I have a long list of strange and extreme views, and I’ve been an arrogant hedgehog for as long as I can remember. As a rule, arrogant hedgehogs with lots of strange and extreme views are severely biased and grossly unreliable. Which raises two daunting questions.
Tag: logic
Many Crappy Studies = One Good Study
“One study, which didn’t directly examine this topic, but was following a sort of similar thing 20 years ago, although controversial and some say non-reproducible, might not have had the proper data collecting methods and didn’t control for X,Y, and Z, but seemed to show a relationship like this, and that kind of seems to imply this other relationship I’m talking about. Of course it’s not definitive so take it with a grain of salt, but even if just roughly, directionally true, it at least doesn’t disprove my theory.”
Statism: Undesirable, Unnecessary, and Avoidable
Is statism desirable? No, it is not. In fact, institutionalized and ideologically whitewashed aggression is the most undesirable thing that any sane person can think of. Is statism necessary? No, it is not, since institutionalized and ideologically whitewashed aggression is the very opposite of its stated goal of securing social cooperation.
Statism is Weakness of Character
Recently I saw where someone was told to “go live in the woods” when he said he believed all human interactions should be voluntary and this was why he didn’t “do” politics. Really.
Psychology Goes Toe-To-Toe With Totalitarianism in Carl Jung’s “The Undiscovered Self”
To most of us living in the 21st century, it’s easy to forget that weapons exist which could easily destroy life on the planet a few times over. Jung was not ignorant of that. What’s more, he was living through a time when that kind of warfare seemed likely. The world had just lived through the destruction of two world wars, the Russian Revolution, the rise of fascism and National Socialism, and the Holocaust. In 1957, it was not certain that Communism would not spread over the whole world.
Endings, Not in Sight
Time flies when you’re having fun, but some things seem never to change. Wars lead to wars. Government leads to more government. Taxes lead to greater taxes. Modes of taxation lead to more and novel modes of taxation. Organized crime leads to organization, crime, and more organized crime.
Am I Being Detained?
“Just cause” is a relative concept. It means different things in different contexts. In the context of voluntaryist legal theory (the only logically and ethically valid kind of legal theory, methinks), someone has just cause to temporarily detain another person when that person is in the process of committing a crime.
More Ways Than One
Physical health is great, but there are lots of physically fit people who are psychologically miserable. Having friends is great too, but it’s no substitute for self-esteem, physical health, and enough financial resources to secure the tools necessary for connecting with them. Music is awesome, but it can’t satisfy your biological need for food and water.
Dennis’ Journey & Writing for the Open and Curious (1h7m) – Episode 105
Episode 105 welcomes Dennis Pratt to the podcast for a chat with Skyler. Topics include: writing for the open and curious with respect and empathy at Quora.com, his personal growth nonprofit organization, growing up as a New York liberal with a socialist perspective, debating with a staunch conservative colleague focused on logical consistency moved both of them toward libertarianism, recognizing the use of indirect violence, cognitive dissonance, why the Socratic method of disputation enrages people, raising a daughter who went in and out government schooling and his battles with teachers and school administrators, and more.
Warning: Dangerous Cult!
This is a serious warning to all parents about a nefarious and very dangerous cult that has recently been approaching and recruiting innocent but ignorant souls, enticing them into joining a very violent gang—which is really more of a cult than a mere gang. This cult has been responsible for countless murders, acts of terrorism, and many other forms of violence. And the members of the cult have been so brainwashed that they view their violent aggression against innocents as being righteous and noble, because they have been taught that such actions are for the common good, because they serve the religious “vision” of the group’s leaders, which involves coercing everyone else into blind obedience to the agenda and decrees of the leaders of the group, and into compliance with their view of how everyone and everything should be.