I've really enjoyed the pieces examining liberalism as an ideology, including Jerusalem's piece about why she's not a centrist and Yglesias' article 'The fox in liberalism's henhouse'. But to truly defend liberalism in this era in which it is in question, I'd like to see The Argument explore and engage with arguments which challenge liberalism, such as the post-liberalism on the right and left. For liberalism to emerge strengthened, liberal advocates must show that they understand the underlying issues that have motivated so many to turn to populist illiberalism, such as backlash to globalisation, mass migration, hyper-individualism, economic inequality and cultural change. Next, liberals need to show that liberalism - and not a post-liberal reconstruction - can offer tangible solutions. I also believe that disregarding heterodox post-liberal thinkers only adds fuel to the argument, as promoted by Patrick Deneen, that liberalism purports to promote pluralism but in reality enforced uniformity and homogeneity.
I definitely agree with this. One of the interesting nuances of liberalism itself, whether a government system or outlet like The Argument, is that people have the freedom to argue against liberalism. Not just critiques, but argue against it as an effective government/humanist system and try to propose alternative methods. (People have the freedom of speech to argue against freedom of speech, to put it another way.) Reminds me of the debate around Popper’s idea that we have to be intolerant of intolerance, and all of the complexities that go along with that.
Yes, that's a great point. Liberalism's strength lies in its conviction that each individual should be free to express their own views on the world around them rather than tacitly accepting liberalism without question.
I’ve really enjoyed year 1 of the Argument and I can’t wait to read more in 2026.
My favorite articles have been about education, my least favorite are probably the polls. They are well done I’m just not as interested in them as the other articles.
In 2026 I think it might be interesting to get more opinions on foreign affairs topics such as Americas relationship with the EU, China, the Ukrainian war, and the Middle East.
My area is US elections and I've really enjoyed reading what Lakshya puts out. I've liked some of the posts by guest authors. The one by Alex Trembath on climate change and voters was excellent. I think more posts from guest authors would be a good idea, particularly ones that challenge left and even center-left beliefs.
I really enjoy the Mad Libs. Nothing like a good old fashioned debate between two people of good faith hashing out differences in values as well as policy. Not many places to find that anymore! Keep up the great work!
I've gotten education reporting here which is clear and accessible in a way that I haven't seen elsewhere, while also asking genuinely hard-hitting and important questions.
I think this is because Kelsey Piper is learning as she goes, as are the rest of us. This is a compliment.
I seem to remember you having used "Geronimo!" as a closing on some other blog posts or columns -- if you want a fluffy / fun idea for a short post later this year (maybe as a filler for a holiday weekend), I'd be curious how you picked up that habit. Maybe get some contributions from other writers about their own distinctive turns of phrase. (Maybe this is only of interest to linguistics nerds. But I did an undergrad degree in linguistics, so.)
Oh, also: Are you also the originator of the funny generalization of the usage "Attorneys General" to names? So, "conservative Dems that annoy the more liberal base voters" can be referred to as "Joes Manchin", and so on. I remember that having spread out of Vox, and being used on The Weeds a fair bit.
I wish Kelsey would write more about the possibility that AI has a transformative impact in the next decade--by "transformative" I mean to include possibilities like the AI killing everyone, the AI staging a coup and taking over the US government, world energy consumption increasing by 10x, etc. Kelsey understands these issues better than almost any other journalist, and given their extreme importance, I wish there was more serious engagement between her and her more skeptical colleagues.
Fantastic publication, thank you for the wonderful insights and informative articles. I didn't think defending liberalism would be such a pressing issue not long ago, but here we are doing it in 2026.
I've really enjoyed the pieces examining liberalism as an ideology, including Jerusalem's piece about why she's not a centrist and Yglesias' article 'The fox in liberalism's henhouse'. But to truly defend liberalism in this era in which it is in question, I'd like to see The Argument explore and engage with arguments which challenge liberalism, such as the post-liberalism on the right and left. For liberalism to emerge strengthened, liberal advocates must show that they understand the underlying issues that have motivated so many to turn to populist illiberalism, such as backlash to globalisation, mass migration, hyper-individualism, economic inequality and cultural change. Next, liberals need to show that liberalism - and not a post-liberal reconstruction - can offer tangible solutions. I also believe that disregarding heterodox post-liberal thinkers only adds fuel to the argument, as promoted by Patrick Deneen, that liberalism purports to promote pluralism but in reality enforced uniformity and homogeneity.
I definitely agree with this. One of the interesting nuances of liberalism itself, whether a government system or outlet like The Argument, is that people have the freedom to argue against liberalism. Not just critiques, but argue against it as an effective government/humanist system and try to propose alternative methods. (People have the freedom of speech to argue against freedom of speech, to put it another way.) Reminds me of the debate around Popper’s idea that we have to be intolerant of intolerance, and all of the complexities that go along with that.
Yes, that's a great point. Liberalism's strength lies in its conviction that each individual should be free to express their own views on the world around them rather than tacitly accepting liberalism without question.
I’ve really enjoyed year 1 of the Argument and I can’t wait to read more in 2026.
My favorite articles have been about education, my least favorite are probably the polls. They are well done I’m just not as interested in them as the other articles.
In 2026 I think it might be interesting to get more opinions on foreign affairs topics such as Americas relationship with the EU, China, the Ukrainian war, and the Middle East.
My area is US elections and I've really enjoyed reading what Lakshya puts out. I've liked some of the posts by guest authors. The one by Alex Trembath on climate change and voters was excellent. I think more posts from guest authors would be a good idea, particularly ones that challenge left and even center-left beliefs.
I really enjoy the Mad Libs. Nothing like a good old fashioned debate between two people of good faith hashing out differences in values as well as policy. Not many places to find that anymore! Keep up the great work!
I've gotten education reporting here which is clear and accessible in a way that I haven't seen elsewhere, while also asking genuinely hard-hitting and important questions.
I think this is because Kelsey Piper is learning as she goes, as are the rest of us. This is a compliment.
So, more of that, please!
I seem to remember you having used "Geronimo!" as a closing on some other blog posts or columns -- if you want a fluffy / fun idea for a short post later this year (maybe as a filler for a holiday weekend), I'd be curious how you picked up that habit. Maybe get some contributions from other writers about their own distinctive turns of phrase. (Maybe this is only of interest to linguistics nerds. But I did an undergrad degree in linguistics, so.)
Oh, also: Are you also the originator of the funny generalization of the usage "Attorneys General" to names? So, "conservative Dems that annoy the more liberal base voters" can be referred to as "Joes Manchin", and so on. I remember that having spread out of Vox, and being used on The Weeds a fair bit.
I wish Kelsey would write more about the possibility that AI has a transformative impact in the next decade--by "transformative" I mean to include possibilities like the AI killing everyone, the AI staging a coup and taking over the US government, world energy consumption increasing by 10x, etc. Kelsey understands these issues better than almost any other journalist, and given their extreme importance, I wish there was more serious engagement between her and her more skeptical colleagues.
Fantastic publication, thank you for the wonderful insights and informative articles. I didn't think defending liberalism would be such a pressing issue not long ago, but here we are doing it in 2026.
https://substack.com/@lancenormine/note/c-194103058?r=2u1w7u&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action