Abbreviated version of a chapter from my new book, „The Predictable Collapse of Techno-Civilization,“ published in English translation on Amazon. Brave, Poor Europe! weiterlesen
Kategorie: general
Oh Mirror Mirror on the wall – Who is the fairest of them all?
For the longest time in history, this question was rather easy to answer. The highest prestige was enjoyed by people who explained the meaning of world and life. These were mainly priests and wise men, because such meaning lay in the decree of the gods or the eternal orders of nature, which in turn conditioned correct moral action on the part of man. Oh Mirror Mirror on the wall – Who is the fairest of them all? weiterlesen
Wrong: Checkmate! Ukraine will capitulate and Europe is brought to its knees
Self-correction two days after publication. The demand for payment in rubles could have led to a halt in gas supplies and the destructive economic and social effects mentioned below. However, Putin left himself a loophole (see footnote *0* below). Nevertheless, I am not deleting the article because it shows Europe’s fatal dependence on foreign resources and its possible consequences.
Wrong: Checkmate! Ukraine will capitulate and Europe is brought to its knees weiterlesenFriends and Foes – German (Self)Righteousness
It happens that sharp-eyed psychologists are amazed at how similar people, e.g. men and women, can become when they are together for years, e.g. in a marriage. Malicious voices even claim that such similarity may frequently be observed between a dog and its master (mistress). Both then seems to become each others strange counterfeits. We need not find this surprising: a close coexistence inevitably leads to an alignment of habits, views, preferences, and antipathies – otherwise a close coexistence would not come about in the first place. Friends and Foes – German (Self)Righteousness weiterlesen
The Fires spewed by the Dragon – How Tradition Lives on in China
Notes on the China book by Desmond Shum (Red Roulette: An Insider’s Story of Wealth, Power, Corruption, and Vengeance in Today’s China)
The Fires spewed by the Dragon – How Tradition Lives on in China weiterlesenBrotherly Love the Russian way – Struggling for the New World Order
The Russian president recently let the world know that the Ukrainians are a nation of brothers, but that they have been subjected to Western brainwashing which turned them into Nazis. Apparently, he assumes that the largest and most powerful among the brothers, the Russians, are legitimized to impose their law on the smaller and weaker ones, that is, to bring them under the Russian heel. Brotherly Love the Russian way – Struggling for the New World Order weiterlesen
(5) The Familiar and the Commonplace
Our relationship to miracles and the miraculous is ambivalent. On the one hand, we crave the extraordinary and devour all reports and rumors of the occurrence of an event believed impossible; on the other hand, we fear such events because we perceive the unplanned, unwanted, unforeseen as a threat to our security. By contrast, the attitude of science is unambiguous. It scorns the miracle and mocks all who believe in it. If the validity of the laws of nature does by definition not allow any exception, there can be no miracles. (5) The Familiar and the Commonplace weiterlesen
Saint Sebastian’s Victory
You may admire the man him for this masterful move, were it not for the fact that the brilliant rochade from chancellor to party and club chairman is as perfidious as it is ingenious. Perfidious because it damages Austrian democracy. Saint Sebastian’s Victory weiterlesen
Saint Sebastian (Kurz) – an Austrian martyr?
„It seems I am to be blamed for everything!“ With such a retort to the accusation of corruption, Austria’s chancellor on call, Sebastian Kurz, staked out his line of defense. Since the ÖVP’s coalition partner, the Greens, have certified him unfit for office because from now on he would be mainly concerned with justifying himself to a judiciary that accuses him of systematically embezzling taxpayers‘ money for ad campaigns in favor of his own party and person, it is foreseeable that he will be toppled on Tuesday next week by a vote of no confidence by the opposition and his coalition partner, the Greens. Will this end Sebastian Kurz’s meteoric rise to the position of Austria’s youngest chancellor ever?
Saint Sebastian (Kurz) – an Austrian martyr? weiterlesenTax Reform
It is worthwhile to think thoughts through to their logical conclusion, e.g. tax reform. What does a tax system look like that is both socially just and ecologically accurate and guarantees a minimum income for all citizens? A century and a half ago, John Stuart Mill considered only the taxation of consumption to be socially just. Tax Reform weiterlesen
Germany – a Banana Republic?
The critics of representative democracy suspect it of disenfranchising voters because they are prevented from voting directly on legislative proposals. This accusation ignores social reality, which has changed fundamentally since ancient Greece and the Germanic Thing, where free men (women were still excluded) decided on war and peace and many other basic concerns. Modern society has become so complex that most decisions require technical expertise that can only be provided by specialists. Germany – a Banana Republic? weiterlesen
Global Arena: China and the Dialectics of Freedom
If the world were a racetrack in which nations compete for victory and medals, we would admire the mighty catching-up nations that are surging ahead. These include China and India – Russia would like to join them. Western countries still claim the first position, but we see them torn by the strongest internal contradictions and social protests. This is especially true of the United States.
Global Arena: China and the Dialectics of Freedom weiterlesen