Late last year Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology published a study titled “The Immigrant Paradox: Immigrants are Less Antisocial Than Native Born Americans.” Given how closely certain sections of the blogosphere cover all things ethnic I was a tad surprised to find that no one has been talking about this paper and its conclusions. This […]
It is unusual for me to read a book aimed at popular conservative audiences. I am something of a disaffected conservative. Crony capitalism and government overreach have proved to be bipartisan endeavors, and I have long lost faith that the Republican party can ever be more than an organ of America’s governing elite. [1] Outside […]
This video is worth your time. It is long. But it is worth your time. Murray & Putnam: Is Class Division Tearing U.S. Apart? from The Aspen Institute 2012e– and The Atlantic on FORA.tv A longer post on similar themes is in the works. Until that post is completed this is an excellent place to […]
This post was originally published in December 2010. A comment thread at Zenpundit’s place has inspired me to resurrect it. I recently read a book by survivalist blogger James Wesley Rawles, How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It. This reading has prompted a few thoughts on the aims and validity of […]
Infographic from Ty Morteson. Image Source.One might add “Governments consistently bails out corporate interests with tax-payer money” to the center of the diagram. Several months ago I published a post that describes how the extreme partisanship emanating from Washington is a really just a surface veneer that covers a plutocratic consensus lying beneath. [1] Ashwin Parameswaran, blogging […]
How can America craft a new grand strategy? The example of Jia Yi – a famous Chinese statesman and thinker who failed to convince his dynasty to adopt the strategy he proposed – can help us understand the central role that culture and a sense of national mission play in the creation of national strategy. Jia Yi was a strategist born […]
In a recent post titled “The Rule of Law and the Ruling Class in American History” I suggested that observing which parts of the American people could break laws with impunity and which parts were certain to be punished for doing so can shed light on the inner workings of American society during any particular […]
Earlier this week a story dropped into my inbox that was ideally suited for meeting the Stage’s stated mission to investigate “intersection of governance, ecology, demographics, culture, history, and security”: APNewsBreak: Nearly 1 in 4 Fails Military Exam Christine Armario and Dorie Turner. Associated Press. 21 December 2010. Nearly one-fourth of the students who try to join […]
Consider the following: Social norms are customary rules of behavior that coordinate our interactions with others. 1.A Culture is ultimately a social phenomena; the phrase “cultural norms” should be regarded as synonymous with “social norms.” Social norms influence all interpersonal decisions an individual may make. 2.A. By extension, social norms are the basis of the […]
It does not matter who you are or where you come from. In America, if you study long enough and work hard enough you can become anything. Every American child has heard this story. It is a shame it is not true. Earlier this year the OECD published a report on the various economic policies […]
