Abusing the Spiral
Source: Underthrow
by Max Borders
“When so-called systems thinkers turn stage theory into a political bludgeon.” (09/21/26)
Category: Opinion
Of Donald and Diesel
Source: Paul Krugman
by Paul Krugman
“I still sometimes see commentators asserting that fears about the effects of Trump’s disastrous Iran war on energy prices were overstated, because the price of crude oil is “only” $102 a barrel, far above prewar prices but well below the $150-$200 range some analysts warned was possible. But nobody burns crude oil; they burn products refined from crude oil, mainly gasoline and diesel. And here’s what has happened to the price of diesel: Diesel is currently selling at more than $200 a barrel. It’s true that there is always a ‘crack spread’ between crude and diesel, but it’s typically on the order of $20. So the price of diesel is currently roughly what we would normally expect with crude at around $190.” (09/21/26)
We Could, We Should, We Must
Source: Brownstone Institute
by Josh Stylman
“Two professors at a medical school in Michigan published a peer-reviewed paper in the journal Bioethics. Their argument is that it is ‘morally obligatory’ to genetically engineer ticks to spread a disease that makes humans violently allergic to red meat. My first reaction was the natural one, in my opinion. It had to be an Onion or Babylon Bee headline someone laundered through a fake citation. … So I checked and it turned out to be real. … The author’s actual argument – and remember this is not satire – is that alpha-gal syndrome (AGS), the tick-borne red meat allergy, is a ‘moral bioenhancer.’ Their logic: if eating meat is morally wrong, and the allergy makes you stop eating meat (because it will now kill you), then the allergy makes you a better person.” (09/21/26)
Before the Fall
Source: Washington Monthly
by Merrrill Goozner
‘The number of Americans without health insurance is soaring this year. Last week’s Census Bureau report on the uninsured rate for 2025 is the last good news we’ll get for a while.” (09/21/26)
Hidden from CPI, These Costs Are Eating Away at Real Wages
Source: The Daily Economy
by Karl-Friedrich Israel
“Official inflation calculations exclude taxes and asset prices. Add them in, and three decades of modest paycheck gains become losses.” (09/21/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/hidden-from-cpi-these-costs-are-eating-away-at-real-wages/
The Ones Who Walk Away from AI
Source: American Greatness
by Stephen Soukup
“Almost exactly a month ago (about a fraction of a second before the issue exploded into the public consciousness) I attempted to address the moral peculiarities of ‘Effective Altruism’, the philosophy-based behavioral code that animates and governs the lives of the tech elites who dominate AI. In retrospect, that column was not my finest. It was a bit of a mess …. In short, in an attempt to discredit the entirety of the Effective Altruism movement, I failed to pick a single target and, as a result, failed to make a particularly effective case against any of it.” (09/21/26)
https://amgreatness.com/2026/09/21/those-who-walk-away-from-ai/
Each state is sovereign. Colorado must not have heard.
Source: Washington Post
by Mike Hilgers
“The U.S. Supreme Court in October will hear oral arguments in Suncor Energy v. County Commissioners of Boulder County, a case arising from climate litigation but presenting a much older constitutional question: How far may one state extend its law into the affairs of another? Boulder County seeks to use Colorado public nuisance law to pursue energy companies for their alleged contribution to global climate change. The Colorado Supreme Court allowed those claims to move forward. On appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, Suncor and ExxonMobil argue that Boulder’s claims are blocked by the Constitution and federal law, because greenhouse gas emissions transcend state boundaries.” (09/21/26)
The One, the Many, and the In-Between
Sourc: Law & Liberty
by Luke C Sheahan
“The structure of digital interaction in social media draws us into abstract communities, offering a false sense of belonging while at the same time separating us from true belonging in a concrete community. None of this is psychologically or spiritually healthy. One of the most disturbing facts is that of social contagion in the digital age. We’ve known of social contagions for a long time, such as the dancing plague of 1518 that erupted in Strasbourg.” (09/21/26)
https://lawliberty.org/book-review/the-one-the-many-and-the-in-between/
Police hugging AI so tight, soon we’ll all be pre-crime suspects
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Harrison Berger
“The risks presented by superintelligent and uncontrollable artificial intellifence are real, but the security appartatus is already colloborating closely with these firms.” (09/21/26)
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/pentagon-artificial-intelligence/
Quantum Vibe, 09/21/26
Source: Big Head Press
by Scott Bieser
Cartoon. (09/21/26)