Dear Readers,
This Thanksgiving week, as families gather around tables piled high with food, it's worth remembering the Pilgrims’ plight. Reminding us about the important but often forgotten lesson of the first Thanksgiving, Benjamin Powell writes about how the Pilgrims’ experiment with communal living also led to their starvation. Indeed, the Pilgrims’ first true Thanksgiving bounty came only after they abandoned communal farming and embraced private property rights.
In a new episode of Independent Outlook, Graham Walker, Bill Evers, and Phil Magness break down what’s going on at the Heritage Foundation, how to deal with anti-Semitism, Trump’s battle with the BBC, and more.
Alvaro Vargas Llosa warns that Trump’s massive naval buildup of Venezuela signals a looming showdown with Nicolás Maduro. The risk? That intervention could repeat history’s costly lessons of U.S. military overreach, where short-term shows of strength spiral into long-term entanglements.
Sam Jenson lauds John Oliver’s spotlight on America’s felony murder rule, a legal scheme that punishes people for deaths they may have had no involvement in. He argues that this outdated doctrine is horrifically unjust.
Thomas Howe explores how postliberal thinkers’ embrace of Carl Schmitt’s “state of exception” risks normalizing authoritarianism under the guise of serving the common good. His piece comes in the wake of controversy surrounding Tucker Carlson’s interview with Nick Fuentes, raising urgent questions about the boundaries of political thought.
Alen Gindler tracks the chatter heading into the next Federal Reserve meeting. The pressure is likely to prompt another cut in December despite little relief felt from the previous rate cut.
Craig Eyermann delivers a review and post-mortem for DOGE, which was recently shuttered prematurely.
Finally, a new episode of The Independent with Scott Atlas has dropped, this time with Harmeet Dhillon as a guest. The two discuss DEI and censorhsip on campus, and what Trump’s DOJ is doing about it.
Enjoy—and happy Thanksgiving!
Jonathan Hofer
Managing Editor
