Today I undertake a morbid and probably misguided analysis of the depth of the COVID-19 tragedy in America, examining the number of years of life lost. Trigger warning: this post discusses causes of death including suicide. Why would I undertake such a task? We are all reeling from the shocking numbers here. Half a million…
Yesterday, the Supreme Court stopped consideration of all lawsuits in the 2020 election. Justice Clarence Thomas dissented. I think he has a point. I just wish he’d made it better. Before you decide to have my innards roasted on a spit, let’s talk about principle. My principle is to evaluate arguments regardless of whether I…
Tim Boyd, major of Colorado City, Texas, posted a statement on Facebook telling his frozen citizens that lack electricity to “sink or swim, it’s your choice.” Then he resigned. Apparently bullying suffering people is not the right approach for government officials. As you’re no doubt aware, Texas is in crisis. It’s suffering through snow and…
On Saturday, Republican Senators Mitt Romney and Susan Collins joined five other Republicans and all the Democrats and independents in the Senate in voting to convict former President Trump in the impeachment inquiry. Rather than equivocating, these Senators issued direct, clear, and declarative statements. Mitt Romney’s statement is short and direct Romney, the only Republican…
Most uses of passive voice are lazy, thoughtless, or evasive. But the “allowed to believe” statement from Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene’s speech is in another category: in just nine words, Greene declares her own idiocy and ignorance, and then blames unspecified forces for highjacking her brain and her fingers. If there is a passive voice…
The lawmakers from the House of Representatives sent a brief to the Senate about the single count of impeachment they’re about to try. For the most part, it’s clear and straightforward. But an analysis of the 115 instances of passive voice in it reveals a lot about what lawmakers — and former president Trump —…
Marjorie Taylor Greene, the wacko Georgia Congresswoman who supports QAnon, has also posted about a novel conspiracy theory on her Facebook page: that a Jewish cabal caused lasers from space to start the California wildfires of 2018. Yeah. I’m not making this up. Her Facebook post on the topic has been deleted, and she says…
I want you to imagine that you’ve been invited to a casual party at my house. Here’s who will be in the room: A guy near retirement who has cofounded some of the most disruptive entertainment companies of the 21st century. A young Black woman with a cache of stories about unusual and accomplished people…
The purpose of police Twitter accounts is to inform people about public safety. The purpose of passive voice is (often) to avoid responsibility. These don’t go together well. Today we examine how the Los Angeles Police used passives that twist the truth into bizarre shapes in describing police shootings. A correspondent brought to my attention…