occasional reflections on culture & politics
We frequently hear words like “structural” or “system.” What does that mean? What do scholars mean when they say these words? Please allow me some rough thoughts on the matter that may help to clarify some confusions. What is a “structure”? It is something that has been built, that has been created. Typically, many of… Continue reading #253: Some Thoughts on Structures and Systems
Whatever is happening in Gaza cannot make anyone happy. The situation is grim. People are suffering, starving, dying. This cannot continue. Saying this is easy, but thinking about how to solve the problem is less easy. The reason it is complicated lies, first of all, in the excessive brutality of Hamas’ attack on October 7,… Continue reading #252: Some Reflections on Israel, Gaza, and Protests
We have a new Dune again, or rather, part two of Villeneuve’s version. I withheld my judgement until I had time to see it, and had the opportunity to watch the Miniseries and the documentary Jodorowsky’s Dune to prepare, as well as Spicediver’s 3-hour unofficial version of Lynch’s Dune. By now, I must have seen… Continue reading #251: A Tale of Four Dunes
— “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” (Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning, p. 86) Alejandro Jodorowsky did not get the chance to make Dune. Nevertheless, he may have given… Continue reading #250: Take a Moment to Build Your Soul
The original post already addressed the notion of sin, as well as some possibly religious approaches to wokeness. Here, I will expand on these. First, I would like to preface this with a caveat. I am neither a theologian nor a religious official. I grew up Catholic, and have since widened my scope and have… Continue reading #249: The Resistance Against Wokeness, Part II: Addressing Religious Objections
I have been agonizing about what the anti-wokeness complaints and critiques are all about. What about “woke” is offensive or problematic? To be “woke” means to be “awake” to the danger of racist discrimination, that is all. That is how the word has functioned since at least the 1920s, until it became more popularized in… Continue reading #248: The Resistance Against Wokeness, Part I
I wrote this in November 2016 and never put it on my blog back then. Somehow, it is strange how this may still be relevant — after EIGHT (!) years. I have just changed 2-3 references — otherwise, this is as I wrote it 11/02/2016. Here we go again… With just a few months before… Continue reading #247: Politics After Resentment
Now Putin has done it. He has finally murdered his main competitor. Last Friday, we received news of Navalny’s death. There is no doubt that Putin is responsible — he has done everything he can to set in motion a murderous machine, which finally achieved its result. Putin is and always has been a killer.… Continue reading #246: Navalny’s Killing Exposes Putin’s Weakness
Intentional or not, Tucker Carlson just did the world a strange favor: He showed how deluded and dangerous Putin really is. Typically, I do not agree with Tucker Carlson’s politics. This is immaterial – different people have different ideas. That’s the beauty of freedom of speech and freedom of expression, and it is what makes… Continue reading #245: Tucker Carlson Reveals Putin’s Fear and Delusion
We cannot afford to wait with supporting Ukraine. Our current hesitancy is not just endangering our friends and allies, but will work against us in the future as well. Aliens attack Earth. They land in the country of Somewhereistan and are starting to establish a stronghold in a part of the country. The country is… Continue reading #244: When Aliens Attack, What Will We Do? Reflections on Western Hesitancy in the Face of Russian Aggression
We are living in a world similar to that of Babylon 5, Season 5. Does this sound weird? You don’t know what Babylon 5 is? What does this have to do with politics and society? Let me explain, and I hope this will make sense. https://youtu.be/uToMlVTY7Jw I. Babylon 5 is a science fiction show that… Continue reading #243: Living in a Time of Frustration: Are We Living in Babylon 5, Season 5?
Government always needs criticism and opposition. But criticism doesn't just mean affect-driven rejection, resentment or even dismissal of democracy and democratic rules and norms. Every criticism must be justified, ideally with a suggestion for how to do things differently and better. This distinguishes critical from uncritical, political from non-political thinking. Simply saying “that’s stupid” or… Continue reading #242: On the Difference between Opposition and an Anti-Democratic Stance
There's more to this blog - there's also the web site and the YouTube Channel. My energies lately had to be more focused on finishing some other projects: the recently finished longer poem "Qaddish / Sanctus / Bismillah", a meditation on divinity an increased effort to finish my longer poem "The Garden" (not about gardening,… Continue reading µ#11: More Content on philjohn.com
Something strange is happening. On October 7, organized rape, kidnap and murder squads from Hamas invaded Israeli territory – following their organization’s genocidal charter – and committed the worst antisemitic massacre since the Holocaust. Hamas declared war, with their allies – similarly genocidally minded Hezbollah, directed probably by Iran in happy cooperation with Russia and… Continue reading #241: The War Against Israel
I've finally finished the first movement of Symphony 5: The Defiant. Demo music is available on Soundcloud. Movements 2-5 will follow throughout 2024, hopefully.
https://youtu.be/092P6yNrDSE (This is a bit different in style – it is an unscripted video transcript, so it reflects oral more than written speech.) Can we have hope? I was asked a question recently about what gives me hope. I don't know whether I have the right answer for this. I've tried to write about hope… Continue reading #240: Hope, Duty & the Future
https://youtu.be/eFScWB54X4Q (This is a bit different in style – it is an unscripted video transcript, so it reflects oral more than written speech.) What is the use of history when you want to solve a big problem? There are all kinds of big conflicts on the planet. Right now, what's top of our minds probably… Continue reading #239: Is History Helpful for Solving Conflicts?
Again, we hear the words. “The Jews.” Again, we see “them” being made responsible for all the evils of the world. Israel was attacked by violent deranged anti-human terrorists, and it continues to be attacked, and the attacker hides behind children and women and institutions of human decency. The attacker, Hamas, has been calling for… Continue reading #238: Kristallnacht, 85 Years Later
We are hearing the slogan that Israel would be committing Genocide in Gaza. Just because you hear it so frequently doesn’t make it right. At no point has Israel, as a state, ever wanted to eradicate Palestinians or Palestine. Since its inception, and before, it wanted to work with the Arab population. It invited Arabs… Continue reading #237: No, Israel is Not Committing Genocide in Gaza
I am not a psychologist. I am a cultural and political theorist. I study the world and derive insight about how it works and what is going on from a variety of sources, and try to explain it with the use of theory. That’s what I do – so take what I am saying with… Continue reading #236: Things are Not OK. We Should Be Able to Admit It
Erratic Attempts 