February 2017
-
New Books in February
Authors and/or publishers kindly sent me these new books this month: Plotinus by Eyjolfur K. Emilsson (Routledge, 2017) (part of the Routledge Philosophers series). Self-Reflection for the Opaque Mind: An Essay in Neo-Sellarsian Philosophy by T. Parent (Routledge, 2017). The Routledge Companion to Philosophy of Social Science edited by Lee McIntyre & Alex Rosenberg (Routledge,
-
Trump and the Russia distraction
I've had a lot to say about Trump, not much about the Trump-Russia sideshow that's been raging in Washington, which has seemed to me either a non-story or a distraction. Trump's admiration for Putin is easy to explain purely in terms of his psychological disturbance, without recourse to any of the tall tales circulating. Of course,
-
U.S. border agents behaving badly
Some of this ugly and stupid behavior is the pleasure in power of petty tyrants in their little bureaucratic realm, otherwise powerless individuals who now find others at their mercy and whim. But it is surely exacerbated by the signals sent by the Idiot in Chief. One important takeaway: academics on tourist visas in the U.S. can
-
What the research on political leanings in academia actually shows
A useful corrective from IHE to the right-wing blather. If academics are trying to indoctrinate their students to lean left, on the evidence of the U.S., they're doing a terrible job!
-
The shadow of the Reichstag fire and the manipulation of the threat of terrorism to undermine democracy
A number of friends and colleagues have been sharing this brief essay from the NYRB. The Nazi horror looms large over any discussion of fascism/authoritarianism for obvious reasons, and the author is right about the role exploitation of terroristic violence can play in authoritarian reversions, as happened in Nazi Germany. The essay omits mention of two
-
PhilSkills: interviews with PhD philosophers who have forged careers outside the academy…
…conducted (mostly) by Eleni Manis. She writes: I (Eleni Manis) conducted these interviews after leaving my job as a philosophy professor to work in government and the political arena. The Phil Skills website was built by Jitendra Subramanyam, a fellow Michigan philosophy PhD who runs his own IT consulting company. Stephanie Wykstra, who works on open science and data-sharing, contributed
-
Remember John Kasich, the “adult” Republican in last year’s contest?
Here's the mischief he's up to in Ohio regarding public education. (Thanks to Curtis Franks for the pointer to a news story that led me to Diane Ravitch's apt commentary.)
-
In Memoriam: E. Clinton Bamberger (1926-2017)
Emeritus at the University of Maryland, Bamberger represented the defendant in the Supreme Court case that gave us the "Brady rule" in criminal procedure, requiring the prosecution to disclose to the defense evidence that might help the accused. The NYT obituary is here. His Maryland colleague Robert Condlin tells me that, in addition to his well-known
-
Sunday Classical: Beethoven, “Moonlight Sonata”
It's been a Beethoven kind of week; here's Evgeny Kissin's rendition:
-
Great moments in obscure rock ‘n’ roll: Moby Grape, “Can’t Be So Bad,” 1968
Moby Grape was the San Francisco/psychedelic band overshadowed by the Jefferrson Airplane, Grateful Dead, and Quicksilver Messenger Service, among others, but they produced two very fine albums in 1967 and 1968 (and to the extent they are remembered it's for this tune from the debut album, "Omaha"). But here's a great number from their second
[…] America’s turn towards “competitive authoritarianism,” and the prospects for recov… on Why I fear things will end badly for…