Look What You Made Me Do

Introducing Punching Up: Truth with a Left Hook

I didn’t sit down one day and decide to build a “brand.”

I started writing because I wanted to say things that couldn’t be articulated in 280 characters or in a clever social-media meme. And I was tired, tired of watching politicians talk in circles while real people lose sleep, tired of the noise, the performative outrage, the elitist smugness, tired of everyone pretending this mess is normal.

So I wrote.

I wrote what I was thinking. What I was yelling at the radio and the TV and social media. I wrote about the truths and qualities I felt were missing from our political and social discourse, about the things too easily sacrificed in pursuit of power and money.

It turns out you were thinking a lot of the same things. Some of you wrote and said, “You give me hope,” and that gave ME hope. Others said they laughed so hard they scared their pets or spit out their coffee, and that made me laugh. A few said they loved reading about my wife’s cats, and that made me think of Taylor Swift—who Donald Trump thinks about a lot—and her cats: Meredith Grey, Olivia Benson, and Benjamin Button. And Taylor Swift led to the title of this post.

I didn’t expect all of the subscribers or all of the kind, flattering things they would say. I didn’t expect the thousands of emails and DMs or the media interviews or podcast invites.

But I did know this: people are hungry for common sense, clarity, and something real — something that doesn’t insult their intelligence or sell them outrage for clicks.

You don’t need someone screaming.
You need someone who cares.

So yeah, I guess this is now a thing.

It’s Called Punching Up.

That’s what good satire does. It aims at the powerful, not the powerless. It speaks truth to authority. It calls out the bull—regardless of party, platform, or press credentials.

And let’s be honest: there’s a lot of bull.

Punching Up isn’t just a name. It’s what we’re doing together.
It’s what you do when you:

• Send a post to a friend who feels politically homeless

• Push back against bad ideas with humor instead of hate

• Refuse to give in to cynicism, even when it’s easier

This space started as me venting into the void. But it’s grown into a place where people like us — veterans, teachers, farmers, journalists, thinkers, parents, and even a few retired librarians — can talk like adults and laugh like we’re still allowed to and be friends even when we disagree.

What You Can Expect Going Forward:

• The same writing you’ve come to know — smart, sharp, sometimes funny, sometimes furious, always honest.

• More ways to engage — interviews, guest Q&As, community input.

• Speaking gigs & media stuff — which means more chances to take this message beyond the inbox.

• A cleaner, stronger platform — the Punching Up website is launching soon with a full archive, media resources, and yes, a spot to buy a mug or hire me speak to your crew if you’re into that sort of thing.

(Also — shoutout to the readers who keep asking when I’ll run for office again. That depends on when my wife recovers from the last race and stops watching shows like Snapped and Buried in the Back Yard.)

Thank You.

You helped build this.
Not some consultant. Not an algorithm.
Just readers. Humans. People who gave a damn and passed it on.

So thank you — for subscribing, for sharing, for keeping me grounded, and for reminding me that truth with a left hook still hits home.

Now let’s go punch a little harder.

—Trygve

Buy Trygve a coffee!