Scott Alexander reviews and explains his votes on California's 2022 ballot propositions and candidates, providing analysis and commentary on each item. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reviews his California ballot for 2022, discussing state propositions and candidates for various offices. He explains his voting philosophy, analyzes each proposition and candidate, and provides his reasoning for his votes. The post covers topics like abortion rights, gambling legalization, school funding, tobacco regulation, and various political races, offering a mix of analysis, humor, and personal opinions on California politics and governance. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander shares and responds to reader comments on his article about California's Central Valley, offering diverse perspectives on life and challenges in the region. Longer summary

This post is a collection of reader comments on Scott Alexander's original article about the Central Valley in California. It includes various perspectives from residents and former residents, discussing topics like housing costs, air quality, crime, agriculture, water rights, commuting patterns, and cultural amenities. The comments offer a mix of criticisms and defenses of life in the Central Valley, providing nuance and additional context to Scott's original analysis. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander investigates the reasons behind the extreme poverty in California's Central Valley, comparing it to Mississippi and analyzing various contributing factors. Longer summary

Scott Alexander explores the economic decline of California's Central Valley, comparing it to Mississippi in terms of poverty. He investigates various factors contributing to the region's struggles, including agricultural practices, immigration patterns, mechanization, and environmental issues. The post analyzes historical data, local perspectives, and economic indicators to understand when and why the Central Valley's situation deteriorated, concluding that while the causes are complex and not fully clear, the region's poverty is a stark contrast to California's overall wealth. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander argues that many people missed an opportunity to have a realistic chance of becoming Governor of California in the recall election, and analyzes why this happened. Longer summary

Scott Alexander discusses a unique political opportunity in California's recall election of Governor Gavin Newsom. He argues that almost anyone with a slight amount of fame or money could have positioned themselves to have a 5-10% chance of becoming Governor. The post explains the recall process, the current political landscape, and how the leading Democratic replacement candidate, Kevin Paffrath, a YouTube landlord influencer, gained his position. Scott suggests that many people, including himself, missed this opportunity and could have been in Paffrath's place. He explores various counterarguments and concludes with thoughts on opportunity recognition and the nature of power. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander discusses various aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic, including strategies, mysteries, controversies, and global impacts. Longer summary

This blog post discusses various aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the 'hammer and dance' strategy, smoking cessation, mysteries surrounding Japan's low case numbers, takeout food safety, ventilator numbers, the UK's policy reversal, density and infection rates, hydroxychloroquine controversy, concerns about developing countries, donation opportunities, cost-benefit analysis of lockdowns, US stimulus bill negotiations, and media coverage of the pandemic across the political spectrum. The post also includes short links to other coronavirus-related news and developments. Shorter summary

A link roundup post covering various topics from video games to scientific studies, with Scott's commentary on each news item or piece of research. Longer summary

A collection of interesting links covering diverse topics including scientific studies (Tylenol and ADHD, obesity genetics), current events (self-driving Uber cars, DoJ ending private prisons), cultural observations, and historical curiosities. Scott provides brief commentary on each link, often critiquing methodology of studies or pointing out interesting implications. The post has a lighter tone when discussing oddities like torpedo juice or Desert Bus, but becomes more analytical when examining research claims or policy changes. Shorter summary

A links post collecting interesting stories from around the web, including scientific studies, historical oddities, media criticism, and current events, with Scott's commentary and analysis. Longer summary

This is a links post collecting various interesting stories and studies from around the web. It covers topics from historical oddities (like Maoist China's mango obsession), scientific studies (on autism genetics, weight loss, and practice effects), media criticism (of Salon and coverage of Venezuela's collapse), and current events. The post points out interesting patterns and connections between the stories while maintaining a somewhat skeptical tone about extraordinary claims. Scott maintains his characteristic style of finding fascinating angles on seemingly mundane topics while questioning conventional narratives. Shorter summary