Josh Barro
Writes Very Serious, a newsletter on politics, the economy and culture, and hosts the podcast of the same name.
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What they believe
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The identity politics of Woke 1 alienated the ordinary Americans the left once championed.
By demanding the purification of the individual and branding broad swathes of the public as oppressor classes, 'Woke 1' besmirched the average Americans who Democrats once championed.
joshbarro.comSaid 14 Aug 2026This on korrents
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Modern technology has made seasonal clock changes far less burdensome than they were decades ago.
the main relevant difference between 1974 and now is that technology handles clock changes on our behalf, so time changes are less burdensome than they used to be.
joshbarro.comSaid 17 Jul 2026This on korrents
The bold line is korrents’ wording; the quote is theirs. These 2: what they wrote before what they said aloud, one per source, newest first.
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5 November
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14 August
From one piece Woke 1 Was Anti-Populist, and Not in the Good Way 3 beliefs · joshbarro.com
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korrents.com
Defunding the police is incompatible with a mass movement in a society where people want police protection.Their words
Zohran now understands how "defund" is incompatible with a mass movement in a society where the masses want protection by the police.
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korrents.com
Treating ordinary people as an oppressor class that must repent is incompatible with left populism.Their words
This worldview - that the masses, basically everyone except the most marginalized and most oppressed, must reckon with their roles as oppressors and repent2 - is incompatible with the populism that has since risen on the left.
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korrents.com
The identity politics of Woke 1 alienated the ordinary Americans the left once championed.Their words
By demanding the purification of the individual and branding broad swathes of the public as oppressor classes, 'Woke 1' besmirched the average Americans who Democrats once championed.
11 August
4 August
29 July
17 July
From one piece Permanent Daylight Saving Time Is the Perfect Stupid Idea for Our Stupid Time 3 beliefs · joshbarro.com
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Their words
politicians acting based on what they think polls well, rather than based on what will actually produce results that make voters happy
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Their words
the increasing unreasonableness of an electorate that wants all its groceries in one bag and also doesn't want the bag to be heavy is a primary driver behind permanently low approval of politicians in both parties
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korrents.com
Modern technology has made seasonal clock changes far less burdensome than they were decades ago.Their words
the main relevant difference between 1974 and now is that technology handles clock changes on our behalf, so time changes are less burdensome than they used to be.
13 July
From one piece Graham Platner Was Just Hunter Biden With Worse Ink 2 beliefs · joshbarro.com
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Their words
After all, one of the main reasons bad boys are bad is that they lie.
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Their words
They get women to sleep with them, but they attract both men and women and cause them to surrender their better judgment and make bad choices in a variety of contexts, including the voting booth.
28 June
From one piece Europe Needs Air Conditioning 3 beliefs · joshbarro.com
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Their words
European leftists explicitly advocate that people should be kept poor, uncomfortable, and literally sweating.
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korrents.com
American overregulation and labor-market rigidity make elevators far more common in Europe than in the US.Their words
elevators are the rare part of the economy where Europeans have embraced market dynamism while Americans choose overregulation and labor market rigidity.
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korrents.com
European countries are wealthy enough to afford widespread air conditioning, comparable to Japan.Their words
Europe is not actually poor. Japan is about as wealthy as Europe, and almost all Japanese homes are air-conditioned. Europeans could afford to air-condition their homes (and their hospitals!) just like the Japanese do.
3 June
From one piece Low-Conscientiousness Losers Are Bad Senate Candidates 3 beliefs · joshbarro.com
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korrents.com
Having worked at a highly selective, demanding employer signals conscientiousness and reliability.Their words
Having worked there is a signal that you work hard, you complete your assignments, you adapt well to new tasks and requirements, and you're ready to take on new challenges.
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korrents.com
A member of Congress should be better, on most measures, than the people they represent.Their words
a member of Congress should be better, on most measures, than the people he or she represents.
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Their words
if you nominate people whose life history reflects a high degree of unreliability, they may prove unreliable once in office.
22 May
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korrents.com
A minority party can peel off enough opposition-party votes to pass impeachment articles despite being outnumbered.Their words
I think it's likely Democrats could peel off enough Republicans to actually pass an impeachment resolution against Blanche.
15 May
9 May
8 May
23 April
14 April
22 March
24 February
4 February
Nothing matches.
Beliefs
Korrents What they believe 22 beliefs — each backed by an exact quote.
Each is a — compiled by korrents.com, not by them: the one-line wordings are korrents', the quotes are theirs.
Recent
The identity politics of Woke 1 alienated the ordinary Americans the left once championed.
By demanding the purification of the individual and branding broad swathes of the public as oppressor classes, 'Woke 1' besmirched the average Americans who Democrats once championed.
Woke 1 Was Anti-Populist, and Not in the Good Way Said 14 Aug 2026
Treating ordinary people as an oppressor class that must repent is incompatible with left populism.
This worldview - that the masses, basically everyone except the most marginalized and most oppressed, must reckon with their roles as oppressors and repent2 - is incompatible with the populism that has since risen on the left.
Woke 1 Was Anti-Populist, and Not in the Good Way Said 14 Aug 2026
Defunding the police is incompatible with a mass movement in a society where people want police protection.
Zohran now understands how "defund" is incompatible with a mass movement in a society where the masses want protection by the police.
Woke 1 Was Anti-Populist, and Not in the Good Way Said 14 Aug 2026
Show 19 more
Modern technology has made seasonal clock changes far less burdensome than they were decades ago.
the main relevant difference between 1974 and now is that technology handles clock changes on our behalf, so time changes are less burdensome than they used to be.
Permanent Daylight Saving Time Is the Perfect Stupid Idea for Our Stupid Time Said 17 Jul 2026
Growing public unreasonableness and contradictory demands are a major cause of persistently low approval ratings for politicians of both parties.
the increasing unreasonableness of an electorate that wants all its groceries in one bag and also doesn't want the bag to be heavy is a primary driver behind permanently low approval of politicians in both parties
Permanent Daylight Saving Time Is the Perfect Stupid Idea for Our Stupid Time Said 17 Jul 2026
Politicians increasingly govern by what polls well rather than by what actually produces outcomes voters are satisfied with.
politicians acting based on what they think polls well, rather than based on what will actually produce results that make voters happy
Permanent Daylight Saving Time Is the Perfect Stupid Idea for Our Stupid Time Said 17 Jul 2026
Certain seductive personality types cause people to override their better judgment not just romantically but also in politics.
They get women to sleep with them, but they attract both men and women and cause them to surrender their better judgment and make bad choices in a variety of contexts, including the voting booth.
Graham Platner Was Just Hunter Biden With Worse Ink Said 13 Jul 2026
A defining trait of charismatic 'bad boy' figures is that they lie.
After all, one of the main reasons bad boys are bad is that they lie.
Graham Platner Was Just Hunter Biden With Worse Ink Said 13 Jul 2026
European countries are wealthy enough to afford widespread air conditioning, comparable to Japan.
Europe is not actually poor. Japan is about as wealthy as Europe, and almost all Japanese homes are air-conditioned. Europeans could afford to air-condition their homes (and their hospitals!) just like the Japanese do.
Europe Needs Air Conditioning Said 28 Jun 2026
American overregulation and labor-market rigidity make elevators far more common in Europe than in the US.
elevators are the rare part of the economy where Europeans have embraced market dynamism while Americans choose overregulation and labor market rigidity.
Europe Needs Air Conditioning Said 28 Jun 2026
Some European leftists oppose comforts like air conditioning on political grounds, in effect favoring hardship over comfort.
European leftists explicitly advocate that people should be kept poor, uncomfortable, and literally sweating.
Europe Needs Air Conditioning Said 28 Jun 2026
A political candidate whose personal life shows a pattern of unreliability will likely prove unreliable in office too.
if you nominate people whose life history reflects a high degree of unreliability, they may prove unreliable once in office.
Low-Conscientiousness Losers Are Bad Senate Candidates Said 3 Jun 2026
A member of Congress should be better, on most measures, than the people they represent.
a member of Congress should be better, on most measures, than the people he or she represents.
Low-Conscientiousness Losers Are Bad Senate Candidates Said 3 Jun 2026
Having worked at a highly selective, demanding employer signals conscientiousness and reliability.
Having worked there is a signal that you work hard, you complete your assignments, you adapt well to new tasks and requirements, and you're ready to take on new challenges.
Low-Conscientiousness Losers Are Bad Senate Candidates Said 3 Jun 2026
A minority party can peel off enough opposition-party votes to pass impeachment articles despite being outnumbered.
I think it's likely Democrats could peel off enough Republicans to actually pass an impeachment resolution against Blanche.
Impeach Todd Blanche Said 22 May 2026
Republican lawmakers have lost the party cohesion needed to shield a Trump ally from an impeachment trial.
My guess is Republicans have lost the necessary cohesion to fall on Trump's sword and block a trial.
Impeach Todd Blanche Said 22 May 2026
Waging political war on a central bank does not serve a president's own political interests.
A war on the Fed has not served Trump's political interests and generally does not serve any president's interests.
Fed Board Members: Stay In Your Seats Said 15 May 2026
Federal Reserve Board members have historically often resigned before completing their full terms.
Federal Reserve Board members have often resigned their positions well before their 14-year terms expired, since that's quite a long time to spend in one position in government.
Fed Board Members: Stay In Your Seats Said 15 May 2026
The Federal Reserve will need to raise interest rates rather than cut them to bring down inflation.
I will be surprised if there are any votes for rate cuts, even from Warsh himself. The Fed may need to hike rates this year to tame inflation.
Fed Board Members: Stay In Your Seats Said 15 May 2026
Seeking special tax treatment that could not sustainably be extended to everyone is morally wrong.
it's also morally wrong to seek out special treatment that could not sustainably be offered to everyone.
Stop Microlooting the Tax Code Said 9 May 2026
Stronger enforcement against tax and benefit cheating would raise social trust in government.
It would behoove politicians to take cheating more seriously, because better enforcement would improve social trust
Stop Microlooting the Tax Code Said 9 May 2026
How big a government you want determines necessary tax rates, but any such system depends on people actually paying their taxes.
The necessary tax rates depend on how big a government you want, but all these systems rely on people paying taxes.
Stop Microlooting the Tax Code Said 9 May 2026
What is a korrent?
A korrent is a belief a person has stated in their own words: one sentence stating the claim, backed by a quote and a source, kept at korrents.com.
Under a name here, the quoted block is what they actually said. The korrent beneath it is the claim those words support, in korrents' wording — tap it to see the record, its source, and who else holds it.
Nobody here wrote their own korrents. They are compiled from public statements, and a person can change their mind, which is recorded too.
Recommends rcmnd
rcmnd What they recommend 1 thing — each backed by an exact quote.
Compiled by rcmnd.app, not by them: the quotes are theirs, and each links to the post it was copied from.
Recent
Recommends Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington
dishy and full of odd stories like the one about Reagan and the alleged secret right-wing gay cabal; and of correctives to wrong things you’ve likely heard about figures such as J. Edgar Hoover, who probably was not actually a cross-dresser. The story as a whole is sad and maddening — Jamie has, for example, handwritten edits to Ronald Reagan’s draft statement about Rock Hudson’s death, removing all reference to the closeness of Hudson’s relationship to Ronald and Nancy — but also very interesting, and well worth your time.
joshbarro.com 1 Jun 2022
What others say about Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington →
Where they publish
Newsletter Very Serious His newsletter on politics and the economy. Has a feed.
Recent
- This Is What Fed Independence Looks Like 30 Sept 2026 President Trump’s economic team is annoyed he hasn’t been able to reshape the Federal Reserve Board. But he’s not supposed to be able to.
- Woke 1 Was Anti-Populist, and Not in the Good Way 14 Aug 2026 By demanding the purification of the individual and branding broad swathes of the public as oppressor classes, 'Woke 1' besmirched the average Americans who Democrats once championed.
- Permanent Daylight Saving Time Is the Perfect Stupid Idea for Our Stupid Time 17 Jul 2026 Whiny people who don't know history are failing to acknowledge trade-offs. That's just how politics is now.
Show 17 more
- Graham Platner Was Just Hunter Biden With Worse Ink 13 Jul 2026 Beware seductive men with volatile personalities and substance abuse problems. Do not let them into your bedroom or public office.
- Europe Needs Air Conditioning 28 Jun 2026 Sorry if I'm boring any Europeans with this observation
- Low-Conscientiousness Losers Are Bad Senate Candidates 3 Jun 2026 John Fetterman and Graham Platner both flailed into adulthood, living off their affluent parents while not amounting to much. Why have leftists decided this is a good resume for the U.S. Senate?
- Impeach Todd Blanche 22 May 2026 With the thin Republican majorities, Democrats could plausibly force a trial of the acting Attorney General over the "Anti-Weaponization Fund"
- Fed Board Members: Stay In Your Seats 15 May 2026 Protecting central bank independence will be an ongoing struggle; the most important thing is that no board members resign anytime soon.
- Stop Microlooting the Tax Code 9 May 2026 The demand for hyper-specific tax exemptions is just a more respectable manifestation of the same impulse that leads people to justify shoplifting.
- The Redistricting Loss Means Democrats Must Moderate to Win 8 May 2026 The way to compensate for a less-favorable map is by winning a larger share of the vote, so Democrats must move closer to the median voter.
- On Redistricting, It's Time for Republicans to Stop Whining and Start Negotiating 23 Apr 2026 Gerrymandered maps are rationally approved by majorities at the state level. Only a new set of federal rules can rein in gerrymandering.
- Trump Is Failing the 'Big-Ass Truck' Test 14 Apr 2026 Trump's bargain with swing voters was that he would deliver a strong economy and they would look past his many defects. By attacking Iran, Trump has broken the deal.
- The Adolescents Have Taken Over Policymaking 22 Mar 2026 Democrats increasingly match Republicans' emotionally immature approach to policy — a problem for the party that's supposed to be invested in making government work.
- Good Things Are Good 24 Feb 2026 A viral memo, proposing a 2028 market crash because of too much AI-driven productivity growth, makes little sense.
- He’s Not the Worst Kevin 4 Feb 2026 The best available Fed endgame likely ends with confirming Kevin Warsh, but moderate senators should first keep pushing the administration to end DOJ interference in monetary policy.
- The Cult of Jasmine Crockett Shows Democrats are Still Trapped in the Dumbest Form of Identity Politics 14 Jan 2026 Comedians Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers were right to tell people not to waste money on her campaign. But they had to apologize anyway.
- Capitalism for Developers, Communism for Landlords 8 Jan 2026 Zohran Mamdani is attempting this synthesis — one with some basis in our city's housing policy history — but I doubt it's one he'll be able to implement.
- Elite Colleges Should Try Harder to Stay Elite 12 Dec 2025 They remain wildly expensive while doing less than ever to prove their worth. This combination is not sustainable.
- To Win on Electricity Prices, Democrats Need Policies That Make Electricity Cheaper 1 Dec 2025 Blue states have higher electricity prices than red states. We need more infrastructure — including fossil fuel infrastructure — to ensure that electricity is affordable.
- The Republican Health Care Trilemma 20 Nov 2025 Republicans want three things about health insurance, but it's only possible to have two, which is why they can't come up with a health care policy.
Link verified 20 Sept 2026. Recent items update automatically from the channel.
Podcast Central Air Hosts the Central Air podcast.
Recent
- Wipeout! 5 Nov 2026
- The Ass Election (feat. Nate Silver) 27 Oct 2026
- Washington D.C. Is Fantasyland 20 Oct 2026
Show 17 more
- Choose Your Own Religion 15 Oct 2026
- Eating the Elephant (with Sarah Longwell) 6 Oct 2026
- MeanToo (with Dave Weigel) 29 Sept 2026
- A Declaration Against Interest (feat. Jonathan Chait) 22 Sept 2026
- Gays In Crisis 15 Sept 2026
- Don't Forget to Never Forget 9 Sept 2026
- The Time Tax (feat. Annie Lowrey) 1 Sept 2026
- Calling All Cranks 25 Aug 2026
- The Best of the Worst 18 Aug 2026
- Lower Education 11 Aug 2026
- The Gen Z Takeover (feat. Kristen Soltis Anderson) 4 Aug 2026
- Cheap Meats 29 Jul 2026
- The 'Woke' Odyssey (feat. Sonny Bunch) 21 Jul 2026
- Seeking the Tribune of the Downwardly Mobile (feat. Tyler Austin Harper) 14 Jul 2026
- Inflation Grades 30 Jun 2026
- AI Probably Won't Kill Everyone 23 Jun 2026
- Speaking of Getting Screwed (feat. Andrew Sullivan) 16 Jun 2026
Link verified 25 Sept 2026. Recent items update automatically from the channel.
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