Hasta La Gadget!

Rioting is wrong. Rioting does not undo systemic racism. Rioting does not breed new economic opportunities, build better schools, or expand access to affordable housing. What is being destroyed in Baltimore is being destroyed in a brief flash of pain, and will take a long time to rebuild. And, maybe it won’t be rebuilt. Maybe something else will be built there, and home won’t be home anymore. But, let’s be clear. The riots in Baltimore didn’t begin with Freddie Gray. They began the year a Baltimore principal told me about school budget failures, and having to take turns with teachers to answer the phones because the system was bleeding money and couldn’t pay the staff. They began with the repeated failure to convict police officers who use excessive force in cities across this country. America watched shows like “The Corner” and HBO’s “The Wire” with a sense of detached voyeurism — we could see their suffering through the television, and folks were glad we didn’t have to smell it. We applauded the performances and the storytelling. And, when the show was over and the spotlight on Baltimore-style misery was shut off, we went back to our regularly scheduled programming.

The truth is, Americans forget about poor kids every day until they make noise, and disrupt our solitude and our quiet indifference by breathing too loud, talking too loud, or existing. And, when they explode from our systemic and dispassionate neglect… we are incensed, we militarize local law enforcement, and then we invite the media in to paint a picture of these insurgents with a broad racist brush full of slogans, tags, disdain. We label those same kids we were content to leave flapping in the wind as “thugs, criminals, and hoods” — we dehumanize them so we can say it’s not our fault.

People are asking why are they destroying their own communities. Is their rage nothing more than an unchecked, pointless, excessive and violent tantrum? I’ve taught kids in Brooklyn who’d never been to downtown Fulton Street. I’ve taught kids in the Bronx who’d never been on the George Washington Bridge. They are destroying what they have access to. Yes, it’s illogical. But, the failure of law enforcement to give a plausible explanation for how Freddie Gray’s spine came to be severed is also illogical. Are folks still trying to get their stories straight? And, let’s face it, poverty is isolating. We use the police and social class isolation to keep poor Americans in their place and out of other people’s backyards. We may not have “Peace Walls” like the ones you find in Belfast, but if you’re a young Black or brown person walking in the “wrong” neighborhood, America will let you know you’ve stepped out of bounds.

Perhaps they are destroying their communities because they imagine their communities don’t really belong to them anyway. Perhaps they know they can be displaced when gentrification comes calling. Youth is irrational. Rioting is irrational. But so is our continuing claim to democracy, due process, and justice. We have no credibility with these kids. In lieu of riots, what? Indictments? No. Convictions? No. Police accountability? No. Revised policies that dismantle legal privilege of the unjust? No. What is the viable alternative that these young people can believe in? What can we promise them? “If you put down that rock,” … what?

“If, upon further investigation, we find that a member of our police department acted egregiously, and in ways that resulted in the death of one of our citizens and that will damage the credibility of the entire department, we will expose that officer, prosecute that officer to the fullest extent of the law, and remove him/her from public service with no future benefits” … said not one mayor ever.

Discipline, correction, and redirection of youth, and those who have lost their way, in any community can only come from those who operate from a place of authentic love, daily activism — from those who keep coming back to give back, without agenda or self-promotion. Some officials have been measured and cowardly in their condemnation of police abuse (even when we have audio, video and eyewitness testimony), while being curiously outspoken and contemptuous in their denunciation of child rioters. Do they think their hypocrisy doesn’t stink like rotten meat?

Rioting is wrong. Rioting does not undo systemic racism. Rioting doesn’t breed new economic opportunities, build better schools, or expand access to affordable housing. But, Baltimore is burning because we can’t keep up with the body count. Baltimore is burning because people are of greater value than property — and the grownups should know that already.

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iPad Air Models Increase Share

Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) released analysis of the results from its research on Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) for the fiscal quarter that ended March 28, 2015.

CIRP finds that the new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus models continue to dominate US iPhone sales, while the legacy 5S and 5C shares shrink. Share for the iPhone 6 Plus moderated somewhat following its exceptional uptake in the first full sales quarter that ended December 2014. Share of sales for more expensive iPad models increased relative to earlier periods.

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus models accounted for over three-quarters of all iPhones sold in the quarter, with iPhone 6 at 56% and iPhone 6 Plus at 22% (see Chart 1). In the December 2014 quarter, iPhone 6 accounted for 45% with iPhone 6 Plus at 30%.

Chart 1: iPhone Models US Sales Mix, First Quarter 2014 and 2015

Together the flagship iPhone 6 and 6 Plus share of total iPhone sales increased relative to the December 2014 quarter. ASP as predicted by our US Weighted Average Retail Price (US-WARP) may decline, however. The initial unanticipated strength of the 6 Plus has moderated somewhat , with the 6 Plus to 6 ratio declining from 2:3 to 2:5 in the most recent quarter, though this is still a strong showing for the super-premium model.

The full-size format iPad Air models continued to dominate sales of iPad tablets. Together the one-year old iPad Air and recently released iPad Air 2 accounted for 56% of all iPad sales in the quarter (see Chart 2), compared to 50% in the December 2014 quarter.

Chart 2: iPad Models US Sales Mix, First Quarter 2014 and 2015

The iPad Air format continued to dominate Apple’s tablet line, and the higher-priced iPad Air 2 did even better in the quarter. In contrast, the smaller format iPad mini, with three different models, accounts for a third of sales, down from 40% a year-ago. Apple has segmented the market nicely between small- and large-format tablets, and consumers have migrated back to the more expensive large-format, two years after the introduction of the first mini. This trend, along with surprising strength in sales of 4G models and Apple’s strategy of moving customers to greater storage options, helps stabilize iPad ASP, which we expect to remain level relative to the December 2014 quarter.

CIRP bases its findings on its survey of 500 US Apple customers, surveyed from March 28-April 6, 2015, that purchased an iPhone, iPad, or Mac in the US in January-March 2015 period. For additional information, please contact CIRP.

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As the bloated throngs staggered out of 23 Wall Street, I’m sure at least a few of them must have thought about the irony of stuffing their faces with some of New York City’s most sophisticated food and drink for four hours — all so that fewer kids across America would have to go hungry. I would have thought the same thing, had my brain still been functioning normally. But since all the blood in my body was in my distended stomach, furiously trying to digest the obscene amount of eats and drinks I’d ingested, I could muster little more than a “There’s the uptown express train. Need to get home and go to bed.”

But it is truly a wonderful world in which we live, where the most talented chefs in our fair city can come together with the charitably-minded and foodistically-inclined and, in one night, raise more than $900,000 for No Kid Hungry, an organization devoted to making sure low-income public school kids across the country have access to a healthy breakfast every school day.

No Kid Hungry has been raising money through culinary events since 1988. Monday night’s NYC Night Out For No Kid Hungry, sponsored by Citibank, the Food Network and Disaronno, among many others, was the first one I’ve attended, so I can’t knowledgeably compare it to the others. But I think if previous shindigs had been any better, there would have been at least a few cases where patrons simply exploded a la Monty Python’s Mr. Creosote.

Eat a little food, drink a little booze, get down tonight. (photo courtesy Kat Hennessey)

Now, I did not get to sample the sit-down dinner which I’m sure was sensational, but which was open only to big-time donors and writers far better connected than I. But who needed a sit-down dinner anyway? The real action was in the walk-around tasting, where three floors — three entire floors — of the building were filled by more than 50 restaurants offering bite-sized samples of their fare, along with a dozen bars keeping the 1,000-plus attendees well-lubricated.

There was something for everyone on this night. Gulf shrimp salad with subtly spicy “fire and ice dressing” from Asia de Cuba. An earthy whipped Camembert and mushroom confit toast from The Good Fork. Sublime grilled beets with pumpkin seed-almond granola and Greek yogurt from The Little Beet. Firm yet creamy chilled fresh tofu with chili oil, cilantro and scallions from Bar Chuko. Surprisingly delicate Peking duck dumplings from Hakkasan.

The problem with bite-sized dishes is that it’s so easy to eat way too much. What’s another bite or two, right? Shank of the evening, you down a few, maybe with Middle Branch‘s Disaronno Sour (Disaronno almond liqueur, Plymouth gin, lemon juice) or Mulberry Project’s Flood (Fidencio mezcal, Ford’s Gin, lime, cilantro, Thai chili), and you think, hey, I could do this all night. You eat indiscriminately, greedily, gobbling everything in sight. An hour in and you’re thinking, whoa, I’d better slow down. Only eat the stuff that looks really, really good. And that’s when you find candied bacon on a stick from The Smith. Or an open-faced roasted pork sandwich on sourdough bread with ramps and tomatoes from Paulaner. Or rich, melt-in-your-mouth gnocchi bolognese from Davio’s Northern Italian Steakhouse. Or my favorite dish of the night, spring kimchi salad with a creamy dressing over al dente noodles from Louro.

And then you’re thinking, yikes, I should really just stop. This salty, crispy pretzel pork & chive dumpling with tahini mustard from Talde will be the last thing I eat tonight. OK, seriously, this creamy, decadent chicken liver puree with birdseye chili jam and Asian pear on a cassava chip from The Cecil is it. I’m done. Although now I’m thirsty, and that cocktail from Mace (lime aquavit, Aperol, beet juice, orange acid and Thai coconut cordial) looks delicious. Hey, why did the button on my pants just pop off?

Whipped Camembert & mushroom confit toast? Don’t mind if I do! (photo courtesy Kat Hennessey)

Oh, and did I mention the strolling oyster shuckers?

I finally finished the night off with a mini Cubano sausage sandwich with Swiss cheese and pickles from Jake’s Handcrafted. With no room to spare for the addictive dessert cookies from Levain Bakery, I hightailed it out of there before I caught a second (third? fourth?) wind.

Dear reader, I list the above delights neither to confess my sins nor brag about how I got to eat the best the city has to offer, all in a single night. OK, so I am kind of bragging. But the real reason to mention all the deliciousness is to get you to participate in next year’s Night Out (No Kid Hungry also does similar events all over the country; check their website for details). It ain’t cheap — the least pricey ticket to the walk-around tasting is $350. But it’s for a worthy cause, and if you’re as much of a pig as I am, you may just get your money’s worth.

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David Simon is Baltimore’s best-known chronicler of life on the hard streets. He worked for The Baltimore Sun city desk for a dozen years, wrote “Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets” (1991) and with former homicide detective Ed Burns co-wrote “THE CORNER: A YEAR IN THE LIFE OF AN INNER-CITY NEIGHBORHOOD”1 (1997), which Simon adapted into an HBO miniseries. He is the creator, executive producer and head writer of the HBO television series “The Wire” (2002–2008). Simon is a member of The Marshall Project’s advisory board. He spoke with Bill Keller on Tuesday.

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Life. It happens when the camera is usually put away. You know the moments I am talking about… the kids refusing to eat dinner, the cluttered table that makes way for a quick family meal, the stinky diapers, the evening walks with kids running in different directions, the sweaty dog, the over-splashed baths, all of it.

Adam and Amanda welcomed me into their home at 5:30 p.m. on a weeknight, a time often called “the witching hour” by parents with young children. I watched as dinnertime, their family walk, and bath time unfolded. By allowing me to photograph their evening, the family gave all of us a sneak peak into their typical evening routine. In the midst of the chaos, I found inspiration and beauty.

Sometimes it takes stepping away from our own life to appreciate the beauty that exists alongside our blessed chaos. Check out Adam and Amanda’s silly, loving, and most of all, honest everyday life. If you are anything like me, these images will inspire you to see the beauty that surrounds your own life as well.

Stacey Steinberg is an attorney, a photographer, and a mom. Follow her on Facebook.

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