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Book Review: On Tyranny By Timothy Snyder (A Hard Pass)

5/1/2022

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The Verdict: So close, yet so far. Sadly, On Tyranny is hackneyed partisanism under the guise of a serious work, and not really worthwhile reading for non-partisans and anti-authoritarians who can look at recent events with some degree of objectivity. 
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Full Review: I really wanted to like On Tyranny, since the subject matter is so important, but the author makes the concept of tyranny almost laughable via his gross misjudgment of contemporary events, which undermines the entire work.

It's a shame, because there are some real gems in this book. Consider the following: "We certainly face, as did the ancient Greeks, the problem of oligarchy - ever more threatening as globalization increases differences in wealth."



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War Is A Racket: A Few Profit, the Many Pay

4/1/2022

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In the 1930s, a retired Marine Corps General made a speaking tour of America. His message? War is racket. This was unusual enough that it created quite a stir at the time, and General Smedley Butler's message is so important and revealing that it is still often discussed, especially among anti-war and critical thinkers, almost 100 years later. 

Smedley Butler was one of the most decorated generals in American history, having served during the Mexican Revolution and World War I. He won 15 medals, including five for heroism, and the Medal of Honor twice. 
Butler's moral courage was a match for his physical courage. When he retired from the military, he took the unusual step of pointing out that war is a racketeering scheme in his 1935 book, War is a Racket. What did he mean by this?

I have been planning to write this post for for several years, but it seems especially timely now with the war in Ukraine happening. In what follows, I will break down Butler's message and explain why it is the key to understanding the deeper reasons (with rare exceptions) that nations go to war, along with the true costs of war to regular people.
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Overcoming Injury, Illness, and the Fear of Death: A Stoic Dialog With Jonas Salzgeber

3/9/2022

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I welcome Jonas Salzgeber, author of The Little Book of Stoicism, back to the channel for a Stoic dialog on matters of ultimate importance: injury, illness, coming to terms with mortality, fear, and irrational beliefs that result when fear overcomes reason.

We discuss the shortness of life, memento mori, facing fear, and the proper psychological perspective necessary to flourish and be more courageous during uncertain times.

We also discuss a Stoic response to the covid-19 pandemic, reasonable caution, and not doing irrational or discriminatory things because of fear of death.

Jonas' website: www.njlifehacks.com/blog/
The Little Book of Stoicism: https://amzn.to/3INdnOk*

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My Favorite Books: Simplicity Parenting By Kim John Payne

2/5/2022

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I’m always on the lookout for new information that will help me improve myself or allow me to give my kids the best childhood possible. That means is that I’ve read a good deal of parenting books!

I just finished reading Simplicity Parenting by Waldorf educator Kim John Payne. And well folks, it’s a keeper! In a nutshell, this book is for any parent who has watched their dreams for their kids slipping away amongst the overwhelming pace and expectations of family life today.

I was aware of this book for a while after watching some of Payne’s YouTube videos. Why the book never actively made its way onto my reading list is anybody’s guess. I think I had a baby and it fell off my radar! But fate intervened when I saw it for $1 at my library book sale.

I’ll do my best to summarize Simplicity Parenting for you below, and I highly recommend buying it or getting it at your local library.
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Why "Misinformation" and Censorship are Problematic

1/18/2022

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Recently we have been hearing the following types of claims: "X is misinformation, and x should be censored."

Here, I cover the reasons why each of these claims are problematic. Very few things are irrefutably misinformation. It takes arrogance to proclaim some things as absolute misinformation, and even more arrogance to want to censor them. This is why.

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Announcing Stoicism Today: Selected Writings Volume 3

12/11/2021

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I am very excited to announce the publication of Stoicism Today: Selected Writings Volume 3. I am both a contributing author and the co-editor of this book, along with Greg Sadler, the editor of the Stoicism Today blog. I am thrilled to have been part of a project that will further the study of Stoicism and the practical application of philosophy. The book is available now through Amazon and should arrive in time for Christmas if you are still looking for thoughtful gifts for those in your life. ​

This volume, whose completion represents over a year of work, was underwritten by the generosity of a patron of philosophy and Stoicism, who would prefer to remain anonymous. Profits from sales of this book will go to supporting the ongoing work of the Modern Stoicism organization. 

Each of the entries in this book was originally a guest post contributed to the Stoicism Today blog by an author who wished to share some of their ideas, insights, stories, challenges, or (perhaps even) wisdom bearing upon ancient Stoicism and its applications to modern life. One exception is a symposium about the nature of “modern Stoicism,” which brought together nearly the entire Modern Stoicism team to address that issue. 

In reading through these 37 excellent selections, you will encounter the variety, diversity, and richness of modern Stoicism. They range over topics such as the nature of Stoicism itself, spiritual practices, physical exercise, the emotions, psychotherapy, medicine, parenting and family, the workplace, the virtues, and the environment. Stoicism gets brought into comparison with other perspectives like Buddhism, as well as with other contemporary theorists and their approaches. There are even a few “controversies,” in which authors engaged each other on the blog, represented here. The authors themselves write as academic scholars and researchers, psychotherapists and medical doctors, parents and family members, workers and managers, coaches, farmers, and culinarians, just to name a few of the roles represented and lives touched by the practical philosophy of Stoicism. 

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2 Less Obvious Reasons for Journalistic Malfeasence

11/30/2021

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Building on last year's video interview, Is Honest Jornalism Dead?, I discuss 2 more (less obvious) reasons for journalistic malfeasance that many people don't know about.

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The 7 Rules of Good Conversation According to Cicero

10/31/2021

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​It has been far too long since I published a new post in the popular According to Cicero series. Life got complicated and other topics seemed more pressing.

Wait no longer my friends! This month's post focuses on Cicero’s rules for good conversation which are still quite helpful to us in our modern lives. In de Officiis (On Duty), written in 44 B.C. E., Cicero wrote “There are rules for oratory laid down by rhetoricians; there are none for conversation; and yet I do not know why there should not be.” To remedy this situation, Cicero elaborated on 7 rules that he believed should govern good conversation: 
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How Propaganda Makes Us Pyschologically Totalitarian

9/30/2021

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The 20th century witnessed both the rise of sophisticated psychological manipulation techniques and the technology necessary to disseminate them broadly, a trend which has continued into the 21st century. The French philosopher Jaques Ellul set out to study modern propaganda in the 1960s. What he found should be a warning to us all. Our inability to take propaganda and its effects seriously now seem to me like old chickens coming home to roost (perhaps another topic for another day).  
 
In his book Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, Ellul diverges from previous scholarship in that he considers propaganda to be a sociological phenomenon, one in fact that we cannot live without in modern technological society. Propaganda exists to adjust a normal person to an ever-changing social and technological environment which is profoundly abnormal given the vast majority of our evolutionary history. A modern individual must endure psychological alienation, dissolution of ancestral groups, enormous taxes, brutal wars, inescapable working life. Propaganda both integrates us into this milieu, and acts as an intermediary between us and the state.
 
Modern propaganda may be socially necessary, but it is not harmless. It exists everywhere, even in democracies, and its effects make us totalitarian in our mindset. We are easy victims because we lack the proper framework necessary to identify it, and because we underestimate its power. In Ellul’s words, "Propaganda is a direct attack against man. The question is to determine how great is the danger."[1]
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This post aims to condense and demystify Ellul's analysis, and to build on it by suggesting concrete ways in which we can avoid propaganda's detrimental effects.
 

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5 Wholesome Character Education Books to Read to Your Child

8/31/2021

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Some of my favorite memories from my childhood were when my mother would read to me every night before bed. Imagine Forrest has a great post about the reasons why reading is so great for kids. Among them are that reading to kids improves their grammar and vocabulary, and lets them become more imaginative. 

One reason which isn’t always mentioned though, is that reading can teach and reinforce to kids the importance of moral values. I particularly like to read wholesome books that will teach my kids about having a good character.

I am a children’s librarian, so I’m exposed to a lot of kid’s books at work. That’s a good thing, because now that I’m a parent, I’m really into finding the best books to read to my kids! I’m always on the lookout for books about positive values to checkout from the library, and if they are especially good, to add to our home collection.

There are so many children’s books to choose from, but I’ve done the work of unearthing these 5 character education gems for you. Some I own and love, and others I plan to get when my kids are old enough to benefit from them:



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    Thank you for your interest in Common Sense Ethics! I'm Leah, a librarian, editor and freelance writer with a background in history and philosophy.
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