Category Archives: humanities

the state is not the nation

A quibble or two with James Lileks (skip down to “Warning: the following is Screedy”): Well, don’t START A WAR WITH AMERICA, then. Well, y’know, most of the bombees at Hiroshima didn’t. Is it overly pedantic to distinguish between the … Continue reading

Posted in history, militaria | 1 Comment

youth at risk

Tom the Dancing Bug: Why Johnny Joins the Taliban. Link relayed by an Awaiter who commented, “it’s pathetic that anyone even has to point this out.” Funny, tho. Many years later: Newer link.

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Rumpelheimer v. Haddock

Which side of the road do they drive on? With lots of history, theory and anecdotes.

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it really is that bad

Will Wilkinson has a sensible and interesting take on libertarianism, morality and culture. Because libertarianism defends markets, markets produce consumer culture, and consumer culture undermines traditional morality, libertarianism and traditional morality really are at odds. Most conservatives understand this, and … Continue reading

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stop the stylus!

read Peter Trei’s satire on intellectual property in ancient Sumeria: at Politech, or at LawMeme

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neat trick

William Sulik seems to say that we ought to act not on our own mores but on those of our more enlightened descendants. Neat trick if you can manage it: like predicting an innovation.

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saving the world

David Weinberger (JOHO) reports on the Technology Entertainment & Design conference. Here’s something personally interesting: Steven Petranik, editor of Discover magazine, ticked off his Top Ten list of ways the world could end suddenly: 10. Failure to address the worldwide … Continue reading

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