Edit: Please note that this is NOT a prediction of a coup on my part. Just an observation that people seem suddenly very worried, which is interesting in its own right.
The Ballad of Reading Gaol as a rejection of all law and politics, or: humanism as anarchic aspiration
For he who lives more lives than one More deaths than one must die. -Section III They think a murderer's heart would taint Each simple seed they sow.It is not true! God's kindly earth Is kindlier than men know,And the red rose would but blow more red, The white rose whiter blow. -Section IV 1. When I was young, … Continue reading The Ballad of Reading Gaol as a rejection of all law and politics, or: humanism as anarchic aspiration
Some hard but important truths for the left
*If you are doing politics, you are a politician. It doesn't matter if you're a political theorist, a trotskyist activist, an Instagram tankie, a podcast host or if you just tweet sometimes. Just because you're not getting paid doesn't change this. As a politician it is your job to win people over to your point … Continue reading Some hard but important truths for the left
A modest proposal concerning University admissions
In my country we use a system called the ATAR, which is based on internal and external grades and rankings. The only thing I will say to commend it is it's vastly superior to the American system. This is because doesn't require any students to write a cloying, narcissistic admissions essay in which they outline … Continue reading A modest proposal concerning University admissions
Soft and sourceless light: Lyrics of my first song
You were with me at pink dawn on the cliff overlooking oceans The sun smashed up through sea and with a quiet yawn we watched The illumination of a cold and dewy tree You were with me at pink dawn I had known you in the soft and sourceless light as Our threshing trembling limbs … Continue reading Soft and sourceless light: Lyrics of my first song
The real climax of Call Me By Your Name
So I watched CMBYN for the first time on Sunday, and I have a theory about the real climax of the film. Maybe it's a bit pretentious for someone who has seen the film once to share a theory in a world of super fans, but here goes. As we've all noticed, the question "is … Continue reading The real climax of Call Me By Your Name
When people ask me how I write about so many different things and have so many ideas…
Deliberately awful ideas for aspiring authors
Almost anyone can, with careful prose and years of practice, take a brilliant idea and make at least an okay story out of it. But taking an awful idea and making it work- that's the sign of a true master (is it? I dunno, but it sounded cool).And who knows, maybe some of them will … Continue reading Deliberately awful ideas for aspiring authors
Welfare economics for humans
At the moment I’m doing a PhD in political economy. I am about six months in and as part of the process I have to write up a precis of my thesis and its core arguments. I thought it might be nice to share it here, so the thesis can benefit from the wisdom and … Continue reading Welfare economics for humans
You don’t have a first amendment right not to be censored on Facebook, but maybe you should.
One of the funniest things on the internet is when people claim that Facebook deleting their posts is forbidden by the first amendment of the United States. As a matter of contemporary legal theory, they haven’t got a leg to stand on. Yet I want to argue that maybe, in a better world, they’d be … Continue reading You don’t have a first amendment right not to be censored on Facebook, but maybe you should.
DePonySum 