the bastards' last stand

On September 11, 2001, I awoke early to look at apartments across New York City. After visiting an apartment in Brooklyn I planned to never step into again, I stopped at a bodega for a coffee. On the small television behind the counter, the clerk was watching the news of a plane crashing into one of the World Trade Center towers.  Without listening closely, I assumed that it must have been a small craft and pilot error. In the moment, I could not conceive of it being deliberate. After hopping on the subway and reaching midtown, I heard about the second crash and hearsay of others near DC. From my vantage near the library I could see the columns of smoke rising from the towers, and watched them both eventually collapse. In the days and weeks that followed grew a sense of unity that was unique in my lifetime, a collective hurt stronger than our many differences. Much of the world offered its heartfelt support, despite our status as a fading superpower. That support faded over the years t

In the 2020 Democrat primary, Julian Castro attempted to distinguish himself from the crowded field by highlighting concerns that Joe Biden was hampered by his age. His strategy culminated in an exchange during the third debate accusing Biden of forgetting what he had said two minutes prior. It was a powerful debate moment that essentially ended Castro's campaign for being too mean.  The irony is that his strategy reflected the concerns of other Democrats . During his presidency, Biden's diminishing capacity has been continuously on display, even with Biden avoiding challenging press conferences. He repeatedly has seemed to forget that his son died of cancer and not in combat in Afghanistan. He has made numerous verbal gaffes dating back to that primary, including reading stage direction from his teleprompter. This is all to say that there should have been no surprise with how disastrous his debate performance against Trump was in their rematch. Yet, many pundits and democrat o

 

The Cass Review is an investigation into the UK National Health Service treatment of adolescents diagnosed with gender dysphoria. It was released in early April and recommends a strict restriction on the prescription of puberty blockers while calling into question the idea of medicalization generally. It was conducted by renowned UK pediatrician Hillary Cass. I have been reluctant to write on it because I knew that I wouldn't read it. My impulse was to recommend taking The WPATH Files: Another Beginning of the End? , replacing every mention of WPATH Files with The Cass Review. Although every detail would be wrong, the conclusion would remain. " The sterilization of children will not end because of more and better information, although that is critical. It will only end when the concept of gender is destroyed, thoroughly and completely."  There have already been multiple systematic reviews of the evidence for treating the diagnosis of gender dysphoria with synthetic hormo

The WPATH Files , published by journalist Michael Shellenberger and written by Mia Hughes are the result of leaked behind the scenes communications from The World Professional Association of Transgender Health. The leaks reveal an organization making medical recommendations based on the advocacy of non-medical activists. The WPATH Standards of Care are held up as the medical standard for "gender medicine" for "gender confused" adolescents and adults. Shellenberger sees the WPATH Files along with the announcement from the UK National Health Service of the discontinued use of puberty blockers as the end of gender affirming care. While I hope that I am just being cynical, he is clearly wrong. I say this based on experience. To paraphrase Jonathan Swift, do not assume that any medical procedure started absent evidence can easily be stopped by evidence. I had not given much thought to the idea of adolescent transition until 2019. To the degree that I had thought of it, I

I started writing about the idea of identity and its unintended trap but, as often happens, my writing was overtaken by real world events that necessitated considering those events in the writing. It is obvious why writing about identity should consider the implications of the implosion of the Ibram X. Kendi led Center for Antiracism Research at Boston University. I have struggled in the past to read Kendi because I find his writing nonsensical, but have addressed his underlying premise that MLK is wrong , the color of a man's skin matters more than his character. The predictable immolation of a center based on his ideals of an antiracism that reifies racial identity provides a clear example of the true strength of identity. Although it is counterintuitive, the strongest identity is that which is most ephemeral. The connection to the other event may seem less immediately obvious. However, in a nutshell, the terrorist attack on Israeli civilians by Hamas and Israel's military re