Assemblin’, Carryin’, n’ Sayin’ Stuff

Introduction: So last Monday there was a huge rally in Virginia to protest the declared intentions of Gov. Ralph “Blackie” Northam regarding guns. The rally was supposed to erupt into World War III, or maybe that was Iran, but anyway really bad stuff was going to happen. We were promised that really bad stuff was …

Suleimani and the Surly Wolverine

Introduction: So the Iranian general Suleimani was taken out by an American missile a few days ago, and this has resulted in a good deal of agitated discussion. And there is a pressing temptation, whenever things like this are done, for all the participants in our public life to default to their factory settings. Conservatives …

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Suppose for Just a Moment That Trump Takes It Walking Away

Introduction: We do not yet know if this is what will happen, but we should at least know that this is what we should be bracing for. I know, it is almost a year until the voting in the general election happens, and I also know that these months could be a political eternity. All …

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Where Cain Got His Wife, and Other Issues Related to the 2020 Election

Introduction: There is a difference between an argument with premises and a conclusion, on the one hand, and an argument with loud voices and no prospect of resolution on the other. Whenever someone is simply committed to their position, facts be damned, it is probably the wisest course of action to save your breath for …

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Due Process for a Scavenger Landfill Dog

Introduction: So I would like to take a few moments to write about the Trump impeachment fiasco, and to do so without actually talking about Trump himself, or his character, or his tweets, or his hair. For the sake of the argument, allow me to grant all the emotional distaste that your righteous spleen might …

Unforgiven Sin as the Key to Understanding Modern Politics

Introduction: Our central political problem today is that nobody has any idea of how to drain the vast reservoir of guilt that has been slowly and steadily growing for the last half century or so. It is now a massive reservoir, and all of us are living downstream from the towering dam of our constitutional …

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Boris, Brexit and Great Balls of Fire

Introduction: To hear some people talk about it, the rambunctious state of politics in the English-speaking world is merely about the various presenting issues—as in, whatever the next vote is going to be about. And of course, in some sense we have to grant that the issue, whatever it is, is the issue. But the …

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