Matters in society that constitute problems for the stable operation of social institutions or populations and/or are recognized by significant groups as indicating the need for change in some parameter of social structure or process.
Have you ever wondered why clowns often scare so many little children? Clown costumes and makeup amplify and distort normal human features and dress. We may see them as funny, but their image and demeanor can also appear monstrous. Much of clown behavior is exaggerated and it can even appear anti-social. Thus, some perceive it … More The Empty Clown Suit
When Dustin Hoffman starred in “The Graduate,” I could relate to the situation in which his character found himself. “Benjamin Braddock” had just graduated from college and sought some meaningful path in life. Even though I was nearly half way through a PhD program, I was still not entirely clear on where my path may … More Plastic Graduation: We are All in it Now
The surge of partisan vitriol over “fake news” during and after the 2016 U.S. presidential election raises some very serious though deeply misunderstood issues. What is news, what is information, what are facts, and what role does propaganda play in the “news cycle” in the various media? Is there a viable role for “fact checkers” … More Fake News: Chicken Little Meets the Canary in the Coal Mine
I read a report in Forbes Magazine on the sluggish character of the current recovery from the 2008 financial crash, which lamented its exceptionally weak economic growth. Apparently, we continue slogging along in the weakest recovery since 1949. Since the Great Recession technically ended in 2009, average GDP growth has averaged only 2.1%. In the … More What is Wrong with Economic Growth?
An article in Psychology Today, posted by Ray Williams on July 7, 2014, delineated a long list of indicators of the decline and fall of culture and education in the U.S. in recent decades. Diverse measures of that decline led the author to conclude that, as I would rather put it, “American Exceptionalism” is in fact a … More Dumbing Down America Degrades the Nation and More
The Role of the Social Sciences in Developing Effective Climate Action NOTE: I presented a slightly different version of this paper at the National Social Science Association Meetings in Denver, Colorado, August 3, 2016 We need not turn to the elections of 2016 to observe the madness of the public discourse and the corporate-governmental response to the climate crisis. In electoral politics, at least, we expect … More Calculating Human Survival:
The violence continues. It seems pervasive. The list is long and diverse. Cops shoot unarmed Black men in every major American city. A lone deranged Air Force veteran kills five Dallas police officers. A disturbed marine Iraq-returnee assassinates three more in Baton Rouge. Suicide bombers turn Brussels, Paris, and Bagdad upside down. A wife-beating suicide … More Reform is not Enough
As world population passes 7 billion, straining planetary resources, aging populations in industrial nations may not be a problem if economies are reorganized to serve human needs, not return on capital.
… More New Demographic Transition: Is the Aging Global Population a Problem?
plutocracy [ploo-tok-ruh-see] noun, plural plutocracies. the rule or power of wealth or of the wealthy. a government or state in which the wealthy class rules. a class or group ruling, or exercising power or influence, by virtue of its wealth. kleptocracy [klep-tok-ruh-see] noun, plural kleptocracies. a government or state in which those in power exploit national resources and steal; … More Panama Papers: Plutocracy, Kleptocracy, or Both?
We are so used to the idea that we must each have the freedom to choose, well, just about everything in our lives. We imagine that we are independently constructing a “life of our own.” We have, in our minds at least, an inalienable right to choose and to live our own unique “lifestyle.” That … More Climate Imperative, Freedom, and Democracy
Robert MacNeil Christie, Author 