Quick Read

Interactive art at the RI Dept. of Labor

Are we allowed to point out obvious truths about Putin, RI labor unions, progressives, and energy?

By Justin Katz | March 3, 2022 |

I don’t want to make too much of this, but sometimes we have to put the obvious on the table.  Otherwise, we’re apt to wander off in dense forests of complexity because we reject the ability to see in an open field. Journalistic writer Michael Shellenberger makes the so-obvious-it’s-easy-to-ignore point that the West’s throttling down…

Joe Biden, 2022 SOTU

The time to admit the SOTU is performative has arrived, scary as that may be.

By Justin Katz | March 2, 2022 |

The State of the Union speech, as a practice, lost me long ago, during the presidency of Bill Clinton.  His practice was a seemingly endless list of special-interest handouts that couldn’t possibly be funded.  No new information emerged, and America wasn’t even receiving a useful indication of the administration’s intended direction.  The event was performative…

The Canadian Truckers Convoy Delivered a Crushing Blow to Trudeau

By Chris Maxwell | March 1, 2022 |

Much has been debated about the effectiveness of the recently-defused Canadian Truckers Convoy. One thing is for certain, the collective efforts and voice of Canada’s trucking industry, galvanized by frustration over far more than vax mandates, essentially exposed the agenda of and brought to his knees the once powerful Justin Trudeau. Trudeau’s actions in refusing…

A white student looks away

Is the Met School abusing students with anti-racism indoctrination?

By Justin Katz | February 28, 2022 |

South Kingstown parent advocate Nicole Solas has been, let’s say, having words with Met School special education teacher Emily Bowden.  The back-and-forth is mainly social media snark shooting, so we shouldn’t assume that Bowden’s bombast is evidence of the school’s operation, but she does facilitate an important point that isn’t often made in these arguments.…

Gavel with a speech bubble

Racking up legal fees is win-win for government officials.

By Justin Katz | February 25, 2022 |

A very interesting article from Tamara Sacharczyk, of WJAR, puts a spotlight on an aspect of the people’s interaction with government that doesn’t get enough attention: lawsuits: Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent defending state agencies in Rhode Island in recent years, and the NBC 10 I-Team uncovered taxpayers are oftentimes picking up…

Old painting of fighting puppets

After Russia’s attack, we can only hope the people running things are more competent than they appear.

By Justin Katz | February 25, 2022 |

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — being a strategic attack disrupting a general atmosphere of peaceful exhaustion among European countries — has a cautionary component for analysts.  While one can reasonably suggest that this or that factor is playing a role, strong assertions about the motivations and plans of the people involved are best avoided.  That’s…

Zakary Pereira

Should we question whether Zakary Pereira can tolerate students and constituents?

By Justin Katz | February 24, 2022 |

Imagine a young Christian Rhode Islander running for office with a team of Republican candidates of the Make America Great Again mold taking to Twitter to say: The LGBTQs are coming for the Christian community. Who will look out for our best interests, if not ourselves? Run for office.  Support local Christian candidates.  Fight back.…

Solar farm in North Smithfield

Let’s start making the obvious connections between environmentalist news stories.

By Justin Katz | February 23, 2022 |

Whether I’ve been failing or succeeding, all these years, I’ll leave to others to judge, but one of my core objectives has always been to foster the habit of making the sorts of connections that are too often covered over for political reasons.  Let’s look at a big one. Perhaps with the mixed motivation of…

Piggybank with mask

Keep an eye on progressives’ intentions when it comes to banking.

By Justin Katz | February 23, 2022 |

Author and former Providence Journal opinion page editor Ed Achorn has been tweeting about the Canadian government’s move on banking, and the topic is one that ought to be of much more concern to all of us.  Note this tweet, from Peter Sweden, which Achorn passes along with the comment, “If true, this is terrifying”: In Canada…

Ocean State 131 with Anticommunist/Anticapitalist flag

Was the Providence Nazi protest a false flag or inconsequential opponents’ feeding off each other?

By Justin Katz | February 22, 2022 |

Convenient, isn’t it, that a small group of people making noise and waving a Nazi flag can turn an inconsequential Communist reading by an unknown socialist organization into the hot story of the day in Rhode Island, providing massive advertisement for their little left-wing library? Attempting to make the event seem significant, the Boston Globe tacked…