Written

Two men about to shake hands in the sunset.

We have to give those on the left somebody or something to turn to.

By Justin Katz | December 11, 2021 |

Ed Driscol draws our attention to an essay on Tablet in which Liel Leibovitz, which definitely deserves the “read the whole thing” tag: You may be among the increasing numbers of people going through The Turn right now. Having lived through the turmoil of the last half decade—through the years of MAGA and antifa and rampant…

A water drop and ripples

The un-deadliness of Omicron seems like an important detail to report.

By Justin Katz | December 11, 2021 |

So far, no deaths are apparently attributable to the Omicron variant of COVID-19: The World Health Organization (WHO) has informed The Epoch Times that it has not documented any deaths from the Omicron variant of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, which causes COVID-19. According to the WHO, “for Omicron, we have not had any…

Whiteboard harassment of Ramona Bessinger

How is the Rhode Island Foundation permitted to push racist policies in Providence schools?

By Justin Katz | December 11, 2021 |

Lean back a moment and clear your eyes.  If you’re older than thirty, recall lessons you learned when you were young — that it is always wrong to discriminate against people based entirely on the color of their skin.  Now read this short paragraph: One of the [Providence school] district’s current incentives, which will continue…

A water drop and ripples

I thought Joker would be better.

By Justin Katz | December 10, 2021 |

Given the dramatic way in which my tastes and my morality have changed in the last 20 years, I expected (when I finally got around to watching it) that I’d appreciate the dark artistry of the D.C. movie, Joker, even as I was repelled by its nihilistic framing.  As dark art (so to speak), it…

A nurse sitting in a doorway

RI really needs to understand the nursing shortage.

By Justin Katz | December 10, 2021 |

As government officials and the mainstream media debate whether to insist that the people they rule wear masks wherever we go, the constantly growing burden of regulations on the healthcare industry seems never to come into question.

A water drop and ripples

No surprise that naturally acquired immunity is proving itself with COVID.

By Justin Katz | December 10, 2021 |

Perhaps no aspect of the public health response to COVID has increased my skepticism more than the insane and dogged practice of ignoring the immunity that people can gain from having and recovering from COVID-19.  Whether researchers conclude that it is insufficient, too brief, or whatever, credibility required that it be treated as a real…

Justin Katz's political spectrum illustration

For journalists like UConn professor Mike Stanton, tyranny is the first choice.

By Justin Katz | December 10, 2021 |

Attitudes like this, from former Providence Journal reporter and University of Connecticut journalism professor Mike Stanton fascinate me.  Commenting on Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee’s hesitance to impose a statewide mask mandate, Stanton writes: Yes, poor leadership. Because it’s contrary to what the doctors & experts recommend. I went to PPAC the other night; they required…

A water drop and ripples

At some point, maybe URI’s president will do something that makes me more-proud of my alma mater, rather than less.

By Justin Katz | December 10, 2021 |

There he is again.  Marc Parlange is in the Boston Globe stumping for the Democrats’ biggest legislative priority with “Build Back Better can pull Rhode Island out of the pandemic — if we invest in the Blue Economy.” Why did the University of Rhode Island hire a lobbyist and ideologue instead of a leader? Yeah, sure, the…

A water drop and ripples

Yup, the United States is still a beacon of hope… for now.

By Justin Katz | December 10, 2021 |

Robert VerBruggen’s response is perfect to a chart showing how the average disposable income in most European countries is poverty by U.S. standards: This is why people love using “relative” poverty measures. It’s basically dividing by how awesome America is, to make America look un-awesome. The mind-blowing thing is that most European countries could easily…

A man blowing his nose

What makes this something other than “just a cold”?

By Justin Katz | December 10, 2021 |

The headline that the Providence Journal gave to Mark Patinkin’s latest column puts things in a useful context: “It’s just a cold, right? I thought a booster made me invulnerable — but I got COVID.”  If we step back a pace and look at things objectively, we might indeed wonder what makes COVID something other than…