Graham Platner’s campaign to dethrone Susan Collins as one of Maine’s two senators has come to an abrupt end following allegations of sexual assault. In an 11-minute-long video on X, the progressive firebrand launched a combative defense calling the allegations…
Reading Ryan Stollar’s final message through the lens of trauma
Note: This article discusses suicide, child sexual abuse and domestic violence. It may be distressing for some readers. On June 30, child liberation theologian and abuse survivor advocate Ryan Stollar died by suicide, following a lengthy struggle with his…
6 ways the Reflecting Pool boondoggle mirrors Trump and MAGA
It was supposed to be a simple restoration project. A $1.5 million maintenance project on a prominent national landmark that would take about two weeks to complete. A proverbial drop in the bucket of the Department of the Interior’s budget….
The Enhanced Games were another MAGA grift
Recently, 42 athletes from 24 countries gathered in a temporary, ad hoc stadium built in a casino overflow parking lot to compete in what Donald Trump Jr. called an example of “excellence, innovation and American dominance on the world stage.”…
Why it is immoral for one man to be a trillionaire
Elon Musk has become the world’s first trillionaire, attaining a net worth of $1,100,000,000,000, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires list. The tipping point was the release of SpaceX’s initial public offering at $135 per share, giving the company a total…
Trump, the White House, the UFC and our history of violence
On June 14, a spectacle of violence will take place on the White House South Lawn — a spectacle bigger than anything we’ve seen since the January 6 insurrection. UFC Freedom 250, a mixed-martial arts event produced by Ultimate Fighting…
Why Tanner Horner should not be executed
On Nov. 30, 2022, 7-year-old Athena Strand was kidnapped and murdered by FedEx driver Tanner Horner. Horner was at Strand’s house delivering a package when he instead abducted and then later murdered the young girl. When arrested by police, he…
Our own personal Jesus
For $1.99 per minute, you can speak directly with Jesus Christ — or, at least, an imagined AI approximation. Just Like Me, the brainchild of Chris Breed, bills itself as a “groundbreaking AI platform that lets anyone talk face-to-face with…
What I would say to Sam Allberry
A few days ago, Immanuel Church Nashville released a statement that associate pastor Sam Allberry had resigned from his position following an “inappropriate relationship with an adult man,” the nature and extent of which he failed to fully disclose. Allberry…
How American religion inspired Cole Allen’s violence
During the White House Correspondents’ Dinner last Saturday, Cole Allen breached a Secret Service checkpoint and fired shots at agents in an attempt to assassinate the president of the United States and other high-ranking officials. About 10 minutes prior, from…
The Seeing Stones and the surveillance state
There is something almost too on-the-nose about a company named Palantir releasing a manifesto that reads like a love letter to centralized power. Palantir Technologies does not exist in isolation from American political power. It is one node in a…
Artemis II, the space race and the future of cooperation
On July 20, 1969, an estimated 650 million people — roughly 20% of the world’s population — gathered around television sets to witness history. Descending from a ladder out of the lunar module, Neil Armstrong stepped onto the surface of…