Welcome back to our coffee klatch, where Heather and I discuss the lows and lowers of the previous week. Today we examine: — Inequality on the high seas. Billionaires’ yachts, unsafe submersibles, and dangerous crossings for migrants. Where will this end? — Inequality on the high court. Billionaires and the justices. Where will this end? — Inequality in Big Tech. Google, Facebook, and Twitter open for demagogues again. Where will this end? — How Republicans are undermining public trust in the Ju...
Jun 25, 2023•21 min
Friends, Welcome back to another Saturday coffee klatch, where Heather and I review the highs and lows (and even lowers) of the week. Today we focus on: — Trump’s arrest. Why was there no violence, as many had feared? Can we possibly elect a president who’s in prison? — Trump’s promise to appoint a special prosecutor to “go after Biden and the entire Biden crime family” if Trump is reelected president. Do we need to take Sam Ervin’s advice after Watergate? — The GOP House loonies. Is Kevin McCar...
Jun 17, 2023•20 min
Friends, Welcome back to my Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse (executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action, and my former student) where we discuss the highs and lows (and often, these days, even lowers) of the week. On tap for today: — The Justice Department’s momentous decision to indict Trump. What’s the likely political and legal fallout? — The Supreme Court’s decision to save Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Why did the court suddenly change direction? — CNN’s decisio...
Jun 10, 2023•22 min
Lots of news this week, but we thought it a good time to push the pause button for a moment. We get so much mail from so many of you who are curious about, well, us — especially how we got to political views and values we have, and how our stories compare to yours. So we thought we’d spend today’s klatch on the personal and political. Among the issues we talk about are: — Our political “awakenings.” What were the triggers and circumstances? — How our political views have evolved. — How and why w...
Jun 04, 2023•22 min
Friends, Welcome back to my Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse (executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action, and my former student), when we review the highs and lows (and sometimes very lows) of the week. Today we focus on: — Ron DeSantis will be announcing his run for the Republican nomination next week. Does he have a prayer? — Trump’s Georgia indictment will likely be announced in August. Will it make any difference? — Joe Manchin is causing trouble again. Will he make a t...
May 21, 2023•17 min
Friends, While MAGA Republicans in the House attack and investigate what they dub Biden’s “weaponized” federal government and blast Democratic mayors for being “soft on crime,” they are blatantly ignoring the crimes of their allies in plain sight. After Rep. George Santos was arrested and charged with 13 federal crimes — seven counts of wire fraud, three counts of money laundering, one count of theft of public funds, and two counts of making false statements to Congress — what did Speaker Kevin ...
May 18, 2023•4 min
Friends, On Sunday I experienced the perfect antidote to the resurgent Trump and Trumpism. I met with Tennessee Representative Justin Jones right after he gave an inspiring talk to our graduating UC Berkeley public policy students. As you may recall, Jones and another young Black Tennessee legislator, Justin Pearson, were expelled last month from the state’s General Assembly for protesting Tennessee’s failure to enact stronger gun controls after a shooting at a Christian school in Nashville took...
May 16, 2023•4 min
Friends, Welcome back to my Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse (executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action, and my former student), when we review the highs and lows (and sometimes very lows) of the week. This week we focus on: — Donald Trump’s horrible lie-fest on CNN. Why did CNN give him a full hour in front of a fawning audience of Trump fans? — E. Jean Carroll’s courtroom victory over Trump, as a Manhattan jury awards her $5 million in damages and finds him liable for se...
May 14, 2023•17 min
Friends, Retiring from the university means I have to vacate my office. The university has already scheduled a cleaning and new paint job (as if my years of habitation have somehow infested it). What to do with my books? I’ve accumulated several hundred over the years, now scrunched together on shelves running floor to ceiling. I’ve considered carting them to the student common room with a sign reading “free books” but can’t yet bring myself to part with them. Many are like old friends. They’re ...
May 04, 2023•3 min
Friends, The same Republican state lawmakers who are prohibiting transgender care for young people and barring them from using school bathrooms or playing on sports teams according to their gender identity — all in the name of “protecting children” — are actively subjecting children to more gun violence and pushing younger children into more dangerous jobs. Consider Arkansas, which in April 2021 became the first state to outlaw transition-related medical treatment for minors. A few month ago, af...
May 02, 2023•5 min
Friends, Ever since word got out that I’ll be retiring from teaching at the end of this semester, people have been asking me what I’ll be doing next? I try to respond politely, but the question annoys the hell out of me. I’m reminded of singer-songwriter Willie Nelson’s response to a fan who asked him when he’ll be retiring: “Retiring from what? ” Most people who “retire” usually stop what they call “working” and begin what they call “playing.” But what if your work is also your play? What if it...
Apr 20, 2023•3 min
Friends, The $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News — which starts Monday, with jury selection tomorrow — has uncovered a trove of damning text messages and emails showing that Fox News hosts like Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham knowingly lied to their viewers about false claims of voter fraud during the 2020 presidential election. A few weeks ago, Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis ruled that the evidence made it “CRYSTAL clear that none of the statements relating to Dominion ...
Apr 12, 2023•2 min
Friends, Welcome back to my Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse, executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action (and my former student), where we examine the lows and even lowers of the week. Today we look at: — Consequences of the Trump indictment: The Grifter-in-Chief rakes in more money and surges to the top of the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. — Tennessee’s return to Jim Crow: The legislature throws out two Black Democrats for protesting the state’s wea...
Apr 08, 2023•21 min
Friends, Welcome back to my Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse (executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action, and my former student), where we examine the lows and even lowers of the preceding week. Today we talk about: — Trump’s indictment, and what it really means. — Starbucks’ anti-labor strategy, and what we should do about it. — The Gwyneth Paltrow case, and why it’s gotten so much attention. — My course, starting next Friday right here on this Substack. So grab a cup, pul...
Apr 01, 2023•18 min
Friends, Welcome back to my Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse (executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action, and my former student), where we talk about the lows and the absurdities of the week. So grab a cup and pull up a chair. Today, we look at: — What really happened to Silicon Valley and the other small and medium-sized banks that got bailed out. — Whether this signals the beginning of a period of financial tumult and chaos on Wall Street, in the stock and bond markets, a...
Mar 19, 2023•16 min
Welcome back to today’s coffee klatch, where Heather Lofthouse (executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action and my former student) and I delve into the week’s highs and lows. So grab a cup, pull up a chair, and take our poll (if you wish). Today’s topics: — Friday’s jobs report, and why the big news is wages. — Thursday’s Biden budget, and why the big news is that it’s all a theatrical production designed to counter House Republicans. — Why Wall Street now regards good economic news as b...
Mar 12, 2023•21 min
Friends, Welcome back to our Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse (Executive Director of Inequality Media Civic Action, and my former student), as we plumb the depths of the past week. Grab a cup, pull up a chair, take our poll (if you wish), and join us. Today we explore: — Alex Murdaugh’s sentence for murder, and why the country is so fixated on this case. — The revolt of the citizens of East Palestine, Ohio, against the Norfolk Southern Railway, and how they exemplify what’s gone wro...
Mar 05, 2023•16 min
Friends, For nearly two decades, major corporations have touted principles known as E.S.G. (short for environmental, social, and governance factors), ostensibly by focusing their businesses on these concerns as well as on profits. But now Republicans are taking aim at this approach, calling it “woke capitalism” and using it to demonstrate that Democrats and progressives are trying to impose their views on the rest of society. In other words, the fight over E.S.G. is extending America’s culture w...
Mar 03, 2023•7 min
Friends, After Scott Adams, the creator of “Dilbert,” called Black people a “hate group” and said, “I don’t want to have anything to do with them” and that white people should “get the hell away from Black people,” media outlets have dropped his comic strip. In response, last Sunday Twitter chief Elon Musk blasted the media as being “racist against whites and Asians.” He offered no criticism of Adams’s comments. Later, Musk agreed with a tweet that said “Adams’ comments weren’t good” but “there’...
Mar 02, 2023•3 min
Friends, Artificial intelligence (AI) is finally hitting the economy and society big time. Bing’s chatbot (Microsoft plans a wide release soon) is capable of long, open-ended text conversations on virtually any topic. It’s caused a Times columnist to become “deeply unsettled, even frightened.” Google engineer Blake Lemoine was fired after claiming that the firm’s AI model, LaMDA, is “sentient.” It’s causing professors like me to wonder how to distinguish between student writing on exams and AI w...
Feb 27, 2023•4 min
Welcome back to our Saturday coffee klatch, where Heather Lofthouse (executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action, and my former student) and I examine the highlights and lowlights of the week. Today we look into: — Kevin McCarthy’s decision to give Fox News’s Tucker Carlson exclusive access to 40 hours of surveillance video from January 6, 2021. Is this a way for House Republicans to plant a “false flag” narrative about what happened on that fateful day? — Two dangerous illustrations of ...
Feb 26, 2023•17 min
Friends, The two men most likely to square off for the presidency of the United States next Election Day have held notably different conversations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. On July 25, 2019, then President Donald Trump spoke with Zelensky from the White House residence, ostensibly to congratulate Zelensky on his election. During that conversation, Trump reminded Zelensky that “the United States has been very good to Ukraine.” Trump knew full well that Zelensky was desperate fo...
Feb 23, 2023•6 min
Friends, Welcome back to our Saturday coffee klatch where Heather Lofthouse (executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action, and my former student) and I discuss the highlights and lowlights of the week. Today we focus on: — The likely indictment of Donald Trump — Hypocrisy at Fox News — Why Nikki Haley doesn’t stand a chance — Senator John Fetterman’s clinical depression — Norfolk Southern Railway’s lobbying — Why the Fed thinks great economic news is awful — The U.S. Department of Labor P...
Feb 18, 2023•19 min
Friends, Last Tuesday, House Republicans stood for a 43-minute recitation of the United States Constitution. This came just after Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee instituted a requirement to recite the Pledge of Allegiance before each meeting. Further pledges, flag salutes, and Constitution recitations are planned. Why are Democrats allowing Republicans to blanket themselves with conspicuous displays of patriotism, especially when the GOP has become the party of traitorousness and tr...
Feb 16, 2023•6 min
Friends, At President Biden’s State of the Union address last week, Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene repeatedly yelled “Liar!,” Tennessee Republican Rep. Andy Ogles shouted, “It’s your fault!,” and another Republican yelled “B******t!” Fourteen years ago, Republican Rep. Joe Wilson was formally rebuked by the whole House after shouting “you lie” at Obama. Yet now, anything goes. Meanwhile, Rep. George Santos remains in Congress despite mounting revelations of outright lies, fabrica...
Feb 14, 2023•6 min
Friends, I don’t know about you, but I look at the next 20 months leading up to the 2024 presidential election with some dread. That’s not because I’m especially worried Donald Trump or Ron DeSantis or someone equally horrific will be elected. I’m dreading the next 20 months because the entire process of selecting our president has become so fraught, divisive, and arbitrary that it threatens the foundation of our democracy. So today I want to share with you a little political hope — not my mothe...
Feb 13, 2023•8 min
Welcome back to our Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse, executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action (and my former student), where we explore the highs and lows of the past week. Pull up a chair and grab a cup. On today’s docket: — Biden’s State of the Union address. Why we think it ranks as one of the best ever. — George Santos, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, and other raving Republicans. Why have congressional Republicans gone stark raving mad? — The terrible traged...
Feb 11, 2023•16 min
My friends, As I mentioned last night, I thought Biden’s second State of the Union address was superb. It was one of the best State of the Union speeches I’ve witnessed — and I’ve witnessed many. Biden’s record so far has also been impressive — even though for the first two years of his presidency, the Democrats held a razor-thin congressional majority, and the Republican Party has become more traitorous and treacherous than at any time in modern American history. Yet despite Biden’s impressive ...
Feb 08, 2023•2 min
Welcome back to my Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse, executive director of Inequality Media Civic Action (and my former student), when we review the highs and lows of the week. Today we look at: — Friday’s extraordinary labor report, showing that 517,000 new jobs were created in January, almost double the number in December. How is the Fed likely to react? — Kevin McCarthy’s moves on the debt ceiling and on committee assignments in the Republican House. Why is he putting Marjorie Ta...
Feb 04, 2023•14 min
Friends, Speaker Kevin McCarthy said this week that Republicans will not call for cuts in Social Security or Medicare as they wheel and deal over the debt ceiling. He has promised to take Social Security and Medicare cuts “ off the table .” Here are 10 reasons why you shouldn’t believe him: 1. It’s incredibly difficult to cut federal spending without touching Social Security and Medicare. Social Security and Medicare together comprise over a third of the federal budget. Everything else (except d...
Feb 03, 2023•4 min
