Latest Articles

  • Misunderstanding Democracy—and Japan
    Japan recently went through a national general election for its House of Representatives. While the opposition parties insisted that they would defeat the ruling Jimintō Party (LDP), the election yielded few surprises. In the end, the LDP lost forty seats, but retained its majority in the House chamber. Jimintō members would chalk this victory up to policies that resounded with the Japanese people. But according to an article in The New York Times, the win was due to political manipulation and pork-barrel giveaways. (8 more paragraphs)
  • Does the Right to be Wrong Have Limits?
    One great thing about the American system is that it provides the freedom and space to challenge the mainstream. Not every belief has merit, but we nonetheless extend a lot of leeway to groups that espouse some of the stupidest ideas in history, be they flat-earthers or white supremacists. But this freethinking attitude does have limits, especially where the safety of others is concerned. Freedom of speech is sacred, but there is no freedom to harm others or violate their inalienable rights. (11 more paragraphs)
  • Should COVID Breakthrough Cases Worry Us?
    It seems like just a few weeks ago that we had a handle on this pandemic thing. And then the coronavirus had to mutate itself and ruin the illusion for everyone. Infections are back up, and while they are nowhere near what America experienced back in January, the trend is still troubling. This time around, the infection count includes something that wasn’t a consideration six months ago: so-called “breakthrough” cases involving fully vaccinated individuals. Depending on the region, such cases can account for up to a quarter of the total. We were assured by the CDC, Big Pharma, and the two most recent presidents that vaccines would be the magic bullet to save us from this pandemic. Given the surprising number of these breakthrough cases, should we be worried? (8 more paragraphs)
  • When Did Religious Conservatives Become So Afraid?
    Throughout 2020, I watched in horror as a seemingly routine variation of an earlier SARS-type sickness took over the world. The death count from COVID-19 soared past four million souls a few weeks ago, a staggering number that says nothing of the tens of millions of people who will suffer ongoing “long COVID” ailments. But I experienced an even greater horror when I heard that swaths of church-going conservative Americans—even personal acquaintances whom I know to be caring individuals—had risen en masse against the use of both masks and the vaccines. I have always been comfortable labeling myself as a religious conservative. But as a Christian and a family man, I have to ask: “WTF?” (9 more paragraphs)
  • Why This is (Probably) My Last Political Article
    This is probably the last political article I will write on this web site. I’ll wait a moment for the cheers to die down. You might think it strange that a site created to discuss current events and politics would stop uploading such content. It is strange for me as well, and a decent respect for the opinions of my readers requires that I should declare the causes that impel me to cease writing such posts. (7 more paragraphs)
  • How to Read a Newspaper Article
    The literacy rate in the United States sits around ninety-nine percent, but sometimes you have to wonder about the accuracy of that metric given the type of stuff that passes for reading material. I am, of course, talking about a recent article in the Los Angeles Times entitled, “Pastor dies of COVID-19 weeks after Fontana megachurch reopened for indoor services.” The staff-written post appeared on the Times’ web site on December 3, 2020. (10 more paragraphs)
  • Am I a Voter Fraud Enabler?
    I don’t know if you’ve been reading the news lately, but one of the presidential candidates this time around thinks the election wasn’t on the up and up. “Voter fraud” is on everyone’s lips, whether they’re insisting it happened or sure that it didn’t. (8 more paragraphs)
  • What Went Wrong with the Republican Party?
    With the Electoral College victory of Joe Biden, yet another sitting Republican president has gone down in defeat and shame. Back in the 1970s, President Ford recognized that the nation had passed through a “long national nightmare,” instigated by his Republican predecessor. Here in the twenty-first century, journalists invoke Ford’s national-nightmare mantra to describe the actions of the current Republican chief executive. Despite being lifted up as the “party of family values,” the moral failings and temper tantrums of the party’s sitting leader have yet again tied the words “Republican” and “conservative” to a recognizable litany of human weaknesses. (10 more paragraphs)
  • Time is Running Out to Commit Voter Fraud!
    The 2020 presidential election is just a week away, which means you are almost out of time to activate your voter fraud strategy. Given the distributed nature of elections in the Unites States, where each of the over 3,000 counties, parishes, and boroughs in the nation manage their own voting processes, the only way to achieve a stolen election is to impact most, if not all, of these districts. Therefore, swaying this election is really in your filthy, grimy hands. Fortunately, the news media and major parties have all been warning about a plot to “steal the election,” so your nefarious plans should meld right into the narrative. (10 more paragraphs)
  • How to Read Coronavirus Stories Without Freaking Out
    The coronavirus situation seems to get worse each day. The six o’clock news used to start off with moderate predictions of impending doom: “Santa Claus is coming to town. Is your family at risk?” But now it’s wall-to-wall COVID-19 coverage, and journalists really mean it this time. Everyone is on edge due to the fear of infection, and it’s nearly impossible to read the headlines without doing wee-wee in your pants. (9 more paragraphs)

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