Thinking About Checking Out of Blogging
I am not sure I am able to continue blogging in the current environment. When I began blogging over 12 years ago, it was to report on my various adventures in trying to run a small business. It soon morphed into a platform for me to think out loud about various policy issues. For example, while I didn't really understand this when I started, it became a platform for me to think through mistakes I made in my initial enthusiasm for the Iraq War. You can see me in the early years evolve from a kind of knee-jerk global warming absolute denier to a lukewarmer with much more understanding of the underlying science. I think of myself as an intellectual (though one who cannot spell or proof-read) who likes to discuss policy.
But I am not sure this is the time for that. The world seems to be moving away from intellectualism. I say this not because Trump voters were somehow rejecting intellectualism, but because intellectuals themselves seem to be rejecting it. They act like children, they are turning universities into totalitarian monoculters, and they compete with each other to craft mindless 140-character "gotchas" on Twitter. I challenge you to even find a forum today for intellectual exchange between people who disagree with one another. In politics, Trump clearly rejects intellectualism but for whatever reasons, the Democratic opposition has as well.
We have a tribal war going on in this country that has officially gone beyond any real policy issues. While the US and the Soviet Union had real differences in philosophy and approach, most of their confrontations were in proxy wars which bore little resemblance to these values. That is what politics are now -- a series of proxy wars. We spend several days focusing attention on Jeff Sessions, but spend pretty much zero time talking about real issues like approaches to the drug war, and police accountability, and sentencing reform. Instead all we can focus on is the political proxy war of this stupid Russia hacking story. Obama's birth certificate and Hillary's servers and Russian hacking and Trump's real estate sales -- all we fight are proxy wars.
And like most tribal warfare, the two tribes are incredibly similar. I have called them the Coke and Pepsi party for years. Go talk to the the rank and file and sure, one group may like Nascar and barbecue while the other likes Phish concerts and kale, but you will see them asking for the same sorts of things out of government. Take the minimum wage, a traditional blue tribe issue. In Arizona, a heavily red state (we have a super-majority in the legislature of the red team), a $10 minimum wage referendum passed by nearly 60% of the vote last year. The members of the two tribes absolutely hate each other, but they support the same laws. I guess I should be happy they don't get together, since as a libertarian I think many of these things they want are bad ideas.
People tell me I need to just deal with the adversity. But I don't mind opposition per se. I love when I get a chance to respond to real criticism. Hell, I wrote 5000 words or so here in response to such criticism. It's fun. But more likely nowadays I will write a couple thousand words on school choice and the response will be, in total, "Your a Trump cuckservative." Several years ago I wrote a long article on rail in response to a Joel Epstein piece. Epstein had argued the US rail rail system was inferior to those in Europe and Asia because we don't have enough passenger rail. I argued with a series of charts and analysis that the US rail system was superior because it focused on freight over passengers, and that shifting freight to rail had far more environmental benefits than shifting passengers to rail. Epstein's entire response to my article was, "You should get out of the country more often." This is the classic intellectual argument of our day. It was smug. It implied my article was based on being part of the wrong tribe, the narrow-minded denizens of flyover country rather than the coastal set that have been to Gstaad but not Tulsa. At it did not even bother addressing the issues raised.
Or look at Black Lives Matter. BLM actually had what looked to me to be the outlines of a pretty good plan. To really achieve their goals, though, was going to take a lot of work jurisdiction by jurisdiction, establishing some model legislation and best practices and bringing it to various municipalities. It didn't even try. It abandoned this plan in favor of just disrupting sh*t and shaming the unwoke for saying that "all lives matter." Today, invocations of BLM consist pretty much 100% of virtue signalling for one's own tribe or shaming of the other tribe. Its the equivalent of dueling fans at a game yelling "Yankees suck!" "No, Red Sox suck!"
People also tell me to just deal with it, that if I love the policy stuff I should ignore these problems. But let me give you an analogy. Let's say you absolutely love English Premier League football, but every time you try to go to a game, you miss most of what happens on the field because hooligans are fighting around you in the stands. Do you keep going for your love of football or at some point is the mess that surrounds it just too much?
Anyway, I am highly tempted just to say "screw it" for a while and focus on something else entirely. I am trying a different approach as a change of pace, trying to write a more formal policy piece for a think tank, but I am having a surprising amount of trouble doing it well. Writing such pieces was not really my forte at McKinsey when I was a consultant and I am not sure it is now. Not disciplined enough in my writing, I think.
Anyway, on a positive front, I now have a dedicated (though very small) room for my model railroad and I installed the first bit of benchwork. This is sort of like laying the keel for a new ship. Coyoteblog readers, I know, will be hanging on the edges of their seats for further updates.
From Parks and Recreation:
Jean-Ralphio: Why don’t you use that time to go after one of your passions? Like model trains, or toy Gandalfs or something.
Ben: I don’t know why you jumped straight to model trains. I mean, it’s accurate…
Just have to add my voice - I have a short list of sites I check on daily and this is one of the few where I know every new post is worth reading. As a reader, I understand the getting burned out on the pointless yelling back and forth and needing a break from it. Maybe you just need to cut some of that out of your life. As others have pointed out, Facebook and Twitter and some of the worst of the partisan sites can and should be dropped, it's just not healthy.
I'll second this. I killed my facebook account a couple of years ago after realizing it was causing more grief/stress than it was worth due to the constant stream of anger and outrage and political stupidity.
Your blog would be horribly missed not only by myself, but by several of my friends that follow you. Yours is a rational voice that presents facts and data to support your positions - it is such a rare thing. I hate that the irrational voices surrounding us are having this impact upon you but I understand. It feels like something Ayn Rand might have predicted.
I agree with the many folks who find your blog to be one of the best, one that I check often to find whether you have made yet another interesting post on climate or small business or just whatever topic happened to appeal to you at the time. I have frequently learned about things I did not know before, such as some features of the campground business, and things I did know before such as the foibles of dealing with county, state and federal bureaucracies. I also enjoyed your novel. So would hate to have your blog disappear, but encourage you to pursue your desires wherever they lead.
This is one of the few blogs worth reading. I'm one of the "silent majority" who really appreciates your work. Thanks so much for the effort.
If you stop blogging, what's the chance you'll write another book?
As most places grow increasingly tribal the few remaining oasis' of sense grow all the more valuable.
Understand either way, but I've always found this one of my favorite blogs.
Cheers and thank you for all the glorious posts up to this point
I understand where you are coming from 100%. Please do what's best for your mental health. I think your blog is a rare gem. I have been reading it for more than 10 years. I don't even keep it in the bookmarks, I navigate to it every day manually and I know I can't forget the URL. What attracts me is the logical approach and thought-provoking takes on current info. Whatever you decide regarding future blogging, I support your decision completely. If you decide to continue blogging, there will be a little celebration here.
Warren, I've read your blog since 2006. I read many blogs but yours is my absolute favourite. When I go through my blogroll Im always either slightly disappointed when there's no new post on Coyote, or quietly thrilled when there is. I hope very much you will continue blogging. Reason and thoughtfulness is actually more important than ever in view of the danger of the uprise in tribalism in recent times. You, Sam Harris and Matt Ridley are for me beacons who say reason remains important and who call bullshit for what it is. That's important, but it must appear underappreciated if what you see and hear are the shouters. It IS appreciated. It would be a genuine disappointment to lose you.
Hi,
Follow your passions. Whether in and out of blogging. Tis the way to go ;) Note; I found this post by a blogging Google Alert. Well done :)
Ryan
Warren, I too hope you continue to blog. I've read and and concentrated on every one of your posts since c. 2005 and have learnt much from them. Enjoyed your books and Forbes pieces too - if you do move away from policy, your other pieces often contain much of interest. I don't know how you find the time, so whatever you choose will be understandable
Whoa ... but I do understand how frustrating it can be indeed ... The problem is that the "other side" is relentless - take "climate change" for example - if sensible voices on "climate change" stop talking real science and are willing to go where data leads them instead of being "religious" about it, we will have a terribly dystopian world where the elites will continue living lavishly while admonishing poor people - we simply do not have enough people who talk sensibly about core/fundamental concepts/ideas in economics (I imagine for example most people think it is OK to raise taxes on soda to reduce consumption but imagine that raising the minimum wage should be just fine, etc etc) - "Writing" can be exhausting - but perhaps "talking" can help? (!) - Take a topic/book - find someone reasonable to debate/discuss - record it - put it out there -? I had a great time listening to (recently) Sam Harris/Charles Murray, Sam Harris/Siddharta Mukherjee, (earlier) Russ Roberts/Thomas Leonard, Russ Roberts/Matt Ridley etc etc (my walks, bike runs have all become so much enjoyable when I can listen while I walk/bike!) (those amazing mp3 players with gigabytes of storage!) - anyways - hope you can converge on a solution that works for you! (If you have to pick ONE topic, it is to remind the country of the disaster that California is with their regulatory state - before it implodes, as I know it will!)
Third. I check this site every day. Every single post is worth reading.
Like many of your readers, I'm sure, I've clicked off CB and said to myself "wish I could organize my thoughts like that." You've always made me feel smarter. BUT! Teasing us with this model rr and then maybe walking away? Some of us won't put up with that!
Road trip for Warren to appear on Dave Rubin and Joe Rogan. Wouldn't that be a lovely and refreshing change of pace? Woot!
I agree with zjohna; your blog is one of the few blogs I consistently find worth my time to read. However, I understand how you feel; I moved off of Facebook for similar reasons. The time I reclaimed allowed me to set up a home machine shop so I could start learning how to make home-made clocks. (And if it weren't for some personal tragedies over the past few months, I'd be well on my way to making my first from plans I found on the Internet.)
I still blog, but my posts are roughly one every few days--and only if I feel moved to say something.
I also agree with your assessment of the anti-intellectualism that has taken hold in our country. It seems that reasoned arguments are being rejected wholesale by both sides, as even some of the best authors have been reduced to mindless grunting as they troll for clicks.
So if you do take a break, I'd love to see your progress on your model rail road. That'll probably be a more worthy personal pursuit. And if you do something cool, you may want to blog your progress like this guy at Clickspring.
Sadly I've noticed the direction the tide was flowing back in the 1980's: even then if you really payed attention you could see the rich were going to get richer, the poor poorer--and the divide would be determined by two things: home ownership (as in California new homes are not being built fast enough to support the population), and a career in a STEM field (such as software development). It's why I picked computer software in the mid 1980's instead of a filmmaking career--going to Caltech instead of USC. (It's not that you can't succeed doing something else, but the odds are a lot longer.)
The goal was for me to position myself so that, so long as the tide continued to move the way it was, to find myself on the upward moving current rather than the downward moving current.
But it is really really frustrating being surrounded by others who are far more progressive-liberal than I, who honestly do not hear how snobbish and self-involved they sound as they spew bromides about helping the poor by taking away their choices, or about how we must get their lessers to stop consuming so much to save the planet. Or how much better it would be if everyone would just ride a bike to do their errands--as they hop in their Mercedes to run to the store.
I think it's why I blog. Because I often found myself as a software developer in California surrounded by So. Much. Mindless. Stupid.
You are one of the leading Lukewarmer voices out there and have truly been an inspiration to all us other Lukewarmers.
It has been appreciated. Thank you....
Don't stop. Period.
Please keep blogging. You bring me joy, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.
This blog is one of my favorite due to the logical and coherent thoughts and generally without the political bias. Due to my personal biases, there are several topics which I disagree with Warren (immigration policy is one). Fortunately, Warren does a good job explaining his view and the rationale justifying his reasoning that his logic is reasonable. A good example is his frequent discussions on minimum wage.
Climate Audit . org is also one of my favorite since Mcintyre limits comments to the topic at hand, and his monitoring to prevent political / off topic posts.
Skeptical science on the other hand is quite political and only allows comments that are pro-AGW. SS frequently posts articles regarding "peer reviewed" studies that have little or no basis in science. Common example is their frequent posting of studies showing a likely 3-5 feet sea level rise by 2100 or the studies showing wind and solar electric generation costs are cheaper than fossil fuels without subsidies, especially when the dubious social costs of carbon fuels are factored into the equation. FWIW - I got banned at SS when pointing out the obvious absurdity of those "peer reviewed studies - especially since I not being a scientist was not qualified to criticise the science studies.
Long and short - this is coherent and thoughtful blog with a niche following - take a break - refresh and see you again.
Noooooooo!!! The last thing the world needs right now is one less voice of reason.
I love your blog. I am interested in the climate change stuff, the libertarian slant, and the rational way that you approach issues. I think of it as "masculine" whereas the mainstream media seems to be all run by women (I know it isn't really) and so is all about how issues make you feel (minimum wage being a perfect example: it seems to be more about making the people who push for $15 feel good than anything else).
Yours is one of the few blogs that I hit up every day and I have a sense of disappointment when there is nothing new. I am actually the internal journalist for a company and put a blog post out every day, so I know from experience how much work it is. But it is my day job, not a hobby. But I did get into it professionally through doing it that way when I was unemployed for 9 months at the depths of the downturn, as way of keeping sane and forcing myself to structure my life a little.
If you stop, I understand. And thank you for years of interesting stuff. But please don't stop.
Yeah, I like this blog. Don't give it up.
That said: I understand where you're coming from. I can only be called names so much before giving up.
Warren, I totally agree with the other comments and love your blog. However, your post was not really about your readers it was about you. It was a cry out for your own understanding and coming to grips with the political nonsense that seems to more and more pervade our daily lives. Get over yourself and your expectations. Expectations always lead to disappointment. I beg/urge you to write for yourself with no expectations of changing others. Trying to enforce self awareness on others is always a waste of time.
I, and apparently a lot of other readers, love to hear your inner Warren and your thoughtful take on all kinds of topics. You are a beautiful thoughtful human being who has added value to a lot of faithful readers. Thank you.
I agree its gotten to the breaking point. My area of interest and profession is power generation. Which is of course highly influenced by the climate argument and of course politics and rent seekers.
When I take on a debate with the "progressive" crowd it usually starts with some catastrophic prediction that if we don't have massive government intervention into the power generation business, the "Day After Tomorrow" scenario is literally going to happen tomorrow.
We start with worries about CO2 emissions which I take a luke warmer view as you do and then jump to this means we must subsidize preferred forms of generation, i,e. wind and solar. I take issue and state that rather than have politicians pick preferred forms of generation why not set a limit like we do with other emissions. I point out how weather driven intermittent sources of power are not compatible with the grid in large doses without 100% back-up and/or mass storage (not available) and in either case not economically viable on a large scale.
Carbon Intensity per Kilowatt (CIPK) could be such a limit and then let power generators pick the technology to meet the limit. I am then accused of being some sort of unscientific shill or worst yet a Trump rube. And that it is imperative that we push towards and all wind/solar grid. Ironically being an engineer my whole argument is that we must apply actual science to the problem not political science which is not science at all. I'm not even sure the present administration is heading that way but at least there are some signs of hope versus the last administration.
Frustrating but I feel I must keep up the debate. I hope you do likewise. I really enjoy your blog.
Having discussions with opponents (especially with liberal opponents) is never about changing their minds. It simply won't happen, no matter what arguments you're using. They're either too emotionally invested in the subject or brain-dead, or both. That idiot Epstein is the perfect example of out-of-touch liberal with no down-to-earth experience whatsoever. But essentially it doesn't matter, because the whole purpose of public discussion is to compete for the minds of people who still don't have their own strong opinion on the subject. And the more ridiculous arguments your opponent provides, the easier it is for your to win - the only thing that matters. Those people rarely provide any feedback (like me - this is my first and only comment), but rest assured - there are plenty of them.
And btw, your side projects are also real pleasure to watch :)
I too would understand but would also miss the voice for reason. I stumbled across an earlier version of your video presentation on the climate debate and think it's unsurpassed as a balanced and understandable summary. Have been following your blog ever since.
You do what you need to do, Warren.
This is one of the few sane places on all of the interwebs. I also enjoyed BMOC and will surely miss your musings. Perhaps just a hiatus?
You're one of the few blogs I consistently read. I check Coyote Blog daily, often multiple times. I can understand your viewpoint, but I think you might be expecting too much. Albert Jay Nock used the example of the prophet Isiah to describe what should be the task of the honest dealer - to speak to The Remnant, those that feel isolated and alone, and are always searching for kindred spirits. Key to this is to have no expectation of success, but know that there are those that agree and are provided a measure of hope by hearing your voice. Tom Woods points out that this is the task of Ron Paul (https://goo.gl/mSnKg6).
Your writing does not fall on deaf ears. Coyote Blog is easily the source I cite most frequently on Facebook, precisely because you do not rely on tribalism and crude partisanship to make your (almost always correct) points. I hope you don't stop.
If you like blogging, please try tuning out the garbage. There are lots of libertarian type blogs out there, but yours is very different. I hope you continue on. You will be missed
Rats! You were one of the few still, small voices of calm on the internet.
As the comments below reveal, you may be overly narrow in your measuring of success. Many of us really enjoy your blogging and we learn from it. Your stuff on the climate is just one case in point. I also note that several other good blogs frequently link to your arguments.
If your goal is to make a difference, while building up better personal understanding, then your blogging is on the right track. You are pursuing a quality path to personal enlightenment and enhancing others in the process. That sounds like a good life to me.
I'll echo the many comments that I sincerely hope you keep blogging. I completely agree with your perspective, but from my perspective that is why your writings are so valuable. You take a thoughtful and critical analysis of things, which is very difficult to find today. You also have significant real-world experience that many commentators from think tanks and academia do not have.
Perhaps you could consider guest writers? I know that sort of opens a can of worms, but I know there are a lot of readers who are small business owners like myself and could provide some interesting perspective on dealing with customers, the government, regulation, etc.
Yours is the "not updated daily" blog that I check hoping for an update on a daily basis.
I will be sad to no longer have your thoughts put down to read. You've always made me think, which I appreciate.
Perhaps you should disable the comments section or there may be a technological answer that does auto-moderating screening for foul language, implied violence, pattern recognition, IP address etc. I agree that you are one of the best bloggers out there and would hate to lose you. Additionally, the fact that you run a real business is crucial. Most readers have likely never run a business, especially one that intersects with state and federal government agencies and it is imperative that people get a taste of what it's like and what their governments are actually doing (not saying). Thanks for all your work and wise words..
I would miss your blogging, but fully understand you rationale for ceasing it. I agree with your climate skeptic position (thank God for Pres Trump), love to hear your tales of dealing with (particularly) Calif bureaucracy), but not so much with your Libertarianism. We're Conservatives with a capital C and not particularly religious, but marriage is between a man and a woman and sex is determined before birth. Good luck
I challenge you to even find a forum today for intellectual exchange between people who disagree with one another.
Weeell, I do like Megan McArdle's comment section. I don't know how many really thoughtful liberals there are there, but on the whole everyone is fairly respectful, most of the time. There's a bare minimum of tribalism, as these things go.
Dave Rubin's videos are very worthwhile.
NOOOOOOO!
Don't stop blogging please. You are my FAVORITE blogger. On, you know, the entire internet. Where bloggers are.
Please don't leave.
Please don't stop.
I hope you don't stop writing your blog! I just discovered it because I was searching for music bloggers who are fans of classic rock( because I have just released my debut album and need to get reviews). Just reading through a few of of your posts, I was really inspired! Maybe you should consider writing music reviews too ;-)
In case you wanna check out my album, here is a link:
https://emmacairo.bandcamp.com/album/in-east-west
Cheers! :-)
I'd hate to see your calm, kind, reasonable, analytic voice self silenced.
But if you must go, go with God, with many, many thanks.
Say it ain't so! I agree with the legions of fellow "lurkers" to your blog/blogging. Can't do without it and always happy when I visit there is a new posting.
Always a reasonable (read that SANE!) analysis of issues.
Thanks!!
Try staying away from politics. It's toxic right now. Just stick to business and model trains (love them). I would love an insider view on how Trump's policy are affecting you. I am happy with him so far( wide gate kinda guy here), but I don't trust him not to croney hard. This is my favorite blog whether I agree with you or not.
Yours is one of the few blogs I consistently read since discovering it a few years ago and I will be sorry to see you go, if that is your decision. Who cares about typos, your articles are interesting and thought provoking and I shall miss the intellectual stimulation that they provide. Following the current US political scene from here in the UK it does seem that it has degenerated into playground name calling and it looks like we are going the same way.
Not sure how much of a railroad you are going to get into a room that small but I wish you all the best with the project.
I think it's a great idea. Give it a rest.
I'd hate to see you go - but I get it. I made a similar decision a couple of years ago for largely the same reasons. You can't discuss politics really anymore. You can only exchange insults which I refuse to take part in.
Darn. Will greatly miss your contributions. Hoping you'll keep at least one oar in, but I can't pick a favorite - your business, climate, or transit.