After re-thinking what I want to do here, I’m back. After an extended layoff I recently published my first post in months.
So, you might ask, what is it that I want to do? Well, I was getting frustrated with what I was doing before, which was scanning news sites, think tanks, government web sites, and public-facing institutes to find interesting and relevant topics to write about. After a while it became just a chore - I’ve already had enough of that in my life, so I stepped away from Trendline Digest for these past few months. After I quit publishing I didn’t hear any complaints, so I think my instincts were right. Now, I want to try something just a bit different.
First off, I plan to keep sending you occasional “Data Points” editions, but they won’t be as extensive as they were getting to be.
The more ambitious part of my plan is to write stories that explore questions that I think are consequential for both the present and the future: these stories will provide context, they will show how situations, issues and problems that you and I face today have developed over time. My focus will be on issues within the United States, but if it’s appropriate I’ll bring in perspectives from beyond the borders of the U.S. (an obvious example is a potential story on migration. Another even more obvious one revolves around the 800-pound, yellow-eyed gorilla crouching in the corner of the room, flailing its arms and gnashing its teeth: climate change.)
This means that the posts you receive are likely to be longer reads than they were in the past, which I hope won’t be a problem in a digital world that seems to be splintering into click bait headlines and sound bites just a little bit more every day. I hope each post will entertain you enough to keep you involved to the very end, and beyond.
This also means that, at least initially, I won’t publish on a set schedule. That’s not really a change from before, but please be aware that you may not hear from me for a while, except for the Data Points editions. I’ll write as often as I can, but….
The other piece of news is that I’ll be podcasting the longer posts. Those will be available for those times when you would rather listen than read. I hope you enjoy them. I’ll try let you know when those are available.
So if you like what I’ve written (or what the hell, even it you don’t like it), please share it. Subscribers like you, and especially paying subscribers, are one of the engines that will drive me to keep writing Trendline Digest in the future. I need you. Without you, this doesn’t work.
Speaking of the future, I’ve put together a few of the questions that I’m planning to explore in upcoming editions. These include:
It used to be true that most Americans trusted at least some institutions. How and why have many of us Americans lost confidence in our institutions, whether we’re talking about business, government, the press, religion, schools, or name the institution of your choice - does it seem like they’re all under pressure?
Some people say that putting term limits into place will lead to a “better” U.S. Congress. What does the evidence say about this? What might the effects be if we do that?
Since Lyndon Johnson began the War on Poverty the proportion of poor people has fallen, but we still have plenty of poor people in this country. Have we given up on reducing poverty? How has support for reducing poverty changed over time? Why?
Teaching was once a sound choice for entering the American middle class. How have teacher salaries changed over time? Are teachers better paid now than they used to be?
How has the concept of “shareholder value” changed the nature of how large businesses behave? What are the alternatives?
How does the “Reagan Revolution” continue to affect American life?
Fewer people get married now compared to 50 years ago. What’s the best way to explain declining marriage rates? And might this be a good thing? What are the consequences?
Social Security once was untouchable, the so-called “third rail” of politics. That’s no longer the case. Given that, what are the best ways of fixing Social Security for the future?
One of the dominant metaphors of American political change has been the idea of a pendulum that swings from one extreme to the other, from left to right, liberal to conservative. Now, with Trumpism and the rise of a “fascist right”, are we just in one of these pendulum swings, or is something else going on?
You probably get the idea by now, right? It seems to me that we may be at one of those inflection points in history where our social systems, along with our ways of daily life, are on the cusp of dramatic change. I want to explore the possibilities, and I want to do it with you, as an equal partner.
So if you have questions that need to be explored, please let me know in the comments. As I explore these concerns - both for myself and for you - I’ll do what I can to provide context, understanding, and just maybe a basis for acting on those issues that are important to both you and me.
Until next time, thanks for reading.