The People have power and we can tap into that again. —Lowell Christy Last July, as the media reported on Edward Snowden, the NSA, and surveillance through phone and internet service companies like Verizon, Google, and Microsoft, I spoke with Dr. Lowell Christy about his research on the American Revolution and the logic of 21st […]
Media: Trailers and Tribalism
Trailers These films are due out this year: Anita, a documentary about Anita Hill and her “trial” as a sexual harassment witness during Clarence Thomas’ nomination to SCOTUS in 1994. I have some memories of this period, memories shaped by the 1990s writing boom, narratives about Black American women and their nation, and publications like Ebony and […]
The Progressive Adventist and the Surveilled Mind
“There is no such thing as a little freedom. Either you are all free, or you are not free.”—Walter Cronkite cited by former U.S. Ambassador Charles A. Ray, 2010 “What is to save our schools from control of this kind [religious control]? Will constitutional provisions do it? They are at the mercy of the people. […]
An End or a Metamorphosis?
Is our current collective path sustainable? Or is it not? If we did nothing different for the next 1,000 years, what would happen to us? It is not inevitable that we should fail. —Terence McKenna McKenna also asks: “Is there cause for optimism?” What do you think?
Response: 5 Deadly Sins of the Church
Today I finished Hollywood SDA’s sermon series, 5 Deadly Sins of the Church. I’m grateful that the church posted them and has kept them available to those of us who aren’t local but still enjoy learning with others. 1. Patriarchy + Heterosexism (video): I was so glad to hear Trisha distinguish between loving people for […]
Jonathan Haidt on Intra-cultural Conflict
Within any country, the disagreement isn’t over harm and fairness… We debate over what’s fair, but everybody agrees that harm and fairness matter. Moral arguments within cultures are especially about in-group [loyalty to groups, families, and nation], authority, and purity. — Jonathan Haidt