Our Week In The Web: July 3, 2014

For those of you who've wondered the logic and editing process behind the article excerpts featured underneath the "Tom's Reading List" — and a few of you have, we've noticed — we're here to tell you that there really isn't one. Our hope is to give listeners and digital visitors a sense of the research Tom and our producers do pre-show in order to prepare for the coming broadcast. Often, we share articles from guests, and we usually try and trim down lengthy pieces in order to fit in a few representative sentences from the piece. In true diabolical digital journalist form, our main wish is that you, like Tom, take a few minutes, click the link and go on to read a bit of news before you wade into a comment section or heated debate with your friends and loved ones  (what's a holiday weekend without a bustling backyard barbecue debate, right?). While we aim for pithy, proper samples, it's not always as cut and dry as it might seem. The only ulterior motive we have is that you might click through and read a few good articles throughout the course of the day. And we stand by that.

1) A Win For Hobby Lobby, And What It Means (July 1, 2014)

2) Colorado's Six Months Of Legal Pot (June 30, 2014)

3) Week In The News: Iraq Shakes, SCOTUS Rules, US Advances In World Cup (June 27, 2014)

4) Iraq War Vets Reflect On New Crisis (June 30, 2014)

5) The 'Tastemakers' Who Shape Our Food Trends (June 27, 2014)

"I feel sorry for writers from Delaware, because what do they have to write about?" — Clay Smith 

"David Green is a genius. He realized he knew how to sell things better than other people." — David Van Biema

"Symphonies are hurting in major cities, so this Classically Cannabis concert was probably for that." — Alicia Caldwell

"We're taught to blame the other instead of to look at what's wrong systemically in our society." — Barbara Arnwine

"I'm a frustrated writer from Del. I guess I now know why I'm frustrated! I live in Delaware." (@tinaferg1)

"I served in Iraq during the surge. Both towns I fought in are now under ISIS control. It's frustrating to know that the war was mismanaged from the beginning. We could have made a difference but we destroyed the infrastructure and government. It's hard to stay stable when you have years of chaos." (Patrick Whitlatch)

"Duuuude. NO arrests at a party of 15,000 people of stoners. I could have told you that." (Paul Coggins)

This smart MIT data visualization of 6,000 years of historical cultural production around the world. (Pantheon / MIT)