THURSDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2023The way our tribe plays the game: At NBC News, the headlines on the news report say this:Biden admin waives federal laws to allow border wall construction in TexasThe announcement follows pressure from top Democratic officials to address the overwhelming … | Continue reading
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2023Isaacson, Scarborough speak: "God must love the common people, he made so many of them."The statement is often attributed to Abraham Lincoln. As far as we know, there's no actual evidence showing that Lincoln ever said it.Whatever! Today, the apocryphal … | Continue reading
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2023Our journos fear medical specialists: This past Sunday, Donald J. Trump gave a campaign speech in Iowa. Eventually, he started to share.Over at New York magazine, Margaret Hartmann transcribed what the candidate said. Here's what he said about two diffe … | Continue reading
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2023A type of silent secession: Just for the record, is it possible?Is it possible that some Trump voters may have the tiniest hint of a very small germ of a possible point?As we noted yesterday, Mike Barnicle tried to ask a perfectly sensible question—a qu … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2023Who is Harris Faulkner? Everyone agrees on the one basic fact:For whatever reason, Rep. Jamaal Bowman set off a fire alarm on Saturday afternoon.Rep. Bowman even says that he set off the fire alarm! He says he did so by mistake—in a type of rushed, unthink … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2023Scarborough cuts him off: "Back out of all this now too much for us?"Long before Norman O. Brown came along, Robert Frost had fashioned that opening line for his difficult poem, Directive. He imagined that we had somehow reached a place, or had reached a s … | Continue reading
MONDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2023The (unelectable) hopefuls: Long ago and far away, it emerged as a type of alleged philosophical problem.More precisely, it has been described as a paradox—as the "irresistible force paradox." Historically, the conundrum has taken this form:What happens whe … | Continue reading
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2023Ways to lose next year's election: Yesterday, we said we'd show you something that was said on that day's Morning Joe.In our view, the remarks in question demonstrate something about the cluelessness of our blue tribe's high-end thought leaders. As of … | Continue reading
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2023Unpaid campaign worker for Trump: On the Democratic Party side, something very unusual happened in Campaign 2000.Only two candidates sought the party's nomination for president—and each was a major figure! When the Democratic debates began in October 199 … | Continue reading
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2023We hear about Stop W.O.K.E.: Yesterday morning, it finally happened, during the 8 o'clock hour!(All times will be Eastern.)Dear God, it finally happened! Devoted viewers of Fox & Friends finally heard a fleeting reference to the judge's findings in the D … | Continue reading
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2023Blue tribe comes to its senses: Much of what is seen on Fox News is propaganda on the clown-car level.On the other hand, some of what appears on Fox News deals with actual issues—with actual issues our own blue tribe has been trying to ignore. For that … | Continue reading
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2023Life in our two different worlds: Anthropological lessons are everywhere, but we're an impervious species.This brings us to the deathless pop music hit, the mellifluous Two Different Worlds. We think of it as a Jerry Vale smash, but according to the le … | Continue reading
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2023Fox & Friends exults: Dumbness can be bottled up. Dumbness can be held at bay, if only for a time.That said, the unfortunate trait remains undefeated. Consider the latest "biting incident," as reported by NBC's Kelly O'Donnell:O'DONNELL (9/26/23): Pre … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2023Also, the text of that Florida law: Should kids be told, in public school, that they should feel guilt, or even "psychological distress," about the past misconduct of others?We'd rapidly sign up for "no!" As to what kids should be taught about their fut … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2023...a favorite Quaker fought back: Down through the annals of time, the forces of which we speak are undefeated.We speak of tribal True Belief. We speak of the power of Dumb.Our story starts with an accurate statement made by Kevin Drum. Alas! When Drum … | Continue reading
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2023The mainstream press looks away: Somehow, we're always disappointed by the work of Pete Hegseth.Hegseth is one of the three official "friends" on the deeply atrocious Fox News show, Fox & Friends Weekend. All in all, he's movie star handsome. Based on so … | Continue reading
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2023We'd say the answer is yes: We humans are good at building things.Well, we're better at building things than everyone else. Beavers and bees build things too—but the things we humans build are bigger and much more complex.We build rocket ships that can g … | Continue reading
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2023Vicious seasonal cold: A vicious end-of-the-summer, seasonal head cold attacked our campus yesterday.Recovery is proceeding apace. But we'll have no fish today. | Continue reading
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2023California then: Jerry Brown has certainly had a long, unusual career. That said, is he a good fit for this particular PBS franchise? He seems like a slightly odd choice for the long running "American Masters" series, but a full-length profile appeared … | Continue reading
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2023...except on her classroom's walls: As a matter of personal belief, Mary Wood was a political liberal. Also, she was teaching school in a largely conservative community.More specifically, she was teaching an Advanced Placement English Language and Comp … | Continue reading
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2023The way one book was selected: Who decides what books get read in a high school Advanced Placement class?In these days of political and cultural division, such questions have become severely fraught. In a lengthy report in the Washington Post, Hannah … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2023California then: As we noted this morning, clarity tends to be hard. Indeed, according to the later Wittgenstein, bungled attempts at clarity have defined high end "philosophy" all through the annals of time. Writing for the New York Times, Professor Ho … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2023Clarity can be hard: Clarity tends to be hard. In fact, just as a matter of fact, clarity can be very hard. This lesson is learned from a review of the first four paragraphs of yesterday's lengthy report in the Washington Post.The report concerns the la … | Continue reading
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2023Deciding what gets taught: In Vertigo, Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak end up, one gloomy day, out at Big Basin Redwoods State Park.They encounter the world's oldest living beings. Gloom-ridden dialogue follows:Vertigo, screenplay Madeleine and Scottie near … | Continue reading
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2023Norman O. Brown had a secret: We're so old that we can remember the federal "fairness doctrine!"The leading authority on the doctrine recalls its operation, and its demise, in the manner shown:The fairness doctrine of the United States Federal Communicat … | Continue reading
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2023This war is fought from the silos: As we recollected on Monday, the so-called Great War was fought from the trenches. The war which followed was marked by the existence of the camps. We refer to the extermination camps maintained by the madness of the … | Continue reading
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2023Errors wherever you look: Finally, the Washington Post editorial board has weighed in on the Mississippi miracle.Our own semi-apology follows. First, this is the way yesterday's featured editorial began:Holding kids back can’t explain Mississippi’s ed … | Continue reading
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2023Is surprised by his own reaction: Long ago and far away, we ourselves were able to witness a public school "book ban."At issue was the Hemingway short story, Up in Michigan. Experts who have read the story summarize its content as shown:Jim Gilmore, a … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2023An anthropology lesson: Reading between the lines, we sense Kevin Drum's frustration:What Republicans believe, 2023 editionWhat false things do Republicans routinely believe these days? I'm not talking about wild-ass conspiracy theories like QAnon, or m … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2023Is our own blue bayou a swamp? According to experts, life on the cable show Fox & Friends is a daily anthropology lesson.The propaganda flow is endless. Quite routinely, the deeply dangerous flow of propaganda is just plain comically awful. This teaches … | Continue reading
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2023Jon Stewart murders sleep: An earlier war—the so-called Great War—was fought from within the trenches.Lucky for us, none of us were there. For one poet's recollection, you can just click here.By way of contrast, the dangerous war we're currently fighting … | Continue reading
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2023The pleasures of paraphrase: Friend, what should American children be taught in our public schools?Also, what should students never be taught? Just last year, one well-known state passed a widely-discussed new law addressing such basic questions.That we … | Continue reading
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2023The wages of separation: In print editions, the report appears atop the front page of this morning's Washington Post. In his report, Isaac Arnsdorf performs a very basic journalistic function. The hard-copy headlines say this:Trump escalates false claims … | Continue reading
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2023You can't run a nation this way: We've often described Kevin Drum as our favorite blogger.That doesn't mean that he's always right, although it's always possible that he actually is. We'd especially recommend his years of work on the apparent effects of … | Continue reading
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2023Headlines in the Post: Grumpily waiting to see our favorite surgeon, we scanned the front-page headlines in today's Washington Post.We're speaking of the print edition of the Post, which is still a traditional newspaper. Above the fold, the front-page h … | Continue reading
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2023Cancer deaths, quotations: Long ago and far away, we advanced a major pronouncement:It's all anthropology now!By that, we basically meant that the die has been cast. It's all over but the shouting. That's pretty much what we meant,We meant that it's m … | Continue reading
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2023Gloomily, Bret Stephens speaks: We keep hearing from Cassandra, daughter of Priam and Hecuba, brother of immortal Hector and the "strange man" Paris. History teaches us this:Cassandra was a daughter of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy. Her elder br … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2023How many should be black? When is a gerrymander really a gerrymander? When is a gerrymander racist?When is something resembling a gerrymander actually required by federal law? Also, how many of Alabama's seven House members should be black?These question … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2023...about our nation's kids? Long ago and far away, the Associated Press offered a lengthy news report about an important topic.Quickly, let's amend that statement:The topic of the AP report is very important as a matter of theory. In practice, it isn't c … | Continue reading
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2023Comfort from "dear, dear friends:" Given a second bite of the apple, the late Roger Ailes caught on.At MSNBC, it took a great deal longer. Believe it nor not, the channel started like this:MSNBC was launched on July 15, 1996. The first show was anchored … | Continue reading
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2023The five percent solution: In yesterday's post, we offered an example of how crazy gerrymandering has become in the Badger State.Ron Burgum's "campaign contributions" may be even nuttier. Burgum is the little-known governor of North Dakota. He's also a bi … | Continue reading
THURSDAY, AUGUST 31, 2023In one case, this bad: Yesterday, Kevin Drum sounded off about Wisconsin's "egregiously gerrymandered legislative map."When people talk about the gerrymanders of Wisconsin, they're generally talking about the way the state's Republicans have gerrymandered … | Continue reading
THURSDAY, AUGUST 31, 2023Comically propagandistic: What could the late Roger Ailes have been thinking when he created the comically awful cable news channel, America's Talking?As we noted yesterday, the unwatchable channel came and went within the space of two years. Lost to the … | Continue reading
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 30, 2023It's a bit like The Mickey Mouse Club: It's often said that the late Roger Ailes was a "cable news" genius.Eventually, Ailes invented the Fox News Channel. As we noted yesterday, he quickly began to assemble the reassuring friendship cadres by whom the c … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, AUGUST 29, 2023...and from our modern discourse: We're pleased to report that Kevin Drum got thinking the other day about—Well, we'll let him tell it himself:A couple of days ago I was thinking, as one does, about the equivalence of gravitational mass and inertial mass. … | Continue reading
TUESDAY, AUGUST 29, 2023The branding jumped to Fox: Arguably, the branding tracks all the way back to September 22, 1994. On that date, a new NBC sitcom went on the air, under a one-word title:FriendsThe friends were a group of New York City 20-somethings who lived in a somewhat … | Continue reading
MONDAY, AUGUST 28, 2023So has he committed a crime? A date has been set for Trump's first federal trial. Headline included, the New York Times reports the basic facts:Judge Sets Trial Date in March for Trump’s Federal Election CaseThe federal judge overseeing former President Don … | Continue reading
MONDAY, AUGUST 28, 2023Segregation and silence: On Saturday morning, C-Span's Washinton Journal invited viewers to respond to the following question:YOUR TOP NEWS STORY OF THE WEEK?What did C-Span viewers regard as the week's top "news story?" Inevitably, the Donald Trump mug sho … | Continue reading