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Some Resources for the Budding Apolitical Realist
The 2016 electoral season is upon us and with it the headaches of petty tribalism, friendships being defined based on which candidate you (or you do not) back, and a 24-hour news cycle devoted to the...
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Some Thoughts from Branden’s The Psychology of Romantic Love
The structure and nature of romantic love has been a research interest of mine for a while now. While at Penn, I worked with a professor of Philosophy on issues of moral psychology; specifically, we...
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On Self-Failure
I failed myself on Saturday. I failed to meet the standards I laid out for myself in my Project for Individual Excellence (PIE) by not authoring a blog post that day. I could tell myself that I was...
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Three Cheers For The Remnant! Or, Why Movements Are Less Important Than You...
There exist things in the world that drive people to action. There exist things from which they can derive meaning and significance for their actions. It is entirely natural that people are attracted...
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The Ayn Rand Characters You Meet In College
Critics malign Ayn Rand’s characters as two-dimensional and unrealistic, and they can appear to be at times. “Few people can really be this obsequious, transparently selfless, and constantly looking...
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Part II of My Series on Social Change at FEE
Part II of my series on social change at FEE is now live. In this part, I focus on the important role played by a small group — usually lacking central organization or command-order — in protecting...
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Politics Makes People Mean
One of my Facebook friends recently posted a status that went something like this: I know I am going to lose some friends over this, but I have to say it. If you are our age and a member of/vote for...
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New Book: Freedom Without Permission out June 1
Freedom Without Permission: How to Live Free in a World That Isn’t is a collection of four essays by myself and three others on the importance of self-governance for the individual. Throughout the...
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The Heroism of Phoenix, AZ
The flourishing valley of Phoenix, Arizona is a testament to man’s ability to be the primary driving force in his universe. Phoenix, Arizona doesn’t strike somebody as a glorious testament to progress...
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This Philosopher Says You Don’t Need a PhD to Be a Philosopher
Steve Patterson is a freelance philosopher…who doesn’t have a PhD (or even an undergraduate degree in philosophy). Spending his time primarily on issues of philosophy of mind and epistemology, Steve...
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Why Philosophy Matters: Let’s Think Clearly About Our Lives
It’s back-to-school time and millions of young Americans are off to participate in the ritual of taking required classes for four years and somehow becoming a more well-rounded person and a better...
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Why Philosophy Matters: Live With Integrity
In yesterday’s post, I defended the study of philosophy by non-philosophers for the value its analytic tools give us. Philosophy is the discipline and set of tools through which we live our lives in...
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Why Don’t Philosophers Grapple With Love?
While studying philosophy in college, I was given the opportunity to have a research project supported by the University. I had been working with a professor on moral psychology of guilt, contempt,...
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Work Ethic as Necessary for Fulfillment
Work ethic is at the core of becoming a fulfilled person. If you’re somebody who pursues work as a way to fulfillment, failing to have good work ethic will make it impossible for you to truly become...
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The Conditions for Romantic Love
This is one of a series of posts on the issues of romantic love. Check out my first post here. The issue of romantic love is a loaded topic. In the English language, we use the word “love” to describe...
View ArticleHow to Change the World, Starting Now
This is based on my talk I gave on Saturday at the Ohio State University in Columbus, OH at the Ohio Students For Liberty Regional Conference. You can find the slides here. I want to start off by...
View ArticleFour Ways to Think About Changing the World
I recently finished the phenomenal series of essays by Venkatesh Rao, Breaking Smart, focused on how software is eating the world and the implications from this. It’s easily the best thing I have read...
View ArticleOn Resentment, Indignation, and the Emotional Case for Political Diminution
An understanding of the expectations of a given community helps inform where resentment and guilt ought to be targeted in times of crisis. This is hard when your community-of-reference is large. In...
View ArticleWhen Those You Respect Respect You
Thinking of success & excellence as being entirely independent of other people only makes sense in an atomistic world. In reality, those we respect and admire are mirrors for our own values and...
View ArticleHow School Undermines the Self-Efficacy of Recent Grads
Self-efficacy is one of the core concepts in developing a healthy sense of self-esteem. At its basic level, it is a competence and sense of competence about one’s ability to handle life and to navigate...
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