Matt Burgin

@EnriqueOther 12 films to know me Giant 2001: A Space Odyssey Apocalypse Now Redux The Godfather The Razor's Edge Lawrence of Arabia The Matrix The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly 25th Hour Dazed and Confused When Harry Met Sally Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas @EvanAutry

Did you know C.S. Lewis predicted the modern obsession with “being nice” would destroy the soul? In The Abolition of Man, Lewis argues that when a society stops believing in objective virtue, it doesn’t become tolerant… it becomes manipulable. He calls the result “men without chests.” People with appetites and intellects, but no courage, no honor, no trained moral instincts. They can calculate everything and defend nothing. Lewis saw that once we reject inherited moral law, we don’t become free. We become raw material… easily shaped by propaganda, pleasure, and fear. Modern man prides himself on compassion while quietly surrendering every standard that once gave compassion meaning. Lewis’s insight is brutal: a civilization that educates clever cowards will eventually be ruled by tyrants or technicians. Because when nothing is worth dying for, everything becomes negotiable… including human dignity.

@PTI Errors section missed: West of the Mississippi: 2022 Kansas 2021 Baylor 2008 Kansas Hello! #statboy

It’s National Doctors Day!

america is one of very few countries that has even tried to build a multiethnic democracy at scale, & the fact that it has a visible, loud, ongoing discourse about racism is actually evidence of relatively low tolerance for it compared to countries where racial hierarchy is just... ambient & unremarked upon. japan (lol very obvious now), korea, much of europe, india's caste system, han chauvinism in china, ethnic dynamics across the gulf states.. most of these societies don't even have the vocabulary for the conversation america tortures itself over daily. america is quite literally is one of the least if not the least racist countries on the planet, & it's not even close.

“It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.” — Charles Dickens

The view from Apollo chief economist Torsten Slok: “Markets are overreacting to what will likely be a 4- to 6-week period of volatility, which will ultimately result in 50 years of stability in oil markets, supply chains and geopolitics.”

Your entire life will change the day you realize real confidence is less about knowing you’ll win and more about knowing you’ll bounce back even if you don’t. Real confidence is resilience. Adaptability. Tolerance for uncertainty. Fear loses when you know failure is never final.

@cd_hooks Idiocracy was a training film

You think people are peasant-brained now, but 2026 is the least peasant-brained year of the rest of your life.

In 1783, King George III asked an American painter what George Washington would do now that he had virtually won the war. The painter replied that the General intended to return to his farm in Virginia. The King was stunned. He reportedly said, "If he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world." Throughout history, victorious generals almost always seized the throne. From Caesar to Cromwell, military success usually meant political dictatorship. The concept of voluntarily walking away from absolute power was practically unheard of. But George Washington wasn't like other men. By December 4, 1783, the British surrender at Yorktown was past, and peace was finally assured. Washington commanded a powerful, seasoned army that adored him. Conversely, many of his officers were unpaid and angry at the inefficient Congress. They had the guns, the manpower, and the loyalty to install a new monarch. He could have been King George I of America. Instead, on this day in history, Washington walked into the Long Room at Fraunces Tavern in lower Manhattan. The room was filled with his most loyal officers—men like Henry Knox and Baron von Steuben—who had frozen with him at Valley Forge and bled with him for eight long years. The atmosphere wasn't celebratory. It was heavy with inevitable separation. Washington, usually stoic and commercially reserved, poured a glass of wine and looked at his brothers-in-arms with visible emotion. "With a heart full of love and gratitude, I now take leave of you," he said, his voice shaking. "I most devoutly wish that your latter days may be as prosperous and happy as your former ones have been glorious and honorable." He didn't order them. He didn't demand their allegiance. He hugged them. One by one, the hardened soldiers wept openly. Washington embraced each man in silence. There was no pomp, no ceremony, and no speeches about future conquests. It was just a quiet goodbye between warriors who had done the impossible. Immediately after leaving the tavern, Washington didn't march on Congress to demand payment or power. He rode to Annapolis, Maryland, resigned his commission, and went home to Mount Vernon to plant crops. He did the impossible. He refused the crown. He trusted the people. By stepping down, he ensured that the United States would be a republic ruled by laws, not a kingdom ruled by force. He proved that the military serves the people, not the other way around. It was the final, and perhaps greatest, victory of the Revolution. The world watched in awe as the American Cincinnatus returned his sword to its sheath, proving that character is the strongest constitution of all." #archaeohistories

If the Milky Way was the size of North America, the Sun would be:

@bradj_TX You da man!

Here's my new 2026 Texas Races tracker, same as the old one, just in a new location. This is verified with all Dem candidates TDP-approved for the primary ballot. Waiting on the RPT's final list, but the R side will be largely the same. #txlege docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d…

@BThompson_CI Oh no! Who could have possibly seen this coming?

Lake Austin property owners move to disannex under a new state law, after years of dispute over their taxing and public services The process will also pull nearly $300M of taxable value from Austin's rolls. Council voted to resume taxing the sites in 2019 communityimpact.com/austin/lake-tr…

@marshallgeyer just inside that dotted line is exactly where Austin's monorail loop should be built

submit your feedback for the downtown austin plan's transition to the new central city district plan: #tab-71554" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">speakupaustin.org/k14472#tab-715…

The problem with Boomerism is that eventually you run out of future generations’ money.

Honestly the best historical context, this

🇺🇸🚀🍌

No historical event benefited the world more than the Revolutionary War washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/…

Major cheat code in life: Be the one who reaches out. Text first. Call first. Plan first. Initialize first. Most people wait to be chosen. Be the chooser. Connection requires initiative. Friendship requires effort. Love requires action. Stop waiting to be picked. Start picking. Initiative is attractive.

The dumbest person you know is currently being told “You're absolutely right!” by ChatGPT