Recent articles
September 1, 2026
Free News Letter Day: A Sanctuary State for ICE, & A Ban for Transgender Troops
Plus, the Little League World Series congratulates Curacao and says goodbye to Karl Ravech. (And, to my listeners, there’ll be no audio today due to technical difficulties. Hope to resume next time.)
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August 28, 2026
Dolly Parton Set An Example For Us All
Plus, Darline Graham, Pete Hegseth, and the Log Cabin Republicans’ race to the bottom.
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August 25, 2026
Trump’s Trade War with Canada, & Abbott’s Holy War in Texas
Plus, not to be left out, Defense Secretary Hegseth declares war on Stars and Stripes.
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August 21, 2026
An Administration of Boot-Lickers
What do Natalie Harp, Pete Hegseth, and Kanye West have in common with Stalin’s Would-Be Successors?
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August 18, 2026
Art and Its Opposite, & Failed Leadership at Sea
Today we look at Romare Bearden's artistic vision and the Trump administration's tasteless lack of same.
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August 14, 2026
The Hyphenated Country, & Trump's Unfriendly Skies
Plus, wildfires in the Northwest are the latest sign our environmental policy isn't built for the long run
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August 11, 2026
Houses, Ballrooms, and Data Centers
How America is shaped by the buildings we build.
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August 7, 2026
RFK Jr.’s Medical Malpractice, & Trump’s Pay-to-Play Presidency
Plus, the triumph and tragedy of Jesse Owens and the intersecting struggles of Black and Jewish Americans
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August 4, 2026
New GOP Slogans: "Ready, Fire, Aim!" & "Republicans Against Head Start"
Plus, lessons in becoming a billionaire: first, inherit a billion dollars
kareem.substack.com
July 31, 2026
Candor, Flattery, & the Unreliable Narrator-in-Chief
Elon Musk, Lindsey Graham, and Dr. Anthony Fauci are three of the most consequential figures of the Trump Era, and each had to find his own way to deal with the President
kareem.substack.com
July 28, 2026
All Things Considered, LeBron Would Rather Be in Philadelphia
Plus, Technology vs. Truth, Speaking for the Dead, & JD Vance Gives New Meaning to the Term Helicopter Parent
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July 24, 2026
Anti-Social Media, the High Price of Pardons, & Larry David's History Lessons
Plus Zora Neale Hurston, Nina Simone, and the Pain of Being Misunderstood.
kareem.substack.com
July 21, 2026
Election Integrity Lies, & The High-T Department of War
You say Potatoe, I say Covfefe. Plus, a trip to the Negro Leagues and a song about Jackie Robinson.
kareem.substack.com
July 17, 2026
Trump Stirs Up a Red Scare to Distract From His Iranian Quagmire
The President has no trouble finding flunkies to do his bidding, but he can't control Iran. Plus, New York nurses take a stand against AI.
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July 14, 2026
Trump’s Revenge Fantasy, the Press Under Pressure, & Caitlin Clark’s Congress
No one can see into the future, but we can all work to make it better.
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July 10, 2026
The Death Penalty, Gun Violence, & Trans Discrimination
All three issues come together in the saga of Charlie Kirk. Plus, the political nature of the Olympics.
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July 7, 2026
Trump Cashes In, Sanitizes History, and Pollutes the Planet
Artists from Anton Chekhov to Marvin Gaye Have Watched the Earth Suffer While Politicians Look Away
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July 3, 2026
Whose America Will We SAVE?, Donald Trump’s Birthday Grift, & a Questionable "Greatest Living American"
Abolitionist Frederick Douglass, Heavyweight Champion Jack Johnson, and Singer Rhiannon Giddens Are Three Americans I'm Celebrating This Fourth of July
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June 30, 2026
Two-Faced Leadership, Blind Justice That Ignores Racism, & A New Political Weapon...Going After the Children
Why don't our Christian politicians, justices, and ministers practice the values they preach?
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June 26, 2026
Narcissus in the White House, Gabbard's Guru, & Just How Effective is the F word in Presidential Power Moves?
From Washington to Wimbledon, the people in power are focused on the wrong things
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June 23, 2026
Obama's Faith, Trump's Imaginary Friends, & Serena's Wimbledon Return
It's High Noon in America: does our story take us to Higher Ground, or do we drown in the muck of cynicism?
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June 19, 2026
Obama's Museum, Trump's War, & the NCAA's Latest Sports Scandal
Can we all agree that athletes shouldn't bet on their own games and politicians shouldn't direct investigations of their political opponents?
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June 16, 2026
The Knicks' Triumph, Trump's Octagon of Awful, & the World's First Trillionaire
The NBA and NHL crowned new champions and the World Cup returned to America. But was it enough to distract us from Trump, Musk, and the Epstein files?
kareem.substack.com
June 12, 2026
A Miracle on 33rd Street & the Unbearable Smallness of Trump
The Knicks crush Wemby's dream, Trump runs away from Kristen Welker, and Maine voters must choose between two very flawed Senate candidates
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June 9, 2026
A Free Press on the Chopping Block & Ebola as Political Theater
CBS's Scott Pelley and American medicine's moral standing both fall victim to the Trump administration's whims, while nine nuns hope to save the Spurs' chances in the NBA finals
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June 6, 2026
Hegseth Redefines Merit, Trump Wants His Face on the Money & Taking the Wrong Picture
What do Harriet Tubman, Black naval officers, and would-be hairstylists have in common in the Age of Trump?
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