Clueless Twenties

  Whether you are Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Jewish, Buddhist, African traditionalist, atheist, or anything else, there is a particular kind of religious person who is exhausting: the one who has somehow appointed themselves God's customer service representative. They know what God thinks about your clothes, your sexuality, your marriage, your ancestors, your politics, your unbelief, and apparently your lunch. They will tell you their religion is about love while aggressively trying to convince you that your worldview is wrong. And when their own people cause harm, suddenly nuance is required. Since I am Christian, I will address exactly that: Christianity, but in this I welcome other religions to do so too. What happens to people when the people who claim to represent God become the source of the very wounds they tell people God should heal? That question doesn't get asked nearly enough. We are remarkably comfortable defending Christianity from criticism. Someone says the churc...

  I have always found it funny that cheating is one of those things everybody seems to understand until you ask them to define it. Sleeping with someone else? Obviously. Kissing someone? Most people would agree. Flirting? Depends who you ask. Texting an ex at 1 a.m.? Now we are entering dangerous territory. Having an emotional connection with someone else? Suddenly we need a panel discussion, three examples, and possibly a lawyer. Nobody sits you down at the beginning and gives you the handbook; there is no constitution. No Terms and Conditions page. No little document you sign before going on your first date that says, By proceeding, you agree that liking an ex’s Instagram picture after 11 p.m. constitutes emotional misconduct. And yet, somehow, we know there are rules. Some of them are obvious. You don't sleep with other people if you've agreed to be exclusive. You don't intentionally humiliate your partner. You don't lie about where you are. You don't secretly ma...

  There is something deeply uncomfortable about watching the politics of the Global North right now. Not because every country is suddenly fascist, and not because every conservative politician is secretly building a dictatorship in their basement, but because some of the ideas that were once considered politically dangerous are becoming increasingly normal. Borders are becoming political battlegrounds. Immigrants are becoming convenient explanations for economic frustration. Nationalism is being repackaged as common sense. Strongman politics is being sold as efficiency. And democracy, which we spent decades being told was the highest political ideal, is increasingly being treated like something that can be bent when it becomes inconvenient. America has been the most obvious example, but it is becoming harder to look at this as an American problem. Germany has just given us another uncomfortable reminder. In the September 2026 state election in Saxony-Anhalt, the far-right Alternat...