David Stokman

Co-founder of The News Memo. Student of economics and philosophy.

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

What is the cost? This is a question we should ask with every technology we use.
https://t.co/RREY1aUPoO

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

Follow what happened this week without losing your time 👇
https://t.co/HZrUujPsH0

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

For thousands of years, human beings have marveled at the natural wonders of the world and seen them as a sign of a transcendent creator. Are we moving into a world in which beauty and seeming perfection remind us of something only a computer can produce?

https://t.co/Lk7ayEjg9o

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

@ConceptualJames Very insightful piece, thank you. It has sparked multiple discussions with my friends. Sending you some half-baked thoughts I wrote it an attempt to contribute to the discussion.

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

Super interesting and fun to write!

[The News Memo @thenewsmemo]

https://t.co/tno6d1dE66

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

The complaining in the NBA is getting out of control, unbearable to watch at times. I feel like the league/refs should do a crackdown to get rid of some of this whiny attitude

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

A reasonable and honest discussion about tariffs should talk about bringing manufacturing capacity, not manufacturing jobs back to the US. There's a good argument for having the capacity to build critical items domestically but we are not going to see meaningful manufacturing job growth even if more factories are built in the US.

The automation tide is way too strong, especially when it comes to building new factories. A lot of existing manufacturing facilities were built decades ago and are running equipment that is often just as old - that makes it harder to automate and when it does happen, it happens in piecemeal fashion (one new piece of equipment at a time).

When companies built new factories from the ground up, they are able to custom design everything - from the layout to the equipment - with automaton in mind.

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

The Garage-ification of Society
As I was driving last week I saw what might be the ugliest new house I’ve ever seen. It is a new construction townhouse. It is completely dominated by the garage. Only after you pass by it do you see the front entry door and the house itself. I’ve always had the critique that modern houses, especially in the suburbs, give too much prominence to the garage, but this is a new level. Not only is it a bad aesthetic, it is a sign of the importance we place on possessions and toys and comfort in modern society. Homes are no longer built for beauty (has been the case for a while), but are increasingly built for convenience and isolation as well. A home should be centered around the living quarters and common spaces – kitchen, dining room, study, etc., rooms that facilitate time together and hosting guests. Instead, the garage takes primacy, which facilitates the storage of possessions, convenience, and alone time – how many times have you gathered for something social in a garage?

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

Life is full of paradoxes. Mobile phones make us less mobile. The internet and digital scrolling feel infinite yet they confine and exhaust us when we are done. Meanwhile, a physical book feels finite, limited, but when we read a good one we are opened to the infinite and feel rejuvenated. Technology offers us time savings and yet it ends up usually stealing, wasting a lot of time. Information instantly at our fingertips promises to make us smarter and yet we are becoming less intelligent. More connectivity has led to more isolation.

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

#12. Paradoxes

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

#11. Thinking is now exceptional (and silence)

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

@ConceptualJames I printed this out and read it last night. One of the best things I've read in a while. Thank you for your work

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

#10 The Garage-ification of Society

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

This will continue to be a critical issue for the Administration until / unless some sort of resolution is reached

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

50501-led protest in St. Paul MN outside the Drake Bank building. The demonstration is mainly about the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia but also broadly a protest against the Trump Admin.

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

Looked like a few hundred people gathered.

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

First time at the St. Paul City Council meeting. Let's see how this goes

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

This will hopefully be exciting!

[Frederick Melo, Reporter/Axolotl @FrederickMelo]

It’s official: The “X” in the Xcel Center is a goner. Toast. Kaput! Xcel Energy’s $80 million, $3-million-per-year, 25-year naming rights agreement is over as of this summer. Here’s who might skate in as a title sponsor, and for how much: https://t.co/YYu1yjMPZj

[David Stokman @dpstokman]

@substack Did Substack recently make changes to the ability to edit a subscriber's status? There no longer appears to be the option of refunding or switching a paid subscription status. Please advise. Thank you

https://t.co/KgKsTmfe6m.