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Category Archives: Society
Perfection or Nothing?
The French philosopher Voltaire warned that “the perfect is the enemy of the good.” Pursuit of “perfect” but impossible goals makes us reject possible goals because they’re imperfect. And we often make things even worse than they were in the … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Life, Political Science, Psychology, Society
Tagged Communism, Human Nature, Leftism, Leftist, Magical thinking, Perfectionism, Podhoretz, Realism, Utopia, Utopianism, Voltaire
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Who Gets Veto Power?
A while back, I worked for a tech company where I reported to the company’s CEO. The main thing I learned was never to take a job at a company founded and run by a business-school professor. The other thing … Continue reading
One Way to Reduce Fake News
Regardless of their political views, most Americans think that “fake news” is a real problem. And it is. Often on purpose. Partisans flood the media with so much disinformation that it’s hard for anyone to know what’s happening. Even the … Continue reading
Posted in Life, Political Science, Psychology, Society
Tagged Chyrons, CNN, Disinformation, Fake news, Infotainment, Misleading, MSNBC, News Media, Propaganda, Rhetorical question, The New York Times
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How to Get a Healthy Society
In my previous blog post (“What’s Your Choice?”), I said that the main question of morality is not “what’s right or wrong” but “what kind of people we choose to be.” At first glance, that statement seems absurd, bordering on … Continue reading
What’s Your Choice?
Some people might get mad at me for saying this, but I’m against kicking puppies. I’m also against being mean to children and old people. I like democracy but I agree with Winston Churchill that “it’s the worst form of … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Life, Psychology, Society
Tagged Belief, Choice, Decline of violence, Evolutionary Psychology, Existential choice, Foundations of morality, Genetic influences on belief, Group beliefs, Moral Choice, Morality, Retributive justice, Steven Pinker, The Better Angels of Our Nature
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In Defense of Taylor Swift
There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who think that Glenn Miller’s 1941 song “Chattanooga Choo-Choo” absolutely rocks, and those who don’t. I think that the song absolutely rocks, which explains why I don’t know much about … Continue reading
Posted in Life, Psychology, Society
Tagged Big Band music, Gay, Glenn Miller, Leftist, LGBT, Life of Brian, Never satisfied, Party Line, Political correctness, Pop culture, Pop music, Taylor Swift, Woke
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Bulletproof Happiness: What You Control
You can achieve bulletproof happiness. But you need to know something first: Bulletproof vests make you look fat. In other words, there are trade offs. And you need to know something else: Bulletproof vests don’t make you invulnerable. In other … Continue reading
Posted in Life, Philosophy, Political Science, Society
Tagged Happiness, History, Serenity, Social Conflict, Social unrest, Stoicism, The Fourth Turning
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What You Can Do About the World
The world can be a scary place. It is now. As one website commenter remarked: “We wake up, have breakfast, send the kids to school, walk the dog, go to work, come home and everything seems just fine, and then … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Life, Political Science, Psychology, Society
Tagged Fake news, Hateful rhetoric, Humility, Hysteria, Inflammatory rhetoric, Intellectual humility, Internet, Live and let live, News Media, Peaceful cooperation, Peaceful disagreement, Propaganda, Rational Argument, Social discord, Social Media
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Wise Paths to Happiness
What’s the best way to find happiness in life? In some ways, that’s a silly question. There are many ways to be happy in life. Or unhappy. But despite individual differences, most people can find happiness in similar ways. A … Continue reading
What We Are and What We Do
Would you like to join the Chess Club? It’s for people who like chess, like to talk about it, and like to play it. It’s a human group. You can be a member if you satisfy at least one of … Continue reading
The Thousand-Year View 