The Ricochet Member Feed: The Greatest Hits 10.23

The Ricochet Member Feed: The Greatest Hits

By The Queen of Stuff

Didn’t have time to check every Member Feed post on Ricochet this past week? We’ve got your back. Since we don’t want you to miss out on the best part of the Ricochet experience, here are our favorite member posts from this week. They touch on a variety of topics: COVID-19, class warfare, party politics, our sense of wonder, the silver screen, our rights, and tricky conversations with relatives. You know, the kind of wide-ranging conversations that are a hallmark of Ricochet. 

Have family members, friends, or even former Ricochet members who would enjoy this kind of content? Share this newsletter and let them know they can join today and get their first 30 days for free. You’ll not only help grow the Ricochet community, you’ll also provide some instant conversation starters for your next social gathering — just in time for the holidays. (You’re welcome.)

Top Talkers

JamaicaPlain: Child Sacrifice in the U.S.

Child sacrifice, attributed to ancient world pagan culture, kills beautiful, young, healthy children to appease deities in times of famine or drought. In times of trouble the beautiful daughter of a king might be sacrificed as they sought the blessing of the supernatural. During the Covid pandemic, we also sacrifice the healthy young to appease those paralyzed by fear. In both cultures the healthy young are subject to mandates or rituals that don’t placate the disaster yet harm our children’s well-being. 

If that opening doesn’t grab your attention, we’re not sure what will. JamaicaPlain offers a sobering examination of how COVID-19 lockdowns, school closures, mask mandates, and mandatory vaccines are hurting kids across the country. There are also some pointed comments directed at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This post is for every person who has worried about or fumed over how society’s approach to COVID is harming the way kids learn and interact with each other as well as damaging their mental health.

GlenEisenhardt: The Class War We Are In

For being so against obscene profits the left sure creates lots of systems that profit the left couched in moral rights and imperatives. They never discuss the economic benefit to themselves. They are ashamed of it. It’ll give away the game. 

When it comes to class wars, GlenEisenhardt not only sharply criticizes how the left is stoking them but also how the right is responding. His frustration and disappointment are palpable and, we suspect, will resonate with those who are tired of the “us versus them” environment that thrives on divisiveness. We appreciate Glen calling out what’s gone wrong on both sides of the aisle as well as his emphasis on the importance of values to America’s success.

Lawst N. Thawt: The ______ Party (Create Your Own Party)

The KISS Motto: For Government Waste, Free Rides, Pork, and Useless Bureaucrats Please See Our Tagline. 

The KISS Tagline: KISS It Goodbye  

In this clever and amusing post, Lawst N. Thawt creates a new political party built around the KISS principle. So just what does a “keep it simple, stupid” party’s platform look like? It includes all sorts of gems, such as “No term limits (If the people are stupid enough to elect them again, who am I to argue.)” and “Make Basic Economics by Thomas Sowell required reading for first grade. Just kidding, second grade will be fine.” So many bonus points for that Sowell reference. So, so many.

Jerry Giordano: Are Florida Employers Stuck Between a Rock and a Hard Place?

I guess that this is the sort of the thing that a nerdy lawyer muses about on a Saturday morning. 

We couldn’t be happier to have “nerdy” members like Jerry Giordano who think deeply about important issues of the day, especially on the weekend. Here, Jerry uses his legal expertise to explore the difficult situation facing Florida employers: deciding whether to adhere to the federal government’s vaccine-mandate policies or the state’s law prohibiting employers from requiring their employees to be vaccinated. Curious about potential remedies for these businesses? Jerry shares a few options, including their pros and cons.

Old Bathos: Quote of the Day: The War Against Wonder & Awe

In contrast to ongoing, living, joyful encounters with the fullness of reality and the human experience within it, tyrannies of all kinds invariably seek to impose the final word. They are more about pruning that which does not agree or fit the requisite dogma or narrative than about encouraging a rich, growing diversity of artistic expression and scientific inquiry. 

We always enjoy seeing what members do with the themed Quote of the Day posts. Here, Old Bathos discusses the importance of not having the last word and, instead, maintaining a sense of wonder and awe, using a Thomas Aquinas quote as a jumping-off point: “Because philosophy arises from awe, a philosopher is bound in his way to be a lover of myths and poetic fables. Poets and philosophers are alike in being big with wonder.” We appreciate how Old Bathos explored this topic. If you’re interested in participating in QOTD posts, you can get more info here. 

But Wait, There’s More

Vince Guerra: Ricochet Movie Fight Club: Question 81

Using movie characters, create a five member hero team.

We’re loving these movie fight-club posts. If you haven’t checked them out before, every Saturday, a movie-related question is posted. Members comment with one answer each and vote by liking their favorite comment. The member with the most likes on his or her official answer comment by Friday night wins. For Vince Guerra's question, Ricochet members nominated hero teams featuring a bevvy of characters, from Buckaroo Banzai, Ellen Ripley, and Inigo Montoya to Dirty Harry and Keyser Söze. Whose team won? Surely you don’t think we’re going to spoil that here. You have to check the post.

Stina: Where Rights Originate

From where do our rights originate? 

Few things make us happier than when Ricochet posts get people talking (we’re all about the conversation, people!), and this post from Stina, where she asks if rights originate from the creator or government, certainly did. It had 127 comments last time we checked. We highly recommend you browse what your fellow members said on this topic. 

Henry Castaigne: Another Conversation With My Progressive Uncle

Now where did I go wrong in this conversation? Upon reflection it was easy for me to spot but I couldn’t see it in the conversation.

Having been involved in tricky conversations with relatives we disagree with, Henry Castaigne's post caught our eye. He details how a chat with his uncle about Texas and California didn’t turn out quite how he intended and why that happened. He also asks readers a question that you may enjoy answering. Check out Henry’s post and jump into the conversation in the comments. 

Comment of the Week

The Member Feed isn’t the only thing that keeps people coming back for more at Ricochet. The comments do too, serving as the backbone of the smart, civil conversation that makes us us. This week’s comment of the week is from Henry Racette, pulled from Stina’s post where she asked, “From where do our rights originate?”

Remember, if you know someone who would enjoy being part of the Ricochet community, we’re offering their first 30 days for free! Invite them to join the conversation today. And if you want to send us feedback on this newsletter, email greatest.hits@ricochet.com.

See you next week!

P.S. Want your post to be considered for this newsletter? Post by 3 p.m. Eastern time Thursdays.