“I will begin with the pros of Murray’s book before outlining my disagreements. First, it is well-written and well-organized. His prose crackles with wit and salt, with pointed examples often blending seamlessly with political commentary.”
Category: The Left
The Biggest Issue with Richard Dawkins’ Tweet
“The latest of these Twitter controversies that I think warrants being addressed started with Professor Richard Dawkins expressing his opinion on the very delicate topic of eugenics.”
Jonathan Haidt and Understanding First Nations Protesters
“In the current Canadian context, I think the protestors are justified in blocking railway tracks and highways to make their point.”
A Jordan Peterson Biographer Missing the Mark
Jim Proser’s new biography on Jordan Peterson portrays him as a Christlike figure plagued by personal demons. Yet the real devil here is in the details.
How to Respond to the Global Right Phenomenon
“Veterans of the entertainment industry like Steve Bannon and the reality television star Donald Trump instinctively understood how to cater to the resentment of those who felt left behind by neoliberalism but were unwilling or unaware of left-wing alternatives.”
The Nordic Model is Achievable (Without Going to Extremes)
“After all, the disagreement between the authors of The Times piece and the author of the Jacobin piece is only even made possible by the fact that the Finnish system does not easily conform to either model.”
This Is How Bernie Wins
“We have sold genuine socialism to a hitherto unimagined portion of the electorate: the young, the idealistic, and the middle class. We now need to sell it to the people it was designed for.”
The Modern University: A Reply to Nate Hochman
“What makes Hochman’s essay far more interesting than the usual screed against academics and critical theory is his effort to locate the cause in the history of Western rationalism and ultimately nihilism.”
Actually, Howard Schultz, Unions May Just Be the Answer
“Howard Schultz famously state that unions ‘have a role to play’ but are ‘not the answer.’ But, are they not? Thankfully, there is an empirical answer to this question.”
Another One-Dimensional Portrayal of Jordan Peterson
“It is hard for even those of us who disagree profoundly with Peterson’s diagnoses of society to fail to empathize with his common struggle to get through being human.”
Who Was Carl Schmitt?
“As just another political theology—albeit an especially vulgar one—liberalism would, paradoxically, be put into contexts where it abandoned a commitment to rights for the sake of protecting itself.”
Why Progressives Should Not Pin Their Hopes on Impeachment
“So while I think it is important that the impeachment trial proceed, it is far more key for progressives to vest in political and social movements that target the underlying problems.”
From Ben Shapiro to Stefan Molyneux: How the Right “Uses” Philosophy
“For the many activists and intellectuals on the Right, who identify with the ambiguously defined “Western civilization,” a nostalgic and selective association with Western civilization’s philosophical grandeur can be extremely appealing.”
On Mourning for One’s Enemies: Remembering Sir Roger Scruton
“And that is why I will miss Roger Scruton, enemy of my beliefs that he was.”
From Ayn Rand to Amartya Sen: Using the Concept of “Rights”
“Again, there seems to be no ideological bias against the concept of rights; views on the subject come from various distinct standpoints.”