CNN's problem goes to its very core and to the identity it's sought ever since the rise of Fox News, on its right: CNN is the channel for people who don't want to watch the other channels! That's a stupid strategy. Alex Pareene channelcnncore share on social
Do you know who takes weekday shuttle flights between Washington and New York? People who think they are too important for the train, let alone the bus. Alex Pareene busflightimportant Change image and share on social
Cable boxes are, almost without exception, awful. They're under-powered computers running very badly designed software. Their channel guides are slow, poorly laid out, and usually riddled with ads. Alex Pareene awfulbadlybox Change image and share on social
John Boehner was and is an unprincipled ward-heeler who simply couldn't weather the transition of the Republican Party from a corporatist party with a sizable conservative base to a purely conservative party. Alex Pareene baseboehnerconservative share on social
If some modern-day David Brock wanted to defect from the conservative movement and write a tell-all focused solely on the financial chicanery of the entire right-wing nonprofit/think tank/publishing sphere, I would read the absolute heck out of it. Alex Pareene absolutebrockchicanery share on social
Obviously no one wants to give members of Congress a lot of money, because they barely do anything, and many of them are terrible, but a Congress that is made up of rich-but-not-super-rich people is going to be more corruptible than a Congress of really rich people. Alex Pareene barelycongresscorruptible share on social
Christopher Hitchens, the late essayist and sot, was a man who purposefully cultivated a lot of friends of a certain type - rich, self-important, generally dim-witted and hence easy for a well-spoken Oxbridge debater to impress - and he electrified Washington D.C. society mainly by not being a completely charmless bore. Alex Pareene bearcharmlesschristopher share on social
Medicare is expensive because we spend a lot on healthcare. We spend a lot on healthcare basically just because we want to, and doing so has been very good to a lot of people who work in healthcare fields. Alex Pareene basicallyexpensivefield share on social
I guess if you want me to stop writing horrible, mean takedowns of everyone, give me a really, really cushy columnist gig. Alex Pareene columnistcushygig Change image and share on social
It's easy for the thought-leader and executive classes to embrace a 'do what you love and love what you do' philosophy when they are wealthy enough to work hard only voluntarily, and when their jobs grant them status. Alex Pareene classeasyembrace share on social