Audio publications page — updated
Some of my books, articles, and reviews available in audio form are collected at my Audio Publications page, which I’ve updated this month.
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Art and morality, Mao and Warhol
Mao Zedong, in keeping with Marxism, argued this about the nature and purpose of art: “In the world today all culture, all literature and art belong to definite classes and are geared to definite political lines. There is in fact no such thing as art for art’s sake, art that stands above classes, art that
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Lucro: bueno, malo y obsceno [Spanish translation]
[This is a Spanish translation of “Profits: Good, Bad, and Obscene,” originally published in English at EveryJoe.] A nadie le gusta perder dinero, pero el lucro genera actitudes polarizadas. Como ocurre con la mayoría de los fenómenos con carga moral—la competencia, la riqueza, la pobreza, la propiedad—lograr superar las discusiones confusas, requiere algunas distinciones sutiles. Acerquémonos
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The Pope’s softness on Cuba, Bolivia, and Venezuela
The Pope continues to be rather silent about the disaster in Venezuela. Why? Here a supporter of Pope offers his best gloss of the Pope’s underwhelming response to socialist-dictatorship Venezuela. Earlier the Pope had a nice visit to socialist Bolivia. And before that a gentle visit to communist-dictatorship Cuba. But Pope Francis does goes out
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Exult or gnash teeth at whistle-blower Chelsea Manning’s release?
Chelsea Manning is out of prison — but here are the whistle-blowing questions for both those exulting and those gnashing their teeth. “Whistleblowing and Government Secrets, Chelsea Manning edition.” “In his final days in office, President Obama commuted the prison sentence of Chelsea Manning. While in the employ of the US Army, Manning had downloaded
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Forcing professors out, 1933 edition
Thomas Hager (p. 240) describes well the attitude of a majority of students and professors within the universities, when Hitler and and his Culture Minister demanded that all Jews be removed from their professorships: “German university students were, in general … devoted to making Germany great again. They were strongly pro-Nazi. Among faculty members, there
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Loving Money and Books – Which Is More Evil? [Good Life series]
I worked in construction for some years before returning to graduate school. My crew members were all hardworking guys, and an ethos of manly ruggedness prevailed among them. Beer was drunk. Pickup trucks were driven. Camping and fishing were practiced faithfully. I am, of course, no slouch in the manliness department. Let’s be clear about
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Teachers unions and what’s good for the children
Here’s Albert Shanker, who was president of the American Federation of Teachers for twenty-three years, from 1974-1997: “When schoolchildren start paying union dues, that’s when I’ll start representing the interests of school children.” The quotation’s accuracy is disputed, but it captures perfectly the relevant stances in education’s structurally adversarial dynamic. As in legal proceedings, attorneys
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