Author Archives: Mark R. Kelly

Another Take on the Left/Right Divide

Posted on Sunday 22 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Kalen Dion on the right/left divide: homogeneity/diversity, and all that implies; What do historians mean that tomorrow won’t be better than today? Because human nature; The modern economy and the limits of human cognition; Conservative values: the Biblical right to … Continue reading →

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Whatever They Can Get Away With

Posted on Friday 20 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Short items today Trump’s move to demolish greenhouse gas standards is based on a (admittedly technical) lie; America is experiencing a tourism slump (because… one guess); About Trump’s “cartoonish” monuments to himself; How Trump makes his own voters suffer; How … Continue reading →

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Does Western Civilization Depend on Christian Monotheism?

Posted on Thursday 19 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Challenging David Brooks, the retiring NYT columnist, and his idea of building a humanist culture, from Bruce Ledewitz and Robert Reich; Brooks’ problem, claims Ledewitz, is that Brooks can’t let go of religion; “the past collapsed for a reason”; And … Continue reading →

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Are There Superior Civilizations?

Posted on Wednesday 18 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Reactions to a speech by Marco Rubio claiming the superiority of Western Civilization over all others, by Bret Stephens, Eliot A. Cohen, Jamelle Bouie; Noting again Jared Diamond, who explained decades ago why the fact that the Enlightenment et al … Continue reading →

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Religious Motivations

Posted on Tuesday 17 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Jerry Coyne challenges claims of a religious revival in America; Review of a book called “Why I Am Not an Atheist” by Christopher Beha; And a NYT essay by author Christopher Beha. – – – A couple items about religion … Continue reading →

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Visually Stunning

Posted on Monday 16 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

More about conservative comments about San Francisco; Paul Krugman wonders why MAGA hates the planet; How conservatives prioritize big families: quantity over quality; Connecting dots between mentions of Tom Holland and his book DOMINION; The MAGA attitude of contempt for … Continue reading →

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The Clash Within

Posted on Sunday 15 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

How there isn’t a clash of civilizations (e.g. Christian vs. Muslim) so much as a clash between modernity and those who resent it: WOKE vs MAGA; Items about ensuring the “right” people will vote, the erosion of the separation of … Continue reading →

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The Trump Administration Declines All Knowledge

Posted on Saturday 14 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Satire from The Atlantic based on the Trump administration’s renunciation of scientific conclusions about climate change; Conflicted ideas about the state of the world; How Gallup will stop tracking presidential approval rates; Another movement from Akhnaten: Attack and Fall – … Continue reading →

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Regressing to Might Makes Right

Posted on Friday 13 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

How Trump is reviving pagan values in which might makes right, while historian Tom Holland gives Christianity all the credit for ideas of inherent morality (ideas the administration is ignoring), which I dispute; Author Rod Dreher think the Enlightenment was … Continue reading →

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Renouncing Reality, Yet Again, to Make Money

Posted on Thursday 12 February 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

The Trump administration denies climate change, in favor of big business; Trump is best on cashing in; Paul Krugman explains why deportation don’t create jobs and will lead to more deaths of native-born Americans; Brief items about conservatives and small … Continue reading →

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