People are not all the same, and they make different choices because they have different values, circumstances, and levels of understanding. Sometimes those choices are peaceful and wise; sometimes they are not. So what are the best ways to promote good choices and cooperation while preventing and providing resolution for conflict?
Tag: evolution
What the American Flag Means to Me
The American flag, the “star-spangled banner” is one of those things whose meaning to me has changed significantly over the course of my life. Once upon a time it meant being a winning nation, the best the world had ever seen in terms of righteousness, justice, freedom, and opportunity. When I saw the flag, those are the ideas that were brought to mind, ideas that I value, and produced the warm and fuzzies deep inside. I admired and waved the stars and stripes with a sense of pride. What the American flag means to me today is very different than what it meant to me as recently as 10 years ago.
The Danger of Tribalism on a Large Scale
Seeing more latinos in my area, or more Africans, Arabs, Indians, Asians, Eastern Europeans, et cetera doesn’t bother me at all. I see them as my fellow human beings. However, I do think it would be incredibly easy for me to view them as the outgroup and be bothered by their presence. I think that’s due to my evolution as a member of a tribalistic species.
Why The Degree is Dying (and Being Replaced by Something Better)
What is a degree? It purports to be a bundle of goods – knowledge, network, social experience, and a permission slip to compete for certain jobs. It’s only one of these. The permission slip, or credential, intended to signal your ability to employers, is the product. That is the thing being bought and sold. The rest is window dressing.
The American Führerprinzip
Although Trump went to Texas and Florida after the recent hurricanes, he was criticized for being insufficiently sympathetic — or perhaps empathetic. He apparently neither shed tears nor hugged storm victims, as his predecessors did. Do people really want that? Disgusting.
Tying Yourself to Identity is Foolish
I think it is natural to tie your ego into your characteristics in a wholistic way. It is also good to like aspects about your being that you think are productive to your goals and values. That being said, i think it an absolute disaster to tie your ego into individual or small groups of characteristics you hold. This is why I am so against “identity.”
When Does Tradition Become Tyranny?
Traditions emerge for a reason. Society is impossible without them. Traditions provide lenses, rules, norms, and expectations that help make sense of the world, harmonize competing aims and interests, provide stability, and enable long-term planning. But tradition can be tyrannical. Traditions can oppress, restrict, stagnate, and destroy individuals and society. So where’s the line? When does tradition become tyranny?
Four Decades of Middle Eastern Disaster: The Proximate Cause
Almost all of the Middle East’s disasters over the past four decades can be credibly traced back to a single highly specific major event: the Iranian Revolution. Let me chronicle the tragic trail of dominoes.
New Reflections on the Evolution in France
The biggest change is the ubiquitous police and military presence. Teams of militarized police and policified military patrol every tourist site and every public function, plus numerous random locations. It wasn’t just Paris; even small cities like Bayeaux were on guard. I’ve never seen anything like this in the United States, even on September 12, 2001.
15,000 Hours of Playing School
As so often happens when we reach adulthood, and especially parenthood, we realize how much we don’t know. I realized that I might have been successfully schooled, but I didn’t feel well educated. When I reflect on the approximately 15,000 hours I spent in K-12 public school, I think of what a waste of time most of those hours were.