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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:
- Dennis Prager v Cedars-Sinai Lawsuit
- Dennis Prager Through Randall Collins: Interaction Ritual Chains
- What is a ‘Received Idea’?
- Jordan Bardella: The Manufacture of Normality
- Everyone Became Television: Bourdieu’s Warning and the 2026 Iran War
- Marine Le Pen
- The Coalition-Proximity Rule
- Nigel Farage
- Bernard Haykel: A Life Between the Text and the Gun
- Walker Connor (1926-2017)
- Benedict Anderson and the Nation as Imagination
- Anthony D. Smith: The Student Who Kept the Question and Rejected the Answer
- Ernest Gellner
- Eric Kaufmann: The Man Who Made the Majority Visible
- Dominic Cummings: A Biography
- Steve Lopez: The Last City Columnist
- California Historian Kevin Starr
- Stephen Kotkin: A Life in Power
- William T. Vollmann: An American Life in Excess
- Rod Dreher: A Life in Exile
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: Energy
Ten Convenient Beliefs For The Leaders Of Saudi Aramco
Stephen Turner (b. 1951) calls them convenient beliefs. A group holds them because the group needs them, not because the evidence forces them. The belief keeps the coalition together and protects its standing. The man who holds it believes it. … Continue reading
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Ten Convenient Beliefs For Energy Experts Now
Stephen Turner’s convenient beliefs are firing on all cylinders among energy analysts, EIA forecasters, IEA consultants, Wall Street oil desks, and think-tank energy wonks right now. With the U.S.-Israeli campaign entering its second month, Iranian oil terminals hit, the Strait … Continue reading
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The Jurisdictional Wars: Alliance Theory and the Battle for Power in Global Energy
High-status actors in the global energy order do not compete for authority by openly saying they want power. They compete by invoking moral languages that frame their authority as defending energy security, stabilizing markets, accelerating decarbonization, or protecting the rules-based … Continue reading
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Why Aren’t American Producers Cheering $100 A Barrel Oil?
Because they don’t think it is here to stay. Spot oil spiked past $100 on the Iran war. Prices for 2027 and 2028 rose only modestly. That gap tells you everything. The forward curve shows what traders actually believe will … Continue reading
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Energy Analysts Make For The Best Geostrategic Forecasters
The efficiency of this analytical circle comes from its focus on settlement rather than sentiment. While traditional geopolitical shops track the optics of a diplomatic summit, energy-macro analysts track the insurance premiums on a Suezmax tanker. That shift from narrative … Continue reading
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The Energy Of The Iran Expert
In the framework of Randall Collins, the Iran experts currently flooding our screens are participating in a High-Density Interaction Ritual (IR) Chain. As Operation Epic Fury escalates in March 2026, these individuals are not just sharing information; they are accumulating … Continue reading
Where Does Trump Get His Energy?
In the sociological framework of Randall Collins, Donald Trump is a High-Intensity Interaction Ritual (IR) Generator. His legendary “energy” is not an innate biological trait, but the result of a Positive Emotional Energy (EE) Loop that he triggers through massive, … Continue reading
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How do you get energized? From connecting with people you love. (12-8-23)
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The Energy Stars (3-20-22)
00:00 The situation is the boss 03:00 The power of emotional energy, https://lukeford.net/blog/?p=142897 07:00 Elliott Blatt joins 12:00 Karen Carpenter, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_Carpenter 15:00 How did Ukraine become sacred? 25:00 Stalemate in Russia v Ukraine 52:10 Who’s Who in the Dissident Right: … Continue reading