iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Tyler Austin Harper, a staff writer at The Atlantic and former professor at Bates College, breaks down how academia reshaped his views on affirmative action and diversity. 🔗 Watch the full conversation with @mcmegan.bsky.social here:

wapo.st

Tyler Austin Harper on Being a “Token Black Professor”

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

The drug crisis in the U.S. did not begin with fentanyl. It began with a series of choices that seemed compassionate at the time. @mcmegan.bsky.social talks to Keith Humphreys, a Stanford professor and psychologist, on the latest episode of Reasonably Optimistic:

youtu.be

Is The Drug Crisis Getting Worse?

YouTube video by Reasonably Optimistic

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

. @hananiarichard.bsky.social argues in his book, "Kakistocracy," that populism tends to produce worse leaders, weaker institutions, more corruption and a politics driven by resentment and conspiratorial thinking. He talks to @mcmegan.bsky.social on this episode of "Reasonably Optimistic":

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Opinion | How populists turn distrust into power - The Washington Post

Populist candidates have a way of making politics feel simple. They tell voters that the problem is obvious, the villains are known and the solution is to break through corrupt institutions standing i...

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

Richard Reeves spoke to @mcmegan.bsky.social about when a dad can shine in a child's life. 🔗 Check out the full "Reasonably Optimistic" conversation here: wapo.st/4vXIRtc

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

Eating food cooked at home has traditionally been considered a cheaper option to ordering takeout. So why are so many in Gen Z choosing food away from home? @mcmegan.bsky.social explores how convenience, changing expectations and the modern economy have transformed the way we eat:

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Opinion | Gen Zers don’t cook. It’s costing them. - The Washington Post

Eating food cooked at home has traditionally been considered a cheaper option to ordering takeout. So why are so many in Gen Z choosing food away from home? Host Megan McArdle explores how convenience...

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

"We don’t need human writers because AI offers us too many wild metaphors," @mcmegan.bsky.social explains. "We need human writers because AI provides too few wild ideas."

wapo.st

Opinion | AI fiction is the new fast food

The world still needs human authors to generate wild ideas.

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

"Americans need to take a hard look at the bill that is rapidly coming due, rather than stuff the notices in a drawer and try to forget they’re there," @mcmegan.bsky.social writes. wapo.st/43T57Z7

wapo.st

Opinion | America’s most boring nightmare

Soaring interest rates and entitlements are driving a massive debt.

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

@mcmegan.bsky.social talks with Ed Elson, co-host of Prof G Markets, about wealth inequality, housing affordability, social media and the frustrations shaping younger generations' outlook: wapo.st/4foZXLF

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Hoover Institution @hooverinstitution.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

What propelled the US to become the world's most dynamic economy? Will it last? Economists John Cochrane, Valerie Ramey, and Ross Levine tackled those questions with moderator and Washington Post columnist @mcmegan.bsky.social at the latest Ideas That Made US chat.

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Hoover Experts Weigh America’s Economic Success And Future Prospects

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

So, what’s actually happening, who is struggling and how we can help them without the conversation being framed as men versus women? @mcmegan.bsky.social and Richard Reeves discuss on the Reasonably Optimistic podcast: wapo.st/4tRkegs

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

"Red and blue America cannot get divorced," Keith Humphreys, a Stanford professor and psychologist, says in a conversation with @mcmegan.bsky.social. "That means that we have to figure out how to get along."

wapo.st

The Rise Of Rage Bait

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

"The trend is sufficiently widespread, and the timing sufficiently suspicious, to justify adding the decline in fertility to the long list of the smartphone’s unwanted side effects," @mcmegan.bsky.social writes.

wapo.st

Opinion | Why are birth rates falling? Ask your smartphone.

The infinite scroll could contribute to lower fertility rates and smaller graduating classes.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

I agree with you that this is the correct reading, but it was not the reading of many people who wrote about toxic masculinity in extremely expansive ways.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

But I also think it's probably sincere because I also recall reading approximately one zillion think pieces about how masculinity is toxic and men are trash that generalized from a few bad actors to the entire sex.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

I see this all the time with Supreme Court stuff: people have photographic recall of the other side's norm violations and no recollection whatsoever of those committed by their own side in the nomination wars.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

The larger group is probably larger, but I think it's possible they genuinely recall getting a lot of messages about toxic masculinity from mainstream institutions, in part because we all are more likely to remember things that made us mad better than things that made other people mad.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

And Reeves argues, fairly compellingly I think, that encouraging men to adapt is more productive when you frame it as leaning into their masculinity rather than when you try to frame masculinity as "toxic".

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

I think we can embrace the healing power of and. We need to respect natural limits at the population level and realize that they're not going to tell you much at the individual level.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Part of Richard's point! Really, I think you would enjoy and agree with the interview.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

The manosphere is terrible but Richard Reeves is emphatically not part of the manosphere, and I am puzzled that you thought I would do a podcast episode on how we need to listen more to the manosphere.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

If you don't care as much you are likely to be not as good at the job. That's ultimately why I left IT. My colleagues were building fiber channel networks in their basement on the weekend. It would never have occurred to me to do that. So I found something I wanted to do on weekends.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

I think that's one aspect of what's going on, and the manosphere is absolutely toxic and unhelpful, but I also think differences in aptitude are real. Audiophile magazine doesn't have a like 98% male audiences because the patriarchy is excluding the ladies. It's because we don't care as much.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

But also obviously, many of the hardest-hit men by the contemporary economy come from families that are struggling in some way--divorce, economic displacement, etc--and that makes it harder to muster the resources to put into child-rearing.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Similarly, boys are more boisterous, more risk taking, more disagreeable, less conscientious, etc and that makes school harder for them. Obviously training can change those tendencies somewhat.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

But at the population level, those differences will show up in affinities for certain kinds of work and if the economy starts rewarding one more and the other less, that will create structural problems because people who aren't good at things won't do as well in those jobs.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

I think that on average, men enjoy working with things more than people, and on average, women enjoy working with people more than things. This obviously does not tell you about individuals--I am a highly disagreeable person who prefers abstract ideas to caring work.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

I don't think that's a useful way to frame it. We rightly think it's wrong to tell women "stop being so feminine, you need to do things like men do". Why does it feel right to flip that frame and tell little boys to act like little girls?

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

It's available on YouTube and regular podcast apps, and if you listened, you would find it is an interview with Richard Reeves who suggests, among other things, that more young men should become primary school teachers and nurses.

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Jason Kuznicki @jkuznicki.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

William McKinley, at age fifteen, had never seen anyone tie a necktie before.

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

Social media is designed to keep us scrolling. But is it also keeping us angry? @mcmegan.bsky.social is joined by Keith Humphreys, a Stanford professor and psychologist, to break down the mechanics of addiction and how they might apply to life online: wapo.st/3QT8TyA

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

Scroll through enough retro photos or vintage ads, and it’s easy to convince yourself that life used to be simpler, even happier. But why does the past look better the farther away it gets? @mcmegan.bsky.social unpacks how nostalgia distorts our view of history:

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Opinion | Longing for 'simpler times'? Consider this first. - The Washington Post

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

Will AI increase the gap between the wealthy and the working class? Or will it only exacerbate the income divide? @mcmegan.bsky.social and @deanwb.bsky.social, a senior fellow at the Foundation for American Innovation, discuss on the Reasonably Optimistic podcast.

wapo.st

How AI will change your life. It's coming faster than you think.

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James Neal @james3neal.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

"Will AI end anonymity? I tested it---Artificial intelligence can echolocate authors through their prose. Your digital fingerprint is at risk" @mcmegan.bsky.social wapo.st/3P7tT41

wapo.st

Opinion | Will AI end anonymity? I tested it.

AI can echolocate authors through their prose. Your digital fingerprint is at risk.

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

From politicians to Silicon Valley, a growing chorus is sounding the alarm and calling for more babies. But the story behind America’s declining birth rate is more complicated than headlines and political talking points suggest. @mcmegan.bsky.social and Lyman Stone discuss:

wapo.st

Opinion | Why Americans aren’t having as many kids - The Washington Post

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

The Supreme Court has become one of the most divisive institutions in American government. So how did this happen? @mcmegan.bsky.social and Sarah Isgur talk about how Americans developed an unhealthy relationship with the court. wapo.st/4cKgaIj

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

Anxiety around artificial intelligence is reaching a fever pitch and sparking real-world consequences. @mcmegan.bsky.social and @dmarusic.bsky.social discuss the risks and inevitability of AI development, and what it will take for the U.S. to stay competitive in the race with China:

wapo.st

Opinion | The temperature is rising on AI. What comes next? - The Washington Post

Anxiety around artificial intelligence is reaching a fever pitch and sparking real-world consequences. Recent violent incidents tied to opposition against data centers highlight growing public backlas...

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

Leah Libresco Sargeant, senior policy analyst at the Niskanen Center and author of "The Dignity of Dependence: A Feminist Manifesto," argues that "no one is autonomous." She shares her definition of feminism with @mcmegan.bsky.social.

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What’s wrong with modern feminism?

YouTube video by Reasonably Optimistic

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Matthew Yglesias @mattyglesias.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

Mamdani has done a bunch of things to reassure skeptics, a process greatly aided by the fact that he literally can't implement his tax and spending plans. www.slowboring.com/p/the-two-ho...

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Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

. @mcmegan.bsky.social spoke to Dean Ball, a senior fellow at the Foundation for American Innovation and former White House AI policy advisor, about the rapidly shifting landscape of AI governance, what it will take to rein it in — and what comes next: wapo.st/4sO6qUd

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

I mean, he'll be in his 80s when he leaves office.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

I think it's pretty clear at this point that Truth Social will collapse when Trump leaves the scene. There's nothing really to say about it because it so obviously has no future.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

The column is not supposed to be a "defense" of Bluesky, it's an analysis of what's good about it, and what challenges it will face making that good thing happen. "Cheerleading" and "denouncing" are not the only two options in columnizing.

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Megan McArdle @mcmegan.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

I'm curious how you took that conclusion from a column that ends with me saying I'm rooting for them to prove me wrong about the challenges ahead.

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