“Almost one hundred years after his death, Villa’s image enjoys the allure of a romantic Robin Hood in Latin American imagination.”
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Category: The Center
What Happens to Those Who Investigate Government Corruption
“I knew the consequences of looking into public corruption. You’re not going to make many friends, and you’re certainly going to make many enemies.”
The Downsides of Subsidizing Sports
“If history is any guide, subsidies (not just in sports, but in all spheres of economic life) do not usually work.”
I Love a Black Ariel, But I Hate Identity Politics
“So, all those people that tweet #notmyariel are probably arguing that if Black Panther necessarily has to be black, Ariel necessarily has to be white.”
Is the Apostle Paul Relevant in the 21st Century?
“Famously, Nietzsche despised Paul for distorting Jesus’ original message and bringing forth an obsession with sin. The result, in Nietzsche’s view, is Christianity’s unhealthy emphasis on guilt and renunciation.”
Burke’s Aesthetics Formed the Core of His Politics
“Those who deal in political aesthetics have long noted that Burke’s aesthetics is the core ground of his outlook.”
A Closer Look at Simón Bolívar
“Insomuch as the historical figure of Bolívar still has considerable influence in contemporary Latin American politics, some demythologizing and criticism is in order.” Read more
Poetry and Modernity
“Any civilization or culture is itself a vast dynamic interpretation or, we could even say, a vast dynamic work of art.”
The Secular Age Fails to Escape Its Roots
“These transformations in understandings of sacrifice culminate in what today we think of as our ‘liberation’ from centuries of naïveté and superstition.”
Pope Francis’ Change to the Lord’s Prayer: Another Cheap Applause Line
“His purpose seems to be diverting attention from these real concerns, by projecting a revolutionary image of a kind Pope who preaches a loving God, far removed from the deity who destroys Sodom and Gomorrah with sulphur.”
Godzilla and Environmental Pessimism
“But like his philosophical cousins before him, Godzilla cannot exist because the ideas upon which he is based are incorrect. He cannot exist because pessimism is false.”
When Superstitions Govern World Leaders
“Maduro claims communication with Chávez via birds, but let us recall that George W. Bush once said that God told him to invade Iraq.”
We Will All Be Banned
“TechCrunch uses the word ‘hate’ so many times—and so without any obvious meaning, that it strikes me as likely a form of attempted Pavlovian conditioning.”
Interview: Nicholas Christakis on His Latest Book
“When I’m speaking of a good society, I’m not necessarily speaking of a good society in the 21st century. I’m speaking of a kind of good society that we have a blueprint to make, that is, in turn, written in our genes.”
A Reasoned Approach to the Abortion Wars
“Nobody can say with confidence exactly what a court will do. What is visible from our analysis is that it is likely not a slam dunk either way.”