My Life as a Failed Pundit

A heavily edited version of this is on Splice Today, but I don’t like how they edited it, so I’m posting the full version here.

Meghan Daum recently announced her retirement from writing think pieces because, as she puts it, “after a quarter century of thinking on the page, I often literally don’t know what to think anymore.” The line between fact and opinion has blurred so much that it’s hard to know what the truth is anymore, according to Daum; everyone would rather have their preconceived notions confirmed. She adds that coming up with something original to say every week is exhausting, too, especially when you can’t think of anything to say.

I know what she means. Prior to working at a grocery store, my livelihood depended on having a new opinion every week, hoping it would be the one that got me a weekly column at a major publication. Everyone would marvel at my infinite wisdom and bravery for saying things nobody else had the guts to say. Four years and several breakdowns later, though, I’m happy to report that I am not a pundit.

Many on the left saw pundits as prophets after the 2016 election. We needed someone willing to stand up against Pharaoh and lead us to the Promised Land. The emperor was clearly naked, but those who acknowledged it were deemed the enemy of the people. Meanwhile, the rift between the “woke” and the “anti-woke” grew…