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"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:
- 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
- Robert Oscar Lopez: The Inconvenient Witness
- Two Ledgers: Decoding the Gurus and the Price of Talk
- The Pervert’s Progress: Costin Vlad Alamariu and the Making of Bronze Age Pervert
- Curtis Yarvin: A Life Against Democracy
- Mark Helprin: Against the Current
- Mark Brandt: The Man Who Asked Who Else Is Prejudiced
- John T. Jost: The Psychologist of Acquiescence
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: Alliance Theory
How Did Racism Become A Thing?
Prior to the 1920s, nobody talked about racism. How did racism become a moral category when it wasn’t used in Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and the pre-20th century philosophers and ethicists? Who invented the great evil of “racism” and how did … Continue reading
Posted in Alliance Theory, David Pinsof, Elites, Nationalism
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A Philosopher Discovers Ideology Isn’t About Ideas
Michael Huemer would benefit from learning Alliance Theory. He writes today: When I first encountered ideologies and religions, I took them at face value, as attempts to understand the world. I assumed that people sincerely believed them and would use … Continue reading
Posted in Alliance Theory
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Decoding The Problematic
In Alliance Theory, words function as coordination signals rather than mere descriptors. The word “problematic” serves as a vital tool for elite alliance maintenance because it lacks a fixed definition. It acts as a low-resolution alarm that alerts the group … Continue reading
Posted in Alliance Theory, Elites, Tucker Carlson
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Worse Than Watergate
In my post on Watergate, ChatGPT said: Why other scandals don’t become Watergate Many later presidents survived worse conduct. The difference is alliance cohesion. When elites close ranks, scandals are reframed as partisan attacks or procedural disputes. Watergate became “Watergate” … Continue reading
Posted in Alliance Theory, America, Journalism
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Decoding The Iran-Contra Affair
Senior officials in the Reagan administration secretly sold arms to Iran (despite an arms embargo) and used proceeds to fund the Contra rebels in Nicaragua, bypassing Congress’s explicit ban on such aid. When it broke, congressional investigations and televised hearings … Continue reading
Posted in Alliance Theory
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The Sacralization of Israel & Ukraine
The wars in Ukraine and Israel have become moralized and are rarely discussed as vital to America’s concrete interests. Why? Jeffrey Alexander’s model of democratic ritual explains that political life typically operates at the mundane or “profane” level of goals, … Continue reading
Posted in Alliance Theory, Elites, Israel, Ukraine
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Decoding Mickey Kaus
ChatGPT says: Alliance Theory explains Mickey Kaus as a status heretic whose defining trait was refusing to stabilize inside any durable coalition. He wasn’t expelled for scandal. He was sidelined for non-alignment. Here’s the decoding. First. What Kaus actually did … Continue reading
Posted in Alliance Theory, Mickey Kaus
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Decoding David Geffen
ChatGPT says: Alliance Theory explains David Geffen as someone who engineered himself out of vulnerability by exiting operational power early and converting influence into patronage. Geffen is not a mystery case. He is a textbook one. Here’s the decoding. First. … Continue reading
Posted in Alliance Theory, David Geffen
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Decoding Bill O’Reilly
ChatGPT says: Alliance Theory explains Bill O’Reilly as a case where mass audience power outlasted elite tolerance, until the alliance that protected him became financially indefensible. He is different from Harvey Weinstein and Les Moonves in one crucial way. O’Reilly … Continue reading
Posted in Alliance Theory, Journalism
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Decoding Les Moonves
ChatGPT says: Alliance Theory explains Les Moonves as a classic case of institutional power lasting longer than personal power, and collapsing the moment the alliance math flipped. Les Moonves looks similar to Harvey Weinstein on the surface, but the mechanics … Continue reading
Posted in Abuse, Alliance Theory
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