Jay Caspian Kang

Touch Screens in Cars Solve a Problem We Didn’t Have

Despite my best efforts to stay young at heart, I have somehow reached the point in my life — 42 years old, dad, mostly sedentary — where I feel perpetually assaulted by small changes in my daily routine. This was certainly an expected development, but one I feel relatively powerless against…

If a Company Responds to Social Pressure, That’s Progress

In last week’s newsletter, I had a conversation with the philosopher Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò about the nature of dissent in an era when almost every message, however revolutionary in origin, gets processed and then ultimately defanged through the practice of “elite capture.” We touched on the question…

The Gift of a Good Argument

I want to tell you about the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues (NAUDL), a cause that I believe in and have contributed to. I was a moody and listless adolescent who had a hard time following through with anything. This felt like a chronic condition until I walked into a debate…

I Play Video Games With My 4-Year-Old, and That’s OK

When I was 7 years old, my best friend was a kid named Rob. I can’t recall most of the particulars of Rob’s life, but he seemed to be the luckiest kid at our school. His lunches were always packed with sugar, and his room was filled with toys. This, of course, built up quite a bit of resentment…