controversies
It seems every time one racially-charged incident ends, a gender or religious controversy takes its place; Ruminate on the issues dividing our nation and world.
Inside the belly of the beast also known as Palantir
Just guessing, but I figure I’m one of very few people from my generation who has not read J R R Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” or watched Peter Jackson’s cinematic adaptations of the epic created by the “father of fantasy”.
By Steve Harrison9 days ago in The Swamp
Is Ed Sheeran for Everyone?
A big no-no we were taught in college while I was studying film was to avoid saying your project was “for everyone.” The reality is that you’re not “for everyone.” You can’t be. I’ve relearned this lesson myself over the years. Between Vocal, Medium, and Substack, I’d say only ninety people are subscribed to me, with fewer bothering to read my work. Of my self-published novellas, I’d say a similar number are fans. If I had to estimate, based on comments, reviews, and emails I’ve received, I would say approximately fifty people in the whole world have resonated strongly with anything I’ve made. I accept that. That is the reality of being a creative. I am in very good company.
By Conor Matthews14 days ago in The Swamp
The Missing Argument in the Stay-at-Home Parent Subsidy Debate
Preface: Video Context: Video Credit: Timcast / Tim Pool This article is a response to a recent Timcast segment discussing the proposed policy that would allow qualifying married couples with a stay-at-home parent to receive childcare subsidies of roughly $9,000 per child per year. The video frames the central debate around whether this amounts to additional welfare or whether it simply redirects money government is already spending on childcare toward parents who choose to provide that care themselves. Around 9:32–10:20 , Tim argues that the welfare expenditure already exists and that the important change is where the incentive points: instead of subsidizing families specifically when parents work and children are cared for elsewhere, the same funding could begin supporting married parents who raise their children at home.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast24 days ago in The Swamp
A Better Buyout: Paying Married Parents to Buy Back Their Time
A Different Kind of Buyout I previously proposed what I called a Family Support Buyout: give families the option to voluntarily exchange a large portion of the government benefits and services already being spent on their behalf for one predictable, untaxed monthly payment they control themselves. Instead of administering SNAP, childcare subsidies, housing assistance, refundable credits, cash assistance, and other ordinary supports through separate bureaucracies, government could calculate the avoidable cost of those programs and offer families perhaps 65, 70, or 75 percent of that value directly. The family would relinquish the benefits being replaced, taxpayers would retain the remaining savings, and the household would gain dramatically greater control over how its resources are allocated. Medical coverage, disability services, catastrophic healthcare, and other specialized needs could remain separate because those costs are less suitable for a simple cash conversion. The central idea was straightforward: if government is already spending $100 supporting a family, perhaps both taxpayers and the family can benefit if the family receives $70 directly instead.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast24 days ago in The Swamp
Fear: The Quiet Architect of Closed Minds
I use AI the same way any creator uses a tool to support my imagination, not replace it. My stories, my voice, my face, my lived experience are mine. If you choose to judge or ostracize people for using modern tools, that’s your bias, not my truth. I’m not hiding. I’m not cheating. I’m creating. And I’ll keep doing that with whatever tools help me express my work.
By Vicki Lawana Trusselli about a month ago in The Swamp
