Elon Musk and his tech bros-in-arms are winning the global battle for the truth

Carole Cadwalladr It was a breaking news alert to lift the spirits and make the heart sing. A tech billionaire arrested as he stepped off his private jet and detained by the French authorities. Happy days! Because while the UK police have been charging individuals who incited violence online during this summer’s riots, the man who helped to fuel… Read More Elon Musk and his tech bros-in-arms are winning the global battle for the truth

The liberating truth is: they’re probably not thinking about you

What I eventually figured out – not that it ever seems to get particularly easy – is that other people’s negative emotions are ultimately a problem that belongs to them. And you have to allow other people their problems. Oliver Burkeman People-pleasing tendencies develop for different specific reasons, but right at the core of all… Read More The liberating truth is: they’re probably not thinking about you

Study arts and humanities because you love them (and so do employers, by the way)

Whatever their GCSE results, students should be told the whole story: understanding languages and cultures is a huge advantage in the workplace Xaymaca Awoyungbo I reflect on GCSE results day with a sense of pride tinged with sadness. Proud because this year’s cohort achieved fantastic results, given the challenges they have faced since the pandemic,… Read More Study arts and humanities because you love them (and so do employers, by the way)

Against the Illusion of Separateness: Pablo Neruda’s Beautiful Nobel Acceptance Speech (1971)

First posted December 31, 2018 By Maria Popova “There is no insurmountable solitude. All paths lead to the same goal: to convey to others what we are. And we must pass through solitude and difficulty, isolation and silence in order to reach forth to the enchanted place where we can dance our clumsy dance…” By… Read More Against the Illusion of Separateness: Pablo Neruda’s Beautiful Nobel Acceptance Speech (1971)

Frameworks

Knowledge is often a matter of discovery. But when the nature of an enquiry itself is at question, it is an act of creation NB: Physical reality is one thing, the ethical domain another. Sometimes the two intersect, as in global warming. But in either case, the ‘framing inquiry’ is about something – otherwise the… Read More Frameworks

I myself am a woman: Selected Writings of Ding Ling (1904-1986)

First posted October 15, 2019 In the winter of 1930, the father of Ding Ling’s child and 23 other Communist activists and writers were executed by Chiang Kai-shek. Her response was swift and irrevocable: she joined the revolutionary struggle I MYSELF AM A WOMAN: Selected Writings of Ding Ling.  Reviewed by Susan Brownmiller (1989) (Scroll… Read More I myself am a woman: Selected Writings of Ding Ling (1904-1986)

South Asian University Issues Notice to PhD Student Who Cited Criticism of Modi: Report

According to the Indian Express, the university also initiated a disciplinary inquiry against the student’s supervisor, who subsequently resigned. New Delhi: The citation of American linguist Noam Chomsky’s criticism of the Narendra Modi government in a doctoral research proposal has resulted in a show-cause notice for the PhD scholar and a disciplinary inquiry against his supervisor… Read More South Asian University Issues Notice to PhD Student Who Cited Criticism of Modi: Report

Academic research on Rushdie’s literary work sabotaged by Deoband Ulema / Resist the Climate of Intimidation in Academics

First posted April 25, 2012 NB: Over the past four months, the Deoband Ulema has contributed to the climate of intolerance and religious bigotry in India. First by opposing Rushdie’s presence at the Jaipur Literature Festival, and now by sabotaging a perfectly legitimate subject for research. In the first instance they succeeded by riding on the… Read More Academic research on Rushdie’s literary work sabotaged by Deoband Ulema / Resist the Climate of Intimidation in Academics

Encountering the Bhakt: Transformation in Religious Thought

Two examples from mediaeval Odisha’s bhakti tradition show how debates and differences about the sacred were part of devotional practice, and not forced onto us after the institutionalisation of modern, secular, and democratic visions… Each bhakt’s quest toward their own self, or own language, was a gesture to a universal appeal. ABINASH DASH CHOUDHURY Over… Read More Encountering the Bhakt: Transformation in Religious Thought