I’ve got about half a dozen posts sitting unfinished in my draft folder, because here’s what keeps happening to me. The day begins with news of Episode X of the Trump Presidency. I spend hours reading about it, trying to understand what really happen, trying to figure out who really said or did what and why, trying to separate fact from rumor. When finally I think I understand, I spend an afternoon writing a post about it, and in the end, I’m quite proud: I’ve got Episode X all sorted out!

Right before I press “publish,” though, I check the news to see if there have been any further developments in the story, just to be sure it’s up to date, and … Oh, no! Episode X is ancient history! The world has moved on to Episode Y! I missed Episode Y completely, I was too busy thinking about Episode X. So I end up feeling like Rip van Winkle, stunned and blinking in the sunlight, and can’t bring myself to press “publish,” because it will look as if I’ve been sleeping under a rock.

Dear Peter,

I’ve been a fan for a long time and a listener of your podcast for years! I hope it is not out of line, but one should clearly pronounce the ”N” in ”Le Pen”! Otherwise, it sounds like ”le pain” (”the bread” as you know)! Otherwise, I find your French to be quite good.

It was twenty-one years ago that Ricochet’s own Peter Robinson started Uncommon Knowledge, one of the best interview series there is. All I can say is… man, Peter, you have really let yourself go. I mean, dude!

The Economic Policy Uncertainty Index — devised by Scott Baker, Nick Bloom, and Steven Davis — tries to measure policy uncertainty by looking at media coverage, the number of tax code provisions set to expire, and forecaster disagreement. The researchers have found a “significant dynamic relationship exists” between the index and the real economy, and that “foreshadows a decline in economic growth and employment in the following months.”