Grist From the Mills

The Progress Pride flag flies underneath the Wisconsin and U.S. flags on a pole over top of the ornate facade of WI State Capitol building.

Wisconsin needs a candidate for governor who will defend LGBTQ people

Vol. 74 IN THIS ISSUE: Essay | Now Read This | Get Outside This essay originally appeared in The Recombobulation Area, part of the Civic Media Network. With Tony Evers’ announcement last month that he will not be seeking a third term in office, the field for governor is wide open. As

A bar with large round weights mounted on either end, set on top of black gym mats.

Lifting Heavy Things

Vol. 73 In This Issue: ESSAY | NOW READ THIS | RESOURCES | FINAL FRAME One of my favorite arguments against the use of generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude is this: You don’t go to a gym and use a forklift. The point isn’t just to move heavy things

A black and white photo shows an old Ford minivan parked along a cracked roadway, with a flat field of grass and flowers behind it.

On staying.

Vol. 72 In This Issue: ESSAY | NOW READ THIS | RESOURCE SHARING | BOOK NOOK | FINAL FRAME On Staying. This past weekend marked the 25th anniversary of my moving to Madison. A whole quarter century lived in the same place. It’s sort of wild to think about, even after all this

Screengrab from the 1995 movie “Hackers” shows Johnny Lee Miller’s face, with a flurry of equations superimposed over it.

Breaking Up With Social Media

Vol. 71 In This Issue: ESSAY | NOW READ THIS | TAKE ACTION | IN PERSON | FINAL FRAME I have been online since 1994. I was 13 years old and my family purchased a Macintosh Power PC that had a whopping 14.4 bps modem included. It was the first time we owned

Two, side-by-side staircases leaded up to an ornate doorway, flanked on either side by hallways lined with tall columns.

A win for checks and balances and a win for actual expertise

Vol. 70 IN THIS ISSUE: Essay | Now Read This | Listen Up | In Person | Final Frame This essay originally appeared in The Recombobulation Area, part of the Civic Media network, on July 23, 2025. Earlier this month, Wisconsin saw an important win for checks and balances in our state government. It

A group of roller derby skaters and coaches carry a large Palestinian flag overhead as they skate and walk in a procession.

The Roller Derby World Cup and a borderless future

Vol. 69 (nice) IN THIS ISSUE: ESSAY | NOW READ THIS | TAKE ACTION | IN PERSON | FINAL FRAME It’s no secret that I love the sport of roller derby. I’ve been involved since 2012, when I finally worked up the courage, time, and money to try out for my local

Three people sit along a curb, talking with one another.

(Interview) USAID Matters: An Interview with Jessica Benton Cooney

Vol. 68 In This Issue: INTERVIEW | TAKE ACTION | NOW READ THIS | IN PERSON | FINAL FRAME [Give me a tip on Ko-Fi!] Several lifetimes ago, during my senior year at Edgewood College, a small, Catholic, liberal arts school, I became co-editor of a campus newspaper that had fallen into serious disrepair.

Close-up photo shows a black microchip on a green circuit board.

How AI is harming Wisconsin’s path to renewable energy

Vol. 67 IN THIS ISSUE: Essay | Listen Up | Now Read This | Final Frame This essay originally appeared at The Recombobulation Area, part of the Civic Media network. We’ve long been primed by popular culture to expect some kind of robot apocalypse. From the cyborgs of the “Terminator” franchise to

Two simple gold wedding bands on top of a rainbow Pride-colored fabric.

I gay married my friends

For love, for resistance, for revolution. Vol. 66 IN THIS ISSUE: Essay | Take Action | Now Read This | Final Frame I got an out-of-the-blue text early last week from a friend, J: “Do you know anybody who is legally ordained as an officiant? My partner and I are looking to do

A wooden sign reads “Welcome to Emily” in large white font, with the painted image of an eagle soaring above it.

What’s in a name?

Vol. 65 IN THIS ISSUE: Essay | In Person | Now Read This | Final Frame I had a dream recently in which I was being introduced to a class full of young children. One of them, a little girl, asked for my name so she could tell the others. When I told

A wide shot of the Wisconsin Assembly Chambers, with members seated at wooden desks and a balcony gallery filled with guests. Gov. Evers stands at a podium at the front of the room.

We should get rid of the partial veto. Eventually.

Vol. 64. IN THIS ISSUE: Essay | Now Read This | Listen Up | Final Frame This essay originally appeared in The Recombobulation Area. Thanks, as always, to Dan for inviting me to contribute. Please be sure to subscribe over there for award-winning, Wisconsin-focused reporting and commentary! Do the means justify the ends?

Three red umbrellas with signs leaned against them read: “Freedom to associate is our right!” “My rights are sex worker rights!” “Standing together for sex work solidarity."

Interview: Valentine on Sex Workers’ Rights and Why We Should All Care More

Vol. 63 In This Issue: ESSAY/INTERVIEW | NOW READ THIS | FINAL FRAME With the current maelstrom of fuckery coming out of the White House and its allies, the overwhelm is the point. It’s almost impossible to keep track of the many and varied ways the Trump Administration is attempting