Cut-flower ethics is the concept that when an idea is separated from its roots, the manner in which it was developed, it is at great risk of dying. Much like flowers we traditionally send to our loved ones, they are beautiful when first presented but quickly wither and die without the nourishment of the soil transmitted through its deep roots and constant care. Cut-flower ethics is a term I’m borrowing in part from Will Herberg, who coined the term “cut-flower culture.” As for what “cut-flower culture” is, here’s Herberg in his own words:

“The attempt made in recent decades…

“What gets us into trouble is not what we don’t know. It’s what we know for sure that just ain’t so.” — Mark Twain

Rhetoric is a staple of political persuasion tactics, so we should not be surprised by our politicians that use those techniques. But what can be surprising is the effectiveness of those techniques on how we view the world and what we consider to be factual. Trickle-down economics, or the “trickle-down theory,” is one of those rhetorical techniques that has been used so effectively, its existence forms the foundation for how many people characterize a whole…

Individualism, as a means to analyze and operate in the world, is likely the most misunderstood concept in popular political discourse. Descriptions of it from its detractors are rarely articulated as anything outside of being selfish. In truth it is primarily focused on a proper analysis of society through understanding the details of individual incentives and actions, and not a call for individuals to shun any collective action. And to be fair, most people are not very interested in philosophical discussion regardless of how deeply important those ideas are in shaping our culture. Most of us are much more…

Pointing out the faults of extremist ideas in itself is not a position. Although identifying what you do not believe can be critical, it is not a substitute for what you do believe. In an attempt to establish what’s viewed as “balance,” what I see is people placing themselves between two positions that in themselves are outside the realm of American principles and do not actually have any true middle ground. There’s no middle ground between extremists.

Much of what people think of as the political middle today is a category error. They are putting themselves between what amounts…

Ancient battles between paganism and monotheism may be seen today as a battle between postmodern thinking and Enlightenment values. While reading about the evolution of our culture through a religious lens, I could not help but to see the parallels. For political and spiritual reasons, the ancient battle was framed as the idea that if there is one god, then there is one truth, and that truth is universal. Any group of people that holds the keys to the one god and the one truth has carte blanche to impose that truth on those who refuse to see it. …

People will continue to use legal arguments concerning free speech to avoid discussing the moral and ethical implications of censorship. However, our rights to free speech are protected by the Constitution, not created by it.

The Constitution’s 1st Amendment only recognizes the right exists — it reminds us of the of the right, and notifies the federal government they are specifically banned from violating it by stating that “Congress shall make no law… abridging the freedom of speech.” In that text it accepts that freedom of speech already exists, and that Congress cannot restrict it.

All human beings have the…

A friend recently asked me what it was about people like Ibram X. Kendi that irked me so much. Why I felt compelled to review and critique his ideas and those like his. What it was about the concept of “white privilege” that bothered people like me.

And that question sat with me as if somebody left a faucet on. Not running continuously, but dripping. Echoing. Rolling through my brain as I tried to sleep. Allowing just enough time in between drips to allow for some peace. But just as you slip into a dream…another drip. Another echo. …

“Our path is not that of giving conscious support to lies about anything at all.” — Alexander Solzhenitsyn

As he was preparing for arrest in Moscow and an assured exile, Alexander Solzhenitsyn wrote one last essay to the Russian people, giving them instructions on how to fight totalitarianism. After his years in Russian gulags, he was deeply keen to what it took to survive totalitarian oppression, and understood the warning signs of its techniques of total state control. …