The political bundles are too big. "Democrats have had conflicting messages. On the one hand, Trump is an existential threat to American democracy and it is everyone’s duty to rally against him. On the other hand, much of the leadership remains committed to pushing the envelope on progressive policies that make it harder to attract the support of the sort of people who voted for John McCain and Mitt Romney but find Trump repugnant. It would seem intuitive that the mere existence of Trump, the most unpopular President ever, as the leader of the opposition would render the only viable alternative—the Democratic Party—popular. But it hasn’t worked out that way." Well, no, after the way the vanguardists of Hope and Change treated candidates McCain and Romney, there are tables that should be flipped over.
Vacuous pejoratives. “'Globalism' (a.k.a., free trade) is to those on the political right what 'trickle-down economics' (a.k.a., free markets) is to those on the political left.” Loose translation: “Somewhere on Earth, buyers and sellers are engaging in voluntary trade and minding their own business AND WE HAVE TO STOP THEM.”
Tear down all the walls to get at the Devil. "Governmental authority, once unleashed, recognizes no ideological master." The Devil turns upon you. "The left, fixated upon uniform outcomes, consistently undervalues the power of voluntary cooperation and cultural persuasion. Their shortsightedness has delivered into the hands of their opponents the very instruments of coercion they forged, vividly confirming an enduring truth: the power you grant government today will inevitably be wielded tomorrow by your adversaries."
That power was not wielded well during the corona tyranny, was it? Evergreen. "The so-called expert class was not particularly expert in this instance, which is to say that the damage it did was predictable and therefore preventable." Illusions shattered. "I’m not interested in handing the reins of government over to supposed experts because, well, we saw how that went in 2020. I’m not up for a replay of that particular flavor of stupid." Stupid leavened by groupthink. "U.S. policy didn't reflect the scientific evidence."
The semiquincentennial has not been all seashells and balloons. "Americans who fear a rancorous plod toward America’s 250th birthday should remember: 250 years ago, the nation knew much worse. Then it healed, passed through the furnace of another civil war, then resumed its zigzag but upward path toward a more perfect union. Atkinson’s reminder is that the birth of this nation, like that of a baby, was painful but worth it."
The weekly round-up of mostly pithy elaborations of traditional Cold Spring Shops themes follows.
1. Biden brutally snubbed. "Like the old Soviet Union, the Democrats are already disappearing their most recent big failure out of the pictures."
2. Harvard is Biden. "Harvard is superannuated, corrupt, a hotbed of nepotism, wealthy yet dependent on its ties to government."
4. Troll level, Trump! "I don't think Trump seeking another term would be appropriate at all. But is there harm in joking about it?"
5. Not the compliment you think it is. "His intentions were good, and he tried to do the right thing."
6. Democrats? No, Germans. "They just reinterpreted existing ones through the lens of 'extremism' and used that to silence—and disarm—the opposition. They redefined lawful gun owners as threats to democracy. Then they acted accordingly."
7. Is that principle "sponsored research is censorship per se?" "Pulling federal support for universities—especially those with $53 billion dollar endowments—is something I would love to see a Republican administration do, in the proper way and from a place of principle." We might have better universities for it. "To remain independent, institutions of higher education should end their reliance on taxpayer money."
8. No effort, no performance. "The loss of standards in academia more generally is mimicked in the loss of standards in dress."
10. No mandarinate! "Roberts seems oblivious to the fact that the biggest threat to the courts’ legitimacy comes from the courts themselves — and his desire to preserve the judiciary’s standing with a small circle of Washington and academic insiders."
11. Fordism was an anomaly. "There are many reasons why we should not wish for legions of Americans to stitch sneakers together in factories, but chief among them is that those are low-wage jobs." Trump's trade war is a lose-lose proposition.
12. The new rules. "The day of the gentlemanly GOP loser has passed into history. Now, our enemies are going to pay."
13. Been there, saw that, got the haircut. "During my formative years, trips to Haight Ashbury exposed me to what happens when a society abandons the norms I still remembered from the pre-hippie era. We went from well-groomed, polite, nice-smelling people to wild-haired, filthy, stinking, scary people lying in their own filth."
14. A passenger, not a pilot. "Air travel has advanced such that you don’t have to be Charles Lindbergh to fly across the Atlantic."
15. It's not just you. Next question? "But is it just me or has the pace recently increased at which long-standing expert conclusions are being overturned or at least seriously questioned?"
16. Dogbert wisdom. “You can’t save the earth unless you’re willing to make other people sacrifice.”
17. Maybe. "Trump is defending American interests, and this is what enrages Democrats."
18. Defining deviancy down. "I’m old enough to remember when we called this ‘flashing’ – now we’re meant to call it ‘trans rights’."
19. Reality bats last. "Every political perspective eventually has to say 'Tough luck.'"
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