Second Class

My review of Batya Ungar-Sargon's new book, more press for Life in the Negative World, and more in this week's roundup.

Head’s up: next week I am going to be offering a special discount of 20% off my normal paid monthly subscription rate. I very rarely offer discounts. In fact, I’ve only ever done it once before. So be on the look out for this one.

I’m also changing up one part of the way I do paid subscriptions. I used to reserve podcast transcripts to paid subscribers. But Substack now automatically generates transcripts. Previously, they weren’t very good and so I had to continue paying someone else to make them. But their quality has improved a lot. So making transcripts available to paid subscribers means I actually have to take away something Substack does automatically. So I’m going to start opening up transcripts to free subscribers as well, using the Substack transcription system.

I will plan to add additional paid only posts to replace this for my paid subscribers. I put up a post this week on the emerging church in the neutral world that is for paid subscribers only. Sign up during my sale next week to read.

Also, don’t forget that I’m hosting a reader meetup on Tuesday, May 28th from 6p-8p at Sun King in Carmel, Indiana, for those of you who are in the Indianapolis area. There are only seven spots left, so register today.

Life in the Negative World Roundup

My book Life in the Negative World continues to get press. It just received a nice review from Daniel Bennett in Christianity Today.

When I read his First Things essay two years ago, I was skeptical of Renn’s “three worlds” framework. I thought it was a blunt instrument that ascribed questionable motives to leaders embracing an engagement model for Christian political and cultural participation. But in reading Life in the Negative World, I found myself nodding along far more than I had anticipated. Renn does not write as someone who has an axe to grind against Christian actors with whom he disagrees. He is, at the very least, trying to make sense of our undoubtedly changing cultural environment, and generally does so graciously and humbly.

Thanks for saying so. I’d also agree with Bennett that there’s more work to be done when it comes to politics.

I have said some very tough things about Christianity Today editor-in-chief Russell Moore. He’d have been well within his rights to refuse to review the book, or to commission a hit job. But he did not do that, and I want to publicly recognize him for it.

The book or me also got mentions from Fred Clark, Alastair and Susannah Roberts, Carl Trueman, and Samuel Bentz. The European Conservative published a written interview with me, and I was a guest on the Steve Noble Show.

Second Class

I have a review of Batya Ungar-Sargon’s book Second Class: How the Elites Betrayed America’s Men and Women over at City Journal. Here’s an excerpt:

Ungar-Sargon effectively shows that not all parts of the working class are alike. Some are doing well, in fact. She sorts the working class into three tiers: the Struggling, the Floating, and the Rising, illustrating each with data and profiles of its members.

The Struggling are essentially the working poor—those barely getting by. Plagued by bad credit and personal instability, they lack a solid foundation from which to build a life. Every time they start to get things together, some event derails their progress. Many receive public benefits even when working, and they often endure hardships, including homelessness.

The Floating can pay their bills and aren’t in great distress, but they have little prospect of getting ahead. Homeownership and retirement savings remain a struggle.

The Rising are the successful working class. Whether it’s through being skilled in a trade, such as electrician, or holding down a high-paying union job, they have made progress toward the American Dream. Of particular interest here are Ungar-Sargon’s descriptions of people working in service positions, such as housekeeper in the Las Vegas hotel industry, who, by virtue of their sector-wide contract through the Culinary Workers Union, earn good pay and get down-payment assistance in buying a home.

Click over to read the whole thing.

Best of the Web

An interesting thread on Reddit asking, “Why are many single men over 30 not interested in women?” Lots of mentions of bad previous experiences (esp. divorce) and the toxic nature of dating apps.

Haroon Moghul: For a model of Muslim masculinity, maybe don’t look to the manosphere

The New Atlantis: Golden Eggs - IVF parents shop for good stock at the Ivy Leagues - “The demand for an Ivy League egg donor is high, but the supply is sparse, so fertility clinics can charge massive premiums. Intelligent, attractive, healthy, successful women have no obvious limit to their value on the egg marketplace.”

USA Today: Women are paying big money to scream, smash sticks in the woods. It's called a rage ritual - Sounds like the 1970s

Praxis Labs: Long-Term Influence in One Square Mile

Ross Douthat: Is There a Post-Religious Right?

NYT: For Mormon Missionaries, Some ‘Big, Big Changes’ - The Mormon Church has been dialing back on some of their requirements in recent years. It’s not clear how effective this has been. From what I’ve read, they are no longer really growing in the United States.

In case you missed it, Benjamin Mabry wrote a guest post about why we need critical theory.