Given his role as chief bullshit-caller at Rolling Stone, everyone expected Matt Taibbi to be the next Hunter S. Thompson. But what Taibbi does is arguably more valuable: He provides well-reported stories of greed and excess in a time and a nation that’s choking on greed and excess. Taibbi didn’t fall for the glitz and glamour of celebrity reportage—instead, he ventured out into heavily researched attacks on Goldman Sachs, the Obama administration, and everyone else who’s trying to screw the 99 percent these days. Tonight, Taibbi gives a talk as part of the Sightline Institute’s 20th-anniversary reading series. (Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave, townhallseattle.org, 7:30 pm, $5)