5 minutes on: The paintings that aren't the Mona Lisa

And the rocks that aren't Stonehenge

I’m debuting a new series, probably, titled “5 minutes on: X.” It’s me taking five minutes of my time (a symbolic five minutes, naturally), and you giving no more than five minutes of yours. Topics will run the gamut and be conversational. Let’s dive in.

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On Monday, the Louvre, the world's most-visited museum, shut its doors — not due to war, pandemic, or emergency, but because its own staff couldn't breathe under the crushing weight of mass tourism. Thousands of visitors clutched worthless tickets beneath I.M. Pei's iconic glass pyramid as gallery attendants, security personnel, and ticket agents walked off the job in a spontaneous strike.

But, really, it shut down because of the Mona Lisa.