humankind

As I see it, the question of consciousness on earth boils down to one of two possibilities. Either we are, as I heard an astronomer say recently, “the universe aware…

The words paradox and contradiction are used interchangeably these days. They aren’t synonymous however, and point to very different phenomena. In the following examples, which is a paradox, and which…

It’s Earth Day 2015, and leading scientists are urgently proposing keeping 75% of fossil fuels in the ground. There’s a macabre symmetry to that, since other scientists predict that by…

Despite the chill, damp and heavy, rain-bearing clouds, I manage a not too uncomfortable hour-long sitting a quarter mile downstream from Cedar Grove. It’s a strange thing to take a…

In ancient times, and not so long ago in many parts of the world, each tradition was completely distinct and whole. Tradition wasn’t something that a people had; it was…

For many years, I thought the American vice (which most of my countrymen still call a virtue) of having things both ways sprang from the mind of Alexander Hamilton, not…

“Speak your truth” is a commonly accepted phrase in North America these days. How widely and well it translates into other languages I don’t know, but it has fingernails on…

Is seeking status an immutable aspect of human nature, as social commentators assume? Or is status seeking, like tribalism/nationalism, something that a modicum of self-knowing and right education can affect…