Poetry, Prose & Philosophy from Life
In the news this week, 12 citizens of the great state of Wisconsin decided that if a child points a gun at an adult, and said adult attempts to disarm the child, the child may shoot and kill this adult and this is totally fine. Beyond being merely acceptable, to some it is downright heroic. … Continue reading The American Fetish
Introduction There has been plenty of ink spilled on the complex issues of Trump’s moral indifference to the alt-right and their domestic terror — as there are, “good people on both sides”, so he says. In the process of trying to decipher why it is the case that the ISIS terrorist organization is painted with … Continue reading Trump: The American Caliphate
My culture tells me that we are beings who act from rational self interest. Ahem, my irrational self interest is, clearly, unworthy of discourse. If I am given conflict — to which I must be resolute — I must be logical and reasonable. My emotional disposition is irrelevant, irrational and, if showcased, counterproductive. I am … Continue reading An Economy of Violence
50+ die in a florida nightclub in a possible act of Islamic Terror. An explosion in an airport in China. And a car strikes 5 pedestrians in Las Vegas. The Texas Lt. Gov. quips and retracts ‘reap what you sow’ and Google suggests the news I would prefer is how the presidential candidates react. The … Continue reading Any Given Sunday…
[B]ecause […] the right of conquest being in fact no right at all, it could not serve as a foundation for any other right, the conqueror and the conquered ever remaining with respect to each other in a state of war, unless the conquered, restored to the full possession of their liberty, should freely choose … Continue reading Violence, Ideology and the Aims of Society
Dear Barack Obama, I watched your ten minute impassioned speech on youtube this evening in response to the recent tragic events — which has become all too common and all too cliche’d of an expression. You onerously uttered with the exasperation of a father who has lost hope, lost options and is beginning to … Continue reading A Violent Hope
1— Introduction If we wanted to successfully advance practices that serve the means of reducing violence, it would be prudent to first understand what violence is and, a fortiori, what causes it to be. And, any theory that must adequately explicate a concept must be inclusive of multiple modes of it’s existence, in addition to multiple … Continue reading A Theory of Violence
The recent media attention has centered around incidents of perceived law enforcement abuse that have become a catalyst for riots stretching across three continents. Incidents, such as these, have been a constant reality and potentiality in poor urban areas for a long time and the recent attention is the product of switching the collective focus … Continue reading A Police Badge is a Hollow Void of Nothingness
The Chappelle Show in 2002 ran a sketch that opens with a couple in a bedroom and the implication that they are about to engage sexually, but the male character stops and pulls out a contract and he explains that she needs to sign to prove explicit (and legally binding) consent prior to them having … Continue reading Yes means Yes (we will criminalize the symptom of sexual assault, while disregarding the disease)
Right now as I type this essay, I wonder if God is up there smiling or not? What is the emotional disposition of the creator— Gods eye? Does he stand over his domain with pride — was all this his plan? The go-to theistic response to tragic events, like the holocaust, is usually something like: … Continue reading God Doesn’t Love Us
Nothing's Sacred 