A version of this article was first published in the Right to the Point newsletter. Sign up to receive the newsletter in your inbox every Wednesday morning.
“Dilbert” creator Scott Adams is dying of cancer and sharing his difficult journey on social media, including his recent decision to convert to Christianity.
Adams did not give specifics of what that conversion would entail, saying it’s “between me and Jesus.”
But Adams did explain the reasoning behind his decision, which amounts to a calculated bet on the afterlife known as “Pascal’s wager.”
The idea, famously articulated by the French mathematician and Christian apologist Blaise Pascal, is that it’s smarter to believe in God than not.
As the C.S. Lewis Institute explains, “Pascal’s point is that to be rational, a betting man would always bet on God, given the smallness of the stake and the potentially huge amount to be won.”
That’s the essence of what Adams conceded in his livestream, saying, “I’ve not been a believer, but I also have respect for any Christian who goes out their way to try to convert me because how would I believe you believe your own religion if you’re not trying to convert me? So I have great respect for people who care enough that they want me to convert and go out of their way to try to convince me.”
Addressing his Christian friends, Adams said, “I’m now convinced that the risk-reward is completely smart. If it turns out that there’s nothing there, I’ve lost nothing, but I’ve respected your wishes, and I like doing that. If it turns out there is something there, and the Christian model is the closest to it, I win.”
It was hardly an ebullient declaration of faith, but was enough for many people to celebrate.
The decision was in keeping with a man who has long taken pride in his skepticism and reason, who has argued that what we experience as human existence is more likely a simulation.
“Reality is overrated and impossible to understand with any degree of certainty,” he wrote in “How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big,” published in 2013. “What you do know for sure is that some ways of looking at the world work better than others. Pick the way that works, even if you don’t know why.”
From what Adams has said publicly, it seems that he’s not choosing Christianity because he believes it’s a way of looking at the world that works better than others, but because so many of his friends have been urging him to do so. And the pressure to convert in specific ways is now coming fast and furious from strangers on social media.
“All the complaining has almost talked me out of it. Apparently, many people believe there is one right way to do it,” he wrote on X.
It remains to be seen whether Adams’ promised conversion will affect the decisions he makes regarding the end of his life. (“Not doing interviews. But thanks for asking,” he emailed when I reached out.)
After announcing his diagnosis in May of 2025, Adams said that he might take advantage of California’s law allowing physician-assisted suicide. Already suffering what he described then as almost unbearable pain, he has kept going, even livestreaming from a hospital bed and advocating for his own treatment (at one point, even getting an assist from President Donald Trump and his administration).
On Tuesday morning, Adams managed an hour of conversation about world events despite visible discomfort, slurred speech and partial paralysis. He has been an advocate for assisted suicide, and he may yet choose it. But for now, he is not only continuing his work, but teaching others how to bravely face suffering and impending death.
As Kathryn Jean Lopez wrote of Adams for National Review, “God only knows how many people he is helping along the way with his public vulnerability.”
“I enjoy this experience of being useful, if I can,” Adams said Tuesday, before concluding, “See you tomorrow,” three words that are the embodiment of hope.
New, familiar voices at The Free Press
As Bari Weiss continues her remaking of CBS News — most notably with the revamping of the network’s nightly news show — the publication she founded and sold to CBS is also making noteworthy changes. Weiss announced this week that in addition to adding Abigail Shrier as an advice columnist last month, The Free Press has signed Rod Dreher to write for the website twice monthly, and Arthur C. Brooks, twice a week, among other new contributors.
Moreover, the Hoover Institution’s Niall Ferguson, Weiss said, “is now making The Free Press the exclusive home for his writing.”
Anyone who wondered if The Free Press would wither as Weiss focused on CBS now has their answer.
New year, new you?
Last month’s news that the Ozempic craze has now expanded to include treatment for obese cats has me wondering if anyone makes a New Year’s resolution to lose weight anymore.
YouGov had the answer. Americans’ No. 1 resolution for 2026 is not to lose weight, but to exercise more. Losing weight didn’t turn up until No. 6.
But if that’s on your list, I recommend you read an essay from CNN pundit Scott Jennings. It’s something I came across while preparing for an interview with him about his new book, “A Revolution of Common Sense.”
Jennings lost more than 50 pounds in six months, not by taking weight-loss drugs but by narrowing his window for eating and drastically cutting back on sugar and other processed foods. He wrote about it in an essay published by Louisville Courier Journal in 2021. It’s worth a read.
If you’re not trying to lose weight or don’t want to give up sugar, how about giving up negativity? That’s what another prominent Republican, Arnold Schwarzenegger, wants us to do. As the New York Post reports, the former California governor calls it a “crash diet for the brain.”
The specifics: limit social-media scrolling to 10 minutes three times a day, make a roadmap for progress rather than dwelling on problems and every day write down at least one thing you’re grateful for. The tips came from Schwarzenegger’s newsletter about how to live a healthier, happier life, which seems like Arthur Brooks’ territory, but I’m here for it and dutifully signed up.
Recommended reading
Reports of a religious revival in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death have been greatly exaggerated, says Ryan Burge, the former pastor who analyzes religious data. He explains why, while also noting a few points of hope.
An excerpt: “About 25% of Americans report attending a house of worship on a typical weekend. If that rose by even three points — a small but noticeable increase — that would mean 10 to 12 million more people in church today than just six months ago. That’s hard to imagine given that there are only about 350,000 houses of worship nationwide.”
What the data really say about religious revival and Gen Z
Deseret Magazine editor Jesse Hyde took a deep dive into Utah Gov. Spencer Cox’s world, offering behind-the-scene detail about what happened on the week Charlie Kirk was shot, and insight into where the governor goes from here.
“‘I’m so sorry, Mr. President,’ Cox said. His mind immediately started to spin forward, to what this meant for Utah, but more than that, what it meant for the nation. Cox had been warning for some time that America’s growing polarization was becoming deeply dangerous, but it didn’t seem anyone was listening.”
Despite its vast and sweeping powers, Congress is the weakest of the three branches of government, writes Jay Cost, who goes on to explain why this is a problem and how we can fix it.
“The only institution that can possibly reflect the values and interests of 330 million people is Congress. With it increasingly distancing itself from the traditional role as lawmaker, public policy is not going to reflect the entirety of public opinion.”
How Congress became the weakest branch
End note
A few weeks ago, I lauded Matt Walsh and others for taking a break from social media over the holidays in order to spend more time with their family. Additional kudos are due Walsh for honoring his pledge despite world-shaking news and for reentering X with the perfect tweet: