It's striking how the AAUP has great patience for universities that use DEI statements for faculty hiring/promotion/tenure because there's nothing categorically incompatible between DEI and academic freedom, but all that patience evaporates when it's "viewpoint diversity." 1/

The biggest, and stupidest, myth in European politics, particularly popular in France, is that Europe suffers the consequences of "austerity" and "neoliberalism". In the biggest 5 countries in Europe, more than half of the population makes its income from the state, less than half from the private sector. This is what makes the problem of reducing the welfare state so impossible: more than half of the voters are net recipients. No surprise that Italy's budget has not been balanced in 100 years, France's in 50 years (ooh la la, l'austérité!!): -France: 30 million from the state versus 21m private sector workers. State spending is 57% of GDP, taxes more than half the economy. The budget hasn't been balanced in the lifetime of most French (since 1974). - Germany: 35 million adults from the state, versus 34 million from the private sector. 10% of the population is registered as severely disabled. Public spending is over half of GDP. Germany has had a continuous budget deficit since 2019. -Italy: 23 million from the state, versus 20.5 million private-sector workers. Public spending is 51% of GDP. Italy has had a budget deficit every year since 1925, for 100 years. - Spain more people get their income from the state since 2024: 18.21 million from the public sector versus 17.9 million people working in the private sector. Since 2025, Spain also had more government employees than self-employed workers (autónomos) for the first time in history. State spending is at 45%, budget has not been balanced since 2007. - UK: 54% of households now receive more in state benefits than they pay in taxes. State spending is 44.5% of GDP, taxes (40%) are at their highest since 1950, the budget hasn't been balanced since 2001, and 1 in 5 new cars is paid by the government through a bizarre state disability scheme (Motability).

Over 230 registrations for our Defend the West online conference so far. Speakers include: @sapinker @SRCHicks @peterboghossian @jasoncrawford @yaronbrook @alananewhouse @johanknorberg @DeirdreMcClosk @michaelshermer @ToKTeacher @DavidDFriedman @mboudry @nickgillespie Nadine Strossen registration link below👇

On the @reason Interview, @mcuban talks abt how his 'hard-core Democrat' mom turned him on to Ayn Rand, whose Virtue of Selfishness ironically helped him become an entrepreneur motivated by helping people. Full audio, video, text at

OK for just this week, gonna share our projected NFC standings from behind the paywall because they're kind of hilarious. *No NFC East or NFC South team projected for a winning record. *Every* NFC North and NFC West team projected for a winning record except the Cardinals.

Dear @katiezacharia — speaking as the world's leading expert on short White House tenures: turn off the news and go enjoy your family. In time you’ll realize that the Universe did you a major favor.

I lived in Texas as it shifted from Democrat status to Republican. @DraperRobert's story about midterms is filled with the sort of insight and experience that only a native son can bring to the material. Worth reading, regardless of who you're rooting for

Last month @EWErickson warned you about Charles Haywood - a major @ClaremontInst donor on Claremont's American Mind Publication Committee, and founder of Society for American Civic Renewal (SACR). Haywood has said the GOP should be "gutted and worn like a skin suit by the Effective Right," by which he means alt-right antisemites. Claremont's president & @theblaze's Chief Marketing Officer are SACR members. So is @NateAFischer, a founder of Haywood-funded @AmReformer. Haywood has ALSO funded @NatConTalk, at whose Jerusalem conference last week employees of Claremont, The Blaze, and American Reformer scolded Israeli conservatives for complaining about alt-right antisemitism. You were warned...

I saw of video of Ethan Hawke lamenting how he's not reading half as much as he once did. This is a much deeper and darker pattern. Some of the most avid readers I know, lifelong readers, have basically stopped. They hate it and can't even explain it, the fire's just gone out

Back in the 1980s it was possible for a hippie punk musician to support a school bus -dwelling-blended-family-polycule by busking on Pacific Garden Mall in Santa Cruz. Now this something an AI safety researcher with an incomplete History of Science BA (from Northeastern) can barely afford. This is what they took from us.

On the @reason Interview, @mcuban talks abt how his 'hard-core Democrat' mom turned him on to Ayn Rand, whose Virtue of Selfishness ironically helped him become an entrepreneur motivated by helping people. Full audio, video, text at

'I let him run on, this papier-mache Mephistopheles, and it seemed to me that if I tried I could poke my forefinger through him, and would find nothing inside but a little loose dirt, maybe.' Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness