John Stoehr
John Stoehr is the editor of the Editorial Board. He writes the daily edition. Find him @johnastoehr.
You hear it all the time. “He acts that way because he’s insecure.” Take guns, for instance. He bought a gun because he feels insecure. He acted out because he feels insecure. He did terrible things to others because he feels insecure. So if he felt more secure, he wouldn’t do that? I’ve always felt…
Attributing fear to sadism gives sadists too much credit.
To them, being punished for being gay, trans or “illegal” is divine justice.
In retrospect, the Tea Party was a nascent fascist movement.
This morning’s news was a former Trump aide saying the Republicans should pick another candidate for the 2020 election. Jonathan Swan reported his phone interview with Anthony Scaramucci. “We are now in the early episodes of ‘Chernobyl’ on HBO, where the reactor is melting down and the apparatchiks are trying to figure out whether to…
I can’t stop thinking about this poem by James Baldwin. So much of liberal democracy entails trust in each other, in our willingness to contract and covenant with each other, and in our obligations to respect and honor each other for our collective benefit. To have a democracy, we must have faith. When we break…
Finally, recognition of what should have been obvious.
My friend Arthur Goldwag once said the problem with conspiracy theories is that sometimes real conspiracies occur, and when they do, they can give credence to all conspiracy theories. Well, today the AP confirmed that Jeffrey Epstein hanged himself in a federal prison. He was found dead this morning. Epstein had already once attempted suicide.…
The simplest answer is best.
Mötley Crüe’s drummer offered some perspective this evening. He was joking but thing is: the president’s supporters believe this. You can bet on it. —JS