We are not in a normal society in terms of history. “We are often so used to liberal societies – or illiberal ones that use liberalism’s language as a mask – that we miss the radicalism of that vision. As… Read More »Collections: The Philosophy of Liberty – On Liberalism
There is login in the madness. “Once balancing fails, everyone’s interests suddenly recalculate in a diametrically opposed way. So long as balancing was possible, it was in most state’s interests to oppose the leading power in an effort to contain… Read More »Collections: The Status Quo Coalition
Adverbs matter. “‘great’ is not the superlative of ‘good’ (that, as a reminder, is ‘best’); I am not asking if the United States has had a positive impact on the world here (once again a deeply subjective question). Instead ‘greatness’… Read More »Collections: Is the United States Exceptional?
Definitions matter. Especially if people want to misuse terms for shady purposes. “by the narrow, technical definition, the United States is not, and has never been, a nation and is unlikely to become one in the near future.” https://acoup.blog/2021/07/02/collections-my-country-isnt-a-nation/
Statistics and stuff. “The first written mention of a controlled trial can be found as early as the 7th century BC in the Book of Daniel 1:11-16. The eponymous prophet asks the steward of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, for… Read More »In Praise of Observational Evidence
Hard topic for me. “what passes for early-career innovation is often a rediscovery of existing techniques, principles, and observations, that when presented as novel insights is read by the rest of the room as inexperience and chutzpah. (That’s been me,… Read More »Good Careers at Bad Companies
Only Carthage really threatened Rome. “Carthage spends a combined forty-years at war with Rome in the third century, peaking at more than 160,000 men in the field, matching Rome on land and at sea, matching the Roman capability of fighting… Read More »Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part V: How a Carthaginian Army Fights
Everyone is using this very old term nowadays.
The process matters.
Show must go on. “Inside companies, this starts at the very top. Even above the execs – at VC level. Because the investors have been promised AI-powered miracles. And this means that execs need to demand AI-powered miracles from their… Read More »Please stop the AI Confidence Theater