When I say that the conservative lacks principles, I do not mean to suggest that he lacks moral conviction. The typical conservative is indeed usually a man of very strong moral convictions.
What I mean is that he has no political principles which enable him to work with people whose moral values differ from his own for a political order in which both can obey their convictions. It is the recognition of such principles that permits the coexistence of different sets of values that makes it possible to build a peaceful society with a minimum of force.
F. A. Hayek, “Why I Am Not a Conservative,” The Constitution of Liberty
Video games and violence
The only conclusion I can draw from studies linking violent video games to physical violence is that a large segment of the population really, really likes violent video games.
My Lord, I loved strawberry jam
And the dark sweetness of a woman’s body.
Also well-chilled vodka, herring in olive oil,
Scents, of cinnamon, of cloves.
So what kind of prophet am I? Why should the spirit
Have visited such a man? Many others
Were justly called, and trustworthy.
Who would…
Re-vision – the act of looking back, of seeing with fresh eyes, of entering an old text from a new critical direction – is for woman more than a chapter in cultural history: it is an act of survival. Until we understand the assumptions in which we are drenched we cannot know ourselves. And this drive to self-knowledge, for women, is more than a search for identity: it is part of our refusal of the self-destructiveness of male-dominated society.
Adrienne Rich, On Lies, Secrets, and Silence: Selected Prose 1966-1978 (h/t @sacredflow)
A Joke For Sex Educators
An oldie but a goodie I used to use to warm up the crowd when presenting on Health Psychology to undergraduates:
Begin by asking for a show of hands and asking, “how many of you would consider yourselves relatively well-educated about sexual matters?” Pretend to count any hands.
Say “all right,” and then ask, “how many of you know what, by law, must be written at the bottom of every condom manufactured in the United States?” Modify your answer (below) in case anyone knows the joke or guesses your response.
Say, “Made in the USA.” Pause a moment, then shrug your shoulders and add, “well, if you’ve never had to roll them down that far…”
Apologize to anyone you made woozy with that remark, then proceed with your material.
nothing quite like waking up 2 the sound of waves greeting a coastline
…William Earl, who is professor of philosophy at Northwestern University, said in an essay called “Notes on the Death of a Culture”
“An academic philosopher today must above all things avoid being edifying. He must never stoop to lying awake nights considering problems of the nature of the universe and the destiny of man, because these have largely been dismissed as metaphysical or meaningless questions.
“A scientific philosopher arrives at his office at nine o’clock in the morning dressed in a business suit carrying a briefcase. He does philosophy until five in the afternoon, at which point he goes home to cocktails and dinner and dismisses the whole matter from his head.”
Professor Earl adds, “He would wear a white coat to work if he could get away with it.”
Alan Watts
Truth
OK folks, 1 more time & the list is not exhaustive: factual, mathematical, scientific, statistical, literary, cinematic, emotional, personal, political, mythological, musical, spiritual, & even existential truth.
Yes by truth we mean one thing but that doesn’t mean we have to talk about it in only one way or as having only one form (kind of like God).
Treat all these kinds of truth like you’d treat your students, employees, or kids; that means admit you get along better with some more than others, but don’t play favorites. Ok?
Honor-related crimes, often wrongly labeled an Islamic practice, take place in patriarchal communities where gender roles remain strictly divided and the interests of the community prevail over those of individuals, particularly women.
Nicole Page http://reut.rs/A3YxS1
