Written

A water drop and ripples

We can put to bed any lingering doubt that “hate speech” restrictions are about creating a subjective end-run around freedom of speech.

By Justin Katz | July 1, 2024 |

Maybe some Millennials are too young to remember, but the ability of government school students to wear whatever t-shirts they wanted was once a major theme in the mainstream media.  These days, we’re learning that it’s highly dependent on the message of the shirt: In 2023, the seventh grader at John T. Nichols Middle School…

A water drop and ripples

Pride crosswalks are the establishment of religion we should worry about.

By Justin Katz | July 1, 2024 |

Jordan Peterson has this right, but the darkness of the fact needs to be emphasized: We’ve been seeing teens charged with felonies for riding over these sections of road disrespectfully, even as Hamas supporters get away with defacing statues.  It’s obvious we’re being demanded to treat these symbols with reverence, as if they’re the state religion,…

A water drop and ripples

Look, Democrats’ view of the family is no secret.

By Justin Katz | June 28, 2024 |

I’ve been pondering Joe Biden’s stated belief that Americans have no standing to complain about illegal immigrants’ raping American women because we rape our own brothers and sisters in the home.  It’s tempting to hope he’s just a rambling old man who can no longer construct coherent thoughts (whatever that might mean for the fact…

A water drop and ripples

Don’t let them snark past the key point.

By Justin Katz | June 28, 2024 |

What a silly cartoon this is: If the position for which they’re selecting involves climbing, then this exam is dead on.  Ignoring context and purpose for the sake of identity-group parity is a DEI sleight of hand.

Road to Serfdom Step 6

Democrat decision-makers may be asking themselves final questions.

By Justin Katz | June 28, 2024 |

For many, Joe Biden’s debate performance exposed a frightening reality and posed a dreadful question for the decision-makers of his party.

A water drop and ripples

Just a reminder that people rightly feel like they’re already funding infrastructure.

By Justin Katz | June 27, 2024 |

Consider two general principles of political theory while reading this: 1) Government starts by telling the people how much money it needs and then proceeds to collect it, not the other way around. 2) The less competitive political races are, the more incentive those who are predictably elected have to spend money on corruption and…

A teacher combs a the long hair of a bearded student in a tie

The sane conclusion is to get your kids out of Barrington schools.

By Justin Katz | June 27, 2024 |

I’ve been railing for years against the public policy inclination coming down from the state Department of Education to have schools actively lie to parents about their children’s expressed gender identity.  Social media can sometimes give the impression that the tide is turning, and it may be, but we should expect progressive strongholds in Rhode…

A water drop and ripples

The General Treasurer is an investment fund pitchman.

By Justin Katz | June 27, 2024 |

This ad for Rhode Island’s CollegeBound Saver fund promotion looks like a sleazy investment ad because it is: Around $22 million in administrative fees from the program go to the private companies that handle the money and the state.  This isn’t necessarily corruption, per se, but we can put it in the questionable bucket of…

A water drop and ripples

Jokes expose underlying truths about identity politics.

By Justin Katz | June 26, 2024 |

I’ll stipulate that comedian Sebastian Maniscalco’s story about a kindergartener who identifies as a lion is likely not true, but the exaggeration provides a useful framing, nonetheless: One of the kill-move cheats of progressives is to pose the question, of these identity politics instances, “How does it affect you?”  Appealing to Americans’ live-and-let-live sensibility, that…

A blurry hellscape begins to come into focus

The progressive picture is coming into focus.

By Justin Katz | June 26, 2024 |

A theme one picks up from podcast discussions with cognitive scientists is that much of our perception — what we understand as real — is a matter of our choices about what we don’t pay attention to.  A fully capable human has five senses, all of which are constantly sending more data to the nervous…