Reading postmodern history can be frustrating, with its philosophical antipathy to facts and truth and its ideological priors. Here’s an example — Jean-François Lyotard on the rise of authoritarianism: Saddam Hussein is a product of Western departments of state and big companies, just as Hitler, Mussolini, and Franco were born of the ‘peace’ imposed on […]
Correcting postmodern history — imperialist version Read More »
[This is my full interview with Lall Singh, first published in the Center for Ethics and Entrepreneurship’s Kaizen newsletter.] Introduction: Lall Singh is CEO of Capital Instruments based in London, England. Capital Instruments is an investment consulting firm that provides finance, management, and marketing expertise in several European companies as well as projects in Canada
Interview with Lall Singh on Entrepreneurial Finance in England Read More »
Recently, I met a young man in Miami. Instead of taking a taxi I decided to try Uber for the first time. Rafael (not his real name) showed up a few minutes later. Traffic was bad in rush-hour Miami, and along the way we started chatting. He was a Cuban, I learned, and until recently
Uber, Cuba, and Freedoms Small and Large [Good Life series] Read More »
In Schools on Trial: How Freedom and Creativity Can Fix Our Educational Malpractice by Nikhil Goyal asks: Are America’s schools little more than cinderblock gulags that spawn vicious cliques and bullying, negate creativity and true learning, and squelch curiosity in their inmates, um, students? Goyal is a recent high school graduate (2013), but recalls his
Goyal’s *Schools on Trial* Read More »
Donald Trump’s astonishing election victory was in part a backlash against increasingly corrupt American politics. Transparency International publishes an annual Corruption Perceptions Index, ranking all nations from most to least clean in their political conduct. The United States entered the twenty-first century by falling out of the top ten. Scandinavian nations such as Finland, Denmark, and Sweden
Trump’s Corruption Mandate Read More »
After my talk there on “How Ethics Drives the Debate over the USA’s Healthcare Politics and Economics,” I received this letter of appreciation from the program’s head, Dr. Hanna Kostyło. In Polish and in English (click on image to enlarge): A fine memento of an enjoyable event. I learned from Professora Kostyło that the College
Letter from Nicholas Copernicus University College of Medicine Read More »
After my talks at the University of Kasimir the Great in Poland, I received a gift from Professora Ilona Błaszczyk: a book on Seneca on education. Professora Błaszczyk is a scholar of classical thought who has translated Seneca’s work into Polish. A striking feature of the book, though, appears on the title page: a Third
Third Reich stamp in Seneca book Read More »
Many people complain about how education has become so expensive. Mostly, they are wrong. Schooling has become more expensive, but consider the cost of the following awesome education resources: * Kahn Academy for learning math: Free. * Louvre Online for experiencing and studying art history: Free. * Google Translate for learning dozens of languages: Free.
Is Education Really Too Expensive? [Good Life series] Read More »
Thus sayeth the encyclopedia: American history has been marked by persistent and determined efforts to expand the scope and inclusiveness of civil rights. The 1950s and 60s were a great upsurge of energy to achieve: * Equal rights for all races and sexes * Free speech * Integration * Due process and the ending of
The Civil Rights Movement is Dead in Universities Read More »
A broken trough along an eave at Auschwitz Block 5Lets melting snow splash to the earth.Unruly escape from an assigned path. On a hundred other buildings the troughs function well.According to plan.Collecting every drop.Guiding them along gutters.To waiting drains.And into the anonymous darkness below. Snow is water,And water is life.Cycles of separation and absorption. A
Broken Trough, Block 5 Read More »