The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

The Wile E. Coyote of Liberal Journalism

Everybody remembers Wile E. Coyote was a Super Genius, right? That old Looney Tunes character came to mind this week when I read liberal journalist Michael Tomasky’s hot take on the election: I’ve had a lot of conversations since Tuesday revolving around the question of why Donald Trump won. The economy and inflation. Kamala Harris […]

What Is a ‘Conspiracy Theory’?

Why is Russell Brand mocking Kamala Harris? At what point did Brand, a lifelong leftist, become “right-wing,” and why? Those thoughts occurred to me after I accidentally watched a YouTube video of Brand (blame the algorithm) and then skimmed through his Wikipedia page. It appears that COVID-19 policy was the start of his shift away […]

We Probably Can’t Rule Out ‘Arkancide’

Twelve more Democrats, including two senators, call on Biden to drop out — Washington Post Secluded in Rehoboth, Biden Stews at Allies’ Pressure to Drop Out of the Race — New York Times Democratic consensus solidifies around Harris, should Biden step aside — CNN It Looks Like Kamala’s Call with Democrat Donors Was a Disaster […]

Dueling Paranoias

Have you ever given any thought to the question, “What causes paranoia?” Like, the pathogenesis of the disease? Because of my long interest in the field of psychology (“Crazy People Are Dangerous”), I have given a lot of thought to this subject and I consider it significant that stimulant drugs like methamphetamine and cocaine can […]

‘Violence Was Inevitable’

“Don’t jump to conclusions,” I say, every time there’s a shooting, bombing, some other incident where people on social media start rushing to place blame, before any definite information is available. In my first update Saturday, at 6:55 p.m. ET, I said: “We still know nothing about what actually happened, and I urge everyone to […]

The ‘Misinformation’ Scam

Just yesterday I noted my shock that Jon Stewart (!!!) is now apparently a MAGA extremist, and I guess we’ll have to add Nate Silver’s name to the list, now that he’s admitted that the term “misinformation” has been “hijacked as a cover for partisan bias.” Barely two weeks ago, you were a right-wing conspiracy […]

Matt Taibbi vs. the Borg

If you wish to amuse yourself sometime, go check out Matt Taibbi’s feed on The Social Media Platform Formerly Known as Twitter. In case you weren’t aware, Taibbi is a (former?) left-wing journalist once celebrated by his peers for his reporting in Rolling Stone, but who reached some kind of epiphany during the Trump years, […]

CNN Warns of Weather ‘Misinformation’

When did the concern about “misinformation” arise? Why and how did the news media become obsessed with this paranoid fear — once mocked in a popular cartoon — that “someone is wrong on the Internet”? We can leave aside the etiology of the “misinformation” obsession (as I’m contemplating this as the subject of a future […]

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