Bill Gates Says NFTs and Crypto Are ‘100%’ Based on Greater Fool Theory
The Microsoft co-founder joked that ‘expensive digital images of monkeys’ would improve the world
‘The value of crypto is just what some other person decides someone else will pay for it,’ Bill Gates said recently. PHOTO: JEMAL COUNTESS/GETTY IMAGES
Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates said he thinks cryptocurrencies and NFTs are “100%” based on the greater fool theory.
The 66-year-old billionaire was referring to the notion that overvalued assets will keep going up because there are enough people willing to pay high prices for them. He joked that “expensive digital images of monkeys” would “improve the world immensely.”
Mr. Gates, who for years has lampooned cryptocurrencies, said Tuesday at a TechCrunch event in Berkeley, Calif., that people bought cryptocurrencies and NFTs based on the idea that, no matter its price, it could be sold for higher because “somebody’s going to pay more for it than I do.”
He said that he wasn’t involved in “any of those things” either long or short. Other wealthy investors and executives, including Warren Buffett and Jamie Dimon, have also expressed skepticism about cryptocurrencies. Mr. Buffett once called bitcoin “rat poison squared.”
NFTs, or nonfungible tokens, are digital proofs of a purchase for goods like art, digital music and sneakers. After surging in popularity, their demand appears to be flatlining recently. Rising interest rates have crushed risky bets across the financial markets—and NFTs are among the most speculative.
In referencing NFTs, Mr. Gates appeared to be commenting on a monkey from the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection.
He said he preferred asset classes “like a farm where they have the output or a company where they make products.”
The price of bitcoin recently traded just above $20,000 on Wednesday. It has lost more than two-thirds of its value since its record high in November, the fourth worst selloff in the cryptocurrency’s 13-year history.
It took me a long time to copy and paste this Vogue article into DigiDame. Why did I do it? I thought the following wedding and Vogue article were so over the top that I couldn’t keep it to myself. The groom is 61 and the bride is 33. The wedding cost millions. This is a true life Hollywood story.
The groom is Hollywood Agent Ari Emanuel. He is the guy who was portrayed as Ari Gold in the TV series “Entourage.” The show was based on Mark Wahlberg’s real-life experience when he, and his friends from Queens, NY, first got to Hollywood and had to deal with the super agent. The bride, Sarah Staudinger, is the founder of the fashion label Staud, alongside George Augusto.
Celebrity guests in attendance included Emily Ratajkowski, Elon Musk, Sean “Diddy” Combs, Mark Wahlberg, Larry David,Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Jennifer Garner, Whoopi Goldberg, and Jake Gyllenhaal. Ari’s brother, the former mayor of Chicago, Rahm Emanuel, was also present.
The weekend nuptials mark the second wedding for Ari. He and his first wife, Sarah Addington, were previously married for over two decades before they filed for divorce in 2018. They have three sons.
On the heels of the Cannes Film Festival, Hollywood power agent Ari Emanuel, CEO of Endeavor, married designer Sarah “Staud” Staudinger at a three-day wedding that took the Cote d’Azur by storm. Comedian Larry David officiated the ceremony that started at sunset in St. Tropez, a place that’s always held a special place in the bride’s heart—and just happens to be where the couple had their first date.
Staud and Ari met in 2018 through a business associate who set them up. “Originally, it was a ‘this is never going to happen’ situation,” jokes Staud, the woman behind the eponymous L.A.-based brand. “Ari was saying that he couldn’t see me for months and that he was going to be out of town because I was being elusive,” she remembers. “He was like ‘I’m going to take you to dinner in Europe,’ and I was like ‘No.’ And then he showed up”—in St. Tropez, where Staud was visiting her dad.
They dated for three years before getting engaged. “We were at home, and I was by the pool reading a book [when he proposed],” Staud remembers. “Ari and my cousin created the ring together. It’s my dream ring, and it’s so me.”
Every summer since they met, the couple make a point of revisiting St. Tropez, and they decided it would be the ideal wedding location. The goal was to do something that felt casual and honored St. Tropez “in the traditional sense versus what it’s come to be known as,” says Staud. “Going there as a child and visiting my dad, and my dad’s stories there, and all of that history and what I grew up with is what I love about it.”
The first night of the wedding was a recreation of the couple’s first date at Sénéquier. This served as the “Welcome to St. Tropez” event on the itinerary. “It couldn’t have been more iconic,” the bride says. When it came to her wardrobe for the dinner, Staud wanted something that skewed ’90s. She wore a custom column Staud dress and accessorized with Tiffany pieces from the Elsa Peretti collection.
On day two, guests descended upon St. Tropez’s iconic beachclub Gigi’s. “It was the perfect setting, so there wasn’t much to be done but add little touches like games,” Staud explains. “We had backgammon in the pool and traditional St. Tropezian touristy things like bracelets.” Daphne Lanternier, who works with Staud on her fashion shows, served as creative director and executed the designer’s vision throughout the weekend. “She’s super talented,” Staud says. “Her sister lives in St. Tropez, so she totally got it right off the bat.”
For this event, Staud looked to Alaïa to make a statement. She went to Paris to meet with the brand, where they brought out a roll of lace fabric in the perfect shade of ivory. They ultimately used it to make a two-piece ensemble. She had two fittings, and the second time the team happened to mention that they were preparing to launch swim as a new category. “They brought out all of these robes that Mr. Alaïa had created along with swim pieces, so I ended up wearing one for our beach day,” Staud says. “I think I might have forced them to launch their swim collection earlier than they wanted to!”
Later that day, Staud wanted to change into something a bit more retro, so the Staud team made a mollusk shell skirt and a tie top to round out the roster of looks.
On the morning of the wedding, the bride began the day in a Chanel tuxedo dress and shorts paired with Havianas, then changed into a cream La Perla slip and robe to get ready, before putting on her wedding dress. Renato Campora oversaw hair, while Romy Soleimani was on makeup. Her dress was, of course, a custom Staud creation. “I knew exactly what I wanted the lines of my wedding dress to be,” the bride says. “So we took masking tape and taped my body. It was really all about where it hit me, so we taped the bustline, we taped this drop waist which I really wanted. I wanted a dramatic dropped V waist, and I wanted a low-ish back, but I wanted it very fitted through the center and a minimal, simple neckline—feminine, nothing harsh, and I wanted the thinnest straps possible.”
Landing on the wedding venue was the biggest struggle for the bride. “We didn’t want to do it at a chateau,” she says. “We didn’t want to be so wedding-y.” They eventually found their location—a private residence at L’Estagnet—through people they knew on the ground. “It’s really just this little house on this big field,” Staud says. “My dad’s first house was on the exact same street and Brigitte Bardot’s house was across the street.”
When it was finally time to walk down the aisle, Staud was calm, cool, and collected. “I was surprised I wasn’t more nervous,” she says. “Right before, I went into the bathroom with my friends and read my vows, so I got a lot of tears out beforehand. They all started crying too. My makeup artist Romy wasn’t happy!”
Larry David served as the officiant, and of course roasted both the bride and the groom during his remarks. Then the couple shared vows they’d written themselves. And finally, the moment of truth: Larry asked if anyone knew of a reason why the couple shouldn’t be joined in marriage. “Does anyone here? Please object,” he begged. Tyler Perry stepped up to the plate and faked an objection to the laughter of the crowd. “It was really funny,” Staud says. “[Otherwise] we cried, of course. Ari gave me a stick of gum, which was an inside joke and emblematic of our relationship early on. We didn’t explain it, but I knew exactly what it was. It was just really funny and happy and joyous.” At the end, the newlyweds processed out together and then made their way to a gazebo where they greeted guests post-ceremony.
A total of five little gazebos were built, as well as a larger glass house where the dinner took place and an after-party space that was part of the existing structure of the villa on the property. “You have this house and then a huge lawn, and we had to kind of fill it up, and I wanted it to feel like it had been there forever,” Staud says. “It was all about creating those chill, classic beach elements and then the dinner tent, which kind of told this colorful pastel story, had this romantic vibe.”
Dinner was kept short with only a few speeches. “We wanted it to feel upbeat, and not long,” Staud says. “We wanted it to serve as this transitional moment into the party.” For the post-dinner celebration, the bride changed into a beaded dress that said “Staud Hearts Ari.” “It was a completely beaded mini dress with a matching bag,” she explains. “I wanted to do something that wasn’t necessarily kitschy, but had a nod to all of the graphics that had been used on the paper materials throughout the weekend, something personal that tied it all together.”
Staud is lucky to call some of the best DJs in the world her close friends, so the dance floor stayed full until the morning. “Ross, who is one of my best friend [Harley Viera-Newton]’s husband started, and then Diplo, Sam French, Hank, and Trevor all followed. Diplo was leading, and everyone was taking a song and then another song [throughout the night].” Later in the evening Staud decided she wanted to throw her bouquet out on the dance floor, and DJ Hank Korsan’s girlfriend Sara Nataf caught it.
There was a birthday moment in the mix for a friend turning 40 as well as Ari’s son, who was celebrating his 20th. “We sang happy birthday and gave them cakes, which were definitely thrown in each other’s faces at some point,” she says.
Eventually, Staud changed into a 1967 Paco Rabanne dress that she bought from Lily et Cie in Beverly Hills. “It weighed about 30 pounds,” she notes. “It’s a true vintage Paco. I tried it on and was like ‘I must have this!’” Underneath, she was wearing a bodysuit that ultimately served as a swimsuit when she jumped in the pool—which had a giant disco ball suspended over it—at the end of the night. “Everyone was dancing and having the best time,” she says. “I literally wanted people to have happiness for the sake of happiness. This was about love for love’s sake and everyone having a blast. I think that final day you really felt it especially.”
St. Tropez is where we had our first date, and this balcony off of my dad’s apartment is where I grew up. We watched our friends arrive in the marina for our first dinner of the weekend. It brought back so many memories.
Iconic Senequier, where we had our first date. The first night was about reliving that moment with all of our friends and family.
The restaurant is in the marina, the oldest part of the city. The food and the scene is classic St. Tropez.
My dad Walter, who has lived in St. Tropez since the 1970s, and Ari.
Our hostesses passed treats from the patisserie at Senequier, wearing Staud Mini Iliana dresses.
I’ve never had more fun than this week. I’m wearing a custom Staud halter column dress I designed and styled with Tiffany & Co. Elsa Perretti jewelry.
Arriving to Gigi’s in Ramatuelle, where we spent our second day of the weekend, by Mini Moke—our favorite way to travel in Saint-Tropez.
Ari and I greeting our friends at lunch nestled among the pine trees on the beach.
The pool scene. I’m wearing a custom Alaïa top and skirt which took an original design from Mr. Alaïa, and was recreated by Pieter Mulier. There was only enough original fabric yardage from the atelier to make this look—it’s a true one of a kind and it made me feel so special.
After visiting the Place de Lices market in St. Tropez, our Creative Director Daphnèe Lanternier and Ian Edwards had the brilliant idea to have name bracelets woven for all of our guests by a French artisan. Here I’m wearing gold cuffs I borrowed from my mom Joanna Staudinger and Alaïa sunglasses.
This gorgeous dress was made with archival lace that Mr. Alaïa had saved in his atelier..
A table setting by Daphnèe and our florist Thierry Boutemy.
The foccacia is a Gigi classic. I worked with their chefs to make it extra special with the floral decorations in tomato and olive.
Marlena de la Torre Suárez designed all of our wedding materials, she’s a true artist and friend.
This archival swimsuit and robe look from Alaïa was the perfect change for the pool.
The scene at Gigi’s pool.
The day was filled with lots of laughter, love, and good vibes.
Icons only.
Daftdd Jones, one of our photographers, nailed this moment. My three brothers at the pool.
Conversation and competition.
My mom and my boys, Marco Milani, Ryan Evan Hough, and Wyatt Hough.
Emily Ratajkowski in the moment.
It was perfect weather that day.
My final look for the day was a Valentino men’s button front shirt and a custom Staud shell skirt over an Eres bikini.
Wedding day glam begins.
Ari designed my ring with my cousin James de Givenchy of Taffin. Marco Milani my stylist worked with Raven Fine Jewelers on these custom diamond studs for the special day.
My glam team was truly the best. Romy Soleimani and Renato Campora are artists and so calming on what could have been a stressful day.
The genius Thierry Boutemy made six different bouquets for me to choose from. We both agreed that without question, Lily of the Valley was the way to go.
I wore custom Staud from head to toe. This is the Anise shoe and beaded Bean bag done specially in white.
All my best friends got ready with me.
Marco Milani with Angelo and Didier getting me into my dress.
She is ready! First look by the wonderful photographer Robert Fairer.
Harley Viera Newton, Emily Ratajkowski, and Jim Koenig arriving to the ceremony.
Getting a pep talk from the one and only Alice Barlow who helped so much making this wedding happen.
Here we go!
Marco Milani, my stylist and dear friend, getting me there.
The ceremony scene overlooking the Bay.
Papa Staud giving me away.
Seeing everyone’s faces in this moment brought me pure joy.
A very very very funny officiant.
He was pretty pretty good.
My prince.
So many of our friends made this day amazing.
The scene at cocktails after the ceremony.
My youngest brother Luca coming in to congratulate me.
Some of my favorite people in the no dress code dress code.
A moment with my new mother in law, Marsha.
Sean Kinney and Wes Pentz.
Jim Koenig and Jonny Gordon, two of my best friends’ husbands.
The gorgeous setting by Daphnèe and Thierry highlighted our dinner by La Petite Maison.
A close up of Thierry’s artistry.
The scene at dinner during Ari’s brother Rahm’s speech.
Sara Moonves and Jeff Henrikson, love was in the air.
The olive trees in the greenhouse made it feel as though we were outside.
As the night went on, so did the lighting, designed by Alexandre Lebrun and directed by Hans Cromheecke.
This custom Staud beaded dress featured a drawing by Michael McGregor which I wore to cut the cake.
A matching custom Staud Côte bag, of course.
More of the dream scene.
A toast during my best friend Al Wilmot’s speech.
St. Tropézienne treats.
Dinner was under a glass greenhouse.
Wyatt and his husband Ryan stealing a moment with me. If it weren’t for them and their love I would not have made it through the weekend..
We celebrated big birthdays that night too.
Party time!
I have a lot of close friends that also happen to be our favorite DJs. Ross One knows how to get the party started.
We had a four-foot disco ball that hung over the pool. We didn’t know it would turn into a pool party, but we’re thankful it did.
How much protection do you currently have against COVID-19? The answer depends on so much: whether you’ve already had COVID-19 (and if so, how long ago); whether you’ve been vaccinated (and if so, how many times, and how recently); whether you have any medical conditions that could weaken your immune system; and so on. Even antibody testing only approximates immunity to COVID-19, so there’s no simple way to know.
But an international group of researchers recently developed a different tool to help assess COVID-19 immunity: a blood test that can measure T cells, white blood cells that work alongside virus-fighting antibodies to mount an immune response. Their work is described in a new study published in Nature Biotechnology.
T-cell testing for the SARS-CoV-2 virus isn’t totally new—the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted emergency-use authorization to another T-cell test, called T-Detect, last year—but it tends to be labor- and time-intensive, says study co-author Ernesto Guccione, a professor of oncological sciences at New York City’s Tisch Cancer Institute at Mount Sinai. His group, which includes other researchers from Mount Sinai and institutions including Singapore’s Duke-NUS Medical School, aimed to simplify it by using technology that is widely accessible and can turn around results in less than 24 hours.
Their process starts with mixing a person’s blood sample with material from the SARS-CoV-2 virus. If there are T cells specific to SARS-CoV-2 in the blood, they’ll react to the viral material and produce a substance that can be detected via polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology, like that used to run COVID-19 diagnostic tests. Measured levels of that compound serve as a proxy for cellular immunity.
The test has been licensed to the U.K.-based biotechnology company Hyris and is already in use in Europe. The FDA is still reviewing the technology, so it’s not yet available in the U.S. (Hyris employees served as co-authors on the Nature Biotechnology paper, and its technology was used in the study; Guccione consults for therapeutic companies and receives compensation through a licensing agreement between Hyris and Mount Sinai.)
Why test for T cells when antibody tests are already widely available? There are a few reasons, Guccione says.
Testing for antibodies only tells part of the story, since T cells are also a critical piece of the body’s immune response. And while antibody levels drop off significantly within a few months of vaccination or infection, cellular immunity can last up to a year, Guccione says. “Monitoring both will give us a much clearer picture [of immunity] and will hopefully inform our re-vaccination strategies,” Guccione says. The wide use of this test could help define how long protection lasts and how often booster doses are needed.
Plus, some immunocompromised people do not produce antibodies—even after multiple vaccine doses—but they usually do have some T cell response. T-cell testing could help those individuals learn whether they have any defenses against COVID-19.
There are limits to what the test can reveal. Experts are still trying to find what are known as “correlates of protection” for COVID-19: measurable indicators that suggest an individual is protected enough that they are unlikely to get sick. For now, testing for antibodies or T cells can’t give you a yes-or-no answer about whether it’s safe to go to a concert or party without fear of catching the virus, for example. It just gives you one more data point to factor into your risk calculation.
Guccione says widespread T-cell testing could help define those elusive correlates of protection by making immunity easier to study. A scalable, affordable testing strategy could facilitate larger studies that bring much-needed answers.
“With large numbers comes clarity,” Guccione says. “That’s the hope: by using this test, we can finally get those numbers that were totally unavailable with the previous technology.
Ever hear of Governor’s Cut? Well Eliot Hess captured it in this photo of the Miami skyline. Want to hang with the beautiful people? Check out Joia Beach Club, one of the new hotspots that makes you feel like you entered the world of the rich and famous. If you ever wished you had a secret garden, I have just the place for you. We bought tickets to see the limited run of Joan Didion’s “The Year of Magical Thinking,” at GableStage, the theater at the Biltmore Hotel. I am super excited to see it.
Where The Beautiful People Hangout
If you are in the mood to completely change your environment on Sundays when you are off from your daily responsibilities, I would like to suggest the Joia Beach Club. So many of my friends say it’s where Miami meets St. Tropez. The Sunday brunch is an extravagant daytime experience unlike any other in Miami. It’s fun to see JLo, The Kardashian’s, the Williams sisters, Madonna, Cher, Heidi Klum, Leonardo DiCaprio, sitting at a nearby table.
My friends introduced me to Glass & Vine at the beginning of the pandemic and it quickly became my go to place to safely socialize and dine. The big attraction is that it’s totally casual and relaxed. The tables are spread out amongst the trees and bushes, so the entire place definitely looks more like a park than a restaurant.
I am super excited to see Joan Didion’s “The Year of Magical Thinking,” at GableStage, the theater at the Biltmore Hotel, Coral Gables. The play is only being performed through June 26. I understand from the reviews, that the performance with actress Sara Morsey as Didion, is a one-of-a-kind experience.
Every time someone looks out my window, they ask me about the body of water below. “What is that?” I say, “Government Cut.” They say, “Government what?” It’s really an easy explanation and I decided to detail it now because Eliot took the most magnificent photos of the Miami skyline which also includes Government Cut.
Government Cut is a manmade shipping channel between Miami Beach and Fisher Island, which allows better access to the Port of Miami in Miami, Florida. Before the cut was established, a single peninsula of dry land stretched from what is now Miami Beach to what is now Fisher Island, and boats destined for the port at the mouth of the Miami River had to pass around Cape Florida, to the south of Key Biscayne.
When Madonna first announced that she would be helming a big-screen adaptation of her life story, the news prompted countless questions. What period of her illustrious, four-decade-long career would the film focus on? Would it feature new music? And, most importantly, who could possibly play the pioneering Queen of Pop navigating her formative years? Now, according to Variety, we finally have an answer to the latter: Julia Garner.
On June 7, the publication reported that the actor—who starred in four seasons of Ozark, earned rave reviews with The Assistant, and gave a barnstorming performance as the beguiling titular scammer in Inventing Anna—had been offered the highly coveted part. This comes after a months-long search during which a host of established names, fresh faces, and musicians were reportedly considered. Per The Hollywood Reporter, these included Little Women’s Florence Pugh, Euphoria’s Alexa Demie, and Australian indie darling Odessa Young, as well as singers Bebe Rexha and Sky Ferreira. The auditions that some advanced to were described as “grueling” by sources with knowledge of the project, who added that they involved singing, acting and intense, sometimes 11-hours-long sessions with Madonna and her choreographer.
Supporting roles have yet to be cast, though there’s a strong chance that Garner won’t be the only familiar face in the film. Back in January, Madonna sent the internet into a tailspin when she posted a photo of herself lounging on a sofa with the woman of the hour, Julia Fox, with the caption, “Went to dinner with Julia to talk about my movie.” Entertainment Weekly then reported that the bombshell was in talks to join the cast as Madonna’s best friend, the actor Debi Mazar.
The production timeline is being kept under wraps and little is known about the current iteration of the script, penned by Madonna and playwright Erin Cressida Wilson, but The Hollywood Reporter’s sources stated that it culminates with the icon’s 1990 Blond Ambitionworld tour, which had a seismic impact on music, fashion, and pop culture.
Speaking about the film on The Tonight Show in October 2021, Madonna said that she wanted to take the reins as both a writer and director because previous attempts to dramatize her rise had been so misguided. “The reason I’m doing it is because a bunch of people have tried to write movies about me, but they’re always men,” she said. “I read that Universal was doing a script… they wanted my blessing, and I read it. It was the most hideous, superficial crap I’ve ever read. This [has] happened a couple of times. So, finally, I just threw down the gauntlet.”
Mr. Levin, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, is a contributing Opinion writer.
America’s top political leaders are remarkably old. Our president will turn 80 this year. His predecessor, who is contemplating running again, is about to turn 76. The speaker of the House is 82. The Republican leader in the Senate is 80, and his Democratic counterpart is a comparatively sprightly 71.
This is very unusual. And it’s not because this cohort has just gotten its turn at the wheel, but because it has held power for an exceptionally long time. Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Donald Trump, whose presidencies spanned more than a quarter-century, were all born roughly within two months of one another in the summer of 1946. Nancy Pelosi has been the Democratic leader in the House for almost 20 years. Mitch McConnell has led Senate Republicans for about 15 years. Our politics has been largely in the hands of people born in the 1940s or early ’50s for a generation.
We should wish them all many more healthy years and be grateful for their long service. But we should also recognize the costs of their grip not only on American self-government but even on the country’s self-conception.
It’s often said that Americans now lack a unifying narrative. But maybe we actually have such a narrative, only it’s organized around the life arc of the older baby boomers, and it just isn’t serving us well anymore.
Consider what the country’s modern history looks like from the vantage point of an American born near the beginning of the postwar baby boom. Say you were born the same year as Mr. Clinton, Mr. Bush and Mr. Trump, in 1946. Your earliest memories begin around 1950, and you recall the ’50s through the eyes of a child as a simple time of stability and wholesome values. You were a teenager in the early ’60s, and view that time through a lens of youthful idealism, rebellion and growing cultural self-confidence.
By the late 1960s and into the ’70s, as a 20-something entering the adult world, you found that confidence shaken. Idealism gave way to some cynicism about the potential for change, everything felt unsettled and the future seemed ominous and ambiguous. But by the 1980s, when you were in your 30s and early 40s, things had started settling down. Your work had some direction, you were building a family and concerns about mortgage payments largely replaced an ambition to transform the world.
By the 1990s, in your 40s and early 50s, you were comfortable and confident. It was finally your generation’s chance to take charge, and it looked to be working out.
As the 21st century dawned, you were still near the peak of your powers and earnings, but gradually peering over the hill toward old age. You soon found the 2000s filled with unexpected dangers and unfamiliar forces. The world was becoming less and less your own.
You reached retirement age in the 2010s amid growing uncertainty and instability. The culture was increasingly bewildering, and the economy seemed awfully insecure. The extraordinary blend of circumstances that defined the world of your youth seemed likely to be denied to your grandchildren. By now, it all feels that it’s spinning out of control. Is the chaotic, transformed country around you still the glittering land of your youth?
This portrait of changing attitudes is, of course, stylized for effect. But it offers the broad contours of how people often look at their world in different stages of life, yet also of how many Americans (and, crucially, not just the boomers) tend to understand our country’s postwar evolution. We see our history, and so ourselves, through the eyes of Americans now reaching their 80s.
As history, this narrative leaves a lot to be desired. But as a kind of pocket sociology of our time, it is utterly dominant. Almost every story we now tell ourselves about our country fits into some portion of the early-boomer life arc. And our politics is implicitly directed toward recapturing some part of the magic of the mid-20th-century America of boomer youth.
That moment — when many Americans trusted their leaders and went to church, when idealistic protests seemed to drive significant social change, when you didn’t need a college degree to get a union factory job that would let you support a family in the suburbs on one income — exerts an inexorable pull on our political imagination now. The parties blame each other for how far America has fallen from that standard, and politicians (old and young, left and right) implicitly promise a return to some facet of it.
That time was not imaginary. But it was not so simple either, particularly for people at the margins of the powerful mainstream consensus of the age. And it was a singular period made possible by an unrepeatable set of circumstances in the wake of the Second World War. We do ourselves no favors when we treat it as the American norm, when we ignore its costs and challenges, or when we cling to its glamour by keeping the people who lived that story in power as they age.
Our model of social change is still rooted in midcentury clichés. Younger Americans imagine that starting a family and owning a home was much easier for previous generations than it really was. They buy the broad outlines of the boomers’ nostalgia and take it to mean they are inheriting a desiccated society.
Confronting injustice, they almost unthinkingly re-enact the outward forms and symbols of college protests of the 1960s, generally to no effect. Our implicit definition of social cohesion takes for granted that midcentury moment, when America had not only been through a long stretch of intense mobilization in war and depression but was also less culturally diverse than at pretty much any time before or since.
Above all, though, our boomer sense of ourselves keeps us from orienting our society toward the future, and contributes to a broadly shared sense of despair about our country that is neither justified nor constructive. Our politics should prioritize planning for greater national strength in the medium term, but we can hardly expect quarreling octogenarians to have that future clearly in mind.
And yet, the solution is not youth politics either. In a new book on leadership, the former presidential adviser David Gergen is admirably frank in acknowledging that those born in the 1940s, like himself, should make room for new leaders. But he looks for them among the youngest Americans. “Millions of baby boomers and alumni of the Silent Generation are starting to leave the stage, to be replaced by millennials and Gen Zers,” he writes.
Maybe I take this personally, having just turned 45, but Mr. Gergen blithely skips over Americans born in the 1960s and ’70s. Maybe he can’t quite fathom middle-aged leadership. Yet middle-aged leadership may be exactly what we now require.
Many American institutions seem locked in battles between well-meaning but increasingly uncomprehending leaders in their 70s and a rising generation, in their 20s and early 30s, bent on culture war and politicization and seemingly unconcerned with institutional responsibilities. Our politics has the same problem — simultaneously overflowing with the vices of the young and the old, and so often falling into debates between people who behave as though the world will end tomorrow and those who think it started yesterday. The vacuum of middle-aged leadership is palpable.
There are some politicians of that middle generation — some members of Congress and governors, even our vice president. Yet they have not broken through as defining cultural figures and political forces. They have not made this moment their own, or found a way to loosen the grip of the postwar generation on the nation’s political imagination.
A middle-aged mentality traditionally has its own vices. It can lack urgency, and at its worst it can be maddeningly immune to both hope and fear, which are essential spurs to action. But if our lot is always to choose among vices, wouldn’t the temperate sins of midlife serve us well just now?
Generational analyses are unavoidably sweeping and crude, and no one is simply a product of a birth cohort. But in our frenzied era, it’s worth looking for potential sources of stability and considering not only what we have too much of in America and should want to demolish and be rid of but also what we do not have enough of and should want to build up.
We plainly lack grounded, levelheaded, future-oriented leaders. And like it or not, that means we need a more middle-aged politics and culture.
Yuval Levin, a contributing Opinion writer, is the editor of National Affairs and the director of social, cultural and constitutional studies at the American Enterprise Institute. He is the author of “A Time to Build: From Family and Community to Congress and the Campus, How Recommitting to Our Institutions Can Revive the American Dream.”
Jerry Della Femina posts this essay on Facebook every year. He keeps posting it because he keeps finding offenders.
Jerry Della Femina (born 1936) is an American advertising executive and restaurateur. Starting from a poor Italian background in Brooklyn, he eventually became chairman of Della Femina Travisano & Partners, an agency which he founded with Ron Travisano in the 1960s. Over the next two decades they grew the company into a major advertising house that was billing $250 million per year and had 300 employees and offices in both New York and Los Angeles. Della Femina is known for his larger-than-life personality and colorful language, and was referred to as a “‘Madman’ of Madison Avenue”. In 1970, he wrote a book about the advertising industry, humorously titled, From Those Wonderful Folks Who Gave You Pearl Harbor: Front-Line Dispatches from the Advertising War. The book became a best-seller, described by The Guardian as “one of the defining books about advertising”, and eventually inspired the television series Mad Men.
The side of Jerry everyone knows best.
By Jerry Della Femina
I publish this column every year as a public service to make sure your friends and relatives will think twice before they send you an invitation that will screw you out of a precious summer weekend.
I ask this question every year.
Why do they do it? Why do our friends and relatives destroy the summer for us? Why can’t they get married in February? Why do they choose the middle of summer to have birthdays, anniversaries, Bar Mitzvahs, family, college, high school and even nursery school reunions.
That’s not all. Frankly, some of them are thoughtless enough to die in June, July and August, and there goes another summer weekend.
I promise that if it’s possible, when it’s time for me to go, I will go on life support until some rainy Friday morning in January so that my mourners can bury me early in the morning and still enjoy a three-day weekend. That’s the kind of generous guy I am.
Now I know you’re wondering what I’m ranting about, since you’re on top of the world because it looks like another endless summer ahead. Let’s just see how endless it really is.
Memorial Day has come and gone.
The 4th of July is only 34 days away. Then you blink and it’s Labor Day. That’s why every day of summer is so precious to us.
If you work Monday to Friday like me, that leaves you with around 14 summer Saturdays and Sundays, plus three (make that two) long holiday weekends.
So from the minute you’re reading this, summer weekends are a total of about 30 days.
Now you know that at least 9 or 10 of these days will be cold, rainy days where no matter how hard you try to avoid it you’ll end up arguing with your spouse.
All a man has to say is, “No, I don’t think it’s romantic to freeze my behind off walking in the rain on the beach. Why don’t we stay in bed and fool around?” and that’s when the pouting starts.
So write off 10 miserable days to weather and you’re left with around 20 days.
Sound like a lot?
I bet everyone reading this already has one lost weekend coming up when your Aunt Matilda is celebrating her 50th wedding anniversary and she and your Uncle Benny would be broken-hearted if you don’t show up on a beautiful Saturday afternoon to their house in Brooklyn or the Bronx or Westchester or wherever the hell they live.
So, now you’re down to 19 days. If you’re young enough to have children, that means you’re stuck with a trip to some summer camp with an Indian…er…er…Native American name in Maine or Massachusetts, in the middle of what always turns out to be the sunniest, most beautiful weather weekend of the summer.
This is where you are sentenced to spend the weekend admiring neatly made bunk beds and ceramic ashtrays (which in these politically correct days are called candy dishes). Show me a camp that is wise enough to schedule parents’ visiting days on a Monday and Tuesday and I will show you a camp that deserves the exorbitant amount of money they get to guard your kids for the summer. An amount of money, I might add, that is more than it took, a few short years ago, to cover the tuition that would get a child through four years of an Ivy League college.
If your children are grown it’s even worse. They have children and all their children are having birthday parties in town in July, where you will find yourself overcome by heat while you’re surrounded by 20 sticky five-year-olds playing musical chairs.
What frosts me is the weather. Did you ever notice that every one of the weekends you have to go to a family event is beautiful? The sun is shining. The sky is blue. And you are stuck in some disgusting catering hall, or, worse, drinking warm white wine out of a plastic cup in some relative’s backyard in White Plains.
Which brings me to summer weddings in New York City. They must be banned.
There are some facts that people who drag their friends away from the beach for their wedding must be made aware of. Jerry Seinfeld, an East Hampton resident, had a message for all the newly engaged couples: “Nobody wants to go to your wedding! We are not excited like you are.” Mr. Seinfeld is so so right. The only people who must attend a summer wedding are the bride and groom, their respective parents, the best man and the maid of honor and maybe a priest or a rabbi. All the other guests are hostages who may be smiling but inside they are seething because they have had one of their precious summer weekends screwed up.
I remind every dewy-eyed couple in my family that in the summer it’s bad luck to get married any place west of Westhampton. I remind them of the famous Della Femina curse, which is still going strong. I have, in my life, attended four weddings that took place on a summer holiday weekend (three Memorial Day, one Labor Day) and must report, in all honesty, only one of these couples is still married.
Pass the word – the marriages of people who screw up my holiday weekends are doomed.
Everyone who is over 50 and is widowed should listen to this. We welcome your reactions. Susan Warner, a widow herself, will answer you. Send comments to loisw@hwhpr.com.
In this podcast ….
Silver Lining. Very few people who are widowed would ever admit that they can experience a newfound independence in their solo life. Susan Warner talks about this repressed emotion because everyone needs to understand it’s quite normal to suddenly realize, “You answer to no one and you may be able to enjoy it. There is nothing to feel guilty about. This is all part of the healing process.”
Susan quickly points out that she would do anything to bring back her husband and live the life she had before, but she knows that’s not going to happen. So now, she leads a life on her own terms. “I have loved and I have lost. I will do what I want, when I want, with whom I want.”
This episode is profound for both widowed and divorced people of any age. Susan leads you through a myriad of emotions that have a silver lining for those who want an independent, fuller, and self-reliant next chapter.
Arriving to Gigi’s in Ramatuelle, where we spent our second day of the weekend, by Mini Moke—our favorite way to travel in Saint-Tropez.
It was the best day to relax by the pool.
Photo: 
A table setting by Daphnèe and our florist Thierry Boutemy.
The genius Thierry Boutemy made six different bouquets for me to choose from. We both agreed that without question, Lily of the Valley was the way to go.
I wore custom Staud from head to toe. This is the Anise shoe and beaded Bean bag done specially in white.
Marco Milani with Angelo and Didier getting me into my dress.
She is ready! First look by the wonderful photographer Robert Fairer.
Harley Viera Newton, Emily Ratajkowski, and Jim Koenig arriving to the ceremony.
Marco Milani, my stylist and dear friend, getting me there.
The ceremony scene overlooking the Bay.
He was pretty pretty good.
Jim Koenig and Jonny Gordon, two of my best friends’ husbands.
Sara Moonves and Jeff Henrikson, love was in the air.
The olive trees in the greenhouse made it feel as though we were outside.
As the night went on, so did the lighting, designed by Alexandre Lebrun and directed by Hans Cromheecke.
This custom Staud beaded dress featured a drawing by Michael McGregor which I wore to cut the cake.
A matching custom Staud Côte bag, of course.
More of the dream scene.
A toast during my best friend Al Wilmot’s speech.
St. Tropézienne treats.
Dinner was under a glass greenhouse.
Wyatt and his husband Ryan stealing a moment with me. If it weren’t for them and their love I would not have made it through the weekend..
We celebrated big birthdays that night too.
Party time!
I have a lot of close friends that also happen to be our favorite DJs. Ross One knows how to get the party started.
We had a four-foot disco ball that hung over the pool. We didn’t know it would turn into a pool party, but we’re thankful it did.
DigiDame 
