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Every Goddamn Day - Flashback 1990
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This resource appears to be a personal blog post about a historical New York City landmark and has no apparent relevance to AI safety, alignment, or related topics in this knowledge base.
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Summary
This appears to be a personal blog post featuring historical content or photographs from 1990 related to Grant's Tomb in New York City. Without accessible content, the resource appears to be a nostalgic or historical retrospective piece on a personal blog.
Key Points
- •Personal blog post from 'Every Goddamn Day' featuring 1990 flashback content
- •Subject appears to be Grant's Tomb, a historical landmark in New York City
- •Published in October 2021 as a retrospective on 1990 content
- •No discernible connection to AI safety or related technical topics
Cited by 1 page
| Page | Type | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| MacArthur Foundation | Organization | 65.0 |
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# [Every goddamn day: 03/20/26](https://www.everygoddamnday.com/)
Neil Steinberg's blog
## Sunday, October 3, 2021
### Flashback 1990: The grant's tomb—MacArthur money \`ruins lives'
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| [](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOdjul0Asc41shk8Lx0ALzrxr_PEhCObhoHcXxHh_E8qond_2_L77wcvrkNsCWMpN93tYuE85odTnkzP5RXgmdtw7ugXy0BZmxnEYZ9pz7V13z_RPx3jCWFjxRDZVLX7FGTxeIOR1s5pIO/s2048/IMG_9651.JPG) |
| "The Voyage of Life: Childhood," by Thomas Cole (Smithsonian Institution) |
_The MacArthur Foundation Fellowships were given out last week—they'd rather not call them "genius grants" though everybody does. This year was unusual because, among the unfamiliar poets and filmmakers was somebody I actually had talked to,_ _Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, the Princeton professor whose insights lent my [2020 COVID Easter article](http://www.everygoddamnday.com/2020/04/facing-coronavirus-were-all-in-this.html) what spine and acuity it displayed._
_But that was merely foreshadowing. Now it turns out that the MacArthur Foundation is a possible benefactor for the Sun-Times. Which is very cool. Not just because they're Chicago-based, and support vital institutions (do the syllogism: A: The MacArthur Foundation supports worthy organizations; B: The MacArthur Foundation supports the Sun-Times and C: The Sun-Times, ergo, is an worthy organization)._
_They also had a reaction that I've admired for decades, trotting out when speaking to public relations groups. I was the charities, foundations and private social services reporter for a couple years. After the first year, celebrating the genius grant winners as they were led blinking into the light, batik artists and interpretive dancers and such, I had this thought: "I bet those awards ruin people's lives" and set out to find them. After I had corralled a number, I approached MacArthur for their reaction. Nine organizations out of 10 would have curled into a defensive ball if a reporter shared that thesis. The MacArthur Foundation didn't. I don't want to ski ahead of my tips, but just the prospect of having them in our corner is thrilling._
Andrew McGuire, an injury prevention expert who got a five-year MacArthur Foundation Fellowship in July, 1985, said having the $40,000 yearly payments stop this year was "like going off heroin."
James McPherson, an acclaimed fiction writer, never published another story after he won a MacArthur grant in June, 1981. "It pretty much ruined his life," said a colleague.
Despite hoopla surrounding the annual no-strings-attached "genius" grants, which can be worth as much as $375,000, the award can be risky for the ego. Artists, activists, writers or scientists who find themselves abruptly handed a huge bundle of cash
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