Category: Culture

A system of values and beliefs that organize a society and result in various practices and artifacts that are associated with the general characteristics of that society.

No More Time to Kid Ourselves: The Climate Emergency is Now

August 27, 2021

Brian Tokar has written an excellent synopsis of the IPCC’s 6th Assessment Report (AR6) on the state of Earth’s climate. The latest findings of climate science clearly delineate the worsening conditions that are forcing us into today’s generally unacknowledged deep human predicament. The report just released is the first of three parts. The IPCC has … More No More Time to Kid Ourselves: The Climate Emergency is Now

On Who’s Authority? Perverse Personal Politics and the Autocratic Attempt

August 20, 2021

I just do not know where these state governors get the idea that they can “ban” municipal and other local authorities from helping their people. What gives the Texas governor the right to prevent the Lina Hidalgo, the County Judge who oversees Harris County, which includes Texas’ biggest city, Houston, from establishing procedures to improve … More On Who’s Authority? Perverse Personal Politics and the Autocratic Attempt

Masking Truth and Distancing Lies: Living in a Vacant Moral Universe

August 12, 2021

Life just keeps getting weirder and weirder. It is very hard to make sense out of the behavior of so many fellow humans. Some say we live in a post-truth world. What does that mean? Others claim that “alternative facts” ought to have superior standing despite contradicting the actual facts for which the evidence is … More Masking Truth and Distancing Lies: Living in a Vacant Moral Universe

Why the Billionaire Space Race Matters, or Not

July 21, 2021

Much of modern technology is a two edged sword. Think nuclear power/bombs, fossil-fueled industrial-consumer abundance/waste, chemical (eg.,plastic) products/pollution. There are many more. Various modes of transportation (air, land, and sea) have allowed humans a vast capacity for mobility unavailable before the industrial era, but always at a cost ignored or denied. One of the features … More Why the Billionaire Space Race Matters, or Not

An Epidemic of Nasty: On the Abandonment of Empathy and the Surge of Angry White Entitlement

July 15, 2021

It was hot in the COSTCO parking lot. We had just finished loading the car, but I needed to go back in to use the restroom, before our hour-long drive home. So, I reached in from the driver’s side to insert the key in the ignition so my wife could roll down her window to … More An Epidemic of Nasty: On the Abandonment of Empathy and the Surge of Angry White Entitlement

Work and Risk: What is Wrong with the Labor Market? Or, is it the Work itself?

June 30, 2021

Working from home is the new employment dilemma for many employees and bosses, in some industries anyway. I see a growing number of articles about whether and how many workers can, should, or want to return to the office as the pandemic gradually winds down. Yet, it is clearly not that simple. Dilemmas of Work, … More Work and Risk: What is Wrong with the Labor Market? Or, is it the Work itself?

Against Ideology: Creativity is Best Hope in an Uncertain World

June 17, 2021

Uncertainty is everywhere and growing fast. That makes many people uncomfortable at best, violent at worst. Most seek certainty in what they perceive as a set of beliefs that they equate with reality. When conditions appear uncertain or change quickly, certain people conclude that someone is messing with their reality. They expect to live in … More Against Ideology: Creativity is Best Hope in an Uncertain World