Tag: 2022

#204: Poem: Путин, идиот (Putin, You Idiot)

Philipp Kneis

ПУТИН, ИДИОТ(PUTIN, YOU IDIOT) Путин, идиот,когда сам идёт,когда прочь идёш? тыпреступники надзиратель за преступниками:твои приказы - твои дела:убийца, насильник, поджигатель, мучитель,мелкий воришка и только бандит,убийца Чечни, Сирии, Грузии, Украины,угнетатель русских, белорусов и других народов,реабилитолог Сталина,головорез КГБ,воскреситель темницы народов,воскреситель гулага,воскреситель стукачества,воскреситель фашизма,разрушитель гласности,разрушитель перестройки,разрушитель демократии,разрушитель справедливостиразрушитель мира,уличный хулиган,лжец и детоубийца,тебе не стыдно? ты похититель фьючерсовразвратитель людейкак… Continue reading #204: Poem: Путин, идиот (Putin, You Idiot)

#203: The Puzzling Resistance Against Anti-Racism

Philipp Kneis

Ever since Ibram X. Kendi published his book How to be an Anti-Racist, resistance against his message has been very vocal. The main point of criticism is Kendi’s central assertion, as follows: “The opposite of racist isn’t ‘not racist.’ It is ‘anti-racist.’ What's the difference? One endorses either the idea of a racial hierarchy as… Continue reading #203: The Puzzling Resistance Against Anti-Racism

#202: Fear Not: Why We Need to be Optimistic About the Future

Philipp Kneis

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

#201: Adventures in Artificial Intelligence: An Evening with ChatGBT

Philipp Kneis

"nie ma powrotu" = "there's no going back" Preface: Last night, I tried out the new ChatGBT bot available on https://chat.openai.com/chat. You need to register for free and then can assess whether we are already dealing with our electronic overlords. Today, questions of life and death were on my mind (after watching too much science… Continue reading #201: Adventures in Artificial Intelligence: An Evening with ChatGBT

#200: The Nature Around Us

Philipp Kneis

As I am sitting in my warm house, I am watching a squirrel eat some of the food I originally put out for the birds. There is not just one squirrel, there are five. Every attempt at “squirrel-proofing” the feeder has failed. They are smart animals. I had to hang up a separate feeder somewhere… Continue reading #200: The Nature Around Us

#199: Why Positionality Matters

Philipp Kneis

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

#198: LGBTQ Rights are Human Rights

Philipp Kneis

We live in a world where it has become embarrassing to admit adherence to racial or ethnic discrimination. That does not mean that racism is gone, far from it, but people who harbor xenophobic or racist thoughts have learned how to hide them behind something possibly more justifiable. Anti-immigrant sentiment and racism can be hidden… Continue reading #198: LGBTQ Rights are Human Rights

#197: We Have Good Reasons for Hope

Philipp KneisLeave a comment

In these depressing times, we seem to always be on the brink of the end of the world, the end of democracy, the end of a livable climate, the end of free speech, sanity, respect, fairness, justice, nuance, context, humanity, whatever – you name it. There is either too much or too little of wokeness… Continue reading #197: We Have Good Reasons for Hope

#196: Poem: I Need to Believe

Philipp KneisLeave a comment

I NEED TO BELIEVE Corvallis, October 9th, 2022 – P#786 I need to believethat beneath all this sorrowbeneath all this painand all this senseless senselessnessis waiting a future timemuch better than the current onewaitingto be bornout ofallthis I need to believebecause without this beliefthere would be nothingkeeping mefrom seeking madnessrather than sanityand desperationrather than resilienceand… Continue reading #196: Poem: I Need to Believe

#195: Fake “Referenda” Prove that Putin Doesn’t Want to Negotiate

Philipp KneisLeave a comment

Let’s just make one thing clear: What is happening in occupied Ukraine, what happened in 2014 in Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk, cannot be called referenda. They are fake. They are not elections. They are nothing but a performance of voting, but no actual voting is taking place. For an election or referendum or vote to… Continue reading #195: Fake “Referenda” Prove that Putin Doesn’t Want to Negotiate

#194: No, the Pandemic is Not Yet Over

Philipp KneisLeave a comment

I get it. Covid sucks, and we all – including myself – would like to return to normality. After all, don’t we have vaccines and treatments? Doesn’t psychological damage count too? How about the economy, about our democracy? Can’t we just say, this is it? Reality is what it is no matter what you wish… Continue reading #194: No, the Pandemic is Not Yet Over

#193: De Mortuis Nil Nisi Bene: We Owe Respect to the Dead

Philipp Kneis

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

#192: Biden Needs to Unite, not Demonize: In a Democracy, the “Other Side” Is Not the Enemy

Philipp Kneis

It has become fashionable to talk about political polarization in the United States as if this was a new thing. There has always been heavy competition, and one side typically thinks of the other side as rather unpalatable. Has it gotten worse? Maybe. What should we do about it? Don’t feed the beast, don’t make… Continue reading #192: Biden Needs to Unite, not Demonize: In a Democracy, the “Other Side” Is Not the Enemy

#191: Remembering Mikhail Gorbachev

Philipp Kneis

Mikhail Gorbachev was one of the greatest politicians of all time. Without him, the world today would be less free, more than 500 million people would still live in fear of an evil system that enslaved and terrorized them all over the world. That does not mean, of course, that he succeeded with everything he… Continue reading #191: Remembering Mikhail Gorbachev

#190: On the Ability of Russians to Suffer their Government

Philipp Kneis

As sanctions keep hurting Russia’s economic outlook, we keep hearing that the Russian people are able to endure anything, and that they will tolerate all of this, that it would be pointless to sanction the country and that we should just give in to Putin’s genocidal demands. Yet it is not the West which is… Continue reading #190: On the Ability of Russians to Suffer their Government

#189: Soviet Monuments Need To Go

Philipp Kneis

The destruction of a Soviet monument in Riga this week was quite the sight to behold: This strange obelisk celebrating, allegedly, the victory by the Soviet Union against Nazi Germany was erected in 1985 to celebrate Soviet imperialism and colonialism and demonstrate the USSR’s hold over Latvia, a country the Soviet Union conquered when it… Continue reading #189: Soviet Monuments Need To Go

#188: What Is “The West” Today? From “Civilization” to Cooperation

Philipp Kneis

Quite regularly, we can hear explanations about both foreign and domestic policy that rely on concepts about “the West.” It is rather commonplace to assume that the world is divided into different political camps that are influenced by different cultures. No other division is more popular than the distinction between those countries who are part… Continue reading #188: What Is “The West” Today? From “Civilization” to Cooperation

#187: Words Are Not Violence

Philipp Kneis

Whenever we speak, it is important to be precise. Communication depends on it. Words have a meaning for a reason, and once we change the meaning of words in our society, we risk not being able to describe things accurately. Words are words, violence is violence. Some words may call out for violence directly, but… Continue reading #187: Words Are Not Violence

#186: Salman Rushdie and the Case for Free Speech

Philipp Kneis

Monument to the Burning of Giordano Bruno at the Campo dei Fiori in Rome.“A BRUNO – IL SECOLO DA LUI DIVINATO – QUI DOVE IL ROGO ARSE”(“To Bruno – from the age he divined  – here where the fire burned”). To my shame, I must admit that to this day I have never read any… Continue reading #186: Salman Rushdie and the Case for Free Speech

#185: Poem: Sometimes, There’s Nothing To Say

Philipp Kneis

SOMETIMES, THERE'S NOTHING TO SAY Corvallis, August 14th, 2022 – P#782 sometimes, there's nothing to saynot that there wouldn't be anythingto talk about: for I could say all I want,but talking about it, would that not implya social component? so shall I cryout loudinto the wilderness? for I really feellike screamingout loud: and yet, who… Continue reading #185: Poem: Sometimes, There’s Nothing To Say