WEEKLY UPDATE: Nov. 14-20

Politics
Let's start with Trump's cabinet picks. First, our next president selects Reince Priebus as his chief of staff. I'd say that fits. It's his pick of Steve Bannon as chief strategist that has me unhappy, though I'm not wringing my hands unduly over it, unlike a lot of SJWs. I thought Trump would find some way to include Bannon in his presidential staff as a consolation prize for not being able to head Trump TV, and so he did. I'm not fond of Michael Flynn, but I have less of a problem with Jeff Sessions for AG because, contrary to the narrative, he's not a racist. I could talk more about Trump's selections, but I think I won't until he assembles a fuller team. It would do a lot to assuage my misgivings about a Trump presidency if that team included Mitt Romney as Secretary of State.

As for the actor in the cast of Hamilton lecturing VP-Elect Mike Pence when he went to see their show, Pence himself had the perfect response. I would go further: why is this such a big deal? Sure, this likely wasn't the best venue to call out Mike Pence, but other than that, it's a Broadway actor expressing his opinion, asking Pence to work on behalf of a united America rather than a divided one. Why should this offend Pence in the slightest? Of course, Trump was offended, but he seems to be offended whenever anyone even insinuates that he's not a universally loved paragon of greatness who wins every game of three-dimensional chess.

In other news, Evan McMullin got some people mad at him this week for this response to Trump's tweets about Hamilton. From what I've seen, McMullin seems to be alienating some of his former supporters as of late. Recently, he launched the New Conservative Movement, which is a political organization with goals that are vague as of yet, and implied in an interview that the NCM could lay the groundwork for a new political party.

I think this is the wrong approach for McMullin to take, and here's why. Creating a new conservative political party would have been a good approach had Trump failed in his bid for the White House, but  Trump's win breathed on the embers of the Republican Party – enough to keep the flame burning a while longer. Many who supported Evan McMullin are willing to give Trump a second chance, to see how he chooses to lead a Republican party who will control both houses of Congress and nominate a replacement for Supreme Court Justice Scalia. At this point, I think a conservative political party would split the Republican coalition and nearly guarantee a Democratic victory in 2020.

There is, however, another way for conservatives to make an impact through the NCM. What if the New Conservative Movement became something like Ben Domenech's theorized Party of Life? The NCM could endorse candidates who espouse solid conservative values, fund their campaigns, and where necessary, run primary challengers against Republicans who did not govern in a conservative manner. I would also urge the NCM to adopt a broad definition of conservatism, centered around the pillars of free markets and federalism. As Domenech mentions, a large portion of the country holds pro-life views. A strong affirmation of federalism would return many issues of health, safety, and welfare to the power of the states, including the issue of abortion.

Now for a few links! Here are two excellent articles from Yuval Levin, author of the book that explained the Trump phenomenon before it happened, The Fractured Republic. The first one is on the evolution of the Republican coalition post-Trump, and I think it's very accurate. The second is about how Trump's election represents the American public's dwindling faith in cultural institutions. Both are well worth a read.

Lastly, here's something interesting: the recently remodeled Trump hotel just a few blocks from the White House represents a probable conflict-of-interest that could get Trump impeached on day one in office. However, as SNL wisely pointed out last night, maybe the Democrats wouldn't chance it.

Movie of the Week
This week I saw Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the latest from the Harry Potter universe. It had good and meh elements to it.

First off, it's wonderful to be back in the world that J.K. Rowling created – and this time, Rowling wrote the screenplay for the film, which is directed by definitive Potter director David Yates.  Rowling's writing is charming and fun for the most part, with a few scenes that seem out of place or foreshadow twists a little too well.

Eddie Redmayne plays Newt Scamander, a British wizard who travels the world to collect and study magical beasts. He's writing a book to share his knowledge with the world, to show them that beasts are interesting and not threatening. In his travels to America, he stumbles into a brewing conflict between wizarding kind and the No-Maj (or non-magical) community, and has to navigate that mess while trying to recapture several magical animals that have escaped.

The acting in this movie is excellent, creating a new generation of endearing characters. Warner Brothers is planning four more movies in this series, and this film sets them up nicely. However, the movie lacks the same charm that the Harry Potter movies had, because even though the characters are interesting, we don't have reason to invest in their story the same way we did with Harry Potter. Newt Scamander is a magical zoologist trying to catch some animals; Harry Potter was trying to save the world and going through the trials of teenager-dom at the same time.

I don't know how to explain the feeling I got from this movie, other than to say that while I was at times enthralled and excited, the immediacy and punch of the story is not quite "there." You will probably enjoy this movie fine, though. 3.5/5 Stars.

Sports
First, let's just get this out of the way: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA TEXAS LOST TO KANSAS HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Now that that's done, your weekly look at who's in contention for the College Football Playoff! And this week, I'm going to start ranking them!

Last week, The Rules said that Clemson, Louisville, West Virginia, Michigan, Ohio State, Western Michigan, Washington, and Alabama are in contention for the College Football Playoff. (If you don't know what The Rules are, see the very first Weekly Update I ever did.) I added in Oklahoma State as a two-loss team last week, and this week, thanks to their absolute demolishing of West Virginia, Oklahoma vaults into consideration. Out of contention after this week are Louisville, after a bad loss to Houston, and the aforementioned West Virginia. Your run was interesting while it lasted, 'Eers. So here are the remaining teams, ranked in the order I think the CFP Committee will rank them:

1. Alabama
2. Michigan
3. Clemson
4. Washington
5. Ohio State
6. Oklahoma
7. Oklahoma State
8. Western Michigan (row the boat)

Bama is first because they seem to be unbeatable. Their struggles with Chattanooga this weekend just came off like a bored lion playing with its food. Behind Bama is a logjam at 2-5, and separating those teams is like splitting hairs. Michigan is the best of that bunch, because they've consistently looked pretty good despite having a bit of an off game this week. Then Clemson, the unquestioned best out of a very okay ACC. Washington's in fourth even though I think they might be better than Clemson because #EastCoastBias, and Ohio State is in fifth even though I think they could beat Clemson AND Washington because the CFP Committee is not putting two teams from the same conference in the Playoff. But the Michigan-Ohio State dilemma will soon solve itself when those two teams play each other, so I'm not worried.

Below them, just waiting for two one-loss teams to slip up, are Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. The winner of Bedlam probably wins the Big 12 this year, which would give that team the mythical "conference champion boost" the Committee always talks about. Lastly, Western Michigan has basically no chance to make the Playoff, even though they're demolishing the teams they play.

Etc.
This will be my final Weekly Review for three weeks. I'll be studying for law school exams, and I'd appreciate your prayers.

WEEKLY UPDATE: Nov. 7-13

Politics
The election is over, so what is there left to talk about in this section? The hysterical overreaction to the election results, of course!

This week, the guy who told people they were fired on The Apprentice was hired by America. It was an astounding result to many, but for many on the left, their astonishment quickly turned to fear. And as we all know thanks to Yoda: "Fear leads to anger; anger leads to hate; hate leads to suffering."

Media voices were on the whole unhelpful at calming everyone down. Buzzfeed's doomsaying about Trump certainly didn't help matters at all. And although Stephen Colbert initially struck a note of frustration but urged unity on Election Night, he followed that up with this nonsense encouraging the #NotMyPresident crowd: "...for eight years, a lot of people wouldn't accept that Barack Obama was President of the United States – for instance, Donald Trump."

First of all, he's speaking about the birther movement, which (a) was a fringe group of fringe groups that absolutely no one took seriously and (b) didn't debate whether Obama was president, but rather where he was born. So Colbert is just patently wrong here. But more than that, statements like this divide rather than unify, in a time when our nation desperately needs unity.

Speaking of statements that are unfounded and divisive, here's Van Jones claiming that Trump was elected because people are racist, and that this election represents a "whitelash" against President Obama. This is a ridiculous and insulting misreading of the election results from someone who is supposed to be a trusted political analyst on CNN.

First of all, Trump was running against Hillary Clinton, not Barack Obama. Second, exit polls showed that Donald Trump actually performed better with minorities than Mitt Romney did in 2012. "But he won white working class voters due to racism, right?" No, Trump won white working class voters because of his economic message, which blamed their troubles on illegal immigration and bad trade deals. Sure, he did so in a way that attracted the little-but-loud white nationalists of the alt-Right, but I get the feeling that Trump does not agree with their ideals.

To suggest that the largest group of American voters voted primarily due to racial hatred is itself racist and dehumanizing toward white working class voters. Van Jones and others pushing this line of argument need to be more responsible in their reactions and seek to understand why the white working class vote switched allegiance to Trump, rather than taking the easy cop-out of "most Trump voters are racists."

Now I'll briefly address one facepalm-worthy argument I've heard in response to the election: we should abolish the Electoral College, because Hillary Clinton won the popular vote, say some prominent liberals and Michael Dukakis!

Here's the problem. One, there may still be uncounted ballots (7 million of them!), so we don't know the popular vote totals yet. Furthermore, there's no guarantee Hillary Clinton would actually win this election in a national popular vote system – and let's be honest, the only reason some on the Left are calling for the abolition of the Electoral College is because their candidate didn't win under its rules.

We live in a representative democracy, not a pure democracy – and thank goodness we do.  Pure democracy entails governance by popular majority and actually suppresses minorities. A pure democracy is also much more prone to cultural and legal change at sudden and harmful speeds, because people are fickle. This causes resentment to build up amidst minority populations that may explode violently.  The Electoral College moderates democracy in favor of minorities.

So let's follow the Domenech Rule and pump the brakes on abolishing the Electoral College, in case we ever end up in the popular minority.

And now I suppose I should write about the protests.

People have the right to free speech, even when that speech emerges from anguish and anger, and I respect that right.  However, protesting a free democratic election simply because you don't like the result moves the needle from "having a legitimate grievance" to "throwing a temper tantrum."

Protests like those of this past week divide America further, and actually assure reluctant Trump voters that they made the right choice, especially when those protests turn violent.  I would assume that confirming Trump voters in their choices is not the result the Left wants.

Yes, #NotMyPresident, Donald Trump IS your president. You may not like it. I didn't like it when America elected Barack Obama to office. But I didn't go out into the streets and march with signs calling Obama a threat to our democracy while damaging property.

I hope and pray our country can unite in the face of Trump. This is not a great start.

Movie of the Week
This update is already far too long, so in brief: I went to see Arrival. It was the best sci-fi movie I've seen since Interstellar, if a bit slow at points. You should go see it. 4/5 Stars.

Sports
My goodness, college football. Just when we think we have you all figured out. Three out of the top four teams in the playoff lost this week, but they were undefeated, so none of them are eliminated from playoff contention.

However, I'm going to break a bit of protocol here and violate The Rules. (GASP!) Oklahoma State is a team I have overlooked. They lost to Central Michigan due to bad officiating, so they really have only one legitimate loss, and they've looked very good these past few weeks, so they reach the playoff after surviving against Texas Tech this week. (No, Oklahoma, I'm not letting you in to contention yet. You have two actual losses.)

In addition to Oklahoma State, the teams still in contention for the College Football Playoff according to The Rules are Clemson, Louisville, West Virginia, Michigan, Ohio State, Western Michigan, Washington, and Alabama.

The less said about my Baylor Bears this week, the better. I'll let Our Daily Bears do the talking.

Etc.
I apologize for the politically heavy Update. Hopefully this will be the last one that is so unbalanced. After next week's Update, I will be taking a three-week break for exams and traveling home from law school.

ELECTION RECAP: I Was Wrong, But I Wasn't Wrong

In the past, I said Donald Trump would never run for president. I was wrong.

I said Trump would never win the Republican nomination. I was wrong.

I said Trump could not redraw the electoral map and compete in Democratic strongholds. I was wrong.

I said Trump would assuredly lose to Hillary Clinton, that he didn't have enough popular support, that the "silent majority" of white working class voters he courted did not exist, that enough people were disgusted or bored by his antics to stay home, that Clinton's voter turnout operations would win the day.

I. Was. Wrong.

Donald Trump will be the 45th President of the United States of America.

Here's what I don't think I am wrong about though.

Donald Trump as President is still a very bad thing for our economy, our relations with other nations, and our relations with each other. Let's start with the first thing.

Futures are down ahead of market openings this morning across the board. Trump's election will cause a massive market downturn. Economists have warned for months that a new recession is imminent. We'll see if they are right, and in turn, what a Trump administration will do to combat it.

Our relationships with other nations will suffer. Trump's plan to aggressively renegotiate trade deals, repeal our nuclear agreement with Iran, and build a border wall that Mexico will somehow pay for will not be well received. He must find a way to accomplish these goals while maintaining and strengthening our relationships abroad with nations like Israel and South Korea. Also, if I was Donald Trump, I would be calling Theresa May of Great Britain to negotiate a very good trade deal ASAP. That would provide stability to an ally and assurance to the world of our ability to cooperate with them in making sure markets stay free and competitive.

Finally, half of our country (or more) is devastated by the results of this election. #NotMyPresident has been trending on Twitter since the race was called for Trump, the Canadian immigration website crashed overnight, and I have heard anecdotal reports that the National Suicide Help Line returned a busy signal last night. Trump comes into office with a 60% disapproval rating.

This is perhaps the most immediate way that you can help after this divisive election and its shocking conclusion. Whether you voted for Trump, or refused to vote for either major candidate like me, reach out to your friends who voted for Clinton. If you don't have any liberal friends, now's the perfect time to make some. Bring them a cup of coffee this morning (trust me, we all need it). Come alongside them. Listen to their frustration and bewilderment. This is a very difficult time for them, and we must be there to show love to those who are hurting. If we do, perhaps we will look back on this election as a time of catharsis and unity, rather than further division.

In conclusion, there is one more thing that I know that I am not wrong about: God still reigns over our world, and He will work all things out for good for those who love him. We must return to him and pray for his guidance and favor on our nation in this strange and surprising time.


In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise, in God I trust, I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me? I must perform my vows to you, O God, I will render thank-offerings to you. For you have saved my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.

Psalm 56:10-13 (ESV)

WEEKLY UPDATE: Oct. 31-Nov. 6

Politics
This week is mercifully the last one before election season is over. When it is, I expect this section to become less extensive. First, I'm going to address the single most infuriating line of logic that I keep hearing from other voters heading into the election, then I'm going to talk briefly about my final #StateOfTheRace projection.

The argument that I'm talking about, which I've briefly addressed before here, is the Binary Choice Fallacy. I refuse to term it the "lesser of two evils" argument, though some do. It most frequently emerges in this form: "If you don't vote for Donald Trump, you're helping to elect Hillary Clinton."

To put it nicely: I find this argument lacking for a number of reasons.  First, many of those making this argument to me know that I don't buy 99% of what Hillary Clinton is selling, and I believe that she would be a disastrously bad leader for our country.  The idea that I would refuse to vote for Donald Trump in order to prop up Clinton is laughable to those who know my political views.

If Binary Choice Believers recognize this, they often move to the emotional argument that "Trump will be bad, but Clinton will DESTROY OUR COUNTRY. Even if it means voting for someone really bad, you must hold your nose and do it. If Clinton wins, it must be because people like you didn't vote for Trump, so you'll be responsible for everything that she does in office!" We have no idea if Trump would not do the same things as Clinton when he gains power. He's a lifelong supporter of liberal politicians, and he likes to cut deals with them. And if you think Trump will be restrained by the party, I sincerely doubt his ego will allow it.

Finally, the amount of condescension contained in the Binary Choice Fallacy is astounding. Believers in the Binary Choice Fallacy see my reluctance to vote Trump and conclude that I must not get "it." This makes them feel compelled to carefully explain to me how a two-party system works, that practically speaking, there is no chance that a third party can win this election, and we must just accept the system as it is.

There are only two practical choices in this election because enough people believe that there are only two practical choices. If a good chunk of the electorate decided they no longer believed in the imprisoning Binary Choice Fallacy, third parties would suddenly, magically become competitive options as those voters shifted allegiance. The moral defeatism contained in the Binary Choice Fallacy is the same defeatism that surrounded the abolition of slavery in America in the 1800s.  Then Abraham Lincoln ran third-party in 1860.

Bottom line: I'm not going to vote for a egomaniacal sociopath because the alternative is a corrupt career politician, and I'm not going to vote for a corrupt career politician because the alternative is an egomaniacal sociopath. I choose to reject both bad choices, because at some point you just have to say "enough."

Whew. Okay. Time for #StateOfTheRace.

This polling week was weird. For most of the week it looked like Trump would make the race close on the heels of some bad press for the Democrats (rising Obamacare premiums, renewed FBI investigations into Clinton, the Podesta email releases). However, polls late in the week showed the race stabilizing and more independents shifting to Clinton, so this is where I think the race is.

Early voting numbers out of NV look great for Democrats, McMullin's momentum seems to have stalled in UT, and Clinton's run at AZ doesn't look like it will flip the state. CO seems to be solidly for Clinton now. In the East, let's look at the four big battlegrounds. OH seems to have solidified for Trump, PA is not nearly as open as some models have it (Trump hasn't led a poll there since July), and FL does its weekly back-and-forth dance, but more and more models are handing it to Dems. The only state that no one knows what to do with (including the betting markets) is NC. I'm going to call it R, but I really have no idea. I don't buy a lot of the chatter that NH or VA will go red, despite a couple recent polls. Lastly, I do think ME's 2nd Congressional District, which continually votes for their Trumplike governor, will back Trump.

Movies
This weekend, I saw Doctor Strange, a film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe about an arrogant neurosurgeon whose hands are damaged in an accident. Desperate for healing, he goes to Nepal and encounters the Ancient One, a being of otherworldly power who shows Strange a new world of magic. When a powerful evil from another dimension threatens ours, Strange must decide whether to use his new training to return to his old life, or to take up the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme to defend our world.

Benedict Cumberbatch is one of my favorite actors, so I was excited to see his take on a superhero I didn't know much about. He was, as always, pitch perfect and the best part of the movie. That's not to discount from the rest of the cast either. Chiwitel Ejiofor plays the rigid Mordo, battle-buddy of Cumberbatch's Steven Strange, with gravitas that reminded me of his role as The Operative in Serenity. Rachel McAdams played Strange's occasional love interest as the everywoman very well, Tilda Swinton displayed simplicity and quiet grace as the Ancient One, and the always spectacular Mads Mikkelsen was menacing as the power-hungry Kaecilius.

One of the best origin stories I've seen since Batman Begins or Iron Man, with a plot that resembles both in different ways. The visual effects look nearly real, and the direction is sweeping while allowing the actors room to embody their characters. An excellent, fun time. 4/5 Stars.

Sports
Go Cubs go
Go Cubs go
Hey Chicago whaddaya say
The Cubs are gonna win today

I'll admit, I was not rooting for the Chicago Cubs to win the World Series until Game 7. I didn't really follow baseball at all this year, and I turned on the TV just because I wanted to see history.

What I saw was the best baseball game I've ever seen, and maybe the best sports game I've ever seen, period.

During the game, my brother (a giant baseball fan) texted me something that made me think. In all caps, just as the Indians tied the game in the 8th inning: "THIS GAME IS WHY I LOVE BASEBALL." And just as the game ended, he said: "You will never see a better baseball game, both because of the significance and the events themselves. The tying home run. The rain delay. The fact that it's game 7. The players-only meeting that [Cubs player] Heyward called during the rain delay. The fact that Davis made it a one run game. Unbelievable. As Billy Bean would say "How can you not be romantic about baseball?"

For me, the best part of this game was that for ten innings, America heaved a big sigh of relief.  For ten glorious innings, America came together to watch an epic story unfold, a curse shatter into a thousand pieces, and a city unite in joy. During that game there was no political mudslinging, no fear for the future, no hatred of other tribes – just fun, and in its wake absolute jubilance across generations of Americans.

My brother is right. Sports at its best is magical, because it unites across divides.

Sudden subject change: the College Football Playoff! The first rankings came out this week! They don't matter, so I don't care! 

The only remaining teams in CFP contention according to The Rules are Clemson, Louisville, West Virginia, Michigan, Ohio State, Western Michigan, Washington, and of course Alabama. Baylor fell flat on its face against TCU and needs to do a massive amount of soul-searching, Nebraska got outclassed in nearly every way by Ohio State, Florida fell victim to NovemBert, and HAHAHAHA AGGIES LOST TO CLANGA. They are all summarily eliminated.

Your playoff is still probably Alabama, Michigan, Clemson, and Washington in that order until someone loses.

Etc.
Nothing further to add except this Bible verse for your Election Day. Please join me in praying for our nation and our next president, no matter who it may be.