The purpose of this blog is to provide a fresh context to some of the many social and ethical issues which divide us. A fresh perspective appears by asking: what distinguishes propaganda, self-deception, and ideology from critical thought–in religions, new and old, politics, economics etc? Besides the blog there is a full website with articles about propaganda, critical thought, terrorism etc. at propagandaandcriticalthought.com/home/
In the celebrated film Space Odyssey 2001 the spaceship and its crew symbolize humanity. The ship’s computer, Hal, steals more from them than their navigation and destiny. He robs them of their consciousness. To expand this myth, Hal stands for all forces, like indoctrination, propaganda, and self-deception, which rob human beings of their ability to […]
Story-telling myths exist in fictional realms which point to ideals in real life. The tale of Cinderella and the prince signals, for example, an ideal happiness wished for every loving couple. Visits to earth by aliens from other planets express human longing to interact with other life-forms beyond earth’s lonely orbit. “Sherlockian” powers of acute […]
In any sales presentation or debate, presidential ones included, a spew of facts and options may be delivered with such speed that, intentionally or not, listeners and viewers are given insufficient time to absorb and reflect. The phrase “Would you vote for or buy from this person?” reflects unfairly on many, though not all, presenters […]
In his piece “On Liberty” philosopher John Stuart Mill valued eccentricity as a surprisingly close partner to authentic freedom, as if perspectives from the comic “far-side” are crucial for getting to the heart of any matter. In his writings overall and in his blog, Haystack, Edward Hays’ post “Tending your little Spark,” beautifully confirms a similar […]
If you scan faces at a political convention, you will see some which don’t look very with-it; and others who seem very intelligent and alert. Yet many, if not most, variously succumb to mass suggestion. Why? Perhaps because intellectuals can be controlled, as much as any of us, by unexamined assumptions, by fear, and by […]