Plus: What Bezos could learn from 5 newspaper success stories
| | | | Top headlines Lead story I had my coat on and was heading out the office door when my boss asked me to write this newsletter note. He does this a lot, the inconsiderate so-and-so. If only there were some way I could tell him how I really felt – I dunno, some anonymous note in which to vent my spleen in his general direction. The Victorians had the right idea: vinegar valentines. Full of spite and grievance, these served as the flip side to the usual lovey-dovey nonsense that you get in mid-February. While loved ones got the "roses are red" treatment, vinegar valentines were reserved for, well, anyone who really ticked you off. Scholarly communications librarian Melissa Chim highlights a bunch of good examples from the archive, including a missive to an obnoxious sales assistant and the puncturing of a pretentious poet. "Who could be disliked so much that they would receive a vinegar valentine?" Chim writes. "The poor, old and ugly were convenient targets. Unmarried men and women might also receive a vicious rejection from potential partners." The practice of sending vinegar valentines died out in the 20th century. And given all the online spite today, that's probably not a bad thing. But be honest, this Feb. 14, isn't there that one not-so-special person in your life who you'd really like to say three magic words to, which politely translate to "Please go away"? [ Know somebody who would enjoy this newsletter? Click here to forward it to a friend. ] |  | Matt Williams Senior International Editor | |  A woman turns down a dapper 'snake' in a 'vinegar valentine' from the 1870s. Wikimedia Commons Melissa Chim, Excelsior University Victorians found a way to anonymously tell people they didn't like exactly how they felt. | Ethics + Religion | -
Laura E. Alexander, University of Nebraska Omaha Clergy sometimes place themselves in harm's way for moral and religious reasons. A scholar of religious ethics explains when – and why. | | Economy + Business | -
Dan Kennedy, Northeastern University Other billionaires who own newspapers are doing a better job, a journalism professor explains. -
Siti Nuraisyah Suwanda, West Virginia University; Emily Tanner, West Virginia University; M. Paula Fitzgerald, West Virginia University Researchers describe what they call a consumption stigma – when you feel judged or looked down on for using certain products or services. | | Arts + Culture | -
Ted Olson, East Tennessee State University Bruce Springsteen wrote and recorded 'Streets of Minneapolis' within days of Alex Pretti's killing, continuing a long tradition of songs as protest against violence and repression. | | Science + Technology | -
Thomas Begley, University at Albany, State University of New York; Marlene Belfort, University at Albany, State University of New York Researchers are embarking on the RNA equivalent of the Human Genome Project, including sequencing all the chemical modifications that make cells unique. -
Robbyn Abbitt, Miami University Cemeteries are a treasure trove of local history and family connection. Technology and ingenuity have made mapping them easier. | | Politics + Society | -
Lauren Hall, Rochester Institute of Technology Partisan debates are less heated at the local level, providing lessons that might help calm the waters nationally. -
Christopher Magra, University of Tennessee Washington's fundamental character as a military leader was forged in the Ohio River Valley, where he also inadvertently helped ignite the French and Indian War. | | Education | -
Andrea Hagan, Loyola University New Orleans HBCUs make up just 3% of the country's colleges and universities. But their graduates include 40% of Black engineers and 50% of Black lawyers. | | | | Today's graphic 📈 |
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