Category Archives: Human Progress

Is Religion Simply a Massively Multiplayer Role-Playing Game?

Since it’s obviously not about objective reality. Lance Wallnau says Trump’s strike on Iran is setting the stage for the Antichrist; With thoughts about what humanity is “for”; Trump confuses supercells with sleeper cells; Vox on how Trump’s actions aren’t … Continue reading

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Paleolithic Emotions, Medieval Institutions, and Godlike Technology

EO Wilson on the real problem of humanity; Conservatives think you can command thing into existence, despite the evidence of the real world; re: Trump’s tariffs on aluminum; With my comments about modern technology and globalism; How the Minnesota killer … Continue reading

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America, increasingly anti-science and anti-intellectual, was founded by religious fanatics, as perhaps most Americans do not realize

How America is becoming anti-science and anti-intellectual, with a comment by David Brin; Adam Serwer on Trump’s attack on knowledge itself, with my comments about how most people won’t notice, but the world and history will; How Americans venerate ancestors … Continue reading

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Education, Religion, Policies that Don’t Work, the Revolt Against Expertise

Heather Cox Richard on the history of government suppression of education, especially as inspired by religion; The GOP keeps promoting policies that history has shown don’t work; The revolt against expertise, yet again. – – – Heather Cox Richardson reviews … Continue reading

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We’re Living in an Age of Regression

In Trump’s America, it’s every parent and child out for themselves; Who decides who’s Christian? The government? Fox News says the Qatari bribe to Trump is fine because FDR gave three planes to the Saudis… 80 years ago; Robert Reich … Continue reading

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Tim Urban, WHAT’S OUR PROBLEM?, post 1

(Wait But Why, 2024, 584pp, including 112pp of characters, acknowledgements, notes, bibliography, and bio) I wrote about this book back in December, before deciding to buy it. Which I did despite some cautionary signs: it’s apparently self-published, it’s enormous, it’s … Continue reading

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J. Bronowksi: THE ASCENT OF MAN

(Little, Brown, 1973, 448pp, including 9pp (in tiny print) of bibliography and index) This is a substantial book that was popular in its time but is probably not really recommendable now, simply because it’s 50 years out of date in … Continue reading

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Perhaps Humanity Has Hit a Conceptual Ceiling

Alternate title: America was supposed to be better than this. Perhaps MAGA is about making America *simpler* again; perhaps what we’re seeing is a rejection of the complexity of the modern world; Why is it Americans love watching crime shows? … Continue reading

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How Soon Will This Madness End?

I keep thinking this has to implode, sooner rather than later. Trump and/or Musk will do something so egregious, so dangerous, that *someone* will step up to reign them in, even if very carefully, behind the scenes, so as not … Continue reading

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Shocked, Just Shocked

The broad trend, perhaps, is the discomfort of tribal human beings living in multicultural liberal democracies. How some people (who weren’t paying attention) are shocked that Trump is actually setting out to do what he promised to do; How Trump … Continue reading

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