Consider the death of a right-wing dictator. Chile’s brutal Augusto Pinochet died in 2006: “In 2011, the Chilean government officially recognized 36,948 survivors of torture and political imprisonment, as well as 3,095 people killed or disappeared at the hands of the military government.” I was no fan of then-president George W. Bush. Yet his White […]
Two dictators’ deaths — responses from Bush, Trump, and Trudeau Read More »
1. The modern economic debate: Should free-markets or socialism replace feudalism? [Late 1700s to early 1800s] 2. Free-market-ish experiments run in many countries (USA, New Zealand, etc.) — all generally successful [1800s and 1900s] 3. Socialist experiments run in many countries (Soviet Union, China, etc.) — all failures. [1900s] 4. At the same time, Third
Eight steps to Trump Economics Read More »
Was race a major factor? The table shows the voting percentages in the last three presidential elections for four racial-ethnic groups: Thought 1: White support for the Republican candidate was stable across the three elections (55, 59, 58). But white support for the Democratic candidate declined (43, 39, 37). My takeaway: Trump seems not to
Trump and the Racial Vote Read More »
Last week I posted this chart for comparing Clinton, Johnson, and Trump on six dimensions. I scored each from 1 to 10 for each dimension, with 10 being the highest score, and then totaled scores for each candidate. (Here is the blank chart in a Word document.) My scoring is: Here again are the follow-up
Picking the President, 2016: My Scoring of Clinton, Johnson, and Trump Read More »
[Humor alert.] I’ve taken to heart all the left-leaning outrage at the unequal distribution of wealth — 1% versus 99% !!! — as well as all the social conservative angst over the breakdown of the traditional family. Sobering stuff. In all modesty, however, I believe that I’ve hit upon a totally awesome solution that will
A modest proposal — Let’s ban women from the workplace and make everyone happy Read More »
[This excerpt is from Chapter 4 of Explaining Postmodernism: Skepticism and Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault] Hegel on worshipping the state While a student at Tübingen, Hegel’s favorite reading had been Rousseau. “The principle of freedom dawned on the world in Rousseau, and gave infinite strength to man.”[88] As discussed in Chapter Two, Hegel was
Hegel on worshipping the state Read More »
Audience Q&A after this debate between professors John Quiggin and Stephen Hicks. * Did Burke and the Right generate postmodernism? * Is Trump a postmodernist? * Was John Stuart Mill a socialist? * What is libertarianism? * Fake news—new or more of the same? * Is climate-change denialism postmodern? * Is “That offends me” un-Australian?
Is Postmodernism Right-Wing? Audience Q&A Read More »
I debated University of Queensland professor John Quiggin at a wonderfully full auditorium in Brisbane, Australia. Quiggin argued that postmodernism is a right-wing phenomenon, as evidenced by climate-change denialism and the presidency of Donald Trump. I argued the negative. An hour of debate, followed by audience questions. Also a brief comment from John Anderson, former
Debate: Is Postmodernism Right-Wing or Left-Wing? Read More »
Gallup poll data: So: What happened in 2013? Note that 2013 is three years before Donald Trump became president. Note that 2013 is four years before Jordan Peterson became famous. Questions: Does it coincide with editorial-board changes at major media outlets, e.g., The New York Times and The Washington Post, etc.? Does it coincide with
Perceptions of race relations USA then and now Read More »
I’ve received colorful correspondence from people upset with me over a dozen philosophical issues — especially from those who think Kant was Enlightenment/objectivist/liberal, Nietzsche was thoroughly individualist, Rand was antisocial, and that postmoderns are the good guys — as well as those who chastise me for supporting neither Trump nor Biden. Then there are those
Angry emails this year Read More »