A review of Robert Caro's 'The Years of Lyndon Johnson' series, exploring LBJ's life, political tactics, and legacy, while praising the author's dedication and writing style. Longer summary

This book review of Robert Caro's series 'The Years of Lyndon Johnson' presents LBJ's life as an epic fantasy that happens to be true. The review highlights memorable characters from LBJ's era, outlines LBJ's strategies for amassing power, and discusses the author's dedication to thorough research. It also explores the moral complexity of LBJ's legacy, particularly his role in civil rights and the Vietnam War. The reviewer praises Caro's writing and research methods while pondering the implications of LBJ's political tactics for modern democracy. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander explores the dynamics of cool vs. uncool groups, relating it to Richard Nixon's college strategy of uniting outsiders against elites. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reflects on his middle school thoughts about cool and uncool kids, wondering why uncool kids don't band together to challenge the cool kids' status. He then shares a comment from a reader that draws parallels to Richard Nixon's college experience, as described in Rick Perlstein's book 'Nixonland'. The comment details how Nixon formed the Orthogonians, a group for outsiders and strivers, in opposition to the elite Franklins at Whittier College. This strategy of uniting the 'uncool' majority against the 'cool' minority became a blueprint for Nixon's later political success. Shorter summary