Mar 29, 2021Member-onlyBrighter every day“How silent are the footsteps of spring,” wrote Thoreau, and between the slow rolling arrival of the new season and the promise of vaccines, a window of fresh air has opened in the stuffy room of 2021. But Rule 1 (it will get crazier) still holds. Given the sanity of…Politics7 min read
Published in The Capital·Mar 11, 2021Member-onlyWhat is Bitcoin and NFTs and all that stuff?So many of you replied to my last email asking for an explanation of Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and non-fungible tokens (NFT) that I thought I would send my explanation to everyone. There is no politics here, just an explanation of how a certain technology (blockchain) works. …Bitcoin8 min read
Mar 7, 2021Member-onlyYou say you want a revolution“Love is the quality of attention we pay to things,” writes poet J.D. McClatchy. If that’s the case, then this week I loved Bitcoin and the U.S. Congress. A strange, sad combination, I know. But today’s email has plenty of opinions about both topics and if you’re only interested in…Bitcoin7 min read
Feb 28, 2021Member-onlyAll Technology is PoliticsWatching Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) volunteer at a food bank in Texas last weekend (while also raising millions of dollars for disaster relief), I thought of the legendary Tip O’Neill. In 1982 (when I was five years old), O’Neill was trying to get a giant infrastructure bill passed. The Republican Leader…Politics6 min read
Feb 21, 2021Member-onlyBack in the SaddleIn the noise of the post-election you may have missed my silence. It was unintentional: a broken ankle required significant surgery, and the recovery has been complicated. But I am feeling better — finally, cautiously, walking (with some assistance) — and in the mood to write. …Politics6 min read
Jan 11, 2021Member-onlyThe Great DerangementLast weekend I read an excellent novel about an Iraq War hero who is invited to officiate at the Dallas Cowboys’ Thanksgiving Day Half-Time show. By turns hilarious and tragic (in the classical sense), Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk is perfect metaphor for our time. I thought about it all…Politics6 min read
Dec 31, 2020Member-onlyThey Say A Party Can Kill YouAh, 2020. What a year. This New Year’s Eve I’m thinking of a sculpture I saw years ago at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, DC. “Milkstone” by Wolfgang Laib is a large square slab of white marble sitting on the floor of an empty room, rising just a few inches…Politics6 min read
Dec 7, 2020Member-onlyTwo AmericasIt’s a bright, cold Sunday morning with snow on the ground. The kids have evacuated the house at the crack of dawn to take advantage of the snow before it melts. With any luck, none of them will break any bones. I started to do some holiday shopping — online…Politics4 min read
Nov 26, 2020Member-onlyThe StruggleHappy Thanksgiving. It may sound trite, but I am thankful for you — writing this newsletter has been a great gift for me, and would I write if no one was reading? Well, I know my mother and father will always be reading. Thank you, Mom and Dad. …Politics5 min read
Nov 1, 2020Member-onlyTic Tic BoomAt this point, about 100 million Americans have voted. That’s roughly 2/3rds of the total votes we expect to cast this year — so it is possible that the outcome is already decided, the results resting mutely in stacks of unopened ballots waiting to be counted. It is hard to…Elections4 min read