WEEK 356 / 358 — The Empty Seat
THE BIRD OFFERS THE RICHEST MAN A CHAIR AT ITS TABLE. HE SAYS NO. HE WANTS THE TABLE.
ON THE NETWORK WITH HIS NAME ON IT, THE LINE HAS NOT MOVED SINCE WINTER.
SEVEN WEEKS WITHOUT A WORD IN PRINT. THE LONGEST SILENCE OF HIS PUBLIC LIFE.
TO BE CONTINUED →
This week in the saga
A quiet week, which is itself the news. At the bird, the richest man in the world is offered a chair at the table and turns it down after a weekend's thought — a refusal everyone reads correctly a week later. On the network with his name on it, nothing: the same hourglass, the same waiting line, the same single post at the top of the account. Seven weeks now without a word in print, on paper or online — the longest public silence of his life. In the gilded ballroom the chairs stand empty in their rows, and the man on the stage has nothing to announce to them.
Readers' Corner
Letters from the readership on Week 356. Pick a pen name — no account needed.
Opening the mailbag…