This morning, I spent 20 minutes hacking to gether a basic social media service for Of Many Trades. It’s not much, but it’s functional. It lives here: TradeSocial. There’s a simple reason that I was able to get it done so quickly: I cheated.

Computers in general, and the internet specifically, used to be really interesting. When the industry was younger, there was an element of DIY, of community, and of comradery. It was a wild space, and many people considered it be potentially revolutionary. Then capitalism stepped in, and everyone realized that the best way to make money was to datamine their users. I want to return to this Wild West of computing, and to that end, I have built OfManyTrades.com.

We’re building a book club for a better America. This is the first official update from that book club. You’re welcome to join in! We’re reading Little Brother by Cory Docotorow, which is a free download from his website, craphound.com.

Leonard Cohen was an american songwriter, responsible for some of the most beautiful and moving tracks of the last 50 years. He passed away earlier this week at the age of 82. He will be missed. Cohen started his musical career in 1966 or 1967 when he wrote Suzanne, for Judy Collins. From there, he wrote dozens of other heartachingly beautiful songs, including:

If you’re looking at the news of the last week with tired eyes and a heavy heart, you need books. Books fix things, and make them worse. This is a quick list of some books and short stories that might make you feel differently.