Welcome to the weekend edition of the Editorial Board, where you will find a roundup of everything produced over the last week by our amazing stable of writers.

This weekender features Magdi Semrau on why congressional gridlock is just what the Senate Republicans want; Lindsay Beyerstein on where the coronavirus really came from (not a Chinese lab); Claire Bond Potter on the world that Title IX made for us to live in; and Mia Brett on why critical race theory is nothing to be afraid of.

This week featured me, too. Here’s what you may have missed:

• Monday June 7, 2021
When treason is profitable, it’s legitimate. Read more

• Tuesday June 8, 2021
‘Giuliani tape’ is reminder the Republicans would conspire with foreign leaders to defeat Democrats Read more

• Wednesday June 9, 2021
At the heart of ‘the culture war’? Lies Read more

• Thursday June 10, 2021
How the press corps severs public debate from the constraints of history, creating space for real harm Read more

• Friday June 11, 2021
What does a democratic society do with people who’d rather die than be wrong about democracy? Read more

Reminder: Subscribers who can’t wait for the weekend edition can visit the website or follow me on Twitter, where I post material fresh daily and talk politics and trash.

Follow me at @johnastoehr.

This new material is for subscribers only. So … don’t miss out! Support the Editorial Board and its mission to rebuild civil society and restore the common good!

—JS

On that note, here’s the weekend edition …

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June 11, 2021

Who’s afraid of critical race theory? After reading this essay, hopefully you’ll see it isn’t scary at all

By Mia Brett

People often believe it’s an overly theoretical study without concrete evidence, writes Editorial Board member Mia Brett. In reality, CRT is often based on the study of statistics, laws and legal cases (about as concrete as you can get).

READ MORE

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June 10, 2021

Yale Law’s famed tiger mother is guilty of many things, but sexual harassment isn’t one of them

By Claire Bond Potter

Not all complaints against Yale law professors Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld claim discrimination and harassment, writes Editorial Board member Claire Bond Potter. But connecting the dots among those that do reveals a world Title IX made.

READ MORE

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June 10, 2021

If there’s a disease outbreak, there’s a conspiracy theory to explain it. Trump’s playing an old game

By Lindsay Beyerstein

It’s hard to accept that random mutations in lowly horseshoe bats upended human civilization for over a year, writes Editorial Board member Lindsay Beyerstein. It’s easier, cognitively and emotionally, to blame enemies for our woes.

READ MORE

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June 8, 2021

No, the filibuster does not protect the Democratic Party. It creates the gridlock that weakens it

By Magdi Semrau

Democratic policies are popular on a national level. Republican policies are not. Republicans know this, which is one among their reasons for maintaining a dysfunctional Congress, writes Editorial Board member Magdi Semrau.

READ MORE

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