COEXIST, Part 1: Framing the Issue

I frequently see cars with the “Coexist” bumper sticker. When I see them, I often wonder about the person who put the bumper sticker on their car. Why? Are they true believers or virtue signalers? When situations get complicated like that of Israel and Hamas, how will they act? This article, part 1 of 5, provides an introduction and frames the issues.

Truth is the First Casualty of…Unchecked Power

Three years after the US’s catastrophic run from Afghanistan, most Americans have no clue what happened. No one has stood up and taken responsibility. Five years after the killings that triggered Black Lives Matter (BLM) most Americans do not really understand what happened and the surrounding circumstances. Even more recently, most of us do not …

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The I in DIE: Death of Meritocracy

Scene from a coaches conference two weeks before the college national championship game. Coach: You know our starters got us here, but it’s not fair they’ve played every game and we haven’t played many players in the program. I think bringing in the Freshman team for the game will give them some great experience and …

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The E in DIE

Social justice groups use the figure above as a meme to show the DIE (Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity) movement to illustrate equity. If all we are discussing is these three people, then it may make some sense. But there is a broader picture than the three spectators. The stadium owners, the paying fans, and the …

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Standards are the Raw Materials of Virtue: He Who Controls the Standards, Controls Behavior

Standards are the Raw Materials of Virtue: He Who Controls the Standards, Controls Behavior In one sense, virtue is how a society controls and manages behavior. Some systems and societies use virtue to produce beneficent outcomes, while others use virtue, at least as the societal standards define it, to produce power and control. Religions historically …

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Standards, Cultural Relativism, and Broken Windows

Standards, Cultural Relativism, and Broken Windows This blog builds on the prior blogs Virtue: religion and philosophy, what does the founders’ vision embrace? and Virtue and Pandora’s Box: Effective Policy. Pandora’s Box discussed the damage some Victorian virtue policies wrought, but said the social justice movement’s “cure” may be worse than the disease it sought …

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Ethics, Morality, and Virtue: Relative vs. Absolute Meaning

A heart with wings and a compass Description automatically generated with low confidence

Ethics, Morality, and Virtue: Relative vs. Absolute Meaning Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” Genesis 11:4 “Then the queen began to lament and to weep, …

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The Looming NCO Crisis, Part 3: Military Culture

The Looming NCO Crisis, Part 3: Military Culture   Part 1 of this series framed the problem of the looming NCO crisis. Part 2 examined why the recruiting base is so low and ended on the cautionary note that even if the military solved the recruiting crisis, if the culture does not support excellence and …

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The Looming NCO Crisis, Part 2: Why is the Recruit Base so Low?

The Looming NCO Crisis Part 2: Why is the Recruit Base so Low?   Part 1 of this series discussed the low recruiting base for the Army and how that will translate into an NCO crisis. The Chief of Staff of the Army reports that only 23% of Americans in the target age range are …

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Virtue, Wherefore Art Thou?

Virtue, Wherefore Art Thou? The rise of Christianity buried pagan philosophy for centuries as Christianity took control of all aspects of western life. But in 1649, the Treaty of Westphalia broke Christianity’s stranglehold on western life. The treaty ended the brutally destructive Thirty Years’ War, which pit Protestants against Catholics and tore Germany and other …

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Losing the Rule of Law: Eroding Civil Society

The rule of law allowed the US to grow exponentially. It both facilitated foreign investment in railroads and other infrastructure and provided a stable set of rules for the growing civilization. But American culture is increasingly inclined to simply ignore laws people find inconvenient. As we ignore laws, we lose respect for the rule of law and the virtues that allows American to prosper.