“But why is ours such a hairy century? What began this trend, and what fuels it? There is an easy answer, though it leads to harder questions: We can thank the Global War on Terror—or the Long War, the Bellum Americanum, whatever you choose to call it—and the reluctance of military leaders to impose discipline on the most professional of the units that participated in GWOT, special operations forces.” The New Republic takes a crack at explaining how facial hair won American men’s hearts and minds: The Sum of All Beards. (My theory: Shaving sucks.)

+ Let’s end on something everyone can agree on. Keanu Reeves Is Too Good for This World.