April 26, 2026

FUKUYAMA WINS AGAIN:

April 26, 2026

Why postliberalism failed: Orbán’s warning to the Right (Samuel Mace, 4/20/26, CapX)

This result does not even spell the beginning of the end of our own populist moment, but the failure of Fidesz and the scandals which brought down Orbán’s illiberal regime represent an overdue reckoning with reality for the postliberal dream.

That dream imagines postliberalism as a new and more effective way to govern, delivering conservative priorities through state power and institutional and civic dominance. Fidesz exposed the practical limits of this vision in Hungary, but the problem is far more fundamental.

As Paul Kelly writes in ‘Against Postliberalism’, postliberalism operates as a negative ideological force fighting against the dominance of liberalism and liberal ideals. Even when it arrives in power, it is trapped by this focus into antagonistic political gestures lacking genuine innovation.

Despite the efforts of authors like Adrian Vermuele and Patrick Deneen, the postliberals have had little success imagining something new. Postliberalism remains just the latest intellectual reaction created by the success of liberal democracy, rather than a serious rival to replace it.

Identitarianism

DONALD HAS RUBBED THEIR NOSES IN WHAT THEIR VOTES MEANT:

April 26, 2026

Why is the Maga project teetering? Because not even Trump supporters voted for this dysfunction (Moira Donegan, 4/21/26, The Guardian)

Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election was once seen as a definitive cultural shift, proof that his aggressive, domineering style of rightwing populism had found permanent purchase in US politics. Pundits hailed the triumph of conservatism; institutions scrambled to adjust to the new dominance of a regime with authoritarian aspirations. This was always a suspicious claim: was a narrow victory in one close presidential election really a sign of a broad and permanent cultural shift?

Less than 18 months later, that thesis has collapsed. Trump and his allies have delivered an era of backlash and cultural retrenchment from the executive branch: slashing grants for “woke” research; turning federal programmes meant to promote equality into engines for discrimination; stymying promotions for women and people of colour in the armed services in what critics say is an effort to resegregate the military; and pressuring athletic conferences from the National Collegiate Athletic Association to the International Olympic Committee to ban trans women athletes.

They have made their cultural values felt in pervasive and sadistic ways. Americans see ICE officers patrolling their airports and tanks on the streets of major cities; they see their neighbours being snatched away by immigration agents; and they see the costs of housing soaring out of reach as the construction industry workforce dwindles as a result. They see Trump and his friends posturing on television, complaining over and over again about issues that their side has already won. And they also see the signs posted at their local gas station, where the price has now soared from an average of $3.10 a gallon in 2025 to more than $4.

It’s all well and good to feel Identitarian, until you see the actions your feelings demand.

All Comedy is Conservative

THE HUMAN COMEDY:

April 26, 2026

Why Should We Imagine Sisyphus Happy? Explaining Camus’ Famous Quote (Simon Lea, 4/25/26, The Collector)

Instead, we should attempt to imagine Sisyphus happy as he strolls back down the mountain, his time his own. Yes, he lives a meaningless existence in that there is nothing meaningful about endlessly repeating a pointless task that is impossible to complete. However, this means no meaning or purpose has been imposed upon him. Sisyphus has the opportunity to create meaning and make his existence meaningful. This, Camus has been arguing for previously in the essay, is a good thing and should make Sisyphus happy.

Not quite. It is the struggle to attain the god-set goal that gives life meaning. The inability to do so can be viewed as either a tragedy or a comedy. The conservative sees it as the latter. Joy in life derives from being thankful that God granted us the free will to engage in the struggle to be good.

Homocentric Universe

rEASON IS A FAITH:

April 26, 2026

Why Is the Explanatory Gap the Unsolvable Problem of Neuroscience? (Magnus Wijkander, 4/24/26, Thge Collector)

How can the private world of subjective experience, your feelings, thoughts, and hopes, be defined in terms of the cold, hard data of objective brain science? Philosopher of mind Joseph Levine named this theoretical chasm with practical consequences the “Explanatory Gap.” It’s a core challenge for neuroscience, signifying a fundamental, possibly unsolvable puzzle at the heart of what it means to be human and have consciousness.

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