Category Archives: Culture

It’s Time for Another Round of… Stupid? Or Cynical?

Posted on Tuesday 2 April 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Stupid or Cynical: Republican/Christian conservatives respond to the coincidence of Easter and Trans Recognition Day; Some MAGA claims are just delusional, example from Steve Bannon; Robert Reich on Trump’s 5-step fascist plan; And how conservatives reject the idea of lab-grown … Continue reading →

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How Humans Live by Stories, and Myths

Posted on Monday 25 March 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

A NYT essay that wonders if, given how political persuasions are aligned with community, we actually ever think for ourselves; An example from the fringe about a Republican who wants to outlaw “chemtrails”; A review of a book about the … Continue reading →

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EO Wilson, CONSILIENCE, 7

Posted on Thursday 14 March 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Chapter 8, The Fitness of Human Nature This is perhaps the core chapter of the book, in that it brings together ideas about the mind, genes, and culture from the previous two chapters, and sets up a basis for the … Continue reading →

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More Dispatches from Alternative Realities

Posted on Wednesday 13 March 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

How Katie Britt, like other clueless Republicans, claims victimhood, and pleads for cash; Robert Wright on how the Trump-Biden choice won’t solve anything; Short items about Trump’s obsession with Hitler; how violent crime is down but you wouldn’t know it … Continue reading →

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Alternative Realities? Or The Twilight Zone?

Posted on Tuesday 12 March 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Political links as views into an alternative reality, or perhaps the Twilight Zone; Michelle Goldberg about Mark Robinson; Peter Wehner about how Christians support a morally depraved ex-president; hypocrisy in Alabama; two pieces about Christian nationalist Matt Schaefer; Short items … Continue reading →

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Two Perspectives on the Current Situation

Posted on Sunday 3 March 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

The Atlantic‘s Peter Wehner on how evangelicals don’t actually follow Jesus’ teachings; With an aside about my own attempts to cross the political divide; Robert Reich on his history with the New Left and how Trump arose out of the … Continue reading →

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The Flaw of Math, or Perhaps Just the Limits of Human Cognition

Posted on Saturday 2 March 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Veritasium on math’s fatal flaw, or perhaps just a limitation on the extent humans can understand reality; Considering why cars are built to be able to break the law; A cartoon about religious folks who believe the Bible was written … Continue reading →

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Agents of Chaos

Posted on Saturday 24 February 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

A piece in The Atlantic about people who embrace chaos and nihilism — and spread conspiracy theories just to alleviate boredom, or burn it all down; And an example of this: Washington Post on Libs of Tik Tok; And recalling … Continue reading →

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Living Proper Lives, and More from the Fringe

Posted on Saturday 10 February 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

David Brooks on the value of humanist studies; Shorter pieces on the psychology behind Trump; how evangelicals respond to the rise of the “nones”; measle rates rising in Europe; a David Barton case study; Fox News praising a vigilante who … Continue reading →

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Odds and Ends…

Posted on Saturday 27 January 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

How journalism may never again make money; Keeping lists of books you’re read; Decoding the Mandelbrot set. More links collected the past week or so, today non-political ones. Washington Post, Perry Bacon Jr., 27 Jan 2024: Opinion | Journalism may … Continue reading →

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