This article does a great job of providing an accessible breakdown of what drives police abuse & why it is largely divorced from the makeup of the rank & file. In my investigations of police agencies across the country, the primary driver of excessive force & killings by police is clear: culture.

Maybe it’s hard out there for Bret Stephens, according to Bret Stephens (I don’t know, I don’t do him the favor of reading his words), but it’s certainly not hard out there for Paul Harding. Just have more talent, dude, and more rigor.

I was a National Book Awards judge in 2023, and one of the finalists was This Other Eden by Paul Harding, not just any straight white man, but a straight white man who had already won a Pulitzer. He was also shortlisted for the Booker that year.

NEW: The Department of Homeland Security has subpoenaed REI (yes, the outdoor retailer) for details on anyone who bought a specific green beanie in the Minneapolis area. It's one part of a larger, and very disturbing, effort to go after people protesting ICE:

I get these every day. I guess American authors, like American retirees, are rich enough by global standards to be worth the continuous squeeze.

Incredibly, Your House Will Be Pay made this list of the 50 best thrillers of the 21st Century. It is probably the 50th bestselling book on there, and I’m grateful to everyone who included it in their ballots.