The thing about elected authoritarians is that they sometimes lose elections. Such was the case in 2023 with Poland’s Law and Justice party.  The ultra-conservative populist party rode a wave of anti-elite sentiment to power in 2015. What happened next was directly out of the authoritarian playbook: They stacked Poland’s constitutional courts with loyalists — […]

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here. Welcome to The Logoff: The Trump administration is staring down another conflict with Iran. What’s happening? The US is in the midst of its largest military buildup in the […]

At every Olympic Games, there are winners, and there are many more losers. Dozens of gold, silver, bronze…and a whole bunch of people who walk away with nothing. Officially, Norway won the most in Milan and Cortina, with 41 total medals, 18 of which were gold. The US (with 33 overall and 12 gold), and […]

It’s pretty much impossible to live a life free of environmental harm. The cleanest energy relies on mining. Critical medical supplies produce plastic waste. Even organic foods are typically grown with pesticides. But there is one thing you could do immediately that would help the planet a heck of a lot: eat less beef.  I […]

Entire families sheltering in their homes, afraid to go outside. Children getting their lessons on iPad screens. Pregnant women skipping doctors’ appointments and considering home birth. A pervasive sense of confusion and terror — a feeling that “nothing is safe.” These may sound like scenes from 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered schools and workplaces […]