We live in a partisan age, and our news habits can reinforce our own perspectives. Consider this an effort to broaden our collective outlook with essays beyond the range of our typical selections.
FROM THE LEFT
From “Sonia Sotomayor Should Retire Now,” by Josh Barro in The Atlantic at tinyurl.com/y9cu83x4.
The context, from the author: Imagine for a moment that Hillary Clinton had won the 2016 election. She might have taken Democratic candidates across the finish line in close races, resulting in Democratic control of the Senate. Clinton would have named a liberal successor to (the late Antonin) Scalia — more liberal than (Merrick) Garland — and conservatives would have lost control of the Court, all because of Scalia’s failure to retire at the opportune moment.
The excerpt: Justice Sonia Sotomayor will turn 70 in June. If she retires this year, President Joe Biden will nominate a young and reliably liberal judge to replace her. Republicans do not control the Senate floor and cannot force the seat to be held open like they did when Scalia died. Confirmation of the new justice will be a slam dunk, and liberals will have successfully shored up one of their seats on the court — playing the kind of defense that is smart and prudent when your only hope of controlling the court again relies on both the timing of the death or retirement of conservative judges and not losing your grip on the three seats you already hold.
From “Get Capitalists’ Grubby Hands Off Our Hobbies,” by Helmer Stoel in Jacobin at tinyurl.com/2asuv7fu.
The context, from the author: Christian moralists long promoted hobbies as a way to occupy idle hands, bringing the work ethic into our free time. Today hobbies risk turning into side hustles — yet they also point to what work might look like if it wasn’t about making money.
The excerpt: What would leisure look like if it was no longer shaped by the dynamics of exploited and alienated labor? For the Left, establishing non-exploitative labor and more control in the workplace also implies the struggle for sufficient and equal free time for all. And it is not too utopian to speculate that in such truly free time — that could be spent on serious pursuits, or just relaxation — the classical “hobby” might just lose its appeal as a refuge from the horrors of modern work.
From “Who Are Latino Americans Today?” by Graciela Mochkofsky in The New Yorker at tinyurl.com/2st3e4ft.
The context, from the author: A big new book called “LatinoLand” dispels stereotypes in an effort to get beyond Latino 101.
The excerpt: Perhaps the most important question is, what is such an identifying term (”Latino” or “Hispanic”) for? For that, “LatinoLand” offers a very good answer. American Latinos, (the author Marie) Arana writes, are “a cohort that has yet to understand its past, its bonds, its inherent power. Here in ‘LatinoLand,’ in this wildly diverse population, in our yearning for unity, in our sheer perseverance, lives a vibrant force. A veritable engine of the American future.” That is to say that Latino is primarily a political identity.
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Explore all your optionsFROM THE RIGHT
From “Christian Nationalism Is Not What the Left Says It Is,” by Jerry Wilson in RedState at tinyurl.com/mrxd3yzp.
The context, from the author: The left portrays Christian nationalism as white Angle-Saxon Protestantism on steroids; the automatic assumption that each of these elements by itself is evil and, when all brought together, make up a hideous force that demands stopping by all means necessary.
The excerpt: Those whose knowledge of Christian nationalism comes solely from trickled-down misinformation will react with fear unless presented with the truth. Christian nationalism reflects not a legal mandate of Christianity’s fundamentals but rather a nation whose populace reflects Jesus’ teachings put into action. Christian nationalism is honesty. It’s treating others how you want them to treat you. Christian nationalism is accepting responsibility for yourself and your actions. It is taking care of the poor and needy directly, not through perpetually overfunded and underperforming government efforts.
From “In Rioting, TikTok and IVF, ‘Popularism’ Bewitches Both Parties,” by James P. Pinkerton in The American Conservative at tinyurl.com/4x5ez6h2.
The context, from the author: Is it better for a politician to be popular or principled? That’s an age-old dilemma.
The excerpt: Yes, it’s a paradox. The country is as polarized as ever, and yet on (many small) policy issues, as opposed to political styles, the gap between the parties is narrowing as November nears. Whether they use the word or not, popularism is the game both parties play — when they can.
From “The Dead-Enders of the Reagan-Era GOP,” by Damon Linker in The Atlantic at tinyurl.com/ymnkam39.
The context, from the author: Mike Pence’s non-endorsem*nt of Donald Trump only underlines how irrevocably the Republican Party has left traditional conservatism behind and embraced radical populism.
The excerpt: A sizable portion of Americans who haven’t graduated from college, of whatever race or ethnicity, have different priorities (than those who seek a Reagan restoration) — and, more and more, they form the base of the GOP. Those voters prefer to think of the nation as an armed camp; they want to see government power used to advance what they conceive as their own and their country’s interests, and they like that message conveyed in a muscular style of trash-talking vulgarity and humor. The old high-minded, edifying and earnest Reagan speeches that portrayed America as a shining city on a hill, with the duty to defend democracies abroad, leave these voters cold.
