WARNING: this post contains spoilers. “Whoever destroys a soul [of Israel], it is considered as if he destroyed an entire world. And whoever saves a life of Israel, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.” – The Talmud One of the […]
SPOILER ALERT: Last night I spoiled the ending of Saving Private Ryan. Now I’m going to have to spoil a good chunk of Les Miserables for you. We Americans love a good revolution. We can’t help it. We’re taught from early ages that […]
Waffle cone. That delicious scent is probably the first thing to draw my attention to the ice cream shop. It’s one of the most packed places in a busy Atlantic Station on a busy springtime Saturday night in Atlanta. Sitting outside […]
I’m a big believer that good mythology and stories can teach us how to live well. In the past year or so, that has led me to thinkers like Joseph Campbell and Jordan Peterson, who both have left a big mark on […]
I was driving to work today when I realized how nonchalantly I was piloting my land-speeding hunk of aluminum. Cars are extraordinary, complex, and dangerous machines, but most of us can drive them comfortably and without much second thought. That’s extraordinary. Then I […]
I live in the bright, sunny South, so when the skies dump snow on us, it’s kind a big deal. Children (and adults) build snowmen, cityscapes become more beautiful, and people slow down. But what I love most is snow’s way […]
I become a very fun party guest when the topic turns to politics. My mundane radicalism RE: politics I come at questions about policy from a different angle than most. I don’t believe in policy or politics at all. Specifically, I don’t […]
In part one of this argument, I explored how the methodology of political policymaking – cost/benefit analysis – fails to work at large scale. TLDR? Societies are much too complex for it to be easy or even possible to know […]
I hate policy debates so much. Should health care be delivered by government agencies? Should people spend more money on roads? Should kids be educated in the same age grades? Let’s put aside that these questions assume only one answer which […]
Have you ever noticed how no one complains about the commercialization of Halloween? Halloween is one of the most honest, self-aware holidays. It knows it’s about costumes, candy, parties, and fun scares. It knows money will be involved. And yet you […]
Incentives matter in politics, even in the politics of fantasy worlds. Spoilers also matter, and this post if full of them. In Game of Thrones, we see a fantastic portrayal of the ambitions, plotting, and warfare between would-be queens and would-be […]
Nationalism seems to follow predictable cycles. A culture becomes infatuated with its nation-state and that state’s dominance in the world. The nation-state does something really horrible and/or gets humbled. The nation-state’s surrounding culture withdraws approval from the state, and the […]
Political ideology is a powerful motivator. Touting our political action and allegiance publicly is our way of identifying who we are, who we align ourselves with, and how much we value our belief systems. We’ve all been there. Even many politically-unengaged […]
In every discussion of government agencies, militarism, privacy, surveillance, torture, or transportation restrictions, we hear an oft-repeated phrase from American founder and generally overrated person Benjamin Franklin: “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, […]
So, you’re living in a geographical area swayed by a strongman with the political philosophy of Benito Mussolini and the immigration policy of a collapsing empire. Things are getting pretty bad pretty quickly. What do you do now? You don’t want […]
I decided to write a happy ending for the Donald Trump saga. I borrowed from a story I heard when I was just a wee little man. He/she who has ears to hear, let them hear. One day Jesus was […]