“Everyone is in favor of free speech… but some people's idea of it is that they are free to say what they like, but if anyone else says anything back, that is an outrage.” ― Winston Churchill
Every day lately is like a page out of Atlas Shrugged. Here‘s a Democrat arguing that removing the right to a secret ballot in union organizing campaigns will help the Big 3 and the UAW by forcing unionization on Honda, Hyundai and Toyota plants. One advantage the Honda and Hyundai plants in Alabama have over… Continue reading Rep. Tim Ryan wants to bergeron Honda, Hyundai & Toyota
It’s not enough that everyone benefits. Everyone has to benefit by exactly the same amount. From The Babbling Beaver, an MIT focused satire site: MIT environmental scientists despair over inability to prevent windmill racism Unsurprisingly, these woke MIT ’scientists’ have little imagination, and less literary knowledge. The solution is found in Kurt Vonnegut’s Harrison Bergeron.… Continue reading Environmental Equity
TOC’s need to mention Kurt Vonnegut’s short story Harrison Bergeron is accelerating. It’s time to convert “bergeron” to a verb. A recent example from Beth Mitchneck (professor emerita at the University of Arizona), and Jessi L. Smith (associate vice chancellor for research at the University of Colorado.) We Must Name Systemic Changes in Support of… Continue reading Merit and equity: Mutually exclusive
Charles Murray reviews a leftwing tome on the topic in the Claremont Review of Books: Meritocracy’s Cost Check it out and come back. Jordan Peterson frequently points out that hierarchies are natural and inevitable, from lobster fights to human IQ, and that hierarchies tend to corruption. This is the framework for “absolute power corrupts…” The… Continue reading Corruptarky
A good exercise for your local school board: They prepare by reading the article linked below, and then invite parents to a subsequent public debate among the school board members. Maybe it’s framed as, “Resolved: This article is disinformation.” Or, put it on the school’s website and invite public comment. Harrison Bergeron is mentioned. It’s… Continue reading Child abuse
Transgender sprinters finish 1st, 2nd at Connecticut girls indoor track championships In a February 20th post, Emoticon debate, I wrote about the differences between rational and emotional arguments, defining the latter as “appeal[ing] to deeply held moral intuitions.” I went on to take “a … look at … the benefits of individual responsibility and a… Continue reading Not the ‘fairest’ sex
I asked some questions in my post of February 17th about a suggestion that conservative political philosophy needs emotional appeals rather than rational arguments: The writer [Gorka] makes a vital point that most people who support capitalism miss: we will never win the argument about capitalism being superior to socialism because many voters are only… Continue reading Emoticon debate