Issue 100
March 21, 2021
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Thirty months ago, we posted our inaugural issue of The Quintessential Centrist. Today’s column will mark our 100th issue.

I created TQC to serve as a counterweight to the stark polarization currently affecting our political discourse and poisoning our society. Specifically, I was disheartened by how divisive the political and journalistic landscape had become, especially online. Rather than complain, I decided to act despite zero journalistic experience.

The result became The Quintessential Centrist, a platform that combines views and ideas from across the political spectrum. TQC promotes the ideals and tenets of the center - where compromise is often found - through in-depth columns, articles, and analysis underpinned by exhaustive research and data.

At our onset, I promised that we would not plead the 5th on hot button topics. We were challenged. Immediately after TQC launched, our nation witnessed a burst of extremely important social, political, epidemiological, and other issues that in one way or another, touched all Americans. They included: Black Lives Matter Movement, Election of Donald Trump, Impeachments of Donald Trump, MeToo Movement, Sexual Identifiers, Murder of George Floyd, Defund The Police Movement, COVID-19 Pandemic, Deteriorating China-U.S. Relations, Censorship, Cancel Culture, Capital Insurrection, Kneeling & The National Anthem, and so much more. True to our mandate, we posted on those and many other topics.

Below are TQC’s Top 10 posts that generated the most commentary and debate amongst our readers. Their order is based on the volume of feedback received. If you missed one or more of these important pieces, we encourage you to take a moment and have a gander.

• #10 June 2, 2019: Why Flying Might Not Be As Safe As You Think

• #9 June 23, 2019: Their Right, Wrong Venue

• #8 September 29, 2019: Fast Fashion Fails To Look In The Mirror

• #7 August 30, 2020: The Future Of New York City

• #6 December 16, 2018: TQC'S Position On Gun Control

• #5 March 31, 2019: Kylie Jenner (Don’t shoot the messenger, this was indeed #5)

• #4 September 1, 2019: LGBTQC

• #3 June 7, 2020: George Floyd

• #2 February 7, 2021: GameStopped

• #1 July 12, 2020: Black Lives Matter

TQC strives to unite people by enabling them to better understand and appreciate views that are not necessarily commensurate with their own. To that end, TQC is committed to paint the full picture of every story and not nix nuance in favor of a black-and-white binary that, while appealing, is too often deceiving. We all wish to live in our own echo chambers at times, but that is not where genuine understanding can ever be found.

It has been an incredible journey thus far. We will continue to listen, be introspective, learn from our mistakes, and refine our product. Our readers help us get better. Constructive criticism is accretive to our process. Thank you to everybody who has read, opined, critiqued, and shared our work with others. Your validation is the greatest testament to our success.

Christopher Blackman,
Founder
The Quintessential Centrist