Category Archives: Conservative Resistance

Retreat from Civilization

Posted on Saturday 6 December 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Trump worries about “civilizational erasure” but only in a white supremacist sense; And contrasting his motives with those described by Pinker that brought about modern civilization; Heather Cox Richardson describes the retreat from the global stage; Bryan Walsh at Vox … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Human Progress | Comments Off on Retreat from Civilization

Strategies of Reality Denial

Posted on Friday 5 December 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Trump’s basic strategy is “deny deny deny”; Why young men turn to Nick Fuentes’ neo-Nazi movement; How Trump is dragging the White House press corps, and perhaps all modern civilization, down into his gutter; How Trump is reviving rules about … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, conservatives, Philosophy, Politics | Comments Off on Strategies of Reality Denial

The Trembling Present

Posted on Thursday 4 December 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Are we on the verge of societal collapse in the US, back into totalitarianism or feudalism, or will this current era pass? Ilhan Omar on Trump’s naked bigotry; Robert Reich on Trump’s mental decline, and the relaxing of inhibitions in … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Lunacy, Politics | Comments Off on The Trembling Present

The Fog of War, Hurricanes, and Cave Man Mentality

Posted on Wednesday 3 December 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

JD Vance’s caveman rage against a lesbian stepmom; Heather Cox Richardson about Trump’s decline in mental acuity, and Sen. Mark Kelly on Pete Hegseth; Zack Beauchamp on how Trump is advancing the white nationalist worldview; Hegseth’s misunderstanding of the metaphor … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, conservatives, Politics, Religion | Comments Off on The Fog of War, Hurricanes, and Cave Man Mentality

The Limitations of Human Cognition

Posted on Monday 1 December 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Anti-Vaxxers and how it’s not about evidence; Paul Krugman on Trump’s incoherent war on drugs; Short takes on how Trump is elevating Sen. Mark Kelly; how Maga’s idea of Christianity implies a “cold-hearted Jesus”; and why a Bible-based essay on … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Human Nature, Psychology | Comments Off on The Limitations of Human Cognition

Because It’s There, and Because We Can

Posted on Sunday 30 November 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Big Think, Ethan Siegel, 28 Nov 2025: Ask Ethan: What’s the point of exploring the Universe?, subtitled “There are so many problems, all across planet Earth, that harm and threaten humanity. Why invest in researching the Universe?” (My first comment, … Continue reading →

Posted in Astronomy, Conservative Resistance, Cosmology, Science | Comments Off on Because It’s There, and Because We Can

False Equivalences

Posted on Wednesday 26 November 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Frank Bruni on people who excuse Trump’s outrageous behavior for the relatively minor sins of the previous administration, unable to tell the difference in magnitude; Briefly noted items about Mark Kelly and Benedict Arnold; NYT on Trump’s fatigue and Trump’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Human Nature, Lunacy, Politics, Psychology | Comments Off on False Equivalences

Be Careful What You Wish For

Posted on Monday 24 November 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

What a no-immigration economy looks like; A profound psychological question: why is RFK Jr. so convinced he’s right? A thought for the day about childhood religion; Briefly noted items about an administration of liars; how MAGA is tearing apart following … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Psychology | Comments Off on Be Careful What You Wish For

Getting the Joke

Posted on Sunday 23 November 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Family in town this weekend, a pre-Thanksgiving get-together to avoid busier plans next weekend. Michael and Honey and baby here; trips to Alameda and Foster City and Berkeley; I put 100 miles on my car in three days, driving back … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Morality, Politics | Comments Off on Getting the Joke

The Retreat from the Enlightenment

Posted on Friday 21 November 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

The key theme of our age, at least in the US: the retreat from the aspirations of the Enlightenment, both political and scientific. Reverting to tribalism and intuitive superstitions. Actually, these forces have probably never gone away. The difference now … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, conservatives, Decline, Lunacy, Politics | Comments Off on The Retreat from the Enlightenment