A New Consciousness
An idea cannot be named before it has been thought. A social movement cannot be identified until it has started to arise. There is a new consciousness in the world that as yet has no name. It says we are …
Authoritarianism
I’ve just finished reading “The Authoritarians” by Robert Altemeyer of the University of Manitoba. He has spent a lifetime researching authoritarian personalities, of which he finds two types. I want to emphasize that his work is evidence-driven, based on a number …
The limits of Science
Let us consider what the domain of science covers. There is a hierarchy in science arranged like a tree: physics, chemistry, geology, biochemistry, biology. Each one is constrained by the rules of its parent, yet at the same time exhibits …
Chicken
Q. Why did the multiprocessing chicken cross the road? A. to To other side. get the — Jason Whittington
The Effect of Patents on Drug Prices
The NYT has a good article on how patents enable drug companies to keep prices high – far higher than in other countries. For example, with the patent for the older oral contraceptive Loestrin 24Fe about to expire, the company …
Groklaw is Dead
This is so sad. Pamela Jones of Groklaw has decided to shutter the site as a result of Snowden’s revelations about email snooping. I know this won’t mean anything to most people, but Groklaw was a beacon in the IP …
Scarcity in a Digital World
Great quote from “The Anarchist in the Library” by Siva Vaidhyanathan: “The fundamental purpose of intellectual property law is to create scarcity.”
The Peace Poll
I’ve just launched The Peace Poll, a 2-question survey on peace. Visit http://peacepoll.org/ , read about our plans, vote, and tell your friends.
Firearms and Fear
Dear gun owners: I know you have many stories of how the presence of guns prevented a crime of some sort, and I in turn have stories of when their presence caused injuries or death. We’re both right. But when …
The Psychology of Politics
Years ago, I thought I was going to die. I was a back-seat passenger getting a ride back from a weekend encounter group, and the driver and the other passenger had such a screaming match over politics that I thought …