I have written often about Robert Moses’ style design and the balkanization of the culture and the effects of those things on society. One of the effects I have not emphasized is the creation of disparate subcultures and the effects that has, not only on people being unable to empathize with each other on anContinue reading “Tribes of the Wasteland: The Atomization of the Culture”
Author Archives: jacksonhamiltoniv
Rawls’ Liberalism: Logos, Pathos, their Divorce, and their Marriage
It has been a long debate within society on whether emotions or reason should influence more greatly our choices. This is stupid. The imagined conflict is based on the idea that the rational mind has no heart. It is a stereotype that is dangerously influential. It leads to the populist idea that experts are coldContinue reading “Rawls’ Liberalism: Logos, Pathos, their Divorce, and their Marriage”
Nuclear Clique Breaking: The Second Installment on Oxytocin (Oxytocin Blockers)
As I’ve noted in earlier articles, punitive anti-bullying policies have serious limitations since counter-tattling is an available tactic, especially in vigilante bullying, and some forms of bullying are consensual (e.g. circus monkey bullying) and tied to social inclusion and stopping it would have collateral damage. My suggestions were using peer allies to intervene in incidentsContinue reading “Nuclear Clique Breaking: The Second Installment on Oxytocin (Oxytocin Blockers)”
Should You Get a Face Tattoo? Ethics, Aesthetics, and the Nature of Beauty
Aesthetics has been a long debated sector of philosophy, yet, it is a difficult one to debate. For one, there is a common belief that beauty is subjective. How can one establish normative rules for something so fluid? Partially, this is a problem about philosophers not doing science. The contemporary philosopher Derek Parfit arguedContinue reading “Should You Get a Face Tattoo? Ethics, Aesthetics, and the Nature of Beauty”
Civil Liberties and Populism: A Reflection on Some of the Protests
There has been much ado about the third-degree murder charge against the officer who killed George Floyd with protesters demanding it be increased to first-degree. While I am a veteran of Black Lives Matter protests and support the peaceful parts of the protests, I do not support a first-degree murder charge and for importantContinue reading “Civil Liberties and Populism: A Reflection on Some of the Protests”
The Oxytocin Deficit: One of My Best Autistic Traits
One of the primary specific neurochemical symptoms of my Asperger’s seems to be a deficit of oxytocin. Ironically, it is the presence of oxytocin that has caused significant problems for my people. As I study cognitive biases and social psychology, oxytocin is one of the primary neurochemicals responsible for social conformity. When it comes toContinue reading “The Oxytocin Deficit: One of My Best Autistic Traits”
Social Distancing: What We’ve Learned
In watching the riots of the past week, it is clear that since this has not happened at this scale since the Rodney King Riots, and many police killings have happened since, that the changed variable was the pandemic and the psychological strain of social distancing. These riots are as much a lashing out ofContinue reading “Social Distancing: What We’ve Learned”
The Literati: They Fought Happy Endings, Won, and Got Retardation
If there is any group on the left I disdain, it would be the elites of the avant—garde. The pseudo-intellectuals whose membership on the political left is a source of snobbish pride over the less educated and less culturally literate. A snobbish pride is merited on deeper ethical issues, members of the left should laudContinue reading “The Literati: They Fought Happy Endings, Won, and Got Retardation”
If it Bleeds It Leads: The Anatomy of Click-Bait
Of the trends of the past decade, one of the more noticeable is the public having access to everything they have ever wanted in terms of media consumption. The typical person is not more mature at media selection than the typical eight-year-old is at snack selection. I haven’t touched Cheetos since I hit puberty but,Continue reading “If it Bleeds It Leads: The Anatomy of Click-Bait”
The Core of Political Morality
Having spent most of my adolescent and nascent adult life in politics, I have seen and commented on, including on this website, the tribalism and rancor both in the field of politics and outside of the field which, given the ubiquity of the politics, it doubtless influences. Yet, politics is a moral vocation for manyContinue reading “The Core of Political Morality”
The Autistic Resistance 