Arts & Humanities - News, Articles, Books, Photo-Art, and Videos.
CURIOUSMINDS
A weekly serving of great articles we curate, and original content we produce. So, all you have to do is pick, read, watch and listen. |
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Issue #205 - November 2025
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Stories from Around the World that Affect Us |
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In digital silence and darkness, they massacred Tanzanians
The Tanzanian internet shutdown caused great suffering and serious injury through multiple mechanisms, including facilitating mass killings, but Tanzanians have found many ways to fight back and record the evidence. At about noon on 29 October 2025, Tanzanian authorities, under the presidency of Samia Suluhu Hassan began a six-day internet shutdown as they simultaneously stole elections and orchestrated the worst massacre in Tanzania’s post-independence history. The presidential and parliamentary elections were never expected to be credible given the barring and imprisonment of the opposition, in particular Chadema leader Tundu Lissu, who is charged with treason and facing the death penalty.
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 Venezuelans living under threat of US military action
BBC(War/Politics)
It's Wednesday morning at Quinta Crespo, a popular market in downtown Caracas. Here, a possible escalation of the conflict is not the main concern of Venezuelans, who glance at the news while checking their wallets to find enough cash to pay. "There's not going to be an intervention, nothing like that. What's really troubling us is the rise of the dollar," Alejandro Orellano tells BBC Mundo as he savours a coffee, waiting for customers who never seem to arrive.
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 Vietnam floods - 90 dead
BBC (Environments)
The Vietnamese government says 186,000 homes have been damaged across the country, with more than three million livestock swept away. Officials estimate there has been hundreds of millions of pounds worth of damage. The mountainous province of Dak Lak has been severely impacted, recording more than 60 deaths since 16 November, according to AFP news agency. The floods are the latest extreme weather event to hit Vietnam in recent months, after typhoons Kalmaegi and Bualoi hit the country within weeks of each other. |
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The AI Art Swindle in Big Publishing
Visual Art
There is a certain chutzpah to shitting out a few bad prompt images and collecting a paycheck from a publisher. Maybe he really thought nobody would notice, or maybe he just doesn’t care. What we can be sure of, however, is that if he were honest, he would not have gotten the job. In fact, no artist should, when acting honestly in and with informational symmetry, be able to collect a paycheck ever for using AI. This is not because AI art is “bad” or “wrong”—it is because it is literally worthless.
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Democracies and Dictators Yascha Mounk Philosophy/Politics |
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In this week’s conversation, Yascha Mounk and James Loxton explore different types of authoritarian regimes, why they fail, and whether the United States passes the fear test. Image by Leonardo |
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Quote of The Week
The
years teach much the days never knew
- James King -
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Top Stories from our favourite publications to stimulate your curious mind, |
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Confirmed: ICE Is Arresting American Citizens—and Lying About It
A government that flouts the Fourth Amendment and then lies about it to courts and the people has crossed a moral and legal frontier.
A recent report from ProPublica documents the detentions of some 170 American citizens by Immigration and Customs Enforcement during its anti-immigration operations. But the implications of the report go considerably further, suggesting an agency completely out of control and flouting the Fourth Amendment at every turn.
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How to Confront Highbrow Misinformation
PERSUASION (Media)
When confronted with the growing popularity of populist, extremist, and generally destructive ideas over the past decade or so, many establishment politicians, journalists, and experts have blamed “misinformation” (see also “disinformation,” “fake news” “information disorder,” and “post-truth”). But there is much to question about this narrative. For example, this narrative exaggerates both the quality of the past information environment and the gullibility of ordinary voters.
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The Platonic Case Against AI Slop
PALLADIUM (Philosophy/Tech)
When Zuckerberg announced Vibes in late September, the platform seemed designed to answer a question nobody had asked. Users would scroll through an endless feed of AI-generated videos, short-form content synthesized entirely by machines, created from text prompts and remixed without human hands ever touching a camera. The response was immediate and nearly universal. “Gang nobody wants this,” Yet, five days after Vibes launched, OpenAI released Sora’s video generation platform to the public. Within forty-eight hours, Sora hit number one on the App Store. |
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Invisible Enemy
Suicide or Murder? – The Life of a Child hangs in the balance - The Verdict Uncertain A psychological thriller – Short Story - that will change the way you look at humankind. It’s 2021 and the world is paralysed by Covid-19. The invisible microscopic organism looks on, astonished at Man’s inability to solve his problems. Despite the warnings and having all the resources available to do so, humans run in circles desperate to escape the clutches of an invisible enemy. Commissaire Pascal de Gaulle is focused on other pressing matters, when a man falls to his death in the centre of Paris, carrying a secret. And how will he save his orphaned godchild from leukemia? - you will love this nail-biter.
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How to Be a Lichen
THE MARGINALIAN (Philosophy)
Usnea longissima is just one of more than 20,000 known species of lichen — almost twice as many as birds. I have collected and photographed lichen all over the world, from the spruces lining the wild shores of Alaska to the stone walls lining the rural roads of Ireland, from Basquiat’s grave in Brooklyn’s Green-Wood Cemetery to my oldest friend’s young husband’s tombstone in London’s Brompton Cemetery. And because anything you polish with attention will become a mirror, I have come to see that lichen knows many things we spend our lives learning — about adversity, about belonging, about love.
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There's Something Wrong with All of Us
GNOCCHIC CODICES (Literature)
I know writers who have been critical of me but whose work and criticism I’ve enjoyed. I appreciate their psychoanalysis of my persona and authoritarian tendencies. I’m not looking for morally perfect or noble-minded critics, just interesting ones who are willing to engage. This kind of interaction happened a lot in past artistic movements. I genuinely wonder if I’m working toward something—not necessarily a better world, but at least a more artful and conscious one, capable of planting and growing symbols, dreams, and architectural plans….
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UPGRADE to PAID
CURIOUSMINDS content and opinions contain important information curated from reliable sources. We rely on reader support to keep it FREE. We want it to reach as many people as possible. If you value what we do and would like to help us sustain it, please consider a small monthly or annual contribution. Contributing subscribers get full access to all James King Publications including archives of CURIOUSMINDS, and a valuable BONUS: FREE ebook versions of all James King’s published books.Click - View them at Amazon · Donate via the - Choose a subscription plan - page. If you are not a subscriber already - Go to the Welcome page |
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James King Blog offers valuable resources for students of Arts and Humanities. Particularly those interested in Environments, Literature, Performing Arts, Visual Art, Philosophy, Travel, and Human Rights. The articles provide insights into complex interactions between humans and their environments, and the ethical and moral dimensions of environmental issues. The Blog is relevant to students of all ages and those who are just fascinated by the Arts and Humanities. |
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 Earthquakes’ Impact on the Environment – Important Results
Earthquakes’ impact on the environment is direct and indirect, with ground shake disturbing habitats and altering the landscape. For example, trees may be uprooted, cliffs may crumble, and caves may collapse, prompting a cascade effect through ecosystems. |
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FREE BOOKS80 Mystery, Thriller, & Suspense FreebiesThis Promo Closes 30 November Thriller authors join forces in joint promotion campaigns to introduce themselves to readers. You can download as many books as you like.
I hope you find plenty to entertain you. CLICK THE BANNER BELOW TO VIEW THE PROMO - AND GRAB AS MANY BOOKS AS YOU WANT |
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ALFIE GOES TO THAILAND - SERIES
If you like thought-provoking drama, romantic tragedies, and damaged characters, then you’ll love the tropical sauna and wry humour of POST- IT NOTES and the other books in this Psychological Thriller series. The Series is a story of human challenge, manipulation, rejection, abuse, and a search for peace. |
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THE KENRIGHT CHRONICLES - SERIES
The Kenright Chronicles is a psychological thriller series. Jack Kenright, a young investment banker gets involved in an international art swindle. which cripples his business and threatens his life and his family. He ends up a recluse, working for the FBI undercover and exposes massive corruption in the gambling world. |
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Politics of DeceptionBy Patrick J Sloyan
Investigative reporter Patrick J. Sloyan, a former member of the White House Press Corps, revisits the last years of John F. Kennedy's presidency, his fateful involvement with Diem's assassination, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Civil Rights Movement. Using recently released White House tape recordings and interviews with key inside players, The Politics of Deception reveals:
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The Essence of EvilBy Rob Sinclair
When Detective Dani Stephens returns to work after an attack that almost ended her life, she’s quickly plunged into a horrific new case, as dead bodies are discovered on the streets of Birmingham. But with no link between the victims, Dani has to get inside the killer’s mind - so turns to the murderer she knows best. Her own twin brother… But what makes a psychopath? Can understanding her twin help her find a murderer who leaves no trace? As the circle closes on Dani, the clock is ticking and she needs a breakthrough – before she becomes the latest victim. The Essence of Evil is the first book in the Detective Dani Stephens crime thrillers series, from million copy selling author Rob Sinclair. A heart-stopping crime thriller that fans of Peter James and Mark Billingham won’t be able to put down. A gripping and chilling look into the twisted minds of serial killers - a perfect read for fans of crime thrillers, police procedurals, female detective fiction and murder mysteries.
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Substack - Creative Xellence -
Join us at Creative Xellence where we are building a home for James King's Poetry, Short Stories and serialised Novels. Subscribe for Free and you will be notified of new content and recieve the Newsletter.
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Medium
At Medium we curate high value informative articles related to A&H from major publishers and authoratative sources. And we publish a smattering of selected articles from James King Blog and articles written by James King for Medium Publications.
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