My (somewhat relevant?) Martin Luther King Day reads:
• New High of 45% in U.S. Identify as Political Independents: More independents lean Democratic than Republican, giving Democrats edge in party affiliation for first time since 2021. (Gallup)
• Why are federal agents gunning down Americans in the streets? The shooting of Renee Good, like all of the ICE abuses, is symptomatic of a deeper mental illness. (Noahpinion) see also The Consequences of Rejecting “Defund the Police” Political cowardice is paid for in blood. (How Things Work)
• The Plot to Redraw America: How Donald Trump launched a redistricting caper he couldn’t pull off. (Politico)
• Why Are Credit Card Rates So High? Capping rates would cause banks to pull back their lending in this space. Only those with solid credit scores would be able to borrow. Those who rely on credit cards to finance their lifestyle would be forced into payday loans or other more onerous borrowing schemes. (A Wealth of Common Sense)
• Behind the Curtain: AI rush creates rarified class of “Have-Lots” For the bottom 50%, the economy, by historical standards, is fine. Wages are growing, unemployment is low, and inflation is moderate. But the mood is sour, as shown by sky-high pessimism about their personal future and AI. (Axios)
• The wild card group that could scramble America’s political alliances: Why Catholics could be the key to Trump’s opposition. (Vox)
• ICE Prosecutor in Dallas Runs White Supremacist X Account: The Observer has identified the operator of “GlomarResponder,” an overtly racist social media account, as ICE Assistant Chief Counsel James Rodden, based on an overwhelming number of biographical details matched through publicly available documents, other social media activity, and courtroom observation. (Texas Observer)
• You’ve Heard About Who ICE Is Recruiting. The Truth Is Far Worse. I’m the Proof. What happens when you do minimal screening before hiring agents, arming them, and sending them into the streets? We’re all finding out. (Slate) see also What to Do if ICE Invades Your Neighborhood: With federal agents storming the streets of American communities, there’s no single right way to approach this dangerous moment. But there are steps you can take to stay safe—and have an impact. (Wired) see also How Donald Trump Has Transformed ICE: A former D.H.S. oversight official on what, legally, the agency can and can’t do—and the accountability mechanisms that have been “gutted beyond recognition.” (The New Yorker)
• The Oceans Just Keep Getting Hotter: For the eighth year in a row, the world’s oceans absorbed a record-breaking amount of heat in 2025. It was equivalent to the energy it would take to boil 2 billion Olympic swimming pools. (Wired)
• Renfrew Christie, Who Sabotaged Racist Regime’s Nuclear Program, Dies at 76: He played a key role in ending apartheid South Africa’s secret weapons program in the 1980s by helping the African National Congress bomb critical facilities. (I imagine MLK would have approved his civil disobedience). (New York Times)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview this weekend with Nobel laureate Richard Thaler and his University of Chicago Booth School colleague Alex Imas on the update and reissue of his classic book The Winner’s Curse.
The United States Spends More on Defense than the Next 9 Countries Combined
Source: Peter G. Peterson Foundation
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