Category Archives: Politics

Digital culture

Posted on October 3, 2020 by Arnold Kling

L. M. Sacasas writes, Certain features of the self in an enchanted world are now reemerging in the Digital City. Digital technologies influence us and exert causal power over our affairs. In the Digital City, we are newly aware of … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, technology and the future | 3 Comments

Blocking out the truth

Posted on October 1, 2020 by Arnold Kling

One of the points made in the Stanovich piece I referred to yesterday is Identity politics advocates have succeeded in making certain research conclusions within the university verboten. They have made it very hard for any university professor (particularly the … Continue reading →

Posted in culture | 52 Comments

Myside Bias

Posted on September 30, 2020 by Arnold Kling

Keith E. Stanovich writes, one particular bias—myside bias—sets a trap for the cognitively sophisticated. Regarding most biases, they are used to thinking—rightly—that they are less biased. However, myside thinking about your political beliefs represents an outlier bias where this is … Continue reading →

Posted in culture | 14 Comments

The movie Stay Woke

Posted on September 23, 2020 by Arnold Kling

Our synagogue had a virtual showing of the movie Stay Woke, a documentary made in 2016 about the Black Lives Matter movement. Many in our congregation are much more fervent in their leftism than in their Judaism, and everyone else … Continue reading →

Posted in culture | 68 Comments

Miscellaneous: political posturing; WEIRD families; Turchin on turbulence

Posted on September 22, 2020 by Arnold Kling

I wanted to note these links for future reference. 1. A classic election-year post of mine from 2008 that a Twitter user chose to highlight recently. An excerpt: no politician will figure out a way to bring the bottom half … Continue reading →

Posted in books and book reviews, culture, links to my essays, Politics | 20 Comments

Conservatives for big government

Posted on September 20, 2020 by Arnold Kling

Gladden Pappin writes, From the standpoint of the postliberal Right, the liberal view of the state as a keeper of the peace and preserver of individual liberties—the view of most American conservatives before Trump—is not an adequate answer to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | 19 Comments

Some are teachable

Posted on September 19, 2020 by Arnold Kling

Bo Winegard writes, From listening to podcasts such as Econtalk with Russ Roberts, I began to understand the dangers of top-down solutions and intellectual arrogance, and about the importance of diffuse social knowledge, knowledge that is contained in social institutions … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Three-Axes Model | 17 Comments

The other point of view

Posted on September 15, 2020 by Arnold Kling

Molly Martin writes, Black Americans have no evidence that they can trust the people who benefit from historically and predominantly white institutions. Banks. Schools. Courts. Bureaucracies. Housing providers. Nonprofits and charities. All were built within a racist system and, intentionally … Continue reading →

Posted in culture | 18 Comments

Violence and revolutionary outcomes

Posted on September 14, 2020 by Arnold Kling

Tyler Cowen links to a paper that says regimes founded in violent social revolution are especially durable This reminded me of a paper published in 1963, which said that possible links between varieties of violence and revolutionary outcomes are left … Continue reading →

Posted in International issues, Tyler Cowen is my Favorite Blogger | 6 Comments

My objection to critical race theory

Posted on September 14, 2020 by Arnold Kling

Here is a concise explanation of why object to Critical Race Theory, intersectionality, and so on. Following Lindsay and Pluckrose, I will use the shorthand “Theory” to describe these ideas or mindsets. 1. Humans have two bases for hierarchies: prestige … Continue reading →

Posted in culture | 54 Comments