The Slatest for Jan. 2: A Guide to Quitting Things Correctly
It’s 2024! We hope you had a lovely holiday season and that your year is off to a good start so far.
The start of a new year always invites reevaluation—and maybe along with that, you’ve identified some things you want to leave behind. But it’s worth taking a closer look at what’s behind your desire to quit something, Shannon Palus writes. “Because a quit, even when it is for good, is rarely clean. And when it comes to most things, do we even really want to quit forever? Or are we just seeking a better balance?”
That’s why we’ve put together a whole package on how to quit—or partially quit—the things that are no longer serving us in a more realistic way:
• Prison forced Amanda Knox to quit alcohol cold turkey. She shares what she’s learned since.
• Novelist Katie Heaney shares why she quit therapy after getting … divorced?
We’ll have more reflections on quitting throughout the week!
And speaking of making a fresh start: Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz explains why you don’t actually need to “detox” after overindulging during the holidays.
In case you tuned out the news over the holiday break, here are a couple of things you might want to catch up on:
• We all remember the infamous Georgia “perfect phone call,” where Trump asked the secretary of state to “find 11,779 votes.” Shortly before Christmas, the Detroit News published a recording of a similar phone call about Michigan’s 2020 election results. Shirin Ali takes a look at just how bad it sounds.
• Jack Smith filed a motion to prevent Trump from essentially turning his federal election interference trial into a political soapbox. Austin Sarat and Dennis Aftergut examine what this latest move says about Smith’s broader strategy in prosecuting Trump.
• An unholy alliance in the Senate is stopping a powerful Biden Cabinet nominee from taking the position. Alexander Sammon explains why that is, and what it says about the Senate heading into 2024.
On Oct. 14, 2023, Wadee Alfayoumi, a 6-year-old Palestinian American boy, was stabbed to death by his landlord, Joseph Czuba. Months later, his parents are struggling to make sense of it. What Next spoke with Aymann Ismail, who interviewed the boy’s parents, about what they told him.
Plus, in case you missed it: Ismail’s original story is worth a read.
Dana Stevens bids farewell to a great year in movies. Read on to find out what had her dancing in the aisles.
And catch up on all of the great 2023 Movie Club entries here!
At the Rose Bowl on Monday, the University of Michigan exorcized its demons and beat Alabama in overtime. Alex Kirshner examines how Michigan football finally found its ideal form.
Why does so much fitness advice contradict itself? Luke Winkie argues that the debate over the “right” way to exercise is missing one critical thing.
Slate editor-in-chief Hillary Frey doesn’t wear that much makeup, but there’s one thing that makes her feel polished no matter what she’s wearing.
And while you’re in the fresh-new-year mood—why not check out our One Thing series, full of bite-sized tips for living?
… much like work materials, which is one reason people with office jobs can work basically round-the-clock these days. From our archives, L.V. Anderson proposes a New Year’s resolution to counter this that you might just actually keep.
Thanks so much for reading! We’ll see you back here tomorrow.
