occasional reflections on culture & politics
“Μόνοι γάρ τον τε μηδέν τῶνδε μετέχοντα οὐκ ἀπράγμονα, ἀλλ᾽ ἀχρεῖον νομίζομεν.” –“We alone regard a man who takes no interest in public affairs, not as a harmless, but as a useless character.”– Περικλῆς (Pericles), 430 BC, in Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War, 2.40, Jowett Translation “Just because you do not take an interest… Continue reading #206: The Importance of Being Political
We are living in a world with many dangers, threats and uncertainties. And yet, panic, fear or depression would be the wrong answer. The only thing that really helps anyone is cautious optimism. You may ask, how can you be optimistic? It is a legitimate question. On the surface, I seem to be worried about… Continue reading #202: Fear Not: Why We Need to be Optimistic About the Future
I. When we speak (or write), does our positionality in this world matter? I recently stumbled upon a video in which someone expressed their ire against people starting a variation of a sentence like “I am speaking as an x person.” The position here – if I may simplify it as follows – is instructive:… Continue reading #199: Why Positionality Matters
Queen Elizabeth II died two days ago, and her loss was felt around the world. She has always been committed to her duty to represent the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, transcending that which remained of the Empire into a time of decolonization, new partnerships, a more European Britain, and eventually, sadly, Brexit. She lived… Continue reading #193: De Mortuis Nil Nisi Bene: We Owe Respect to the Dead
We all have probably heard people say things like the following: “I don’t know anyone who got sick / died from this.” “As far as I can tell, summers have always been warm.” “I can get anywhere with a bike, I don’t know why people need cars.” “I cannot imagine anyone voting for x.” “I… Continue reading #184: Anecdotal Thinking, Science, Religion, and Policy
Aren’t we focused a bit too much on identity lately, or rather, on a very narrow definition of it? What does identity even mean? Who we are always depends on several factors, only part of which is controllable by ourselves. We may want to be seen a certain way, but we cannot change how others… Continue reading #182: Reflections on Identity, Purpose, and the Active Life
I have never been a cultural pessimist, nor have I ever been a Luddite. As soon as I was able to, I learned to use a computer in the pre-internet age (I still remember 5 ¼ inch disks and even data tapes), and as soon as the internet became available for private citizens, not just… Continue reading #181: Are We too Stupid for the Internet?
A lot of things are labeled as “woke” nowadays. Contrary to the original intention of the word itself, the very term “woke” has become a caricature, a word that is meant to now quickly dismiss whatever is termed as such. Someone is called out for what could be understood as an insensitive or insulting remark,… Continue reading #179: Ecce Homo: Wokeness Beyond Caricatures
Why do bad things happen in the world? If there is a god, should he not be good? Does he not care? Why does he not help? This is maybe the oldest problem in theology, the so-called question of theodicy, of the justice of god. According to Lactantius, Epicurus famously framed is thusly: “Is God… Continue reading #167: The Pseudo-Problem of Theodicy and the Nature of Divinity
In a world dominated by climate change and a still deadly global pandemic, we sometimes seem puzzled, annoyed, frustrated, depressed, angry and utterly confused. What is happening? Why is it happening? How could this possibly be what is going on? Welcome to the world in denial. We have believed that we can create a world… Continue reading #139: Nature Demands Humility: Lessons from Jurassic Park World
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