Welcome to The Compass

I've long admired The Week as a place for thoughtful, comprehensive analysis that never insults the reader's intelligence and always looks ahead. Today, I'm honored to join as editor-at-large, and to start a blog called The Compass. 

I haven't blogged regularly for awhile, and I don't quite know how my own style has evolved. I'll definitely write about the presidential campaigns, trends in politics, national security, and foreign policy, as well as science, technology, and culture.

The mix is to be determined, largely by my own interests and by what happens in the world. I may try to experiment with the medium a bit: I'll pose a question on my Twitter account (@marcambinder) and will incorporate some of your responses in my subsequent post.

A few things to know: I am not going to blog about everything. And I am going to stick to the rule I made for myself awhile ago: If I don't think I have something interesting to say, or something valuable to add, I am not going to force anything.

Also, you as a reader should know that I am not a full-time blogger. I have a bunch of irons in the fire, and I anticipate that these experiences will help me look at the world with different lenses. 

One of these burning irons requires a bit of exposition. I have just started to consult for Palantir Technologies, a Palo-Alto based company that operates sophisticated analytical platforms for a variety of customers, including many in the national security arena. A non-disclosure agreement prevents me from discussing my work for them, but I can say that it doesn't involve any classified projects (I don't have a security clearance), and nothing in it prevents me from writing about national security. If I'm writing about an organization that Palantir does business with (at least, to the extent that I'm aware of it), I'll make sure to repeat this disclosure. There may be a few subjects that I won't be able to write about because the appearance of a conflict of interest would be too great for me to navigate. I don't know what those are yet.

I like and respect the Palantir team; I wouldn't work with them if I didn't. Palantir has not avoided controversy, and some of its employees have done some dumb things in the past. I'm not going to re-litigate anything; I've done my due diligence and come to my own conclusions, and you can read these here five pieces to draw your own.

The Week is a unique place. I learned, for example, that they use Oxford commas! One space after periods at the end of sentences. I have a whole new stylebook to learn. While I do, you can reach me on a variety of platforms. My personal email address is Marc.Ambinder@gmail.com; you can Tweet at me (@marcambinder), or you can leave comments in the space below my posts.