Self-censorship and the society of mind
The idea of self-censorship is rooted in a tangled mess of assumptions.
This is how feudalism starts
The conditions that produced feudalism in the middle ages are eerily familiar.
This is what physics taught me about gender
Quantum mechanics really can change how you see the world.
Words, violence, and the mind-body problem
Our discussions of free speech could be much more interesting.
The simple reason you can’t be against taxes and for human rights
See if you can counter this argument.
A frank conversation about making political progress
Josiah Jennings and Greg Stevens talk plainly about what liberals don't get about those who support Trump.
Would you like to pay a unicorn tax?
Some insight into how incompetent our current federal legislative branch really is.
The rise of the Nihilist Party in the United States
Trump's "Piss-Gate" and the problem of people without cats.
They don’t want our culture, they don’t want our freedom
A conversation I had this weekend, presented without comment.
Oblivious: the 20-year struggle of my New Years’ resolution
The most important changes take more than a year.
Three ways post-election liberals are terrifying me
Can we please try to think strategically about this?
The (not very Christian) reason I will say “Merry Christmas” this year
It's more subversive than you think.
Your argument is completely correct, and also wrong.
Deconstructing a Twitter case study in non-communication.
Recipe: sugar free, carb free, low fat, high protein brownies
My friends tell me it tastes like sadness.
God hates cities (and competent people)
The story of the Tower of Babel, annotated for your reading pleasure.
How I became radicalized (and so can you)
This is going to make the Trumpsters' lives a living hell.
This is how a gay atheist immigrant from Jordan is handling Trump’s election
His name is Osama, he lives in Dallas, and he's not going anywhere.
25 years ago this book predicted Trump, Hillary and war with ISIS
It was published in 1991, and these quotes are scary accurate.
What does it mean to write with courage?
Many people think that being combative, abrasive and contrarian is "courageous". They are wrong.
Microaggressions against my favorite novels
My favorite novels didn't make it onto the list "100 novels everyone should read". I feel bad for them.
Patriarchy, traffic jams and complex systems
This might change your view on why patriarchy exists, or whether it exists at all.
Why I supported Black Lives Matter interrupting Gay Pride
It helps to talk to people who were there.
Social Constructs 101: what the term means, and what it doesn’t mean
You should know what you're talking about.
Will laws relating bathroom use to birth certificates make people safer?
These laws might actually have the opposite effect.
Democracy 2.0: technology can improve how we elect leaders
Surely we can use technology to do better.
Kill them! Kill them all!
The King of France was twenty-two years old, he was tired and angry, and he feared for his mother's life.
The problem with calling things “offensive” (Facebook Video)
My 90-second impromptu rant about offensive speech.
My thoughts on Killing an Arab
Self-censorship is harmful, but don't be too quick to judge those who do it.
Did I deal with this beggar correctly?
I tried to help her, and she took advantage of me. This is what I did next.
What feminism got right and wrong, in the 60’s and today
My 80 year old aunt reminisces about feminism.
Your self help book is problematic
People love to avoid taking good advice, especially when they don't trust the source.
A day in the life of an anxiety sponge
Having the right mindset can transform a theme park experience, for both you and those around you.
Why is racism bad?
Recently a young man on Twitter ask me: Why is racism bad? It might seem like a troll question, but he went on to explain what he meant. He wasn't talking about hating people or restricting rights based on race. He wasn't talking about using racial slurs or promoting racial segregation. He was using "racist" in that dry, emotionless statistical way that people do when they are making a case for profiling...
Guys and Females
My friend Mike is a personal trainer. We were discussing client personalities, and the fact that different clients like different approaches, different techniques, different attitudes from the person training them. At one point Mike remarked that while everyone is an individual, and people vary widely, he has noticed a pattern of differences "between guys and females". I interrupted: "Why do you say it that way?"
Drowning in a drop of water
Once upon a time, a man drowned in a river, so they put the river on trial. "It is clear from the evidence," Outraged Prosecutor declared, "That this river caused the death of this poor man!" But Clever Defense Attorney was clever. He twirled his black mustache and made direct eye contact with the jury as he smiled, and said: "Let's approach this rationally and scientifically, shall we?" The heads of the jury members bobbed in unison: it's always good to approach things rationally and scientifically! "I have in my hand a drop of water from that river....."
On Christmas and Stupid People
Friend of mine once told me: "I don't write for stupid people, and neither should you." I disagree.
The simplest proof that free will is an illusion that you’ll ever see
Do you have reasons for making the choices that you make? If you do, then you don't have "free will". If you don't, then you also don't have "free will". It's really just that simple.
Atheism is not the opposite of religion
Are you religious, or are you an atheist? It's a pretty common question, and it goes hand-in-hand with a pretty common assumption: you're either one or the other. If you identify as "an atheist" you are presumed to not be religious, and if you identify as "religious" then you are presumed to believe in some kind of god. But this idea is completely wrong. There are religious atheists, there are areligious theists, and an incredible tapestry of different combinations in between.
Is everything a simulation? Maybe, but not in the way you think.
The most recent episode of Futuristic Now, a podcast by my friend Gray Scott, is about The Simulation Theory: the idea that the entirety of our experience--perhaps our entire universe--may be some form of simulation. Gray goes over some of the ideas people have put forth, and talks about some ways this view could be interpreted. As is always the case with his thought-provoking podcast, he brings up more questions than answers: If we are a simulation, who or what created us? What would the purpose be for creating a simulated universe? Does the mere existence of a simulation even require that there be a "creator" at all? As always, I like to dig in and get technical, and ask what it means for something to be a simulation in the first place.
So what are “trigger warnings” anyway?
My latest chit-chat interview with Josiah Jennings is about trigger warnings and political correctness in academia. It was really prompted by two articles, one from Vox and another in The Atlantic. Both articles talk about political correctness being the major force of censorship and limitation in classes. But Josiah and I talk about some of the drastic misunderstandings there are concerning what "political correctness" and "trigger warnings" really mean, and some of the motivations of the people spreading misinformation.
Internet shaming is a symptom, not a disease
If I see another woebegone think piece about the horrors of "internet shaming" I'm going to spew burrito chunks. They are all just so saccharine, and can be summed up in a handful of buzzwords each. Not only are these articles tedious in their moralistic cluck-clucking, they spend very little time trying to root out the real source of the problem. Internet shaming isn't just a product of "the internet age", and it isn't just a case of mob mentality or immaturity. It's a symptom of a deeper underlying problem: a problem with our culture that needs to be fixed before we can expect internet shaming to get better.
Give up on privacy. This is what you should worry about instead
Privacy is an illusion. It simply doesn't exist. You probably don't believe me. Until recently, it was easy for us to have the illusion of privacy. Now, with accelerating increases in computational power and storage, and the incredible sophistication of data mining and machine learning, that fake veil of "privacy" is about to be torn down--and it will be shown to have been nothing more than a mirage in the first place. But that doesn't mean you should freak out. It also doesn't mean that we should just ignore the legal concerns that people associate with "privacy" in our society today. All it means is that we need to re-frame these problems in a different way.
We must erect monuments to the Code of Ur-Nammu IMMEDIATELY
For the last few years, conservatives in various states have been pushing to have monuments to the 10 Commandments erected on state property. The standard line is that it isn't a "religious symbol" but rather is a tribute to the influence that the 10 Commandments have had, culturally, on our laws and legal system. But if we take that argument seriously, we have to consider: were the 10 Commandments REALLY the very beginning of these traditions? As it turns out, there is a legal system much older that, when you do the math, is even more strongly related than the 10 Commandments is to the laws we have today.
Is it ok for Reddit and Twitter to ban people for their political beliefs?
My latest chit-chat interview is with journalist and author Allum Bokhari about corporate censorship. Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, and other social media platforms have so much power, and such a wide audience, that if they decide to ban a politician or public figure from using their services they effectively cripple that person's ability to communicate and get their message out. Should that be allowed? If a public figure is unpopular, is that a good enough reason to effectively censor him by taking away his access to an audience?
Robot sex, gay nanobots, and synthetic lust: gender and sexuality in a transhumanist future
I am a transhumanist: I really believe that eventually our technology will advance to the point where we are able to replace the biological parts of our brains and bodies with mechanical or artificial replicas, or will be able to "upload" our minds into machine bodies. But if humanity transitions to synthetic, non-biological bodies... what will that mean for sex and gender? What will it mean for sexual orientation? Do terms like "homosexual" and "heterosexual" even have meaning when our bodies are made of nanobots or plastic and wires?
By 2050, everything in your home will have been invented by Elon Musk (and you will love him for it)
Elon musk was a co-founder of PayPal, is the CEO of both electric-car manufacturer Tesla Motors and the spacecraft company SpaceX, and he is chairman of SolarCity. He's trying to make zero-emission electric cars widely available, launch spacecraft into orbit, invent the perfect battery, and create an effective solar-powered energy grid. These are incredibly broad "infrastructure-level" initiatives. Rather than throwing his power and money into inventing a gadget with his name on it that will appear in people's homes, he is building the services that eventually all of the gadgets you use will completely and utterly rely on. And you will look back at the fact that he used your tax money to do it, and you will thank him for it.
When to celebrate my birthday (and also yours)
If you are like most people, you celebrate your birthday on the same calendar date each year. For example, since I was born on May 4th 1973, you probably consider today, May 4th 2015, to be my birthday. But this is extremely arbitrary and culturally biased: calendars vary from culture to culture, and change over history. Wouldn't it be nicer--both more objective and more natural--to celebrate the anniversary of your birth in a way that was more connected to the natural movements and rhythms of the earth and the universe?
The fallacy of incorrect scoping: manspreading, Muslim extremists, lying bitches, and gay sex fiends
I have been dealing with a common and recurring logical problem that I see in cultural and political discussions, and it has come up often enough lately that I'd like to actually give it a label and a definition. I'm going to call it the "fallacy of incorrect scoping". I'm using the term "incorrect scoping" to refer to any time there is some trait X that is bad, and because that trait is correlated with group Y, people will identify it as a "Y problem" or as a "X&Y problem", even though the only thing that is actually causing the problem is X. It happens constantly in political and social debates, and it is completely and disgustingly wrong.
What do I say if I can’t say “black people”?
Yesterday's episode of the Chris Krok radio show, a local Dallas conservative talk show, was entirely dedicated to the extreme anguish that Texans apparently feel when confronted with the question, "What do I call someone instead of 'black guy'?" Chris Krok spent a good 30+ minutes talking about this issue, and spoke with many listeners who called in to opine on the subject. And in that entire time, not a single person addressed the actual issue involved, or the way to solve it.
My dramatic reading of The Sentry by Fredric Brown
This is one of my favorite "micro-fiction" short stories from Fredric Brown. He went through a phase in 1954 where all he wrote was science fiction short stories that were less than a page in length. Generally they just contained a single joke, a single cool or thoughtful idea, and that's it. Of the many, many short stories he published in that year, this is my favorite. It's shorter than any of my other readings, so you should be able to make it through to the end! And make sure you do: the entire point of the story is the "twist" in the very last line.
Faith in religion versus faith in science, versus faith in yourself
In this week's "Unscripted Chit-Chat" video, I chat with Josiah Jennings about opinions, evidence, science, faith and optimism. This chat was motivated by the many conversations we've had about the article "No, you're not entitled to your opinion" by Patrick Stokes. It's an article we both agree with, but it is a great jumping off point for asking some questions about the difference between trusting scientific data and having "faith" in religion, what it means to have "faith in science", the fact that the word "believe" means different things depending on how people use it, and when it makes sense to "believe" in yourself or in an optimistic future.
Why I am not “spiritual but not religious”
When I was in college and did a lot of LSD (that's ok to admit these days, right? I mean, it was more than 20 years ago), I gained a real appreciation for the beauty and complexity of the world around me. I was a cognitive science major, and already had a deep appreciation for computational complexity and the profound nature of systems theory. But while on LSD, that intellectual understanding was transformed into a strong emotional sense--a feeling of awe. And that feeling had a strong influence on how I view both the physical world, and spirituality.
My dramatic reading of Legend of the Wolf-Cat
For this installment of my science fiction reading project, I wanted to share with everyone a chapter out of one of my favorite "fantasy-like" science fiction novels: The Celestial Steam Locomotive Volume I of The Song of Earth. I found this novel quite randomly when I was 15. I was wandering around the school library in the science fiction section, and the cover and title of the book caught my eye. So, I picked it up and started reading. This chapter stands on its own as a fable that teaches a lesson about jealousy, explains continental drift, and explains the name of a particular animal....
Why are women so _________________?
From despondent hand-wringing teen boys in their basements to angry unshaven men drinking their lives away a the corner bar, you can hear the eternal refrain, "Why are women so.......?" It is reflected on the internet, as well, with the lonely and the heartbroken howling the question into the void: Why are women so mean? Why are women so needy? Why are women so dishonest? Why are women so immature? Why are women so confusing? Why are women so difficult to figure out? Well, I hate to tell you this: but you are all asking the wrong question.
College bodybuilder tips: video chat with Koby
My newest “Unscripted Chit-Chat” video is up on my Youtube Channel. If you follow this blog you’ve seen that in the Fitness Section I had an entire series of articles called “College Bodybuilder Tips” that were in the format of letters to a mysterious “K”, who I was giving diet and workout advice to. Well, in this video I talk to “K”–his name is Koby–and we chat about some of the advice I’ve given him over the years and about his success in going from 135 to 180 of lean muscle.
When is it offensive to use the word “faggot”?
The reason I haven't been writing as much as I ought for this blog lately is that my time has been taken up by making weekly videos for my Youtube Channel. This is something that I had been wanting to do for a while, but never had the time because of other side projects like Liberal Bias. But now, I have the time. One of the series that I'm planning for my Youtube channel is a series of videos called "Unscripted Chit-Chat", which will me chatting with people on various topics. I just published the first one, in which my friend Josiah Jennings and I discuss the word "faggot."
My dramatic reading of The Waveries by Fredric Brown
The latest installment of my science fiction reading project is up on Youtube Channel! It's a very cool classic short story from 1945, and it really shows off how ingenious and inventive some of the sci fi authors from that time period were. I also put a lot of production work into this one: sound effects, special effects, and even a little voice acting for different parts. Check it out and let me know what you think!
My dramatic reading of Trurl’s Machine, by Stanislaw Lem
I've started a new project on my Youtube Channel: I'm going to start doing little dramatic readings of some of my favorite old, classic short science fiction stories. The first one I decided to do is an abridged version of "Trurl's Machine" by Stanislaw Lem. I know that being read to isn't everybody's cup of tea, and honestly I don't expect any of these videos to get tons of views. But if you like classic science fiction, or maybe if you just like the idea of me reading to you, please go check it out, and subscribe to my Youtube Channel. Leave a comment, and we'll have some fun. P.S. Yes: I have a very deep voice. I know.
This is why online diet and fitness advice is so terrible
You've probably noticed that the internet has a lot of completely contradictory advice when it comes to health, exercise, and fitness. Even if you dismiss articles written by obvious charlatans looking to make a buck, there are still seemingly sincere experts who all say different things. This contradiction among experts gets amplified by non-expert bloggers and journalists who, of course, indiscriminately publicize every theory they get their hands on. In the end, it just looks like nobody knows what they're talking about. So what's going on? I think there is a simple answer rooted in a basic psychological problem with how people approach the internet. Namely, not everything is about you.
Unicorns matter: why you shouldn’t laugh at philosophy you don’t understand
What does it mean when you say something exists? Sometimes it means that something is out there in the physical universe. But it doesn't always mean that. Happiness surely exists, because some people are sometimes happy; but happiness could exist even if nobody were happy, couldn't it? Right triangles are another example: right triangles have a kind of reality, a kind of existence, that has nothing to do with whether anything in the physical universe has that shape. What about unicorns? Yes, unicorns. Well, they are another interesting case. It turns out that thinking about unicorns might teach you more than you ever thought possible.
The case for more feminine magic in politics
“Your political writing comes across as feminine,” he said. He meant it as an insult. His more specific criticism was that I spend too much time conceding points, demonstrating that I understand both sides, and trying to speak to people using a language and a tone that they sympathize with and understand. He said I should stop trying to reach people and simply allow my ideas to “stand up for themselves.” I suppose, at least in his view, that is what masculine political writing is: bold assertions, plain language, ideas that are devoid of subject or voice or context because they simply “stand up for themselves.” Who cares about “reaching people” when we are talking about IDEAS?
The economic logic of the plastic bag tax: it’s not just a “sin tax”
Today I went to the grocery store. I didn't want to: it's New Years day, it's raining, and Jon and I have a cold. But we ran out of Nyquil, so something had to be done. While I was at the store, I picked up Nyquil, some chicken breast, some eggs, and two spring rolls from the nice Japanese man at his Sushi counter. I went to the self-checkout kiosk, and worked my way through it. When I tapped the screen to show that I was finished, there was a prompt I'd never seen before: "How many bags would you like to purchase?" it asked. I glanced over at my groceries, cuddled up in one of the store's plastic bags. Normally I bring my own canvas bags, but I was tired and in a rush and it slipped my mind. As of today, Dallas has instituted a Plastic Bag Tax, you see: and it had me thinking about free market economics and government regulation all the way home.
3 reasons people get mad when you say “I don’t see race”
If you have used the phrase "I don't see race!" on the internet, there is a good chance someone has either yelled at you or made fun of you. This might be confusing for you. Isn't it a good thing? Doesn't it mean that race doesn't matter to you, and you treat everyone equally? Here you are, explaining to people how non-racist you are, and people bitch at you. What gives? With racism being a big topic in the news lately, I've seen more people than usual online saying "I don't see race!" and then getting confused and offended when the reaction is... well, less than congratulatory. It's time to actually explain why people don't hear "I don't see race" as the sparkling attestation of open-mindedness that you intend it to be.
Boxers and flirting got my friend kicked out of school: the conundrum of sexual harassment
A friend of mine in college was accused of sexual harassment. Let's call him Mike (that's not his real name). Mike was six foot three, with a lean well-defined muscular body. Athletic and fit without being bulky, like a runner or a swimmer. He had tanned skin, shoulder-length shaggy hair, and a boyish face that radiated innocence and charm. He constantly smelled of patchouli, and wrote poetry in a little notebook. He was also hyper-sexual. He slept with a lot of women, and flirted with everyone. This is a story about how his sexuality and flirting got him into trouble, and lead to him sexually harassing a woman without even realizing it.
A personal view on celebrating Thanksgiving as an atheist
I've always loved "The Holidays" in America: that period of time from Thanksgiving through New Years when people unironically listen to cliche music, eat food that is considered "seasonal" even though it's available year-round, and randomly decorate the crap out of every inanimate object in sight. Personally, I choose to celebrate Thanksgiving in the spirit that our modern culture intends it: a time to reflect on my good fortune. So this is a collection of some of my thoughts this morning about what I feel it means to be a secular atheist who enjoys celebrating Thanksgiving.
Here is why “check your privilege” has to die.
The website Robot Hugs has published a touching and thoughtful comic explaining what privilege is, why people should be aware of it, and how to be sensitive about your own privilege when interacting with other people. But the comic reveals something else as well. Challenging people with the phrase "check your privilege!" isn't just being strident and bullying; it actively works against the philosophy that it espouses. As a rhetorical strategy, it is worse than useless: it completely undermines the world-view from which is has supposedly emerged. It is essentially advising people to be courteous and polite in the least courteous and polite way imaginable.
Why I am not against military drones
I'm against war, but I am not against military drones. Why not? Because when I hear other people explain why they are against military drones, I find none of the arguments convincing. So here I will go through four specific arguments I hear from people when they try to tell me why they are against military drones, and I will explain why those arguments are stupid and wrong. When I'm done, I think you won't be against military drones, either.
Republicans won back the Senate because Obama is black. True or false?
Jimmy Williams, Executive Editor of Blue Nation Review, said on MSNBC last night that if we did not have an African-American president, Democrats would have done better in the midterm elections. Of course, conservative pundits have been all over this quote, and have paraphrased it in a number of ways, including things like "Democrats BLAME the election on Obama's race!" and "Democrats say the ONLY REASON Republicans won is Obama's race!" Are these fair characterizations of what Williams said? Before you dive in and decide whether you agree or disagree with any of these statements, it's worth looking at what they really mean.
I’m anti-feminist, if by “feminist” you mean…
My good friend and colleague Milo Yiannopoulos said in an interview about his views on GamerGate: "I'm anti-feminist, if by 'feminist' you mean shrieking misandrists." He is not alone in his perception of feminism. Many people see feminists as hyperbolic mean-spirited angry people who think all flirtation is sexual harassment and all sex with men is rape. This common perception has prompted backlash movements, and lead to celebrity after celebrity separating herself from the term "feminist." Part of the problem is the strategies that many feminists use to convey their message, with the video "10 hours of walking in NYC as a woman" being a particularly potent recent example. For feminism to make progress, it needs to acknowledge why videos like this one do not resonate positively with the vast majority of people who watch it.
Supergeek Halloween Costume: Aquaman from Smallville
For Halloween this year, Jon and I were feeling lazy and so we re-used costumes from several years ago. I was excited because I broke out my old Aquaman costumer from 2011. Wait, no: allow me to be more specific. This costume was the Smallville variation of Aquaman.... who is very different from, well, basically any other Aquaman.
The deep cultural shame of the United States
Jon and I watched Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit recently. Jon, especially, is a huge fan of the entire Jack Ryan series. The movie was good: basically taking the elements of existing Jack Ryan novels but re-purposing them into a story that updates the setting and context of the character from the Cold War to the post-9/11 world. But, like any good Tom Clancy (or "Tom Clancy-inspired") story, the bad guy was a classic twisted evil bad guy: wealthy Russian businessman, Viktor Cherevin, who was obsessed with avenging his motherland against the evil things that the United States had done to it. It's not an uncommon type of bad-guy character and motivation, in American movies. But it's worth taking a closer look at, as Americans, and thinking about its implications.
Young gay bloggers need to just stop writing
Why are young gay people so bad at writing? Why has it become the norm in our culture to accept the shallow, self-absorbed ramblings of young gay bloggers? They don't research, and they don't look outside of their own personal experiences into the wide diversity that is the gay community. Trite op-eds are killing our culture. I think it's time to fight this trend of shallow, self-absorbed blogging. Luckily, I can solve this problem by giving some advice to young gay bloggers: just stop writing! Problem solved! OK, now take a step back, and let's take a serious look at that opening paragraph...
Is tolerance good enough for liberals?
Suzanna Walters has argued that gay people (and other minorities) should not be advocating for tolerance. To her, "tolerance" is not a high enough bar to set. She makes an emotionally appealing argument: Used in one sense, the word "tolerance" means "to put up with" or "to endure." She basically argues that we shouldn't be fighting for a world where people despise gay people but "put up with them" nonetheless. I can understand why a lot of people would agree with her interpretation. But she's wrong, on at least two different levels.
The Kernel magazine 3.0
The Kernel is now in its third incarnation, if you count from the very beginning. This time it is being conceptualized as a Sunday magazine with in-depth reporting that attacks a single subject each week. This format provides an opportunity for real insights and discussion on complex issues, rather than just "chasing headlines" like many daily publications do. In my personal opinion, this could allow the new Kernel to get back toward its original mission statement of "fixing journalism." But I will admit I'm excited about the re-launch for a much shallower, more personal reason. It means my author page and the archives of all of my older work for them from the last 3 years is back up.
Proof that the first humans came from Eden?
The Sumerian word édin means "steppe" or "plain". It compounds "éd" (send forth) and "in" (straw). So let's speculate wildly for a moment: what if we were never meant to take seriously the idea that there was a literal garden called Eden? What of the original authors of the tale were just saying "people came from the steppes"? Or what if it was a pun, a bit of deliberate humor, a 5000+ year old joke that nobody gets any more? We will likely never know one way or the other, but it is food for thought: how many ancient ideas that many people take literally today were never meant to be taken literally at all?
The Church of Satan, and the paradox of individualist religion
I recently wrote an article for the Daily Dot, Politics, the Dark Lord, and Hobby Lobby: An interview with the Satanic Temple, about the political activism of the Satanic Temple, and the question on so many people's minds: Is it all just some kind of prank? The quick answer is "no". But there is another organization, the Church of Satan, that is very much opposed to the type of political activism that the Satanic Temple engages in. I reached out to Magus Peter H. Gilmore, a spokesperson for the Church of Satan, to find why. And the response that I got blew me away!
