Greetings! The only appropriate way to start things off here is by thanking Josh for the kind words and all of his readers for (hopefully) sticking with the site while it's in my hands. Both Josh and several of my predecessors as TPM guest-bloggers have been major inspirations to be over the years, and I can only hope to meet the high standards they've set both online and off.

It also only seems fair to note that I made the gigantic tactical blunder of trying to switch my internet service from DSL to cable modem on a month whose first day happens to be a Sunday. As a result, Verizon's already cut off my DSL service, but Comcast won't hook up the new service until Monday. Shouldn't be a major problem down the line, but I owe thanks to whoever it is that lives next door and hasn't put a password on their WiFi network. Without you, I'd be nothing.

I'll conclude my introductory post with a shameless plug for my employer, The American Prospect. Those of you who were told Jon Chait you were discomfitted by The New Republic's occassional lapses into rightwingery should find our sweet, sweet orthodoxy reassuring. And like TPM itself, we love Social Security. Not just in the sense of loving the program (though that's important too) -- we love to write about it. You'll be hearing plenty on the subject from me in the next few days, but in case you're left jonesing for more, check out our Social Security Archive.