“What is sweeter than to have someone with whom you may dare discuss anything as if you were communing with yourself?”- Cicero, On Friendship Three weeks or so before Will died, I telephoned him at the hospital. When he answered, his voice was not much above a hoarse whisper. He was nauseous, he told me, and …
Author Archives: John Jalsevac
How our bad manners are destroying democracy
Even as everything is falling apart around us, resist the forces of barbarism by practicing the “good manners” first taught to you by your mother in the nursery.
Frost’s transgressive conservatism
I recently set myself the task of systematically reading every poem Robert Frost ever published. This amused my wife, who pointed out that it seemed unlikely that there was anything in the ratty, pencil-marked, taped and re-taped green volume of the Complete Poems of Robert Frost that has graced my bedside table ever since we were married …
God is smashing idols
Today, at 12:00 pm, Joe Biden was inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States. And in that moment, a thousand feverish MAGA dreams died. Trump did not, before he left the White House, declassify and release any trove of documents dishing dirt on the deep state and his political enemies. The military amassed …
Why I’m so angry
I think some of my friends believe I have lost my mind. I’ve always prided myself on how I use social media: engaging with everyone with charity, avoiding the hint of an ad hominem, and carefully limiting my use. I’ve violated all these principles, and more, in recent days. The fact is, I’m angry. I’m …
No, these Capitol rioters are NOT Antifa or BLM. Here’s the proof.
My social media feed is packed with fellow conservative activists and acquaintances who believe they have uncovered “the truth” about a couple of the most visible rioters from the Capitol today: they weren’t MAGA supporters; they’re really Antifa and Black Lives Matter (BLM) agent provocateurs! Dozens of my friends have posted photos “proving” that these …
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The humorlessness of our politics is driving us mad
Author’s note: This ambitious essay was intended to be published prior to the U.S. election. However, I was unable to find a venue for publication for something of this scope. As the thoughts expressed remain in many ways as (indeed, if not more) relevant as when I wrote them, I am publishing the piece after …
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No, new CDC data don’t prove Covid is a “hoax”. Here’s why.
Candace Owens’ claim this morning that newly released CDC data proves that the coronavirus pandemic is a “hoax” is not supported by the data. In the post, she writes, “94% of American coronavirus deaths had underlying conditions like heart disease. Less than 10,000 Americans died from Coronavirus alone.” https://www.facebook.com/realCandaceOwens/posts/4264856060252229 If my own Facebook feed is …
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The Falwell Effect
It’s clear what Christians have gained from our alliance with Trump. But I don’t believe we’ve grappled sufficiently with what we have lost.
A man’s place is in the home
But time and again Odysseus turned his face toward the radiant sun, anxious for it to set, yearning now to be gone and home once more … As a man aches for his evening meal when all day long his brace of wine-dark oxen have dragged the bolted plowshare down a fallow field – how …
Casual thoughts 