May was a busy month between stacking up 10 cords of firewood for next winter and getting started on gardening, so I didn't do as much reading, or writing, as I would have liked.
Links
Miscellaneous
- Abortion is an Economic Issue, by Hanna Brooks Olsen, Medium—Economy
- Why I Left the Pro-Life Movement
, by Sarah Olson, Medium—Human Parts
"I protested abortion for years. But when I saw how the movement’s beliefs harm women, I realized I had to get out." - The Debate of the Century or a Waste of Time? by Jackie Thornhill, Medium
"Everything you need to know about today’s debate between Jordan Peterson and Slavoj Žižek"
Well, maybe not everything. But apparently Žižek mopped the floor with Peterson, and that is good news.
"Hopefully Jordan Peterson learned the most important lesson — he may have a devoted fan base and legions of followers, but he’s not the heavyweight public intellectual he pretends to be. Perhaps next time Peterson will think twice before challenging someone like Žižek."
Collapse
- (Why) American Collapse is Extraordinary, by Umair Haque, Medium—Eudaimonia
Of course some will say that what Mr. Haque calls collapse is just change, albeit for the worse. But slow collapse is made up of many such changes.
Others will say that his use of the word "fascist" is imprecise and inaccurate. Looking back, a few decades from now, I think those same people will have to admit while twenty first century American "fascist" may not have fitted a precise academic definition, they eventually had much the same effect as twentieth century fascists. - Civilisational collapse has a bright past – but a dark future, by Luke Kemp, Aeon
- Civilisation peaked in 1940 and will collapse by 2040: the data-based predictions of 1973, from Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) News, via Aeon
Peak Oil
- Oil is the Economy: #FuturesRadio, podcast with Art Berman
Direct link to podcast audio. - Greens call for ban on foreign oil imports, using Alberta oil instead, by Mia Rabson, The Canadian Press—Yahoo News
Something surprising from Elizabeth May, the leader of Canada's Green Party.
Climate Change
- Names and Locations of the Top 100 People Killing the Planet, by Jordan Engel, Portside
- Greenwashing the Climate Catastrophe, by Kenn Orphan, Wrong Kind of Green
Economic Contraction
- The Economy Continues To Deteriorate, by Investment Research Dynamics
This article is right about the state of the economy, but it doesn't go deep enough when it talks about the causes. Why is the economy contracting and why is debt being used to keep it going? Clearly, decreasing surplus energy is the underlying cause.
Energy
- Food or energy? The battle over the future of Australia's prime agricultural land, by Eliza Beck, ABC News
Hazard and Risk
- Odds of Dying: What You Should Really Worry About, by Robert Roy Britt, Medium—Luminate
Agriculture
- Farm Babe: Hey Natalie Portman, here’s why your term ‘factory farm’ is so offensive, by Michelle Miller, Farm Babe, AG DAily
Genetic Engineering
Before jumping to the erroneous conclusion that this section was paid for by Monsanto, stop for a moment and understand that organic agriculture/food is a multi-billion dollar per year industry that relies on fear to get people to buy its product. Millions of dollars are spent to convince you that non-organic food is dangerous. In fact both conventionally grown and organic foods are equally safe. Sadly neither method of agriculture is even remotely substainable.
- Do GMO Opponents Have a Problem with Cheese?, by Kevin Bonham, Scientific American
Practical Skills
- Medieval wood riving – An attempt to recreate craftsmanship, Örebro läns museum
Debunking Resources
These are of such importance that I've decide to leave them here on an ongoing basis.
- Debunking, Wikipedia
- Pseudoscience, Wikipedia
- List of topics characterized as pseudoscience, Wikipedia
- Rational Wiki
- Science Based Medecine
- Quackwatch
- Snopes, debunks or validates urban legends
- Bad Astronomy
- The Skeptics Society
Science Based Medicine
- Moms Across America sells product linked to cancer and kidney failure, by Stephan Neidenbach, Medium
- Dangerous DIY Sunscreen Recipes Are Spreading on Pinterest, by Angela Lashbrook, Medium—OneZero
There is No God, and Thou Shall Have No Other Gods
I don't think I've made any secret of the fact that I am an atheist, but I may not have made it clear that I think any sort of worship is a bad thing and that believing in things is to be avoided whenever possible. Indeed, I do not believe in belief itself. That's what the "Thou shall have no other gods" is about—it's not enough to quit believing in whatever God or Gods you were raised to believe in, but also we must avoid other gods, including material wealth, power and fame.
- If God Is Dead, Your Time Is Everything, by James Wood, The New Yorker
A lengthy look at various views of what it means to be secular, as opposed to religious. Concentrating in particular on Martin Hägglund’s view, as articulated in his book This Life: Secular Faith and Spiritual Freedom. - The Cult of the Good Christian Woman, by Sarah Olson, Medium—Human Parts
"The community that raised me is pushing an ideal for women that is repressive and damaging."
Poverty, Homeless People, Minimum Wage, UBI, Health Care, Housing
- 'It’s a miracle': Helsinki's radical solution to homelessness, by Jon Henley, The Guardian
- Why should governments give cash-handouts before providing free, quality public services to all? UBI without quality public services is a neo-liberal paradise., by Rosa Pavanelli , Open Democracy
"What the studies do demonstrate is that giving cash payments to the poorest helps improve their lives and does not increase wasteful spending or laziness as many right wing politicians would have us believe. "
"When we manage to build the political will to raise the substantial extra funds required to fight inequality – then surely funding public health, transport, housing and education would be our key priority?"
Autonomous Vehicles and Artificial Intelligence
- 10 Surprising Things About Riding in a Self-Driving Taxi, by Hope King, Medium—Cheddar
Books
Fiction
- Dead Water, by Ann Cleeves, book 5 in the Shetland Series
- Against A Dark Background, by Iain M. Banks
- The Protectors War, by S. M. Stirling
Non-Fiction
- The Cancer Chronicles, by George Johnson
"Unlocking Medicine's deepest mystery."
An excellent reality based survey of what we know, and can do, about cancer.
