Responsibility
I don’t know if you’ve come across a book by Dr Joe Vitale titled The Midas Touch. He got together a group of authors and let each of us contribute a chapter on a subject of our choosing. Below, you can see a selfie of me holding a copy...
Relativism
The Social Epistemology Review and Reply Collective just published a critical reply by me to a paper on relativism. The original paper (by Howard Sankey, in Social Epistemology) tries to refute relativism. That's generally a good thing, but Sankey's ar......
It’s election time in Alberta
It’s election time in Alberta – the premier heard the call on this blog, or maybe one of the four million other blogs in Alberta that are more widely read, and deigned to ask voters for a mandate. Much to his surprise, the...
Perspectives on genocide
Today is the centenary of the beginning of the Armenian genocide, when as many as 1.5 million Armenians were murdered by the Ottoman government. Using the word “genocide” here is a bit controversial, and by “controversial” I mean that it pisses offTurkish nationalists.
The Hürriyet Daily...
Literariness
I write fantasy. I imagine that if I am ever published, my books will appear in the fantasy/science fiction section of the bookstore. Is that a bad thing? Is it something to be ashamed of? Is fantasy only childish, escapist make-believe? I think the an......
An Open Letter to Forty-Seven Members of the United States Senate
Mar. 12, 2015
An Open Letter to Forty-Seven Members of the United States Senate:
I have noticed from the way you have been acting lately that you may not fully understand what diplomacy is. I am writing to tell you all about...
Called it
For anyone who thought that my portrayal of jihadis as thugs with no knowledge of Islam was maybe too harsh, we have the following corroboration from the Economist:
For recruits to an ostensibly religious militia, many of those joining IS seem to display a notable ignorance of...
Charlie Hebdo
Today I conducted a metaphysical interview with one of the men who allegedly carried out the massacre at Charlie Hebdo, killing Stéphane Charbonnier and eleven others. As you may know from earlier posts, a metaphysical interview is like a real interview except instead...
On Style
Be clear. Be concise. Omit needless words.This is the prevailing advice on writing these days. Avoid long sentences and figures of speech. Beware of adverbs. Go light on the exposition. Use modifiers sparingly. Show, don't tell. It is the notion that t......
12 People You’ll Never Believe You Actually Elected
