We are clever primates on a wet rock, drifting through a dark sea of space, and one of our most persistent illusions is that the universe is impressed by our dashboards. We take something messy and alive—human attention, judgment, sleep, dignity—and we pour it into tidy containers called targets, and then we act surprised when the container leaks. Somewhere in a bright meeting room, under lighting designed to flatter neither … Read the rest
A functioning country has to do two things at once, even when that makes everyone uncomfortable: enforce its laws, and keep its promises. Borders matter. Procedures matter. And so does the basic bargain implied in every civics class and every naturalisation ceremony: if you follow the rules, the rules will be intelligible, stable, and worth following.
That is why the slogan “we’re cracking down on illegal immigration” feels, at first … Read the rest
There is a comforting fairy tale that people tell themselves about food regulation. Europe is the anxious parent cutting grapes into quarters, America is the cool uncle tossing the kid a steak knife and saying, “Build character.” Both sides insist they are protecting the child. Both sides are partly right. And when it comes to beef, the argument is not really about beef. It is about what you do with … Read the rest
By Eric Le Roy
“The world is a comedy for those who think, and a tragedy for those who feel” – Horace Walpole
“Only the Lonely” was the signature song of a guy named Roy Orbison, a star in the early rock’ n’ roll era. Orbison died in 1988 of a heart attack at the age of 52. Songs are full of lonely guys; they were back … Read the rest
If the universe had a mood, it would be Monday. Entropy marches, coffee cools, batteries drain, and socks vanish into an event horizon behind the washing machine. Against this cosmic backdrop, optimism can feel like a form of bad arithmetic. Yet here we are—hairless apes who invented anesthesia and sourdough starters—still arguing about whether the glass is half full, half empty, or a … Read the rest
