Outside the Beltway

The ship is abandoning the sinking rat.

There are too many products chasing too few consumers.

Has a franchise that’s always been political gone too far?

A follow on from yesterday.

It’s the Swiss army knife of profanity.

The latest strategic moral panic from the far right

The only way to save our freedom is to destroy it.

Stories of note sans write-ups.

Two related examples: are they “cancel culture” or not?

One of the great annoyances of the Internet is slowly going away.

Thomas gets the ball rolling, and I take off from there.

Is the past still the past?

Are we really being blocked from getting back to normal? And if so, what is the real barrier?

But only the original books, not the Disney adaptations.

When life doesn’t imitate art.

The Hall of Fame coach and legendary broadcaster is dead at 85.

A long peek at history in the making.

Is the Worldwide Leader responsible oblivious to bigotry?

The right questions are: 1) why do some some on the right like him, and 2) should this concern us all?

Making it difficult for refuseniks works better than prizes.

The cost of raising a university’s profile.

The tabs must be cleared.

The tech giant is even more powerful than you think.

An example from Dan McLaughlin of NR

Pandemic-induced recession? What pandemic-induced recession?

The Lone Star State is celebrating its independence in a big way.

Thus far, Disney+ and HBO Max are additive rather than cannibalizing competing services.

The days of one-stop media shopping are long gone.

The actor best known for his roles as Jackie Robinson and Black Panther has been lost to cancer.

The NBA playoffs have been hit with a work stoppage.

The President may be right on voting by mail.

It is foolish to think that we ever escape politics.

Some inchorent musings about a massive question.

A sign of the times.

More fallout from the consolidation of media brands.

An interesting albeit dubious selection for Person of the Year.

René Auberjonois, a long time character actor best known for his roles on Benson and Star Trek: Deep Space NIne, has died at 79.

A custody case out of Texas raises issues about how to react to and treat a child who identifies as a gender different from their biological sex.

South Park mocked Chinese censorship so, of course, they were censored in China.

This past weekend, Avengers: Endgame passed Avatar as the biggest-grossing movie of all-time, but there are several caveats.

A new report suggests that the Chinese movie-going market will surpass the American market in 2020.

Legendary Comedian Tim Conway has died at the age of 85.

Reason’s Nick Gillespie makes an interesting case but I don’t buy it.

I am a sucker for a good People’s Front of Judea riff.

The damage done for Mickey Mouse in the name of Sony Bono is finally coming to an end.

Rest in Peace and Excelsior, Stan Lee!

Hope Hicks jumps from one pro-Trump venue to another.

As much as we hate paying $200 a month for television, the future is likely going to be worse.

Harlan Ellison, who had a reputation for being as cantankerous as he was a great writer, has died at the age of 84.

It may be my favorite Star Wars film since ‘Empire Strikes Back.’