Search Results for: the righteous mind

The Atlantic on trigger warnings; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the war on reason

Posted on Tuesday 29 September 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

I mentioned a while back the cover story on The Atlantic magazine’s September issue, The Coddling of the American Mind, by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt. (Haidt is the author of the book The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Culture, Morality, Provisional Conclusions, Psychology, Religion | Comments Off on The Atlantic on trigger warnings; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the war on reason

Links and Comments: Fox News; Jonathan Haidt; Scientology; Paul Krugman; US and Israel

Posted on Thursday 12 March 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

First, an essay at Salon not just about Fox News and Bill O’Reilly but about Why the pundit’s fabrications are almost beside the point. Key point: there isn’t enough ‘real’ news to sustain a 24-hour new network. That is, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Religion | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Fox News; Jonathan Haidt; Scientology; Paul Krugman; US and Israel

Prothero: WHY LIBERALS WIN THE CULTURE WARS…

Posted on Saturday 2 November 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

(EVEN WHEN THEY LOSE ELECTIONS), subtitled “The Battles That Define America from Jefferson’s Heresies to Gay Marriage” (HarperOne, Oct 2016, 326pp, including 62p acknowledgements, notes, and index.) I’ve mentioned this book a few times, the first time even before it … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, conservatives, Culture, Human Progress | Comments Off on Prothero: WHY LIBERALS WIN THE CULTURE WARS…

Admitted Liars; Presumptions of the Ancients

Posted on Saturday 21 September 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Republicans repeatedly are admitting they lie; How Republicans voters trust Trump as a source of election information; Reading Timothy Ferris, revisiting the ancient astronomers and their presumptions about the universe — not unlike the modern discovery of psychology biases. Increasingly, … Continue reading →

Posted in Astronomy, conservatives, Lunacy, Psychology, Science | Comments Off on Admitted Liars; Presumptions of the Ancients

A Table of Moral Polarities, Initial Take

Posted on Saturday 11 May 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

I’ve been making notes over the past month for a table of moral polarities, in order to align and summarize some of the concepts and the many news examples I’ve compiled lately. Recall how I’ve mentioned that certain attitudes, especially … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, History, Meaning, Morality, Philosophy, Science, science fiction, Uncategorized | Comments Off on A Table of Moral Polarities, Initial Take

Joshua Greene, MORAL TRIBES, post 2

Posted on Thursday 18 April 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Concluding summary and comments about this book. Some highlights: The author focuses on a modified utilitarianism, which he calls “deep pragmatism,” to solve tribal disputes in the modern world; He observes that “rights” are claims to end disputes, in order … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, Morality, progress | Comments Off on Joshua Greene, MORAL TRIBES, post 2

How Humans Select Particular Stories Over Reality

Posted on Monday 29 January 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

As I mentioned in Thursday’s post, I keep finding books in my library that could be considered straight-out philosophy (e.g. on ethics and morality) or at least philosophy-adjacent (some of the more abstruse physics and evolutionary texts, in the way … Continue reading →

Posted in Narrative, Psychology, Religion | Comments Off on How Humans Select Particular Stories Over Reality

Latest from the Impending Dictatorship Watch

Posted on Tuesday 5 December 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Recalling the “Good Germans” who didn’t pay attention to Hitler’s rise; Salon’s Chauncey DeVega on how Americans are sleepwalking into a Trump dictatorship; The Atlantic‘s Jeffrey Goldberg on the danger of a second Trump term; Steve Bannon’s promise to prosecute … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Politics, Psychology | Comments Off on Latest from the Impending Dictatorship Watch

The “Intellectual” Christian Nationalists

Posted on Saturday 4 November 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

(Finishing on Sunday a post I began yesterday, Saturday, and am posted in that slot.) Here’s a longish essay by Damon Linker about conservative “intellectuals” who are trying to justify the takeover of America by Christian Nationalism. On what grounds, … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Politics | Comments Off on The “Intellectual” Christian Nationalists

America’s Dominance and Decline

Posted on Sunday 6 August 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Just one substantial item today, compared to the several posted yesterday. If America is so great by some economic and military standards, why is our quality of life, compared to so many other countries around the world, so poor? Concluding … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Human Progress, Religion | Comments Off on America’s Dominance and Decline