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"Luke Ford reports all of the 'juicy' quotes, and has been doing it for years." (Marc B. Shapiro)
"This guy knows all the gossip, the ins and outs, the lashon hara of the Orthodox world. He’s an [expert] in... all the inner workings of the Orthodox world." (Rabbi Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff) LATEST POSTS:
- Are There Any Serial Killers In 90035?
- Karl Taro Greenfeld: The Brother, the Correspondent, the Fire
- Bret Stephens
- My Stanley Fish Reading List
- Why So Much Elite Enthusiasm For The Odyssey?
- Are There Any Realistic Ways Of Unifying America?
- Scenes from the Chokepoint Economy
- Robert Putnam: The Man Who Counted What America Lost
- W. Bradford Wilcox: The Sociologist Who Tells America to Get Married
- Peter Moskos: The Cop Who Talks to People
- Julius Krein
- Ryan Burge: The Numbers Man in the Empty Church
- Emily Oster: The Economist in the Delivery Room
- The Most Ridiculous Story Ever Told
- Tanner Greer
- Economist Tyler Cowen
- Richard Reeves: A Life in Institutions
- Jake Adelstein: The Reporter Who Became His Story
- Jim Goad (1961-2026)
- Moira Greyland
BEST POSTS:
- * The Enlightenment Wasn’t Enlightened (6-23-26)
* Mr. Burge Draws The Line (6-23-26)
* 'Improving on Democracy' (6-17-26)
* People Leak To People Who Are Fun (6-11-26)
* Why Does Australia Produce So Many Great Journalists? (6-11-26)
* Steve Wynn and the Press: Power, Litigation, and the Contest Over Las Vegas (6-3-26)
* Sheldon Adelson and the Journalists (6-3-26)
* The Vigilant Animal: Thinkers Who Reject the Myth of Human Gullibility (6-2-26)
* The Cost of Refusing the Misunderstanding Myth (6-2-26)
* Show Me How It Travels (6-2-26)
* The Norm Explainers (6-2-26)
* Centering Marginalized Voices (6-1-26)
* What would it look like if the Washington Post put its reader first? (6-1-26)
* What would it look like if the Financial Times put its reader first? (6-1-26)
* What It Would Mean for the Los Angeles Times to Put the Reader First? (6-1-26)
* What It Would Mean for The New York Times to Put the Reader First? (6-1-26)
* Why Wembanyama Lives on the Perimeter (5-31-26)
* The Emotional Palettes Of San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco & Sacramento (5-27-26)
* The Administrative Capital: Sacramento Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* San Diego - The Quiet Republic (5-27-26)
* The Quiet Bar: San Diego Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* SF v LA Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* Why Talent Travels Poorly Between San Francisco and Los Angeles (5-27-26)
* San Francisco and Los Angeles as Rival Models of Urban Access (5-27-26)
* Social Cliques in New York, 2026 (5-25-26)
* Social Cliques in San Francisco, 2026 (5-25-26)
* The Rival Courts of Washington (5-25-26)
* The City of Private Rooms (5-25-26)
Category Archives: Personal
My Search For Substitute Father Figures
At age 12 at Pacific Union College in the Napa Valley, I took up jogging, eventually completing five marathons (with times of over four hours each). I bonded with other marathoners at the college, most particularly with David Nieman, now … Continue reading
The Sabbath For Christians
I grew up a Seventh-Day Adventist. The “Adventist” part of the name means they believe in imminent arrival of Jesus Christ. The “Seventh-Day” part means they observe the Sabbath from Friday night to Saturday night. But what does “observe” mean? … Continue reading
What Did I Want From My Parents?
I’m working through these exercises by Dr. Stephan Poulter in his books The Mother Factor and The Father Factor. Here are some of the questions: * What are five things that you would have liked to have done with your … Continue reading
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The Time Bomb Parent
When I was a kid, I had to look after my step-mom, who was a ticking time bomb. “Parentified children don’t have a typical childhood or adolescence — they don’t rebel or skip school or act rudely to a teacher. … Continue reading
I Used To See The World Primarily In Moral Terms
In August of 1988, I started listening to Dennis Prager on the radio and quickly became fascinated. I’ve long sought out father figures and Prager was the ultimate daddy (next to God). I quickly bought into his view of the … Continue reading
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Romeo & Juliet
I remember spending a few days with the Thompsons (friends of the family from Avondale College) at Pacific Union College. I think it was the summer of 1982. I think it was a Sunday. Eye of the Tiger was playing … Continue reading
What Happened To Her Relationship Status On FB?
I’ve wasted a lot of time in therapy talking about my hopes for various women simply based on the fact that they removed their relationship status from Facebook and I hoped that meant they were ready for me to swoop … Continue reading
I identify with Anthony Weiner
I identify with his drive for attention and acclaim to ward off his underlying shame. I identify with seeking so desperately for affirmation from strangers that you’ve increased your own shame and humiliation. That’s how addiction works. I love the … Continue reading
The 2 AM Questions
It’s so much easier to fool myself during daylight hours. It’s late at night when I’m tossing and turning that I see uncomfortable truths about myself, that I’m not entirely on the right track, that I’m selfish and self-centered, and … Continue reading
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God, Orthodox Judaism, And The Rabbis
John Updike wrote in his novel SEEK MY FACE: “Or perhaps, if she is Jewish, she is unable to put the question of God quite the way a Christian would put it, in urgent terms of either/or. For the chosen … Continue reading
Posted in Adventist, Christianity, Jews, John Updike, Judaism, Personal, Rabbis
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