In this issue:

OVERWORLD:
-The ridiculous era of meme-coins.-
-Mini-Stories: 70-year-old trap rock.-
+ Pornhub fights Texas.-

THE DEPTHS:
-The AK-47 is the world’s favorite pop star.-

“A man’s greatest joy is crushing his enemies.”
— Genghis Khan

✦Trend Picks✦

Crypto

The ridiculous era of meme-coins.

It didn’t seem possible, but even after its all-time high, Bitcoin has been outshined - by literal memes.

Legacy memes Dogecoin and Shiba Inu have recently boomed 90% and 200% respectively, outperforming the traditional crypto sphere. But all the shine is on the new kids on the block, Solana-based tokens: Book of Meme, Pepe, and Dogwifhat.

And people are eeaaating off of these memes. During BOME’s presale, one buyer flipped $72,000 to $30.2M in just 3 days during BOME’s launch on the 14th of March. Following the rally, the user sold 190M BOME for $3.66M, and still held 1.24B BOME, valued at $26.57M.

✦What even is this shit?✦

The concepts of the memes vary in sophistication from silly to real attempts at creating culture (depending on who you ask).

✦It’s big… maybe too big.✦

The current meme coin frenzy accounts for 2.19% of the total crypto market. That’s $53B out of $2.5T. Great and all, but at the end of the day… they’re memes. And so, investors, analysts, and degenerates alike are arguing. How far can it go?

On one hand: Crypto’s volatile nature is enhanced when meme-ification occurs as the lack of seriousness does not take longevity for granted.

On the other hand: Meme coins have proven their ability to climb into an upper echelon of the crypto hierarchy. legacy memes such as Doge and Shiba are amongst the top 15 and have transcended the joke, making them real currencies.

✦Mini Stories✦

-70-year-old trap rock.-
-Pornhub fights Texas.-

🤖 Kim Gordon is 70 years old and made a trap/rock record, which is sick.
When Kim’s single “BYE BYE” dropped people weren’t mad. A 70-year-old rock legend attempting auto-tune, 808s, and trap percussion sounds like a sure path to forced cringe - which is true for most rock legends, just not this one.

Kim's spoken-word singing her packing list is the most Kim Gordon shit ever, and is expected. But what isn’t expected is the authentic mesh between modern hip-hop sensibilities and Kim’s legacy alt-rock angle.

This reminds us: Her work with Sonic Youth always was about cutting-edge free-formity - and today, that’s the home of hip-hop, so Kim does not blaspheme.

Thankfully “BYE BYE,” wasn’t a one-off. Last week, Kim dropped “The Collective,” a full album that births a child out of no wave, noise, and trap soundscapes - and it’s so good.

At the age of 70, Kim still holds king taste, and authentically drags a natural line from her Sonic Youth legacy into the hyper-culture of 2023. “The Collective” is a cohesive, visceral testament to the true nature of originality. Good job Kim.

🚫 Pornhub vs. Texas continues - Pornhub blocks the whole state
Yes, citizens of Texas won’t be hearing the iconic Pornhub drum intro for a while. Amidst legal wrangles, Pornhub has shut access to its platform for users in the Lone Star State. The reason is objections to a new age verification law.

In February, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton swung a lawsuit at Pornhub's parent company, Aylo, for not adhering to the state's stringent age verification regulations - which has caused controversy.

The law mandates that adult sites not only verify users' ages through government IDs but also display a message - deemed pseudoscientific by critics - about the dangers of pornography.

As a result, anyone trying to access Pornhub or its sister sites from Texas is greeted with a message explaining the site's stance against the legislation, arguing it infringes on adults' rights and is an ineffective measure for protecting minors.

Pornhub suggests device-based age verification as a safer alternative, emphasizing privacy concerns associated with submitting IDs online.

This standoff has broader implications, as Texas joins several states enforcing similar laws, raising debates over digital privacy, adult content regulation, and the balance between safeguarding minors and upholding free speech online.

✦Quick hits✦

• Sweet Baby Inc., a Montreal-based narrative consultancy, faces a harassment campaign accused of "wokeifying" video games. Critics, invoking Gamergate 2.0, target the company for introducing diversity into games like Spider-Man 2 and Alan Wake II.

• Elon Musk's xAI has officially open-sourced Grok. This is Elon’s attempt to set an example for OpenAI, which he deems unethical due to its closed-source approach.

• Apple is reportedly negotiating with Google to incorporate the Gemini AI model into the iPhone. It’s just rumors though. Most likely, they’re trying to get AI features into iOS 18 - whose AI it’ll be is yet to be confirmed, as they’ve also spoken with OpenAI.

• Paris Hilton’s ventured into the Roblox metaverse with her very own world, Slivingland - and it’s a hit. Her promotional video on TikTok by Hilton drew over eight million views, translating to an ad value equivalent of $60 million and 3.4 million visitors to her Roblox world.

• Read: The "Young Indian Method" document, discovered on a Discord for TikTok spammers, outlines a controversial strategy for exploiting low-wage workers in developing countries to maximize profits.

THE DEPTHS

History

The AK-47 is the world’s favorite pop star.

The AK-47 – the world's most iconic assault rifle is estimated to be in the hands of 1 in 70 persons worldwide. And it’s no wonder - they’re everywhere. To this day, 100 million AK-47s have been produced, making it one of the most manufactured weapons in history.

At this point, the AK is a pop star: games, film, music, literature, and history know it too well, and its silhouette evokes an almost mythic respect.

But how and why did that happen? Well, one word could describe it all: Reliability.

✦Birth.✦

The AK was conceived in the post-war rubble of WWII by Mikhail Kalashnikov, a Soviet tank commander turned self-taught weapons designer.

Kalashnikov felt a deep longing for reliability beyond what the weaponry that the 40s supplied - and so, he created a legendary rifle that would become a symbol of resistance, revolution, and sometimes, regret.

After a period of testing, Kalashnikov's masterpiece entered the Soviet arsenal in 1947, hence the "47" in its moniker. The AK-47's specifications read like a love letter to durability:

✦ A 7.62×39mm caliber that offers a sweet spot in power, manageable recoil, and affordability.
✦ 600 rounds per minute and an effective range of 350 meters,
✦ The best part: Mud, sand, water, or snow – the AK-47 will not jam.

✦Worldwide Superstar.✦

Because of its hard bones, the AK-47 has been useful everywhere, from trillion-dollar armies to 20-man insurgency groups. From Vietnam to Mozambique, it has been both the liberator's choice and the oppressor's tool, a testament to its neutral stance on morality.

And so, the AK-47 has become a symbol of revolution and resistance across the globe, featured on the flags of Mozambique (pictured below), Hezbollah, and the East Timorese resistance, among others.

What makes the AK-47 unique isn't just its technical prowess but its profound impact on global culture. It's a weapon that has shaped nations, influenced battles, and left an indelible mark on history. Love it or loathe it, the AK-47's legacy is as enduring as its stamped metal body, forever embedded in the annals of military lore.