The Inner Monologue

Oh, look—another political leader has turned their nation into a smoldering crater of dysfunction. Shocking. But before you assume they’re just incompetent, let’s consider the thrilling possibility that they’re winning—just not for the country. 1. The Power Trip: “I’m the Main Character” Syndrome Some leaders don’t just want power; they want all of it, preferably…

Every election cycle, like clockwork, a politician somewhere decides that the easiest way to explain losing is to call the entire American voting system a fraud. It’s a lazy, cowardly lie—and an insult to every voter’s intelligence. Let’s be clear: meaningful voter fraud in the United States is functionally impossible. Not “rare.” Not “unproven.” Impossible…

Ah, perception—the cozy little blanket we wrap ourselves in to avoid the cold, hard floor of reality. Most people stroll through life convinced they’re the star of a reasonably well-scripted drama, where they’re above-average drivers, owners of legitimate sports cars, and proud citizens of a true democracy. Spoiler alert: You’re probably wrong on all counts.…

There was a time when being human meant being capable. The Renaissance human could paint, invent, cook, build, fix, debate, and maybe even write a sonnet before lunch. Self-reliance wasn’t a lifestyle choice; it was the baseline. Fast forward to now, and we’re not Renaissance humans—we’re project managers of our own helplessness. We don’t do…

Every few years, Silicon Valley convinces itself it’s about to “reinvent” something that didn’t need fixing. First it was money. Then education. Then transportation. Now, apparently, it’s shopping. The new gospel from the tech-bro pulpit is that conversation will replace commerce — that one day soon, we won’t shop; we’ll just talk, and the machines…

The Myth of the Infinite Playground The business world loves to copy its heroes. “What would Google do?” has become a mantra whispered in boardrooms, business schools, and startup incubators. The problem is that almost no one asking that question lives in Google’s universe. Google doesn’t play the same game anymore. Once you’re a trillion-dollar…

There’s a peculiar arrogance in the notion of “planned development.” Whether it’s a business incubator, a new city district, or an innovation hub, the underlying assumption is that success can be engineered if one simply copies the visible architecture of success. The glass tower, the seed fund, the collaborative workspace—all borrowed from examples that “worked.”…

By a Nebraska Corn and Soybean FarmerOctober 2025 Most mornings, I’m up before sunrise, coffee in hand, watching the eastern sky turn gray over the fields. It’s a quiet time to think — about the weather, the markets, the next bill due, and now, about Washington. The news says the federal government has “shut down.”…

Across two different deserts, in two different states, two great inland seas are dying. One—the Salton Sea of Southern California—is a century-old accident of human engineering. The other—the Great Salt Lake of Utah—is a natural wonder, older than civilization. Both are shrinking fast. Both are exposing toxic lakebeds that were never meant to breathe the…