It was not until very recently I realized that I was, in some important regards, a Buddhist. Now, I am not saying I converted or anything. I am not shaving my head or giving up worldly possessions, but I instead understand something: fundamentally, most things do not matter. I am not saying that most things…
Against Fearmongering
Today I am going to talk about a person who 99 percent of you have probably never heard of, but who I am going to say is perpetuating something very dangerous. To be fair, 99 percent of the people who perpetuate dangerous things are never heard of, but I am going to emphasize this person…
Notes On The Firing of James Comey
It never fails. It never fails at all. Every time I think that something is relatively explicable or whatever a new twist of the knife to surprise me. It would all be quite funny if it was not real and was happening right now. Time to explain this all again: so, as you all surely…
Trump’s True Colors, 100 Days In
At the time of this writing, Donald Trump has been president for exactly 100 days. Now, I know that some of you are going to be at the panels or speeches about this so you might find this column redundant but I think there is a lot to consider at this marker. Now, the 100-day…
The Russians Are Not Your Friends
Since the 2015 election season, there has been this weird meme going around. It is a meme that has been showing up in the far right mostly, but to a degree in the far left as well. I do not know if there is an original line for it, but it essentially says this: We…
The Quagmire of War
In the 20th century, America was the leader in fights. We helped clean up Europe from the decadent last hurrah of the royal class that was World War I. In World War II, we helped the Russians and the Europeans chase Germany out and prevented the Japanese from controlling the Pacific. For almost fifty years,…
The Alt-Right is Lying to You (Again)
I really wish I did not have to type the words “alt-right” given that such a concept inherently does not exist. “White nationalists” is a much better descriptor. “Bigots” is a good descriptor. Hell, “aspiring fascists” is the best one, which is why it is weird that all of a sudden they seem to be…
Your Handy Guide to the Trump-Russia Controversy, Because Someone Has to Do It
Even before the election there’s been a lot, and I do mean a lot, of speculation on what on earth Trump’s ties to Russia and President Vladimir Putin are. The reactions range from denials to conspiracy theories that Trump is a Manchurian (Siberian?) candidate out to destroy the country in an unholy alliance with Putin.…
The Carbon Bubble Is Bursting: What Happens Now?
The world is changing, but it’s not changing the way people think it is. The surge of populism across the West, for many people, is a sign that something is going terribly wrong. It is, but not for the reasons we think. Some of this is caused by the actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin…
Our Deep State is Revolting: It doesn’t have to be that way
I really have to give credit to the Republicans: they’re going so fast with this nonsense it’s exhausting. Anyway, here’s the ground assumption information you need to know right now: Michael Flynn, former National Security Advisor, resigned at the start of the week over discussing sanctions with the Russian foreign minister in December. Here’s why…