How to Win Big on Black Friday (If You Must!), a Hip Hop Lecture at MIT and More #Mustreads

It’s Monday!

And we’re sorry about that. Re/code is here to ease your pain:

1. Do you really want to spend the day after Thanksgiving shopping? Really? Okay, then — here’s a live-updated Gizmodo guide to the best online Black Friday deals. But first read this warning from the Wirecutter, started by former Gizmodo editor Brian Lam, about how dubious most Black Friday “deals” are.
2. Bay Area rapper and spectacular weirdo Lil B has cast curses on Kevin Durant and continually drops megaton knowledge bombs on Twitter. On Friday, he gave a lecture at MIT and fielded questions on topics ranging from GMOs and gender to living a life with empathy for others. Fader has the full transcript.
3. Former D.C. mayor Marion Barry passed away this weekend, prompting a wave of remembrances from all corners of the media. We like this one from BuzzFeed’s Adam Serwer, who explains how a chemist caught on tape with a crack pipe became a political icon for many of D.C.’s most impoverished.
4. Why do we hate Uber? Is it the “bro culture” the company and its gregarious founder supposedly represent? Or maybe it’s because the ride-sharing service perfectly encapsulates the New Economy, with contract workers and constant regulatory chafing? Matter’s Bobbie Johnson thinks it’s something else: “Raw, pure, unbridled ambition is an uncomfortable thing to look at.” And if it’s anything, Uber is ambitious.
5. Here’s a fun way to waste almost $60,000 of taxpayer money: In Menlo Park, Calif., traffic cameras scanned more than 250,000 license plates and only made one arrest. Check out the San Jose Mercury News for the whole story.

If you see any stories you’d like to send our way (or have any questions/comments about stories we’ve recommended), feel free to shoot an email to noah@recode.net.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

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