First Word

There are basically two different models of conservatism (more…)

Earlier, when discussing the (lack of) inherent advantage of the metric system, I promised a discussion of the alleged advantage of using a system built around multiples-of-10. (more…)

Eliza asked for a practical discussion of agrarianism in connection with modern times and I would like to respond in a series of short very focussed posts rather than trying to cover everything at once. For starters, then, the question is: does Agrarianism mean we should cease and desist from shopping for the best buy? Should we necessarily pay more for hand-made items made locally? (more…)

First, let’s lay out the landscape of the phenomenology of Halloween as it is experienced in America. Then, let’s analyze its propriety. There are two axes of analysis that I will highlight. (more…)

This may be the first east-west German reconciliation movie ever, having been begun on the east side before the wall fell, and completed after. (more…)

It was completely unexpected. With 17 games left in the season, they were seven back. Team #14 playing in City #1 had dominated the National East since the very first game of the season. For the last month, we were hoping to catch up with and hold the wild-card spot. There was no hope of taking the division. Nevertheless, when the last game was played, the group commonly known as the “Phillies” were on top, one game ahead of the group commonly known as the “Mets.” (more…)

One of the stock political villains of my Republican youth was George McGovern. As a teenager with a head addled by congeries of contradictory ideas that perhaps only the Republican Party of the second half of the twentieth century has had the audacity to simultaneously advocate (small government, yet world imperialism; low taxes, yet massive welfare state; localism, yet pro-“civil rights” movement), I saw McGovern as the epitome at once of socialism and stupidity. Never mind that there was not much content behind my judgment. (more…)

Perhaps the title is something of a stretch, but Wittgenstein does make numerous comments that fit within an agrarian outlook. Along with his distrust of science, his attitude towards culture, aesthetics, tradition, religion and life share much in common with Virgil, the Old South, the Inklings, the Vanderbilt agrarians, and to a certain extent, Jefferson. (more…)

My colleague has begun to address some of the issues of the philosophy of science (see e.g. review of Gordon Clark on science), but it is also necessary to explore some of the broader issues involved in science.

Below are a few Wittgenstein quotes on science. (more…)

The story is of a couple with a young son and daughter in East Berlin during a time period spanning the fall of the communist German Democratic Republic (GDR) in 1990. In the late 1970s, the father defects to the west without the rest of the family. (more…)

The basic thesis will be that neither the definition of the basic unit, nor division by ten, is particularly scientific. Once stated, the truth of the thesis (more…)

Most of us know our own national anthem and possibly even Canada’s (“O Canada”). Like most familiar things, though, we often fail to reflect on the meaning of the words. But it is worth doing. For national anthems provide a picture into the heart (more…)

Normally, one assumes the Atlanta Braves will win the National East. This year, they fumbled. But the Mets were ready (more…)