The Fulcrum: how Reagan was the pivotal point in conservatism
Scared of Your Own Shadow
The NRA helped write California's gun control law in 1967. Forty-nine years later, it took them over a day to comment on a licensed gun owner's death.
New Series - Reagan as the Fulcrum
Introducing a dive into the Reagan mythos. THe good, the bad, and the downright ugly. Three acts, from his acting days, through his performance of a lifetime, to the canonization and saint hood. No shiboleths spared
September 26, 2026 - Week in Review
Only one post the week from September 19 - 26.
That Tipping Sign...
People love to bitch about all the hands out seeking tips. Most of those who bitch really don't understand why service workers are underpaid, and how we got here.
September 19, 2026 - The Week in Review
Posts from the week of September 12 - 19, 2026. Immigration, electoral fuckery, and DHH as this week's "This Fucking Guy"
This Fucking Guy: David Heinemeier Hansson
DHH wrote "there's no quid pro quo here" and then described the quid in the next sentence. That's the whole piece in one paragraph.
The Bloody Hand of the Pope
Every time one exclusion fell in nineteenth-century America, another one rose to take its place, usually enacted by the people who had just finished climbing out from under the last one.
You Bought the Ticket
A judge confirmed at fifty-five can't borrow the naivety of the twenty-four-year-old who first got noticed. Neither, really, can anyone else.
The Escape Hatches Are All Painted On
Switch electoral systems, restore the Founders' actual vision, or take the party back from the inside. All three get tried on for size in this piece. None of them fit, and the reasons are worth understanding in detail rather than taking on faith.
The Right Way Closed While You Were Still Talking About It
Fourteen months ago I argued the "right way" barely exists. Since then they fired a quarter of the immigration judges, deleted legal status for a million people who followed every rule, and still won't touch an employer.
Station Keeping
Sarah Longwell wants the Chamber of Commerce wing back at the center of the GOP. The physics says the room that made that possible doesn't exist anymore, and there's no path back to it.
September 12, 2026 - Week in Review
Posts and notes from the week of September 5, though September 12, 2026
This Fucking Guy: Nathan Myhrvold
NASA's planetary defense chief on Nathan Myhrvold: "He's a very smart man, but that doesn't make him an expert in everything." That's the whole piece, honestly.