by Cory Doctorow, coming Sunday, March 23, 2:00 - 3:30 pm PT.
If you like what we’re doing here at Article Club, and want to support this venture with a paid subscription, I would be very grateful. It’s $5 a month or $36 a year.
1️⃣ The Languages Lost To Climate Change
We know that languages are going extinct at an astounding rate: one every 40 days, according to linguist Gary F. Simons. Although more than 7,000 languages remain, more than half are spoken by communities of 10,000 or fewer people. This well-written article draws a tight connection between climate change and the acceleration of language loss. “Where plant and animal species are disappearing,” author Julia Webster Ayuso writes, “languages, dialects and unique expressions often follow a similar pattern of decline.”
I appreciated this article for many reasons, including Ms. Ayuso’s ability to help build my background knowledge without coming across as too basic. She explains how language has been used as a weapon of colonization, quoting Spanish scholar Antonio de Nebrija, who wrote in 1492, “Language has always been the companion of empire.” In addition, the piece includes an exploration of the conservation movement and the erection of national parks as yet another destroyer of Indigenous languages. To preserve and separate, Ms. Ayuso argues, means also to subjugate and eliminate the diversity of cultures.
By Julia Webster Ayuso • Noema • 17 min • Gift Link
2️⃣ Come join our discussion on March 23
In case you missed last week’s issue, this month, we’re reading and discussing “Radicalized,” a 2019 novella by Cory Doctorow about the injustices of the health care insurance industry. You are warmly invited to join our discussion on Sunday, March 23, 2:00 - 3:30 pm PT. As always, we’ll meet on Zoom. Everyone is welcome. Let me know if you have any questions, too.
3️⃣ Power Failure: On Landscape And Abandonment
Whenever I use ChatGPT — which is rarely, mostly because I’m quickly becoming a dinosaur — I’m reminded of how much water I’m wasting. (Estimate: a bottle every 20 questions.) This article follows the construction of new electrical lines in Ohio, which will power data centers for Amazon and Intel. Author Mya Frazier illustrates how our insatiable demand for technology inexorably leads to the destruction of our country’s rural landscape.
Ms. Frazier also does an outstanding job highlighting how our unbridled desire for artificial intelligence also results in deepening conflicts between rich suburban cities (like New Albany, the beneficiary of the data centers) and their rural counterparts (like Sunbury, through which the power lines run). What is making some of our lives more convenient is making others’ lives significantly worse.
By Mya Frazier • Switchyard • 18 min • Gift Link
4️⃣ Lessons From A Mass Shooter’s Mother
In 2014, Elliot Rodger killed six people and injured 14 others in a mass shooting in Isla Vista, California. I remember following this story, quickly concluding that Mr. Rodger was a misogynistic incel who not only hated himself but also found himself superior, bemoaning his virginity while recording videos with sunglasses on inside his BMW.
Therefore I began this profile of Mr. Rodger’s mother, Chin, with some hesitation. But I’m happy I read it. By no means does this article try to forgive Mr. Rodger’s horrific actions. At the same time, it reminded me that his mother did nothing wrong, yet she still has to live with the consequences, 10 years later. Author Mark Follman writes:
Yet, for years she felt that she had no right even to acknowledge her own grief, out of deference to the victims’ families. “They lost their children to what he did. They had no say in that. Elliot made the decision to do what he did.”
There are ways in which she still can’t confront his violence. “I have not put myself there yet, to visualize the horrible things he did,” she said, tearing up. “It’s still just so hard.” She was quiet for a moment. “Even saying the words ‘mass shooter’ is still really hard for me. But I’m working through it.”
By Mark Follman • Mother Jones • 53 min • Gift Link
✅ It’s time for a quick poll. I’d love to hear from you.
Last week, we learned that half of you like to go back to the archives to read articles from the past. But the other half says no way, the past is history, let’s keep moving.
This week is about writing comments. Some newsletters have a robust comments section. Ours is great but a little sparse. Would you like hearing from fellow Article Clubbers? (This would mean you would comment, too!)
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