2025: Is Man Alive? Did Woman Survive?

It’s been a year. Time for a new one.

I spent New Year’s Eve 1999 alone in my New York apartment eating V&T pizza while watching Notorious. That was 25 years ago. Now I’m no longer alone, and I no longer eat a large black olive and mushroom pizza in one sitting. I still enjoy Notorious. Some things don’t change.

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Although 2024 was a disaster politically, it was a great year for me professionally and personally. You may feel free to applaud now. I feel as if I’m consistently doing meaningful work for a receptive audience. I appreciate everyone who’s supported the newsletter and my other ventures. If you haven’t yet become a paid subscriber, please consider doing so. You can also subscribe through Venmo and Paypal.

As we venture into an uncertain 2025, I recall Rod Serling’s words from The Twilight Zone episode, “Probe 7, Over And Out,” where an astronaut stranded on a distant planet whose actual identity you’ll never guess learns that his own world is on the brink of destruction. His commander’s final message is nonetheless one of hope: “This is our last contact, Cook. Just a few minutes ago we got ours. 500% increase in the radioactivity around us. From what we can gather, the enemy had it just as bad as we did. We wiped them out. They wiped us out. Just one last forlorn wish for you, Son. Whoever you'll meet there, however you'll meet them, I hope it can come without fear. I hope it can come without anger. I hope your new world will be different. I hope you’ll find no words such as hate.”

Every new year offers the chance that we can move past our fears and anger, that we can find new words other than hate. Let’s make the most of the opportunity.